“Luke the beloved physician and Demas greet you.”
“Luke the beloved physician”
Luke here is the same person who wrote the gospel of Luke and the book of Acts. He was Paul’s associate on two missionary expeditions. He joined Paul on the second missionary journey in the city of Troy (Acts 16:10).
Here we learn that Luke is a physician. Luke was not only a physician but a “beloved” physician. Luke ministered both with the hand and the heart. Paul loved his personal physician.
Paul specifically does not name Luke among the Jewish Christians just listed because he was a Gentile convert (cf. 2 Tim. 4:11; Phile. 24) and probably a Greek. He may have been a student at the University of Tarsus.
Interestingly, two of the human writers of the gospels are with Paul during this prison confinement. Mark and Luke already wrote their gospels. No doubt Paul would have read them by now.
Principle:
Faithfulness under duress is true friendship.
Application:
Luke remained true to Paul in his difficulties. Demas deserted Paul when problems came their way. We can attribute the fall of Demas to the love of the world (2 Tim. 4:10). This is an issue of character. Would your character stand under pressure?
Demas had the same advantages as Luke. Both were companions of the apostle. They had the same teaching and example. Two children brought up in the same family can turn in different directions. One will follow Christ; the other will deny him. One will rebel, and the other will yield to the teaching of the Word.
