Before he closed his second letter to Timothy, the apostle Paul shared his experience of being on trial for his life before the Roman authorities. He noted that “at his first defense no one came to stand by me.” (2 Timothy 4:16) In that judicial system, a preliminary hearing known as the “prima actio” was conducted like a grand jury, where it would be determined whether sufficient evidence existed to go to trial. The defendant was allowed to have witnesses on his or her behalf. Yet sadly, in Paul’s case, no one came forward.

It makes one wonder where was Luke or Tychicus? Surely they would have stood with Paul. It’s possible that those Roman believers, based on Nero’s recent actions against Christians, were too afraid to speak up. But the great apostle did not react or entertain ill will towards anyone. In fact, he prayed, “May it not be charged against them.” (vs.16)

How is it that Paul was able to maintain his spiritual equilibrium in such trying circumstances? In verse 17, he testifies to four things that all of us should remember whenever we feel forgotten, forsaken, or facing an uncertain future. He mentions…

1. The Lord’s Presence

Paul first states, “the Lord stood with me.” He laid hold of the promise of our Lord who said, “Lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” (Matthew 28:20) Nothing will make the Lord’s presence so real as suffering for the sake of the gospel. Paul sensed the presence of him who “sticks closer than a brother.” Perhaps he thought of the Lord’s encouraging words through Isaiah, “When you pass through the waters I will be with you.” (Isaiah 43:2) Whenever you feel alone, when it seems your labor is in vain and the road ahead is hard, remember you are never alone. Look to Jesus and the Spirit of God will bring great peace to your heart.

2. The Lord’s Power

The next important truth Paul mentions is that in his hour of trial the Lord strengthened him. (vs.17) Having studied the life of Paul for years I hold him in great esteem. Indeed, he was a chosen vessel to carry the gospel to the Gentiles, but we should remember he was still a man. He had physical and emotional needs just like we all do.

What Paul learned though his many sufferings was that God’s power was manifested in his weakness. He learned by experience that God’s grace was sufficient to sustain him through every trial. Remember that your own suffering and hardships are opportunities for the Lord to demonstrate his power through you.

3. The Lord’s Providence

Paul also experienced the Lord’s providential purpose in his suffering. He mentions that his circumstances were used by God so that the message of the gospel might be “fully proclaimed and all the Gentiles might hear it.” In God’s divine providence, Paul was able to stand in the center of imperial power and proclaim the gospel of Jesus Christ!

He would later write to the Philippians, “that what has happened to me has really served to advance the gospel.” (Philippians 1:12) We should always consider that God may be using our own trials as a means of sharing the gospel.

Finally, the old soldier mentions that he was “delivered from out of the mouth of the lion.” Some say this was literally a lion, but I don’t think that’s the case. Paul, as a Roman citizen, could not be thrown into the Colosseum as entertainment for the masses. I tend to see this as a metaphor, either for Satan or Nero. Maybe he was thinking of Psalm 22:21 as the suffering one cries out, “save me from the mouth of the lion.”

In fact, there is something remarkably similar between Paul’s words here and Psalm 22. Like Paul, the one suffering in Psalm 22 is forsaken (vs.1), there is none to help (vs.11), and he prays “save me from the lion’s mouth"(vs.21). In verse 27, the psalmist says the Gentiles will worship before you, and Paul echoes verse 28 which says, “dominion belongs to the Lord.”

Paul declares that the Lord will preserve him for his heavenly kingdom. Amazing! What a testimony! What confidence! Paul knew where he was going. I think we often forget where we’re going. Paul used his pain as a platform for the gospel. He turned his suffering into a sermon. What a lesson for us: in our times of trial and pain, God is building a platform for proclaiming the gospel.

In her book, The Hiding Place, Corrie Ten Boom relates some of the conversations she had with her sister Betsy, while enduring the horrors of Auschwitz. Betsy would eventually die in that camp, but before she died, Besty would tell Corrie that when they were freed, she would come back, clean it up, and bring all these bad people back here and teach them how to love. One day she told Corrie, “we must get out of here and tell everybody there’s no pit so deep that he is not deeper still. And they will listen to us Corrie because we have been here.”