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#6.
The Crown Won.
pp. 185 - 187
"The crown. . . . .for all that love His appearing" (II Tim. 4: 8).
These words epitomize the great condition in view of the crown. Taken alone, they
may not appear to teach more than a belief in the second coming of Christ. Taken in
connection with the teaching of the whole epistle they say much more.
We observed that a misplaced love marks the last days--love of self, love of money,
love of pleasure. The love of His appearing is in entire contrast to this. A person may
believe the doctrine of the "pre-millennial advent", and love self, or love money, or love
pleasure; but if he receives "the LOVE of the truth", if he "loves", not a doctrine, but the
Personal epiphany of Christ, he will ipso facto be placed outside the pale of modernism,
and will be called upon to endure hardness. If the believer seeks in any small measure to
stand hardness. If the believer seeks in any small measure to stand in the breach and
preach the Word committed by Paul to Timothy, he will learn that one great part of his
qualification will be the grace to "endure afflictions" (4: 5).
In II Tim. 4: 6 the apostle uses the two peculiar words of Philippians. For the sake
of clearness let us repeat them:--
Philippians.
II Timothy.
1: 23. "Having a desire to depart and be 4: 6. "The time for my departure has
with Christ."
come."
2: 17. "If I be offered upon the sacrifice 4: 6. "I am now ready to be offered."
and service of your faith."
What he was willing for in Philippians has arrived in II Tim. 4: He summarizes his
course. In Philippians he had to say, "Not as though I had obtained". In II Tim. 4: he
says:--
"The good fight I have fought, the race I have finished, the faith I have guarded; it
remains that there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness which the Lord the
righteous Judge will give me in that day and not to me only, but also to all those who love
His appearing."
The crown follows the finishing of the race. The race will be finished, the faith will
be guarded, the contest will be carried through by all who love His appearing. Practical
righteousness flowing out of imputed righteousness stands on the side of the risen yet
rejected Lord. Practical righteousness will not go hand in hand with lawlessness, will not
share the platform with "doctrines of demons" or "fables", but will lay aside every weight
and run the race set before it. This "appearing" is more fully set forth in Titus 2: 11-15,
and is the hope of the one body (Col. 3: 4). Phil. 1: looks on to this same day, when it
says, "That ye may approve the things that are excellent (parallel with II Tim. 2: 15),
that ye may be sincere and without offence till the day of Christ" (1: 10).