Now let’s look at some Scriptures that have to do with being a companion of the apostle Paul. Acts 19:29, “And the whole city was filled with confusion: and having caught Gaius and Aristarchus, men of Macedonia, Paul’s companions in travel ... ” Chapter 20:4, “And there accompanied him [the apostle Paul] into Asia Sopater of Berea; and of the Thessalonians, Aristarchus and Secundus; and Gaius of Derbe, and Timotheus; and of Asia, Tychicus and Trophimus.” And one more verse in the 27th chapter, verse 3, “And the next day we touched at Sidon. And Julius courteously entreated Paul, and gave him liberty to go unto his friends to refresh himself.” Here is another kind of companionship that you need to have in your Christian life—to be a companion of the apostle Paul. Firstly, you want to have the Lord Jesus as your nearest and dearest Friend, but then you also want to make Paul your companion.
Now, you may wonder, “How we are supposed to make Paul our friend when he is not here anymore, but is gone on to heaven to be with the Lord?” Well, remember what I said earlier about what marks a true friendship. It is marked by those who have the same likes and dislikes—mutual interests and understanding. To be a friend of Paul, in that sense, is to have everything that Paul stood for and communicated to the Church precious to our own hearts. Then we would truly be like-minded! In other words, a true friend of Paul would value the truth for which he was raised up to bring to the Church. To love, to support, and to promote what Paul taught is to be his companion. In this way, we can all be companions of Paul, even though he is no longer here.
What a privilege it must have been for those men to travel with Paul. As they walked together, he would have brought forth those heavenly truths that he had been given. What an opportunity they had. It’s true that we can’t walk with Paul in a literal sense, as they did, but we can still learn those things, and support and promote them in this day in which we live. You know, there are only 21 epistles in our Bibles, and 14 of them (including Hebrews) are Paul’s. This is called “Paul’s Doctrine.” It’s not that many pages when we look at the Bible as a whole. But there is so much heavenly truth in them.
Have an Outline of Paul’s Doctrine
Let’s turn to 1 Timothy 4:6, “Laying these things before the brethren, thou wilt be a good minister of Christ Jesus, nourished with the words of the faith and of the good teaching which thou hast fully followed up” (J. N. Darby Trans.). Now in 2 Timothy 3:10, “Thou hast fully known my doctrine, manner of life, purpose, faith, longsuffering, charity, patience.” Those words, “fully known,” in the original language, are the same words as “fully followed up” in 1 Timothy 4:6. My point here, is that Paul had exhorted Timothy to follow up on his doctrine—to learn it, and to be well “acquainted” (J. N. Darby Trans. footnote) with it. Writing to Timothy three or four years later, Paul commends him for having done that very thing, saying, “Thou hast fully known my doctrine ... ”
The lesson here is great. Nothing could be more obvious. Paul wants us, like he wanted Timothy, to learn the truth of his doctrine, and be well acquainted with it. We learn from the verse that I read in Acts 20 that Timothy was a companion of Paul; and what marked him as being Paul’s companion is that he valued Paul’s doctrine, and took time to learn it, so that in a few years he knew it “fully.” This shows that he was diligent. By doing so, he became a useful man in the Christian testimony. And similarly if we fully acquaint ourselves with Paul’s doctrine then we are going to be useful in the Christian testimony today.
Now, let’s turn to 2 Timothy 1:13-14, “Have an outline of sound words, which words thou hast heard of me, in faith and love which are in Christ Jesus. Keep, by the Holy Spirit which dwells in us, the good deposit entrusted.” Here we have something further to what Paul has said as to learning or being fully acquainted with his doctrine. Paul wanted Timothy to go a step further from learning his doctrine, to having it in “an outline.” J. N. Darby’s Translation footnote says that the word in the original Greek is, “a systematic exposé, in outline, of any system of doctrine ... . a delineation.” What this means is that he wanted Timothy not just to know the truth, but also to understanding it in an orderly way.
Someone may ask, “Why?” It was for two reasons. Firstly, so that he would be able to “keep” the truth, and thus, not to let any of it slip away, which is what happened in the early centuries of the Church’s history—and what is happening again today. Many today have taken up with the truth of Paul’s doctrine that has been recovered, but sadly, have let some of it go, and have departed from the path in which we walk. We are liable to let go of some part of the truth too, but if we have it down in an orderly way, we will be better able to “keep” “the good deposit” of truth. Notice, it says, “keep by the Holy Ghost;” not “keep by the energy of the flesh!” We are not to try to defend the truth by arguing, but by walking in it in the power of the Spirit.
Many people think that by telling Timothy to “have an outline,” Paul was telling him to learn the truth of his doctrine. But that is not really the point of the verse. Timothy had already “fully known” Paul’s doctrine, and Paul commended him for it (2 Tim. 3:10). What Paul was encouraging him to do here, was to take it a step further and to have the truth that he knew down in an orderly or “systematic” (if you will) way. I’m not suggesting that we go to a seminary, or anything like that—where one is likely to get “systematized error” (Eph. 4:14 – J. N. Darby Trans.)—but to have an understanding and appreciation of the truth in our souls in an organized way.
A second reason why Paul wanted Timothy to “have an outline” was so that he would be able to pass it on to others more effectively. In chapter 2:2 Paul went on to say, “And the things that thou hast heard of me among many witnesses, the same commit thou to faithful men, who shall be able to teach others also.” There is an order here: first to learn the truth by “fully following up” on it by diligent study (1 Tim. 4:6; 2 Tim. 3:10), then to get it into “an outline” (2 Tim. 1:13) so that we can “keep” it (2 Tim. 1:14), and also, to “commit” it to faithful men who will teach others also (2 Tim. 2:2).
Have you ever tried to get help on some point of doctrine from someone whom you are quite sure knows the truth, but when you ask them, they kind of go all around the subject, and you’re not sure of the answer in the end? It’s probably because, while they know the truth, they don’t have an outline of it so as to be able to present it to others in a way that they can get hold of it. What I’m saying is that if you are going to be a useful workman in the kingdom of God, it’s important that you not only know Paul’s doctrine, but that you “have an outline” of it.
Now, you might be thinking that you’re not gifted to be able to teach others the truth. But notice, it doesn’t say that Timothy was to commit the truth to intellectual men, or to eloquent men, or to gifted men, but to “faithful men.” That’s something that we all can be! Furthermore, when it says, “who shall be able to teach others also,” it is not referring to the competency of gift, but rather, as it says of the elders who did not necessarily have the gift of teaching, “apt to teach” (1 Tim. 3:2). Your aptness to pass on the truth will increase by your regular use of the Word.
“What exactly is Paul’s doctrine?”
Now you’re probably asking, “What exactly is Paul’s doctrine?” Well, as we said, it is comprised of those things contained in the fourteen epistles that he wrote. But I realize that that is being rather vague. More precisely, it is the substance of four revelations given to him. (I don’t say that he had only four revelations, but that the sum of his doctrine is disclosed in these four.) They are as follows:
1) Galatians 1:11-12
“But I certify you, brethren, that the gospel which was preached of me is not after man. For I neither received it of man, neither was I taught it, but by the revelation of Jesus Christ.” (See also 1 Corinthians 15:1.) This has to do with the believer’s position “in Christ” and all of the related blessings connected with being in that place of acceptance. It seems that he calls this, “My gospel” (Rom. 2:16, etc.).
2) Ephesians 3:2-7
“If ye have heard of the dispensation of the grace of God which is given me to you-ward: how that by revelation He made known unto me the mystery: (as I wrote afore in few words, whereby, when ye read, ye may understand my knowledge in the mystery of Christ) which in other ages was not made known unto the sons of men, as it is now revealed unto His holy apostles and prophets by the Spirit; that the Gentiles should be fellowheirs, and of the same body, and partakers of His promise in Christ by the gospel.” (See also Colossians 1:24-27.) This revelation has to do with the truth of Christ and the Church. He calls this the “great mystery” (Eph. 5:32). It discloses the nature of the union that exists between Christ the Head of the body and the many members on earth indwelt with the Holy Spirit. It would also include the practical arrangements for assembly order and testimony.
3) 1 Cor. 11: 23-26
“For I have received of the Lord that which also I delivered unto you, That the Lord Jesus the same night in which He was betrayed took bread: and when He had given thanks, He brake it, and said, Take, eat: this is My body, which is broken [given] for you: this do in remembrance of Me. After the same manner also He took the cup, when He had supped, saying, This cup is the new testament in My blood: this do ye, as oft as ye drink it, in remembrance of Me. For as often as ye eat this bread, and drink this cup, ye do shew the Lord’s death till He come.” And then in chapter 10:16-17: “The cup of blessing which we bless, is it not fellowship with the blood of Christ? The loaf which we break, is it not fellowship with the body of Christ? Because we, the many, are one loaf, one body: for we all partake of the one loaf.” This was a revelation that Paul received concerning the doctrinal significance of the Lord’s Supper—the loaf expressing the oneness of the (mystical) body of Christ, and the partaking of it being a confession that we are members of that body.
4) 1 Thessalonians 4:15-17
“For this we say unto you by the Word of the Lord, that we which are alive and remain unto the coming of the Lord shall not prevent them which are asleep. For the Lord Himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first: then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord.” (See also 1 Corinthians 15:51-57.) This special revelation has to do with the filling out of the details concerning the coming of the Lord (the Rapture) and the resurrection of the saints.
It is interesting to note that the Lord Himself first gave the truth disclosed in each of these revelations in embryo. In His earthly ministry He taught the seed of these things, but He left it to Paul (when the Spirit of God would come and teach us “all things” – John 14:26) to give the full doctrinal significance of them. Before the Spirit had come to reside in the saints, they could never have taken it in (John 16:12-13).
In John 8:32, the Lord said, “And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.” And also in John 14:20, He said, “At that day ye shall know that I am in My Father, and ye in Me, and I in you.” This is Romans’ line of truth where the believer’s full deliverance (“freedom” Rom. 6:18 – J. N. Darby Trans.) is announced in the gospel of God, wherein the believer’s acceptance “in Christ” is also taught with all of its related blessings (Rom. 8:1, 10). And then in Matthew 16:18, the Lord was the first to announce the formation of the Church, saying, “Upon this rock I will build My Church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.” Then in Matthew 26:26-30, the Lord was the One who instituted the Supper. And then in John 14:3, He was also the first to speak of His coming again (the Rapture), saying, “And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto Myself; that where I am, there ye may be also.” He was also the first to speak of the resurrection from among the dead, saying, “Relate to no one what they had seen, unless when the Son of Man should be risen from among the dead. And they kept that saying, questioning among themselves, what rising from among the dead was.” (Mark 9:9-10 – J. N. Darby Trans.) The Jews knew about resurrection as a general thing (Heb. 6:2; John 11:24), but until then, they hadn’t heard about the resurrection “from among” the dead.
We are thankful for the full revelation of these truths developed in Paul’s doctrine, which the Lord only touched upon in His ministry.
Now, the learning of these precious truths does not necessarily require great intellectual brainpower. Often we hear people say that they can’t learn the truth because they’re not smart enough, but it is usually an excuse for laziness. It will, however, take diligence and obedience. Diligence is important because the truth is for those who want it. Paul told Timothy to “fully follow up” on these things, which implies diligence (1 Tim. 4:6). God has given “gifts” to the Church to help us reach Christian maturity, and if you’ll avail yourself of them—be it in oral, written, or recorded ministry—you will be greatly helped (Eph. 4:11-16). Those who neglect them usually make slow progress. Obedience is important because as we walk in the truth that we have learned, God will give us more light, and thus, we will make progress. If we have Christ before us, and there are these two things with us, we will learn the truth.
A case in point of not necessarily needing to have a great education to learn the truth is in a story that I will now relate. Years ago, brother Wayne Coleman had a Bible study in his home, and a Christian couple from the neighbourhood were among those who attended with considerable interest. The brother was seriously thinking of going to a seminary so that he could “go into the ministry.” He listened intently for a few weeks and asked where Wayne and I had gotten our training. This couple was quite taken up with the good things that we were bringing out and wanted to know where we had learned them. He thought that perhaps it would be a good college for him to go to. We told him that we had only gone to high school, and hadn’t any special training, and that we had learned these things from going to the meeting where saints are gathered to the Lord’s Name (Matt. 18:20).
They had the hardest time believing that we had not gone to some college, so they made up their minds that they were going to go to this place and see what was going on. They came to a fellowship meeting where we had several meetings that day. They saw the old brethren we had in those days ministering the truth, and after one of the meetings they wanted to talk to brother Norman Clark who was one of the leading brothers. One of the first questions they asked was in regards to where he had gotten his training—which college. Brother Norman explained that he hadn’t gone to any college; that in fact, he had only a grade 5 education! This couple just wouldn’t believe it and were a little perturbed because they were not hearing what they wanted to hear. In fact, I learned later that they thought that Wayne and I had put Mr. Clark up to telling them that.
Anyway, they came back from talking to brother Clark and told us that he said that he only had a grade 5 education. After the next meeting they went to talk to him again, to see if he wasn’t just kidding, and to find out what seminary he had truly gone to. That is when he told them that he had learned the truth from Sam Denzin. And the brother said, “Which college is that?” (He hadn’t heard of that one!) Brother Norman told him that it wasn’t a college, but a brother from a little meeting hall in Craven, Saskatchewan. So they asked him where Sam Denzin had learned the truth. And brother Clark told them that brother Denzin hadn’t gone to college either—in fact, he had only a grade 2 education!! Well, that did it. They were somewhat offended. I remember the brother saying to me when he left the meeting room that day, “So, you mean to tell me that all this truth came from a man that has grade 2 education?” I tell you this story to show that it doesn’t take any great brains to learn the truth—just diligence and obedience.
Another thing that you’ll hear people say as an excuse for not learning the truth is that they don’t have a “gift” for it. But there is no truth in that either. Gift is for giving out what we have taken in; it’s not for taking in the truth. If we set aside some time in our lives, in an organized and steady way, then we will learn the truth. If we are diligent and obedient, and seek to walk in communion with the Lord, then He will help us learn the truth.
We live in a very privileged time when we can have all the truth of God—if there is an interest to have it. The truth of Paul’s doctrine has been recovered and made available to us in these days. But you know, there was a time when this was not so. There was a time in the history of the Church when the truth was virtually lost. There were many centuries when the Church did not know Paul’s doctrine. There might have been bits and pieces of it around in the hands of the Lord’s people, but by and large, through failure, it was lost. In the last 175 years or so, God has graciously effected a recovery of Paul’s doctrine and other New Testament truths. It has been brought back to the Church through diligent men so that we can know, enjoy, and practise the truth as it once had been given in the early days.
The sad thing about this is that while we live in a day when all of the truth of God has been recovered, and is readily available, most Christians don’t want to walk in it! Most Christians uphold some of Paul’s doctrine, but I’m talking about practising all the truth of God as Paul gave it. You know what I mean: the head-covering, the sister’s place in the assembly, the truth of the one place of gathering, etc. We are in Laodicean days. The Church today, at large, is saying, “I am rich, and increased with goods, and have need of nothing” (Rev. 3:17). There is a self-satisfied state of complacency, and it is obnoxious to the Lord. There has been much written ministry given to help us to know and to walk in the truth, but there has also been much opposition to it. We are living in days when much of what Paul taught is not popular. It wasn’t popular in his day. He said, “This thou knowest, that all they which are in Asia be turned away from me” (2 Tim. 1:15). That means that if we are going to be a companion of Paul, we are not going to be popular in Christian circles. It is going to cost us something to uphold and walk in Paul’s doctrine. There will be reproach, as Onesiphorus experienced (2 Tim. 1:16-18). But it’s nice to see that it didn’t deter him. He was not ashamed of being identified with Paul. We can be encouraged by his example.
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We have spoken of the ways in which we can prove our friendship with the Lord Jesus, and also of how we can prove our friendship with the Apostle Paul. We do it by learning his doctrine (1 Tim. 4:6; 2 Tim. 3:10), then by having it in an outline form so that we are able to keep it and pass it on to others (2 Tim. 1:13-14; 2:2). In this way, we show ourselves to be one of “Paul’s companions.” A true companion of Paul is one who is uncompromising in these things.