by Larry McClenny
Synopsis: Those who live godly in Christ Jesus will inevitably suffer persecution, but with spiritual resolve, they can triumphantly overcome.
But you have carefully followed my doctrine, manner of life, purpose, faith, longsuffering, love, perseverance, persecutions, afflictions... what persecutions I endured. And out of them all the Lord delivered me. Yes, and all who desire to live godly in Christ Jesus will suffer persecution (2 Tim. 3:10-12).
Paul commends Timothy for his spiritual resolve to carefully follow his example in teaching, godliness, spiritual direction, faithfulness, longsuffering, love, and perseverance in the midst of suffering. He reminds Timothy that, with God's help, he would be able to endure and ultimately be delivered from various trials.
Paul shares a truism by emphatically declaring, "All who desire to live godly in Christ Jesus will suffer persecution." This is not a negative, pessimistic pronouncement, but a triumphant resolve that, with the Lord on our side, we will be victorious even in suffering. Paul conditions the truism with the reality of his own experience: "And out of them all the Lord delivered me." This reality of deliverance is true, not just of Paul, but of "all who desire to live godly in Christ."
Marshall Patton adds, "What the Christian has that the man of the world does not have is 'grace to help in time of need' (Heb. 4:16); assurance that no trial will be more than he is able to bear (1 Cor. 10:13); the promise of him who cannot lie: 'I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee' (Heb. 13:5)" (Patton, 215).
The apostle Peter makes similar declarations about having triumphant resolve:
Beloved, do not think it strange concerning the fiery trial which is to try you, as though some strange thing happened to you; but rejoice to the extent that you partake of Christ's suffering, that when His glory is revealed, you may also be glad with exceeding joy. If you are reproached for the name of Christ, blessed are you, for the Spirit of glory and of God rests upon you. On their part He is blasphemed, but on your part He is glorified (1 Pet. 4:12-14).
He did not want these brethren to think it foreign, or be shocked, if they suffered persecution. The reality is that if we live for Christ, we will suffer some sort of "fiery trial." This language illustrates the purification process of separating the dross from precious metals. When we go through fiery trials, it is a purification process.
Peter pleads for us to view suffering as a spiritual form of joy and prosperity. This reminds us that people can persecute our bodies, but they will never harm us spiritually because the Lord is with us. We will fear no man, but continue to have joy, peace, and tranquility in Christ Jesus. We should never feel intimidated by the persecutors.
Guy N. Woods adds, "So far as the sufferings of Christians are of the same kind, originate in the same causes and are prompted by the same motives as those the Savior suffered, they have occasion to rejoice in the assurance that such suffering will secure for them participation in His glory in the by and by" (Woods, 116).
In this life, we can possess this inner spiritual joy and prosperity, even in the clutches of persecution. By continuing to be faithful, we can obtain ultimate joy in the life to come. The glorified Lord will meet His faithful saints in the air, and we shall ever be with the Lord (1 Thess. 4:17).
If we are reproached (verbally abused) for our obedience to the name of Christ, we are blessed, and the glorious Spirit of God is with us. When we study the word of God and make it part of our lives, the God of Heaven, Jesus Christ, and the Holy Spirit are with us through Their providential care.
When we suffer as Christians, we have nothing of which to be ashamed, but we give God the glory that He found us worthy to suffer for His cause.
James declares that our triumphant resolve to suffer for the cause of Christ will bring spiritual joy, endurance, maturity, and completeness in Christ: "Consider it all joy, my brethren, when you encounter various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces endurance. And let endurance have its perfect result, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing" (Jas. 1:2-4). He wanted his brethren to react to trials with joy instead of reacting with disillusionment, discouragement, and abandonment.
With the great knowledge obtained from God's word as well as practical experience, we learn that the testing of our faith produces endurance. Our faith is like gold that stands the test of fire, pure and untainted. Trials become a furnace through which we pass to demonstrate the genuineness of our faith.
The beauty is that we have "absolute confidence in the outcome of the process even in the midst of the trial" (King, 144). We can see the end from the beginning. As we continue to struggle courageously against difficulty and opposition, we develop spiritual stamina (i.e., endurance) by getting into spiritual shape. Endurance that continues to develop with constant spiritual exercise will result in stability and maturity.
Jesus, the perfect example of triumphant resolve in suffering, declares in Matthew 5:11-12, "Blessed are you when they revile and persecute you, and say all kinds of evil against you falsely for My sake. Rejoice and be exceedingly glad, for great is your reward in heaven." Paul Earnhart notes,
Jesus, having now dealt with the attitude of kingdom citizens toward God, themselves, and others, now turns to consider the attitude of the world toward them... the Lord now reveals that they will stir the world to a bitter animosity and hatred. The Son of God has never sought to withhold the realities of suffering from His followers… He has spoken plainly so that when His disciples suffer they can know that it is just as He said it would be and take heart with the assurance that their Master's promises of glory are just as sure… Their crime is simple. They have chosen to be righteous in an unrighteous world (Earnhart, 25-26).
Jesus was the greatest example of triumphant resolve in suffering: "For you have been called for this purpose, since Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example for you to follow in His steps, who committed no sin, nor was any deceit found in His mouth; and while being reviled, He did not revile in return; while suffering, He uttered no threats, but kept entrusting Himself to Him who judges righteously; and He Himself bore our sins in His body on the cross" (1 Pet. 2:21-24).
The One who had no sin suffered death on the cross for our sins. He reacted to suffering with grace, humility, courage, and triumphant resolve. May the Lord give us the same resolve to react to suffering as Jesus did. Paul Earnhart concludes,
The Lord's disciples should rejoice at an opposition which reveals that the spirit and character of their Savior has been seen in them. They should rejoice because they have been granted the privilege of suffering for one who endured such abuse for their sakes (Phil. 1:28-29; Acts 5:41). But, most of all, they should rejoice because their suffering is not empty. They can embrace it joyfully, knowing that it transforms the character (Jas. 1:2-4) and works for them 'a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory' (2 Cor. 4:17). No temporal threat can intimidate the one whose true treasure is secured in heaven (Earnhart, 26).
Earnhart, Paul. Invitation to a Spiritual Revolution. Chillicothe, OH: DeWard Publishing, 2009.
King, Dan. Truth Commentaries: James. Athens, AL: Truth Publications, 2015.
Patton, Marshall. Truth Commentaries: 1 and 2 Timothy, Titus, and Philemon. Bowling Green, KY: Guardian of Truth Foundation, 2001.
Woods, Guy N. A Commentary of the New Testament Epistles: Vol. VII. Nashville, TN: Gospel Advocate Co., 1979.
Author Bio: Larry has worked with the Rice Road church of Christ in Tyler, Texas for over two years. He and his wife, Cristy have two children. The church website is riceroadchurchofchrist.com. He can be reached at larryjmcclenny@gmail.com.
