This is a faithful saying: For if we died with Him, We shall also live with Him. If we endure, We shall also reign with Him. If we deny Him, He also will deny us. If we are faithless, He remains faithful; He cannot deny Himself (2 Timothy 2:11-13).
In a time where almost everything seems to be uncertain, we find hope in Jesus Christ through the Scriptures. Jesus says, the Scriptures cannot be broken, therefore, we must trust that whatever He says shall come to pass! Since this is eternally true, it is therefore incumbent upon us all to know and obey the Scriptures!
When I was a young boy, my father and mother always traveled with a road map in the car just in case we made a wrong turn or got lost. The map was there so that even if we momentarily lost our way, we could find it again. We now have GPS (guidance positioning satellite) with a map and a voice to redirect the traveler. The map is analogous to God’s Word and the GPS with the voice is analogous to the direction of the Holy Spirit telling us where to go.
The Scriptures say for certain that, “if we died with Him, we shall also live with Him,” thus showing our complete and total identification with Jesus Christ, because as He is, so are we in this world (2 Timothy 2:11). This identification with Christ should give us a Godly sense of direction. “Now if we died with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with Him, knowing that Christ, having been raised from the dead, dies no more. Death no longer has dominion over Him. For the death that He died, He died to sin once for all; but the life that He lives, He lives to God. Likewise you also, reckon yourselves to be dead indeed to sin, but alive to God in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Romans 6:8-11). Paul gives us clear understanding and direction for our lives even though satan ferociously tries to obscure our path with every evil deception, using various roadblocks, detours, unclear signage, and other ungodly means to distract us from our God-given mission and goals. The Apostle says, “If we endure, We shall also reign with Him,” thus letting us know that our earthly path is often fraught with difficulties, but if we stay true to God’s plan for us, our journey culminates in reigning with Jesus Christ forever (2 Timothy 2:12)! Let us not forfeit this high calling for moments of fading earthly glory!
Every one of the blessings stated herein is with the caveat (a “buyer beware”), “If we deny Him, He also will deny us” (2 Timothy 2:12). This statement is not inserted to hurt us but to shield us against hurtful damage, for if we deny Him, His righteousness must conversely deny the false position(s) we have taken. It is impossible for Jesus to take a stance against His own true holiness and righteous character. Therefore, let us not deny Him through positions we take and alliances we make in this world. Nevertheless, “If we are faithless, He remains faithful; He cannot deny Himself” (2 Timothy 2:13). Sometimes in this world we can become hardened against the instructions of the Word of God by taking our eyes off of the faithfulness of the Lord when we see situations that are insensitive and destructive but do nothing to remedy them. Even if you allow yourself to become faithless willingly, by consorting with the world in its pursuits, rather than pursuing God’s righteousness, Jesus will still remain faithful to His own, but you will suffer loss having allowed through your own willfulness the enemy to rob you of your full reward.
We must guard our heart by remembering our road map and listening to the voice of our GPS, knowing that through everything, He remains faithful.
Enjoying His Faithfulness,
Pastor Don