For every Timothy who is ready to stand with you even at the expense of his own physical and mental well-being (I Timothy4:12-14, 5:20-23) there is a Demas who will forsake you because his present circumstances trumps faithful loyalty (2 Timothy 4:10). For every Epaphroditus who will fight with you as a fellow soldier who will minister to your needs as well as those whom you are serving even to the point of nearing death (Philippians 2:25-30), there are “those of Corinth” who will question your motives, accuse your character, and slander your ministry to God (2 Corinthians 10) or intend your ministry to fail and for you to be personally (physically or emotionally) destroyed (Philippians 1:15-17).
But should the ministers of God expect any differently? Did not our Lord have a John whom until the end laid his head upon the Lord’s breast, and stood with him at the cross? But did not our same Lord have a Peter who professed loyalty until his safety and success got in the way of loyalty? (Granted Peter repented which is always glorious to remember). So if you don’t like the comparison of John who stood by Christ to Peter who forsook Christ, what about Judas, whom Jesus called friend. Christ could not lie and so we must believe Judas was truly his friend. We must praise God for the loyal friends who stand by us, who are not swayed by the gossip, who cannot be affected by the slander, who will not hearken to the character assassination; and we must glory in God who allows the betrayals and the forsaking for in those we understand (although slightly) somewhat of the “fellowship of His sufferings” (Philippians 3:10).
With a new direction however, I must comment that loyalty is no longer a virtue in our culture or society. I understand the need for openness and honesty and I am not talking of covering sin or not “them that sin before all, rebuking before all.” Also, I deplore the concept of covering up for “the guys” or other such nonsense. However, a lack of loyalty is evident in how quickly spouses give up their marriage for another. Employees leave their employer who has trained and helped grow because they do not “like” some decision. Christians leave churches because they were “offended” or didn’t like the tone of the songs or don’t feel “loved” enough. I am not suggesting there are never times to leave a spouse, a job, or a church. But it seems as if the Timothies are getting rarer and the Demases more prevalent.
We need to see loyalty and longevity in ministry as a good thing. Not something to be avoided. Not blind loyalty, but genuine love and loyalty as expressed in David and Jonathan, Paul and Timothy, Paul and Epaphroditus.
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