We are concluding our look at Paul's two letters to Timothy. In today's passage he will give the Lord thanks for being his strength. There are things I couldn't have made it through without the Lord's strength, and I'm sure you could say the same.
You will recall from yesterday's passage that out of all of Paul's friends, only Luke is presently with him. Some of his friends have been sent to other cities on church business. At least one friend, Demas, turned his back on Paul. All of his friends, as we will learn today, failed to come and stand up for him in court. He is feeling lonelier than he's ever felt in his life as he nears execution, but at the same time he knows the Lord never has and never will desert him. He will say something today similar to what the Lord Jesus once said to His disciples, "A time is coming and in fact has come when you will be scattered, each to your own home. You will leave Me all alone. Yet I am not alone, for My Father is with Me." (John 16:32)
Paul knows what it's like to have his friends and supporters scattered. "At my first defense, no one came to my support, but everyone deserted me. May it not be held against them." (2 Timothy 4:16) It has become so dangerous to be a Christian in Rome that Paul doesn't blame anyone for not being his character witnesses at trial. Since early church tradition tells us that Paul lost his life during Nero's reign, it is believed he was executed somewhere between 64 AD (when the great fire of Rome occurred) and 68 AD (when Emperor Nero committed suicide). The great fire of 64 AD consumed three quarters of the city and many suspected that Nero had set it himself. The fact that he built a large ornate palace for himself on some of the ground that the fire had cleared only made him look guiltier. In order to divert suspicion from himself, he laid the blame for the fire on the Christians, ordering his soldiers to round up Christians for questioning. The soldiers were told to use torture if necessary to induce the Christians to name and accuse their fellow believers of sedition. Those who were arrested were, upon threat of death, ordered to deny Christ and make sacrifices to Roman gods and profess Caesar as Lord. Those who would not renounce Christ and give worship to Caesar were executed. Many of the executions themselves were turned into gruesome public spectacles with some of the Christians being torn apart by animals, or crucified, or rolled in pitch and placed on poles and set on fire to light the city at night. Paul doesn't blame anyone for not standing by him at trial, knowing what a fearful fate might await them. Following the example of Jesus, who asked the Father to forgive His tormentors, Paul asks God to forgive his friends for deserting him.
Although from a human standpoint it appeared that Paul was standing before his accusers alone, he knew the Lord was with him. "But the Lord stood at my side and gave me strength, so that through me the message might be fully proclaimed and all the Gentiles might hear it." (2 Timothy 4:17a) As we learned in the book of Acts, Paul viewed every trial as an opportunity to share the gospel. The gospel message was his defense. It was the only defense he could put on in court because it said everything that needed to be said. Paul wasn't a public enemy or a threat to the government; he was a peaceful minister of the gospel. In explaining in court how and why he is a minister of the gospel, he is actually preaching the gospel to everyone present. Nero's vicious persecution of the Christians is beginning to foster the Roman citizens' sympathy toward them. Doubtless, Nero had many soldiers who would do anything he asked, and some of them probably enjoyed doing it. (For an example of these type of people, we have only to look at the Nazi soldiers of Germany and what they were willing to do and what they even enjoyed doing to the Jews.) But the common citizens of Rome who lived peacefully side by side with the growing number of Christians could easily see that these people were not stirring up riots or trying to mount a rebellion. They were simply preaching about a man named Jesus who gave His life for others, who said He was the son of God, and whose death and resurrection conveyed eternal life on all who believed in Him. This sympathy for Paul and others like him caused people to flock to court to hear what Paul had to say. We have no idea how many were converted because Paul was willing to lose his life to share the gospel with them, but I think it's safe to assume the number is in the hundreds or even thousands.
"And I was delivered from the lion's mouth. The Lord will rescue me from every evil attack and will bring me safely to His heavenly kingdom. To Him be glory forever and ever. Amen." (2 Timothy 4:17b-18) Some scholars believe that at one point Paul was threatened with death by lions in the arena. Others think he says he was "delivered from the lion's mouth" because it was a common expression for having escaped either death or some other terrible consequence. When Paul says the Lord will rescue him from every evil attack, I don't think he expects to be set free. He's already stated that the time of his death is near. I think he's saying, "The Lord has helped me to stand under this immense pressure. I have not denied His name, nor will I. I have not been found guilty of any crime, nor will I. No charges brought against me are true, and if I am to be executed it will be for a lie, not because I've committed any of the things of which I stand accused. God will bring me faithfully through whatever comes, and when I see Him face to face, I will be vindicated. I will stand before Him knowing I kept the faith and refused to deny His name." Paul's words in verses 17 and 18 remind me of the words of the prophet Isaiah, who said upon authority of the Lord, "'No weapon forged against you will prevail, and you will refute every tongue that accuses you. This is the heritage of the servants of the Lord, and this is their vindication from Me,' declares the Lord." (Isaiah 54:17)
Paul closes the letter with greetings to fellow believers. "Greet Priscilla and Aquila and the household of Onesiphorus. Erastus stayed in Corinth, and I left Trophimus sick at Miletus." (2 Timothy 4:19-20)
He restates the need for Timothy to come quickly to see him. "Do your best to get here before winter." (2 Timothy 4:21a)
He now thinks of several fellow believers at Rome who would like to send their greetings. "Eubulus greets you, and so do Pudens, Linus, Claudia and all the brothers and sisters." (2 Timothy 4:21b) These are Gentile names and these people may be some of the Roman citizens who converted to Christianity under Paul's preaching.
Paul concludes with this blessing: "The Lord be with your spirit. Grace be with you all." (2 Timothy 4:22)
Did Timothy arrive in time to see Paul before he was executed? I believe he did. But even if he didn't, we can be certain that the Lord stood by Paul to the end. In the same way, the Lord stands by all who belong to Him. He stands beside us when we're dealing with the ordinary cares of life, when we're sick and having medical tests done, when we're grieving a loved one, when our marriages fall apart, when our children are wayward and living by the world's ways, when we're out of work and don't know how we'll pay the bills. I could go on and on, but you know what I'm saying. No matter what the problem, no matter how fierce the trial, no matter how deep the grief, the Lord stands by us and strengthens us. Many times in life we wouldn't have been able to remain on our feet if He had not been there holding us up. Amen, for, "The Lord is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit." (Psalm 34:18)
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