Kingdom Building

October 10, 2019

Scripture Reading:
2 Timothy 2:8-15

The saying is sure:
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 will also deny us;
if we are faithless, he remains faithful—
for he cannot deny himself. –2 Timothy 2:11-13

The origin of this hymn is unknown, but it appears to pull from several of Paul’s writings creating a piece to be used in worship like the doxology that some Christians use today. For example, it reflects some of the information found in Romans 1:3-4: the gospel concerning his Son, who was descended from David according to the flesh and was declared to be Son of God with power according to the spirit of holiness by resurrection from the dead, Jesus Christ our Lord,

The line if we deny him, he will also deny us; struck me as being rather harsh and very final when I first read it. I then thought about the Good Fisherman, Peter, denying Jesus not once but three times (Matthew 26:69-75; Luke 22:54-62) who went on to become the Rock on which the church was built. The story does not say that Jesus denied Peter, but if he had, he might have saved his life for as Jesus’ supporter Peter could have been arrested too. Of course. Another possibility is that Jesus never forced himself on anyone, following Jesus is always a choice. Even in some quarters in the first century, it was probably safer to not openly follow Jesus.

The next line, I think, tells the real story. if we are faithless, he remains faithful. Jesus never withdraws his love, his pledge to be faithful to us, even if we at times are found to be without faith. Jesus sees the image of God in each of us and he cannot deny himself.  We need to look a little harder at seeing the Christ in ourselves and in everyone.

Prayer: Lord, forgive us when our faith stagnates or even fails us. Rekindle us to faithful love and service. Amen.

All scriptures are quoted from the New Revised Standard Version Bible: Anglicized Edition, copyright 1989, 1995, Division of Christian Education of the National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights are reserved.