2 Timothy 2:8-9 8Remember Jesus Christ who has been raised from the dead, from the seed of David, according to my gospel, 9for which I suffer hardship to the point of imprisonment as a criminal; but the word of God is not bound.
Paul continues his encouragement to Timothy to be strong in his suffering and the challenges he faced in Ephesus. The greatest example of victory through suffering is the resurrection of Jesus Christ, who provides no only the model but the strength for endurance. Paul gives Timothy one simple command in these verses: remember. The tense of this verse is present and has the sense of continue to remember and do not forget. It is crucial that Christians always remember what Jesus has done for us. One vivid and physical way to do this is to share frequently in the Lord’s Supper: “do this in remembrance of me.”
Timothy must remember two important ideas about Jesus particularly relevant to his need to endure suffering. First is Jesus’ resurrection. By his resurrection, Jesus conquered death, which represents the power of sin. The tense of the attributive participle (egēgermenon) emphasizes the on-going power and effect of Jesus’ resurrection. His power over sin and death was not a one time event but has eternal consequences and impacts us in our daily journey. The passive voice points out that behind Jesus’ resurrection is the power of the Almighty God. Remembering is more than a brief thought but should become a part of our daily existence as new creations in Christ raised to newness of life (Romans 6:4).
Second, Paul emphasizes Jesus’ humanity by pointing out his descent from David. This claim is similar to Romans 1:3-4. The fleshly descent of Jesus from David qualified him to be the long awaited Messiah who was promised in the Old Testament in 2 Samuel 7:12; Psalm 89:3-4; Isaiah 11:1; Jeremiah 23:5. Both Matthew 1 and Luke 3 trace Jesus’ heritage back through David. This important fulfillment of prophecy would especially appeal to Jews.
Third, Paul reminds Timothy that Jesus was the heart of the message he preached. The gospel was indeed “good news” that the world needed to hear. Timothy was one of the important voices at that moment to preach the same gospel to those in Ephesus and beyond. In verse 9, Paul reflects on how he had suffered for this message even to the point of being imprisoned. It is possible that as Paul wrote this letter, he was bound by chains in the city of Rome, awaiting trial and possible execution. It cost him to preach the gospel. But not even the mighty Roman Empire or the Emperor Nero could stop the message Paul preached. In fact, few people remember Nero, but Paul’s letters have influenced billions of people.
The last phrase is full of power. The tense of the verb bound or chained is in the perfect tense, like the verb for Jesus’ resurrection in verse 8. Because of the power of Jesus’ resurrection, the message about Jesus cannot be stopped. This is the message that Timothy needed to devote himself to proclaim. We should also have a deep assurance that the testimony of our faith cannot be stopped by anything in this world. We should not fear but realize the power of God in the good news that we share.
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