8 Remember Jesus Christ, raised from the dead, descended from David, as proclaimed by my gospel, 9 for which I suffer to the extent of being chained like a criminal. But the word of God cannot be chained! 10 For this reason I endure all things for the sake of the elect, so that they too may obtain the salvation that is in Christ Jesus, with eternal glory.

11 This is a trustworthy saying:
If we died with Him,
we will also live with Him;
12 if we endure,
we will also reign with Him;
if we deny Him,
He will also deny us;
13 if we are faithless,
He remains faithful,
for He cannot deny Himself.

REFLECTIONS

Written by Linda Vu

Paul knew that nothing could stop the good news of Jesus.

In verses 8-9, he tells Timothy to remember that Jesus Christ is from the family line of King David, and that after Jesus died he was raised from death. That is the good news. Paul was suffering for that good news of Jesus.

The resurrection reminds us that Jesus Christ is the son of God, and Christ’s descending from David reminds us that Christ is human, but also born in the line of the promised King.

Christ had to be human in order to die for us. He knows what it means to be hated by others, lied about, betrayed by friends, tempted, and ultimately killed for the sake of the gospel. Timothy needed to remember this, as he walked the same path of Christ. Christ walked it first, and Christ would walk beside him to give strength to faithfully endure.

There are times at work I could tell the good news to my non-Christians colleagues, but I find it very hard due to fear of feeling like an outcast and being treated differently. I need to remember Jesus, just like Paul did, to faithfully endure and not give up.

In verse 11, Paul highlights that if we are faithful, we will share in Christ's reign, and if we are unfaithful, he will not deny himself – he will remain faithful to his promises. This passage really helps me to remember that God's unwavering faithfulness does not change and to keep trusting in him because his promises are good and the power of his word goes forward no matter what. Chains cannot stop it!

Unlike the Apostle Paul, we are not in chains for our faith. Pray that God would help us to unchain ourselves from fear of others and open our mouth with the good news that the world so desperately needs to hear.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Linda is a member of our Fairfield Morning congregation.