«Be diligent to come to me quickly; for Demas has forsaken me, having loved this present world, and has departed for Thessalonica— Crescens for Galatia, Titus for Dalmatia. Only Luke is with me» (2 Timothy 4:9-1 1).
I CANNOT IMAGINE WHAT THE APOSTLE PAUL WAS FEELING as he wrote the words of today’s verse from a prison in Rome: «Demas has forsaken me […]Only Luke is with me.»
It is interesting. When the apostle Paul wrote to the Christians in Colosse, Luke and Demas sent greetings to their brethren in the faith (see Colossians 4:14). When he wrote to Philemon, Paul mentions Luke and Demas as «my fellow laborers» (v. 24). But when he writes to Timothy, he says «Only Luke is with me.» What happened to Demas?
We do not know the details. The apostle only mentions that Demas forsook him «having loved this present world.» What happened, Demas, after having started out so well? Was it the attractions of the big city? Or was it Paul’s chains?
Perhaps other factors contributed to Demas’s apostasy, but if you read the first chapter of Second Timothy, you will see that, in addition to Demas, there were others who also abandoned the imprisoned apostle, as he himself points out: «This you know, that all those in Asia have turned away from me, among whom are Phygellus and Hermogenes» (2 Timothy 1:15—18).
Apparently some people were ashamed of those chains! Luke, who faithfully remained at the elderly apostles side until the end, was obviously not ashamed of them. Nor was Onesiphorus ashamed of them, because the apostle writes about this faithful servant of God: «The Lord grant mercy to the household of Onesiphorus, for he often refreshed me, and was not ashamed of my chain; but when he arrived in Rome, he sought me out very diligently and found me» (2 Timothy 1:16, 17).
If there is anything we can learn from Demass sad experience, and the experience of those who deserted when things got hard, it is that it is not enough to begin well in the Christian race; you also have to end well. How can we accomplish that ideal? Here is an unbeatable formula: first, let us not be ashamed of the cross of Christ. On the contrary, together with the apostle, let us say, «I know whom I have believed and am persuaded that He is able to keep what I have committed to Him until that Day» (v. 12). Second, «let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking unto Jesus» (Heb. 12: 1, 2; emphasis added).
Oh, Demas, how different your end would have been if, instead of setting your eyes on the world, you would have looked unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith!
Heavenly Father, like the apostle Paul, today I want to glory in the cross of Christ and, by Your power, look only unto Him.
Only then will I be able to victoriously finish the race of faith.
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Taken from: Devotional Readings for Adults 2022
“GREAT IS OUR GOD!”
From: FERNANDO ZABALA
Colaboradores: Xiomara Perdomo & Angelica Cuate
