SUNDAY: Bible Study - 9:00 AM | Worship - 10:00 AM | PM Worship - 6:00 PM WEDNESDAY: Bible Class - 7:00 PM ~ 8110 Signal Hill Road Manassas, Virginia | Office Phone: 703.368.2622

            The bond between Paul and Timothy is one of the strongest in the Bible.  It is a father/son relationship, which Paul emphasizes every time (and there are many) in I and II Timothy he calls Timothy “my son,” or “My beloved son.”  Paul has known Timothy since he was a boy, and he has been one of Paul’s most trusted co-workers.  Paul sends Timothy back to Macedonia after being expelled there.  Paul sends him to Ephesus when that congregation is in trouble.  Paul calls Timothy to his side when he finds himself incarcerated in Rome.  Paul says of Timothy:

I have no one like him, who will be generally concerned for your welfare. For they all seek their own interests, not those of Jesus Christ. But you know Timothy’s proven worth, how as a son with a father he served with me in the gospel.  Philippians 2.20-22

            And so it is a little disconcerting to read Paul saying to Timothy, “Don’t be ashamed of me.”  And yet, that is what he does say at the beginning of II Timothy.

I thank God whom I serve, as did my ancestors, with a clear conscience, as I constantly remember you in prayers night and day.  As I remember your tears I long to see you, that I may be filled with joy.  I am reminded of your sincere faith, a faith that first dwelt in your grandmother Lois and your mother Eunice and now, I am sure, dwells in you as well.  For this reason I remind you to fan into flame the gift of God which is in you through the laying on of my hands, for God gave us a spirit not of fear but of power and love and self-control.  Therefore, do not be ashamed of the testimony of our Lord, nor of me his prisoner, but share in suffering for the gospel by the power of God.  II Timothy 1.3-8

            One can tell throughout II Timothy that Paul is worried about Timothy.  He is worried about him backing down, letting Christians who are older, or more assertive bully him.  He is worried, as he expresses above, that timid Timothy might be ashamed of him now that he is in prison.  Even worse, he is afraid that Timothy might become ashamed of the gospel, and back down when confronted with persecution.  This might be hard for us to believe after all the travel and trouble he endured at Paul’s side in the book of Acts, but remember – Peter denied Jesus three times – in Jesus’ own presence.

            Paul is urgent about his concern because he ends the letter with a request that Timothy come to Rome and tend to him while he is prison.  He has it really rough in prison.  Read chapter 4 and your will find out that Paul is cold, harassed, and alone.  He has already had to face wild beasts.  Asking Timothy to join him in Rome might well be a request to join him prison.

            In fact it may have been just that, because we have this snippet of news at the end of the book of Hebrews: You should know that our brother Timothy has been released from prison, with whom I shall see you if he comes soon. (Hebrews13.23)

            Since we don’t know who wrote Hebrews we are not sure when or where this period of incarceration took place.  But we know that he was incarcerated.  We know that he was not ashamed – of Paul or the Gospel.

            Would he have backed down without the benefit of Paul’s encouragement?  Could Paul have been an effective encourager apart from the deep relationship they shared?  One can only imagine what Timothy felt when he read those words, “don’t be ashamed of me.”  They must have cut to the quick.  They clearly fanned the flame.

            The book of Hebrews tells us we have the responsibility to “stir up one another to love and good works.” (Hebrews 10.24)  How will we be able to comfort, encourage, and challenge one another if we have no relationship with each other?  The phrase “don’t be ashamed of me,” meant something because those two cared so deeply for each other.  We must listen and learn.  We must learn and act.  We survive together, or likely we will not survive at all.  How will we survive if we aren’t even an “us?”  Love is the foundation upon which everything else is built.  Without that deep connection, anything we build will fall.  

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