Being a Refresher

12 June 2024 Wed – Text: 2 Timothy 1:16 – Topic: Refreshing
Introduction: As a boy, during hay bailing season, my brother, cousin and I often worked in the hot sun unloading hay bails into the elevator that carried them up into the top of the barn. Other times, we were up in the hot dusty hay loft stacking the hay as it fell from the elevator. After unloading or stacking several loads of hay, we got a break. We always headed for the cold water for refreshment.
            Can you recall times when you too sought refreshment? Perhaps it was after a strenuous exercise, after working in the garden, or after the end of a long hot day. There is something about refreshment that rejuvenates the weary body.
            This evening, we are going to examine a man who made it his habit to be a refresher. He served the cold water. He waved the refreshing fan. He also brought emotional refreshment. His name was Onesiphorus. Turn with me to 2 Timothy 1:15-18 (read it). God wants you and me to be in a habit of refreshing other just like Onesiphorus. Let’s examine how he refreshed Paul.
1.     He spent time with Paul
a.      Where was Paul at that time?
1)         He was in prison for the second time in Rome.
2)         This time he was awaiting execution. He was bound with a chain.
b.      Who was with Paul?
1)         Most of Paul’s friends had forsaken him (v.15). Perhaps they were afraid. This hurt Paul. In 2 Timothy 4:11, we read that only Luke was then with him. No one testified on his behalf (4:16-17).
2)         Onesiphorus had been with Paul but was no longer present. Paul wished God’s mercy upon his house. Why did Paul pray this for his house and not for him? __
a)         His family may have sacrificed with him to help.
b)         He may have died.
c)         He may have been executed for helping Paul.
3)         Why did Paul ask God to give them mercy? __ Mercy is (“God’s “kindness and goodwill toward the miserable and afflicted, joined with a desire to relieve them” Vincent) This favours the thought that he was no longer alive.
4)         He was not ashamed of Paul’s chain. Why would Paul mention this? __ association danger, fear,
2.     He met Paul’s needs
a.      He often refreshed Paul (v.16)
1)         What does it mean to “refresh”? __
a)         It literally means “to cool again”.
b)         It is “refreshing with cool air as the body when overheated.” CWSD
2)         How do you suppose Onesiphorus cooled Paul? __
a)         Literally, with cold water or a fan.
b)         Spiritually, with comforting words of encouragement, friendship, fellowship. Remember, Paul was on death row for doing right, for preaching truth, for his godly stand, not for some sin or crime.
c)         His visits were like a cool breeze to Paul.
d)         Note the frequency: Onesiphorus did this often.
3)         Dwight Edwards comments, “In spite of personal danger and repeated sacrifice, Onesiphorus made his way to Rome and there refreshed the heart and soul of his beloved friend, Paul. Onesiphorus is an outstanding example of genuine love and true friendship.” preceptaustin.org
b.      What should we learn from Onesiphorus?
1)         We should seek to refresh those who are stressed while doing right.
2)         Email, phone call, cup of tea, share scripture, pray together, physical aid.
3.     He went to great effort to help Paul
a.      Note what he did (v.17).
1)         He sought for Paul. Where was Paul? __
a)         He was in a Roman prison.
b)         “Finally, when he was later rearrested and executed (likely a few years after this letter), Paul was probably placed in an underground cell somewhere in Rome. It is possible that he was then imprisoned in the Roman Mamertine Prison in the Roman Forum.” www.olivetree.com/blog/imprisonment-in-the-roman-world/
c)         “Conditions in ancient prisons were often harsh. Most prisoners wore chains; their feet might be shackled, their hands manacled or even attached to their neck by another chain, and their movements further restricted by a chain fastened to a post. The existence of laws prohibiting chains that were too short or too restrictive indicates that such practices were employed often enough to merit regulation. The very word “chains” became a synonym for imprisonment. Some prisoners were also kept in wooden stocks, devices to restrain the feet, hands, or even the neck of an individual (see Acts 16:24).  Prisons were often very dark (see Isa. 42:7); the inner area of the prison mentioned in Acts 16:24 was probably without windows. Although solitary confinement was known, prisoners generally were kept grouped together, accused and condemned, men and women alike. Overcrowding was not infrequent (Isa. 24:22). Prisons often had poor air circulation, a lack of hygienic facilities, rats and vermin, and food of poor quality. Unscrupulous guards might at times use the withholding of food or even outright torture to extort money from prisoners or their relatives.” Supplement to Introducing the New Testament, 2nd ed. © 2018 by Mark Allan Powell.
2)         He searched diligently until he found Paul. This would have included getting permission, being led into the stinking, dark prison to where Paul was confined. Evidently, locating Paul was not a simple task.
3)         Even if Paul (being a Roman citizen) was fortunate enough to be held in a hired house, finding him and getting permission to see him was risky. This may have been the case since Luke was with him (4:11).
b.      Paul prayed that he would find mercy (v.18).
1)         To what event was Paul referring? __
a)         It was likely the day of Judgment and the Judgement Seat of Christ.
b)         Could Paul have referred to Onesiphorus’ execution day? It is possible, but not likely.
2)         This again makes it sound like he had died.
Conclusion: What can we learn from Onesiphorus? We ought to be in the habit of refreshing those who struggling. Pray for them. Pray with them. Share Scripture with them. Encourage them to draw near the Lord.
            In come cases, it may mean giving physical aid to the needy.