There was a publication called the Wesleyan Methodist and there was a time in which the Methodist had this article published in it and it was about a man named John Scudder. Scudder was a very famous 18th century missionary to Ceylon and India. And so far as we know the family of John Scudder made a missionary record not equaled so far by any other family or missionary family in history. The Wesleyan reported that John Scudder and his wife were missionaries to Ceylon in India, and of their ten children who survived to adult age, one died while preparing for Christian ministry, and nine became foreign missionaries. Of the nine who became foreign missionaries, five became medical missionaries, indicating a tremendous amount of work and preparation. In 1919, the year of the centennial of the Scudders arriving in Ceylon and then proceeding to India, by that time, after 100 years of Scudder ministry, three great-grandchildren that very year sailed for the mission field. By that year, 31 descendants of John Scudder had worked in India. At the same time, seven others were missionaries elsewhere. This biographical sketch of the Scudder family shows us how significant parents can be in the initial preparation of young people for an effective life of service to the Lord Jesus Christ. Our passage today highlights or puts a spotlight on the character of a young man who had accompanied Paul for almost all of his primary ministry throughout his three missionary endeavors and also during his last years in prison. And how that this story about this young man will show us how it was that his mother had such a vital part in preparing this young man for a very rigorous life of ministry in association with the Apostle Paul and also in his character development. So I'd like to turn your attention again to Philippians chapter 2 where What Paul attempts to do in these five verses is explain that he has a desire for the Philippians that he would be able to personally interact with them and know of their condition spiritually. But halfway through explaining this desire to come or to send someone to personally oversee and interact with them and to check out their spiritual health, he stops. right in the middle of this explanation, to digress for a moment and talk about his closest associate who was named Timothy. Now if you notice, if you back up just for a moment in Philippians chapter 2, to verse 17 Paul writes, even if I am being poured out like a drink offering on the sacrifice and service coming from your faith, I am glad and rejoice with all of you. So you too should be glad and rejoice with me. And basically what the Apostle had done toward the end of the last segment of Chapter 2 that we studied last week was to express to the Philippians that despite the fact that he was in very difficult circumstances and despite the fact that it was possible, although hope was beginning to rise up in his heart, it was possible that he might die, that his life might be terminated, that his life might actually be poured out. for the sake of the Philippians. Despite this, he rejoiced and he encouraged and exhorted his Philippians who would be reading this letter that came to them. He encouraged them to rejoice also. But the problem for Paul was that he had such an intense commitment and such an intense desire to have first-hand knowledge and contact with his churches, the churches that he had had an impact with and had inaugurated. but just simply having ten months old news about them was not going to be satisfactory for his desire to shepherd them. For Paul, letters from Philippi were good. Messengers like Epaphroditus were wonderful, but to have a hand-picked, loyal, seasoned deputy in Philippi like Timothy checking out their spiritual health. That was what was really something Paul desired honestly to do. And so what Paul did was he made plans in his own mind. And he exposes us to some of these plans in this small segment of chapter two. And his plan was to send a personal representative in order to satisfy himself, satisfy his apostolic zeal for the church in Philippi. So he desired, as I say, to send a personal representative to Philippi. Now, what was it that Paul really hoped to gain? Well, certainly he had hoped to gain the oversight of the church in Philippi, particularly if there were any problems that had not surfaced in the information that had been brought to him by Epaphroditus when Epaphroditus came to Paul in Rome and brought a gift for his support. But Paul was concerned to know exactly what was happening immediately in the church. And so he had a desire to send this personal envoy. But not only that, you notice how he says, In verse 19, I hope in the Lord Jesus to send Timothy to you soon, that I also may be cheered when I receive news about you. He had a very positive and confident attitude. It was his expectation that upon receiving news back from a personal envoy, he would be very encouraged by the progress that was taking place in the Church of Philippi. And so obviously it was Paul's desire that he would be encouraged by receiving news back from any personal envoy who he would dispatch to Philippi. So not only did he have a plan to send someone who was a personal representative, he also had a desire to gain from that plan some encouragement. His intention was to provide, as I say, a spiritual leader to strengthen the church at Philippi. You notice in verse 20 how he says, I have no one else like him, speaking of Timothy, who takes a genuine interest in your welfare. You see, it was their welfare that was really a primary concern to him. And so it was this welfare that he sought to support and to strengthen by sending his personal envoy. He wanted to send someone who would take a genuine interest in their personal welfare. As you look down through this opening segment though, we pass by verses 22, 21, 22, and 20 until we get to 23. And Paul comes around from his digression in verse 23 and he restates his ultimate purpose. You notice in verse 23 how he speaks of the timing. He says, I hope therefore to send him And the New International Version, unfortunately, doesn't translate a little word that's included in the original text immediately. The thought or the tone of Paul's words are that he wants to send someone immediately. But there's one little catch. And that is, he is not certain of the circumstances that will prevail in his life while he's there in Rome until his trial is completed. So he says, I hope, therefore. to send him, that's Timothy, immediately as soon as I see how things go with me. And so there was a little catch to the timing of things. He had this earnest desire to send Timothy, but he also recognized that he needed Timothy with him. You see, there was no one else of kindred spirit like Paul to be with him and to help him administer his affairs and to minister there in Rome. And so he held back on sending Timothy. And next week we'll see whom he did send, that was Epaphroditus. But Paul's primary purpose in this passage was to announce his intention to send someone to represent him in Philippi. And in verse 23, you notice that he did not dispatch Timothy immediately because he wasn't sure of what his circumstances would be. Finally, as far as the plan is concerned, for sending someone to Philippi personally to represent him. We notice in verse 24 that he really has in his heart an expectation that he will be released from this Roman custody which he has been in for at least two years. We forget that many of Paul's years of active ministry were spent actually in jail. We don't remember the fact that he spent almost two and a half years in Roman custody in Caesarea. before he even got to Rome. So Paul had quite a ministry despite the fact that part of it was spent in jail. And so you notice in verse 24 how he makes a comment concerning this condition. He says, and I am confident in the Lord that I myself will come soon. Deep in his heart was the desire to be personally involved with what was happening in the churches throughout Europe, and throughout the subcontinent of Asia Minor. But at this time, he is not able to leave because he is in Roman custody. But the tone of his comment here seems to suggest that in his heart he had a sense of expectation that he would be released. Well, that was Paul's plan for overseeing the ministry in Philippi and obtaining up-to-date news and developing a more vital contact with them. But who is the man to fulfill the plan? That's what we find out when we look at the digression that Paul goes through in verses 20, 21, and 22, right in the heart of this little segment about his plan. If it were not for this digression in verse 20 through 22, I think that it would be very difficult for us to appreciate how important Timothy had become to the Apostle Paul. I think we often think of the Apostle Paul as being a man of extreme discipline, probably very stern in manner, and very battle-seasoned from all of his ministries. And yet here I think we see a glimpse of the fact that for him personal contact, a personal relationship with a younger man who was completely devoted to the Lord Jesus Christ as Paul was, was very important in the Apostle Paul's spiritual stability and enthusiasm. One of the comments of these verses, as I say, I think flows on the one hand, sort of a feeling of disappointment that he would have to give up Timothy in order to accomplish his plan. But then on the other hand, I believe there is an equally balancing tone of gratitude that there actually was one like Timothy whom he had had for so many years to encourage and minister to him. So you can see right in the midst of Paul's expressions here, the expression of a selfless attitude of service to the churches, which Paul had been trying to talk about to the Philippians in so many ways in the beginning part of chapter 2. But we ask the question, why was it that Paul had to give up Timothy to send a personal representative to Philippi? And we notice in verses 20 and 21 that Paul had a problem. There in Rome there was a lack of workers who could sufficiently accomplish what in Paul's judgment was the need of the hour. The bond that existed between Paul and Timothy emerges and we find in verse 20 how it is very clear that Had there been anyone else to send, Paul probably would have sent them. But as you notice in verse 20, Paul makes a comment saying, I have no one else like him who takes a genuine interest in your welfare. And so Paul found it necessary that he would have to give up his confidant, Timothy, in order to accomplish his plan. You notice also, as your eyes drop down from verse 20 to verse 21, how it says, everyone looks out for his own interests, not those of Jesus Christ. Apparently, according to Paul's testimony, in Rome he had no contacts with any Christians ministering in Rome who had a vision for the church at large like he had. And so, in other words, there were probably sincere, dedicated believers there in Rome who had a concern for whatever small house church they were ministering to, or for whatever spiritual activities they might have been involved in, but there was something missing. According to the Apostle Paul, they were so involved in their activities, and maybe some of them were good, it seems from the tone that many of them were probably secondary in importance But clearly there was no one there who had a sense of the concern for the church at large, the church outside of Rome. And so he says, I have no one else like him, like Timothy, who takes a genuine interest in your welfare, for everyone looks out for his own interests and not those of Jesus Christ. Again, perhaps this is why we read in chapter 2 verse 4 what we do. Notice back in verse 4 how Paul exhorted the Philippians and he said, each of you should look not only to your own interests but also the interests of others. I suspect and am fairly confident that it was the conditions that existed in Rome that disturbed Paul and made such a deficiency of workers that prompted him to motivate and exhort the Philippians to not fall into this pattern of being preoccupied with their own interests and neglecting the progress of the gospel as a priority in their lives. So this is why Paul, first of all, in my judgment, decided to send Timothy. I think it was because Timothy was a man who had demonstrated a kindred spirit, a heart, to work along with Paul. There's another reason why Paul selected Timothy in my judgment and that was that Timothy had a track record of selfless service. A track record of selfless service. You notice in verse 22 how Paul comments about this. He says, you know that Timothy has proved himself because as a son with his father he has served with me in the work of the gospel. Here Paul comments about this track record of his young deputy Timothy. He points out that Timothy had a proven character. There was no mistake about the fact that Timothy's track record was good. This could be a reference to the Philippians' knowledge of how Timothy conducted himself when they first landed in Europe and went to the city of Philippi and Paul found himself thrown in jail. Or it could be a reference to the fact that the Philippians, having watched Timothy work with Paul over the years, now at least by the time he's in this Roman jail situation, had been at about 12 years since Timothy was first enlisted to work with Paul. It could be over that 12-year period that the Philippians had come to realize that Timothy was a very faithful and dedicated leader. But regardless, Timothy's dedication to the cause of Christ was indisputable. And anyone who respected Paul would have to respect the information, the leadership, the instructions that would come from Timothy as well. But Timothy had not only proven himself to be a selfless servant, but he'd also proven himself to be absolutely dedicated and loyal in the cause of Christ, particularly to the Apostle Paul. And again, this is what is highlighted in verse 22. As you notice, Paul says, you know that Timothy has proved himself because as a son with his father, he has served with me in the work of the gospel. He has served with me in the furtherance of the gospel. What Paul does is he employs a metaphor to describe the loyalty that Timothy had practiced in his relationship with the Apostle Paul for all of these years of ministry. And that metaphor, of course, is the metaphor of a son working with his father. And of course this figure of speech, this metaphor that Paul employs is not as obvious today as perhaps it would have been in Paul's time and even has been up until recent times because what it is is it speaks of the kind of relationship that a young boy would have to his father or a young girl to the mother while working perhaps on a family farm or perhaps in working in a family business. there is always that interaction between the children and the parents in the process of working out the family corporation, be it a farm or be it a business. The significance of this metaphor is a little bit clearer when you can think in terms of those times, maybe they are infrequent, but times in which you have had an opportunity to actually work with one of your youngsters or one of your grandchildren or some other child that you have an influence with. I can remember when we were first building our house how many projects there were because when we built our first house we had to have a contractor finish it about half way. All through the seven years in which we lived in this house, we were poking away at various projects. I see Jan smiling over here as he is on the project too. Each stage of the way, it was so much fun to have the boys, as they were growing, taking on different kinds of responsibilities and learning various manual skills. I think not only did they learn some manual skills, I think we built some memories. I can't imagine what it would be like to actually have a business in which a son would be working with me all the time. But I think practically speaking that this is somewhat of a side admonition to you fathers. Don't be hesitant if it is appropriate to give them some exposure to where you work, daughters as well, and particularly just on little things, errands. or wherever you can take them where they can observe how you behave, how they can see how you do things, how you buy things, and what kinds of preparations you go through for your errands. Mothers, you have tremendous opportunities around the home to teach and to train both sons and daughters in practical skills, in their personal management. Don't see these as a grudging responsibility, but as an opportunity for training. And don't hamstring, as I think is often happening today, with the intense concern about our children. Be careful not to hamstring them by doing things for them that they can certainly well do for themselves. I think it is our responsibility to teach them to do as many tasks as they are personally capable of doing. We are seeing a generation come along that is not being taught personal responsibility. Training young people to do tasks is a great way to train them to take personal responsibility in their own lives. as adults and as parents and as those who have responsibility for children, God has not called us to be their slaves. He has called us to be their trainers. And I think it's our obligation to teach them how to live responsible Christian lives. Anyway, this is what happened between Paul and Timothy and Timothy, I believe, served with Paul as a responsive, teachable, trusting and loyal son, even though he wasn't actually Paul's blood son, he was spiritually. And this is why I think Paul determined to send Timothy to Philippi in order to facilitate his plan for strengthening the church. But you know, this gives me just an opportunity to give you a little bit of insight into why it was that Timothy had become so valuable to the Apostle Paul. and had become such an effective minister in the first century churches. Timothy, as you will note from a couple of scriptures that I'd like to direct your attention to, Timothy had a mother and a grandmother who trained him well in the scriptures. And if you would turn with me to 2 Timothy chapter 1, You'll notice Paul's acknowledgement of the importance of Timothy's parents, particularly his mother, especially his mother, in him becoming prepared to be an effective associate for the Apostle Paul. In 2 Timothy chapter 1 verse 5, Paul says, I have been reminded of your sincere faith which first lived in your grandmother Lois and in your mother Eunice, and I am persuaded now lives in you also." Apparently, Timothy grew up with a believing grandmother and a believing mother. Interestingly enough, he also was born into a family with an unbelieving Greek father. His family probably was one of the upper class because when the scriptures in Acts chapter 16 speak of Paul's initial meeting of Timothy, Luke describes Timothy's father as a Greek and that would have been a technical term for one who lived in that region of Laconia but was of Greek descent. And in that town, in Timothy's hometown of Lystra, which was a Roman military colony. There were three basic people that populated Timothy's hometown. There were the Italians or the Roman soldiers who were active and retired working in this Roman garrison. They were those who spoke Latin and they were the aristocrats. There were also the Greeks. They were the ones who were probably the more educated, although they were a minority class along with the Romans. They spoke Greek, they were the educated ones and because of their education they ran the businesses and they were the upper class. In addition to the Latins and the Greeks, there were also the local Laconians. They spoke a local dialect and they were probably the uneducated minority who populated the lower classes. So Timothy grew up with a family background where he had a mother who was a believer, a grandmother who was a believer, a mother who taught him the scriptures from the time he was an infant. He also grew up in a multicultural town and he also grew up in a town where there was much in the way of Greek pagan religion and there was a small smattering of Jewish thought. When Timothy was first approached with the gospel. It occurred when the Apostle Paul came to his hometown in Lystra and when Paul came to town it was a very amazing experience because the Apostle Paul was coming to the city of Lystra after having been chased out of two other cities that were neighboring cities to Timothy's hometown and when Timothy first observed the Apostle Paul, the Apostle Paul had accomplished a great miracle And then upon the arrival of Jews from the neighboring cities, he was stoned almost to death, and then dragged out of town by the mob. So that was Timothy's introduction to the Apostle Paul, who would eventually become his spiritual father. Not a very auspicious introduction. But nevertheless, because of his training in the scriptures, evidently, and because of the faith of his parents, Timothy was very receptive to what Paul had preached. despite the effect of his preaching on most of the mob. And so we judge that Timothy probably under the preaching of Paul became a believer at that time when Paul in Acts chapter 14 first came to his home city. But during the time of the year that went by between Paul's first coming to Lystra and his return to Lystra to minister again, Timothy evidently distinguished himself as a disciple because it is clear from Acts chapter 16 verse 2 that when Paul arrived again in Timothy's hometown Timothy had this distinguished reputation and Luke writes in Acts chapter 16 verse 1 Paul came to Derbe and then to Lystra where a disciple named Timothy lived whose mother was a Jewess and a believer but whose father was a Greek The brothers at Lystra and Iconium spoke well of Timothy and so Paul wanted to take him along to be with him as an associate. So that was Timothy's spiritual background. A believer who was a young man who was reared in a God-fearing home, taught the scriptures, led to Christ under the ministry of the Apostle Paul and then immediately, despite Paul's absence, began to grow in his faith. It's interesting also that Paul writes in his first letter to Timothy that Timothy, before Paul actually enlisted him to minister with him, Timothy had certain prophecies spoken about him. Prophecies that suggested or implied to the community and then to the Apostle Paul that he was a very special young man. And this we find in 1 Timothy 1 verse 18 and also Paul repeats it in 1 Timothy 4 verse 14 where he speaks to Timothy about these prophecies that have been delivered concerning him. And that as a result of these prophecies he ought not to lay down on the job. Finally, the scriptures make it clear that Timothy was a young man. When he was enlisted by the Apostle Paul, it is quite probable that he was somewhere around the age of between 18 and 22. We sense this because when Paul finally writes to him again in the first letter to Timothy in chapter 4 verse 12, Paul challenges him not to allow those to whom he's ministering to look down upon his youth. Now this is 12 years after Timothy first began to accompany Paul in missionary activity. So we judge that he wouldn't have been considered a young man by the time he had reached his 30s. So working backwards it was probably his early 20s and perhaps his teens when he was first enlisted by Paul, a very remarkable young man. And then finally, as far as his personality is concerned, he was a young man who had a very retiring personality, a very effective minister, but a rather shy personality. And again, in the second letter that Paul wrote to Timothy, he sort of has to stoke him up a little bit and say to him, hey, God hasn't given you a spirit of fear. Don't be timid, don't be intimidated. He's giving you a spirit of sound mind and love. Timothy was to get to work and not lay down on the job. Timothy was a very unique young man with a lot of attributes and they were very contributive to the fact that he was a successful minister along with the Apostle Paul. Another thing, he learned suffering at an early age. Timothy learned suffering at an early age. You can imagine what he thought when he heard the gospel preached by Paul and then saw Paul stoned almost to death. Something must have gone on in his head saying, oh boy, this is not going to be a vacation if I get involved in what this man is preaching and teaching. And then, after Paul had enlisted him to travel with him on the mission field, the first The first time they reach the shores of Europe and they get into the city of Philippi, what happens? There's Timothy standing in the sidelines, watching as the Apostle Paul and Silas get heaved into jail after being beaten half to death. I imagine Timothy must have been scratching his head and really wondering who he was working along with. But nevertheless, what happened was it galvanized in Timothy's mind that Christianity was not a cakewalk. but it was a very disciplined and very challenging lifestyle that would incorporate perhaps suffering. A third element that I think contributes to the effectiveness of Timothy's ministry was the fact that not only did Timothy have good preparation, not only did he have an early understanding that the Christian life could be a life of suffering, but he also had a very interesting mother, a mother who had the faith to release her son for ministry. Just for a moment, think of yourselves in Eunice's place. Here's this mother who has invested herself in this young boy. But she gets behind the desire of the Apostle Paul to take him along in mission. And rather than complaining or trying to hold on to her son, she encourages and endorses this process. And I can't imagine that it would be any other way, because Eunice was as well informed about Paul's lifestyle in ministry as Timothy was, having observed the kinds of events that took place along with Paul's teaching ministry in their own home area. Imagine the commitment Eunice must have had to say yes when this When this guy Paul says, I'd like to take your son with me, you'd like to take my son with you. You're the guy who always gets run out of town and stoned half to death. Yeah, I'd like to take your son with me. But you see, not only did she have a commitment to the gospel giving out, she must have had an intrinsic sense of the commitment and the ability of the Apostle Paul to take care of her son. So she encouraged and endorsed him into the ministry. And then finally, I am quite sure that while Timothy was with Paul during the early stages, he was the benefactor of tremendous discipleship training. And just a couple of things that I think Paul did during this discipleship training to enable Timothy to emerge and to evolve into this very effective servant throughout the whole known realm of the church. Let me just suggest a few. I think Paul made quite sure before he even selected Timothy that he was a young man of character and qualification. We know that. was circumcised by Paul just before they took off on their ministry in order that there would not be any unnecessary physical hindrance in Timothy's ministry to any Jews that they might encounter. I think also Paul kept Timothy somewhat on the sidelines when they went into their first early battles. At Philippi, he was not arrested, we do not think. In Thessalonica he seems to be in the background because when the Thessalonians come down to Berea to get Paul, they seem to let Timothy alone. Timothy is able to stay behind in Berea in order to continue to support the infant church there in Berea while Paul runs out to Athens to escape the mob. Paul must have kept him on the sidelines. During the early years of Timothy's ministry with Paul, He kept Timothy from going into hostile and unfamiliar situations until Timothy had gained enough experience to have confidence. So I think that Paul was very effective in taking this young man who had tremendous character and then molding him into a very effective servant by deliberately and progressively exposing him to increasing challenges in ministry. And so I think these are very four important ingredients that made for the fact that Timothy was a very effective servant to the New Testament Church in his lifetime. And I think this whole story of Timothy and this whole point that Paul is making to the Philippian Church of his plan and the man that he had to accomplish this plan points out three things that I'd just like to suggest to you in terms of application. No matter what the pressures of our society may be against our faith, godly parents can have a lasting, eternal impact on children. Those of you who don't have children, through youth ministry, through maybe just an informal way of adopting a young person, you can have a lasting, eternal impact on a child by deliberately and diligently teaching them the Bible. We hear a lot about parents praying for their children. I agree, that's great. But there's also that ingredient of diligently teaching them the Bible. There is really no substitute for the scriptures, and I tell you there is no substitute equal to the impact that a parent can have on a child when they teach them the scriptures. No other teacher will have the opportunity to drive home the realities of the scripture than a parent who lives day in and day out with a young person. Paul was the greatest disciple maker since Jesus. But when he discovered Timothy, there was no doubt that Timothy's mother had given this young man quite a head start in ministry preparation. If you want to hold on to your kids and you want your kids to hold on to your values, you need to be cultivating those spiritual ties because those are the ties that will ultimately last. This is the front line of disciple making. This is the cutting edge of disciple making, folks. I think that's how God designed the family. Don't count on someone else getting the job done for you. single parents. When you look at the life of Timothy, when you look at the fact that he was prepared by a mother who did not necessarily have a husband, we don't know when Timothy's father died. We know very little about him except that he was a Greek. He may have been alive at the time that Timothy was saved and then delivered to Paul for ministry, we are not sure. However, we are sure of the fact that it was most likely that Eunice raised him by herself in terms of his spiritual upbringing. And so I think that single parents should not feel handicapped in the process of spiritually training their children. Remember the example of Eunice. And though you may have, let's say, an unsaved husband even, or you may know someone who is, do not think of yourself as handicapped. Remember the example of Eunice. And then finally, a third area where I observe some practical value, along with many other applications that there could be in this passage, and that is that one of the most important character qualities that I think we need to instill in our young people as they're coming along is this character quality of selfless service. It is my judgment that in the next generation it is that character quality especially of selfless service that will probably distinguish those who have the primary leading capability in the next generation of the church. That was the quality that made Timothy particularly valuable to Paul. And that was the quality that Paul continually talks about when he writes to the Philippians as valuable for unity and the growth of the church, selfless service. And I believe very strongly that this is a character quality that is not going to be popular, is not what you'll find talked about in advertising and in the circles that your children will travel. But it is a character quality which will distinguish them I believe even their friends will recognize it when they see it. The life of Timothy, a very effective co-worker with the Apostle Paul, served him like a diligent son. And within the Church of Jesus Christ, even after the death of Paul, probably went on to have a very effective and vital role in the progress of the Church. And to him we owe a great debt. Let's pray. Our Father, we thank you for what Paul has given us in a small digression of insight into his need for a kindred spirit confidant like Timothy and how valuable Timothy was to us as he had an impact on the early church from whom we have become beneficiaries. May we be selfless servants and grant us the grace to rear our children and to be sensitive to the needs of children around us as a congregation. For Jesus' sake we pray. Amen.