Epaphras the Wrestler

Are you ready to RUMBLE? Epaphras was a true wrestler!  He is a man mentioned by Paul in the book of Colossians.  He was originally from Colossae and ended up traveling with Paul on his journeys to churches.  

Colossians 4:12 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.

Paul writes that Epaphras is always wrestling in prayer for the people of Colossae!  If Paul knew us would he describe our prayer life like a wrestling match or formal dinner party?  Epaphras wrestled with God in prayer!  He was praying like it mattered and like his prayers where making a difference in the lives of the church in Colossae!  

Paul writes that he prayed the church would "stand firm in all the will of God".  Following the will of God is not always easy.  Many times it seems easier to give in and just go with the flow of the culture instead of standing up! We need to pray for each other and encourage each other to stand firm in our faith and never give up or give in!

Epaphras prays that the people would mature in their faith!  Our faith should be developing and maturing over the days of our lives.  The difficult days and the hardships should help us mature in our faith and not destroy our faith.  Faith that is matured is not less risky, but more risky as we learn to trust in God and His power more!  

Finally Epaphras prayed for the church to be fully assured in their faith.  In our immaturity we often doubt God and our own faith.  We get tossed here and their by the circumstances that we face.  What a great place to be when we can be fully assured of God in our faith!  

Be like Epaphras and wrestle with God for the Body of Christ you belong to and for the Body of Christ as a whole!  

Grumbling and Arguing

Ephesians 2:14-16a  Do everything without grumbling or arguing,  so that you may become blameless and pure, “children of God without fault in a warped and crooked generation.” Then you will shine among them like stars in the sky 16 as you hold firmly to the word of life. 

Wow!  Talk about a scripture teaching that I fall miserably short of the goal!  Do everything?  I can see doing church work and serving God without grumbling, but really, everything?  That is a tall order and a beautiful goal I fall short of too often.  I grumble at God, my family, my friends and even complete strangers if they have a listening ear.  I can grumble about the weather, my sports teams losing, decisions of people I don't like, people who don't like me, why God didn't work like I wanted him to work, etc, etc...  

Paul writes if I want to be pure and blameless - I need to understand this concept of no grumbling.  I believe the converse is to understand and have a heart full of gratitude and praise to God!  The more I can focus on the good God is doing and the good work God is doing around me the more I can focus on God!  The more I focus on God the more I become transformed into the image of Christ!  The more I know Christ and the more Jesus people see in me the more I stand out in the sea of complaining and gripping!  

I can shine like a star in a dark world!  If we want to stand out in our world that is warped and crooked, we must understand this concept of not grumbling. Living in a warped and crooked world is not an excuse to grumble!  God is fully aware of the world around us and the darkness that we live in but God is still reminding us to live above the worlds standard and live like Jesus!  

How is your life shining in the darkness today?  Would your light shine brighter if you were more positive and more honoring of God in EVERYTHING?  

Citizens

That is why you are no longer foreigners and outsiders but citizens together with God's people and members of God's family.  (Ephesians 2:19 God's Word Translation)

There are two groups Paul is addressing in his letter to the Ephesians.  One group was a group of Jews who grew up with the understanding that they were on God's team.  They were the insiders and members of the elite group of God's chosen people.  They had the promises of God on their side.  Then there was another group of people who were not Jewish.  They had come from many different traditions and backgrounds but had found something incredible in Christ!

Paul is reminding the Jews that the non-Jews are now citizens!  They are now on equal ground with the Jews!  This is a hard concept for people when they have been told they are special all their lives and now God seems to be changing their world view.

Paul is reminding the non-Jews that they are citizens!  Now there is a way for all people to have the promises of God and become God's chosen people.  These new citizens of the Kingdom of God need to believe they are on equal ground with the Jews spiritually.

Although the dynamics of people are a little different today, I find the patterns of thinking are still similar today.

The Jewish Mindset
   - the in church crowd sees themselves as superior to the non-Christian groups of people in our culture
   - superiority mindsets lead to many negative behaviors such as lack of compassion, lack of concern, lack of prayer, lack of gratitude
   - people putting down others to make them feel better about themselves

The Non-Jewish Mindset 
   - some people fail to recognize our position in good standing with God and the Kingdom of God and so we sell ourselves short
   - we act like we are beggars in the Kingdom when we are really sons and daughters of the King
   - we need to be reminded of our place in the Kingdom because of the grace of Jesus and the power of the Holy Spirit

We who follow Christ and are joined together with His Spirit are Citizens of the Kingdom of God!  We have many rights and obligations because we are citizens!  But we can't forget the reality that we are part of the Kingdom to serve others and reach out to those around us who have not yet become Citizens with us!