I Gotta Fever!

“As I remember your tears, I long to see you, that I may be filled with joy” (2Tim 1:4).

It’s okay to be human. There are times you just have to let your guard down and let people in. Times when you have to stop pretending to be bulletproof and show your friends you’re mortal. Times we you have to admit you’re lonely and desperately need a friend.

That includes Paul. Yeah, THAT Paul. The Apostle Paul. We’re talking about the guy Jesus handpicked to tell non-Jews around the world all about God’s incredible invitation into His kingdom. The same Paul who would make three tours of the Roman Empire sharing the Good News with anyone who would listen. The same apostle so devoted to God’s mission that he experienced prison, beatings, floggings, stonings, three shipwrecks, and even bitten by a poisonous snake. This dude who would write a grand total of 13 books making up a nearly a quarter of the New Testament. 

The same man Jesus used to change the course of history sits in a Roman dungeon. Specifically, the notorious Mamertine Prison in the capital city. Paul is on Death Row. He knows he’s only got a short time before he faces the executioner. So he writes a very personal plea to his very dear friend Timothy. As the clock ticks down, the apostle desperately needs a visit. “As I remember your tears, I long to see you, that I may be filled with joy” (v4). God brought the two of them together several years ago in Lystra, a city in what we now know as Turkey (Acts 16:1). Since then, they’ve always been there for each other. Paul is not too tough to admit he needs his buddy, right here and right now. He’s gotta fever. And the only prescription is more Timothy.

In the opening lines of this little letter to his close friend, Paul flips through the mental scrapbook of their relationship. “I remember you constantly in my prayers day and night…I remember your tears…I am reminded of your sincere faith” (1Tim 1:3, 4, 5). Memories. Prayers. Tears. Faith. The kind of stuff a deep friendship between believers is based on.

Here in verse 4, he remembers the time he was there for Tim’s tears. He’s probably talking about the last time they saw each other. It may have been when Paul left for his Macedonian assignment he mentions in his previous note (1Tim 1:3). The man from Tarsus knows all about heartbreaking goodbyes. Dr. Luke writes about how the apostle met with the Ephesian leadership when they thought they would be the last time they ever saw each other. “And there was much weeping on the part of all; they embraced Paul and kissed him, being sorrowful most of all because of the word he had spoken, that they would not see his face again” (Acts 20:27-38).

What a powerful reminder that real men cry real tears. Jesus certainly did (Jn 11:35). Paul tells his friends in Rome that true friends have deep empathy for each other no matter what they’re going through. “Rejoice with those who rejoice, and weep with those who weep” (Rom 12:15). No doubt these two friends have shared both gut-busting laughs as well as gut-wrenching cries. You can bet when Tim shed tears, Paul did too.

Who have you laughed with and weeped with? Who’s that close friend who celebrate with you and also walked the darkest parts of the path with you? Who’s that person you’ve cried with? Hopefully God has placed someone in your life with a tender heart, a soft shoulder, and a fresh Kleenex. Paul needs that. Tim needs that. You need that. And I most certainly need that.

As Paul walks the Green Mile of Mamertine, he doesn’t want to walk it alone. The good news is that his good friend the good doctor is at his side. “Luke alone is with me” (2Tim 4:11). But the apostle yearns that Tim can join them. “I long to see you” (v4). He uses a Greek word (Gr. epipotheo) which means to yearn passionately, deeply desire, experience an affectionate yearning for someone or something. It’s the same term Paul drops when he desperately wants to see folks (Rom 1:1; Phil 1:8) or when he describes his burning desire to be with Jesus forever (2Cor 5:2).

Just like the Blues Brothers, the apostle wants to get the band back together one last time. Starting in chapter 16, these three men are pretty much side-by-side-by-side throughout the Book of Acts. After drafting Tim onto his team in Lystra (Acts 16:1-3), it seems clear Luke joins the party in Troas (Acts 16:10). As the author of Acts, the good doctor never mentions his own name but that’s where the pronouns change. That’s where “they” suddenly becomes “we.” In his final days in the slammer, Paul wants to reunite the Three Amigos one last time on this side of eternity. He’s gotta fever. And the only prescription is more Timothy.

The apostle knows if he can lay his eyes on Tim one last time, “I may be filled with joy” (v4). Remember, Paul knows death is right around the corner. He makes that clear. “For I am already being poured out as a drink offering, and the time of my departure has come. I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith” (2Tim 4:6-7). Despite certain death, he still has joy in the joint. And he’s sure a visit from his boy Tim will top off the tank. 

So Paul pleads with him to get his tail to Rome ASAP. Toward the end of this letter, he comes out and says it, not once but two more times. “Do you best to come to me soon” (2Tim 4:9). The apostle begs Tim drop everything and get there before it gets cold. “Do your best to come before winter” (2Tim 4:21). Do you need to see someone? Don’t beat around the bush. Don’t just drop passive/aggressive hints. Come right out and say it.

So what do Paul’s words to his friend Timothy back in the first century have to do with you and me 2,000 years later? They challenge us to stop pretending to be tough when we’re really not. As followers of Jesus, it’s okay to cry. It’s okay to need each other. It’s okay to be not okay. So take off the mask. That means finding some fellow believers where you can dump your garbage and be transparent. Who do you have in your life to do that?

This verse reminds us that following Jesus is a team sport. Don’t buy the lie that the Christian life transforms you into some sort of lone wolf for the Lord. Pop culture continually glorifies heroes going it alone against the enemy. Guys like Mad Max, Rambo, and (one of my personal faves) Billy Jack. Even the seemingly loner heroes had some covering their backside. Jack Bauer had Chloe. Sherlock Holmes had Dr. Watson. The Lone Ranger had Tonto. Don’t make the mistake of seeing Paul as a High Plains Drifter for Christ. He always had partners and teammates. Who’s the Robin to your Dark Knight?

Finally, who can you fill with joy? Who needs a visit? A call? An email? A text? Who’s in the middle of a mess and could use some encouragement? Maybe you’re joy tank is running on empty. Do you need a friend to reach out to you? Remember, this is at the very heart of the Gospel. Jesus didn’t just feel sorry for us when we trashed God’s perfect universe and rebelled against His kingdom. He left the posh comforts of the heavenly palace and dove headfirst into the dumpster of sin we call Earth. When we couldn’t get to Him, He made a holy house call. That’s how He earned the nickname Immanuel which simply means “God is with us” (Mt 1:23). Because Christ did it for us, let’s do it for others.

Paul is in prison. The clock is ticking down. He really wants to see Tim one last time. He's gotta fever. And the only prescription is more Timothy.