Philippians 2:19-24 (NIV)
I hope in the Lord Jesus to send Timothy to you soon, that I also may be cheered when I receive news about you. I have no one else like him, who will show genuine concern for your welfare. For everyone looks out for their own interests, not those of Jesus Christ. But you know that Timothy has proved himself, because as a son with his father he has served with me in the work of the gospel. I hope, therefore, to send him as soon as I see how things go with me. And I am confident in the Lord that I myself will come soon.
Paul had found Timothy in Lystra in the province of Galatia (Acts 16:1-3) and was quickly taken with the young man’s faith and his passion for the gospel. So, he took Timothy on as an apprentice. Timothy was the son of a Jewish mother, so he was considered Jewish by birth, even though his father was a Greek who refused to allow Timothy to be circumcised. Greeks considered circumcision an intentional marring of the ideal body form.
In order to take him along, Paul had Timothy (now an adult) circumcised purely to avoid controversy. Paul generally did not discourage circumcision among Jews, since it was widely considered an eternal sign of the covenant God had made with Abraham (Genesis 17:9-14), although he did discourage circumcision among the gentile believers since they were not physical descendants of Abraham and were not obligated by the old covenant.
Timothy worked diligently with and for Paul in the work of the gospel, as a son worked with his father in the “family business.” and when Paul sent Timothy to the Philippians, he knew that Timothy would act faithfully as his true representative, bringing the very aroma of Paul to those fellow Christians.
Even though Paul was still imprisoned, he was optimistic that his fate would be decided soon, and in his favor. As soon as he knew, he would send Timothy to Philippi and many other congregations in Asia to share the latest news with the Christians there. He was even confident that he himself would be able to come to them soon, to be able to share with them all that God had accomplished in him and through him in response to their prayers.
Father, Paul never seemed to have gotten bogged down in circumstances. He was always looking to see how You were working in every situation he found himself in, whether that was sitting in a jail cell, or traveling over the Mediterranean in a ship. And every place he was, he found himself squarely in the middle of Your plan. Lord, thank You for being so powerfully present, not only in Paul’s life and ministry, but in mine as well. Amen.