Last words are meant to be lasting words, yet so often I am guilty of skimming over them in the Bible. I find this temptation in the conclusion of Paul’s letter to the Colossians as well. He lists several names and gives salutatory commands that may seem to amount to “Tell Barnabas I said hey.” Yet when we slow down and consider all that he’s saying in this passage, there’s a beautiful lesson to be learned. That lesson is the example of effective gospel ministry.

Paul’s ministry of the gospel was effective. It bore much fruit. You and I are more than likely believers today because of Paul’s ministry. Yet we know from the book of Acts and his epistles that he never ministered alone. There were several men and women that God called to minister alongside Paul, whether it was through joining him on mission trips, helping him escape assassination attempts, or working alongside him to plant and encourage churches.

In other words, Paul’s ministry wasn’t effective just because he was a great communicator or a strong leader. It was effective because of the things and people that made up his ministry of the gospel. We see these people and these things in full color in Colossians 4:7-18. I call them the necessary ingredients to effective gospel ministry. Here’s seven of them.

1. Gospel ministry requires the family of God laboring together (4:7-8).

Paul begins this section, “Tychicus will tell you all about my activities. He is a beloved brother and faithful minister and fellow servantin the Lord” (v. 7).[1] Notice that he refers to Tychicus by name and calls him first a beloved brother and then a fellow servant. The church of Jesus Christ is not primarily a team or a staff, but a family, and we labor together to fulfill the family mission of making disciples among the nations. We are not called to minister individually, but together! If the apostle Paul needed partners in the gospel, how much more do we?

2. Gospel ministry requires intentional encouragement (4:8).

Paul tells the Colossians his purpose in sending Tychicus to them: “that you may know how we are” and “that he may encourage your hearts” (v. 8). These are two separate purposes, but they are closely related. We recently had a missionary from South Asia come and give our church a report on the work there. By letting us know “how they are,” he greatly encouraged our hearts that God is still at work among the nations.

However, I do think Paul is sending Tychicus to encourage the Colossians directly. The gift of encouragement is to the church what a rush of oxygen is to a struggling fire. That’s why Paul commands the Thessalonians to “encourage one another and build each other up” (1 Thess 5:11). We know this intuitively. If you’ve spent any time trying to improve in some skill or area of life and someone takes note and encourages you in it, it strengthens you to continue what you’re doing. So it is with gospel ministry. We must intentionally encourage one another to keep laboring for Christ’s kingdom.

3. Gospel ministry requires intercessory prayer (4:12-13).

Paul names another man in v. 12, Epaphras, and describes him as “always struggling on your behalf in his prayers.” He goes on to say that Epaphras “has worked hard for you and for those in Laodicea and in Hierapolis” (v. 13). Epaphras could have visited and worked in these churches, but within the context of v. 12, Paul likely has the work of prayer in view. Epaphras is a prayer warrior for these three churches. His work is regularly taking them and their needs before the throne of heaven.

Effective gospel ministry in a church requires intentional prayer of every member. As Spurgeon once said, a prayerless church member is like a decaying tooth in the mouth that does not contribute to the work of the church. Each member should pray for the ministry and health of the church. It is necessary work, and it is good work, but it is work. In other words, it doesn’t just happen naturally. We must make time for it, and commit to it. Let us be members who, like Epaphras, work hard by praying for our churches and their ministry of the gospel.

Continue reading “The Necessary Ingredients for Effective Gospel Ministry (Colossians 4:7-18)” →