There is a long tradition in the British army that an officer who is particularly commended for courage in action and who is mentioned in dispatches by his commanding officer can wear a small bronze oak leaf on his right breast or on his campaign medal. The majority of these men are unknown to us. The NT is full of rather obscure names – unknown soldiers. Only eternity will reveal how much the church owes to such people. Churches thrive on good biblical teaching but also due to the presence of faithful foot soldiers. Today we will have a look at another attractive individual.
EPAPHRAS (COLOSSIANS 1:7; 4:12, 13)
Where was Colossae? If you go to modern day Turkey and go about 150 km inland from the Aegean Sea you will come to the Lycus valley. In that valley were three towns which are all mentioned in this letter. In the south of the valley was Colossae. About ten miles north was Laodicea and a further six miles north was Hierapolis. A few hundred years before this letter was written Colossae was a great city – the greatest city in the region because all of the trade going from east to west passed through it. Colossae was bubbling with wealth and commerce. But by the first century the trade route had been re-routed through Laodicea and Colossae was much smaller than it once was. What can we learn about Epaphras from these few references.
- We first of all are encouraged by his love for the bride of Christ – the
church. When Paul ministered in Ephesus in 52 AD a man from the Lycus valley called Epaphras came to hear his lectures and was converted. He returned to plant a church in Colossae and most probably also Laodicea and Hierapolis. In 1:6 Paul can say; all over the world this gospel is bearing fruit and growing, just as it has been doing among you since the day you heard it and understood God’s grace in all its truth. The church at Colossae was ten years old by this time. From the main body of this letter to the Colossians we can infer that false teachers had arrived. Epaphras was so concerned about the potential impact of this false teaching that he travelled all the way to Rome to get wisdom from Paul who was under house arrest. In responding to what Epaphras had reported Paul commends this faithful foot soldier by reminding the church that you learned it (the gospel) from Epaphras, our dear fellow servant, who is a faithful minister of Christ on our behalf, and who also told us of your love in the Spirit. When we look at Epaphras we must ask ourselves some searching questions. Is our love for the church as great as his? Does the spiritual health of the church burden us as much as it did him? He was prepared to travel as far as Rome to ask Paul’s counsel to deal with some of the doctrinal problems he was facing. In 4:13 Paul can say; I vouch for him that he is working hard for you and for those at Laodicea and Hierapolis. - The second challenge from Epaphras’ life concerns his prayer life. In 4:12 Paul has high praise for this foot soldier. Epaphras, who is one of you and a servant of Christ Jesus, sends greetings. He is always wrestling in prayer for you, that you may stand firm in all the will of God, mature and fully assured. The Greek word for wrestling is (agonizomai) from which we get our English word agonise. As Paul prayed with Epaphras and heard his powerful entreaties he knew that this man really cared deeply about his fellow church members. The American evangelist DL Moody once gave his impressions after being exposed to Charles Spurgeon’s ministry that “to hear Spurgeon preach was a blessing, but to hear Spurgeon pray was even more impressive.” During this time of lockdown as MUC prayer lists are circularised on a daily basis we would do well to allow Epaphras to challenge our own prayer lives. Often times when we pray we are at a loss for words as to what to pray for. Once again Epaphras is most helpful. Notice how Paul highlighted the specificity of Epaphras’ prayers. That you may stand firm in all the will of God, mature and fully assured. He prayed first of all that his fellow church members would stand firm in God’s will. There were false teachers on the prowl and he was concerned that the church members would not stumble. Then he prayed that they would mature in their most holy faith. He prayed that they would grow in grace and the increasing knowledge of Christ. Lastly he prayed that his brothers and sisters would be fully assured in what they had been taught. The best defence against error is a firm grasp of the truth. What a wonderfully well rounded prayer to pray for our church family.