The Word of God Is Not Chained

​A Reflection on the Second Reading for Sunday, October 12th, 2025:
Twenty-Eighth Sunday in Ordinary Time

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2 Timothy
2.8-13

​Beloved: Remember Jesus Christ, raised from the dead, a descendant of David — that is my Gospel, for which I suffer hardship, even to the point of being chained like a criminal. But the word of God is not chained.

Therefore I endure everything for the sake of the elect, so that they may also obtain the salvation that is in Christ Jesus, with eternal glory.

The saying is sure: If we have died with him, we will also live with him; if we endure, we will also reign with him; if we deny him, he will also deny us; if we are faithless, he remains faithful — for he cannot deny himself.

Pause. Pray. Reflect.

As we read through Saint Paul’s letters to Timothy, the theme of endurance to hardship and suffering for Christ has come up over and over again. Paul knows that those he is discipling have a hard road ahead. After all, it’s the road he’s been walking ever since he got knocked onto his behind by the overwhelming presence of Jesus.

Between his conversion and his death, Paul endures many hardships for the name of Jesus. In 2 Corinthians 11:23-27, Paul shares a veritable laundry list of his suffering for Christ. In short, he was beaten, shipwrecked, whipped, and stoned. He was hungry and thirsty, cold and naked. You name it, Paul experienced it. In the end, Paul endures martyrdom for Christ, dying at the hands of the Romans.

You’d think this would put people off. To be fair, I’m sure it did put some people off. My fear of suffering – or even minor inconvenience – lurks behind so many of my decisions. The little devil on my shoulder is seldom conjuring images of world domination, financial wealth, and control. Instead, the voice of my broken humanity whispers about how much easier it would be if I stopped trying so hard for the Kingdom. Wouldn’t it be nice to sleep in on Sunday? Wouldn’t it be easier for my family if I worked at a corporate 9-5 with pay to match? Wouldn’t I be less anxious if I wasn’t trying so hard to live for Christ? Wouldn’t I be more comfortable? Wouldn’t I be more at ease?

Such an enticing whisper. More enticing than a screaming voice that would entice me to break one of the 10 Commandments. It’s surprisingly easy to not steal or kill on the daily. However, I am truly challenged every day to resist the voice of comfort. The voice that tells me suffering has no purpose or meaning. 

But I know that’s not true. At least, my brain knows it. My heart is, as always, a bit slow. I have seen the powerful work of suffering. How in that suffering, the lives of people of faith have been transformed through their suffering because, in it, they experienced God’s presence in profound ways. How they encountered Christ as the suffering King. How they were sustained by the overwhelming power of the Holy Spirit. How they have understood the love of the Father. The redeeming power of the Cross stretches across time and transforms their suffering into glory.

Saint Paul is writing about this experience of suffering, not to boast about how great he is at enduring that suffering, but rather to celebrate how God has worked in those moments. No matter how dire his circumstances, the Spirit moved around him. In every circumstance, he was given the chance to preach the Good News. While imprisoned, he had the opportunity to collaborate with the Lord in the conversion of others in prison and their guards.

And that’s because no matter Paul’s circumstance or mine, the word of God cannot be chained. God cannot be put in a box. God cannot be held back or contained.




Stéphanie Potter​

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