Encouraging, Continuing Conclusion

Grace to you and peace from God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. It is a joy to share in the exposition of the Word of God for the edification of the saints and the conviction of the unconvinced.

I’d like to open this morning with a poem written by Myra Brooks Welch:

‘Twas battered and scarred, and the auctioneer

Thought it sacredly worth his while

To waste much time on the old violin,

But held it up with a smile:

“What am I bidden, good folks,” he cried,

“Who’ll start the bidding for me?”

“A dollar, a dollar”; then “Two!” “Only two?

Two dollars, and who’ll make it three?

Three dollars, once; three dollars, twice;

Going for three…..” But no,

From the back of the room, a gray-haired man

Came forward and picked up the bow;

Then, wiping the dust from the old violin,

And tightening the loose string

He played a melody pure and sweet

As a caroling angel sings.

The music ceased, and the auctioneer,

With a voice that was quiet and low,

Said: “What am I bid for the old violin?”

And he held it up with the bow.

“A thousand dollars, and who’ll make it two?

Two thousand! And who’ll make it three?

Three thousand, once, three thousand, twice,

And going, and going,” said he.

The people cheered, but some of them cried,

We do not quite understand

What changed its worth.” Swift came the reply:

“The touch of a master’s hand.”

We are entering the waning weeks of this series through the book of Colossians entitled “Living the Christian Life.” We have looked at deep theological truths that inform and transform our conception of the Lord, Holy and Divine. We have seen the Supremacy of Jesus goes beyond what we could ever =We have seen that our Faith informs and transforms our religion, that is what we actually do with what we believe. We have seen that there are voices coming from the dark world that would seek to distract and disqualify us from service to the Lord, to muddy the waters so that truth is obscured and ministry hampered. We have seen the sufficiency of Christ to be well above anything this world would offer us. We have seen the eternal security believers have by grace through faith. We have seen the hope everlasting held by the redeemed. We have seen the wrath in store for the disobedient. We have seen the virtues we are to strive for as we battle the flesh. We have seen the great need for Christian Community and the grace that is the Local church. We have seen the very practical ways in which our faith informs the roles and positions we have both within the family and vocationally. And most recently, we have seen that truly living the Christian life is not a calling for celebrity or fame, but it is simply living the role God has given you for his glory, praying for His kingdom come and sharing with others in order that His will be done.

There is life changing truth in the teaching from the book of Colossians and we still have much to glean from its final verses. But I want to make two observations in accordance with the poem that we just read. First of all, like that old, battered and scarred violin, from the perspective of the world, the Christian’s life is nothing notable. This simple life consecrated to the Holy God will not appear impressive. In fact it may very well be seen as disgusting and dispensable to the common eye.

Secondly, like that old violin, the life of the Christian only truly has value because it has the touch of The Master’s hand! Our worth, our identity, our lives are wholly and completely informed and transformed by the touch of the Master who loved us so much that He sent His Son to die for us and bring us into His family. From the outside we may still look like the same broken mess, unimpressive to the world, but internally we have been justified, are being sanctified, and looking forward to day where we will be glorified! Though it may not look so on the outside, for touched by the Master, saved by His grace through faith in Christ, everything has changed.

Today we are going to look at people who don’t look like much, that is until we peel back the layers and see that they have been touched by the Master’s hand.

Open your Bibles to Colossians 4, if you haven’t already. Today, we are picking up in verse 7. This section through the end of the chapter is subtitled in many Bibles, Paul’s Final Greetings. The letter to the Colossians is wrapping up and there Paul is sharing with the church many of the people that helped get them this teaching. But here is the thing that we can all be encouraged by as we walk through this text: These are all real, ordinary people, who helped Paul carry out an extraordinary ministry for the sake of an extraordinary. I love this church dearly, and I would say that we are all very ordinary. The magnificent encouragement we should all take is that God loves using the ordinary to continue His extraordinary work. Our value is not found within ourselves, but in the Master who touched our lives and shapes them for His glory.

Let us begin in Colossians 4:7-8

Colossians 4:7–8 ESV

Tychicus will tell you all about my activities. He is a beloved brother and faithful minister and fellow servant in the Lord. I have sent him to you for this very purpose, that you may know how we are and that he may encourage your hearts,

Paul begins his conclusion by mentioning the name of Tychicus. Now, I’ve played Bible trivia with brother Larry before and he honestly smoked me, so I’d like to put you on the spot, brother. How many times is Tychicus named in the Bible?

You were either going to get that and I was going to be massively impressed, or you helped illustrate the point that we are talking about a very minor character in the Bible. Tychicus is only mentioned by name five times in the entirety of Scripture. But don’t let the lack of notoriety fool you. Tychicus was doing great things because he was serving the Lord.

What do we know about Tychicus? We know that he worked with Paul. He was from Asia Minor. That is the area in which Ephesus can be found. That is the destination of the book of Ephesians. While it is not explicitly stated in Scripture, it is possible and likely that Tychicus would have been a convert during Paul’s years spent ministering in Ephesus. It is likely that Tychicus was born in Ephesus, lived in Ephesus, and by the grace of God found new life in Ephesus under Paul’s ministry. He could have been part of the group who previously practiced magic arts and upon conversion burned their spell books which in total valued 50,000 pieces of silver. He likely would have been witness to the great riot that subsequently rose against Paul, causing the pair and their companions to leave. He would then go with Paul to Jerusalem. He, and Dr. Luke stayed with Paul throughout Paul’s imprisonment, the appearances before royalty, the shipwreck, all the things we see playing out in the book of Acts. This Tychicus, though we know little specifics about him, we do know that he was immensely devoted to God and, by extension, Paul.

We know of two specific duties Tychicus was given. We see here in Colossians 4 that he was chosen to deliver this letter to the church at Colossae. That is how he would have opportunity to tell them about Paul’s activities. We also know he was the one who delivered the letter to the Ephesian church. It also seems from the end of Colossians 4 that Tychicus had another letter to deliver to the church of Laodicea. R Kent Hughes notes that Tychicus, “left no writings that survived. He did no feats that were though worth preserving by Dr. Luke in Acts.” To put it shortly, Tychicus was vocationally nothing more than an errand boy. A footnote in biblical history. He is the common, scarred violin. “However, God used him as a part of His divine symphony, and the music was beautiful.

Look at how he is described in verse 7. He is first called a beloved brother. That is dearly loved one whom shares the same faith and eternal destiny of Paul. The word for beloved, agapetos is only ever used in Scripture to describe the love between Christians united with God or each other. It is the word used by God the Father in reference to Christ when He says in Matthew, “My beloved Son in whom I am well pleased.” Walking through the beginning of the New Testament, at least the first 7 times this word “beloved” is used, it is God the Father speaking of Christ. This should show us the great depth of love which is being discussed here in Colossians 4:7, and the great love there ought to be between believers! Tychicus’ distinction as brother means that he was born of the same womb. It is a recognition by the believing Paul to the believing saints of Colossae, that Tychicus is as well a born-again believer.

I would assert that being recognized as “beloved brother” or “Dearly love sister” ought to be enough for all the redeemed. I would hope that you both be able to use such language about those around you in our congregation and that they could say the say the same about you! I have often heard and agreed that Durbin memorial Baptist Church is loving church. May that not just be in superficial pleasantries! May we all have a deep affection and tender care for one another as joint-heirs of the promise of God! May we be quick to love and be lovable in our dealings. We are a part of the family of God. Let us cherish that! If we do nothing else in this world, may we be able to truthfully be called beloved brothers and sisters in Christ. Thank about it like this, being distinguished as a dearly loved sibling of the redeemed is a distinction not afforded to many kings, presidents, senators, celebrities, athletes, or influencers in our day and age.

Next we see that Tychicus is referred to as “faithful minister”. Please note that calling Tychicus a minister is not suggesting that he was necessarily a preacher or some great wordsmith of that day. The word translated minister here is the same word we use for deacon, those who are called to serve the practical needs of the church. Tychicus was faithful in his service to the Lord and the Lord’s people. Serving others can often be thankless and taken for granted. Tychicus worked predominantly behind the scenes but in service to the Lord. Are you willing to do the same?

Lastly, in verse 7, Tychicus is named Paul’s fellow servant in the Lord. We have talked about this some in recent weeks, but what we should see from this designation is the great equality there is for believers before the Lord. Paul is essentially saying that Tychicus and I serve are both servants to the Lord. I may be writing the letter and he may be delivering it, but that does not change that we are both serving God. God gives us all separate tasks, abilities, giftings. Just because someone serves in a more vocal or visual role than another, it does not mean that they are more valuable to Lord. We are all sheep of the same pasture following the same shepherd.

I would hope that this understanding would squash any jealousy you may have against others in the kingdom of God. Personally I am thankful for the work of faithful and more popular pastors. I don’t need to be the next Alistair Begg to be satisfied in serving the Lord. I’ll gladly learn from my brother and co-laborer in the kingdom and seek to share the gospel with those the Lord has placed in front of me! If God brings mega-growth to the ministry here, that’s His will and His glory. If we never add another member but are faithful in following and sharing God’s Word, that’s His will and His glory. I’m just thankful He allows me to serve Him at all.

As members of the congregation, just looking at statistics, it is very likely that many of you will never be the face of a ministry. You probably wont have an hourly spot on Christian radio, or amass a following on social media centered around your service to the Lord. But just know, if you have been saved by the grace of God through faith in the Son and sealed by the Spirit, then whatever work you do for the kingdom of God is of immense value! The way you participate in your Sunday School class is of immense eternal value. The way you carry yourself in the workforce is of immense eternal value. Every time you’re able to tell a lost sinner about the grace of God, it is of immense eternal value. Whether your work is in the foreground or background, all those named in the Lamb’s book of Life are fellow-servants of the Lord. He’s the only one who gets any real, lasting, and deserving glory.

If you’ve done any personal study on the book of Colossians before, then you probably made note that this letter was written by Paul. You may not have noted, however, that the only reason we have this letter today is because Tychicus accomplished the job that he was given to do! In verse 8 we see that Paul sends him to the saints of Colossae with this letter to fill the church in on the things happening in the large scope of Christendom. You know, if many of us were in the shoes of Tychicus, we may have thought that this was such a medial task. There could have been bigger and better uses of our talent! But when we look back on this seemingly medial task with the perspective of nearly 2000 years, we can see that because of that simple task, the Word of God has traveled to us today! This is our 20th week in this text and we still have a few to go. There are details we glossed over, there is much more that we could learn from this text. I truly hope this study has been as edifying for you as it has been for me. But this Word was able to be preserved for our edification 2000 years later because a faithful servant of the Lord named Tychicus delivered it where God wanted it be and many other unnamed servants of the Lord passed it from person to person, and so on and so on until it was collected in the Bible and preserved for us today!

I say all this because we need to realize that we may not see the ultimate point of the things that we are doing, but if we are doing them in service to the Lord they are bound to make an eternal impact! When His Word goes out, it does NOT return unto Him void! Our intention in serving the Lord should not be notoriety. We are called to simple and humble submission to Him!

Working for the Lord is being a part of the greatest team of all time. I know not everyone here is a professional football fan, but bear with me for a moment. According to many sports analysts, the 1985 Bears are considered to be the best professional football team of all time. Leading that team was maybe the best defense in the history of football, Jim McMahon at quarterback and the all time great Walter Payton at running back. If you’re a football fan, those names probably sound familiar to you. But unless you are an avid Bears fan, you probably don’t know the name Jay Hilgenberg. At least I didn’t until I looked it. Did you know that Jay Hilgenberg touched the ball more than any other player on the 85 Bears? He was the center. He was the one who snapped the ball. Walter Payton didn’t carry the ball every time. Jim McMahon got injured at some point in the season. But Jay Hilgenburg started at center all 16 games that year. He controlled the beginning to almost every offensive snap. And I didn’t, and I would guess most of us here today didn’t know his name. He was still a pivotal piece to that team. So it is in our work for the Lord. Our role may not be romantic, it may seem small. But the things we do for the glory of God are good things prepared for us before all eternity and we will come to see the immense value of even the mundane when we get to glory.

In whatever you do, in word or deed, great or small, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus giving thanks to God the Father through Him. We must realize that all of our lives, even the small things are sacred events. Think about what Jesus said in John 8.

John 8:29 ESV

And he who sent me is with me. He has not left me alone, for I always do the things that are pleasing to him.”

Jesus says He ALWAYS does the things that are pleasing to the Father. Jesus is our Savior, but also our model, our guide. In the 33 years He spent on earth, there was not one action taken that was not sacred. A pastor once noted, “God is in all our little deeds, and we ought to ask him to keep reminding us that it is so. We need to pray for this in our regular prayer times as well as in a thousand brief sighs. How liberated our lives will then be.”

Church, let it be known that everything we do for the Lord is eternally significant. The church at Colossae is no longer existent. If you were to travel there you would find nothing but farmland and a few rocks. But God worked through that church and through servants like Tychicus to build His kingdom and the whole of Christendom is better for it.

I was talking with the trustees this week and it was brought up that there is fault line that runs right through this area. I don’t say this because it’s likely or to scare you, but it’s plausible that two hundred years from now the Lord has sent an earthquake and this building will be no more. Even if that doesn’t happen, I do not know what the status of this church’s ministry will be in two hundred years. But I do know that right now, every single thing we do for the glory of God is making an eternal impact and we will see the fruit of those labors in glory. We measure our success not by earthly standards but by faithfulness knowing that our God is in control, He is the great victor, and by His grace we share in His victory. We are common violins, touched by the hands of the Master.

I would like to discuss one more common violin from our text this morning before we conclude. read with me verse 9.

Colossians 4:9 ESV

and with him Onesimus, our faithful and beloved brother, who is one of you. They will tell you of everything that has taken place here.

Onesimus is another of God’s servants who is only sparingly mentioned in Scripture. We see here that he is also described, like Tychicus, as faithful and a beloved brother. I don’t think it is necessary to revisit what those terms mean. But I do want to talk about who Onesimus is and why him being described with such terms is important. Onesimus is a runaway slave. “Apparently Onesimus had stolen from Philemon and fled. At some time while Paul was under house arrest, Onesimus met him and became a Christian.” It is believed the books of Philemon and Colossians were written at the same time. Tychicus would have hand delivered the Colossians to the church of Colossae and Onesimus would have hand delivered Philemon to Philemon, the same man whom he plundered and ran away.

Thank about how humbling an experience this had to have been for Onesimus. Everyone in the city would have known what he had done. That’s probably why he fled to Rome, to just blend into the big city and live in anonymity. But in Rome, through the ministry of Paul, Onesimus was introduced to the Savior! And an amazing transformation takes place! He once was an insolent, restless young man, who bucked against even tender authority, and now he is filled with love and a willingness to make restitution! Onesimus was revolutionized by God’s grace. We will dive more into this story in a couple weeks as we walk through the book of Philemon, but for now just know how incredible an impact the receipt of God’s grace makes on the rebels heart!

This happened for Onesimus and it is still happening today. I’d like to invite brother Troy up for a moment to share a little bit about where he’s been and where God’s brought him.

*TROY TESTIMONY*

The world may look at Troy and not see much. But what I see is a battered and scarred violin, touched by the hands of the Master.

There is one more stanza to the poem by Myra Brooks Welch I read at the beginning of this message. Allow me to read it for you now.

And many a man with life out of tune,

And battered and scarred with sin,

Is auctioned cheap to the thoughtless crowd,

Much like the old violin.

A “mess of pottage,” a glass of wine;

A game–and he travels on.

He is “going once, and “going” twice,

He’s “going” and almost “gone.”

But the Master comes, and the foolish crowd

Never can quite understand

The worth of a soul and the change that is wrought

By the touch of the Master’s hand.

“Full transformation awaits those who invite the Master’s touch. Full, overflowing service is the characteristic of life in Christ.” Come to Christ today.

Let’s pray.