The saying is trustworthy, for: If we have died with him, we will also live with him; if we endure, we will also reign with him; if we deny him, he also will deny us; if we are faithless, he remains faithful— for he cannot deny himself. 2 Tim 2:11-13
The saying… seems like a definite saying that was prevalent at the time of the Apostle. It was not just what Paul was saying to Timothy, it was something of a creed, a slogan at the time. Perhaps a certain way of reminding themselves about the Lord’s response to their faith. It was something going round, almost a tradition. It was not just a saying, but what they believed. It was a song to remind themselves what they believed. It was a way to reinforce their conviction about their hope and expectations of the Lord. What was this saying then?
If we have died with him, we will also live with him. A short sentence but loaded with hope and power. If we have died with him, that was something that in reality happened on the cross. Jesus died on the cross but not alone. He died with us in him because He died for us. He died for our sins. But he rose again. And those who died with him will also rise with him. They will not remain dead in their graves, they will also be raised up by the power that raised Jesus from the dead. On the last day, they will hear the voice of the Son of God and they will come out of their graves. This is the promise that Jesus made to those who believe in Him.
Beyond this, he died to sin, but lives unto God. Therefore those who died with him cannot continue in sin. They cannot continue to live the old life of sin. They now have a new Master and cannot continue to obey the old master. Sin cannot continue to reign over those who died with Christ. They have died to sin and have been set free from the law of sin. They have been raised to new life to live not to sin but to God.
If we endure, we will also reign with him. Suffering or enduring is the footstep that the Lord left for us to walk in. It is the example that he showed us and as his followers we must walk in the same way that He walked. We cannot be unlike him in suffering and endurance and claim to be like him. It is the promise of the Lord that those who endure to the end shall be saved. Not those who endure for a while or those who give up on the way. Those who hold fast and are steadfast are the ones to be crowned with glory. What does such enduring reveal? It reveals that we are truly sons. For God chastens his sons and those who endure are those who have received it as a proof of his love. Those who refuse the hardships the Lord orchestrates for them do not count themselves worthy of sonship. It is sons who endure. Many so-called sons today do not want to bear suffering because in the Christian circle, suffering has been given a new meaning. It is seen as something that happens to the unfortunate, the faithless, the outcast, those unloved by God, sinners etc. But no, Job was no sinner yet he went through a very painful experience because he was approved by God.
The saying is true, if we endure, we will also reign with him
If we deny him he will deny us. This is hard! I thought the Lord is merciful and gracious and we can always return to him. While it is true that he is merciful and gracious, those who deny him will not have the testimony of knowing his mercy and grace in that way. Those who deny him under threat thinking they will repent afterward have not understood this saying. If you deny him, he will deny you. And if the Lord turns away from you, what do you get? You have lost it all. If the Lord is not on your side, who can be? People deny him by refusing to stand on their conviction about him in the face of threat of loss. You are in danger of losing it all if you turn from Christ because then you do not have any one on your side.
If we are faithless, he remains faithful, he cannot deny himself. Ummmh! While some may think that this is positive, it does not have that intent. See how the Translation For Translators puts it…If we are unfaithful/stop doing what he tells us to do, he will treat us just like he promised to do, because he can never be untrue to himself/ always does what he says that he will do. If we don’t believe, there is only one way- he will do what he has promised to do to those who don’t believe. If we begin to fall backward in faith and we no longer go his way or do his will or works, he will continue on his own way and do his own work, and we will be left to experience what happens to those who do not believe. That is what that saying means. Is there any way you are no longer believing or acting in faith? The Scriptures says, whatever is done apart from faith is sin. Oh! May we believe God always and in everything. May we not limit the Holy and Mighty One of Israel. May you believe in little things and in big things.