Timothy
“But understand this, that in the last days there will come times of difficulty. For people will be lovers of self, lovers of money, proud, arrogant, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, heartless, unappeasable, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not loving good, treacherous, reckless, swollen with conceit, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, having the appearance of godliness, but denying its power. Avoid such people. Indeed, all who desire to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted, while evil people and impostors will go on from bad to worse, deceiving and being deceived. But as for you, continue in what you have learned and have firmly believed, knowing from whom you learned it and how from childhood you have been acquainted with the sacred writings, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus. All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work.” - 2 Timothy 3:1-5, 12-17 ESV
The above is from Paul’s second letter to Timothy and, according to my study Bible, was written during Paul’s imprisonment in Rome shortly before his execution. This passage was recently a part of my daily reading of the Word of God. And if I had to summarize the above, it would have 2 points. First, the world just keeps getting worse. We should be in the world but also need to be careful to not be a part of the world.
“And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”” - Matthew 28:18-20
These two passages seem to be contradictory until you consider the lamp.
““You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden. Nor do people light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a stand, and it gives light to all in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven.” - Matthew 5:14-16
Jesus commands us to go out into the world to be a lamp and to share the good news with others. However, we need to be careful not to fall into the ways of the world of the unbelievers.
When I was in 3rd grade, some of the girls in my class started dotting their i’s with little hearts. Knowing that I wasn’t a little girl, I decided to dot my i’s with little circles. It became a habit that in the 50 some years since I’ve never been able to change. Sure, I can write a few lines with extra concentration without the circles on the i’s but without that extra attention, I quickly revert back to them. Just like my circles on my i’s, if I’m not careful to avoid things I know are sinful that the world is ok with, I might start emulating that behavior, setting my faith walk back and creating an even bigger challenge to my fruits.
The second point is the more difficult point, we will be persecuted. Notice very carefully that the passage doesn’t say “rarely be persecuted” or even “might be persecuted” but “all who desire to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted”. No fair! But then…
“And he opened his mouth and taught them, saying: “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. “Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted. “Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth. “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied. “Blessed are the merciful, for they shall receive mercy. “Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God. “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God. “Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. “Blessed are you when others revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account. Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you.” - Matthew 5:2-12
I’m sorry to say that earlier in my faith walk, the idea entered my head that maybe I should slow down a little and maybe avoid some of that persecution (try not to make myself a target for the devil). But then I remembered the sower parable.
“Hear then the parable of the sower: When anyone hears the word of the kingdom and does not understand it, the evil one comes and snatches away what has been sown in his heart. This is what was sown along the path. As for what was sown on rocky ground, this is the one who hears the word and immediately receives it with joy, yet he has no root in himself, but endures for a while, and when tribulation or persecution arises on account of the word, immediately he falls away. As for what was sown among thorns, this is the one who hears the word, but the cares of the world and the deceitfulness of riches choke the word, and it proves unfruitful. As for what was sown on good soil, this is the one who hears the word and understands it. He indeed bears fruit and yields, in one case a hundredfold, in another sixty, and in another thirty.” - Matthew 13:18-23
God’s word has all the answers, all we have to do is read it and ask the Holy Spirit to let it speak to us.
