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Skip Heitzig: This is a little series called "Overlooked," and we have decided to take eight different characters in the Bible and look them over because they are generally overlooked. They’re overlooked by more dominant figures who get all the press. We looked the first week at Baruch. Not many people knew about Baruch because Jeremiah is the guy that gets all the press. We then looked at the Shulamite bride. She is not discussed as much as her husband, Solomon. We have done that through several characters, and now we look in 2 Timothy chapter 1 at a character named Onesiphorus. It’s even hard to say. So, we’re going to look at him, and I’m going to guess that probably most of you have never heard a sermon on Onesiphorus. This may be the first.

Whenever you hear medical terms—and most of us are not familiar with medical terminology—we hear a certain medical term, we don’t know what it is, but our mind wants to associate the sound we hear with words that are familiar to us. If we try to interpret what those words are based on what we know, we would be sadly mistaken. A group of kids was given a list of very elementary medical terms to see if they could figure out what they were.

Artery: they said it’s the study of paintings. Bacteria: the back door to the cafeteria. Barium: it’s what doctors do when patients die—they bury 'em. Benign: it’s what you be after you be eight—you be nine. Cat scan: searching for a kitty. Cauterize: it’s when you make eye contact with her—you caught her eyes. Enema: not a friend. Fibula: a small lie. If a fib is a lie, a fibula is a small lie. A GI series: the World Series of military baseball. Pelvis: the second cousin to Elvis. Seizure: a Roman emperor, like Caesar Nero. Terminal illness: getting sick at the airport. And finally, urine: it’s the opposite of you’re out.

Onesiphorus sounds like a disease. It sounds like a loathsome condition. "He’s got a bad case of Onesiphorus." I have noticed over time that when parents have babies, they name babies sometimes based on trends. I did just a fun little search on the computer to look at trending names by decade for the last 100 years, just to see the patterns that people choose for their children. Onesiphorus was on none of those lists. When Christians want to name their children, they will often choose biblical names, but once again, Onesiphorus—I have never met one. That name is not on the list.

But we’re going to look at Onesiphorus in 2 Timothy chapter 1 because he was a friend to the Apostle Paul, and he gets mentioned in this letter in a couple of different places. Onesiphorus is part of the subject matter of Paul’s letter to Timothy. The name Onesiphorus really suits this guy because it means to bring an advantage, or profit-bearing, or useful. He was indeed useful. He was profitable and brought great advantage to the Apostle Paul. Were it not for this letter of 2 Timothy, we wouldn’t know who this man is. He is mentioned in chapter 1 and at the end of this book in chapter 4.

I’m going to give you six words that describe his character. Whenever I outline a text, I usually begin with a couple of points that I notice in the text. Then I keep studying it and I find three, and then four, and then five, and then six. Then I decided I had to stop. Think of it like a six-sided diamond—a diamond with six facets, a hexagonal cut diamond. Jewelers say those are very exquisite and rare. They are cut that way to speak of symmetry, balance, and unity. We’re going to look at this man who brought that to Paul’s life.

A little background: 2 Timothy is Paul’s final letter, the last letter he ever wrote. It’s Paul’s swan song, you might say. Paul is in prison, he is awaiting death, and he knows it. He knows that within a short period of time, his life will be over. It is Paul’s second arrest in Rome. You will recall the first time Paul was arrested; he was actually arrested in Jerusalem and taken to Caesarea, where he stood three trials: one before Festus, one before Felix, and then King Agrippa.

He spent two years in Caesarea. Then he was shipped off to Rome for his first Roman imprisonment. When he was in Rome the first time, he was under house arrest, which meant, though he was chained to a Roman guard, he had his own rented house. People could come and visit him, he could hold Bible studies, and he could write letters. In fact, Paul himself wrote to the Philippians and said, "I want you to understand that my imprisonment is actually for the furtherance of the gospel." Even though he was in prison, Paul saw his confinement as his assignment. In that prison cell the first time, he wrote four letters: the letter to the Ephesians, the letter to the Philippians, the letter to the Colossians, and a shorter letter to a man named Philemon.

After those two years in prison, he was set free. The Emperor Caesar Nero let him go. That’s according to Clement of Rome and Eusebius, both ancient historians. When Paul was let go after his first imprisonment, we believe that he went to Ephesus to spend some time with Timothy, the one who is getting this letter. But then he was re-arrested at a town called Troas, which is a port city. He is taken to Rome, he is placed in prison, and this became his last letter. You can tell when you read this letter it has a serious, somber tone. But there is a bright spot—a few bright spots—and one of them is this man named Onesiphorus.

As we go through these verses and we look at the list of these six words that describe Onesiphorus, you’re going to be tempted to think, "Man, I’d like to have a friend like him. I wish I could find somebody like him who would be that kind of a friend to me." But what I want you to start thinking is, "How can I become that kind of a friend to someone else?" That’s how to approach it. Let’s begin in 2 Timothy chapter 1, verse 13: "Hold fast the pattern of sound words which you have heard from me, in faith and love which are in Christ Jesus. That good thing which was committed to you," being the gospel, "keep by the Holy Spirit who dwells in us. This you know, that all those in Asia have turned away from me, among whom are Phygellus and Hermogenes. The Lord grant mercy to the household of Onesiphorus," profitable, "for he often refreshed me, and was not ashamed of my chain; but when he arrived in Rome, he sought me out very zealously and found me. The Lord grant to him that he may find mercy from the Lord in that day—and you know very well how many ways he ministered to me at Ephesus."

The first word that describes Onesiphorus is the word "refreshing." That’s the word Paul used in verse 16: "The Lord grant mercy to the household of Onesiphorus, for he often refreshed me." This guy revived my spirits. He brought me relief. He cheered me up. The word for refreshed is the word *anapsycho*. *Anapsycho* means to cool off—to refresh with cool air when the body is overheated. In the overwhelming heat of his trials, Paul was brought relief, refreshment, cool air. He was braced with fresh air from Onesiphorus.

Guest (Female): This is Connect with Skip Heitzig. Your support helps reach people every day with biblical truth that brings hope, encouragement, and direction for real life. If you’ve ever wondered how to stay grounded when our culture is constantly pulling you in different directions, Pastor Skip’s study through Colossians is for you. In *Expound: Colossians*, you’ll gain a deeper understanding of who Jesus is, why he is completely sufficient for every season of life, and how God’s truth gives you confidence to stand firm in your faith. Your generosity helps extend the reach of Connect with Skip Heitzig, connecting more people around the world to God’s word. Request *Expound: Colossians* when you give $50 or more at connectwithskip.com/offer or by calling 800-922-1888. Now, here’s more from Pastor Skip.

Skip Heitzig: A little more background will help. I mentioned that Paul was in prison in Rome not once, but twice. This is the second time. First time, he had a little more freedom; he’s under house arrest in his own hired house. But this time, the second time, he is in a different prison. He is in a prison known as the Mamertine prison. The Mamertine prison is sort of like Death Row in the Roman penal system.

Why is he there? You need to know something that happened. In AD 64, something very significant broke out in Rome called a fire—the Great Fire of Rome happened in AD 64. The fire started in Rome in the merchants' shops around the Circus Maximus, which was the great chariot stadium. The remains are still there to this day. The fire broke out, lasted for six days, was extinguished, revived itself again, and burned for another three days. For about nine or ten days, this fire burned. When it was all done, three-quarters of the city of Rome had been destroyed. It was a massive fire.

When that happened and when it was finally put out, the citizens of Rome suspected that the fire was actually started by their emperor, Caesar Nero. While the fire was burning, he was viewing it from his palace, singing and playing a lyre—playing an instrument. They thought this guy started the fire. All this public sentiment swung against him, so he needed a scapegoat. He remembered that there was this group of people, very unpopular in the city of Rome, called Christians. So he said they started it. He blamed them. The Christians were his scapegoat.

That began a great persecution against Christianity in the Roman Empire. Since the ringleader had been a previous prisoner named Paul, they found him. They hunted him down. They found him in Troas so that in 68 AD, he was re-arrested, taken back to Rome, and this time placed in the Mamertine prison, which is at the foot of Capitoline Hill. I’ve been to the Mamertine prison three times. Here’s what’s interesting: it’s an interesting spot because nobody’s there. All the lines are at the Vatican. Everybody wants to get into the Vatican. Nobody comes to the place where Paul wrote this letter and spent his final days in Rome. It’s virtually empty. A few people go to see it, but not many.

He was taken to the Mamertine, and the Mamertine was actually a hole in the ground. You enter at ground level; the lower level is called the Tullianum. That’s where Paul was placed—in the Tullianum, the lower section, this hole in the ground. It was cold, it was dark, it had no window, it was smelly, and it was nicknamed the House of Darkness. The only way a prisoner could get food is to have it lowered on a rope. That’s where Paul was. In that place of confinement, how wonderful and refreshing it would be to have somebody like Onesiphorus show up. And he did. He refreshed me. This man in solitary confinement was being refreshed. In World War II, our enemies discovered that the most effective psychological way to break a prisoner’s spirit and resistance was solitary confinement.

Onesiphorus was a friend. He was a Proverbs 27:17 friend: "As iron sharpens iron, so a man sharpens the countenance of his friend." Here’s the first question I want you to ask yourself: how refreshing are you to be around? When you show up, is it like, "Ah," or is it like, "Oh"? How refreshing are you to be around? He was refreshing. "He refreshed me," says the Apostle.

The second word is "repetitious" because you can go back to verse 16 and look at the modifier before the word refreshed. It’s an adverb. "The Lord grant mercy to the household of Onesiphorus, for he often refreshed me." He didn’t just do it once. It wasn’t a one-time deal. He repeatedly came to lift my burden—often. When you are alone and isolated, more frequent contact becomes necessary.

This is the final phase of the Apostle Paul’s life on earth, and his world is narrowing. Look at verse 15 again: "This you know, that all those in Asia have turned away from me," what a statement, "among whom are Phygellus and Hermogenes." All that persecution has thinned the ranks of the Christian church. Christians are fearing for their own safety. Two men are noted here, the names we just read. We really know nothing about them except their cowardice. They were probably once leaders with Paul. They once were close to Paul, but now they’re gone.

Now go to chapter 4, if you don’t mind. Just turn a page, probably just one page. Look at verse 9 of chapter 4. He says to Timothy, "Be diligent to come to me quickly." He knew that he was going to be dead soon. "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. Get Mark and bring him with you, for he is useful to me for ministry." Skip down to verse 16: "At my first defense no one stood with me, but all forsook me. May it not be charged against them."

All these people are bailing on Paul. Everybody’s forsaking him. They are ashamed of Paul because they’re ashamed of the gospel that he preached, and they’re fearful of their lives. Paul was arrested. If Paul was arrested, then maybe we’re next. That’s when you need friends. That’s when you need friends showing up, not just once, but again and again and again.

In Proverbs 20, verse 6, it says, "Most men will proclaim each his own goodness, but who can find a faithful man?" You always get somebody—"well, you know, I’ve done this and I’ve done that"—they brag about themselves. But who can find a faithful man? Paul found one. His name was Onesiphorus. Faithfulness is not doing the right thing once; it’s doing the right thing over and over again.

William Carey—do you know that name? Missionary to India. When he first felt called to go to India, he told his father. His dad tried to talk him out of it, telling his son that he lacked the academic qualifications for that task. "Look, son, you don’t know the language in India, you don’t know the history of India, you don’t know the culture of India. You are not qualified to be a missionary in India." William Carey shot back and he said, "But I can plod. I can plod. I may not know the language, I may not know the culture, I may not know the history, but I can put one foot in front of another and I can just trudge. I can plod." He did plod very successfully in that country.

Here is somebody who just kept showing up, kept showing up—plodding—showing up when Paul needed it the most. Then in our text, go down to verse 18. He says at the end of verse 18, "And you know very well how many ways he ministered to me at Ephesus." In other words, this guy Onesiphorus, he’s been serving for years. He’s been doing it before he came to Rome. He’s been doing it in Ephesus. Many believe that Onesiphorus was a deacon of the church in Ephesus because the word here in verse 18 for ministered is the word *diakoneo*, where we get the word deacon. He deak-ed in Ephesus. Paul is simply pointing out that here’s a guy who faithfully served the church at Ephesus, faithfully served the Apostle Paul, and now he is in Rome serving him.

One Sunday morning, a pastor addressed his church very blatantly. He said this: "All I ask is that we apply the same standards of faithfulness to our church activities that we would in other areas of life. That doesn’t seem too much to ask. Consider this: if your car started one out of three times, would you consider it faithful? If you didn’t show up at work two or three times a month, would your boss call you faithful? If your refrigerator quit a day now and then, would you excuse it and say, 'Oh well, it works most of the time'? If your water heater greets you with cold water one or two mornings a week while you’re in the shower, would you say it’s faithful? If you miss a couple of mortgage payments in a year’s time, would your mortgage holder say, 'Oh well, ten out of twelve ain’t bad'? And if you attend church often enough to show you’re interested but not enough to get involved, are you faithful?"

Jesus said, "Whoever is faithful in little will also be faithful in much." Here is Onesiphorus, a friend who showed up time and time and time again. Promises will get you friends; faithfulness will keep those friends. He was a friend to the Apostle Paul. So, two words: refreshing, repetitious. Third word: risk-taking. Notice what he writes in verse 16: "The Lord grant mercy to the household of Onesiphorus, for he often refreshed me, and," here’s the phrase, "he was not ashamed of my chain."

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