Don’t’ Give Up. The encouragement to endure is an important and timely message for our day. Currently, the covid virus is surging again. Our politics are as divided as ever, hurricanes and fires strike our coastal areas, and there are several social problems within our communities. These things and the many other daily worries add stress to our lives to the point that it causes a person to want to disengage from the world, to give up. Thus, the message this morning, “Don’t Give Up. Endure.”
The scripture today is a part of our 2 Timothy study. The letter of 2 Timothy is the last letter Paul wrote before his execution (talk about worry and stress). Paul writes this letter to Timothy when he is in prison, and the central message of this letter to Timothy is for him (Timothy) to be faithful, to endure. The letter of 2 Timothy is a letter of encouragement. Timothy is the pastor of the church in Ephesus. Ephesus, at that time, was one of the greatest cities of the Roman Empire in terms of population, culture, art, theater, and trade. It is the city that ruled that Anatolia, the northeastern area of the Mediterranean Sea. Even today, if you were to visit Ephesus, it is breathtaking in terms of size and grandeur. Timothy’s role as pastor in this city has not been easy. He has faced and is several challenges, things like –
- Heretical and false teachers.
- Conflict in the church.
- External pressure and persecution.
- The influences of the pagan culture upon believers.
- Timothy’s struggle with sickness.
Thus, in this second letter to Timothy, Paul has encouraged Timothy by reminding him that God has poured out His Spirit upon him, has given him the gift of teaching, and has entrusted him with the greatest message ever to be taught, the gospel. What I have entrusted to you (says Paul), entrust to others.
Today, in our passage, Paul gives Timothy five reasons to endure, five reasons not to give up but continue in that work and calling God has given to him. Our Scripture is 2 Timothy 2:8-13, And it reads – 8 Remember Jesus Christ, raised from the dead, descended from David. This is my gospel, 9 for which I am suffering even to the point of being chained like a criminal. But God’s word is not chained. 10 Therefore I endure everything for the sake of the elect, that they too may obtain the salvation that is in Christ Jesus, with eternal glory. 11 Here 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 disown him, he will also disown us; 13 if we are faithless, he will remain faithful, for he cannot disown himself.”
The words of encouragement that Paul is giving to Timothy are words that Paul has preached to himself. Paul’s life in Christ has not been easy; at the time of writing this letter, Paul has been in prison for about five years, maybe a little longer. And as his death approaches, Paul, like John the Baptist before him when John was in jail, maybe having one of those moments of wondering about Jesus, “are you the one (Matthew 11:3)?” Paul’s words to Timothy are his words to himself, don’t give up, “endure everything.”
Paul’s words to Timothy are also words to us. We are not in prison, we are not on death row, we do not face the type of persecution that Timothy and his church are soon to face, but that does not mean that we face no challenges. Like Timothy,
- We are surrounded by a very ungodly culture that influences us.
- There are many false doctrines and teachings that are at war with the truth of Jesus Christ.
- Conflict in both the church and in our lives continues to be a problem.
- And there are always personal struggles like a sickness that can be very discouraging.
Don’t give up. Endure everything.
If you are a Christian, if you have trusted your life to Jesus, God is at work doing two things regarding your life. God is at work IN you, and God is at work THROUGH you.
God’s work IN you is described in scripture through such things as
- Sanctification
- Renewal
- Transformation
- The Fruit of the Spirit
- Christ-likeness
- New Birth (Born Again)
- And ultimately resurrection and glorification
These phrases or words are some of the many ways that the Bible talks about God at work in us, through His Spirit, transforming us from a person who is sinful, broken, and spiritually blind into a person that will enjoy the presence and glory of God for all of eternity. God’s work in us is Him getting us ready for heaven.
The other type of work that God does in relation to you is to work THROUGH you. God is at work THROUGH you according to His purposes and glory. The Bible talks about God’s work through a person who is a follower of Christ when it says things like,
- We are Christ’s Body in this world
- We have been entrusted with the gospel to give it and share it with others
- We have been given a ministry of reconciliation
- We are Christ’s ambassadors in this world
- We are to love enemies, pray for those who persecute us
God’s work through us is not for us but is for another.
In both these two areas, God’s work in us and through us, it is easy to become discouraged, to give up. During times of discouragement, people wonder such things as,
- If God is at work in me, how come I don’t see Him doing anything?
- Does God not hear my prayers?
- Why do I struggle with the same sins?
- Why does God not change me?
- If God is for me, why am I suffering the way that I am?
- If God is at work through me, how come I don’t’ see any results?
- I don’t see any lives being changed.
- When I try to do something, I am confronted with obstacles and roadblocks.
- People are critical all the time.
It is easy to become discouraged and to give up, to stop trusting God for his work in you and his work through you. Giving up means disengaging from your faith, walking away from the Lord. It means to refuse or deny God’s calling upon your life; it means to think of oneself as forgotten by God, unloved, and unusable. That is what giving up means; that is what it looks like. Unfortunately, many, many people have given up; don’t be one of them. Here are the five reasons you should not give up on God’s work in you and through, five reasons to endure.
The Five Reasons to Endure
1. The Gospel of Jesus Christ is TRUE. Endure because the gospel is true.
Notice what Paul says, 8 Remember Jesus Christ, raised from the dead, descended from David. This is my gospel, 9 for which I am suffering even to the point of being chained like a criminal. Paul is saying that he willfully endures suffering and chained like a criminal NOT, NOT because of some –
- Philosophy (endure because it is good for you)
- Or some law (endure because God says so)
- Or for some reward (endure to get a bigger mansion)
These are not the reasons Paul puts forth as a reason to endure and not give up. Rather endure, and do not give up, because the Gospel is true.
- God entered our world; the Word became flesh, born a child of David’s descent. And the Word of God dwelt among us, and he was crucified for our sins and was raised from the dead. These things happened in history; they are historical. I endure, I hang on, I don’t give up, WHY? Because God has done something in history that changes all of creation. Endure because the gospel is true.
2. God’s purposes cannot be stopped. The obstacles or setbacks that we face are not obstacles or setbacks for God. Endure because God is sovereign; he is in control. This reason is expressed at the end of verse 9, which reads, “for which I am suffering, bound with chains as a criminal. But the word of God is not bound!”
Paul is stating a very significant obstacle to his ministry. I am in prison, and I am in chains. Paul was the apostle to the gentiles and had a tremendous ministry of preaching the Gospel in city after city. But now, he is in chains, unable to plant churches, unable to meet people on top of Mars Hill, or unable to go out for coffee to talk about Jesus. He is locked down. It would have been easy for him to think and say, “I have done my job, I can’t do anything from here, I must wait until I get out before God can use me again.” He does not say that. Instead, he says, “even though I face this obstacle of being chained, it does not mean that God faces this obstacle. The word of God is not bound. The barriers I face are not barriers to God.”
When Paul says in verse nine, “even though I am chained, God’s word is not changed,” I think there is an inside joke being alluded to. When Paul was placed in prison, he experienced prison in various ways depending upon where that prison was and how he was to be guarded. His imprisonment started in Jerusalem, was moved up to Caesarea where he spent two years, then shipped wrecked on an island through a season, and then to Rome where it seems he was under house arrest while chained to a Roman soldier. We read in Acts 28:16, “And when we came into Rome, Paul was allowed to stay by himself, with the soldier who guarded him.” Talk about a captive audience. That is the inside joke. As a result of Paul being chained to this guard, Paul says in Philippians 1:13 that “the whole imperial guard now knows about Jesus.” This world thought it could chain up the gospel; not knowing God’s word cannot be chained. No obstacle is an obstacle to God.
There may be an obstacle in your life that you feel is a barrier for God to work through you. The truth is, yes, I am sure there are obstacles in your life, and there will always be obstacles in your life. Here are some of the obstacles that people face all the time.
- Obstacles of Age – they are too old or too young.
- Obstacles of Time – people are too busy.
- Obstacles of Responsibility – Hard jobs, new jobs, new parents, old parents.
- Obstacles of Emotional upheaval – death of a spouse, breakup of a boyfriend.
- Obstacles of the Body – sickness, lack of energy, health issues.
- Obstacles of skill and experience – I can’t do anything.
And so on. Everything I have listed can be described as a stage of life. Things that all of us will go through at some time in some way. Every stage of life stage creates obstacles that cause a person unable to do something in the present what they were able to do in the past. Many people who go through a life change and are unable to do what they once did, think that they now cannot do anything. That type of thinking is giving up.
- If you think you are too old to be used by God, you have given up.
- If you think your job is too important for you to be used by God, you have given up.
- If you think that your grief is too great of an obstacle, you have given up.
I am not saying that God removes these obstacles, but that he works in a new way through them. Notice that God did not remove Paul’s obstacle but worked through Paul in a new way. “I am chained, but God’s word is not chained.” Your life situations may change, but what does not change is that God is at work in you and through you. That does not change. And so, in whatever obstacles you face, look for the new ways that God can be at work through you.
3. Love for others. Endure because your life impacts others.
Notice what Paul says in verse 10 – Therefore I endure everything for the sake of the elect, that they too may obtain the salvation that is in Christ Jesus, with eternal glory.
Paul is saying, “I willfully endure suffering, chains, persecution, and a hard life not that I may get some special blessing from God. Instead, Paul says, I endure everything for others. So those others may obtain the salvation that is in Christ Jesus with eternal glory. That is love.
- Don’t give up because it may be in your suffering; God is at work through you more than you realize.
- Don’t give up because people are watching you; they see how you respond to adversity.
- Don’t give up because you have a voice and a ministry in a place or to a person where there is no one else.
Endure because of love. Not giving up on what God is doing in you and what he is doing through you is a way we love.
The 4th and 5th reasons to endure are summed up in a saying that Paul quotes. He says in verses 11-13, “11 Here 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 disown him, he will also disown us; 13 if we are faithless, he will remain faithful, for he cannot disown himself.” I like to think of this saying that Paul quotes as an early church’s version of the four spiritual laws. Or, to speak in another way, this saying has four preaching points helpful in presenting the gospel.
- Point 1 – Jesus Christ has died so that you may live. (If we died with him, we will also live with him).
- Point 2 – If you believe in Him and confess His name, you will reign with him (if we endure, we will also reign with him).
- Point 3 – If you do not confess his name before men, he will not confess your name before the Father. (If we disown him, he will also disown us;)
- Point 4 – if you confess your sins, he will forgive you of all unrighteousness because that is who he is. He is a God who loves and forgives (if we are faithless, he will remain faithful, for he cannot disown himself).
Paul quotes this saying because in point 3 and point 4, there are two reasons you should not give up but endure.
4. Endure because it pleases God. “If we endure, we will also reign with him.” Paul tells us in Romans 5 that enduring in suffering produces hope and steadfastness. And he says over in 2 Corinthians 4 that when we endure in suffering, even when we become broken in suffering, God’s presence and glory are revealed to this world. And in the book of Revelation, the Spirit speaks of a reward to those who endure and persevere. The Spirit says to those who persevere that they shall eat of tree life, be given the crown of life, clothed in a white, given a new name, and reign with him. We are not called to meaningless suffering. When you endure, God is at work in you all the more. Endure because it pleases God.
5. The fifth reason to not give up is that God does not give up on you.
Maybe the most common reason people give up is not life changes, obstacles, or hardships but rather a sense of personal failure—the feeling of having messed up, making a mistake, and crossing a line. And now, because of this failure, whatever it may be, it makes one feel like they are damaged goods. How can God use a person like me? And so they give up. Here is the gospel truth, God does not give up on you; therefore, do not give up on him. We see this in the last point of the saying that Paul quotes, “if we are faithless, he will remain faithful, for he cannot disown himself.” God is faithful towards you. Even when we sin, drop the ball, or make mistakes, God remains faithful. He does not give up on you, so do not give up on him.
In Hebrews 12:1-2 says, “1 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, 2 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.” What was the joy set before Jesus, giving him the strength to endure the cross? I think it was the five things we talked about this morning.
- He endured because of the truth that justice must be satisfied. The joy set before him was to pay the bill of justice on our behalf.
- He endured because death and sin do not have the last word. The joy set before him was his victory over sin and death.
- He endured out of love. He endured because he loves you and the joy set before him is you.
- He endured because he was obedient to the Father. The Joy before him was His Father’s will.
- He endured by becoming sin for us upon the cross because he knew that the Father would not abandon him. Again, his joy set before him was that he would reign at the right hand of God.
Thus, we are instructed by Hebrews in the next verse, “Consider him who endured from sinners such hostility against himself, so that you may not grow weary or fainthearted (Hebrews 12:3).” If you are at a point in your life that you feel like giving up, the answer is to “Consider Him.” Pause and spend time in the Lord’s presence.
Sermon was preached by Pastor Trent Eastman on September 5, 2021. This message was followed with the celebration of the Lord’s Table.
Concerning the Word of Life 