Paul Instructs Timothy - Part 12

There are a few more verses in Paul’s letter to Timothy that I want to address before closing.

2Tim. 3:12-13 Yea, and all that will live godly in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution. But evil men and seducers shall wax worse and worse, deceiving, and being deceived.

These verses warn that all who live godly in Christ Jesus, members of the true “church,” will be persecuted; they will actually endure loss, pain or death (from Webster) because they choose to stand firm in their faith in Jesus and cling to the truth of God’s authority and the inerrancy of His word. There are many Christians throughout this world that suffer persecution for their faith. I have received the Voice of the Martyrs newsletter for years to keep me aware of that truth. The signs are all around us that persecution in so-called “free” nations is just over the horizon. Recent headlines in the news that are aimed at Christians have addressed the right of parents to educate their children at home, the need to modify radio broadcasts to avoid prosecution by hate crime laws, have likened fundamentalist Christians to hate-filled terrorists and reported the arrest of a man for handing out gospel tracts in Texas. I hate to say it, but I believe the time is coming sooner rather than later that many of the “freedoms” we treasure as Christians in America will soon be denied us. Unless we choose to become part of the “church” that is tolerant to the point of denying Jesus as the only way to salvation or just remain silent about our faith, I believe we are in for a rough ride ahead.

2Tim. 4:3-4 For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but after their own lusts shall they heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears; And they shall turn away their ears from the truth, and shall be turned unto fables.

These are very sad verses, but its truth is already evident in the professing “church” today. So-called biblical scholars, like those of the Jesus Seminar, have laid the foundation for the growth of this attitude by declaring that the scripture is full of errors. As more people in the “church” choose to reject God’s wisdom and authority and turn instead to the wisdom of men, this outlook will increase yet more. Those pastors who have capitulated to a seeker-sensitive ministry have already capitulated to refraining from sharing any part of God’s word that might be offensive to the sinner. The more prevalent ministries become that allow people to continue to feed their flesh without danger of being confronted with the need to repent of their sin, the more people are going to embrace those ministries while the true church suffers persecution. It’s natural to want to “have your cake and eat it too” as the old saying goes. I think this is one of the main reasons that people embrace atheism and evolution; it does away with God and any accountability to Him. The fact is that God’s truth will be proven and the fables of men exposed.

This turned out to be a much harder exercise than I first imagined, but very enlightening. I realize that only those with soft hearts seeking the truth will be ready to embrace this teaching. Scripture is very clear that it is the condition of the heart that affects our hearing. I’m going to quote from the NIV since it is a bit more understandable.

Matt. 13:15 For this people’s heart has become calloused; they hardly hear with their ears, and they have closed their eyes. Otherwise they might see with their eyes, hear with their ears, understand with their hearts and turn, and I would heal them.