2 Timothy 2:7-10: I Endure All Things for the Elect’s Sakes
2021-12-24
2 Timothy 2:7
Paul asked Timothy to consider his words, but for the Lord to give him understanding. This shows two aspects in acquiring the Word of God. We consider what God says, but He supplies the understanding.
For example: The Lord gave understanding to David for building the Temple (1 Chronicles 22:12; 2 Chronicles 2:12). When we are saved, God gives us understanding: “And we know that the Son of God is come, and hath given us an understanding, that we may know him that is true, and we are in him that is true, even in his Son Jesus Christ. This is the true God, and eternal life” (1 John 5:20). “So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God” (Romans 10:17). Hearing, and by implication, understanding, is how faith is generated in a person.
Therefore, it follows that we are constantly reading and thinking about the Word of God, while trusting that He will provide our understanding. According to 1 Corinthians 2:12-14, we need the Spirit to give us understanding in the Word, because those things are spiritually discerned.
2 Timothy 2:8
The source of contention that causes Paul’s imprisonment and suffering is the Gospel. Paul indicates some elements of interest concerning the Gospel.
Jesus is “of the seed of David.” Why would Paul bring this up here? A probable reason is that the main source of his persecution is the Jews. They were the ones who got him arrested in Jerusalem, and his appeal to Caesar is how he got to Rome. So there is some irony here.
Jesus being the seed of David is significant because the Lord is the fulfillment of the Davidic covenant in 2 Samuel 7. Jesus being a descendant of David is a fulfillment of many Scriptures.
Of the increase of his government and peace there shall be no end, upon the throne of David, and upon his kingdom, to order it, and to establish it with judgment and with justice from henceforth even for ever. The zeal of the LORD of hosts will perform this. (Isaiah 9:7)
And the key of the house of David will I lay upon his shoulder; so he shall open, and none shall shut; and he shall shut, and none shall open. (Isaiah 22:22; cf. Revelation 3:7)
Jesus fulfills the role of Eliakim and fulfills the kingly line of David.
Incline your ear, and come unto me: hear, and your soul shall live; and I will make an everlasting covenant with you, even the sure mercies of David. (Isaiah 55:3; cf. Acts 13:34)
Behold, the days come, saith the LORD, that I will raise unto David a righteous Branch, and a King shall reign and prosper, and shall execute judgment and justice in the earth. (Jeremiah 23:5)
But they shall serve the LORD their God, and David their king, whom I will raise up unto them. (Jeremiah 30:9)
In those days, and at that time, will I cause the Branch of righteousness to grow up unto David; and he shall execute judgment and righteousness in the land. (Jeremiah 33:15)
And I will set up one shepherd over them, and he shall feed them, even my servant David; he shall feed them, and he shall be their shepherd. (Ezekiel 34:23)
Many more passages could be mentioned. When Jesus came, they called Him the son of David. Remember the blind men who called to Jesus so they could be healed: “And when Jesus departed thence, two blind men followed him, crying, and saying, Thou Son of David, have mercy on us” (Matthew 9:27). These men knew who Jesus was, and they knew they could heal them. This is clearly a messianic title they are calling him.
There is a caveat here. Though this is a messianic title and fulfillment of the Davidic covenant, we do not want to elevate the ancestor David above Christ. Jesus Himself warned of this in Matthew 22:41-46. He quotes Psalm 110:1, showing that He is David’s Lord. Today, the temptation is with Jesus’ mother according to the flesh, Mary. One can also elevate the Jewish nation above others because of this, such as done with some Hebrew roots members, hyper-dispensationalists and evangelical Christians. Christ stands alone as Lord; His mother and His nation according to the flesh should not be revered above or equally with Him. There is no one person to be considered more spiritual or more important than another. We all need the Gospel; Christ is the Savior of all.
Resurrection
Jesus “was raised from the dead.” The resurrection is the quintessential doctrine of Christianity. This is what separates our faith from the other so-called faiths of the world. The consequences of a non-literal resurrection are enumerated in 1 Corinthians 15:12-19. We would be liars, we would still be in our sins, we would never see those Christians who have died ever again, and we would only have hope in this life. We would be wasting our lives away if Christ really did not rise from the dead. We should go do something else!
But if Christ is raised, this changes everything. That means Jesus is Lord and we must worship Him. We are accountable to Him. His rising authenticates everything He ever taught. He is our source of life. He is the reason for living. We will be with Him forever.
The Gospel was “my gospel.” Some have read into this that Paul was teaching another Gospel and doing his own thing. We should not read into this too much. The use of the personal pronoun shows his identification with the Gospel; it is important to him.
Consider what Elisabeth says to her cousin who recently became pregnant with Jesus: “And she spake out with a loud voice, and said, Blessed art thou among women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb. And whence is this to me, that the mother of my Lord should come to me?” (Luke 1:42-43). If Elisabeth calls Jesus “my Lord,” does that mean Jesus only belongs to her and not anybody else, not even His own mother? It is absurdity. Jesus is Elisabeth’s Jesus, my Jesus, and your Jesus. Likewise, the Gospel of Jesus Christ is Paul’s gospel, my gospel, and your gospel. It belongs to every believer in Christ.
There was unity between Paul and the leadership of the church in Jerusalem: “Then pleased it the apostles and elders, with the whole church, to send chosen men of their own company to Antioch with Paul and Barnabas; namely, Judas surnamed Barsabas, and Silas, chief men among the brethren” (Acts 15:22). Silas went on to serve with Paul for a long time. “And when James, Cephas, and John, who seemed to be pillars, perceived the grace that was given unto me, they gave to me and Barnabas the right hands of fellowship; that we should go unto the heathen, and they unto the circumcision” (Galatians 2:9).
There is no other Gospel, and Paul’s suffering shows he is doing something right.
2 Timothy 2:9-10
Paul is treated as a criminal because of the Gospel. “Yet if any man suffer as a Christian, let him not be ashamed; but let him glorify God on this behalf” (1 Peter 4:16). If Jesus was condemned for being the Son of God, we can expect the same.
However, though Paul may be bound because of the Gospel, the Word of God still carries its full weight. In Philippians 1:12-18, we see his imprisonment has allowed the Gospel to permeate the halls of Caesar’s palace and many other places. Other believers were encouraged to preach because of Paul’s imprisonment. Paul even applauds the preaching of those who have added to his misery in prison. Whatever his outcome, he wanted to see the Gospel preached everywhere.
In our case today, even churches that believe a lot of wrong things can bear good fruit if they publicly read the Scriptures. The Word changes lives. People can hear and believe the Gospel from the strangest sources. An example is Mark 9:38-41.
We have seen how suffering is worth it because of the rewards it brings. However, another reason is listed here: the elect, “that they may also obtain the salvation which is in Christ Jesus with eternal glory” (2 Timothy 2:10).
This simply means that Paul keeps going because of everyone who is going to be saved through his preaching. People’s eternal life depends on his faithfulness. This is what we need to consider whenever we think we want to give up on following Christ. There are people whom we can reach best. We each have a unique circle of influence.
There have been times I just wanted to give up on any service to the Lord. But then I think of my own children, my friends, family and coworkers, and anybody else that might be near me, and any influence I can have on them for Christ’s sake. People’s eternal life rests on our shoulders. Do not forget that. You may be the only person by whom someone has access to the Gospel. The Lord has called you to do it.