There have been and will be many times that I am less than faithful to God and His work. I have in the past and will in the future, drift away from Him and work to accomplish things on my own. Through it all though, God remains faithful.
“13if we are faithless, he remains faithful — for he cannot deny himself.” — 2 Timothy 2:13 (ESV)
I am grateful that God remains even when I do not. I am a sinner and God knows that. I may have accepted salvation and forgiveness for my sins, but I am still and will always be a sinner in this world. God does not give up on me even when He knows that I am a sinner and will continue sinning. He knows that largely, I will not actively and knowingly sin, although there will be times when I do. It is my repentance and knowing of sin that God accepts daily and that is why I must speak with Him regularly and repent for those sins that I will/have committed.
Why is it that God allows me to sin and still accepts and remains faithful to me? It is because He has a plan for me and that plan can only be carried out by me and He also knows that I will carry it out.
“10Therefore I endure everything for the sake of the elect, that they also may obtain the salvation that is in Christ Jesus with eternal glory.” — 2 Timothy 2:10 (ESV)
Paul is speaking of his enduring the pain and suffering that comes with being imprisoned. He keeps on keeping on for the sake of those that are gaining from him and his dedication to the gospel. Paul, I have no doubt, had a difficult time of it occasionally as he suffered for Christ. I am sure that as a man, there were times when he felt as though he might just give way. It is not chronicled in God’s word, but Paul was human and I am sure that he had his moments. The thing is, even in those moments, they were quickly fleeting and he put his head down and went to work for God and was rewarded with the comfort of knowing that he would soon be with Christ in heaven. Paul knew God was with him every step of the way.
“11The saying is trustworthy, for: If we have died with him, we will also live with him; 12if we endure, we will also reign with him; if we deny him, he also will deny us;” — 2 Timothy 2:11-12 (ESV)
The above verses indicate that God is with me regardless of my circumstances. And they pour into verse 13, where I learn that “He remains faithful”. Regardless of where I might be or what I might be experiencing, God is with me and will remain faithful to me, even when I might not be with Him.
What is going on in your life that you might waiver from your faithfulness to God? Are you out there trying to go it alone? What if you just put your head down and continued to do the work for Him and allowed God to be faithful even when you may not?
Trevor's Thoughts 