“The saying is trustworthy, for: If we have died with him, we will also live with him; if we endure, we will also reign with him; if we deny him, he also will deny us; if we are faithless, he remains faithful— for he cannot deny himself” (2 Tim. 2:11-13). These scriptures are not some of the obscure ones that we almost never hear. I am confident that you, the reader, have probably heard it recited before, either by way of a sermon, a Bible class or as proof in an argument of some sort. Either way, I have always loved them because they challenge me to dig a little deeper each time I encounter them. Every verse is worthy of an entire article, but here is a “slightly” brief overview of today’s scriptures.
I always smile when I read the first four words he is using to emphasize the following sentences. I do so because I cannot help but think all the words of the Bible are by definition trustworthy. Of course, this is said in hindsight as I am fully aware that they did not have the privilege of the 66 books of the Bible as we do, but then also I wonder what they would have done if they indeed had it. I can only speculate, but I am sure it would have been quite amazing. Maybe they would have done what we do, consider what we want to be trustworthy, and discard the rest. Maybe they would have argued, as we do, about what this or that means. They actually were doing all that, but at least back then they had the excuse of not having the Bible. We are fortunate to have the words of 2 Tim. 3:16 that serve as the period after the word “trustworthy” – “All Scripture is breathed out by God,” but even that does not help at times.
The next question I ask myself is, “When do we die with Him?” Paul is obviously referring to a specific moment in time since death is not a lingering event. It may take a while to come, but when it does, it is as quick as the last breath takes to leave your lungs. Rom. 6:4a may shed some light on when that specific time occurs for us, “We were buried therefore with him by baptism into death…” So, according to that scripture, our death occurs “by baptism” “into death.” Argue if you like, but for me, it is more than a mere allusion to the practice of baptism by immersion. It also says we will live with Him, as we also read in Rom. 6:4b, “…in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life.” That new life was paid for by the blood of Christ and with obedience, it is “the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen” (Heb. 11:1).
“If we endure” is the fulcrum of obedience. To endure is to suffer through and overcome the trials and tragedies we are certain to face as Christians. We either weigh down on the side of “reigning with Him” or we “give up” and weigh down with sin and the eternal consequences thereof. I would be remiss if I did not quote Jam. 1:12 at this point, “Blessed is the man who remains steadfast under trial, for when he has stood the test he will receive the crown of life, which God has promised to those who love him.” In Jesus’ message to the 7 churches there is mention of the conquerors reigning with Him, but for this article, I will only quote Rev. 3:21, “The one who conquers, I will grant him to sit with me on my throne, as I also conquered and sat down with my Father on his throne.”
Will a faithful, just and fair Christ acknowledge us if we deny Him – of course He will not. Mat. 10:32-33, “So everyone who acknowledges me before men, I also will acknowledge before my Father who is in heaven, but whoever denies me before men, I also will deny before my Father who is in heaven.” Either play silly games and win silly prizes or play for real and win the best prize ever – eternal life. Jesus will not put a good word in for us, He will not appeal on our behalf, and He will not intercede for us if we play “pretend Christian.” Do we think we can fool Him by checking the attendance card on a Sunday morning but living as the world for the rest of the week? We can fool man, but we cannot fool God and denying Him that way is a sure way of discovering the alternative to heaven.
The best part of these verses is the fact that even when we falter, when we “miss the boat” so to speak, we have a God who is faithful despite our lack thereof. He is faithful despite our best efforts before making the transition from the darkness of sin to the glorious light of salvation. Even when we are vile in our former state and persecute the church and denigrate His Holy Name, God will patiently wait for us to change direction. In fact, his faithfulness in that regard is attested to in Rom. 5:8, “…but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”
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