II Timothy 2:3 says, “Thou therefore endure hardness, as a good soldier of Jesus Christ.”
The little colony of Leiden was located about 25 miles southwest of Amsterdam on the Old Rhine River. In the late 1500s a small Pilgrim church huddled there to escape the religious persecution of Spain. They had built a fortress and resolved never to surrender. Spain, with 8,000 men, surrounded Leiden and planned to starve them out. They offered to let them alone if they would renounce their Protestant faith. There answer was, “As long as there is a living man left in the country, we will contend for our liberty and religion.” The famine got severe. The crowd from within threatened one of their leaders, Adrain Van Der Werf. He offered his body for them to eat. The crowd was inspired and shouted at the enemy: “When all has perished but ourselves, be sure that we will each devour our left arms, retaining our right to defend our women, our liberty, and our religion, against the foreign tyrant…” (The Founders’ Bible, David Barton, p.1306).
Paul did not expect Timothy to endure hardness that he himself would not endure. II Corinthians 11:23-28 is his account of the many things he had to endure. In Hebrews 11:32-38 Paul tells of the many that endured all kinds of afflictions by faith, including being stoned and sawn asunder. Enduring hardness is not rare, but normal for the true Christian.
Paul points to Jesus as the great example of endurance. Hebrews 12:1-4 states, “Wherefore seeing we also are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us, Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God. For consider him that endured such contradiction of sinners against himself, lest ye be wearied and faint in your minds. Ye have not yet resisted unto blood, striving against sin.”
If we want to be on the endurance team, along with all those already mentioned, we have to accept hardness and pain, (no pain, no gain). Living for Jesus is not all about jumping around and clapping our hands. Enduring hardness is not only for those of the past. It will probably become more prevalent in the future. “And they cried with a loud voice, saying, How long, O Lord, holy and true, dost thou not judge and avenge our blood on them that dwell on the earth? And white robes were given unto every one of them; and it was said unto them, that they should rest yet for a little season, until their fellowservants also and their brethren, that should be killed as they were, should be fulfilled.”
Paul called Timothy to be a good soldier of Jesus Christ. The hymn, “Am I a Soldier of the Cross” by Isaac Watts asks the sobering question. It is an honor to be called to be a soldier of Jesus, to ENDURE HARDNESS!
