In 2 Timothy, as Paul faces death, he calls himself apostle of the promise of life (1:1). Death is a terrible foe and the unjust execution that awaited Paul is an especially pernicious way to perish. But for Paul, the “promise of life… in Christ” (1:1) solves the problem of death, as he says a few verses later. The appearance “of our Savior Christ Jesus [has] abolished death and brought life and immortality to light through the gospel” for which God appointed Paul and apostle (1:10-11). While believers grieve when a friend dies, the Apostle says, we do not “grieve as others do, who have no hope” (1 Thess. 4:13).

One December, a week or two before Christmas, the worship leader announced the hymn “Joy to the World” and a woman nearby groaned, “Oh no, not ‘Joy to the World’ again.” I understand her point; she wanted a new Christmas song, but still, how can we grow tired of joy to the world. Psalm 96 begins “Oh sing a new song to the Lord,” so the desire for something new is legitimate. Still, we need to hear ourselves, since we can get tired of good news. We can forget the material advantages of living in the West. We can take loving family for granted. And we can forget the gospel or even tire of it. Again, we can understand this. The ultimate crime for a preacher is to propagate falsehood, but perhaps the penultimate crime is making Christianity [seem] boring. This happens when pastors or teachers present the same ideas in the same words over and over. Of course, that never needs to happen. The Bible is one story, but it has hundreds of subplots. It has one theme, but so many variations it makes Mozart look like a slacker.

I was reminded of these things when I recently prepared a message on 2 Timothy. There, as Paul faces death, he calls himself apostle of the promise of life (1:1). Death is a terrible foe and the unjust execution that awaited Paul is an especially pernicious way to perish. But for Paul, the “promise of life… in Christ” (1:1) solves the problem of death, as he says a few verses later. The appearance “of our Savior Christ Jesus [has] abolished death and brought life and immortality to light through the gospel” for which God appointed Paul and apostle (1:10-11). While believers grieve when a friend dies, the Apostle says, we do not “grieve as others do, who have no hope” (1 Thess. 4:13).

Believers should learn from Paul, since most spiritual problems have their resolution or cure in the gospel. When we have a difficulty, we should stop and ask, “How does the gospel address this? As Paul faces death, he remembers that the gospel promises eternal life.

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