Church: Reformed Baptist Church of Franconia | Text: Colossians 4:7-18 | Date: May 30, 2021 | Speaker: Fred Zaspel

Perhaps it was during Paul’s three-year missionary stint. He has accompanied Paul in travel to Jerusalem. He accompanied Paul to deliver relief funds to the saints there. We meet him again in Titus chapter 3 and verse 12, where it says that Paul sent him to Titus on the Isle of Crete. In 2 Timothy 4, verse 12, Paul sends Tychicus to Ephesus. So Tychicus has been very involved with the Apostle Paul.

And we saw, as I mentioned in our introductory lesson, there are a lot of commonalities between the Ephesian letter and the Colossian letter, and the Colossian letter and the letter to Philemon. And it seems that all three of these letters were carried at the same time by this man, Tychicus. And Paul calls him here a beloved brother, a faithful minister, and a fellow servant in the Lord. Nowhere else in Paul’s epistles does he give this threefold description of a fellow servant of his. All of these are rather common designations that he gives of those who have been working with him, but here it’s all three. We have something close to that in chapter one, in verse seven, about Epaphras, where he says he’s a faithful minister of Christ on your behalf and a fellow servant. There’s two of them, but we have three times. So he’s emphasizing what a wonderful brother this is and what a help he has been in the ministry. He’s obviously a close associate, a close companion of Paul in his journeys, and has been obviously an enormous help to the apostle in carrying out his work.

Onesimus

Verse nine: “with him is Onesimus.” Now we have only some shaky details about who Onesimus was, mainly from Paul’s accompanying letter here, a letter to Philemon. Evidently, Onesimus was a runaway slave. He had wronged Philemon, his master, in some ways. And we looked at that in some detail in one message going through Philemon. But somehow now he has encountered Paul in Rome. He has come to Christ; verse 10 indicates that, and Paul speaks of him now with just deep affection. In Philemon, he mentions him a couple of times. So he’s come to Christ. He has somehow become an associate of Paul in prison, ministered to him in some ways, and become extremely valuable to Paul. And Paul now is sending him back to the church at Colossae where he comes from, and particularly back to Philemon to make things right there, as we’ve seen before.

Now, what’s interesting to me is that in verse 7, Paul calls Tychicus a beloved brother, a faithful minister, and a fellow servant—fellow servant or a fellow slave. Now, pretty clearly that’s a metaphorical statement. He wasn’t exactly a slave, Tychicus. But when he talks in verse 9 about Onesimus, he calls him a faithful and beloved brother and doesn’t call him a fellow slave. And well, here’s the runaway slave. He’s the faithful brother. The other guy is the faithful brother, faithful minister, and a fellow slave. I suspect, and I guess I can’t prove this, but I suspect there’s just a hint here of Paul keeping in his mind that he’s writing now to Philemon as well, and to the church at Colossae, where Philemon is. It may well meet in his house. And this kind of language—calling Onesimus a beloved brother and calling Tychicus the fellow slave, fellow servant—has a leveling effect. And we saw that in the book of Philemon as well in that letter. It has a leveling effect. And Paul wants to convey that, and he certainly does do that in Philemon verses 15 and 16, where he asks Philemon, “don’t regard him any longer as a slave, but receive him back as a brother.”

Well, anyway, then verse 9, both Tychicus and Onesimus, he says, “will tell you of everything that has taken place here.” So we have something there of Onesimus’ involvement with Paul in his ministry, and he’s going to tell him about the situation in Rome, in prison, and that’s so that the people at Colossae can not only catch up on a personal level, but also so they can pray for him. And Paul says, so that they may be encouraged, and I suspect that means with reports of the advance of the gospel through Paul’s ministry, even while he’s in prison.

Greetings From Paul And From His Ministry Companions

All right, now we have some more details. Verses 10 to 14, we have some greetings now from Paul and from his ministry companions: Aristarchus, Mark (that’s John Mark), Jesus who is called Justus, Epaphras, Luke, and Demas. All of these, except for Jesus who is called Justus, are mentioned in Philemon also. So evidently, they are known to the people there at Colossae.

So verses 10 and 11, Paul gives the Colossians greetings from his three Jewish companions. “Aristarchus, my fellow prisoner, greets you. Mark, the cousin of Barnabas, concerning whom you have received instruction, if he comes to you, welcome him. And Jesus who is called Justus. These are the only men of the circumcision among my fellow workers for the kingdom of God, and they have been a comfort to me.”

Aristarchus, another one of Paul’s fellow workers. It’s an interesting study in itself to go through Paul’s epistles—and there are a few mentions in Acts as well—but to go through his epistles and find the people who are named and see how he describes them. “Fellow worker” is a common one. It’s evidently a title that’s intended to convey Paul’s appreciation for their work with him in the ministry. And Aristarchus is one. We meet Aristarchus, first of all, in Acts chapter 19. He’s a traveling companion of Paul from Macedonia during his Ephesian ministry. You might remember that episode where they are caught up in a mob revolt against Paul. They’re angry because Paul’s ministry has seen so much advance of the gospel it had begun to hurt this guy’s idol-making business. There were too many converts, and so they don’t have idols anymore, and it’s beginning to cut into his business. And so he’s angry, and he stirs up a mob, and Aristarchus is there with Paul during that. In chapter 20, we find Aristarchus and we learn that he’s from Thessalonica, and in chapter 27, we find that Aristarchus is with Paul on his voyage to Rome. So evidently now he’s imprisoned with Paul; he calls him a fellow prisoner. Maybe he wasn’t under arrest, but he’s at least with Paul in prison and serving him there. So he’s another companion of Paul and a close associate in the ministry.

Next, John Mark, the cousin of Barnabas. “If he comes to you, welcome him.” So we anticipate sending John Mark to them. You might remember a little bit about Mark in the book of Acts. This is John Mark. In Acts chapter 12, you remember Peter’s in prison. He’s miraculously released from prison and he goes to report at the home where the believers are gathered praying. And that was at the home of John Mark’s mother. So his family is evidently involved in the work of the gospel early on. There John Mark is mentioned, Acts 12 verse 12. In Acts 12 verse 25, early on Mark joins Paul and Barnabas. He’s a cousin of Barnabas and he joins them in their travels and their ministry. But then in chapter 13, verse 13, he leaves them at Pamphylia and returns back to Jerusalem. That didn’t set well with Paul. Evidently, Paul felt like Mark had just abandoned them and washed out in the ministry. He wasn’t reliable. We come to Acts chapter 15, a little bit later; Barnabas wants to take Mark with them on their journeys and Paul will have none of it. And so they part ways, and Barnabas and Mark go their way in ministry, and Paul takes on Silas and goes their way in ministry as well. Not a lot else we know about that dispute, but Paul had considered Mark someone that shouldn’t go with them.

But it’s significant with all that in the background that Paul here commends Mark. So evidently, they had reconciled at some point. And he’s mentioned here in Colossians 4, and then also in Philemon, verse 24. And then 2 Timothy chapter 4, verse 11. This is very late in Paul’s ministry, just prior to his death. Paul mentions Mark again. He says, “get Mark and bring him with you, for he is very useful for me in ministry.” So an interesting character study in John Mark; we don’t have too many more details than that. And then he mentions Jesus, who’s called Justus. We know nothing else about him. Since he sends his greetings, evidently, the people at Colossae are familiar with him. Maybe he’s from there, but we don’t know anything else about him.

Greetings From, And The Commending Of, Epaphras

All right, now verses 12 and 13. We have greetings from, and the commending of, Epaphras. “Epaphras, who is one of you, a servant of Christ Jesus, greets you, always struggling on your behalf in his prayers that you may stand mature and fully assured in all the will of God. For I bear him witness that he has worked hard for you and for those in Laodicea and in Hierapolis.”

Now we saw back in chapter 1 that evidently Epaphras is the one who brought the gospel here to these people in Colossae. He speaks in chapter 1 in verse 7 of the people there who had learned from Epaphras, that is evidently learned the gospel from Epaphras. He’s called here a servant of Christ Jesus, probably again an expression of his ministry for the gospel. In Philemon, verse 23, Paul describes Epaphras as “my fellow prisoner in Christ Jesus.” It might be then that Epaphras has ended up under arrest with Paul, or it might be that he has gone to visit Paul. I think that’s more likely the case, to report to Paul about the situation in Colossae. And he is now with Paul as Paul is under arrest.

Then he says of Epaphras, “he is struggling on your behalf in his prayers.” Struggling on your behalf in his prayers. Interesting expression. I wonder how often that would describe our prayers for one another—struggling in prayer for one another. But he’s struggling on your behalf in his prayers. “He has worked hard for you.” So this is to convey from Paul his commendation of Epaphras, that his—that is, Epaphras’—concern for them is real. He has an emotional distress because of the false teaching in Colossae that he’s reported to Paul, that Paul writes to address. And he has struggled with them in prayer. And Paul says these kinds of things, I think, to say, “He has your best interest in mind always; you need to listen to him and appreciate his ministry.”

And that, he says, is “so that you may stand mature and fully assured in all the will of God.” That is so that you’ll be firm and complete in your understanding, a whole understanding of Christian teaching, convinced of it, devoted to it. That’s the objective of Epaphras’ ministry, Paul’s ministry, and Paul is commending Epaphras on that score and telling this rather troubled church in Colossae that’s been affected by false teaching, “You need to listen to this man. He’s a faithful minister. He knows what he’s talking about. He ministers the word faithfully.”

And I think we could note there something along the way, and that is that protecting a congregation from theological error is part of the pastoral responsibility. Epaphras is doing that; he’s reporting to the apostle, and Paul’s writing to deal with that. Paul is commending Epaphras for doing that, for his struggles on that level, to root out false teaching and anything that would be inconsistent with the gospel of Christ. There was misinformation coming into the church at Colossae. It had to be sorted out and discredited. That certainly is the case today. There’s misinformation everywhere today, particularly with the internet. We have such access to so many different voices. And it’s part of the pastor’s responsibility to keep an eye on that and root out anything that is inconsistent with the gospel. So Paul writes about Epaphras, commending him in that respect and encouraging them to listen.

Luke And Demas

Now verse 14, he sends greetings from Luke and Demas. “Luke, the beloved physician, greets you as does Demas.” Luke, he’s best known, of course, as the author of the Gospel of Luke, the Gospel according to Luke, and the author of the Book of Acts as well. He’s not named in the Book of Acts, I don’t think, at all. But you’ll notice these “we” passages throughout the Book of Acts. We went there, and then we went there, and we went there. And those are Luke’s remarks. He’s Paul’s regular traveling companion. And he is also mentioned here as the beloved physician. This is the only mention we have of Luke as a medical doctor. It might indicate that he’s Paul’s personal physician, traveling with him, tending to him when he’s wounded and beaten or sick and whatever. And Paul has great appreciation for him. He calls him the beloved physician.

And then Demas, a man that we don’t know a whole lot about. But what we do know is mixed. Here he’s a companion of Paul in his ministry. He’s also mentioned in Philemon as a companion in his ministry, the accompanying letter. But then, of course, he’s also mentioned in 2 Timothy chapter 4, where Paul names him as a deserter. “Demas has forsaken us, having loved this present world.” At this point, he’s a help to Paul. At some point, he washes out. And unlike with John Mark, we don’t read anywhere of any restoration on the part of Demas. He loved this present age. Evidently, with John Mark, it was a—what can we say—a mark of immaturity that got corrected and improved. Paul was concerned it was a character flaw, perhaps. But with Demas, it was a spiritual issue. He loved the present world more than he loved the gospel ministry, and he’s gone—an awful reminder of the reality of apostasy.

Greetings From Paul To The Church At Laodicea

Then in verses 15 through 18, we have greetings from Paul to the church at Laodicea with some related remarks. Verse 15: “Give my greetings to the brothers at Laodicea and to Nympha and the church in her house. And when this letter has been read among you, have it read also in the church of the Laodiceans. And see that you also read the letter from Laodicea.” So several things here.

Verse 16, there’s, I think, a subtle indication of Paul’s apostolic authority that extends over not just the church of Colossae, but to all of the churches as well, because he can name these other churches that he’s written to—make sure they read it; they need to hear it as well. Paul is ministering to all of them.

Verse 17, he gives an exhortation to Archippus: “Say to Archippus, ‘See that you fulfill the ministry that you have received in the Lord.'” In Philemon, verse 2, Archippus appears again. He seems to be the son of Philemon. Perhaps he’s the one leading the congregation that meets in their house while Epaphras is away. And he’s singled out here for some special encouragement. See that you fulfill the ministry that you’ve received in the Lord. Keep at it and keep improving.

Then verse 18, Paul gives his final greetings and benediction himself, and he signs off with his own hand. “I, Paul, write this greeting with my own hand. Remember my chains. Grace be with you.” I write this greeting with my own hand. Letters in the ancient world were often dictated to a scribe. Amanuensis was the term that’s used for it. It was common also for the one who was dictating the letter to take the stylus himself at the end of the letter and write some personal remarks and to sign it off himself so that they can, in a sense, hear his voice in the letter. We find this mentioned as Paul writing with his own hand in 1 Corinthians, Galatians, and 2 Thessalonians. And also in Philemon at the end of the letter, Paul mentions that he writes it with his own hand. But there he says that this is the distinguishing mark in all of my letters. So whether Paul mentions it or not, it seems to be his regular practice to sign off with this personal touch. And he wants them to hear his own voice through the letter.

And then he says, “remember my chains.” You almost feel the pathos coming through with that. Remember my chains. And I’m not sure that the idea there is just that—sympathize with me in my chains. I suspect there’s more to it. At least remember me in prayer. Remember my chains and pray for me. And that word “remember” in the New Testament often has that connotation—remembering it before the Lord, remember in prayer. I suspect that’s it, but to remember also that while he is in chains, he needs not only physical comforts and all of that, but pray for him in his ministry that continues while he is in chains. Paul considers himself very much on mission while he’s in prison and he’s asking for prayer. This is the one time we find from Paul a very personal prayer request about the apostle himself: “remember my chains.”

And then he signs off as he began the letter: “grace be with you.” I mentioned at the beginning of the letter that that has some great, wonderful significance. Grace is not a thing. “Here, take this grace and have it be with you.” Grace is God at work. And that’s what he’s praying for. It’s kind of a wish prayer for the church of Colossae. And he writes this to virtually all of his churches that he writes to. Grace be with you, or grace to you, and peace. May God be at work among you in every needed way.

With that, then, we finished Paul’s letter to the church of Colossae. Paul was at work, remember, in Asia Minor. He’s in Ephesus for three years. It seems—we don’t have this for certain, but it seems—that Epaphras was probably a convert there during that time of his ministry. Epaphras himself then goes back to Colossae, founds the church. Remember, this is a church that Paul has not been to yet. Epaphras goes back, starts the church there. People come to Christ, primarily Gentiles, but there is some Jewish influence as well. And they have received Christ as Lord; they’re living under his headship. But then some false teachings had come into the church. Epaphras is struggling to be rid of that kind of thing and anything that would confuse the gospel. Now Epaphras has gone back to find the Apostle Paul, finds him in Rome in prison, reports to him what’s going on at Colossae. Paul writes the letter to Colossae then to deal with these false teachings that have come into the church.

Remember the tone of Paul’s letter in Colossians is not like Galatians where he’s just angry with how soon they’ve abandoned the gospel. He’s disappointed, he’s hurt. With Colossae, the idea is more of a concern because they have not capitulated entirely to the false teachings that have affected them. It’s more like there’s confusion in the congregation, and so Paul writes to clarify those things up. And we have that in chapter one, the end of the chapter, then through chapter two, and then with some applications in chapters three and four.

Paul is concerned that these false teachings have primarily impinged on the idea of the sufficiency of Jesus Christ. And so in chapter one, especially, he gives this lofty Christology of the greatness of Christ, who is Lord over all, Lord over creation, Lord over the church. He’s the eternal Son of God, and so on. And then in chapter two, he begins with some more of those kinds of theological remarks and then some practical applications of it as well with regard to the false teaching there. Then he moves on in chapter three with this idea of the sufficiency of Christ with relation to Christian living. Here’s how it shows itself in Christian living. And we’ve seen that work its way out in all of the dimensions that he reports there. United with Christ in his death and in his resurrection, it shows a different kind of living in all of these ways. And he hammers those out for them.

Finally, Paul then comes to the end of the letter here, sends his greetings from those who are with him, commends those whom he sends to them, sends his own greetings to all of the churches, commands that these letters be read in the churches. “You read the letters that I’ve sent to them as well.” And then he signs off with his own hand. One interesting remark there, he says, “read the letter from Laodicea as well.” So there Paul had sent a letter to the church at Laodicea. I remember a professor in Bible in college, undergraduate work one time, said to the class, “Open your Bibles to Paul’s Epistle to the Laodiceans.” And of course, a few people looked down—”I wonder where is it?” There is no epistle of Paul to the Laodiceans. It’s a lost letter. We don’t have it. There are other lost letters of the apostles as well. I think he wrote two more letters to Corinth. We have two; I think there were two more that we don’t have. But these that we have are the ones that God in his providence wanted for us for our canon. So the big theme, then, of the letter is the supremacy and the sufficiency of Jesus Christ and its implications, both for doctrine and for practice.

Any questions, then, about this passage? Yes, Pastor Greg. “If, in the Lord’s providence, a scroll would turn up in some of the ruins in Turkey or somewhere to the letter to the Laodiceans, do you believe in the act of sculling?”