Tychicus. Onesimus. Aristarchus. Mark. Justus. Epaphras. Luke. Demas. Nymphas. Archippus. If you know your Scriptures really well, several of these names are familiar to you. Mark and Luke wrote two of the Gospels. Onesimus is a focus of Paul’s brief letter to Philemon. The others are not so well known. Tychicus is mentioned several times in the New Testament as Paul’s companion. Epaphras is highlighted in the opening of the letter to the Colossians. If you know Demas at all, it is probably because he is infamous for abandoning Paul “having loved this present world” (2 Tim 4:10). What they all hold in common is that they are all mentioned at the end of Colossians either sending greetings, being exhorted, or receiving praise.
It’s often tempting to skim over Paul’s greetings at the end of his letters. The main body of the letter is complete, so we tend to tune out as we continue reading or listening just to check off our daily Bible reading. However, if God has included these greetings in the letter, there must be a significant reason why the church needs them. These greetings are not mere formalities, but they carry a deeper message that we should not overlook.
Some commentators will try to reconstruct historical situations, speculating tediously about what might have been. But there is no need to do that. There are things to meditate upon without trying to re-create possible scenarios.
The most obvious reality about these greetings and Paul’s letters in general is that he is writing directly to people in specific historical situations. Paul is not in an ivory tower or out in the desert thinking great theological thoughts and writing them down. No doubt Paul has thought through his theology thoroughly, especially after his encounter with the risen Jesus on the Road to Damascus. He had to take some time to understand the Person and mission of Jesus and his relationship to all that had been revealed. But Paul’s theology is worked out in and for the church. The church is made up of husbands, wives, fathers, mothers, children, slaves, masters, Jews, Greeks, educated, and uneducated. All of Paul’s great theological thoughts are worked out in how they hit the ground in the daily grind of the church’s life. Though what he writes is enough to keep theologians busy for the rest of history, everything Paul writes is for the people in the church.
Church members come from all sorts of different backgrounds. The people mentioned in Paul’s greetings are a sample of this. Tychicus is, most likely, Paul’s apprentice (his deacon; Col 4:7). Onesimus is a runaway slave. Mark is the writer of a Gospel, but he is also someone who abandoned Paul and Barnabas on a missionary journey (which may be the reason Paul has to command the Colossians to receive him if he comes; Col 4:10). Archippus seems to be lagging in his ministry and needs encouragement (Col 4:17). Aristarchus is an all-in type guy who is a jailbird like Paul (Col 4:10; cf. also Ac 19:29). Luke is a Gentile while Mark and Justus are Jews.
These people, from all different backgrounds, well-known or barely known, are all part of the family and co-laborers in the same mission. So it is with the church throughout history. Some of us have come from rough backgrounds and been gloriously converted. Others have been raised in faithful Christian homes. We have varying socio-economic statuses. We have different ethnicities. Some of us have made huge, public blunders in our Christian lives, while others haven’t. Some Christians are well-known personalities in the church, and others will never be known. No matter. All that matters is if you are loyal to Jesus Christ as Lord. Are you faithful now? If you are, we are all part of the same family.
We are also reminded that we must maintain this faithfulness. Demas is mentioned here and in Philemon (a companion letter) as being with Paul. As mentioned earlier, in Paul’s last letter, 2 Timothy, he abandoned Paul because he loved the present world. He took his eyes off the future reward, grew weary of suffering deprivation, and abandoned the faith. He is a Judas. Judas did many wonderful works with the other eleven apostles but didn’t finish well. We must persevere and finish well (see 2 Tim 4:6-8). Don’t be a Demas.
Whether well-known or barely known, growing up in the Christian faith or being converted out of a sinfully rough life, rich or poor, educated or uneducated, if you are faithful to Jesus, you are part of his family and important to him. The Holy Spirit shows us this by inscribing these names in the Scriptures.
