A Call Forsaken
A Walk of Faith devotional by Dave Bunnell
“Demas, because he loved this world, has deserted me and has gone to Thessalonica.”
–2 Timothy 4:10a
That’s one of the sadder sentences of the Bible, because in one line it summarizes how a once-faithful servant of the Lord apparently failed to finish the race like a winner, and all because this world became more important to him than the next.
Presumably, this man Demas is the same one Paul had mentioned in two of his previous epistles (Philemon and Colossians) as a “fellow worker” in the cause of Christ. But now, as Paul writes his last letter, he tells Timothy that he is alone, because Demas has fallen prey to love for this world and taken off when Paul needed him most. Demas forsook God’s call and went to live for himself in Thessalonica, a very worldly city indeed.
Did he ever return to answer God’s call on his life? The Bible leaves us with no way of knowing, but its last words about him are a sort of warning to all of us who follow Christ. Beware the love of this world that can so quickly take even the most “spiritual” among us off track. Be constantly on your guard against the carnal desire within you to live for now instead of for eternity. God will remain faithful to us regardless of what we do, but we can lose much in the way of opportunity to be used of Him if we lose our focus in life. How many Christians in our generation are following in the steps of Demas instead of Paul? How many have left their “First Love,” to find temporary solace in the arms of another?
Perhaps someone reading this now is on the verge of abandoning God’s call in order to make this life more comfortable and pleasant. If Demas could talk to you today, I bet he’d warn you against giving in to those desires.
“Hold on,” he’d probably say. “Taking up your cross to follow Him is challenging, but you must stay diligent in service to the Lord until the very end! It is far better to forsake all and follow Him than to forsake Him to gain anything this world offers.”
Brother or sister, stay mindful of this truth. God Himself has a call on your life. Don’t you miss it for the world.
Walk of Faith - Dave Bunnell 