2 Timothy 4:21, "Do your best to get here before winter. Eubulus greets you, and so do Pudens, Linus, Claudia and all the brothers."

Interesting points:
1. In this verse Paul repeats the request he made in 2 Timothy 4:9 for Timothy to visit him in Rome before the winter sets in and passes along greetings from the believers in Rome, to include four specific people Timothy would know well.
. In addition to not knowing the date of his impending execution, Paul urged Timothy to travel soon -- before winter weather shut down sea travel. With Tychicus (Verse 11) settled back in Ephesus to provide leadership for the believers there, in his stead, Timothy would do well to make haste for Rome not only to take advantage of favorable winds and weather, but also to arrive for Paul to have enough time to pass the mantle of leadership to his protégé and meet with the other servant-leaders who dared to visit him.

2. Besides Luke, who was there, Paul mentions four other notables who “greet” him: Eubulus, Pudens, Linus and Claudia in addition to "all the brothers", a reference that could mean all the believers in Rome, or perhaps a more select group of believers who would be instrumental in spreading the Gospel, preaching, teaching and discipling others.

3. As with the previous verse, little is known about these four individuals and what impact they had/would have in spreading the Gospel or even if they themselves suffered execution by Roman hands before they could fulfill their mission/plans; however, the writings of Irenaeus, a Greek bishop from Smyrna who was instrumental in expanding the Gospel in today’s southern France, mentions Linus as the succeeding Bishop of Rome after the apostle Peter’s death. Paul’s mention of them specifically to Timothy may underline the necessity of leaving Ephesus for Rome as soon as possible.

Application.
Brothers, in times of persecution our brothers and sisters in the faith exercise great discernment in communicating between the lines. Such communication leverages a deep understanding of each other’s behavior, the way they express themselves and one another’s God-given purpose. A mistake in what/how is communicated could endanger others.

Although we can thank God that we do not face such persecution, we should be very aware of our ignorance or lack of attention to how each of us responds in a given situation, simply because we focus on content versus the underlying motivation of what is presented. This week, let us try to be more conscious of what is being communicated -- not by reading things that are not intended – but being intentional in understanding what is and is not really being said.
May God open our eyes to the things we are overlooking simply because we are in a hurry!