2 Timothy 4:11, 12 Fellow Workers

2 Timothy 4:12 Only Luke is with me. Get Mark and bring him with you, because he is helpful to me in my ministry.  I sent Tychicus to Ephesus.

These verse mention three of Paul's fellow workers, two of them famous as Gospel writers and the third much less well known. Luke is the author of the third Gospel and also of Acts. He was a companion of Paul and evidently a medical doctor. There are various ideas about Luke's background but it seems he was a Gentile, perhaps from Antioch and converted under Paul's early ministry there with Barnabas. Clearly he travelled with Paul on his missionary journeys and there is evidence to connect him closely with the church at Philippi in the early days. Here it is Luke's loyalty that is emphasised. Paul is greatly encouraged by Luke's presence at this difficult time. Mark, of course, is another Gospel writer and another missionary companion to Paul, although we know that initial experience turned out rather badly at the end. Here that early disappointment is forgotten and although Mark is not with Paul at the moment Paul desires it because he feels Mark is helpful to me in my ministry. Paul feels in contrast that he can spare Tychicus, who he has sent to Timothy in Ephesus. Tychicus is another companion of Paul mentioned five times altogether in the New Testament. He went from his native Asia (probably Ephesus) to Macedonia with Paul (Acts 20:4) and is mentioned in the Ephesian and Colossian letters as a dear brother ... a faithful minister and ... a faithful servant in the Lord (Ephesians 6:21; Colossians 4:7). He is also mentioned in Titus 3:12 and may have travelled to Crete on Paul's behalf. He is another of the unsung heroes of the New Testament, faithfully serving wherever needed. Loyalty, helpfulness and service are such needed virtues in churches to this day.

2 Timothy 4:13 The Parchments

2 Timothy 4:13 When you come, bring the cloak that I left with Carpus at Troas, and my scrolls, especially the parchments.

Paul is in prison at this point, of course, and near the end of his life. Nevertheless he is in need of certain things. He mentions two things here. He wants his cloak. He knew that the winter (see verse 21) would be cold and so the cloak (that is probably what he is asking for here; some suggest a bag) the one he left with Carpus at Troas would be useful. (We know nothing about Carpus of Troas except what is in this verse). As an apostle, Paul suffered many deprivations but he never deliberately made things difficult for himself in the manner of an ascetic. He owned a cloak and he was happy to make use of it when he could. No minister has to deny himself comfort if that is going to help him in his ministry - a home, some warmth, good clothes, a comfortable chair. Paul's other concern here is for his books - or as was more common then, scrolls. Paul knew a great deal and had a brilliant mind that could retain far more than most of us today. Nevertheless, all his life he continued to read in order to grow in knowledge and to refresh his memory. All ministers should do the same. The reference to the parchments is perhaps to his own writings or notes or to manuscript Scriptures. Certainly a minister will do a lot of writing and he must be a man chiefly of one book, the Word of God, whatever else he reads.

2 Timothy 4:14, 15 The Metalworker

2 Timothy 4:14, 15 Alexander the metalworker did me a great deal of harm. The Lord will repay him for what he has done. You too should be on your guard against him, because he strongly opposed our message.

Because the Bible relates things that really happened there is a great deal of what fiction writers call back story. We are often ignorant of this back story, as is the case here. He is probably the man in 1 Timothy 1:20 and possibly the one in Acts 19:33 (an Ephesian Jew) but we do not know who Alexander the metalworker was or anything about the harm that he caused the Apostle Paul. It is unlikely to have been physical harm that he caused but harm it was, nevertheless, of some sort. Did he stir up the Jews against Paul when he was on trial? He may well have been an apostate. As ignorant as we are of Alexander what we can learn here is how to react to experiences such as Paul knew. Paul has no spirit of revenge but is confident that The Lord will repay him for what he has done. We ought to have the same confidence regarding those who oppose us because of the gospel as Paul had. He goes on to say to Timothy You too should be on your guard against him, because he strongly opposed our message. He warns him in the light of his own troubles with this man. Ministers are likely to face opposition of one sort or another. When they suffer then they should look to God for vengeance. They ought also to take opportunity to warn others against those who do harm.

2 Timothy 4.9, 10 Team Ministry

2 Timothy 4:9, 10 Demas, because he loved this world, has deserted me and has gone to Thessalonica. Crescens has gone to Galatia, and Titus to Dalmatia. Only Luke is with me. Get Mark and bring him with you, because he is helpful to me in my ministry.

One of the big ideas about pastoral ministry in recent years has been team ministry. The truth is that most pastors have had to work as part of a team. That is certainly how Paul worked and how he thought of himself. In the closing chapter of  2 Timothy he mentions several co-workers. In verses 9 and 10 five are mentioned, two of them being Gospel writers. Their mention highlights four ways in which fellow team workers may be a help (or a hindrance). There are deserters, disappointments turned good, those who move on and those who stay. Demas, of course, was a disappointment. Back in Colossians 4:14 and Philemon 24 all appears to be well and Paul says nothing untoward about him. But by this time, love for the world has led Demas to desert Paul and to go to Thessalonica on his own initiative. There is no reason to believe he was ever restored. What a sobering fact. In the case of Mark the story is much happier in that there was a time when for good reason Paul thought him unreliable and a disappointment but he can now write Get Mark and bring him with you, because he is helpful to me in my ministry. We should not be too quick to write people off. In between these two we learn about Crescens and Titus, one having gone to Galatia and the other to Dalmatia, where they were no doubt very much needed, although Paul would clearly have loved to have had them with him. The sadness and relief in the phrase Only Luke is with me is palpable. One man ministry is neither desirable nor truly possible. The team will often encourage but there will be disappointments along the way as well.