November 1, 2024

Passage Read: 2 Timothy 3-4
Meditation Verses: 4:17-18

Thought

After all Paul has been through in his service to Jesus Christ, after all he has experienced of Jesus, he continues to preach the Gospel even while on trial for his life. He senses that the end for him is near. All his friends and disciples have deserted him or gone elsewhere on other tasks. He is alone, but he doesn't falter in his faith. The Gospel is not something he heard from someone else or only studied in books. He has met the risen Lord and continually fellowships with Him. Even if all the churches should abandon the faith, he will continue to preach it. He knows it is true beyond the shadow of a doubt, because he has experienced the risen Lord.

Application

While I have not had Paul's experience of Christ, the fact that he endured all he did and didn't turn away, didn't give up faith in Jesus tells me that Jesus is real and so is the Gospel. I should be emboldened like him by his example. He wasn't making this stuff up; every word was real to him. I can have total confidence to believe and hold fast to the Word of God because I know what Paul suffered to bring it to the world of his day. Jesus promised Paul would suffer, and suffer he did, and never turned away from the Lord. That is a powerful testimony to me, that I too can suffer the loss of everything and think nothing of it, because I have a better possession and a lasting one reserved for me in the presence of Jesus Christ. He will return with the reward I have earned by my faithfulness and dedication and faith in Him.