Epaphras

Intro:

- I read a story of a Pastor recounting a time when a minister visited his home when he was a young boy in New Zealand. Being young and inexperienced, the boy sought the counsel of his guest. He said that one morning they were sitting on the veranda, looking over the golden plains to the purple sunlit mountains. He asked the minister, “Can a man be sure that in the hour of perplexity he will be rightly lead by God? Can he feel secure against making a false step?” “I am certain of it,” exclaimed the minister, “if he will but give God time!” As long as you live, remember that, said the minister. Give God time!”

- This is one of the things that we will be looking at tonight. The importance of giving God time and allowing Him to direct our steps… as we try to answer the question “Can I know the will of God for my life?.”

- Now one of the things that we started to do last time we got together was to do a character study of a person in the bible and to draw out certain Godly characteristics that were evident in their lives. We thought that it would be a good way to draw out different Godly characteristics that we would be able to apply to our everyday lives, as we seek to “Cultivate Christian Character.”

- So, we will continue with that today by looking a man by the name of Epaphras. Epaphras was only mentioned in a few different passages in the bible, but his impact was great. But in order to get a full picture of our passage today, we will have to lay the foundation.

- Turn with me to the book of Colossians.

Transition

How the Church was started

- The city of Colosse was 80-100 miles inland from the city of Ephesus in Asia minor or what is Turkey today. Colosse formed a Triad of cities with the cities of Laodicea and Heirapolis in the Lycus Valley.

- Now In Acts 19:9-10, while Paul was in the city of Ephesus we see this…

Acts 19:9–10 NKJV

But when some were hardened and did not believe, but spoke evil of the Way before the multitude, he departed from them and withdrew the disciples, reasoning daily in the school of Tyrannus. And this continued for two years, so that all who dwelt in Asia heard the word of the Lord Jesus, both Jews and Greeks.

- you see as Paul ministered in Ephesus for 3 years and he taught in the school of Tyrannus for 2 years, we see that all who dwelt in Asia minor heard the word of the Lord. The gospel message had made its way throughout the whole region of Asia minor.

- Now Epaphras was a man from Colosse and happened to be in Ephesus during the time that Paul was preaching and teaching along with a rich man named Philemon. They were saved under the ministry of Paul in Ephesus and went back to their home town and started the church of Colosse in the house of Philemon.

- 5 years later, we see that Epaphras leaves the city of Colosse and is in Rome while Paul is in prison. Epaphras would go on to tell Paul all about the church in Colosse both the good and the bad. See Paul had never visited that City. But Epaphras as the leader of the church had some concerns of what was making its way into the church.

Why Paul wrote to the Church of Colosse?

- See there was a heresy that was pervasive in the area that had began to make its way into the church. It would be called “The Colossian Heresy” which was a mixture of something that would later be called Gnosticism, mixed with Jewish Legalism.

- In the 2nd and 3rdcentury, 150-200 years later the church in Colosse would be rocked by Gnosticism. Gnosticism –was the belief that God is good but matter is evil. So, God did not create the world, but a distant emanation of God created the world. They believed that everything we do in our bodies is evil so, therefore Jesus never had a body. They also believed Jesus was not God. They believed that they had this greater knowledge into the spiritual world.

- During the time Paul wrote to the church, “the Colosse Heresy” was an early forms of Gnosticism along with Jewish legalism.

- The teachings that Jesus was not sufficient for Salvation. If you truly wanted to be saved you had to first become Jewish. The men would have to be circumcised, men and you would have to keep the dietary laws and the holidays laid out in Leviticus. And they taught that if you did all of these things and believed in Jesus, then you could be saved.

- So both the early Gnosticism and the Jewish legalism were teaching that Jesus was not sufficient for Salvation, that you needed to add what Jesus. You had to have a deeper knowledge or you had to add the keeping of the law to be saved.

- So Paul would write to the church in Colosse to address these issues and false teachings, but it is neat how Paul goes about it. He does not go out immediately and address the 10 reasons why these teachings are false, instead…. He focuses on who Jesus is.

- He would write about ….

I. The Truth about Christ

II. The Truth about Christianity

III. The truth about Christians

-Paul understood that if he could give the people a better understand of who Christ is, he didn’t have to refute the false teachings, who jesus is and what He has done is sufficient to put to silence all the false teachings.

- Now during this time as Paul is writing this letter, a slave named Onisimus runs away from his master, Philemon and ends up in Rome and Onisimus ends up getting saved through the ministry of Paul.

- Paul ends up sending Onisimus back to his master Philemon with a letter, ( the book of Philemon) along with the letter of Colossians. Onisimus went back to his master Philemon in Colosse with Tychicus

Read Col. 1-8

I. Paul’s Heart for Prayer ( Col. 1-8)

A. The man Epaphras (v.1-8)

- What we see briefly here is Paul begin to write down this prayer for the people. He immediately starts off his letter by telling them that he has been thanking God ever since he heard that the Gospel message reached them.

- He gave thanks for their faith in Christ, their love for one another and because of their hope in heaven.

- Prayer was something that was on Paul’s heart. Not only did he pray for these believers but he also would call them to pray earnestly in Col. 4:1-2, and he would also ask them to pray for him in 4:3. Prayer was something that he big in his life and he was encouraging the people to be a people of prayer.

- Now I verse 7 we are introduced to Epaphras. We are told that Epaphras was a man who had taught the people in Colosse the Gospel of Grace. And in verse 7 & 8 we get to learn a few things about Epaphras.

1. He was a leader in the Church.

- As we mentioned, he was one who started the church with Philemon, it was Epaphras who was instructing the church.

2. He was a fellow bondservant

- He was dedicated to the Lordship of Jesus

3. He was a faithful man

- He was loyal and trustworthy to do what he had been called to do

4. He was a man of Prayer ( Col. 4:12-13, Col. 1:9-12)

- This is what we want to focus on tonight,.

Look with me – read. Col. 1:9-12)

B. The man of prayer (9-12)

- Notice with me in v. 3 and in v. 9 Paul uses the word “we”. “We” give thanks, we have not ceased to pray for you.

- Paul was not the only one praying, but when they heard the news of their faith along with the news of the false teachings that has entered the church from Epaphras, there is no doubt that “we” included Epaphras as well.

- And we know this because of what Paul later said about Epaphras in chapter 4:12. We will go back and forth between these passages today.

- Read 4:12

- Paul tells the readers that Epaphras sends his greetings as well, and he tells us that Epaphras is always earnestly praying for them.

- Epaphras was a man that was dedicated to prayer.

Question : What is prayer?

- I believe this is the simplest way to define it.

It is the “turning of the soul to God” ( The kneeling Christian).

David described it as “ the lifting up of the living soul to the living God”

Ps. 25:1

“O Lord, do I lift up my soul”.

“The Kneeling Christian”

“Prayer, then, is not the persuading God to do what we want God to do. It is not bending the will of a reluctant God to our will. It does not change his purpose, although it may release his power.

“We must not conceive of prayer as overcoming God’s reluctance, but as laying hold of his highest willingness” Archbishop Trench

“ Prayer is , however, much more than merely asking God for something, although that is a valuable part of prayer, if only because it reminds us of our utter dependence upon God. IT is also communion with God- intercourse with God- talking with God. We get to know people by talking with them. We get to know God in like manner. The highest result of prayer is not deliverance from evil, or the securing of some coveted thing, but knowledge of God.

- So prayer is in short, the communion we have with God , it is a tool that allows us to know God further and on a deeper level. Prayer is not so much to change his will but to align our will to His. It is not so much as asking for things I want answered, but the opening of my ears to hear what He already has for me.

- The bible speaks of Prayer being useful in many different ways.

- A way to give thanks to God, a tool in spiritual warfare, a way to have communion with God, a way to pour out my anxieties and cares before God, great for interceding for people…. Etc… but we want to specifically look at what Epaphras prayed for today.

- We want to dig in a little bit deeper and see what was on his heart.

What did Paul and Epaphras pray for?

II. Epaphras’ heart for the people (Col. 1:9-12)

- The first thing we see being addressed in an intercessory prayer that people would have a knowledge of the will of God.

A. That the people would know God’s will for their lives ( Col. 1:9)

Look at what 4:12 says.

- In both chapter 1 and in chapter 4, you see that the big concern they had for these believers was that they would know the will of God for them and that they would have full assurance of that will.

- in chapter 1, Paul uses the words , that you would be filled with “knowledge” of His will.

- Knowledge- “Epignosis” speaks of precise and correct knowledge, full discernment.

- They were praying that they would have a precise and correct knowledge of God’s will for them. This gives us insight into the reality that we can have a precise knowledge of what God’s will is for our lives. God is the one that has the full picture of His will for us, and we can have an understanding to that will as He reveals is to us.

- This is in contrast to the Gnostic teachings which spoke of greater knowledge that only they had. Paul is telling them that they are praying for them to have a full and precise knowledge of God’s will for their lives, which included His will in salvation for them. There was no need to add to the Gospel message and to what Christ had done on the cross.

- you also see them prays that they would have wisdom and spiritual understanding to walk in obedience to that will.

- They were interceding for them that they would have a full knowledge of God’s will and wisdom to apply that knowledge. This is such an important thing for us to take note of and see the importance of us interceding for those in our lives that might be in a crossroad seeking God’s will for their lives.

- Our kids, our young adults , our family members, our friends. We should be a people that pray for others.

- But this should also be a part of our daily prayer life. We should be seeking God to have understanding of what His will for our lives is and that we would have wisdom and discernment to be obedient to that will.

God’s will for our lives

- When we talk about God’s will for our lives, there are 2 different things we are talking about.

1. God’s General Will

- This is what God’s will is for all believers. This is found within God’s word which is across the board for all believers.

- Example: God desires that all men come to a saving faith in Him, God desires our purity, God desires to have fellowship with Him. God desires for His disciples to evangelize the world.

2. God’s Specific Will

- This is what God is longing to do specifically in my life.

- Example: what career path I am to take, what school to go to, what church to go to, what ministry to be a part of, who to date, when to date, when to get married, etc.

- Interesting that this is one of the areas of the Christian life that can be extremely hard. Knowing what God’s will is for my life but then being assured that what I am doing is His will. We may have a sense of God’s direction and leading in a matter, but often we do have the full assurance. Often , faith is required…. And that can be difficult.

- You also add in the fact that the bible speaks about our bodies are made up of 3 things.

1. The body- The physical form, our connection to the physical world.

2. The Soul- the mental and emotional part, including our mind, our will and emotions.

3. The Spirit- the innermost part of us that connects us to God, this is what was dead once before Christ but at the point of conversion, it has been made alive. ( John 3:5-6)

- What can often make it hard to discern God’s will for our lives is the thin line between our Souls ( which is our emotions, feelings, our mind and our will) vs the Spirit, the things God is longing for us to do or be a part of.

- That is where most of the struggle is, being able to discern if what I am sensing in this moment is my emotions, my feelings, my own desires or if it is something that God is putting on my heart.

- I don’t know about you but I know for myself that the longer you live, the more battle wounds you get. People hurt you, people take advantage of you, people reject you, there are disappointments, loss loved ones, tragedy, loss of connection with people…… all those things that happen in our human experience have a way of affecting how we process things, how we view things, and how we respond to things.

- And sometimes we may find ourselves in a situation where something happens that triggers something from our past, and we can react in a way that is self-protective, making sure I’m not being hurt again. Maybe it’s running away from the situation, maybe it’s shutting down in a discussion , maybe its even anger.

- And sometimes we can move and react based on emotions because of what we have gone through, and in our minds we can assume that this is the will of God, it was God’s will for me to go here, and to go there, or to do this or do that…… but in reality ….. we acted out based on our soul, our emotions and not based on the spirit.

- Or sometimes the decision is too easy because it just makes sense. From a practical sense, everything lines up with what I assume would be best for me, or even having friends around me that are encouraging me to do something because it makes practical sense.

- The reality is, just because something looks like it makes sense on paper, or just because our friends encourage us to do something, does not mean that is what God’s will is for us.

Transition

- can be completely honest with you all here today, I can tell you that in my life, I have made decisions based on my emotions , reacting to something that has happened that was a trigger for me. And I know for me the battle is always discerning between what is of the Spirit and what is of my soul, my emotions and feelings.

Hebrews 4:12 NKJV

For the word of God is living and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the division of soul and spirit, and of joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.

- It is the word of God that acts as a surgical knife, being able to discern between that fine line inside of us, and is able to reveal what is of our emotions, feelings, thoughts and what is actually of God, or the Spirit. It is the word that God that we are to turn to and bring our thoughts and feelings to and see if they line up with God’s word.

- This is why it is important to read and study the word of God. This is why true discipleship has to happen with the word of God being instructed. It is not enough to have events, or hang outs….. the word of God is what is necessary in our lives.

- Now if the word of God is the surgical knife to discern between the two, then prayer is the ability to remove the static or noise from our lives in order to see and hear God clearly. Prayer is turning our souls to God tuning into God’s frequency.

- As we mentioned before, prayer enables us to have communion with God and to gain knowledge of who He is. When we have the proper knowledge of who He is, we gain a proper understanding of what His will is for our lives.

- Prayer allows us to both gain a proper view of who He is but it also allows us to remove the noise and distractions in our lives , in order to hear what He wants me to do.

- When I can read the word of God regularly and submit myself to it, and I give God time in prayer removing all the noise…… there is no doubt that God will begin to direct my steps. …

You see this happen throughout the Bible

Transition

Samuel – receives fresh vision

- In 1 Sam. 3:1-14, we see that the word of the Lord was Rare in those days , but we see the Lord come to speak to young Samuel before he becomes a prophet of God. While Samuel was in asleep, 3 different times he hear the voice of the Lord saying, “Samuel, Samuel”.

- He assumed it was the voice of Eli the priest, as he would run to where Eli was an would say, you called.

- Finally, Eli realized that it was the Lord that was speaking to Samuel, so he told the boy to go back to bed and if he heard the voice calling for him again to say….”Speak, for you servant is listening”.

- So Samuel did as Eli said, and when he heard the Lord say “Samuel, Samuel,”…. He said, “speak Lord your servant is listening”…… and after this, the Lord would begin to give him insight into what He was going to doing with the people of Israel and with the house of Eli. He received fresh vision from the Lord during a time where there was a spiritual drought after he leaned to listen to the Lord.

Paul- receives direction

- In Act 26 see you see Paul the Apostle recount his conversion. As he is on his way to Damascus to persecute the Christians, he receives a vision of the Lord

- The Lord speaks to him saying Saul, Saul why are you persecuting me…. Then as Paul falls to the ground , he asked a question, “who are you, Lord?”

- It was after this question, and after he answers it himself acknowledging that it was the Lord…. Only after this acknowledgement and surrender to the Lord, you see that God would give him directions.

- He would tell him “get up and stand on your feet, for this purpose I have appeared to you, to appoint you as a servant”…..

- It was only after Paul was on his knees in surrender that the Lord then revealed direction and purpose for his life.

Joshua- receives instruction

- In Joshua 5:13-15, you see the people have crossed over the Jordan river and are ready to posses the land that God has promised. You see that took the time to prepare in circumcising the people, in celebrating the Passover while they were at Gilgal.

- While at Gilgal, Joshua is visited by man holding a sword. As Joshua sees him, he asks if he is for them or for their enemies. But the man said , “I am the captain of the Lord’s army”….

- And immediately Joshua falls to his face and says……

“What has my Lord to say to His servant?”

- It was only after this moment on his face as he surrendered and listened to what the Lord would say, that he received instruction on how to conquer the city of Jericho.

Transition

- In these stories you see that the Lord already had his will and plan in motion. These men were not called to change God’s will , they were called to submit to His will. Once they were able to surrender and listen to the Lord, then the Lord gave them ….fresh vision, new direction and instruction.

- this is true in your life and mine as well. God is not looking for you to come to Him in prayer to change His mind, but that we would come to him and surrender in humility to His plan. I can tell you that once we come to him in prayer and can remove all of the distractions of life, and simply say, “speak Lord, for your servant is listening”, rather than telling Him what we want Him to do, you would be surprised how the Lord will begin to give us fresh vision, new direction and instruction in our situation.

B. That they would walk in a way that Pleased God (vCol.1:10-12)

- They not only prayed for the people to know God’s will for their lives but they also prayed that they would walk worthy of the Lord, that they would walk in such a way that pleased God.

- The word walk is talking about how they lived, how they conducted themselves. In other words, they prayed that these believers would conduct their daily lives in such a way that was pleasing to God. I want you to notice that a knowledge of God’s will precede a walk that pleased God.

- Knowing what God’s will for our lives is, determines whether we will live in such a way that pleases God. See when I know what a person’s expectations are of me, I have a choice whether to do what is expected of me or not.

- Think of a job. When you get hired, you are given certain expectations of what the job role requires. You have the responsibility to do what is required but you will not be forced to do it. You will make the decision whether you want to fulfill those requirements or not. The same principle here. God has given us his will for our lives, and there is an expectation of fulfilling those things but at the end of the day, we will have to make the choice if we are going to obey or not.

- Paul prayed that they would have a clear understanding of what was expected of them and that, that knowledge would translate into complete obedience which would please God.

- Insight here is that God is not pleased by our knowledge of His will, but he is pleased by our obedience to that will.

- In other words, knowledge is not enough. Obedience is a sign of maturity.

- In Col. 4:12, Epaphras prayed that they would stand mature. Speaks of spiritual maturity and growth.

- A sign of spiritual maturity is when a person is walking in obedience to God’s will, even when it is hard to do.

- Paul would go on to describe 4 different ways they could walk to please God in these verses. We won’t go through them for time sake.

- But here is what I want us to focus on as we have been going through these passages.

Can I know God’s will for my life?

1. God has a specific plan for my life and I can know it.

2. I must seek out God’s will for my life in prayer and in His word

3. It is not enough for me to know God’s will, I must be obedient to do God’s will

4. It will require hard work to seek God’s will for my life

III. Epaphras’ labor for the people (Col. 1:9, 4:12-13)

A. Consistency in Prayer ( Col. 1:9)

- We see that the group with Paul in Chapter 1 did not cease to stop praying. There was a consistency in their prayer for these people.

- This is a big principal that we need to add to our lives. They were consistent in their prayer lives.

- Many of us are longing to know what God’s will for our lives is, but how many of us are consistently seeking out God in prayer. How many of us have a regular time of prayer set a side to simply wait on God? I fear that for most of us, prayer can be like offering a prayer at dinner. And I’m saying this to include myself.

- Those that workout, you understand that in order to see results of the workout, there has to be consistency over a period of time. As you consistently workout, your body gets accustom to the work, it gets stronger, it can handle more pressure under load, your endurance gets better.

- The same principal is with prayer. The more we are able to work at it consistently, the easier it becomes. The better I get at it, the better I get at sitting in silence and just listening, the better I get at staying awake, the more I remember, the more I hear God, the longer I can pray.

B. Laboring in Prayer ( Col. 4:12)

- Here we are told that Epaphras was striving earnestly or laboring in prayer for the people.

- The word “labored” in the Greek is “agonizomai”, which speaks of being in a combatant sport in the public games., to content or fight with an adversary. Like a wrestler in the public games.

- It is where we get the English word “ to agonize”. It shows that Epaphras was not simply throwing up a simply prayer, he was laboring , he was in a spiritual fight praying for these believers.

- It has the same root word that was used to describe Jesus in the Garden of Gathsemane

Luke 22:44 NKJV

And being in agony, He prayed more earnestly. Then His sweat became like great drops of blood falling down to the ground.

- This was a very hard and stressful situation that the Son of God was about to be betrayed and crucified for sins of the world, and at this moment, he was praying intensely with agony, with sweat dropping from his face.

- And remember what Jesus was praying for in this time, “Father, if you are willing, remove this cup from me; yet not My will be done, but yours.

- Jesus was praying for God’s will to be done and was surrendering Himself to the will of the Father at this very moment.

Transition

- Now lets take a moment and think about our own lives. Does our prayer life look like this? Do we pursue God’s will to be done in my life with the same effort?

- Think about the last big decision you made…… did you come to the conclusion that it was God’s will for your life in the same way Jesus and Epaphras prayed?

- I will be honest and tell you I was absolutely convicted when I putting these questions down. I had to look at my own life and think how many decisions have I made by offering up a simply prayer like it was for my breakfast.

- And how many decisions had I made with the same ferver that these men did.

C. Caring in Prayer (Col. 4:13)

- Paul tells us something important. Epaphras cared deeply about the people in the Area of Colosse, Laodicai and Hierapolis.

- Think that through with me, he was consistent and labored so hard in prayer for these people because he cared for them.

- His zeal and true care for these people drove him to have zeal in prayer. If he lacked in care for the people, he would have lacked in prayer for them.

- That is a known fact, that you and I will put in more effort to the things we cared about

- What you see here is the love that Epaphras had for these people is what drove him to earnestly seek God in prayer for them.

- The reality is that for many of us, we fail to have complete direction from God in our lives because we are simply not that interested in it.

- We can all relate to praying really hard for things that we are interested in, invested in or will directly affect us. Epaphraus was a man who deeply cared for these people which is what drove him to pray so hard for them .

Conclusion.

- As we close tonight, I want to reassure you that…..

A. God has a specific plan for my life and I can know it.

B. You and I must seek out God’s will for my life in prayer and in His word

C. It is not enough for us to know God’s will, we must be obedient to do God’s will

D. It will require hard work to seek God’s will for my life

- We will need to be consistent in our prayer lives. Set up a specific time daily where you can get away in a quiet place to speak to the Lord but also to listen to Him. Even if it is just 5 minutes a day.

- Be purposeful, make a list if need be. Have a plan when you go in prayer, not that you have to be stuck in a structure but go in with a plan and allow freedom for the Lord to redirect.

- Consider the things that are important to you and pray for these things.