We are going to conclude our study of the Prayers of Paul with two prayers he offered up in intercession for individuals, Timothy and Philemon. First, from Paul’s last inspired epistle, for Timothy.
We have called this “a prayer when parting
ways.” You may say they have already
parted ways, as they are not together.
But, of course, the context of this letter is that Paul seems sure that
it will not be long before he goes to be with the Lord. Thus, it is a final parting.
Paul addresses the prayer to God, whom I
serve with a pure conscience, as my forefathers did. If you know your time here is short, you want
to know that you are about to meet God with a pure conscience. This does not mean Paul was sinless in his
ministry. But it means, that in times of
hard decisions, about where to go next and how to minister to a particular
church, and all the other ministry decisions, he has endeavored to follow the
leading of the Head of the Church. It
means he believes his relationships are good, including with Peter (whom he
reproved in Gal. 2) and Barnabas (with whom he disagreed over John Mark).
The reference to his “forefathers” (whom I
understand to be OT saints as Moses and Abraham and Jacob and David, who also
were not sinless, yet came to the end of their lives ready to meet God) is part
of the encouragement of this prayer for Timothy. Paul realizes that service in the Kingdom of
God is generational. Paul was not the
first; he won’t be the last. Paul’s personal
thoughts concerning Timothy also point out the generations, mentioning his
grandmother and his mother. The parting
of ways that involve the death of a brother or sister in Christ must not leave
us in despair; our trust is in God, that He will continue to do as He has for
centuries: He will have His servants who will do His will.
We do not say these things without the
realization that the relationship of these two men was deep and strong, and was
borne out of some intense situations as Christ did mighty things through them
in building His Church. This is what
moves Paul to pray, the remembrance of Timothy’s tears the last time they had
been together. Paul certainly longs to
see Timothy again on earth. But if, as
it seems, it is near his time to leave this earth, he is able to speak words of
Spirit-produced confidence, having seen in Timothy the same faith that was in Lois
and Eunice.
Certainly this prayer speaks to us about that
day that is approaching when we too will part company with loved ones
here. What we can do is to be
faithful. God must do the work. There will be unfinished projects that we
will have to commit to Him. Some of
those projects/people we will want to encourage in final words. We should ask God to help in this. I can attest to the power of a godly father
who was used of the Lord on his deathbed, used to exhort me to walk faithfully.
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