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When Apostle Paul wrote to Timothy not to be ashamed of the Gospel, he was looking to continue sharing this Gospel in Rome. The Gospel was the power of God for His purpose and grace. True understanding of this meant that there was no reason to keep silent, hide or be indifferent toward the eternal state of people. Paul saw preaching the Gospel worthy to suffer for. He wants to see that people he was burdened to preach to have every chance to hear and receive the life-changing power of the Gospel They can be set free to acknowledge the Almighty God Who is worthy of all worship.
In today’s context, the truth remains that suffering (hardship and hard work) for the Gospel is a norm, not an exception. What do we as Christians suffer from? We are saved to be a covenant people of God living holy lives reflecting Him. We reflect gratitude solely to God alone. He grants us justification by grace alone through faith that clearly runs counter to any belief of righteousness by works. Hardship in the form of absorbing objections, in varying degrees, and rejection to the faith is inevitable.
Hard work in the ministry lies in preaching and teaching. Preaching the Gospel is not as much a spiritual gift as it is a commitment. It is essential in the leadership role where the calling could also involve church planting. Beyond preaching, there is also the work of a ‘teacher’ for believers are to be trained in teaching. Sharing of your lives to others which involves faithful prayer is hard work.
Hymn writer Daniel Whittle in 1883 wrote the song “I know whom I have believed” based on 2 Tim 1:12. We might not have full knowledge of the promises of God and eternal life but this lack is far less important than the confidence in the refrain – “I know whom ….”. Our complete trust is to be solely on Jesus’ promise of full redemption and when He comes again we will have full understanding. For now we stand fully assured and ready to share this joy with others.
Anxiety in sharing comes when we take our focus away from the Person of Jesus and His power over sin and death. We see our inabilities and fear reactions from people. We can begin to know that same power when we step out in faith to preach this powerful Gospel message of love and reconciliation in Jesus Christ.
