2Ti 4:9-13 “Do thy diligence to come shortly unto me: For Demas hath forsaken me, having loved this present world, and is departed unto Thessalonica; Crescens to Galatia, Titus unto Dalmatia. Only Luke is with me. Take Mark, and bring him with thee: for he is profitable to me for the ministry. And Tychicus have I sent to Ephesus. The cloke that I left at Troas with Carpus, when thou comest, bring with thee, and the books, but especially the parchments.”
When all was said and done, Paul was only human. He expressed a feeling of loneliness. One of the brothers had abandoned him and the ministry to run after other things. Duty in other places had called some of the brothers away.
If we live long enough, these are experiences that we will all face. At the same time, we will also be blessed as Paul was. Several had departed for several reasons, but Luke was still with him. Young Timothy was requested to hurry up and come as well.
Even though some will depart from the faith and walk no longer with us, there will be those who are always faithful. By God’s grace, as we age, He will bring into our lives younger servants who will be an encouragement to us in God’s kingdom. We may have the wonderful experience of being restored to the fellowship of someone with whom we came to a parting of the ways previously, as Paul did with Mark (Acts 15:36-40). We should find great encouragement for our lives as we read these words of Paul.
Like us, Paul was sometimes forgetful of things. He had left his coat at the home of a brother named Carpus. Paul was certainly human with human frailties, but that did not prevent God from using Him mightily in His kingdom. This should give great encouragement to all of us who labor to serve Him and His people.
Paul had left some things with Timothy at some point. He desired his books and the parchments. The books were scrolls with different writings that Paul was fond of, or perhaps some of them were copies of the very letters we read. While Paul desired these things, he had a special need for the parchments.
The scriptures were often recorded on parchment. Since parchment was made from animal skin, it was more durable than scrolls which were often made of papyrus. It would certainly be reasonable, knowing Paul, that he would especially want his copies of God’s word. These had been his meat and drink as a Pharisee, and then had become his comfort as to the truth of who Jesus was.
May God bless us to be like Paul: may we face life’s disappointments with courage and grace, make allowances for our shortcomings, not be afraid to ask for help from those who are younger, and above all to hold precious the written word of God!
