WWUTT 671 Share in Suffering?

Though you may not suffer, in your body, persecution from others because of the gospel that you believe and proclaim, everybody nonetheless suffers. And when I say everybody, I mean all Christians. All Christians suffer.

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Here's your teacher, Pastor Gabe.

Thank you, Becky. We continue with our study of 2 Timothy chapter 1. And today I want to read the section that goes from verses 8 through 14. The Apostle Paul writes, Therefore, do not be ashamed of the testimony about our Lord, nor of me his prisoner, but share in suffering for the gospel by the power of God, who saved us and called us to a holy calling, not because of our works, but because of his own purpose and grace, which he gave us in Christ Jesus before the ages began, and which has now been manifested through the appearing of our Savior Christ Jesus, who abolished death and brought life and immortality to light through the gospel, for which I was appointed a preacher and apostle and teacher, which is why I suffer as I do.

But I am not ashamed, for I know whom I have believed, and I am convinced that he is able to guard until that day what has been entrusted to me. Follow the pattern of the sound words that you have heard from me in the faith and love that are in Christ Jesus.

By the Holy Spirit who dwells within us, guard the good deposit entrusted to you. And that statement there in verse 14 bookends this section. For Paul says it's by the Holy Spirit, the power of God in you, that you're able to guard the good deposit entrusted to you, which is the gospel of Jesus Christ, the sound words that have come from our Lord.

And then at the start of this section, we read, share in suffering for the gospel by the power of God. Paul begins and ends this paragraph with that statement. It is by the power of God we share in suffering for the gospel.

It is by the power of God that we continue to hold fast to the sound teaching that was delivered to us when we first heard the gospel and turn from sin and believed. I think that we have a tendency whenever we read sections in the Bible about suffering for the gospel.

I think we have a tendency to tune out a little bit, especially when we live in more comfortable parts of the world in which we're not facing persecution because of our faith. At worst, you get ridiculed or made fun of it, made fun of for it, or your family ostracizes you or something like that.

But but you're not being physically beaten. You're not being thrown in prison. Nobody is threatening your life. Those kinds of things certainly do happen. Even in Western Europe, in the United States of America, there are people who for the sake of the gospel put themselves in perilous situations in which their life is at risk for what it is that they proclaim.

But for the most part, unless you're called to go out to the highways and byways and go out to the slums where preaching on the street corner might actually get you beaten up, most of us are not being put in perilous situations for the sake of the gospel.

Therefore, when we read from the Apostle Paul, a letter that he wrote from prison as he was awaiting his sentence to be martyred and telling Timothy, hey, don't forget about me, as you will likewise suffer for the gospel by the power of God.

We're reading that. We're like, you know, that doesn't really apply to me. This is a pastoral letter. Right. Paul is writing to Pastor Timothy. I'm not a pastor. I'm not being called to the ministry. So what is it that this has to do with me?

Whether you are consciously dismissing that or it's subliminal, I think that that's our tendency whenever we read sections like this. I am not suffering for the gospel. I don't foresee myself suffering for the gospel.

So is this something I'm just supposed to tuck away until my life is on the line for the sake of the gospel? And then it comes out and it becomes encouraging to me. So here's where I want to go with this.

As we read about Sharon suffering for the gospel by the power of God and by the Holy Spirit who dwells within us, guard the good deposit entrusted to you, the sound teaching which you were taught and you heard and you believed.

Here's where I want to go with this, though you may not suffer in your body persecution from others because of the gospel that you believe and proclaim, everybody nonetheless suffers. And when I say everybody, I mean all Christians, all Christians suffer.

And you might be thinking, sure, I suffer. I get sick sometimes or people hurt my feelings and I will feel emotionally drained or I will experience anxiety or I'm getting old and I feel the pain settling into my bones and my muscles.

I'm closer to death than I was yesterday. So sure, we all suffer. You know that that's where your mind goes when we talk about suffering, right? That's not the kind of suffering I'm talking about because I'm talking only specifically to Christians here.

And that kind of suffering is also shared by people who are not believers, right? Although when they suffer, it's in despair because they have no hope in that suffering. There is no deliverance from that suffering.

We who are Christians, when we suffer in our flesh, the gradual aches and pains because of the fallenness of this world, we suffer those things and endure those things with hope because we know our Lord Christ is going to deliver us out of this world into his eternal imperishable kingdom where there is no more suffering.

There will be no more evil. God will dry every tear from our eyes because the former things will have passed away. And then we will live with him forever in glory. We understand the words that Paul wrote in Hebrews 8, 18, for I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us.

So therefore, we do go through sufferings in this world just like everyone does. But we endure those things with hope. An unbeliever does not go through those things with hope, but that's not the kind of suffering I'm talking about because everybody goes through that suffering.

We might handle it a different way, but we still struggle with the same things. The fallenness of this world, the futility that all things have been subjected to because of the sinfulness of mankind. The way that we as Christians suffer that's different than the way a person who is not a Christian suffers is that we struggle with sin and temptation.

A person who is not a Christian does not struggle with sin. They give into sin. They may have a moral conscience that they wrestle with, but they don't feel guilty or grievous over their sins. We who are Christians constantly suffer and constantly fight a battle in our flesh against the sins and temptations of this world, the schemes of the devil and his minions.

And so this is a way that we as Christians, we all suffer. You may not suffer affliction, like great affliction for the gospel of Jesus Christ. Maybe you will, but you, you might not. You might have a very comfortable lifestyle in which you don't foresee yourself being afflicted by that.

You're not even being called to that. I'm not a pastor. You know, these are the pastoral letters. I'm not even being called to that. So maybe this doesn't apply to me, but you do suffer and you suffer in growing in the gospel and every believer goes through this.

So when Paul says to Timothy, share in suffering for the gospel by the power of God and by the power of the Holy Spirit who dwells within you, guard the good deposit entrusted to you. This is something that you share in because all Christians suffer in our flesh and we will all be disciplined by God as we struggle in our flesh, as we face temptations and turn from those temptations, flee from temptation and run to Christ.

As we go through those things, we are being disciplined by God. And in those moments when we give into that temptation and we fall into sin, we fall short of the glory of God. God disciplines us even in those moments so that we would repent and come back to the path of righteousness.

Here's what we read in Hebrews chapter 12, and I'm going to start right at the beginning of the chapter. Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses and this cloud of witnesses are the saints that have gone before us in the context of Hebrews 12, we're talking about the heroes of the faith of the Old Testament in Hebrews 11.

But we who are this much further along in the history of the church, we could talk about every saint that is mentioned in the Bible, not just the Old Testament prophets, but even the New Testament apostles, even the men who are regarded as the fathers of the church in the first three centuries of the church, even the men who led the Protestant Reformation, even the Puritans, even the people who taught you the gospel, they were faithful men and women of God delivered the gospel to you.

And so you repented and believed. And this is what Paul lays out for Timothy as well, a faith that was in his grandmother Lois and his mother Eunice. And now I am sure dwells in you as well, Paul told to Timothy.

So these are all the cloud of witnesses who have gone before us and have displayed faithfulness to the gospel, even turning from sin and temptation in this world and clung to Christ. We have many great examples of men and women who have done that.

Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight and sin, which clings so closely and let us run with endurance. The race that is set before us, looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him, endured the cross, despising the shame and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God.

If you've ever worked out before, or you've applied yourself to some vigorous workout regimen, then no doubt you know the mantra, no pain, no gain, right? You've heard that before, meaning that as you push yourself through your workout, it's going to get tough.

You're going to feel your muscles tighten up and your bones ache and things like that. When you get done with that workout, you feel sore. Well, that's a good sign. It means that your muscles are working hard and you're getting stronger as you push through those workouts.

And so here, the writer of Hebrews is equating the Christian life with running a race. It is not a stroll in the park. And our goal is set before us, that's Jesus Christ, focusing on Christ, who went through far more sufferings than we will ever endure.

So as we struggle and suffer through this life, we know that Jesus himself went through even more than we went through. And he even took the wrath of God upon himself on the cross. Praise God for that.

Because Jesus did that, we will never have to face that. So that gives us even more hope for this life. Jesus himself was tempted, and yet he did not sin by giving into that temptation. So we know that as Christ suffered through the same things in his flesh that we go through, we set our eyes upon Christ, who is the founder and the perfecter of our faith.

He gave us our faith and he is growing us in it. And that's what Paul says to Timothy here in 2 Timothy 1, 8 and 14, that we share in suffering for the gospel by the power of God. It was God who gave the gospel to us.

And then verse 14, by the Holy Spirit who dwells within us, guard the good deposit entrusted to you. So that's being perfected in the faith that we have. Jesus is the founder and the perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross.

Paul said in 2 Corinthians 12, I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses in hardships and persecutions and the things that he endured for the sake of the gospel. Boasting gladly in Christ, in the power of God.

So for the joy that was set before Jesus, he endured the cross, despising the shame, and is now seated at the right hand of the throne of God. So here's where we go from here in Hebrews 12, verse 3, consider him, Christ, still pointing to Christ, who endured from sinners such hostility against himself, so that you may not grow weary or faint hearted.

In your struggle against sin, verse 4, you have not yet resisted to the point of shedding your blood. As you resist the temptation of this world, you will face ridicule for it. For Paul said to Timothy, and we'll get to this here in 2 Timothy, that those who desire to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted.

That's just for pursuing godliness, not even proclaiming the gospel. And so Peter said this in 1 Peter 4, verse 3, for the time that has passed suffices for doing what the Gentiles want to do, living in sensuality, passions, drunkenness, orgies, drinking parties, and lawless idolatry.

With respect to this, they are surprised when you do not join them in the same flood of debauchery and they malign you. But they will give an account to him who is ready to judge the living and the dead.

You may face ridicule from others just because you desire to live a life of godliness. But here the writer of Hebrews says, Hebrews 12, 3, consider him who endured from sinners such hostility against himself, so that you may not grow weary or faint hearted when you even struggle with the temptations of your own flesh.

In your struggle against sin, verse 4, you have not yet resisted to the point of shedding your blood. You've not yet come to the point of resisting sin that somebody has actually beaten you for desiring godliness rather than following with the pattern of this world.

Verse 5, and have you forgotten the exhortation that addresses you as sons? My son, do not regard lightly the discipline of the Lord, nor be weary when reproved by him. For the Lord disciplines the one he loves and chastises every son whom he receives.

And we endure this discipline in two ways. You discipline yourself whenever you resist temptation. Don't go looking for sin. Don't go flirting with temptation. But just by resisting sin and temptation, you are being disciplined and God is disciplining you.

You are also disciplined in those moments when you have given in to temptation and you feel gravely sick and convicted over what it is that you have just done against God. You are like Peter who denied Christ three times and when he realized what it was that he had done against his Lord, he went out and wept bitterly.

That's the kind of grief that you experience in your spirit whenever you sin. And like I said, Christians struggle with that, unbelievers don't. They don't struggle with those kinds of sins. I remember a friend of mine saying that before he became a Christian, he was not aware of his sin.

He gladly sinned and felt no grief or remorse over it. But once he became a Christian, he became aware of every time he sinned and was always convicted over it and coming before the Lord and seeking repentance and even asking God to reveal to him those hidden places where he sinned that he wasn't even yet aware of because of his immaturity and his holiness.

So these are the ways that we as Christians suffer that other people in this world simply don't struggle with these things. They don't suffer with this. So the Lord disciplines you when you are tempted and resist.

That's discipline. That's disciplining your body. As Paul said to the Corinthians, I do not run aimlessly. I don't box as one beating the air, but I discipline my body and keep it under control. Lest after preaching to others, I myself should be disqualified.

That in itself is a disciplinary process. And then again, the other way that the Lord disciplines us is when we have sinned, we feel conviction for that sin. Maybe we have to undergo church discipline or somebody else needs to discipline us because of what it is that we've done against God.

We mourn over it. We feel remorseful over it. We train ourselves by the power of God not to repeat those same sins again. And then we grow. We grow in maturity all the more. So in verse 7, Hebrews 12, 7, we read, it is for discipline that you have to endure.

God is treating you as sons. For what son is there whom his father does not discipline? If you are left without discipline in which all have participated, then you are illegitimate children and not sons and daughters of God.

Besides this, we have had earthly fathers who disciplined us and we respected them. Shall we not much more be subject to the father of spirits and live? For they disciplined us for a short time as it seemed best to them, but he disciplines us for our good, that we may share his holiness.

For the moment, all discipline seems painful rather than pleasant, but later it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it. So I hope by what we've read there in Hebrews 12, you are able to understand a little bit more how 2 Timothy 1, 8 and 14 applies to you.

You share in suffering for the power, for the gospel by the power of God. When you resist temptation or when giving into temptation, you are disciplined by other brothers and sisters in Christ and of course by the Lord himself.

For God saved us and called us to a holy calling, 2 Timothy 1, 9, not because of our works, but because of his own purpose and grace. And you also share in these sufferings when you understand 2 Timothy 1, 14, by the Holy Spirit who dwells within you, guard the good deposit entrusted to you.

Don't chase after false doctrines because they sound good to you or because they offer you more reward than you were getting in the gospel that you were enduring in before you heard that false teaching.

Then you hear the false teaching, you're like, wow, that sounds great. That sounds better than what it is that I've been following along with. Maybe my gospel was incomplete. Maybe this isn't enough. Maybe I need to be going after that.

Paul said to the Colossians, I teach the gospel to you so that you may not be deluded by plausible arguments that you don't chase after the doctrines of this world, but you would hold fast to the sound teaching of the true doctrine of Jesus Christ.

It is in these ways that the Holy Spirit, the power of God rests upon us to resist temptation, to suffer in our flesh for the sake of the gospel, and that we would resist the temptation to chase after false and worldly teachings.

And that also by the power of the Holy Spirit who dwells within us. So does that give you a little bit more application now of 1st 2nd Timothy 1, 8 through 14? Let's pray. Our wonderful God and Savior, we thank you for this holy calling that has been given to us.

All of us have received a holy calling to turn from sin and the pattern of this world and walk after the holiness of Christ or correction, run after the holiness of Christ, running a race and enduring the race that has been set before us, focusing on Jesus, the author and the perfecter of our faith, who has not left us alone to run this race by ourselves, but has given us the power of the Holy Spirit that we may endure.

So let us rely fully upon the Lord who raises the dead. And as we struggle and go through the sufferings that we face in this world, it teaches us to rely more upon God, less upon ourselves, for we are powerless to endure the temptations of this age.

But we rely fully upon God, of whom Paul says, I am convinced that he is able to guard until that day what has been entrusted to me. So work this power in us to remain steadfast in the faith for Jesus Christ, in whose name we pray, Amen.

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