Come Before Winter S21e25 2tim4:21

Paul closes his letter to Timothy with one of the most evocative, poignant pleas in Biblical literature:  COME BEFORE WINTER. It is literal, and yes, bring my warm cloak. It is also metaphorical: Paul's life is near its' end.  He had run most of his race and little time is left. Join me soon because the time is short.

The winter of Paul's life is full of wonderful faithful people.  He goes to great care to attach those bonds of greetings to Timothy's life. 

Let's honor those in the winter of their life and ministry.  Let's join them soon.  Let's COME BEFORE WINTER.

bewithme.us to subscribe before winter. Apple Podcasts before it is winter. 

Transcript

Michael Smith: 0:01

Good morning my brothers and sisters Welcome to episode number 25 In the book of Second Timothy today's title come before winter. So that may be familiar to you that that line because 2017 There was a movie about Dietrich Bonhoeffer and a writer named Sefton. Delnor, who opposed, heroically and urgently and to the end, Hitler, and they met with their demise. So come before winter. It's one of the most poignant, evocative, affecting, touching lines, personal lines of Scripture. Paul says do your best to come before winter. He's finishing the book of Second Timothy, we're in chapter four. This is the last lines of the book. He's just gotten done establishing Kenny rescue, can he bring me safely through? And the answer is yes. Now we may not have a full vision of the timing of that we may not have a full vision as to the mechanics and the complexity of the rescue. You know, does anybody have particulars of how you get forgiveness for sin or divine forgetfulness? But the point is, he can rescue Yes, he can. Yes, he can bring us safely through. So here's the last four lines, four verses of Second Timothy chapter four, greet Prisca and Aquila, and the household of ANA syphilis. Verse 20, Erasmus remained at Corinth and I left Trophimus who was ill, at Miletus. Do your best to come before winter. emulous sends greetings to you, as do Putin's and Linus, and Claudia and all the brothers. Verse 22, The Lord be with your spirit. Grace be with you. Period, and that is the last line of the book of Second Timothy. So he mentioned eight people here. I'm just going to mention a couple of them. Let's talk about Prisca and Aquila, one that's a husband and wife team. They're from Pontus, which is in central Turkey today, but the get the Paul gets to know them. When they are exiled from Rome. They're Jews. They're in Rome in F 49 ad, they're exiled. They're they're exiled to Corinth and Paul meets them there. And the reason that it's interesting that they have this relationship is because they're both tentmakers. And so Paul works with them, and stays with them probably for 18 months of his life in in Corinth. He's on the second missionary journey. He pauses in Corinth for a long period of time. So he and in Prisca and Aquila work to help make people not homeless by making tents. So Prisca Aquila, when Paul set sail for Syria, he takes them with them. So when he leaves Corinth, he gets sort of like halfway home and leaves them in Ephesus, and leaves them there. And then the most fascinating thing I think about those two, is that the correct Apollo Apollo's in Acts chapter 18, verse 26. So Apollo's is a very eloquent, compelling, competent speaker. He's described as being eloquent, competent, instructed in the way of the Lord fervent in spirit. And he spoke and taught accurately concerning the things of the Lord. Now, Prisca and Aquila hear them, but then they take him aside, and explain to him the way of God more fully more accurately. So who of us knows the way of God 100% until we get to heaven, none of us. So Prisca and Aquila, were were wise teachers and they didn't like you know, throw up their hands, they, they took him aside and correct them. So you have to admire the fact that they're wise enough to do it and then the guts to do it. And the fact that they do it together, it's a it's a couple ministry that they have. They're always mentioned together. So the fun thing about that is they have a ministry, a lifelong ministry together that speaks the word of knowledge, wisdom, correction in a good Christian way. He they're mentioned and asked a couple of times, they're mentioned in the book of Romans as my fellow workers. They're mentioned in the book of Corinth of having a church in the house, their travelers, their missionaries, the workers, their church hosters it's a Christian life that is long and peopled and corrective and they just do every everything right over a long period of time. So they're an admirable couple. Then a asked us, a Rastus was mentioned in the book of Acts about fifth, maybe 12 years before this book was written. And Paul sent them. Paul sent a Rastus to Macedonia with Timothy. So Timothy is associated with arrestors. They've been in a long time, at least one long trip together. And so he is greeted at the end of this letter. Then there's Trophimus Trophimus is an emissary of the Ephesian. area and the Asian churches when the first contributions is gathered for the church in Jerusalem. So Trophimus has a long history of faithful service. Alright, but I want to get to verse 21, do your best to come before winter. That's the 2017 movie. It's it's kind of interesting. I remember what my grandmother said, my grandmother said, Don't come to my funeral, come to my life. And that's what kind of Paul is saying is come before it's over. Come before the winter of circumstance which he knows is coming. You know, he's had some some taste of it already that he's been in prison. He's been alone. He's been cold. He's had difficulties. Now don't don't misunderstand me he's not dying. In a in a sad way. He says, the Lord stood by me the Lord strengthened me the Lord will rescue me, the Lord will bring me safely through. So but there's this metaphorical and literal winter that's coming to Paul's life. And yet he's surrounded by this wonderful community, where even just the last couple of verses here there's eight people sending and receiving greetings and being greeted by but come before the winter, the winter circumstances of my life before it's too late. Listen now before I am gone, attend while there is someone to attend to come before the winter of my life and ministry is over. Join me do your work before it's late. So we find here today this point it line come before winter, this evocative affecting a touching moment that that Paul is saying to 10th Timothy, Timothy in longing for him to come and join him before it's all over. Come before winter. Thanks for listening