“You know that everyone in the province of Asia has deserted me, including Phygelus and Hermogenes.”
(2Tim 1:15NIV)
Have you ever been deserted or abandoned by those you probably thought would stick with you, come rain, come shine? It is not a new thing. For instance, our Lord Jesus, on the night that He was betrayed and arrested, was abandoned by His apostles and friends of about three and a half years. And why did they abandon Him like that, in spite of all that they shared together and enjoyed through their relationship with Him? It was fear, fear of being treated the way He was treated. Even though He had severally told them that He was going to be betrayed, treated shamefully and killed like a common criminal, they never believed Him or appreciated the severity of what would befall Him. But when, in few hours, they saw everything turn around against Him, they got so shaken and amazed that they all fled and left Him to face His misfortune all by Himself.
But did the Lord get angry with them or become bitter against them for abandoning Him like that? No! Instead, first, He entrusted His soul to the only one who would could save Him at that hour and who would not ignore His cry for help, and that was God. And He answered Him, saved Him from the jaws of death and brought Him back to life. (Cf. Luke 23:46; Acts 2:24; Heb 5:7)
The second thing the Lord did was to forgive His apostles and seek their restoration. So, we see that immediately after His resurrection He sought all of them out, including Peter who denied Him three times in one night, and brought them back to fellowship with Him. Why did He do this? It was because He knew that even though they failed Him in that hour when He needed them most, their hearts were right. They were not happy to abandon Him the way they did. They just did not have the strength and courage required to do the right thing. So, He brought them back to Himself in order that He may supply what was lacking in their lives and make them faithful to the end. And that was why, as bible historians would have us know, none of them ever abandoned Him again, even when it meant losing their lives.
Similarly, as we see in our opening text, there was a time that everyone in the province of Asia abandoned Paul the apostle, including certain close associates of his whom he mentions in the text. It was so bad that when he first stood before Caesar to defend himself and the gospel of Jesus Christ against the allegations of those who sought his life, there was no single brother or sister there with him from that province, just to cheer him up. And this was someone that God had used in very remarkable ways to bless all of them and several other believers all around the world at that time. Yet he was left all alone to face a possible sentence of death.
But why did those people abandon him like that? Was it because he was a fake minister of the gospel? No! He was a genuine servant of the Lord, and all of them knew this. Or was it because he did something wrong or outrageous, something unforgivable? No! He was an upright man by the grace of God. And even if he had done something terrible, to abandon him like that was contrary to Scriptures that teach us that such people should be restored in the spirit of gentleness (2Cor 2:5-11; Gal 6:1-2). But really, it was not because of any wrong thing that Paul did that he was abandoned. Rather, it was because of fear. Those brethren were just too afraid to identify with him, so that they would not be sharers in the sentence that he was going to receive, which may be as severe as death.
In any case, Paul was abandoned to deal with his trials all by himself. And did he lose his mind because of that? No! Or did he become bitter against those brethren who forsook and start calling for God’s judgment on them? No! Instead, he, like Jesus, entrusted himself to God, who would never leave nor forsake His own, and He came to his rescue. Not only that, he also prayed that God would not count this sin of unfaithfulness against those who forsook him, showing that it is against God’s will for us to neglect our brethren or anyone who has been good to us in their moments of need. (Cf. Rom 12:15; 2Tim 4:16-18; Heb 13:3)
Now then, perhaps you too have experienced or are experiencing something similar to what our Lord Jesus and Paul experienced. Don’t lose your mind because of it or become bitter towards any of those people who have abandoned you, regardless of who they are or what their reason for doing so may be. Instead, cast yourself on God, who will never leave you nor forsake you, for safe-keeping and learn your lessons too about the futility of trusting in men. Also, pray for those who have abandoned you so that they may receive mercy from God and be forgiven for their unfaithfulness. And you will receive salvation, strength and comfort in whatever form of trial you are faced with.
Then supposing there are people you left or abandoned in their moments of trials, people who were depending on you for support or comfort. You did bad. But you don’t have to let things stay that way. So, do your best to put right whatever you messed up. And may the Spirit of God guide and strengthen you to act accordingly.
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By: J.O. Lawal | Date: November 25, 2020 | Series: Youth for Jesus | Number: Vol. 3, No. 28
