Sosthenes

I'll never forget good ol' Sosthenes. "Who's that?" you ask? Why, he's the guy who wrote the epistle to the church at Corinth, of course. "No, that was Paul!" Yeah, sure, but take a look at the first line of the letter and see what you find. It was Paul "and our brother, Sosthenes." What else do we know about this important fellow? Well, apparently he was the chief ruler of the synagogue in Corinth (Acts 18:17) who got beat up for ... being in the vicinity of Paul? Nice. What else? Nothing. Not one thing. We might take a guess. He might have been an opponent of Paul in Corinth (especially after the conversion of the Crispus, the other "ruler of the synagogue). But it seems unlikely that they'd beat up someone on their own side. So maybe he was also a convert? Or, maybe it's not even the same guy? Nope, we don't know much at all. That's why I'll never forget good ol' ... what was his name?

I'm a Sosthenes. I may be right up there at the front, right in the opening lines, so to speak, and most people wouldn't know I was there. I am one of the few people I know that can walk by a WalMart greeter without being greeted. I am, in a word, invisible. That's why I like Sosthenes. This guy is mentioned in the Bible as a co-author with Paul and no one knows who he is. Yet, he was used of God. He was important enough to God to have him mentioned in one of the books of the inspired Word.

I know I'm invisible much of the time. In fact, I like it that way, quite honestly. I know that almost everyone wants to be remembered when they're gone, but I mostly hope not to be noticed. So I'm quite delighted to keep Sosthenes in mind. My value is not in how many people remember me. I'm not a success if I make a name for myself. Being noted in history is not the point. Being where God wants me to be when God wants me to be there is all that really matters. Because He'll never forget ol' whatshisname -- me.