1 Timothy 4:10
10 For [gar] therefore [eis] [touto] we [kopiao] both [kai] labour [kopiao] and [kai] suffer reproach, [oneidizo] because [hoti] we trust [elpizo] in [epi] the living [zao] God, [theos]
who [hos] is [esti] the Saviour
[soter] of all [pas] men, [anthropos] specially [malista] of those that believe. [pistos] KJV-Interlinear
10 For
it is for this we labor and strive, because we have fixed our hope on the
living God, who is the Savior of all men, especially of believers. NASB
Why do we teach or
study doctrine?Because it is our hope,
our present hope and our future hope, of achieving the highest level of
spiritual growth that we can possibly achieve, namely spiritual maturity.
Why? Because it is there where our spiritual life
is maximized and completed, and it is our maturity on which our future rewards
and blessings are based.
One day, we will stand
before Christ, at the Judgment Seat of Christ, 2 Cor. 5:10,
and it is at that point in time that we will receive our eternal reward. Those who achieve spiritual maturity,
combined with production, will receive phenomenal rewards and blessings.
Those who ignore their
spiritual life, pretend to pursue a spiritual life, make up their own rules of spirituality,
ignore instruction, reject the teaching authority of a legitimate instructor,
become an authority unto themselves, think that they know better than you, and
so forth, will be very disappointed when they stand before Christ.
Therefore, it is for
this future hope, that we endure, that we labor, that
we suffer during this life, because of the promise of the next life.
This is not inordinate suffering,
above and beyond what others are exposed to in life. Life in this world comes with suffering
regardless of your circumstances.
One of the biggest
reliefs that a person can have comes when they die, and the burdens of this
world are immediately lifted from them.
But we endure, and continue in this life because there is a huge reward
available in the next life.
One of the most used
examples in this life to symbolize the potentials of the next life is wealth. That is what most people can understand. Would you prefer to be a billionaire or a peasant? And again, most normal folks would rather
be the rich dude.Who among you would
turn down a billion dollar inheritance?
Not one of you.Unless you are a
fool of course.Many of the parables
speak to this example.
But our hope is more
than just wealth, it is wrapped up in many things that
bring us an eternal life without burdens, without disappointments, without all
of the negatives that exist in this world.
The words for labor,
and suffer or strive, refer to working to the point of exhaustion, to struggle
against huge odds.And that is what life
is. It is a huge uphill battle just to gain an inch in life, and when you have
that inch you will probably lose it.
With but a few exceptions in this world, the vast majority of people
struggle with finances, with just trying to make a living, with trying to keep
caught up as best they can.
But there is no
shortage of folks out there, who will go overboard to bring you down, who will try
to make you stumble, who will gossip against you, who would love to see you
fail.And for what reason? Simply because they are nothing more than the
agents of evil.This we studied not too
long ago.
If you have been following
along in the Revelation study, then you are well aware of the phenomenal,
repeat, phenomenal rewards that are available to those who advance to, and
maintain, their spiritual maturity status.
The rewards of simply pursuing truth, are mind
boggling.And those who refuse to pursue
truth, pursue what?
Lies.
We pursue a living God,
1 Sam 17:26; 2 Kings 19:4, 16; Ps 42:2; 84:2.
We do not pursue a dead
god, an idol, a made up god, an invented god, an invented philosophy, or things
that cannot and do not provide anything except lies. We do not respect anything that promotes
lies.We tolerate the opinions of others
and their beliefs, but we do not respect them.
Why would you respect something that will send someone to the Lake of
Fire, and/or destroy their entire eternal future?
There are far too many
folks out there who think you are intolerant if you do not allow them to enter
their compromised beliefs into your beliefs.
There are folks who think you intolerant if you do not agree to
disagree.There are folks that believe
that all beliefs (all roads) lead to the same pearly gates and beyond.
You are to be pure in
your spiritual life, and that means free of all taints and flaws and falsities
that others have.Your entire future
depends on your objectivity and discernment, and your adherence to truth.
And for that, you will be
exposed to all sorts of burdens from life, burdens from your own thoughts, from
other people, from bureaucracies, from the natural events and circumstances of
the world.
Jesus Christ is the
savior.This verse is the most abused
and distorted verse of them all.Other religions
will tell you that everyone is saved, simply because of this verse, but they
only do this to tease you and to twist truth.
The Bible must be read
in its entirety, not by cherry picking a verse or two for convenience, or
making the words to mean what you want them to mean.
And this verse does not
say that all people are saved, only that Jesus Christ (God), is the
savior.And the savior of who? He went to the cross and paid the price for
the sins of the entire human race. Therefore, making salvation available to all
people.It is for people to believe in
Him, and thus accept the salvation promise, before they are saved.
The Bible clearly
teaches that those who reject Christ will be sentenced to hell, Rev 20:11-15. That the duration of that punishment will be
eternal, Matt 25:41, 46.
Christ spoke of the extreme
danger of hell, Matt 8:12; 13:41-42, 49-50; 22:13; 24:51; 25:30; Luke 13:28.
Therefore, salvation is
available to everyone, but it is only possessed by those who actually believe
in Christ.
And that is why this
verse says, especially believers.For it
is only they, who have accepted, through faith, the work which Christ did on
the Cross, who will be saved.
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