2 Timothy 3:12
12 Yea, [de] and [kai] all [pas] that will [thelo] live [zao] godly [eusebos] in [en] Christ [Christos] Jesus [Iesous] shall suffer
persecution. [dioko] KJV-Interlinear
12 And
indeed, all who desire to live godly in Christ Jesus will be persecuted. NASB
And here it is. Every person who believes in Christ, every
believer, will suffer in one way or another, in this life, in this world. This is the devils world and the world hates
you simply because you are associated with Christ, whom the world hates and has
always hated.
This is not a
possibility, not a suggestion, not optional, but a stated promise of reality. If you are alive in this world, then you will
suffer at some time in your life, in some fashion.
This is not exclusive
to believers, for every living human being will suffer, by the mere fact that
they live in the devils world.
But here it is stated
that sooner or later, in your life will come troubles, pressures, and certainly
many of these things come as a natural cause from just being in this world. But Paul states emphatically, ‘shall suffer
persecution.’
Persecution, ‘dioko,’
means to pursue, to suffer, to persecute, and this means that trouble is not
going to happen to you by chance or by accident, but it is going to pursue you constantly.
From your birth to the
moment just before you believe in Christ, you are an unbeliever and your life
is subject to the whims of the world.
But once you believe in Christ, then your life is subject not only to
Gods incentives from discipline, but you become a target of the world.
The world hates Christ
and the world by association, will hate you.
The real question is, ‘Will
you live your life in fellowship while advancing to spiritual maturity?’ Or, ‘Will you live your life out of
fellowship, and doing very little if anything within your spiritual life?’
Both will suffer, but
only one, the advancing mature believer, will benefit from that suffering.
If you do not function
within your spiritual life then all of the suffering that will enter into your
life will just compound your failure in life, and you will not benefit in any
way.
You might as well
benefit from something that is going to happen to you, rather than not getting
anything out of it.
But remember that the primary
benefit is in your spiritual growth, in your spiritual endurance, in your
faith, in your relationship with Christ, in your spiritual production which is
rewardable.
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