If, then …

If, then … 2 Timothy 2.11b-13

If we die with him,
we will also live with him.

If we endure hardship, we will reign with him.


If we deny him, he will deny us.

If we are unfaithful, he remains faithful,

      for he cannot deny who he is.

Rewards, consequences.

Good news, bad news ~ which one do you want first?

Paul lays out our choices very clearly—follow God, remain faithful or deny him when times get tough.  Christian, what do you choose?  Reminds me of Joshua’s personal line in the sand: “choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve . . . but as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.”¹

Good news:  If we die to ourselves, to our base desires, surrender ourselves to God, and live in obedience to him and the Word of God, then he will give us forever life with him. 

            Dying with Christ—this is not the first time Paul referenced dying with him; in his letter to the Romans he said, ‘our old self was crucified with Him, in order that our body of sin might be done away with, so that we would no longer be slaves to sin; for he who has died is freed from sin. Now if we have died with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with Him.²

Your faithful life on earth translates to eternal life with God.

If we persevere in hardships, trials, and testings, then God will pull us up to  reign with him. Reigning with him is a reward for our perseverance.  Our Lord’s half brother, James, wrote, Blessed is the man that endures temptation: for when he is tried, he shall receive the crown of life, which the Lord has promised to them that love him’³  ‘Wait … reward?  ‘Reward for just following Christ?  Something like that actually.

Can we talk?  I have always been uncomfortable, rather ill at ease thinking about eternal rewards.  I mean, isn’t Heaven enough?  Isn’t having a relationship with God this side of eternity, and being with him for all of eternity enough?  Honestly, I have thought so.  But Scripture makes it clear that ‘we must believe that ‘he exists, and that he rewards those who seek him.’⁴  Rewards.  Hmmm.   Jesus himself said, ‘For the Son of Man will come in the glory of his Father with his angels, and then he will reward each according to his works.’⁵

Bad news:  If we deny him, then he will deny us before the Father.   As our Lord said, ‘Whoever denies me before men, I also will deny before my Father who is in heaven.’⁶ So today, as I stood before the Fellowship of Christian Athletes at San Clemente High School, I charged them with the notion that some one, some where, will challenge, perhaps even mock them for their Christian faith – but they must not cave or crumble!  They must not take the easy way out, because surely the Christian faith is absolutely defensible.  Besides, Jesus made it so clear—if we deny him, he will deny us.  May it never be so, O Lord!

If we are faithless, then he will yet remain faithful because it is who he is,

            and he cannot deny his character.  ‘What if some were unfaithful? Does their faithlessness nullify the faithfulness of God? By no means! Let God be true though every one were a liar.’⁷  Right here I picture the fore–arm of a young man to whom I am quite committed  - he has a colorful tattoo with the words of this very verse.  “If we are unfaithful, he remains faithful, for he cannot deny who he is.’⁸  Why would a young person alter his appearance forever with a permanent tattoo with words such as these?  Because he knows, he trusts, yea, he believes and stands on the fact that ‘even if we are faithless, he—Jesus Christ—is faithful’.   And that is the point, is it not?

If, then … oh, may we be found faithful!