Spoken Well Of
By Jon Schwiethale
References. They are pretty important in our society today. If you are seeking employment, you may put together a resume’ and then have a list of references of people who know you, who will speak well of you to that company you want to work for. Therefore, the idea of “Spoken Well Of,” is very important to us. Let me suggest that it was important to Paul as well when it came to ministry and to the spread of the Gospel of Jesus.
In Acts 16:1-5, we read that Paul goes to the region of Galatia, and there we are introduced to a young man named Timothy. We learn where Timothy grew up, and we find out some information about his parents. His mother was a Jewess, a believer in God, but his father was a Greek (a Non-Believer).
Now, because his father was a Greek, that may explain why Timothy was not circumcised when he was younger. But according to 2 Timothy 1, Timothy’s mother Eunice and his grandmother Lois were very instrumental in teaching him the Holy Scriptures.
Upon Paul’s first missionary trip in Acts 14, we learn that he goes to the town of Lystra, which happens to be Timothy’s hometown, and it’s there that this happened in Acts 14:19, “Then some Jews came from Antioch and Iconium and won the crowd over. They stoned Paul and dragged him outside the city, thinking he was dead. But after the disciples had gathered around him, he got up and went back into the city.”
Did Timothy witness that? Was he converted to Christianity then or sometime after? We don’t really know. But what we do know is that in Acts 16, Luke writes describing Timothy as a disciple. He’s been converted to Christianity. He’s a follower of Jesus Christ. And in Acts 16:2, Luke writes saying, “The brothers at Lystra and Iconium spoke well of him.” They spoke well of Timothy. Don’t you like that? Wouldn’t you like people to say that about you to others? Especially when it comes to living for Jesus? I think there are two things here for us to learn. First, I think this scripture encourages us to live our lives in such a way for Jesus that others in the church and in the community, should speak well of us. And then I think this scripture should encourage us to speak well of others in the church. I’m sure Timothy wasn’t perfect just like you and just like me. But instead of picking out all the negatives about a person, let’s try finding the positives and speak about those things to others. And maybe, just maybe, the world will look at the Church and say, those folks have something that I want. I don’t know what it is, but what I see is how encouraging and positive they are when they speak of others.