A Heart Gone Cold – Part 1

“Epaphras, my fellow prisoner in Christ Jesus greets you, as do Mark, Aristarchus, Demas, Luke, my fellow workers.” (Philemon 1:23-24)

I want to talk to you about one of the Apostle Paul’s “fellow workers.”

It’s not Epaphras. Neither is it Mark, Aristarchus or Luke that I want to talk about. But it’s the fourth guy in the list I want to talk to you about. It’s Demas.

DISCIPLE

The first thing you gotta know about Demas ~ and I’m using the acronym D-e-m-a-s so you can remember Demas ~ he’s a disciple. Demas once was lost, but now he’s found. Was blind but now he sees. “Amazing Grace” is Demas’ song just like it’s every believer’s.

Demas is a disciple. It’s the first thing I wanted you to know about Demas.

EXCITED

And then now, secondly, Demas is excited. (D-isciple, E-xcited) You can’t help but be excited when you’re a disciple. At least, if you’re a real one. Demas is excited about the Lord and serving Him.

When I first got saved (became a Christian), I was excited about the Lord and serving Him. So much so that I did silly things like I’d go out and street-witness on Broadway in San Francisco. Have you ever been to Broadway in San Francisco? If you have, I’ll lay hands on you after the service for you to be delivered! (That’s what I said in church when I preached this message.) But there’s two kind of people who go to Broadway in San Francisco. You don’t want to know about the first kind. The second are Christians street-witnessing.

And I was silly when I was doing it. Well, I didn’t know better. I was only a baby Christian. I didn’t know that there was a better approach than running out to the cars while they were stopped at the stop light to hand out Gospel tracts and tell people about Jesus. I didn’t know there was a better (and more safer approach). I was excited about the Lord. I was only a baby Christian. Now I know better. Now I’m much more “sophisticated.” After all, we don’t do those kind of things us Christians who are mature. (sarcasm)

But Demas is excited about the Lord and about serving Him much like I was is what I wanted you to know secondly about Demas here.

MINISTRY

And thirdly, he’s “in the ministry.” Demas is “in the ministry.” (D-isciple, E-xcited, M-inistry) He’s a fellow worker with Paul we just read in Philemon 1:24. Where Paul writes, “my fellow workers,” he includes Demas’ name. It’s because Demas is “in the ministry.”

It’s the third thing about Demas I wanted to highlight and have you see.

ATTENTIVE

And the fourth thing now – and I was thinking of a word that could go with the “A” in my acronym, “Demas.” And I thought about attitude. But I settled instead and came up with “attentive.” “Attentive.” I thought it would be a better word and different way to describe Demas. (D-isciple, E-xcited, M-inistry, A-ttentive)

You see, he’s “attentive” as a disciple who’s excited about being saved and “in the ministry.” Demas is “attentive.” He can’t help but be. He’s “attentive” to things of God and to doing those things that are beneficial to the life of a believer.

It goes without saying that Demas goes to church, reads his Bible, prays, gives of his means to the support of those who are overseers of his soul in tithes and offerings. Demas is “attentive” is my way of emphasizing who Demas is that Paul would consider him so highly to not only include him in the closing of a letter that’s included in the Bible – Demas’ name and person becomes part of the Word of God! – but further, that Paul would consider Demas so highly to allow him to work side by side with him in such an important endeavor of establishing the early church.

And so Demas is a D-isciple. He’s E-xcited about being a disciple. He’s “in the M-inistry.” He’s a fellow worker with Paul, of all people. And Demas is “A-ttentive.”

SLIDES BACK

But there’s one more thing about Demas that you gotta know. It has to do with the “S” in “Demas.”

And to find out about it, I need you to see 2 Timothy 4:10. And actually, I want to read this verse in three different Bible translations (with a fourth one in parentheses). First, in the New American Standard Version. Here goes…

2 Tim 4:9 Make every effort to come to me soon (he’s talking to Timothy, by the way) – Make every effort to come to me soon; (and then Paul goes on in v. 10, notice…)

2 Tim 4:10a for Demas (there he is!) – for Demas, having loved this present world, has deserted me and gone to Thessalonica. *******

The International Standard Version has it: “For Demas, having fallen in love with this present world, has abandoned me and has gone.”

God’s Word (a paraphrase) reads: “Demas has abandoned me. He fell in love with this present world and went.”

(KJV: For Demas hath forsaken me, having loved this present world and is departed.)

And so the “S” in “Demas” stands for: “Slides back.” Demas is a backslider.

And after all these great things about Demas that I mentioned (D-isciple, E-xcited, “in the M-inistry,” A-ttentive) and yet this last thing nullifies and overrides them all.

So what caused Demas to slide back/backslide (turn His back on Jesus Christ)? I’ll answer that question in A Heart Gone Cold – Part 2. Watch for it soon.