Thank you very much Sabina. Good afternoon everyone. As Paul said, my name is Ian and I have the privilege of taking you through this passage of Colossians this afternoon.
Do you ever listen to other people's telephone conversations?
Now before you say, oh no, we never do that.
Think of a situation where you're on a train and you're on the train and you're reading a book or you're doing the crossword or you're watching a phone on your tablet and someone's phone rings.
It's, hello, I'm on a train.
And they go on, although they're on a train in a very public place, they go on in quite a loud voice carrying out the conversation with whoever they're talking to.
And it's almost impossible to concentrate on anything else because they're speaking loudly and you're kind of interested in what they have to say anyway.
And so your book or crossword or whatever has to wait for a few minutes and you hear about their domestic situation.
Or about their business or whatever else it is, they tell you a little bit about it.
But you're only hearing one side.
You're only hearing what the person there says.
You don't really know what the background is.
You don't know what the other person's saying.
And you end up perhaps speculating, well what is the situation here?
What's going on that I can't make out because I can't hear both sides?
When we come to the end of books like Colossians where Paul's writing, we get in that kind of situation a bit.
Because Paul writes about lots of people, lots of names that Sabina's read to us.
And we don't know an awful lot about them.
Some of them we know a bit.
Some of them we know nothing apart from what's here.
And we're probably quite curious, well what is the background?
Why have they got instruction about what happens if Mark comes to them?
What is the task that Archippus has to complete that Paul's so keen the church encourages him in?
And so on.
And we just, in some ways, we don't know.
Now it is tempting to speculate and I probably will speculate a bit as I go along.
But it's also important, I think, to try and take a step back.
And to think, how does this fit in with Paul's work and with the work of the Church of Colossae?
Because we're learning about people who are with Paul and people at Colossae.
If you like, Team Paul and Team Colossae.
And as I was thinking about this passage, what struck me is it tells us a lot about working as a team.
Now we can say our church is like a team.
We're a group of people who have been brought together.
We have a common purpose and we want to serve and to work together.
So what can we learn about working as a team from what Paul writes to us here?
And what can we learn about our individual roles within it?
So we're going to look at the team at Team Dynamics.
And we're going to look at individuals at Team Players.
What about Team Dynamics?
Some of you will recognise these two gentlemen here.
Some of you probably won't.
They're both football managers.
One is manager of a team that at the moment is clearly together and united,
where the star players are being allowed to express themselves
and the others are supporting them very well.
And the team is being pretty successful on the whole.
The other is the manager of a team where there seem to be problems in the dressing room.
It looks as if not all the players are really behind the manager.
Some players are being played out of position and don't seem very happy with that.
The team is not doing very well and is not being united as a team.
Now, if you look at the two photos, you could probably guess which is which.
On the left is Oli Gunnar Sokjaer, who is the manager of Manchester United,
at least to the end of the season.
And on the right is Maurizio Sarri.
I've lost the name.
Thank you very much.
Maurizio Sarri.
He's the manager of Chelsea, at least until this afternoon.
If he gets beaten this afternoon, he might not be around very much longer.
Two teams, both full of very good players and yet a lot of differences in the way they're managed
and in the way things are working.
Team dynamics really matter.
Are the team together?
Are they being given a chance to express their abilities?
Are they being successful and working for one another?
Well, when it comes to Team Paul, I think we can say, by and large,
this was a team which really worked together.
And we can learn quite a lot from it about the dynamics that make up a good team
and perhaps particularly if we're thinking in a Christian context,
about the dynamics we would like to see in our church as we serve the Lord Jesus together.
So four things I want to highlight,
and then we will look at some of the team players in a little bit more detail.
So the first thing that's very evident, as Paul writes, is the love that he has.
He talks three times about people being dear brothers,
but throughout it you can sense these are people, all of them,
who he has a great affection for, who he really cares about.
Someone once asked one of Billy Graham's associates,
someone who'd been with the Billy Graham organization for a very long time,
why is it that Dr. Graham has a team that stays around and that seems so united and so happy?
And Billy Graham's associates replied, love.
Whatever the situation he and the team find themselves in,
Billy Graham leads with love.
What a great testimony that is.
The thing that drove Billy Graham was not just the success of the team,
not just even preaching the gospel.
It was having a love for his team and having a love for all those he went out to reach.
How important it is for us that in our team, in Team Brunsfield,
we are characterized by a love for one another.
Jesus said, all men will know you are my disciples if you love one another.
And I wonder if people came into our church and they looked around and they talked to us for a few minutes,
would one of the things that really struck them be the love that we have for each other?
Now I have to say a lot of people come into the church and feel really welcome and feel really loved,
and that is tremendous.
But let's challenge ourselves.
Do we really show the love of Christ to one another day by day and as we work together?
Very important of working as a team is that we have love for one another.
In the business context, it might be you get on, you're friends,
but in the church it's very much we have the love of Christ and we share that with each other.
So that was a very important team dynamic for Paul.
Second one I would suggest I've called loyalty.
Now Paul actually talks about faithfulness.
He talks about a faithful minister of Eutychicus, for example, in verse 7.
Faithfulness, loyalty, they're much the same kind of thing.
So Paul is saying, here are people you can depend on.
They're really bought into the team and to the work of the team and they are loyal to it
and they will do everything they can to help it to succeed.
And why are Paul's team loyal to him?
Well, perhaps partly the love that we've talked about,
but it's their loyalty to the Lord Jesus that is the really important thing.
He is a faithful minister, says Paul of Eutychicus.
In other words, he's a faithful servant of Jesus.
Very important in our background, in our church, in whatever Christian teams we're in,
that there's loyalty, that there's faithfulness.
Yes, loyalty and faithfulness to one another, but above all, loyalty and faithfulness to Jesus.
A desire to serve him and to live for him in all circumstances at all times
and that his kingdom may be further, that people may come to know him and may grow in their faith.
Loyalty, faithfulness is really important for Christians.
Novel of Christians who are very keen for a while and then think they're a little bit difficult
and you find they're not that faithful in their service in the hard times.
God wants us to recognise his love for us and for that to be expressed in our love for him,
but also in our faithfulness, in our loyalty to the Lord Jesus and to his gospel.
Third team dynamic I've called collaboration.
It is working together.
Now that is one that comes out in several ways as we go through Paul's team here.
There are those who are working together.
There are those who are chained together with Paul who are prisoners alongside him.
We already talked about Epaphras, this man who is doing this tremendous work of prayer.
That was his part in the work of the church, particularly in Colossae.
People working together for the gospel, for the Lord Jesus, and together making a difference.
Each had their role, each knew what their role was,
and each was working together to help the others in the team and to move forward the work that Paul was doing,
the missionary work that he was engaged in.
Teamwork, collaboration, really important in a church.
Perhaps I can make an observation that's been in my mind for a while about churches.
Because I think when you've got a small church, a relatively small church,
it is much easier for everyone to play their part and to feel they're really part of things
and are responsible for the work of the church.
As a church gets bigger, and by the grace of God, our church has been growing in recent years,
there is a danger that people lose that sense of ownership,
of having responsibility for the work of the church.
We all have our own bits that we do.
We're in a small group.
Perhaps we're in some areas of service, but perhaps lose sight of the big picture.
Let me give you an example.
If you've got a small church and they say,
we're having a church cleaning day.
We want everyone to come and help us clean the church.
You will invariably get a really good attendance at that.
People will come together.
They'll enjoy the time of fellowship,
and they'll enjoy working together in a practical way,
serving the Lord Jesus.
Get a big church, and people might say,
well, I'm quite busy that day.
I'm not sure if I can manage.
There will be other people to do it.
I don't think I'll go.
Or the prayer meeting.
Many small churches, even though there aren't that many people in them,
if you see their prayer meeting, everyone or almost everyone is there.
Move to a big church, and we're not alone in this.
You find it's a relatively small proportion of the church who attend prayer gatherings.
And again, people are saying, having a really busy week,
I could do with an evening in.
There will be other people there.
And you really lose something when you do that,
and if that's the kind of attitude that we have.
All of us have responsibilities if we're part of the church,
to work together for the church,
and to glorify God through that.
And yes, we have our individual things that we do,
and they're important, let's not neglect them.
But there are some things where the church needs to come together,
and we need all to feel we've got a responsibility.
I should be involved in this.
God wants me to serve him,
and to build up his church in collaboration,
in teamwork with the other members.
So collaboration, very important.
And then the final thing Paul talks about is encouragement.
Actually, he calls it comfort.
But I think, again, much the same thing.
Comfort, encouragement, refreshment,
and all with the same idea.
And this is the thought that we've got brothers and sisters in the Lord Jesus,
and that they are able and willing to support and to encourage one another,
and to help each of us to keep going for Jesus.
In all our lives, there are discouragements,
there are difficulties,
there are problems.
And as a church, we need to be supporting one another.
And when we are going through difficult times,
be a comfort and an encouragement.
Paul was in prison at this point,
so comfort from these people is very important to them.
Whatever our circumstances, comfort one another.
And when we see someone doing something
and doing it to their best of their ability,
using the gifts that God has given them,
give them that word of encouragement, of support,
to keep going and to keep serving the Lord Jesus.
Four key dynamics that I think should be part of our church,
of any team that is serving God.
Love, loyalty, collaboration, and encouragement.
Now, how does that express itself in the people we're looking at?
Well, as I said, there are effectively two teams here.
Most of it is Team Paul.
There are eight people there.
We'll talk briefly about Team Colossae.
There are two there, although you could argue that Onesimus
and Epaphras should be in that column rather than the left.
But let's keep them as they are,
because that's the way that Paul describes them.
And what I want to do in Team Paul
is to take each of the eight people very briefly
and to say of the four things that we've looked at,
which of these boxes are that person tick and why?
I've read in the slide here on this side
mainly to get a bit more space.
So some are talked about as being dear, being loved.
Some are faithful.
Some provide support.
They're working practically, collaborating with Paul.
And some provide comfort.
So let's just go down the list
and we'll find out a bit about each of them.
So the first one is Tychicus.
Tychicus is the only one you'll find
who ticks three of the four boxes.
He's loyal, he's faithful, and he's hardworking.
I used to think of Tychicus as being like Paul's postman.
If Paul had a letter to send to a church,
then he would get Tychicus to take it,
whether it was to Colossae or to Ephesus
or whoever else Paul was writing to.
And of course it was very important,
particularly in those days because you couldn't rely
on a postal service.
The only reliable way to make sure your communication got across
was to send someone with it and they delivered it personally.
And that was Tychicus.
But Tychicus, when you look at it,
was far more than that.
He wasn't just someone who delivered letters.
I think he'd more accurately be described as Paul's ambassador.
He's someone who Paul sent to represent him in other places
and to tell them about what was going on and to encourage them
and no doubt also to report back to Paul about what he saw.
Tychicus was very much part of Paul's A-team, if you like.
We were familiar with people like Timothy and Titus.
I think we put Tychicus in the same kind of category.
He's someone who Paul could absolutely depend on
and know that he would carry out whatever Paul asked him to do.
So we come across Tychicus first in Acts chapter 20
and he's part of a group of people who are heading with Paul
from Greece along to Jerusalem
and they're taking a gift with them.
Tychicus, it says, was from the province of Asia.
So it may all have been from Ephesus or somewhere like that,
perhaps even Colossae, but he was someone who Paul felt
was a good ambassador to bring with him to Jerusalem.
He took the letter to the Ephesians,
perhaps at the same time as Colossians,
but certainly he was the person who carried the letter to the Ephesians.
And again, Paul says, he'll tell you everything that's going on.
He'll encourage you.
When we come to the book of Titus,
we find that Titus is in Crete
and Paul is really keen for Titus to come and to see him.
Now Titus was a real troubleshooter.
Lots of problems in the church in Crete
that we can read about in the book of Titus.
And Paul said, I'd really like you to come and see me,
but I need to send someone else first.
And Tychicus was one of those who was mentioned.
So in other words, he was someone you could send
into a difficult situation
and you would know that he could deal with it.
Last time Tychicus is mentioned chronologically
is in 2 Timothy.
Paul is very near the end of his life.
He's in prison and he knows he's facing death.
And Tychicus has been with him almost to the end,
but Paul has sent him to Ephesus.
Perhaps there was a problem in the church in Ephesus.
Paul knew he needed to send someone there.
Who did he send?
It was Tychicus.
So here's someone who Paul knew was reliable,
would be able to go and to relay messages effectively
to the church and be a real encouragement to them.
He was, said Paul, a dear brother,
a faithful minister and a fellow servant.
Great if we can have people like Tychicus
who are absolutely reliable
and we know if something needs done
and perhaps something's a bit difficult
or a bit sensitive,
we can rely on them.
They're not going to let us down.
Great to have people like that
and we do have people like that
in our church here.
Second person is Onesimus.
If you said about Onesimus in Colossians 4,
you wouldn't really get to know very much about him.
In some ways what Paul says about him
is similar to what he says about Tychicus
because he says he's dear and he's faithful.
But we know about Onesimus mainly from another book
in the New Testament,
the book of Philemon.
And the background of Onesimus was Onesimus was a slave.
He ran away from Philemon,
perhaps stole some things as he went
and he ended up alongside Paul.
Now probably Paul was in Rome,
it's not certain,
but probably Paul was in Rome
so Onesimus had found his way from Colossae to Rome
which is quite a considerable distance.
While he was there,
he'd become a Christian by the grace of God.
He had accepted the Lord Jesus as his savior
and Paul had looked after him
and was obviously teaching him about the faith.
And Onesimus is now going back to Colossae.
He's going back with Tychicus,
again a sensitive mission that Tychicus is entrusted with.
They're going back to Colossae.
They're going back to Philemon,
Onesimus' master.
And they're not terribly sure
what the response is going to be.
Paul writes this wonderful letter of Philemon
as he lays out and lays it on thick
and how great it would be
if Philemon accepted Onesimus
not just as a slave,
but as a brother in the Lord Jesus.
But perhaps still as they went,
Onesimus would be thinking,
well, will he do that?
Or am I in for real trouble?
How significant then is it
that Paul describes Onesimus
as a faithful and dear brother?
He's not just sending back a slave
who's done Philemon wrong.
He's not just asking for mercy
for someone who really doesn't deserve it
or in some ways that might have been true
of Onesimus.
Rather, he's saying to Philemon
and to the church at Colossae,
here's someone who in the short time
he's been a Christian
has really proved himself.
He's someone I've come to have
a deep affection for.
He's a dear brother.
But he is also someone who's reliable,
who is faithful,
who you can trust.
The name Onesimus means useful.
And one of the things Paul does
in the letter to Philemon,
he does a bit of a word play
on how useful Onesimus is going to be
for Philemon.
So he is someone who's not a core member
of team Paul,
like Tychicus,
not someone who's been with him
throughout his travels,
and yet he's a trophy of God's grace.
And he has become,
through knowing Jesus and truth,
the discipling of Paul,
someone who is loved
and who is faithful.
Wonderful, isn't it,
when people come to know Jesus
and they have a real joy in their faith
and the things they've done in the past,
they might be terrible
or they might think they're terrible,
and yet their lives have been transformed
by knowing Jesus.
Again, we have people like that
in our church.
And for all of us,
however much we may have failed,
however bad we might think
things have been in our lives,
we can look at Onesimus
and we can take encouragement
that it is people like Onesimus
that Jesus died for,
people like you and me,
and that none of us
has done too much,
too many bad things
to experience God's grace.
Jesus died on the cross
for all those
who will trust in him,
will put their faith in him,
and will come to him
for forgiveness
and eternal life.
What an encouragement
Onesimus is.
Number three is
Aristarchus,
and we'll be a little bit
brief with the others.
Aristarchus gets two texts.
He's a comfort to Paul
as one of his fellow Jews.
We'll come back to that
in a minute.
And he's a support for Paul.
He's a fellow prisoner.
Something very interesting here.
If you read the book of Philemon,
which is probably written
at the same time,
Paul talks about someone
who's his fellow prisoner.
But that person he talks about
in Philemon
is Epaphras.
He doesn't mention
in his letter to Philemon
that Aristarchus
is a fellow prisoner.
And conversely,
he doesn't mention
this letter,
that Epaphras
is a fellow prisoner.
So what's going on?
Well, it is speculation,
but I find it quite attractive.
Some people think
that the situation was
that Paul had been arrested.
Paul was in prison,
and he had been arrested
by the Roman state.
And these two men,
these two fine
first century Christians,
Aristarchus and Epaphras,
had volunteered
to be in prison
alongside him.
So perhaps taking turns,
which would explain
why you get one mention
in one place
and one in the other.
Don't know if that's true,
but if it is,
isn't it a tremendous example
of Christians
supporting one another?
One of us is in trouble.
they need some help.
What do you do?
Someone else goes along
and they sit alongside them
and they provide
the support
that they need.
When people in our church
are going through
times of difficulty,
how good are we
at sitting alongside them
and supporting them
and empathizing with them
and helping them
through their time
of problem?
That's how Aristarchus.
We'll come back
to the comfort section
in a minute.
Mark.
You know the name Mark.
Mark wrote a gospel.
You probably also know
that Mark was someone
who went on Paul's
first missionary journey
with them.
Paul and Barnabas
were sent out
by the church in Antioch
and Mark went alongside them,
but he didn't last very long.
When it appears
that going got a bit difficult,
Mark decided
he didn't want to keep going
with Paul and Barnabas
and he headed back
to Jerusalem.
And Paul was pretty upset
about that.
When Paul and Barnabas
came back
and they reported
to the church in Jerusalem,
they were going to go out
again on the missionary journey
and Barnabas said,
let's take Mark with us.
And Paul said,
in effect,
over my dead body,
he's not coming with us.
And they had such
a sharp fallout
that actually Paul
and Barnabas
ended going
their separate ways.
In some ways
that turned out
to be a good thing
because the gospel
went in two directions
rather than one.
But Mark was someone
who had really hurt
and had really upset Paul.
And yet here we find
Mark is part of Team Paul.
And if we fast forward
to 2 Timothy,
written quite a lot later,
Paul has a really strong
commendation of Mark
as someone
who is really useful,
who is really helpful to him.
So Mark had gone wrong.
He turned back
and in his Christian life
we might say
he was a backslider.
And yet now
he has been restored,
he is following Jesus
and he will continue
to serve him.
Don't know what it was
that the instruction
that Paul sent
to the church
at Colossae about Mark,
perhaps it was
that they should receive him
warmly
because he was again
following Jesus.
Great to know,
isn't it,
that we have a God
who gives second chances.
When we fail,
when we don't do
all that we should for him,
when our love
grows a bit cold
and we're not really
following Jesus
the way we should,
yet there is always
a way back.
And Mark was able
to go from someone
who Paul would have
nothing to do with
to being one of Paul's
closest companions
at the end,
someone he found
really useful.
if you've been
in a situation
like Mark
where perhaps you feel
I've failed as a Christian,
I haven't done
what I should have
for Jesus,
take encouragement.
God always gives us
another opportunity
and is happy
to welcome us back
and to have us
continuing
to serve him.
Jesus' justice.
Know nothing
about Jesus' justice
apart from the fact
that he's one
of Paul's fellow Jews.
That's the only thing
we know about
that Paul tells us here
that he is
one of the
three Jews
among Paul's
fellow workers.
And these three Jews
are a real comfort
to Paul.
I think perhaps
they're a comfort
to Paul partly
because Paul
has had
some fallout
with the Judaizers
in the Christian church,
even people like Peter
when they were
a bit too strong
on the Jewish side
of things
and on circumcision
and so on.
But now he's got
these three men
who are with him
and they're enjoying
a good relationship.
Perhaps also
takes comfort
from the fact
that with these three men
he can talk about
some things
about the Jewish heritage
that he perhaps couldn't
with some of the
Gentile Christians.
They'd put behind them
the Jewish religion
and all that
that involved
but they knew
the Old Testament
they understood
the background
and with Paul
were able
to be a real comfort.
Perhaps just a slightly
bit in a church like this
there are people
who have been here
a long time
and know the church
has changed an awful lot.
There are lots of people
who are new
and it's great
to have everyone with us.
Perhaps those
who have been here
a long time
we can encourage
one another
as we think back
yes we think back
to things that were
in the past
and they were good
but also encourage ourselves
how God has been working
and we can look back
over many years
and we can see that
God has blessed our church
he has grown it
and together
we can rejoice
in where we were
and where we are now.
So that was I think
Jesus Justice,
Mark and Astarchus
why they were a particular
encouragement to Paul.
Not much to go now
Epaphras
Epaphras already
mentioned this morning
I've only given him
one take
but actually
if we went back
to chapter 1
Paul describes
Epaphras in almost
exactly the same way
as he describes Tychicus
he's a dear brother
he's a faithful servant
he's a fellow
he's a faithful Christian
he's a fellow servant
for the Lord Jesus.
Epaphras was the man
who had established
the church in Colossae
he was the one
who had brought
the gospel to that place
to begin with
not Paul
Paul had never been
to Colossae
and now Epaphras
for whatever reason
was with Paul
and what was he doing
he was praying.
We're told nothing
about Epaphras
in this passage
apart from his prayers.
He couldn't be
with his church
for whatever reason
but he hadn't forgotten it
he was fervent
in his prayers
for it.
And as Paul
pointed out to us
what great things
it is
he's praying for
he's wrestling in prayer
can you see the work
and the effort
that's in that
he's praying
you may stand firm
in the will of God
mature
and fully
assured.
Isn't it wonderful
to have prayer
warriors?
There are some people
in this church
I know
who are prayer
warriors.
They may not appear
to be active
in the work
of the church
they're not up front
like some of us
they're not very visible
but they pray
and their prayers
would be me
and probably many others
here
to shame.
they really
get down
to the work
of prayer
and for praying
for God's people
and for God's work
in a way
that few of us
do.
Great if we were all
prayer warriors
like that.
If we all
had this deep
desire to lay
hold of God
and to pray
for one another
and to constantly
pray
and as Paul said
it's not just
for those who are ill
or those who are
doing special things
it's for all of us
that we may stand
firm
that we may be
mature
and fully
assured.
Going towards the end
Luke gets two-taked
Luke is loved
and I put him
as a sport for Paul
Luke I think
was Paul's doctor.
Paul had some kind
of problem
probably a physical
problem
he described as
as thorn in his flesh
in 2 Corinthians
and it looks as if
Luke who travelled
with Paul broadly
from when he went
to Philippi
until the end
it looks as if
Luke was in a sense
his personal physician
he was playing his role
in the team
and he was someone
Paul really loved
and respected
as our dear friend
and of course
Luke was the author
of the third gospel.
Moving on quickly
for the sake of time
Demas
notics
nothing that Paul
can say here
about Demas
he doesn't even say
our dear friends
Luke and Demas
he just says
and Demas
at the end
what do we know
about Demas?
Well we read him
about him
two other places
in the New Testament
in Philemon
probably written
at the same time
as this
he's described
as a fellow worker
along with lots
of others
and then in 2 Timothy
Paul says
to Timothy
Demas has forsaken me
he loved
the present world
now quite what
that means
I'm not sure
did it mean
that Demas
had gone off
to the flesh
parts of Rome
or did it mean
that when he came
to the crancher
he was maybe having
to be martyred
for his faith
Demas drew back
we don't know
but in 2 Timothy
there's a problem
with Demas
perhaps in Colossians
there's a hint
of a problem
with Demas
Paul can find
nothing good
to say
about him
how sad it would be
if there were some of us
if someone was writing
about the church
at Brunsfield
and they mentioned
our name
there would be
nothing positive
they could say
about us
no sign
of God's grace
no evidence
of working hard
for the Lord Jesus
we're just here
and maybe we're just
hanging on
and not that
often here
either
let's not be like
Demas
let's seek to
be wholehearted
for Jesus
and to work
faithfully
beside those
in the church
our time is rapidly
running out
let me just talk
briefly about
Team Colossae
we have Nympha
Nympha had a church
in her house
she probably wasn't
the leader of the church
knowing the way
that Paul set up churches
but she was the most
important person
in the church
she provided the hospitality
she provided the encouragement
the only woman
mentioned in this chapter
but clearly a woman
of great substance
both in physical terms
which she had a house
the church could meet in
but also spiritually
that she was the one
who'd provided
the church facilities
and know that was
a great encouragement
and strength
within the church
and Archippus
Archippus is a man
with a mission
Paul says
see to it
that you complete
the work you have
received in the Lord
possibly Archippus
was Philemon's son
we could gather that
in the book of Philemon
possibly he was
fulfilling the road
Epaphras previously had
in leading the church
in Colossae
slightly speculative
but there's some task
that Paul
is encouraging
the church at Colossae
to encourage Archippus
in
again good if we can
encourage one another
in the work
that God has given
us to do
I've been through
a lot fairly quickly
there
and let me just
finish
by thinking about
what kind of people
are we in the church
what kind of a person
am I
so there are four groups
of people which broadly
tie in with the people
we've met
there are faithful servants
there are the people
like Tychicus
or like Epaphras
who are working hard
for God
who are faithful
dependable
loyal
and you know
that you can trust them
to do God's work
am I like that
can people really
depend on me
as someone
who is
reliable
in the service
of the Lord
there are prayer warriors
I've mentioned that
we have prayer warriors
at Brunsfield
great if more of us
could be that
and could be really
in prayer for each other
and for God's work
trophies of grace
I'm thinking
in this
are Onesimus
and Mark
people who have
gone wrong
and God has worked
in their lives
and brought them
to know
and to follow
Jesus
in one sense
all of us
who know Jesus
are trophies of grace
none of us
by ourselves
have any great
merit
but great to be encouraged
particularly by those
who have recently
come to know
the Lord Jesus
and the work
that he has done
in their lives
and continues to do
in all of our lives
and perhaps for some
we're not even
at that point yet
that we haven't actually
come to the point
of trusting in Jesus
or recognizing
his death on the cross
for us
and the forgiveness
that that brings
if you're in that position
I urge you
to consider
what Jesus
has done
what he can do
and what you need
from him
and you too
can be one of these
trophies
of grace
and let's make sure
we're not like Demas
I've called him
a hanger on
maybe slightly unfair
on him
but you do get people
in churches
that are hangers on
they're there
irregularly
they don't really
get involved
in things
and they're not
growing
in their faith
let's make sure
none of us
are like that
that we are committed
to the Lord Jesus
that we want
to follow him
and to grow
and to live
for him
I'm sorry
I've taken a bit longer
than I probably should have
but let's pray together
now to finish
Our Father
we thank you
for your word
to us this morning
we thank you
for these people
who Paul brings
before us
in some ways
just names
from a long time ago
but in other ways
people we can
really identify with
and who have so much
to teach us today
we pray that all of us
may be trophies
of grace
that we may know
your grace
in our lives
that we may have
a relationship
with the Lord Jesus
as our saviour
as the one
who died for us
we pray that you
will help us
to be faithful
to be servants
of the Lord Jesus
and to live for him
help us in our prayer life
that it may be real
and it may be fervent
that we may wrestle
in prayer
that we may be
prayer warriors
and help us
to avoid
becoming hangers on
to becoming
becoming those
about whom
there is nothing
that could be said
positively
about our Christian life
keep that flame
of love
in our hearts
and help us
to follow Jesus
faithfully
and to serve him
we thank you
for our time together
we thank you
for our worship
and we commit ourselves
to you now
in the name
of the Lord Jesus
Amen