2 Timothy 2:13
13 If [ei] we believe not, [apisteo] yet he [ekeinos] abideth [meno] faithful: [pistos] he
cannot [ou] [dunamai] deny [arneomai] himself. [heautou] KJV-Interlinear
13 If we
are faithless, He remains faithful; for He cannot deny Himself. NASB
One additional note for
the verse 12 study. Remember that in
eternity everyone has a resurrection body.
There is one nation, one family, one ruler (namely Christ).
Life in the eternal
state will not be as it is in this current world.
We will share rulership
in the Millennium, but the Millennium will be a continuation of this world even
if for only 1000 years. And during the Millennium there will be people moving
about around the world, there will be dissentions and disagreements, and problems
that will require judges and rulers of sorts, to settle disputes.
But in the eternal
state, well, we do not know exactly what kind of geography will exist on this
earth, if indeed there are planets, or if the whole universe will be one huge
continent or series of continents and oceans and whatever.
Remember that when the
Millennium begins, all mountains and hills will crumble away, leaving the only
high point for Jerusalem. But when John
was observing the new Jerusalem descending out of heaven in the new universe,
he was observing it from a high mountain, and that city was or will be 1500
miles high. A far greater height than
even our current satellites orbit now (at about 200 miles altitude).
So, rulership in the
new universe is not in view in the last verse (it may be applied for the Millennium),
but what was in view from the last verse is the difference in the blessings
that will be available to mature believers, versus negative believers.
Hope that clarifies
some questions that were raised.
And now for the
faithfulness of God vs. the faithlessness of man.
In chapter three, Paul will
describe negative believers in these terms,
"lovers of self,
lovers of money, boastful, arrogant, revilers, disobedient to parents,
ungrateful, unholy, unloving, irreconcilable, malicious gossips, without
self-control, brutal, haters of good, treacherous, reckless, conceited, lovers
of pleasure rather than lovers of God; holding to a form of godliness, although
they have denied its power"
In Titus, he describes
negative believers as those professing to know God but deny Him by their deeds.
Everyone can have a
spiritual hiccup from time to time, but when the pattern of ones life continues
and continues, day after day, year after year, then that pattern pretty much
summarizes and identifies their life.
And then God deals with them accordingly.
Even though there are
those who stumble from time to time, God remains faithful.
Even though there are
those who stray permanently off the path of the spiritual life, God still
remains faithful.
But God remains
faithful to truth, not to your haphazard moods or compromises or convenient
arguments that you use to convince yourself.
God does not make
exceptions. If you have never believed
in Christ, then you will go to the Lake of Fire, even though your personality
is a wonderful one. The terms of
salvation do not change, believe in Christ and then you will be saved.
Likewise, if you are a
wonderful person but refuse to advance in the spiritual life as God defines
advancement, then you will not grow, and you will not receive any reward.
Do not try to convince
yourself that your ideas of being nice, are enough for God to make an exception
for you. He will not. God is faithful to His policy, not your
whims.
It is on the basis of
Gods faithfulness that we have security in our salvation, that we have an
opportunity to advance in our spiritual life, that we have the opportunity to
achieve completeness of our life, that we will receive a phenomenal reward in
eternity due to our obedience to His mandates.
Gods faithfulness means
the certainty of failure and loss for those who do not comply with His rules.
Gods faithfulness means
the certainty of Gods blessings for those who obey the mandates presented in
the scriptures.
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