II Timothy 4:5 But watch thou in all things, endure afflictions, do the work of an evangelist, make full proof of thy ministry
Until 1954 people thought the four-minute mile was impossible, that the human body could not do it. That all changed in 1954 when Roger Bannister broke the four-minute mile. Subsequently, there were all kinds of records that dropped like dominos once people knew that you could indeed break the four-minute mile. I don’t know a lot about Roger Bannister, but I do know that he was probably a driven man. There were things he endured, like early mornings, late nights, hard work, rigorous exercise, and diets. I’m just guessing, but he did things to attain what he wanted to attain, a four-minute mile. The fact is everyone is willing to endure some things and there are things that no one is willing to endure. The one affects the other.
In II Timothy, Paul is addressing a young, timid Timothy. In II Timothy 1:8 he says, “Don’t be ashamed of me, the Lord Jesus, or the gospel.” In II Timothy 2:3 he says, “Endure hardness, as a good soldier.” In verse 10 Paul says, “I endure all things.” So, your life is the sum of what you cannot bear without.
In Roger Bannister’s case, he could not bear without attaining a four-minute mile. That means there would be a number of things that he would endure. Your life is the sum of what you can’t bear without. What you are willing to endure, and conversely, what will you not endure? For instance, II Timothy 4:3 says, “For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine.” You have to decide, are you not going to be able to live without comfort or are you not going to be able to live without truth?
II Timothy 4:5 says, “But watch thou in all things, endure afflictions, do the work of an evangelist.” In other words, I am to be giving the gospel. If I do that, there are things I am going to have to endure. In every person’s life they have to decide what they are and are not going to endure, and one is equivalent to the other. For instance, some people can’t bear to live without their comfort. There is this unwillingness to do without. Part of it is because they want to anesthetize themselves against the world as it is.
I’m amazed that in some of the most beautiful places I know there is a culture of drug use and I think, “If you can’t be happy here, you can’t be happy anywhere.” What are you trying to anesthetize yourself against? The answer is the world within your heart, not the world outside your body. Some people can’t live without comfort. For some that might be their beer, “likes” on social media, or weekends. Now, no one wants to be hated and strategic rest is important, but we can be so obsessed with our own comfort that we don’t endure the truth and the hardship that comes because of it.
Are you going to live without comfort or are you going to live without truth? If I am going to live with truth, that means I am going to have to endure some things. It means I am going to have to have some humility. Sometimes I don’t want to be told the truth. I’d rather think my own thoughts, but to endure the truth means having humility, courage, and the ability to be honest about what I know and act in light of what is true. It means work, digging, curiosity, finding out what the truth is, what God has given us in the Bible and living in light of that. It means engaging people for whom Christ died with the truth. Everybody you know is enduring something. What are you enduring? And what can you not bear without, comfort or truth?
George Mallory was obsessed with summiting Mt. Everest, the highest peak in the world at over 29,000 feet. People who climb Everest don’t do so because it is fun, a challenge, or an adventure. No, these people are obsessed. Summiting the highest peak in the world is exquisite misery on so many levels. When someone asked Mallory why he was attempting to summit Everest, he famously answered, “Because it is there.” It was because he could not bear to live a life without knowing whether he had it in him to summit the highest peak in the world. He had a drive and willingness to forego comfort, ease, and safety. Indeed, later it was found out that he died on Mt Everest. I don’t know whether he summited or not.
So, what are you willing to endure and what are you unwilling to endure? Your life is the sum of what you cannot bear without.