Does 2 Timothy 2:13 bring comfort to the faithless?
To deny sin in one’s life is to make him or her a liar (1 John
1:8). If we are Christians, we are all
justified sinners. We are as Luther said:
simul justus et peccator –
simultaneously just and a sinner. Thank
God for His immeasurable grace that will one day change that situation forever.
“Beloved, we are God’s
children now, and what we will be has not yet appeared; but we know that when
he appears we shall be like him, because we shall see him as he is.”
(1 John 3:2, ESV). I recently heard a well-meaning,
well-intentioned, sincere individual give testimony to God and offer praise to
Him, noting that although that person acknowledged their faithlessness, God
remained faithful.
Now there is truth to that. The
point that God will not abandon His elect even though they are in the process
of rugged, dogged sanctification. “God is faithful, by whom you were
called into the fellowship of his Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.” (1 Corinthians 1:9, ESV). Now the problem exists when we quote 2
Timothy 2:13 to support the same truth.
I contend that 2 Timothy 2:13 is actually saying something uniquely
different. “If we are faithless, he remains faithful— for he
cannot deny himself.” (2 Timothy 2:13, ESV).
Paul’s Second Letter to Timothy
It is agreed by all that this was Paul’s final letter as he was facing
death – martyrdom. In the face of forsaken friends and certain execution, Paul
writes a letter to Timothy to keep the faith and hang onto the hope. “Whereas 1 Timothy is intended to
establish sound doctrine, 2 Timothy is intended to encourage steadfast
Christian living in the face of threats and difficulties (1:8, 13; 2:1, 3, 5,
15; 3:1, 10–14; 4:1–5). The false teaching mentioned in the earlier letter is
again in view (2:16–18). The theological message of 2 Timothy is that faithful
Christian living demands the pursuit of godliness in the strength of Christ.”[1]
The Letter follows
this pattern:
I. Salutation
and Thanksgiving (1:1–5)
II. Exhortations
to Boldness and Faithfulness (1:6–2:13)
III. The
Problem of False Teachers (2:14–4:5)
IV. Paul’s
Personal Relationship with Timothy (4:6–18)
So the passage we are
studying falls within the script of “exhortations to boldness and
faithfulness”. Paul’s endeavor in this
section seems to be deal with the possible embarrassment that Timothy might
have about Paul’s imprisonment (1:6-14); to give him some examples of
unfaithfulness and faithfulness (1:15-18); and in Chapter 2, verses 1-13
encourage him to be strong and persevere.
So it is important we read the context.
Context
1 You then, my child, be strengthened by the grace that
is in Christ Jesus, 2 and what you have
heard from me in the presence of many witnesses entrust to faithful men who
will be able to teach others also. 3 Share in suffering as a good soldier of Christ Jesus. 4 No soldier gets entangled in civilian pursuits, since
his aim is to please the one who enlisted him. 5 An athlete is not crowned unless he competes according
to the rules. 6 It is the
hard-working farmer who ought to have the first share of the crops. 7 Think over what I say, for the Lord will give you
understanding in everything. 8 Remember Jesus
Christ, risen from the dead, the offspring of David, as preached in my gospel, 9 for which I am suffering, bound with chains as a
criminal. But the word of God is not bound! 10 Therefore I endure everything for the sake of the elect,
that they also may obtain the salvation that is in Christ Jesus with eternal
glory. 11 The saying is
trustworthy, for: If we have died with him, we will also live with him; 12 if we endure, we will also reign with him; if we deny
him, he also will deny us; 13 if we are
faithless, he remains faithful— for he cannot deny himself.
We readily see that
Paul is painting portraits for Timothy in this encouragement. As a son, he is to be a strong soldier. He is to live like an accomplished athlete
and work hard like a farmer. Above all
he is to look to Christ as the great example.
Paul also uses himself as an example. He serves Christ for the sake of
the Church. Then Paul uses a
recognizable transition: “The saying is trustworthy.” “’For’ connects what he
has been saying and the conclusions he now draws from his statements.”[3] Here’s the conclusion:
2 Timothy 2:11-13
11 The saying is trustworthy, for: If we have died with
him, we will also live with him; 12 if we endure, we
will also reign with him; if we deny him, he also will deny us; 13 if we are faithless, he remains faithful— for he
cannot deny himself.
“In these three verses
we find what is usually thought to be an early Christian hymn. It is in the typical
form of Hebrew poetic parallelism—four "if" clauses, each followed by
a balancing conclusion. The first two are positive, the other two negative.”[4] That is important to recognize.
Positively:
If we die with Him
(referring to our union with Christ Romans 6:3–11) we will live with him.
If we endure/persevere
through hardship and persecution we will reign with Him.
But negatively:
If we deny Him, He
will deny us. This is a serious warning
about falling away from the faith (“but whoever denies me before men, I also will
deny before my Father who is in heaven.” (Matthew 10:33, ESV).
If we are faithless, then what?
The word “faithless” is the Greek word: ἀπιστέω [pronounced ap·is·teh·o].[5] It is written in the present, active, indicative sense
meaning that this is an ongoing settled case of what is true about the
person. This is a person who is
“refusing to believe in Jesus and obey him.” [6] “This refers to a lack of saving faith, not
to weak or struggling faith. Unbelievers will ultimately deny Christ because
their faith was not genuine (cf. James 2:14–26).”[7]
This is not a Christian or a struggling Christian. This is an established unbeliever.
Conclusion
So the
faithless person is an unbeliever and Paul writes that it in this case, “… he [God] remains
faithful— for he cannot deny himself.” (2 Timothy 2:13, ESV). What is God faithful to? The answer is given to us in the next phrase:
He cannot be unfaithful or
deny Himself. God has to remain true to His self – His character. This is no comfort to those who are by nature
unfaithful. Just as they are true to
their nature, God is true to His. As MacArthur
writes, “As faithful as Jesus
is to save those who believe in Him (John 3:16), He is equally faithful to
judge those who do not (John 3:18). To act any other way would be inconsistent
with His holy, unchangeable nature. Cf. Heb. 10:23.”[8]
The Point? The
unbelieving natural man does not change God’s faithfulness to His holy justice.
Application
Michael Patton provides a sober application: “This has
significant implications to current discussions about the Gospel and how it is
to be presented, especially with regard to the doctrine of hell. Would God
really allow people he loves to go to hell? Of course. Why? Because he cannot
deny himself, any more than he can hand in his job resignation.”[9]
Does 2 Timothy 2:13 bring comfort to the faithless. Not a chance.
It provides the fiercest warning to those who refuse to repent and
believe. The faithless are
unbelievers. To each of them they can
expect God to remain true to His Word and true to His character.
[1] Criswell, W. A., Patterson, P., Clendenen, E. R.,
Akin, D. L., Chamberlin, M., Patterson, D. K., & Pogue, J. (Eds.). (1991). Believer’s Study Bible (electronic ed.,
2 Ti 1:1). Nashville: Thomas Nelson.
[2] Whitlock, L. G., Sproul, R. C., Waltke, B. K., &
Silva, M. (1995). The Reformation study
Bible: bringing the light of the Reformation to Scripture: New King James Version
(2 Ti 1:1). Nashville: T. Nelson.
[3] Hindson, E. E., & Kroll, W. M. (Eds.). (1994). KJV Bible Commentary (p. 2512).
Nashville: Thomas Nelson.
[4] Expositor's Bible Commentary, The, Pradis CD-ROM:2
Timothy/Exposition of 2 Timothy/V. Suffering and Glory (2:8-13), Book Version:
4.0.2
[6] Expositor's Bible Commentary, The, Pradis CD-ROM:2
Timothy/Exposition of 2 Timothy/V. Suffering and Glory (2:8-13), Book Version:
4.0.2
[7] MacArthur, J., Jr. (Ed.). (1997). The MacArthur Study Bible (electronic ed., p. 1877). Nashville, TN:
Word Pub.
[8] MacArthur, J., Jr. (Ed.). (1997). The MacArthur Study Bible (electronic ed., p. 1877). Nashville, TN:
Word Pub.
[9] http://www.reclaimingthemind.org/blog/2012/08/if-we-are-faithless-he-remains-faithful-and-other-bad-interpretations/
No comments:
Post a Comment