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"I endure all things for the sake of the elect..."

Text: 2 Timothy 2:10

LEARNING DEEP LESSONS THROUGH SUFFERING

The apostle learned many deep lessons about faith and life through suffering. One of the most important lessons was how to endure suffering.

“Therefore I endure all things for the sake of the elect,
that they also may obtain the salvation
which is in Christ Jesus with eternal glory.”
2 Timothy 2:10

1. “Therefore”

a) Paul always made sure he had good grounds that would enable him to endure suffering.

b) The word “therefore” suggests that Paul had done some thorough thinking on this subject.

c) He was fully prepared to endure suffering!

2. “I endure”

a) This rich Greek word (“hupomeno”) may be translated in a number of ways:-

i) To have perseverance

ii) To have patience

iii) To have endurance

b) All of the above are valid.

3. What were some of the “all things?”

a) Physical suffering

i) Being beaten

ii) Jailed

iii) Stoned

b) Mental and emotional suffering

i) Being called “an evildoer”

ii) Being accused falsely

iii) Being maligned

4. “For the sake of the elect”

a) Paul was conscious of the people of God he called “the elect”. These were people who had come to faith in the Lord Jesus Christ.

b) Often he called them “beloved” and “brethren”. He did not mind suffering for the sake of “the beloved brethren” (Philippians 2:12).