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What We Can Learn From The End Of Paul and Timothy’s Letter To The Colossians; The Things That Characterized Messiah’s Community During The Middle Of The First Century; The Same Things Need To Characterize Our Lives
Messiah’s Community, during this middle part of the First Century, was the Church at its best. It was pure. It was holy. It was dedicated. It was zealous. It had great understanding of the Word of God. It was powerful. It was evangelistic. It was led by great leaders – primarily Messianic Jewish men. Paul and Timothy’s final thoughts in this letter to the Colossians reveal some of the reasons why Messiah’s Community, during this middle part of the First Century, was at its best.
Tychicus will tell you all the news about me. He is a dear brother, a faithful minister and fellow servant in the Lord. I am sending him to you for the express purpose that you may know about our circumstances and that he may encourage your hearts. He is coming with Onesimus, our faithful and dear brother, who is one of you. They will tell you everything that is happening here. My fellow prisoner Aristarchus sends you his greetings, as does Mark, the cousin of Barnabas. (You have received instructions about him; if he comes to you, welcome him.) Yeshua, who is called Justus, also sends greetings. These are the only Jews among my co-workers for the kingdom of God, and they have proved a comfort to me. Epaphras, who is one of you and a servant of Messiah Yeshua, 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. I vouch for him that he is working hard for you and for those at Laodicea and Hierapolis. Our dear friend Luke, the doctor, and Demas send greetings. Give my greetings to the brothers and sisters at Laodicea, and to Nympha and the church (community of the called out ones) in her house. After this letter has been read to you, see that it is also read in the church of the Laodiceans and that you in turn read the letter from Laodicea. Tell Archippus: “See to it that you complete the ministry you have received in the Lord.” I, Paul, write this greeting in my own hand. Remember my chains. Grace be with you.
Today, many Christians and Messianic Jews are not close to their religious community. They are not connected the way they should be. Their involvement in the community is minimal; they only come occasionally to meetings of the community and then leave and have little or no involvement with anyone from the community the rest of the week.
In contrast, in this part of the First Century, individual Messianic Jews and Christians were closely connected to each other. Paul and Timothy considered Tychicus, who brought this letter to the Community at Colossae, to be their dear brother. Paul and Timothy referred to the members of the community at Laodicea as brothers and sisters. That means that the Christians and Messianic Jews felt very close to each other, like members of a family.
In this part of the First Century, individual Messianic Jews and Christians cared about each other. One way of knowing that is that they stayed informed about each other. Tychicus will tell you all the news about me … I am sending him to you for the express purpose that you may know about our circumstances ... They will tell you everything that is happening here ... After this letter has been read to you, see that it is also read in the community of the called out ones of the Laodiceans and that you in turn read the letter from Laodicea. Care is communicated by interest. If you care about someone, you make special efforts to communicate with him and inform him what is going on with you, and find out what is going on with him. Don’t you do that with the people you care about? With members of your family? With your close friends? Do you do that with people in our community?
What characterized individual Messianic Jews and Christians and their communities in this part of the First Century? They courageously told others the Good News about the Messiah, and were willing to endure the reaction their bold proclamation caused. They declared that there was not many gods, but only one God, the Three-In-One God of Israel, who alone can save human beings from Satan, sin, the sin nature and death; that Yeshua of Nazareth was the unique Son of God; that He had taken on human nature, lived a perfect life, died and rose from the dead; that the Risen Messiah was the only source of salvation; that Yeshua was Adonai, the Lord who claimed the exclusive devotion and loyalty of Jews and Gentiles everywhere.
I think you can understand why that message was not popular among the Jewish people, and why it was not popular among the Gentiles. Not only was Paul, who boldly proclaimed the Message about the Messiah in chains, and imprisoned in Rome, but another one of the leaders who traveled and worked with Paul, Aristarchus, was also a prisoner there. Christians and Messianic Jews boldly proclaimed the Good News and were willing to endure the persecution that resulted.
Because they were experiencing opposition and persecution, and because they cared for one another, they made special efforts to encourage one another. I am sending Tychicus to you for the express purpose that he may encourage your hearts. Paul knew that Tychicus would be able to tell the Colossians that even though Paul was in prison, and facing trial which could result in his death, the Rabbi was in good spirits, and that he was firm in the faith and wasn’t going to deny the Lord no matter what; that opposition wouldn’t deter him from his mission of serving the Lord, teaching the believers, reaching out to the lost with the Good News. And, if Paul, who was in prison, could do these things, the Colossians could too.
One way Christians and Messianic Jews in this part of the First Century encouraged each other was by sending greetings to each other. Aristarchus sends you his greetings, as does Mark, the cousin of Barnabas. Yeshua, who is called Justus, also sends greetings. Epaphras sends greetings. I, Paul, write this greeting in my own hand. Life in a fallen world is not easy. Following the Messiah in a fallen world is not easy. Even though we have the Spirit of the Messiah living in us; even though we have the sure hope of living forever, followers of Messiah can still get discouraged. If you sense that someone is discouraged, won’t you do something to encourage him? A special greeting, a call, a card, a letter, an email saying something encouraging? Inviting that person who may be discouraged or struggling with something to eat a meal with you can make a huge difference in his life.
The leaders at that time were everything those who serve the Messiah should be – faithful, hardworking leaders, yet humble servants. Tychicus is a faithful minister and fellow servant. Epaphras is a servant of Messiah Yeshua. He is working hard for you. Epaphras worked hard by praying a lot for those he served. Epaphras is always wrestling in prayer for you, that you may stand firm in all the will of God, mature and fully assured. I vouch for him that he is working hard for you and for those at Laodicea and Hierapolis.
Most leaders today work hard. Some people think Rabbi Glenn and I work hard, but only one day a week – on Shabbat, but that’s not true. There is a lot of work to be done to serve the Lord and the Shema community during the week.
Most Christian and Messianic Jewish leaders today work hard, but unlike those mentioned here, not all are faithful ministers. Wanting to be please man more than God; wanting to gain the approval of the Jewish community or the academic community; wanting to go for numbers and money more than truth, they compromise, water down the message, only declare comfortable things, but not the hard things or the whole truth. It is so important to have leaders who are faithful, hardworking, humble servants.
During this part of the First Century, Messiah’s Community was very serious about fulfilling their spiritual responsibilities. Tell Archippus: “See to it that you complete the ministry you have received in the Lord.” They understood that leaders were called by the Lord to serve Him and to serve His people and to reach out to outsiders with the Good News. Ministry was considered to be a very special gift, and that those who received the responsibilities of ministry were expected to faithfully and fully complete the ministry they received.
This was a community where slaves, or former slaves, were not looked down on. Onesimus, who is the subject of the letter written to Philemon, was a slave who had run away from his master Philemon. He found his way to Rome and had become a follower of the Messiah through Paul during his imprisonment. Even though he was a slave, and a not very good one at that, he was considered by Timothy and by Paul, a Roman citizen and a respected rabbi, to be a faithful and dear brother – in other words, an equal.
This was a community that was aware of racial and national differences, but didn’t give into prejudice. Jews and Gentiles got along and worked together. Onesimus was one of the Colossians. Aristarchus, Mark and Yeshua were Jews who worked with Paul. Jews and Gentiles worked together in a close, tight-knit community, in spite of any racial or national differences.
This was a community where grace, mercy and forgiveness were practiced. This letter began with a prayer for grace (unmerited, unearned, undeserved favor) and it ends with a prayer for grace. Grace be with you. Paul and Timothy let the Colossians know that if Mark, the cousin of Barnabas, were to come to them, they were to welcome him. Mark, the author of the book of Mark, had left Paul during his first missionary journey, and Paul felt that Mark shouldn’t have left. They were estranged, but later they reconciled and were able to resume working together. That’s grace in action.
These were people who prayed for each other. Epaphras is always wrestling in prayer for you, that you may stand firm in all the will of God, mature and fully assured. I vouch for him that he is working hard for you and for those at Laodicea and Hierapolis. Like engaging in a wrestling match, which is physically very demanding, Epaphras worked hard by praying for them – particularly that they would know what God wants – what He wants us to know about Himself and the way of salvation; how He wants us to live; what He wants for our priorities. And Epaphras prayed that they become mature Christians and Messianic Jews, Messiah-centered, focused on evangelism, sure of their faith, sure of their relationship to God, sure of their hope of eternal life; bold, confident, going on the offensive, able to endure opposition.
To summarize what characterized Messiah’s Community during the middle of the First Century:
It was a community in which individuals and communities were closely connected to each other.
It was a community in which individuals and communities cared about each other.
They stayed informed about each other.
It was a community which was opposed for boldly proclaiming the Message about the Messiah.
It was a community in which the leaders were everything Christian and Messianic Jewish leaders should be – humble servant-leaders serious about serving the Lord and God’s people.
It was a community in which slaves, or former slaves, were not looked down on.
It was a community in which racial and national differences didn’t create prejudice.
It was a community in which grace, mercy and forgiveness were practiced.
These were people who prayed for each other.
Now, let’s try to apply these things to us, and ask ourselves how we are measuring up:
The people of Messiah’s Community in the middle of the First Century were closely connected to each other. How connected are you to the Shema Community? Do you feel that the members of Shema are your brothers and sisters? Do you try to relate to them that way? Are you getting to know them, develop a relationship with them, or do you just come to a service, say hi and goodby and leave, and think your duty to God has been fulfilled? Do you see Shema as “going to services,” or as a community you are part of? What are you doing to build up the community, create a sense of community?
The people of Messiah’s Community in the middle of the First Century cared about each other. Do you care about the people at Shema? Do you do anything to express that care in a practical way?
The people of Messiah’s Community in the middle of the First Century stayed informed about each other. Do you? Take an interest in them and talk to them and find out what is going on with them? Do you read the announcements to inform yourself what is happening?
The people of Messiah’s Community in the middle of the First Century were opposed because they declared the Good News and called people to repent, to turn to God. Are you? Are you I doing anything, saying anything, that results in opposition, rejection, persecution? If not, why not?
I want to commend the 20 people that made the effort to go to the Ann Arbor Art Fair, wear a Jesus Made Me Kosher tshirt, hand out pamphlets and talk to people. I’m proud of you. Your brothers and sisters in the First Century would have been proud of you. For those of you who have not done something like that, I want to encourage you to join us for the Woodward Dream Cruise that’s coming up, or the Thanksgiving Day Parade; next year, Lord willing, take a day off of work and join us for evangelism at the Ann Arbor Art Fair.
The leaders of Messiah’s Community in the middle of the First Century were humble servant-leaders serious about serving the Lord and God’s people. Our leaders here at Shema are trying to be like that. How about you? You may not be a leader, but you can still serve God’s people. Are you doing anything to serve the Lord or serve God’s people?
The people of Messiah’s Community in the middle of the First Century did not look down on slaves or former slaves. Do you look down on Christians and Messianic Jews if they have a lower social, economic or educational status?
The people of Messiah’s Community in the middle of the First Century were aware of racial and national differences, but didn’t give into prejudice. Are you prejudiced against any of your fellow Christians and Messianic Jews based on race, nationality, or the color of their skin?
Messiah’s Community in the middle of the First Century practiced grace, mercy and forgiveness. Are you being gracious to others? Am you quick to forgive, or do you hold grudges and resentments?
The people of Messiah’s Community in the middle of the First Century prayed for each other. Do you pray for the members of the Shema community? For your other brothers and sister throughout the world?
Let’s pray: Lord, please make us, and our community, more like the Church of the middle part of the First Century. And, not only us, Lord, but Christian and Messianic Jewish communities and congregations all over the world. Amen? Amen!