The Apostle Paul was converted on his way to Damascus, where he was going to kill dozens of Christians. He was a feared assassin, and surely the news of his journey struck fear in the hearts of Christians in Damascus. But a dramatic meeting with Jesus changed Paul’s path. His conversion happened around 33AD.
By 48AD, Paul finished his first missionary journey where he first met a young lad named Timothy, who made quite the impression on Paul. In the space of ten years, Paul would complete all three of his missionary journeys. During this time, he was juggling matters in several churches as the spread of Christianity proved to need leadership. Paul was impressed with Timothy, as he said that Timothy was full of prophetic utterances and started to rely on the young man to help.
Paul used Timothy to help iron out problems in Thessolonica, Corinth, and Macedonia. He would send letters to two of these churches while Timothy was there. Later, Timothy would spend time with Paul while he was imprisoned, helping to co-author three epistles.
1 Timothy was written in 63 AD and 2 Timothy written in 67AD. When you read these two epistles, there is a certain difference of tone. In 1 Timothy, Paul still seems vibrant, active, and positive. 2 Timothy sees a Paul who seems like a very old man conceding his imminent death. But in both epistles, he identifies Timothy as his true son in the faith and his beloved son in the faith. These words reveal a most tender relationship that we all should experience in our lifetimes.
BIBLICAL EXAMPLES OF MENTORSHIP
Jesus and Peter
Peter was hotheaded and impulsive. And he was one of Jesus’ closest friends. It was Peter who got out of the boat and walked on water, then sank. It was Peter who declared “You are the Christ, the Son of the Living God!” It was on this principle that Peter stated that Jesus built His church. Yet on the night that Jesus was on trial before He died, Peter emphatically denied He was Jesus’ friend to a group of people. At the moment Jesus needed Him the most, Peter put himself first. And yet, after Jesus died and came back to life, He met up with Peter to offer grace, consolation, forgiveness, and restore their relationship.
Jesus helped Peter grow in character by walking with him through failures and disappointments, which strengthened Peter’s faith.
We must realize that the people you mentor will mess up. When this happens, it’s extremely powerful for them to have a mentor who will speak truth into their lives. As you persevere with someone through challenges, you help them become who God created them to be.
Barnabas and Saul
Saul had been sent to his home in Tarsus for protection after his conversion had caused an uproar among the Jewish leaders in Jerusalem (9:26–30). He stayed there for several years.
After Stephen was stoned, the believers started to scatter due to fear that they meet the same fate. Some went to Antioch and started to convert Hellenistic Jews. The church at Jerusalem heard about it and sent a man full of the Holy Spirit, Barnabas, to go and help the church at Antioch. After arriving in Antioch, Barnabas saw that he needed help, and went in search of Saul. Barnabas brought him to Antioch where he taught and groomed Saul to grow a church.
Barnabas saw great potential in Saul when no one else would have. That is a great trait in mentors, seeing the potential when everyone else sees nothing.
Paul and Timothy
After his relationship with Barnabas came to an eventual end, it was not long before Paul encountered Timothy. Timothy had been raised and taught in the faith, and ready to move to the next level. Paul saw that in Timothy, and mentored him for the next 30 years. Their relationship was so deep that twice he called Timothy his son in the faith.
Paul, Barnabas, and Mark
After serving in Antioch, Paul and Barnabas set out on their first missionary journey, taking Mark along as their assistant. When they arrived at Perga, Mark went back home to Jerusalem. We don’t know why, but it upset Paul to the point that he and Barnabas agreed to split. Paul continued with Silas while Barnabas went to seek out his cousin in Jerusalem and continue work in Cyprus.
The relationship eventually improved. In Colossians, Paul identifies Mark as one who labored with him and comforted him. Mark is again mentioned as a coworker in Christ in the letter to Philemon. Finally, in the end, Timothy and Mark end up working together in Asia Minor, with Paul alluding, “He is useful to me.”
YOU ARE A MENTOR
Therefore encourage one another and build each other up… 1 Thessalonians 5:11
Paul had founded the church in Thessalonica, and kept up with its status. He had Timothy there for a few short years to help in growing the church. Timothy would occasionally send Paul a report about how things were going. One thing was becoming evident in the church there. There were plenty of followers, but no one who wanted to lead. This is why Paul exhorted the people in the church there to step up and “build each other up…”
We wall are called to be mentors to an extent. If you are a parent, teacher, or coach, you automatically have people to take under your wing. The rest of us have to look and search for someone to mentor. In fact, if we are not mentoring the next generation, the church will be dead in 10-20 years.
Yes, you are called to be a mentor. “But I can’t do that. I don’t know what to do.” Come to Bible study, and follow the Holy Spirit.
BENEFITS OF BEING A MENTOR
“As iron sharpens iron, so one person sharpens another.” Proverbs 27:17
It is a wonderful thing to have a friend with whom you can sharpen your mind. You can discuss certain things with then gaining real profit. I count it a blessing to have many such friends. I always walk away refreshed and strengthened, and I always had learned something. It is wonderful to have a friend like that.
It’s a well-known idea that the best way to learn something is to teach it. The mutual blessing of mentoring someone is that as you help them grow, you grow yourself. This is how being a mentor has big benefits for the believer.
