Another of Paul’s friends, mentioned in his letter to Philemon, is Aristarchus. We first hear of Aristarchus in Acts. We learn that he is a Macedonian from Thessalonica who is traveling with Paul on one of his missionary journeys.
Later, when Paul is sent to Rome as a prisoner, Aristarchus (along with Luke) travel with him. Aristarchus is both loyal and supportive.
Aristarchus is also esteemed by Paul as a fellow worker, as well as being mentioned as a fellow prisoner. Just like Epaphras, Aristarchus’s assistance to Paul and service to God does not preclude him from suffering.
While righteous suffering for our faith is not a given, it should not be viewed as an anomaly either.
If we do suffer, however, it is important to suffer for the right thing. If we suffer because of something foolish we said or did, that is not suffering for God, but suffering for our shortsightedness. There is nothing noteworthy or Godly about that.
[Acts 19:29, 20:4, & 27:2, Philemon 1:24, and Colossians 4:10]
A lifelong student of the Bible, Peter DeHaan, PhD, wrote the 1,000-page website ABibleADay.com to encourage people to explore the Bible. His main blog and many books urge Christians to push past the status quo and reconsider how they practice their faith in every area of their lives.
