SPEAKING CHRIST
Thursday, October 30, 2014
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C O L O S S I A N S 4 : 3 - 4
Withal praying also for us, that God would open unto us a door of utterance, to speak the mystery of Christ, for which I am also in bonds:
That I may make it manifest, as I ought to speak.
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Church tradition holds that the Apostle Paul was being held in the Mamertine prison in Rome when he wrote this letter to the Colossians. The prison was located near the Roman Forum in an abandoned stone quarry underneath the city. The prison itself was essentially two large rooms at different levels. Prisoners were held with iron shackles fixed to the walls.
The lighting was very poor. The air was rancid with the smell of smoke from fires used for lighting, heating, and cooking. Human waste was not properly disposed of adding even more to the misery of the prisoners.
The guards, usually Roman soldiers, were noted more for their cruelty than for their kindness. Visitors were not always allowed and the provisions they brought for the prisoners were often stolen by the guards. A few privileged prisoners were bound by longer chains so that they could sleep on straw beds with blankets.
Now look again at Paul's prayer request.
He was not praying that the door would be opened so that he could get out. He was praying that a door would be opened so that the Gospel would get out.
He was not praying to be set free. He was praying that his captors would be set free in Christ!
He was not asking for a chance to say something. He was praying that the Lord Jesus would help him say what he ought to say.
And so it is with men who have the reality of eternity before them.
Those who have set their affections on things above are not seeking to be glorified, rather they seek to glorify the Lord!
They are not seeking for their own comfort, they are seeking to comfort others--bringing them to the God of all comfort.
They are not seeking to do their will--they are seeking to do God's Will. And when Christ is all in all, then their will is identical with God's will.
Rather than praying that God would change our circumstances, let's join with the Apostle in praying that God would use us in the circumstances we face today--that we would speak, and act, and think as we ought to speak, act, and think.
May this one Cause be our Cause--SIMPLY JESUS!
The lighting was very poor. The air was rancid with the smell of smoke from fires used for lighting, heating, and cooking. Human waste was not properly disposed of adding even more to the misery of the prisoners.
The guards, usually Roman soldiers, were noted more for their cruelty than for their kindness. Visitors were not always allowed and the provisions they brought for the prisoners were often stolen by the guards. A few privileged prisoners were bound by longer chains so that they could sleep on straw beds with blankets.
Now look again at Paul's prayer request.
He was not praying that the door would be opened so that he could get out. He was praying that a door would be opened so that the Gospel would get out.
He was not praying to be set free. He was praying that his captors would be set free in Christ!
He was not asking for a chance to say something. He was praying that the Lord Jesus would help him say what he ought to say.
And so it is with men who have the reality of eternity before them.
Those who have set their affections on things above are not seeking to be glorified, rather they seek to glorify the Lord!
They are not seeking for their own comfort, they are seeking to comfort others--bringing them to the God of all comfort.
They are not seeking to do their will--they are seeking to do God's Will. And when Christ is all in all, then their will is identical with God's will.
Rather than praying that God would change our circumstances, let's join with the Apostle in praying that God would use us in the circumstances we face today--that we would speak, and act, and think as we ought to speak, act, and think.
May this one Cause be our Cause--SIMPLY JESUS!
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