All who desire to live godly in Christ Jesus will be persecuted

II Timothy 3:12 (NASB)

Indeed, all who desire to live godly in Christ Jesus will be persecuted.

Why is this true?  The Message Bible says: “Anyone who wants to live all out for Christ is in for a lot of trouble; there's no getting around it.”  Why?  Why is it that people who desire to live godly in Christ Jesus, who want to live all out for Christ are in for a lot of trouble and will be persecuted?  Why can you not live on this earth with a heart fully devoted to Jesus, putting others first before yourself, living the kind of life that is taught in the Scriptures and still be tormented, accused, hurt, and perhaps suffer far worse things.  Why?  Why is there such hatred against the Lord and against those who try to live their lives with Him as their Lord?

And why is it that those who try to live their lives in obedience to the lordship of Christ and do not feel persecuted, when reading a verse like this, feel guilty because they don’t feel persecuted?  Questions arise about the legitimacy of their salvation and faith and place in the kingdom of God.  There must be something wrong.

I think that I can answer the second question better than the first.  The answer to the second question simply is this----if you are not experiencing any persecution in your life, you are not taking any kind stand for Christ.  I’ll explain more in subsequent paragraphs. The answer to the first question is not as simple, but is related to original sin.  When Adam and Eve disobeyed God, the forces of evil took over domination of this world.  Satan is the god of this world (John 12:31, I John 5:19, Eph 6:11-13, John 18:36) until Christ returns. God’s will is being done in heaven, but not on earth as is stated in the Lord’s prayer.  With Satan being allowed to rule this world, he is the archenemy of God and anyone who tries to promote the things of God over the things of evil will be persecuted.   

A key phrase in this passage is “desire to be godly”.  “Desire” in the Greek means to will, be resolved, be determined, and to be fond of doing.  So the attitude who one who desires to live godly in Christ Jesus is a very strong and very determined attitude to do the things necessary to be a godly person.  Kent Hughes wrote “Ten Disciplines of a Godly Man” and here are the ten disciplines (you need to read the book to learn more about each of these)---purity, relationships, mind, emotion, integrity, tongue, work, perseverance, church, and giving.  Barbara Hughes then wrote “Ten Disciplines of a Godly Woman”---gospel, submission, prayer, worship, mind, contentment, propriety, perseverance, singleness/marriage, and good works.

Persecute means to make to run or flee, put to flight, to drive away, to pursue in a hostile manner, to harass, trouble, molest and to be mistreated.  If you are not experiencing any of these forces as a Christian, perhaps you need to examine your life to determine if you are truly living a godly life or might be deficient in one or more of these disciplines.  These disciplines, when practiced daily by men and women, draw the attention of others because of the stands taken that are very much against what the world values.  For example a man being pure (e.g. resisting sexual temptation) in the company of other worldly men or a woman advocating submission in the company of other worldly women is going to experience harassment or other persecution for taking these stands.

Reflect carefully on these words from Ray Stedman’s commentary on II Tim 3:12 and determine what you need to do or stop doing.  “There is a phony "folk Christianity" around today that will enable you to apparently escape all these persecutions.  In every church there are people who are trying to put on a Christian front.  Paul spoke about them in II Tim 3:5, describing them as, "having a form of godliness but denying the power thereof.”  They act like Christians, they read the Book, and sing the hymns, but they have no reality of Christ in their lives. That kind of Christianity escapes a lot of persecution because it never stands for anything.  But, in the end, it perishes along with the world; it is destroyed in the judgments of God. That kind of Christianity is worthless. If we want to be men and women of God, we are to follow the models that are held before us. Teach the truth; spread it around. Let people know what is right and real about life from the Book which you hold in your hand.  Live righteously: Practice what you preach.  Expect trouble, because you will get it.  There will be times when what you say will be very unpopular, but that does not stop you from saying it and living it.  Above all else, walk with the Lord. Love the Lord Jesus. Live in his presence.  Draw closer each day to that Divine Lord who walks invisibly in our midst, who is in charge of all the events of earth, controlling them and working them out to His one great purpose which He shall bring to pass.  God knows that things are going to get worse and worse -- he intended them to -- but he has planted within that decaying, corrupting, morally imperfect civilization men and women like you and me who are given the privilege of standing for truth and righteousness in a day of declension.  May God grant that we will be such people.”  (http://www.pbc.org/files/messages/5438/3790.html).