2 Timothy 4:9-10 | Demas Has Forsaken Me

[Music] here we are second Timothy chapter four we're going to be looking at only two verses verses 9 and 10 and we're looking at a man by the name of Dimas so beginning at verse 9 reading verses 9 and 10 Paul writes 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 I was mentioning to our first service today how that those of us who live in this area are familiar with the city san dimas perhaps I have some of you who live in San Dimas and you probably know the origin of the name of your city perhaps you don't I actually was interested in why they would name a city here called San Dimas because what you have here in verse 10 isn't real flattering demas has forsaken me so I thought why would you name your city after Dimas I mean it's like calling yourself you know San Judas I mean why did you do that right and so San Dimas this actually was intended really to be named sand isthmus Dismas is the traditional name of one of the thieves on the cross who came to faith in Christ but when they made San Dimas they made a mistake and called it San Dimas rather than sand isthmus and that's how you got the name of Dimas in your city that's all just wanted to let you know but with that Dimas let's look at the life of a man by the name of Dimas let me give you an introduction at this point Paul began to conclude his letter and he's making final requests what is interesting is that though he is facing his own execution he's begin in its conclusion to focus on on two basic things one he is focusing on on people and second he is focusing on his own spiritual needs now as it pertains to people Paul knew that the Gospel message that he declared would produce various responses and we know that to be so you see some who hear the gospel who embrace the message of salvation through Christ they hear the message as it's given the good news the news that includes the forgiveness of sin peace with God the promise of a new life and they openly and they gratefully receive his gift of life and as a result because they got saved there they're overwhelmed with the joy that comes from knowing that your name is written in the Lamb's Book of Life and that you have a relationship with God it's like what it says in Isaiah 12 verse 3 therefore with joy you will draw water from the wells of salvation they've been set free there they're born again and they're so blessed that they received that message they're like the man of the gadarenes who was set free by the Lord Jesus Christ a man who was horribly demon-possessed but when the Lord Jesus Christ came to that that region he delivered him of his didn't demonic possession and and this frightening demonic man was delivered and in doing so in his deliverance he had drawn people's attention it says in Luke 8:35 they went out to see what had happened came to Jesus and found the man with whom from whom the demons had departed sitting at the feet of Jesus clothed and in his right mind seated there at the feet of the Lord clothed and in his right mind and these are people who received the Lord in and they like that man are now it clothed they're they're clothed with the garments of righteousness like it says in isaiah 61:10 where it says i will greatly rejoice in the lord my soul shall be joyful in my god for he has clothed me with the garments of salvation he covered me with the robe of righteousness as a bridegroom decks himself with ornaments and as a bride adorns herself with the jewels they're clothed in righteous so now they're in the right mind because God set them free God changed them for the first time they're beginning to think clearly the salvation has impacted them they cannot keep Jesus to themselves like the Samaritan woman in John chapter 4 they begin inviting people to come to Christ in John 428 verses 34 28 through 30 it reads the woman left her waterpot went her way into the city said to the men come see a man who told me all things that I ever did could this be the Christ then they went out of the city and came to him so they're like that they're saying Jesus revealed my life to me and gave me an answer gave me a promise for living water can this be Messiah inviting friends clothed in our right minds and so these people receive that message they respond to it and they're grateful God set them free God changed them and they're thinking clearly but others hear the message of the gospel and they reject it they have no interest in anything that God has to offer them they hear the message but they harden their hearts to it they reject it for whatever reasons they may have they're not open to what God says he can do in that message it reminds me of Zechariah chapter 1 verse 4 where God says do not be like your fathers to whom the former prophets preach saying thus says the Lord of hosts turned now from your evil ways and your evil deeds but they did not hear nor heed me says the Lord it reminds me of what Jesus said to the City of Jerusalem in Luke 13:34 Oh Jerusalem Jerusalem the one who kills a prophet stones those who are sent to her how often I wanted to gather your children together as a hen gathers her brood under her wings but you were not willing others reject the message even though they may at first outwardly appear to respond to it this rejection can sometimes happen over a number of years they can be considered Christians even ministers for years and then they turn away Spurgeon once said the raw material for a devil is an angel the raw material for the son of perdition was an apostle and the raw material for the most horrible of apostates is one who is almost a saint so Paul closes and as he closes he mentioned some who have embraced the message and he refers to at least 15 of them but we also see others who rejected the message to their own hurt and we can learn lessons from both of these categories of people so as we look at this passage Paul is facing its execution Paul is about to be beheaded and as he's awaiting his mind is filled with thoughts of those who have impacted his life considering this he gives final instructions to Timothy to deepen his understanding of ministry and he closes and he closes by giving insights into the spiritual condition of certain men and certain women but he also makes a request of Timothy notice what he says in verse 9 where he says to Timothy be diligent to come to me quickly so he makes a request to this young man Paul is writing in a cold damp dungeon and he issues a final request to his son in the faith please come and see me before I die I've been Forsaken and I desire your fellowship when you faced the end what do you think might be your last thoughts what do you think you might be concerned about in your last moments of life should you have opportunity to actually think and prepare do you think that your last days will be completed wishing that you had spent more time at work or that you had had a better job do you think that you will wish that you had spent more money on a better car or had nicer clothes or that you went on better vacations lived in a better neighborhood will you wish that you had loved others more as a husband that you had cared for your wife more as a wife that you had cared for your husband or as parents that you cared for your children more will you regret not knowing Jesus or wish you could have been more faithful to him and were more loving to others and concerned about their eternity for Paul his last request was that Timothy would come and see him his last letter closes with him telling Timothy that he wants to see him one last time and his desire is fellowship he wanted fellowship with his beloved son in the faith you see Paul had been abandoned by those who should have remained supportive of him he said earlier in 2nd Timothy chapter 1 verse 15 all those in Asia have turned away from me he says in chapter 4 verse 16 at my first defense no one stood with me but all forsook me key leaders had embraced bad doctrine and they had abandoned him and though he had tearfully warned the church they still embraced the error he had warned the elders of the Church of Ephesus what would happen in Acts chapter 20 he had said to them in verses 30 and 31 from among yourselves men will rise up speaking perverse things to draw away the disciples after themselves therefore watch and remember that for three years I did not cease to warn every one night and day with tears you see when when a minister like Paul and when other ministers sometimes will show emotion from a pulpit there are those who are very uncomfortable with it they don't understand why is this person doing that as all of you know that I I can open my heart and I can become emotional and there are those who don't understand why I've actually spoken and taught at Pass's conferences for many years and and there have been times when pastors have not understood and have actually said why is he getting careful what Paul did Paul was there with the Ephesian elders and he was given last or disease speaking to them for the last time Timothy would have been amongst them and he said listen I'm telling you what's going to happen in the church what's going to happen is there will be people who will infiltrate they will come in they will bring damnable heresies as they come in but that's not it by itself there are other things to be concerned because amongst yourselves there will be those who arise up they will draw disciples after themselves he says then please don't forget I warned you about this for three years with tears I've been concerned for you to the point of weeping over you and though he had tearfully warned the church because of the bad doctrine that would enter in and that those would they would embrace in all he had tearfully warned the church and they still listen to what was being said as we read about Paul's last instructions to the to the elders he warned them and then he knelt down and he prayed for them and after doing so they all wept freely they held him tightly acts 20 verse 38 reads Saru in most of all for the words which he spoke that they would see his face no more so they loved this man all but some who wept because they would not see him again ended up abandoning him many had abandoned him but Timothy hadn't and Paul wanted to see Timothy he wanted to see a son in faith one last time he wanted to encourage him to serve the Lord and he knew that Timothy needed encouragement and he wanted to be a source of strength to him you see earlier Pauline made it clear that he desired to see him in second Timothy 1 verse 4 he told Timothy he was greatly desiring to see him being mindful he said of your tears that I may be filled with joy so he's simply repeating at this point what he's already said and he's thinking of a son that has remained faithful but as he does so he remembers a friend who has not notice what he says in verse 10 demas has forsaken me Paul mentioned someone by name and by saying this it must have truly broken his heart Dimas demas has forsaken me this would have surprised in shock Timothy Timothy knew Dimas Dimas was someone that served alongside of Paul and Dimas was considered a friend in Paul's writings Dimas is mentioned twice as an assistant in ministry Philemon verses 23 and 24 reads at Patras my fellow prisoner in Christ Jesus and you greetings and so to mark Aristarchus Dimas and Luke my fellow workers in Colossians 4 verse 14 Paul writes our dear friend Luke the doctor and demas send greetings so in mentioning him Paul actually was showing him great honor his name was being preserved for the entire life of the church what an incredible honor that would be to be referred to as a fellow worker to be known as a friend of the Apostle Paul Paul's life seems to have been a constant moving in ministry he had very little rest he travelled tirelessly he ministered constantly and the fatigue of traveled the drain of ministry would have made friendship more meaningful to be able to share with others who understood his burdens was much needed not every Christian would have understood what Paul went through as a minister and ministers life is not the same as those who are not in full-time ministry there are concerns and experiences that are unique to him and when you have someone who understands it deepens your bond with them you see that's one of the things that a lot of people don't understand about ministry they think that they understand it because they're Christians and perhaps they understand a certain element of it but they don't understand it all and you can't why would you my mom used to say to me when if I said you know going through some things in church my mom would say oh I understand did I'd say no mama you don't and she said oh yes I do son I understand and I'd say no mom but you don't she say of course I understand I'm a believer son I'd say no mama you don't and I'd say let me let me say this mom let me say if I told you under and what it means to have a birth pang what would you say if I was with a woman who said oh I'm going through labor and I'm having birth pangs and I sat there holding my stomach going yeah I get it would you think that I did and well of course not how could you you're not experiencing that I said but it's the same mama you say that you understand ministry you don't you're a Christian you understand certain aspects but you don't know what a minister goes through you don't know what a pastor goes through you don't understand those things you can come alongside and help and God bless you for you you do that but you'll never understand you see in ministry it's a blessing to have somebody who knows what you're going through who walks alongside of you that you can speak to openly and honestly who you can speak so you might say I don't think that I gave a good message or I just it's just a lot of burden right now and that other pastor just will listen to you and will not their head in agreement they understand and and that was demas for Paul he understood he traveled with him he saw the things that Paul went through he shared in some of the things that Paul experienced he visited Paul in prison some believe that he actually spent time there he would have known why Paul was in prison he would have seen what following Jesus had cost Paul he would have known that Paul had given up everything to follow the Lord and and that would have weighed heavily on his mind and then over time demons would become a member of what is often referred to as an inner circle it's a natural product of people exercising gifts and serving some move from simply being a part of the work to becoming a leader in the work and demas served and he had the honor of traveling with paul he was admitted into the fellowship of church leadership he is honored in the church when Paul would mention demons name to Timothy as he was reading this aloud to the Church of Ephesus the whole church would have a gasp when he says demas has forsaken me the members of the church would gasp Dimas Dimas we know him Dimas lived in close fellowship with believers he was trusted he was honored by them when Dimas would walk into a room the people would greet him the people loved him you can almost picture him standing and a fellowship with the people he's visiting with them he's smiling he's laughing and as some might be pointing and saying hey that's Dimas he's a good brother you see in the body of Christ there are there are men whose names are recognizable if you simply mention them if I say Chuck Smith people recognize the name Chuck if I say oh you know Rory's people know raw Reese if I say Greg Laurie the so oh he's a good brother great evangelist they'll they know the name you mentioned the name and people know him if he walks into a room people recognize him and they might nudge Wynand oh they're going to say that's raúl over there or that's Mike back intosh over there that's Don McClure over there that's that's and you name it he's no that was Dimas demas would be in the room and the people would know him they honored him they respected him they say this guy's a traveling companion that the Apostle Paul he he's well known Dimas greatly honored they would have regarded him as a sacrificial colabor with the Apostle Paul remember Paul wrote Philemon in Colossians while he was in jail Dimas was mentioned in both of those prison epistles that means that for a good portion of his life he was an openly professing minister of the gospel he was seasoned he was respected he was loved and he was honored and he was welcomed as well as admired surely Paul would say something good about this man but Paul writes demas has forsaken me having loved this present world can you hear the tear in Paul's voice can you hear it it's there Camus forsook me you can hear it for something he loved this age he didn't rejoice he wept my friend my companion my fellow servant I thought you were faithful team is we went through so many things did you betrayal sorrow demas has forsaken me having loved this present age my beloved friend my traveling companion beheld he first took me like all those in Asia Dimas turned away Dimas had likely been with Paul in Rome during his first imprisonment and now Paul has been imprisoned a second time and Dimas abandoned him that gives us insight into why Paul would write be diligent to come to me quickly because Dimas left Paul when Paul needed his fellowship and his encouragement the most and he says he has forsaken that word forsaken means to desert it means to leave helpless to totally abandon Paul was deeply disappointed in Dimas because Dimas had left him holed in the bank but notice why Dimas left notice what he says because he loved this present world the Greek language has different tenses and when it says he loved the word loved there means he fell in love with he fell in love with this present world with his present age he fell in love he welcomed it he entertained it he was fond of this present age he loved it dearly he was well with it Dimas was in love with his age with this period of time he he didn't long for the age to come Dimas had come to believe that this world was all there was all that would ever be and he fell in love with it and Dimas fell in love with the present age with its pleasures as well as its treasures he had an incredible influence for the kingdom but he hungered for the world he was the opposite of Timothy Dimas rejected the gospel and he rejected the Apostle his hunger for this world was greater than any longing for heaven or for the Lord and Dimas maybe an example of a person whose heart is either rocky or thorn infested soil in Matthew 13 Jesus gave a parable of the sower the seed and the soils and the sower we know as Jesus the seed is the word of God but the soil represents a human heart and as he gave this parable he spoke of various kinds of soil he spoke of a soil by the wayside which he described as hardened doesn't receive the seed he spoke of stony soil which is shallow produces quickly but doesn't last and he spoke of seed falling among thorns and that represented seed that was choked out by cares riches and the pleasure of life and perhaps this is what happened in the life of Dimas seed was choked by weeds again listen he traveled on ministry tours but he didn't love Jesus he saw miracles he heard solid teaching he was a witness of God moving it wasn't enough he heard amazing testimonies saw incredible sacrifice but got hardened to it what he ended up seeing was an old man abandoned in a jail cell with nothing to his name he saw a man with nothing alone without a cloak begging for books and parchments see that's what Paul's going to say please bring my cloak Paul was in an ice-cold sell a stone sound a ban by all and freezing please bring my cloak winners coming and that's what Dimas would think of he saw an old man with nothing now that's not what Paul saw in Philippians Paul had written in chapter 4 verses 12 and 13 I know how to live I'm almost nothing or with everything I've learned the secret of living in every situation whether it is with a full stomach or empty with plenty or little for I can do everything with the help of Christ who gives me the strength I need in Philippians 3 verse 8 he had written yes everything else is worthless when compared with the priceless gain of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord I have discarded everything else counting it all as garbage so that I may have Christ you see it may have been his exposure to the world as he traveled that drew him away he fell in love with the temporary he had no vision for eternity you see the world that we live in even today even as then can offer many promises of pleasure and opportunity this is a man who may not have traveled very much may not have seen great cities or very many and on his traveling he's seen much he's seen beauties seen grand juries seen a variety of things I've had opportunity to travel I've seen some of the great cities of the world and I've seen how beautiful they can be I I have seen Munich I've seen Brussels I've seen London and Glasgow I've been to Paris Vienna Madrid Barcelona Athens Tokyo I've been around the world I've been on the champs-elysees there in Paris I've seen the City of Lights I've seen the activity I've seen the people moving from place to place I've been around the world and I've seen the Palace at Versailles I've seen the palace in Madrid I've seen a lot a lot of museums a lot of places and I'm telling you some of it is mind-blowing as you know from the beauty of a beach in Hawaii to the mountains of the Swiss Alps unbelievable beauty and so many people go and place a place seen it been there done it but for demas the more he saw the more he wanted and to think of some old man without even a cloak asking for books as he's doing Timothy to think of an old man in a cold cell and then to see the beauty he said he fell in love with this present age it may have been he is traveling and seeing that contributed to his heart being swayed you see Satan used the allure of the world to distract and he still does derails believers through it the riches and glory of the world is a huge source of distraction to believers the love of this world is often the cause of turning away from the Lord it's true in the case of Lot's wife you read your Old Testament she was delivered from the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah and the cities surrounding it they were told don't look back move on get out but she stopped with a longing in her heart she she looked back and was caught in judgment so severe that Jesus himself simply said remember Lot's wife her heart stayed when her body was removed though she had traveled out of the city her heart remained there and she was judged alongside of it Jesus himself was tempted by Satan to forsake God and embrace the world in Luke chapter 4 verses 6 through 8 the devil said to him all this authority I'll give you and the glory for this has been delivered to me and I give it to him ever I wish therefore if you will worship before me all will be yours and jesus answered and said to him get behind me seyton for it is written you shall worship the Lord your God in him only you shall serve the grandeur the beauty this has been delivered to me I'll give it to you and give it to whomever I want get behind me you see Jesus made it clear that believers need to make choices in Matthew 6:24 he said no one can serve two masters for either he will hate the one and love the other or else he'll be loyal to the one and despise the other you cannot serve God and Mammon so that gives us insight into what Paul is written in his first letter to Timothy he had made it clear believers have to come to understand that it is more blessed to give than to receive Timothy teach them that he had said in first Timothy 6:17 through 19 command those who are rich in this present age not to be haughty nor to trust in uncertain riches but in the Living God who gives us richly all things to enjoy let them do good that they be rich in good works ready to give willing to share storing up for themselves a good foundation for the time to come that they may lay hold on eternal life you see Christian believers are aware that our priorities are spiritual in nature we are to seek God first in his kingdom and all these things shall be added to us we look to him for our daily bread Jesus said in Luke 12:15 a man's life does not consist in the abundance of the things he possesses somebody said we do not find that he was frightened by the dangers that accompany the profession of faith in Jesus sadly it was a love of the world that provoked this promising disciple to make shipwreck of his faith and good conscience even though he could scorn danger or endure severe hardship he could not withstand the enticements of the world that seduced him with its pleasures now remember in verse 8 there's a promise there in Chapter four there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness we the Lord the righteous judge will give to me on that day and not to me only but also to all who have loved his appearing all who love Jesus ultimately received this crown and that desire motivates their lives because they love the Lord and desire to be with him but Dimas did not have a desire for Jesus the desire of his life was the temporary and the eternal had no value again somebody said the exact nature of Dimas is forsaking Paul because of his love for the present system of things is not disclosed perhaps Dimas is loved for material things and worldly pleasures became stronger than that for spiritual things fear of martyrdom with Paul may have caused Dimas to seek a safer place and thus preserve his life in the then-existing system of things in any event when conditions became unfavorable Dimas failed to use his marvelous opportunity to strengthen his brother Paul and maybe that he is part of the company spoken of in Matthew 7 where Jesus in verses 22 and 23 said it like this is that many will say to me on that day Lord Lord did we not prophesy in your name in your name drive out demons perform many miracles then I will tell them plainly I never knew you away from me evildoers he departed from Paul he turned back to the world it says in verse 10 he went to Thessalonica Thessalonica was a great and a rich industrial city and that's where he went now I should add that two others are mentioned along with Dimas you have crescents he went to Galatia which is Turkey and Titus went to Dalmatia which is modern Croatia they are spoken of forsaking Paul they simply went on ministry trips but with Dimas it may be that he had made connections in Thessalonica sought out some rich friends there's a great Church in that city there and the weirdness would have been that he would have been seen and recognized and think of how awkward that would have been for him when a member of the church saw Dimas doing whatever Dimas ended up doing sometimes people will leave and they walk away and they don't want to be recognized they don't want to be seen because they're embarrassed or ashamed years ago we had a member of one of our worship teams this is 25 years ago now who had left and was angry and this and that and Marie and I one day were in the Montclair mall we men call the mall purgatory so I was in purgatory in Montclair and as Marie and I were walking we were on the second floor I looked across and I could see somebody walking in the same direction and I looked it was the woman who used to be on our worship team I saw her and I looked at her and I turned to Marie and I said that's so-and-so but when I looked back in her direction because I was gonna wave at her she had long hair she had taken her hair and put it over her face and had her head down acting as if she thought she could hide behind her hair and I looked and I said that's interesting isn't it she's hiding from me when it's a peekaboo no she's hiding from me you know and sometimes people do that can you imagine Adiemus they saw him they knew him almost like the Apostle Peter you were with him I was not that's Dimas but Dimas what are you doing here in Salonika you know what's interesting about Dimas no mention is ever given concerning any restoration we are left with this statement that he made his way to Thessalonica could he have repented could he have been forgiven yes he could have been but it's not recorded I pray that he was we're not told that so we're left with a sad epitaph Dimas loved this present world when my father died it fell on me to determine what would be written on the headstone well my father's grave and I put on my father's grave stone Frank Corona Rosales beloved husband father grandfather and great-grandfather and I put a Bible verse John 14 underneath his name declaring my father a follower of Christ when my mother died I determined what to ride on her stone that she has as we laid my mom side-by-side with my dad and I said a follower of Jesus a follower of Jesus what's good to be on yours when when when my life is here is ended and I go to be with the Lord I want my children to write on my epitaph as my epitaph a follower of Jesus Christ faithful to the end not he abandoned God not he deserted God not that he has forsaken God but that he followed God that's the kind of epitaph we should all want what is yours going to be what will be written concerning you what will sum up your life so that when a stranger walks into a cemetery and looks down as they're looking for their grandfather grandmother or mom and they're looking at the different and they see yours or they see mine I want them to be able to see David Rosales beloved husband father grandfather follower of Jesus Christ to the end that's what we're called to I do not want it to say having loved this present world he departed may it be he followed him to the last moment and it's with him even now what will be on your headstone you need to determine that today what's it going to be follower of Christ or forsake her it's up to you

Channel: Calvary Chapel Chino Valley

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Keywords: Bible, Pastor David Rosales, cccv, Church, Teaching, Worship, God, Christians, Bible Study, Jesus, A Jesus People Community, Calvary Chapel Chino Valley, David Rosales, Pastor, Calvary Chapel, Holy Spirit, Gods Word, Chuck Smith, Teacher, Pastor David, End Times, Rapture, Trinity, Antichrist, A Sure Foundation, Prayer, Pray

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Length: 38min 42sec (2322 seconds)

Published: Wed May 16 2018