“Which Example Are You?”
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15 You are aware that all who are in Asia turned away from me, among whom are Phygelus and Hermogenes. 16 May the Lord grant mercy to the household of Onesiphorus, for he often refreshed me and was not ashamed of my chains, 17 but when he arrived in Rome he searched for me earnestly and found me— 18 may the Lord grant him to find mercy from the Lord on that day!—and you well know all the service he rendered at Ephesus.
As we now come to verses 15-18 this passage gives us a close look into Paul’s heart, the discouragement of being abandoned by those who Paul has poured his life into, and the joy of a friend who is not ashamed of the gospel of Christ.
Paul has been addressing the fact of how to guard against being ashamed of the gospel of Jesus to Timothy and really the importance of carefully choosing one’s friends. In these final four verses of chapter 1 Paul lays out both negative and positive examples of fellow workers who were ashamed of the gospel and one who was not.
Have you ever wondered why it is so important that we as Christians choose good godly friendships? Here is why. These are Paul’s very words as he addressed the church at Corinth.
33 Do not be deceived: “Bad company ruins good morals.”
When we associate or hang out with good godly and courageous Christians our own courage and walk with Christ will be strengthened. In fact this helps us to see good godly examples so that we can be courageous and even share our faith with others. If we hang out with ungodly people who follow in sinful patterns, if we associate with those who don’t know Christ or who are even ashamed of Christ and His gospel, there may come times that we will soon be ashamed or even walk away from following Christ. So, men godly friendships and associates are tremendously important. Now of course we may have family, friends, coworkers who don’t know the Lord and we should look for opportunities to share our faith with them, however we need to develop deep and lasting friendships with godly people.
15 You are aware that all who are in Asia turned away from me, among whom are Phygelus and Hermogenes.
Verse 15 = As Paul begins verse 15 he makes mention to Timothy that he is aware of those who have turned their backs on Paul, as well as those who have remained faithful. Timothy had been in Ephesus for some time now and was well aware of Onesiphorus and Phygelus and Hermogenes.
Paul wants us to see here that there were two very specific groups, so let us begin with the first group. Paul tells us that this group included all who were in Asia who turned away from him. Paul feels that all of Asia had abandoned him as he is facing trial and even certain death. He is currently in chains or in a Roman jail. Later on when we come to chapter 4 we see that Paul tells Timothy that is associate Demas has fallen in love with this world and has abandoned him.
10 For Demas, in love with this present world, has deserted me and gone to Thessalonica. Crescens has gone to Galatia, Titus to Dalmatia.
Clearly here, all of those in Asia cannot mean that every single person in Asia had deserted Paul and abandoned their faith. We know of course that Timothy had not and here in verses 16-18 we clearly see that Onesiphorus had not as well. The word here for turned away means that these two men were ashamed of Paul because they were ashamed of the message that Paul stood for and preached and defended. There was a time when they became ashamed and fearful when Paul was put into prison for his faith. That is why Paul told Timothy back in verse 8 not to be ashamed of the testimony about Jesus.
8 Therefore do not be ashamed of the testimony about our Lord, nor of me his prisoner, but share in suffering for the gospel by the power of God,
As Timothy himself faced discouragement and even persecution it could have been easy from him to quit and give up but he remained faithful as he pastored there in Ephesus, a city in the Roman province of Asia. Once Paul had been put in prison things got real and many who were close to Paul so that following Christ had a cost. Those who were close to Paul were afraid of being found guilty by association with him. For these men Phygelus and Hermogenes their first priority was to protect their own lives and stay alive, and because of this they no longer wanted anything more to do with the apostle Paul who had loved them, ministered to them and poured his life into them.
Let us take a moment and think about all that Paul had gone through as Paul is addressing this letter to Timothy. Paul feels as if his whole world has been turned upside down. He has been rejected by almost all of those who were closest to him. He has been deserted by his fellow workers as they have served Christ together. To have those who you have spent your life spiritually training and guiding turn away from you, and sometimes against you, was so very difficult for Paul.
You may be wondering why this was so tough for Paul, so remember that Paul had given his life to these men and people in Asia. Like the Galatian believers, they were like Paul’s spiritual children.
19 my little children, for whom I am again in the anguish of childbirth until Christ is formed in you!
In fact, this is exactly why we see Paul tell Timothy at the beginning of chapter 1 to come and see him because Paul knew that Timothy had kept the faith and he longed to be with his friend and co-laborer.
4 As I remember your tears, I long to see you, that I may be filled with joy.
So, what do we know about these two men here in verse 15? We know very little about these men other than the obvious fact that they both turned away from Paul and were cowardice in their faith. We can assume that they were know to Timothy hence the fact that Paul writes you are aware of those who are in Asia. Clearly Paul takes time to call out both of these men by name because these men would have been known in Asia. These men were very likely close to Paul and leaders who at some time had shown promise. These men probably would have been least likely to be suspected of turning away, but now found themselves ashamed of Christ and of Paul.
Paul of course continued to love these men and pray for them the best he could as he himself was in jail, but none the less continued to think about them. The reason Paul calls these men out is that prayerfully they would see the error of their way and turn back to follow Christ.
The second group, Paul now mentions in verses 16-18 stand in contrast to the group from Asia. Paul ends his rebuke and now turns to commend the faithful, however he only mentions one name.
16 May the Lord grant mercy to the household of Onesiphorus, for he often refreshed me and was not ashamed of my chains, 17 but when he arrived in Rome he searched for me earnestly and found me— 18 may the Lord grant him to find mercy from the Lord on that day!—and you well know all the service he rendered at Ephesus.
Here, Paul names Onesiphorus and prays that the Lord would grant mercy to those in the house of Onesiphorus.
So what do we know about this man? When Onesiphorus came to Rome, he evidently had some difficulty trying to find Paul and had to search diligently for him. This help us to see that Paul was now no longer just under house arrest and had probably been put into a secure prison. So, this is where we know that Onesiphorus had befriended Paul. We also know that he often refreshed Paul and was not afraid of his chains. Clearly this good friend had regularly visited the aging apostle and ministered to his needs without fear and without shame. Onesiphorus eagerly searched for Paul which suggests to us that he searched for Paul because Paul meant that much to him.
With this in mind and in deep thankfulness for what Onesiphorus had done for Paul, Paul prays that the Lord would grant to him to find mercy from the Lord on that day. The day Paul is referring to here is the same day of believer’s judgment for works that he mentioned in verse 12 and also in chapter 4.
12 which is why I suffer as I do. But I am not ashamed, for I know whom I have believed, and I am convinced that he is able to guard until that day what has been entrusted to me.
8 Henceforth there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, will award to me on that day, and not only to me but also to all who have loved his appearing.
There is coming a day where every man woman and child will stand before the Lord and give an account for how we lived our lives. Those who are believers will be declared righteous because of our faith and trust in Christ and his mercy that he showed us.
Onesiphorus’s devotion to Paul and of course the Lord started many years before this account. He had proved his courage and faithfulness by the services he rendered at Ephesus, when Paul ministered there.
Hearing the stories of bold Christians like Onesiphorus helps to motivate us and inspire us to be bold in our witness. Even when Paul was bound up in jail, he was not ashamed to come to Paul. He diligently searched for Paul.
This passage leaves us with the question, which example are we? Do we line up with Phygelus and Hermogenes, who were ashamed of the gospel and turned away? Are you quick to run away from faithful obedience and telling others about Christ? Or are you a loyal and faithful servant like Onesiphorus, who works hard at refreshing others and encouraging them with God’s word?
Here we are reminded to be faithful servants even when it is difficult. Throughout Scripture we see faithful men like Paul, Timothy and even Onesiphorus. These men were know as encouragers, pray warriors, men who loved God and gave their lives for the sake of the gospel. May our sovereign God, who saves us and calls us, raise up an army of faithful servants who continue to be unashamed of the gospel of Christ.
(Close in Prayer)