When you're in trouble, or maybe worried by something, who do you turn to? Do you turn to your friends? Your family? Your partner? Your pastor?
There are times in all of our lives when we need to turn to someone, when maybe only one person will do, one person will understand. Maybe it isn't always the same person. When we share our problems, sometimes we gain strength just by the act of doing so, sometimes you don't even need the other person to comment or respond - just to listen - sometimes just the act of saying your problem out loud helps the solution present itself; you just needed a pair of ears other than your own to be able to hear it.
Luke, who is another of the unsung heroes of the bible was someone who cared, and to have someone who cares is a priceless gift, one which all too often we can take for granted. Luke was a Doctor, and apart from being a physician, he had a particular gift which sounds really simple - which sounds ordinary: he was willing to be there, to be a faithful friend in time of need.
The pioneers within the early church travlled throughout the land , many miles across numerous countries and for most of the time they worked as a team. Frequently the apostle Paul mentions several people's names in his letters, his co-workers in the faith, his teammates:
'Epaphras, my fellow prisoner in Christ Jesus, greets you, as do Mark, Aristarchus, Demas, Luke, my fellow workers.'
Luke is one of those pioneers - he barely gets a mention, yet we all know of him chiefly as the author of the New Testament gospel. Why does he barely get a mention in the chronicles of the work being done with those early churches? Because, I think he wasn't someone who courted the limelight, he was someone who was content to be in the background, unacknowledged, almost unrecognised.
Luke is first seen associated with Paul in Acts, a book which tradition now associates as written by Luke ("And when he [Paul] had seen the vision, immediately we sought to go into Macedonia, concluding that God had called us to preach the gospel to them. [Those in Philippi]").
If Luke is the author of both Luke's Gospel and Acts of the Apostles, then his own lack of appearances tells us something about him - that he was modest, that he was happy to keep his name in the shadows.
In our reading today, we have only the briefest of mentions of Luke - but they are very powerful words - very comforting words. "only Luke is with me"
In his letter to the Colossians we hear of Paul working together with Demas and Luke, however by the time of this reading things have changed dramatically. Demas has deserted Paul. His letter speaks of forsaking someone in a state of defeat or helplessness, even in midst of hostile circumstances. Demas left Paul in the lurch, utterly forsaking him, letting him down. It was a disappointment but it also must have broken Paul's heart. When a friendship falls apart it can be devastating for us - if that person has been one of the people that we've turned to when we're in trouble or confused, sometimes the world turns and people just drift apart and that's sad, but sometimes inevitable - sometimes it's more dramatic and that can be very hurtful - that's how Paul was feeling - bruised and fragile.
What was it that caused Demas to part company from his friends? It appears that he decided he wanted the comfortable life; he wanted the pleasures of the secular world instead of the trouble that can come with being a disciple. We all face decisions in our lives that challenge our faith, sometimes saying the right thing or doing the right thing means that we go against the pack, when being Christian is being rebellious or counter-culture. Perhaps his faith wasn't that strong, or perhaps he was understandably frightened of the prospect of imprisonment.
So in Paul's time of confusion, of trouble, he had Luke to turn to. In our lives there are so few people we meet like Luke, people who will share the bad times as well as the good - for myself I want my friends to be friends with a capital F, people who I can laugh out loud with as well as cry on their shoulder. Too many times in my life I've settled for friends who only appeared to be listening to me.
Luke not only accompanied Paul to Rome but he appears to remain at Paul's side through both imprisonments as suggested by the Scriptures quoted above. Luke in fact is the only companion who remained with Paul ("only Luke is with me"). It is clear that an especially tender relationship had developed between the two men over the years ("the beloved physician").
In Luke we see someone who was just happy to be there when he was needed, and that is a very precious gift, and fortunately it's one each of us has the opportunity to show. Just being there can mean more than words can say. Being a helping hand, a listening ear or a sounding board without judgement is to offer a ministry in this world without equal. Being a friend is a challenge sometimes, but befriending someone in the hope that a friendship may form or someone may feel welcome is an equally special gift we should treasure.
Sometimes we can look at ourselves and think we don't have much to offer as Christians - yet when befriend each other we are channels of God's grace.
So while there will always be the loud people who get attention, the people who always seem to have the best jokes, who've got the nerve to do things in public, who are fun to be around; for our journey we need people like Luke, people who will buoy us up when we're feeling low.
Sometimes
Silent Witness is the most powerful and Christ-like ministry of all.
(Dan
Joseph)
This sermon was first preached in the Metropolitan Community Church of Manchester. Click here for further information.