Images of Endurance

My friend Joel also models 2 Timothy 2:2. He was a music minister for 35 years before he and his wife left for Ukraine at age 57! For nine years now, Joel has been training and equipping a handful of "faithful men" to plant churches in the former Soviet Union. When I first met him in Kiev in 2006, he said, "This is the most meaningful ministry of my life." I think Joel discovered what many also discover: the joy of pouring into younger leaders who will teach others. This ministry reinvigorated my older brother, and I find great hope knowing that when I am 65, I too may find such joy in ministry.

Challenge 3: Endure for the Gospel

2 Timothy 2:3-7

To inspire Timothy for faithfulness in ministry, Paul uses three simple but powerful images: the soldier, the athlete, and the farmer. These are some of Paul's favorite images, and he uses them elsewhere to illustrate various truths.

Paul was familiar with Roman soldiers since he was in prison more than once! He notes that a "good" soldier is known for his focus and his willingness to suffer. He tells Timothy to "endure hardship" (2:3 NIV), not "get mad in hardship" or "quit in hardship" or "expect no hardship." Suffering and hardship are part of the life of every Christian. For a pastor-minister, these are only increased.

Ministers often joke about how many times they have resigned on Monday morning! I mean, it would be great to be the guy on the TV show, Diners, Drive-ins, and Dives (who gets to drive around and eat great food!), instead of enduring constant criticism, unpredictable giving patterns, the burden of reconciling marriages, or the weekly pressure of sermon preparation—not to mention having your life threatened on the mission field! However, Christ has not called us to a life of ease but a life of endurance. By the grace that is in Jesus, we are called to put a165 helmet on and stay in the battle until our commander says the war is over! We need Green Berets for Jesus!

Paul adds in verse 4 that the good soldier does not get "entangled in the concerns of civilian life; he seeks to please the recruiter." Soldiers live with the awareness that a war is going on. There is a sense of concentration, austerity, self-denial, and disregard for trivial matters.

Of course, this does not mean that Christians in general or pastors in particular should neglect family life or healthy vacation time. Paul was speaking here of a mind-set and a mission. How easy is it for us to get distracted by things that simply do not matter? Are any good things keeping you from doing the main things? Are you entangled with stuff that is keeping you from making disciples among all nations? We remedy this problem by remembering that our chief aim must be to please Jesus. Fight the good fight—the one Jesus has called you to fight.

Later Paul tells Timothy not to "fight about words" (2:14), to "avoid irreverent, empty speech" (2:16), and to "flee from youthful passions" (2:22). What is entangling you? Augustine said, "The love of worldly possessions entangles the soul and keeps it from flying to God." Are you all tied up with greed, a quest for control, senseless controversies, or youthful passions? Let your passion be singular: to please the One who enlisted you.

Once again Paul draws on an analogy with which he was familiar. As a leatherworker (or tent-maker), Paul would have been around the Greek games often. He did not point out a particular sport but simply spoke of "an athlete" to make his point about discipline. In every sport the athlete must compete "according to the rules" if he is to be "crowned." To receive the evergreen wreath of the Greek games, the athlete must avoid unfair tactics. Perhaps if Paul were alive today, he would have added, "Athletes cannot use performance enhancing drugs" or, "Baseball pitchers cannot scuff the baseball."

To be a winner, you must play by the rules. And to be a winner, you must train. Paul tells Timothy elsewhere, "Train yourself in godliness" (1 Tim 4:7). There are no shortcuts in sports. It requires discipline. Millions admire athletes, but few imitate them. Many enjoy their performances, but few watch and attempt their training. And many Christians want God's blessing on their life without playing by His rules. Please166 understand, Paul was not talking about rule-keeping to earn salvation. He was talking about the desire of every true believer: to walk in godliness in accordance with God's Word. We have "rules" by which we are to live; our lives are to be governed by the Bible. For example, God tells believers to marry other believers. He tells us to share our faith, to pray, to give financially to His mission, and more. We cannot take shortcuts, either redefining God's truth or disobeying it. If we want the reward of faithfulness, we must compete according to God's standards (cf. 2 Tim 4:7-8; 1 Cor 3:10-15; 9:24-27). Once again, we do this by "the grace that is in Christ Jesus" (2 Tim 2:1). If athletes can train and compete for trophies and men's applause, how much more should we train and sweat for that which is eternal!

Just as with soldiers and athletes, farmers cannot take any shortcuts either. They must toil every day. The difference with this illustration is that farming, unlike athletics and sometimes the military, is not glorious or exciting. The farmer is not applauded by fans or civilians. He does not call a press conference when he bales his hay!

This is a good analogy for ministry. Pastoral work is not glamorous. It involves sowing, planting, plowing, and monitoring. Farming is also like pastoral work in that it is endless. The farmer does not clock in and clock out. He gets up early, he works the field, he cares for the animals,... and he shoots wolves! He is devoted to his work.

Paul adds that the hardworking farmer deserved the first "share of the crops." The farmer gets to enjoy some of the fruit of his labor. This is the other side to farming and likewise to pastoral work. There are tremendous blessings involved in watching people grow in holiness, seeing skeptics converted, and watching mission projects develop. Slow, careful, faithful pastoral ministry eventually produces because we reap what we sow (Gal 6:7-8). Therefore, "we must not get tired of doing good, for we will reap at the proper time if we don't give up" (Gal 6:9). If the famer does not plow, he will not reap. Paul told Timothy (and us) to "keep plowing."

Paul concluded these examples by saying, "Consider what I say, for the Lord will give you understanding in everything" (v. 7). Here is Bible Study 101! Students of Scripture must "consider" God's Word carefully in order to understand it. Students of Scripture should also study with this promise in view: "The Lord will give you understanding in everything." Do not be lazy in Bible study. Work hard and believe that God167 will help you uncover its truths. To be a great student of Scripture, you need hard work and a heart of humility.

Challenge 4: Remember the Hero of the Gospel

2 Timothy 2:8-13

In order to endure to the end, through the good seasons and the difficult seasons, believers must never lose sight of Jesus. Paul says, "Keep your attention on Jesus Christ" (v. 8). At first glance this may seem like an unnecessary statement. How could you possibly forget Him? However, Stott reminds us, "The human memory is notoriously fickle: it is possible to forget even one's own name!" (Stott, Message, 61). Israel suffered from spiritual memory loss, which led them down a pitiful path of unfaithfulness and idolatry (see Ps 106:19-21). Certainly, there are many occasions in which the church and her leaders have forgotten whose people they are and whose mission they have joined. One must be careful not to make ministry a mere profession in which the person of Jesus Christ is pushed to the fringes of importance. Christ is to be central and preeminent in ministry.

Remembering Jesus involves keeping both His person and His work central. Paul says that Christ is "risen from the dead and descended from David." Here Paul affirmed Christ's person as fully divine, "risen from the dead" (cf. Rom 1:4), and fully human, "descended from David." He also affirmed Christ's work. Jesus died in our place for our sins, He rose from the grave, He conquered our enemies, and now He sits at the Father's right hand.

When your tank is empty, remember that the tomb is empty and the throne is occupied. You can endure anything if you have sufficient motivation. A lofty vision of the person and work of Christ will keep us in the war, in the game, and on the farm.

Paul adds that this is "according to my gospel" (v. 8). His gospel was occupied with the Hero of the gospel. And this was not a mere theological exercise for Paul. He personally experienced the transforming power of Jesus. Paul went from a terrorist to an evangelist! It is for the Hero of the gospel that he was suffering to the point of "being bound like a criminal" (v. 9). Paul encouraged Timothy with the reminder that he was enduring suffering with this vision of Christ, even as he penned this letter.

Paul knew that the Hero of the gospel is also powerful enough to keep His word advancing despite imprisonment. He says, "But God's message is not bound." Paul alluded earlier to the fact that God is the168 ultimate guardian of the gospel who will keep what was entrusted to Paul (1:12). Not only will God preserve His Word, but He will also make sure that it is not bound. Opponents may chain the messengers, but the sovereign Christ will make sure they cannot chain the message.

Further, Paul writes that because of this gospel and the glory of Christ, he would "endure all things for the elect: so that they also may obtain salvation, which is in Christ Jesus, with eternal glory" (v. 10). The doctrine of election did not make Paul's preaching of the gospel unnecessary, but rather it made it essential! God has ordained that people find salvation in Christ by means of a gospel presentation. Some people will believe if you will preach the gospel faithfully. And our gospel witness will require varying degrees of suffering, but we suffer that they may experience "eternal glory."

Finally, Paul quotes a popular saying of his time, which reinforces the idea that all believers must endure hardship. This trustworthy saying in 2 Timothy 2:11 may have been the fragment of an early hymn. It consists of two pairs of sayings, which are general truths of the Christian's life. The first pair relates to those who endure faithfully; the second pair describes those who are unfaithful. First, "If we have died with Him, we will also live with Him; if we endure, we will also reign with Him" (vv. 11-12). The idea of dying with Him to live with Him probably refers to dying to self, as we take up our cross to follow Jesus. Jesus said, "Whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life because of Me and the gospel will save it" (Mark 8:35). In order to truly live, believers must die. This view certainly fits the context, in which Paul was telling Timothy to lay down his comfort for Christ and His gospel. But not just for Timothy. All believers are called to a life of dying. If we do endure, then, as Paul quotes from the hymn, "We will also reign" with Christ. However, only if we share in Christ's sufferings now will we reign later.

The next pair of statements describes the awful picture of denying Christ, proving faithless: "If we deny Him, He will also deny us; if we are faithless, He remains faithful, for He cannot deny Himself" (vv. 12-13). This first statement also seems to echo the teaching of Jesus in the context of a discourse on persecution: "But whoever denies Me before men, I will also deny him before My Father in heaven" (Matt 10:33). The meaning of Paul's statement in 2 Timothy 2:12b, then, in light of this connection with Matthew 10, is clear: we must not deny our Lord.169

But what about the next statement—"If we are faithless, He remains faithful"—how are we to understand this expression? Some take verse 13 to refer to the idea that even if we turn away from Jesus, He will not turn away from us. Others find this to mean that if we are unfaithful, He remains faithful... to His own character, which in this case would include rejecting the faithless. One group sees this verse as a word of comfort, the other as a word of warning. While it is certainly true that God is not fickle, and His faithfulness is new every morning for believers who have moments, like Peter, of denying Christ, that is not what this hymn appears to be saying. I think the best way to understand this hymn (though I hold this position loosely) is to take it as a warning for those who persist in a state of faithlessness. These statements appear to be parallel, pointing in this direction: "If we deny Him" is parallel to "if we are faithless," and "He also will deny us" is parallel to "He remains faithful." "He will deny us" helps us understand the phrase about His faithfulness. God is faithful not just to extend blessing to those with genuine faith but also faithful to His warnings.

However one wishes to interpret this last phrase of the hymn, it is clear and wonderfully encouraging that "He cannot deny Himself." God cannot act contrary to His nature. He is faithful. He is the God of mercy and justice. He is the same yesterday, today, and forever.

Remember Jesus Christ! Remember the One who conquered our enemies is seated at the Father's right hand and gives sufficient grace that we may endure hardship. If we endure through Him, we will reign with Him. And when your faith ends in sight and you hear the Savior say, "Well done," I promise that you will not regret living in, passing on, and suffering for the gospel as a good soldier, a disciplined athlete, and a hardworking farmer.