Prayer: Our Wartime Walkie-Talkie

Introduction

If you have a Bible, and I hope you or somebody around you does that you can look on with. Let me invite you to open with me to Colossians 4. I want to put a picture in your mind today. I have in my hand a walkie-talkie from World War II. So that’s when walkie-talkies were invented. This mechanism, obviously, technology has come a long way. You’re not putting this in your pocket, but invented for the first time for troops on the ground to be able to communicate with their commander, general’s headquarters. And it was revolutionary when it came to battle to be able to communicate in that way. Now, I want to be super careful from the very beginning when using wartime imagery. I in no way want to communicate that we as Christians are supposed to be militant in a physical way or even in terms of a culture war.

But the Bible clearly teaches that we are all engaged in our lives in spiritual battle. And this applies whether you’re a Christian or not. There is an adversary, the devil who is actively working to destroy your life. And your family and your future. The Bible teaches we have all turned from God and his ways to ourselves and our own ways. The Bible calls that sin and describes all of us as held captive to sin that leads to death.

And if we die in this state of captivity to sin apart from God, we’ll experience eternal death and suffering. And Satan, the devil, wants all of us to experience everlasting suffering. But the good news of the Bible is that God loves us and has made a way for us to be forgiven of our sin and freed from captivity, to experience eternal life in Jesus now and forever.

What this all means is that we live every day on the front lines of spiritual battle, and this plays out in all of our lives, even as followers of Jesus, with temptations to sin, with battles to believe that which is true and not lies or deceptions from the enemy. And it also plays out in spiritual battles that involve others’ lives. People who are at this moment still separated from God.

And don’t know Jesus and are on a road that leads to everlasting suffering. So obviously not in a militant way, but with love and compassion and with the gospel, the greatest news in the world of freedom from sin to experience eternal life, we give our lives on the front lines of battle to making this gospel known.

And God has given us a method of communication. So now make the connection. A method of communication on the ground to be in contact with him at all times, as our commander. And that method of communication is called what? Prayer. So John Piper is the first person I ever heard use this illustration of prayer as a wartime walkie-talkie. So I’m going to quote here from his book, Let the Nations Be Glad!, I would highly recommend it on mission in the Christian life. And he writes, “Probably the number one reason prayer malfunctions in the hands of believers is that we try to turn a wartime walkie-talkie into a domestic intercom.”

“Prayer,” he writes, “Is for the accomplishment of a wartime mission. It’s as though the field commander, Jesus, called in the troops, gave them a crucial mission: go and make disciples of all the nations. Handed each of them a personal transmitter, coded to the frequency of the general’s headquarters, and said, ‘Comrades, the general has a mission for you. He aims to see it accomplished, and to that end, he’s authorized me to give to each of you personal access to him through these transmitters. If you stay true to his mission and seek his victory first, he will always be as close as your transmitter to give tactical advice and to send air cover when you need it.’”

And then he writes, “But what have millions of Christians done? We’ve stopped believing that we are in a war. No urgency, no watching, no vigilance, no strategic planning, just easy peace and prosperity. And what did we do with the walkie-talkie? We tried to rig it up as an intercom in our houses and cabins and boats, and cars, not to call in firepower for conflict with a mortal enemy, but to ask for more comforts in the den.” And today I want to show you in God’s Word that this is what prayer is for in a way that I hope will totally transform your understanding of prayer. And that this week we’re going to put it into practice with love for people around us, realizing we are in a spiritual battle and the stakes are infinitely high.

So, one more quote from Piper. “Most people show by their priorities and their casual approach to spiritual things that they believe we are in peacetime, not wartime. Very few people think that we’re in a war that is greater than World War II or than any imaginable nuclear war. Few reckon that Satan is a much worse enemy than any earthly foe or realize that the conflict is not restricted to any one global theater, but is in every town and city in the world who considers that the casualties of this war do not merely lose an arm or an eye or an earthly life, but lose everything, even their own souls and enter a hell of everlasting torment. Until we feel the force of this, we will not pray as we ought. We will not even know what prayer is.” Is that true, that we won’t even know what prayer is if we’re not using it like a wartime walkie-talkie?

Talk to God about People

Well, let’s look at God’s Word. Colossians 4:2, 

“2 Continue steadfastly in prayer, being watchful in it with thanksgiving. 3 At the same time, pray also for us, that God may open to us a door for the word, to declare the mystery of Christ, on account of which I am in prison— 4 that I may make it clear, which is how I ought to speak. 5 Walk in wisdom toward outsiders, making the best use of the time. 6 Let your speech always be gracious, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how you ought to answer each person.” 

So did you see that? There are two imperative verbs in the verses we just read, two commands that God gives us here through Paul, who is writing by the way from prison where he has been chained for spreading the gospel, and he gives two commands: “Continue steadfastly in prayer, and pray”. So that’s the first command. And then the second one is “Walk in wisdom toward outsiders as you speak to them”. So pray as you walk, walk and talk, walkie-talkie.

Colossians 4. So here’s how I would put it. If you’re taking notes, hear what God’s Word is saying to us today. Two commands. So, one is this, just to make it simple. Talk to God about people constantly. That’s the picture here. Continue conversation with God all the time. You don’t turn off a walkie-talkie, you don’t say “Captain, not going to be talking to you anymore”. It’s always, always there. You’re always in communication. “Being watchful”. What a great description of prayer. Looking around you, talking with God about it. “God, I see this. I’m praying. I see that I’m praying. I see this person, praying for them. See that person, praying for them. That person doesn’t know Jesus, praying for them. That person’s walking through this, I’m praying for them”. It’s continual calling out to God. “God, I don’t understand what’s happening around me right now, help me to see through your eyes, not my own eyes, being watchful with thanksgiving”. I love it. Always looking for evidences of God’s grace around you.

“Oh Lord God, general, I see your goodness there. Praise you for that. Thank you for being near to me, not leaving me alone in that battle. Thank you”. Paul’s writing, even in prison: “Helping me in every way I need”, which then leads into the next two verses. “At the same time, pray also for us”. Paul says, “Me, those who are with me, that God may open to us a door for the Word to declare the mystery of Christ on account of which I’m in prison, that I may make it clear which is how I ought to speak”. This is amazing. Make sure you understand. See what is happening here. Paul is saying, “Pray that God will open a door.” So this is language the Bible uses elsewhere to describe God making a way in particular places or people’s hearts for the Word of God to go. So he says, “Pray for an open door for the Word to spread,” specifically “the mystery of Christ”. You’re like, “What does that mean? Mystery of Christ”. Well, many of you have memorized this over the course of this series.

So this is the final exam, Colossians 1:15–20. I’m going to put it up here on the screen. I want to invite everybody to read it out loud together. And if you’ve memorized it over the course of this series, then keep your eyes closed. All right, here we go. Talking about Jesus. This is the mystery of Christ, who he is. What does the Bible say? Let’s read it out loud together. 

“15 He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. 16 For by him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things were created through him and for him. 17 And he is before all things, and in him all things hold together. 18 And he is the head of the body, the church. He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, that in everything he might be preeminent. 19 For in him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell, 20 and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven, making peace by the blood of his cross.” – Colossians 1:15–20

Well done. Get the mystery. Jesus’s God in the flesh who’s come to this world at war to bring what? Peace with God through his death on the cross for sin. And spoiler alert from next week, his resurrection from the grave. Jesus has conquered the cosmic powers of sin and darkness and death so that captives to sin anywhere, everywhere, no matter who you are, no matter what you’ve done, you can be reconciled to God. So then, what is prayer for? Prayer is a wartime walkie-talkie for God to open doors for that Word, that mystery to spread. And Paul is here in prison in enemy territory. He sneaks out a letter to some of his fellow troops, and he says, “I need you over in Colossae to ask God to blow open the doors for the good news of Jesus to be clear here”. This is incredible. Don’t miss it.

An open door that the Word about Jesus is spreading through in a Roman prison was dependent on people in Colossae praying for that. Do you see that? The spread of the gospel through Paul in a Roman prison was dependent on brothers and sisters in Christ, praying in Colossae. Do you realize the implications of this, what this means? Just think in this gathering right now, think about brothers and sisters who used to sit in this room or other rooms where we’re gathered right now, who have been sent out from among us to go to places like Turkey or India, or Thailand. They’re on the front lines of spreading the gospel in hard places, and they need us continually calling out to God for his grace, his power, open doors for them to spread the gospel clearly in Turkey and India, and Thailand. The spread of the gospel in Turkey and India, and Thailand through our brothers and sisters is dependent on our wartime walkie-talkie praying in metro DC.

That’s the clear implication of this text. And then now think closer to home. So this next week, think next Sunday, all five of our locations, five different pastors are going to preach Jesus. So, what do we need to be doing this week? All of us get on the walkie-talkie. Pray for open doors to invite people, spread the gospel to people, pray for people’s hearts to be open to hear the gospel. Pray for every single pastor who’s going to be preaching Jesus. Pray that we will make it clear and do all of this, knowing that the mystery of Jesus spreading this week is actually dependent on you using this walkie-talkie this week. Prayer actually matters.

Let me tell you a story. Some of you may have heard me share this. One of my favorite stories from one of my favorite preachers in church history, D.L. Moody. So God used D.L. Moody, his proclamation of the gospel to lead countless people to faith in Jesus when he had been traveling, preaching in a variety of different places in the United States. And God was just blessing his proclamation of the gospel to lead many people to Christ. He had just started preaching over in England, and he was preaching this one church on a Sunday morning, and he preached the gospel, invited people to respond. And the way he described it later, it was like nobody was listening and nobody responded. And it’s just to speak from experience, it is not an awesome feeling when you’re standing up in front of people, and it’s just like, “Is this thing on? I don’t even know if anybody’s here”.

And so it was one of those Sunday mornings for him, and he came back that night to preach to the same group of people, and he was not looking forward to it. But when he got back that night, he said the atmosphere spirit in the room was totally different. It was like people were sitting on the edge of their seats, and he got to the en,d and he invited people to put their faith in Jesus. And he said, “If you want to trust in Jesus, I want to invite you to stand up.” And nobody responds in the morning. This time, people stood up all over the room, and he was so confused. He’s like, “What happened?” So then he thought, “Well, maybe they didn’t understand, maybe they’re confused”. So he said, “Why don’t you sit back down”. And he shares the gospel one more time.

And he says, “Now, if you really want to trust in Jesus, now stand up.” Well, more people stood up the second time than did the first time, but he still was not convinced. So, true story, Moody told them to sit back down. He said, “I want to share the gospel one more time, like the cost of following Jesus. And if you really want to follow Jesus, we’re going to dismiss. And the pastor and I are going to meet in a side room for anybody who wants to come and talk more there.” And so he dismisses the service, goes into the side room, he and the pastor. Well, before long, that room is standing room only. It’s packed with people. Moody, still not convinced, said, “I’m going to share it one more time, and if you really want to trust in Jesus, I want to invite you to come back tomorrow night and meet with the pastor here.”

He’s going to dismiss them. Moody was headed out of town the next morning. He was like, I’m just going to leave this with the pastor to figure out. So he shares the gospel one more time, says, “Come back tomorrow night if you really want to trust in Jesus.” They dismiss. He leaves the next morning. A few days later, he gets a telegram, that’s how they communicated back then, from this pastor saying, “You need to get back here. More people showed up on Monday night than we’re here on Sunday night. God’s doing something here.” He comes back, he preaches for weeks. And it was one of those stories where just revival breaks out and spiritual awakening, and all these people coming to know Jesus all across the city. So Moody was super inquisitive, wanted to find out what was the difference between Sunday morning and Sunday night.

So he starts doing some research, and he finds out about this bedridden woman who was not at church that morning because of her illness. And her sister, who was at church, came that afternoon, brought her lunch, and when her sister brought her lunch, she asked, “Hey, how did church go this morning?” Her sister said, “Ah, it wasn’t that great. There was a guy named D.L. Moody who preached.” Immediately, the bedridden woman’s eyes lit up. She said, “I have heard about how God has been using that man in the United States. I’ve actually prayed that God would bring him to England. Set my food aside. I’m going to fast and pray the rest of this afternoon that many people would come to know Christ in our town through his preaching of the gospel.”

Same group of people, same preacher, same Word, totally different power. Why? Because people got on, one woman got on the walkie-talkie.

She said, “God, do what only you can do”. And it happens. So don’t miss the point of what God’s saying in this text. Prayer is the human key that unlocks the power of God and the spread of the gospel in the world. Are you hearing this?

Prayer is the human key that you have in your hand to unlock the power of God and the spread of the gospel in the world. So let’s use it like that. Let’s steward this gift we’ve been given. Prayer is not just for more comforts in our lives. Prayer is for the accomplishment of a mission in the world and the saving of people’s lives for all of eternity. So, talk to God about people constantly.

Talk to People about God

And then so walkie-talkie, talk, walk, then “walk in wisdom”. So the way I’m going to put it here is to then talk to people about God wisely. That’s the second command here. “Walk in wisdom toward outsiders”. So that’s a reference to people who don’t know Jesus. And then the language here, look at this, “Making the best use of the time.” This is so good. The word that Paul uses for “time” there isn’t just time in general. That would be “chronos”, which we might get like “chronology”. Instead, Paul uses this word “kairos”, which you might be familiar with, like a kairos moment, a particular moment that’s set aside for a particular purpose. And basically this verse is saying, “The time you have with people who don’t know Jesus isn’t just accidental. It’s purposeful”. God ordains moments, time with you, and people who don’t know Jesus for a reason. And I want you just to think about how this infuses meaning into your every interaction with someone who doesn’t know Jesus.

It is not an accident that they are in your family, or that they’re your friend, or that you work with them, that you’re in the cubicle next to them, or you walk the halls of school with them, sit next to them in that class. Whether you play on that team with them, or live next to them, or will just so happen to meet them, run into them this week, or be in an Uber with them. In all these things, make the most of the moments, the time that God has purposely given you for people who are on a road that leads to eternal suffering, that he loves and desires to have eternal life. And here’s what you do. God says, “let your speech always”, always, and whether you’re in a good mood or a bad mood, always, “your speech always be gracious”. And just dripping with the love and the grace of God, and everything you say to others and everything you say about others, that your speech be “gracious and seasoned with salt”.

We talked about this in Matthew 5, salt and light in a decaying world. Let your speech be different in a way that is beneficial and helpful to others. “So that”, purpose, “so that you may know how you ought to answer each person”. And the picture here is clearly focused on sharing the gospel with each person you interact with. Which obviously doesn’t mean it’s the only thing you talk about, but it is the one thing you inevitably talk about with everyone. So, just think based on this text about your interactions with people who don’t know Jesus and ask, is your speech gracious in a way that draws people to God’s grace through the way you talk?

Is it seasoned with salt in a beneficial, helpful way that’s different from this world, and have you at any point shared the gospel with each person that you normally interact with? And if the answer to that question is no, I would just encourage you to consider why not. Why, if Jesus is your life and you know Jesus is the only way for them to have life, why have you not shared him with them? And I ask the same question of people I interact with. And if we’re not careful, we can talk all day long with people about work, and school, and the weather, and food, and sports, and politics, and current events, and circumstances. And obviously, it’s not wrong to talk about these things, but none of those things are going to last forever. At some point, let’s speak about what lasts forever. Let’s make the most, the little bit of time we have here to speak to each person about what matters for all of eternity.

And I know one of the reasons that many of us don’t talk this way, and I say this from personal experience, why we don’t talk about God or the gospel with each person is because we’re afraid or we feel like you might be awkward. We’re just not sure what to say. And this is where I want to encourage you in a couple of ways. Very practically, we could dive into a ton here, but I wrote a little book that you can download for free online called Gospel Threads that’s the overflow of me processing this in my own life. How do I share the gospel in the fabric of everyday interactions, just weaving threads of the gospel into the fabric of my interactions with others? So that’s just a practical resource that I wrote to try to be helpful along these lines. Just search Gospel Threads.

And then two, this text is telling us this is what the walkie-talkies for. It’s what prayer is for, to ask the commander for help. We all need help. This is Paul. This is the greatest missionary in the history of Christianity. He said, “I need somebody to pray for me to make the gospel clear”. If he needed help, you need help, and I need help. We all need help. And the whole point of the passage is God wants to give the help, and prayer is the means by which we get the help.

So pray for this in our lives and pray for this in each other’s lives. This is how we help each other in the church. We’ve all got walkie-talkies to ask our Commander to help us and to help each other. That’s what the church does together, not just get together and prayer requests for more comforts in the den. We get together and we call out for God’s help for each other to spread this good news in this city. God open doors and help us to clearly speak the mystery of Christ as we ought to speak. 

Jesus Removes Barriers Between Us

Which then leads to this list of all these names at the end of Colossians, which when you read a list like this and you’re doing your Bible reading, oftentimes you just kind of like read through this, and you’re like, “I’m not really sure what this has to do with my life”. Oh, these verses are so good with so many takeaways for our lives.

Let’s read them, then let’s think about it. So verse seven, Paul writes, 

“7 Tychicus will tell you all about my activities. He is a beloved brother and faithful minister and fellow servant in the Lord. 8 I have sent him to you for this very purpose, that you may know how we are and that he may encourage your hearts, 9 and with him Onesimus, our faithful and beloved brother, who is one of you. They will tell you of everything that has taken place here.

10 Aristarchus my fellow prisoner greets you, and Mark the cousin of Barnabas (concerning whom you have received instructions—if he comes to you, welcome him), 11 and Jesus who is called Justus. These are the only men of the circumcision among my fellow workers for the kingdom of God, and they have been a comfort to me. 12 Epaphras, who is one of you, a servant of Christ Jesus, greets you, always struggling on your behalf in his prayers, that you may stand mature and fully assured in all the will of God. 13 For I bear him witness that he has worked hard for you and for those in Laodicea and in Hierapolis. 14 Luke the beloved physician greets you, as does Demas. 15 Give my greetings to the brothers at Laodicea, and to Nympha and the church in her house. 16 And when this letter has been read among you, have it also read in the church of the Laodiceans; and see that you also read the letter from Laodicea. 17 And say to Archippus, “See that you fulfill the ministry that you have received in the Lord.”” 

Oh, there’s so much here, so many different takeaways for our lives just flowing from this list of names. I’ll just mention a few of them here. One, Jesus removes barriers between us. This list includes Jews, Greeks, men, women, slaves, and free. And it’s all a reminder of the beauty of the body of Christ. It’s one of the things I love most whenever I’m in another setting around the world, like in Bangladesh a few weeks ago with this group of 500 18 to 30-year-olds just crammed in this room. And we don’t speak the same language. We have so many differences in our background, and just so many different things.

And yet instantly I’m with family. These are brothers and sisters in Christ. And then I think about that just in this room and all the rooms where we’re gathered right now is a church family. So many of us from different ethnicities, cultural backgrounds, perspectives, and yet we are closer than even physical family, like spiritual family. We have the same bloodline forever. Jesus removes barriers between us and follow this, Jesus heals brokenness between us. 

Jesus Heals Brokenness Between Us

Did you see Mark mentioned in verses 10 and 11? That’s the same Mark who Acts 15 tells us Paul, who’s writing this, and Barnabas had a sharp disagreement over Mark because of something Mark had done to Paul and Paul said, I don’t want Mark to go along with us. And they ended up splitting and going different ways. And yet by this time in Colossians four, God has reconciled that relationship to the point where Mark, he says, “Welcome him because he has been a comfort to me.”

Do you believe that, that God has power to heal brokenness between brothers and sisters in Christ? Ask God our Father to do that in any relationship where there’s brokenness with a brother or sister in Christ. 

We All Need Brothers and Sisters Like This in Our Lives

And the third takeaway, we all need brothers and sisters like this in our lives. You just look at the description. These are beloved people. They love Paul. They’re servants of Jesus alongside Paul. They’re the kind of people who encourage your heart. Don’t we all want and need people in our lives who encourage our hearts? They’re fellow workers for the kingdom alongside Paul. None of us can follow Jesus and make him known in the world on our own. And I love the phrase, “They’ve literally proved a comfort to me”. Aren’t you thankful for people? Don’t you need people in your life who proved to be a comfort to you?

And then check this out. Look at Epaphras. He is always struggling on your behalf in his prayers. Don’t you want people like that in your life who are struggling for you in their prayers?

What a phrase. So that you may stand, mature and fully assured in the will of God. Then look at this. “He has worked hard for you”. Oh, we need people who work hard for our good. This is where I want to encourage you. If you’re not a part of a church group where you have brothers and sisters who are caring for you in these ways, struggling in prayer for you in these ways, encouraging your heart in these ways, get connected to a church group…

We All Need to be Brothers and Sisters Like This in Others’ Lives

And at the same time realize, okay, we need brothers and sisters like this in our lives, and we all need to be brothers and sisters like this in others’ lives.

Who are you comforting, encouraging, loving, and working alongside in the kingdom? Who are you struggling in prayer for? Who are you working hard for? And to the extent you’re doing those things, hear God’s affirmation, keep doing it. He’s pleased and your struggles in prayer for that person, and you’re working hard for their good. We all need to be brothers and sisters like this in others’ lives, knowing that… 

Every Person Matters in God’s Kingdom

So here are two more takeaways, knowing that every person matters in God’s kingdom. I love this. We talk about Paul, we even name our kids after him, this incredible missionary church leader who wrote this letter, but nobody talks about, and very few people, if any, name their kids Tychicus. Is there anybody named Tychicus today? I didn’t think so. Okay. But let’s just point out the obvious. So Tychicus is the one who took the letter to the church of Colossae. Paul wrote it, but if Tychicus didn’t get the letter to them, dropped it along the way, there’s no chance we’re reading it 2000 years later. Everybody matters, and we can miss this because this world trains us to see the prominent people, which is not how God sees.

Let me do a little test, little audience participation. So, trivia, what is the name of the current Commander’s quarterback who was recently named NFL Rookie of the Year and almost led Washington to the Super Bowl? What’s his name? Okay. Say it loud if you know it.

All right. Jayden Daniels. Okay, that’s a lot of people. Now, let me ask this question. What is the name of the center who snapped the ball to Jaden Daniels 941 times this last year? All right, in this room I’m not hearing anybody. So the answer is Tyler Biadasz. I think that’s how you say his name. We can hardly pronounce his name when we see it, much less remember it. But if I could just point out the obvious, if he did not get the ball to Jayden Daniels, there was no chance Jayden Daniels was winning Rookie of the Year and no chance the Commanders were going to the NFC Championship. Don’t miss this. At the end of Colossians here, God is reminding us, “My kingdom is not just about people on a stage or in this or that position. My kingdom is about the bedridden woman praying and fasting”.

That’s where the power is. And every single person in between, every single student, teenager, young adult, up to every single senior adult, every single person in the body of Christ matters for the kingdom of Christ.

Don’t sell God short of what God’s made you to do. Don’t think, well, I’m not this person or that person. No, do not sell God short, the Holy Spirit of God in you to give you a part to play in his kingdom. I love this. I love what we read about with Archippus there at the end of verse 17, “Say to Archippus, ‘See that you fulfill the ministry you have received in the Lord’”.

Notice not the ministry that somebody else received in the Lord, you. So it’s not about comparing yourself with this or that person, thinking, well they do that or they do that. No, you do the ministry that you’ve received from the Lord and do with joy and contentment with all your heart and trust as you play your part. This person plays their part. We’re all playing a part in his kingdom. 

I think about today on this stage with palm branches, with a bunch of kids and children with special needs. And I’m just looking in the faces of the buddies who, every single Sunday, come serve alongside one child with special needs. That is glorious in the kingdom of God. And it is just as important as standing here proclaiming the Word. Everybody playing their part. Every single person matters in the kingdom.

Every Single Moment has the Potential to Bring About Everlasting Fruit

And then, so follow this. One more takeaway. Every single moment has the potential to bring about everlasting fruit. So think about the kairos moment we talked about earlier. You look at this different list of people, one carrying a letter, sending greetings, providing comfort, fulfilling a ministry. I just think this infuses meaning into every moment. You just think about this week. Okay. You could have a conversation with a coworker, or a classmate, or somebody you just happened to meet at the grocery store in line that leads you to invite them to church next Sunday, that leads them to hear the good news of God’s love for them, that leads them to believe and experience eternal life in Jesus. And your conversation at the water cooler, or in the hall of your school, or at the grocery line this week may lead to someone praising and enjoying Jesus 10 trillion years from now. That’s amazing.

What anticipation should we have going into this week and every day with the moments that anyone can lead to everlasting fruit? So what do you do with that? Here’s what you do with that. You get on the walkie-talkie at the very beginning of the day.

And you say, “God, I want to live today for what’s going to matter forever. I want to talk today in a way that’s going to matter forever, to you about people and to people about you”.

So you talk to God about people constantly watchfully, thankfully, “Open a door there, open hearts to hear, got to pray for this person, that person held captive to sin, and pray for their freedom from sin”. You get wounded along the way. God brings you through. You say, “God, thank you for bringing me through. Thank you for helping me get through that, just like you always do”. As you talk to God about people constantly, then you talk to people about God wisely. I guarantee you, you do both those things and your moments in prayer and in walking, walking and talking will bear fruit forever.

So Paul closes all this by saying, 

“I, Paul, write this greeting with my own hand. Remember my chains. Grace be with you.” – Colossians 4:18

Oh, that’s so good, dramatic even. Paul has likely dictated this letter through a scribe, but now with chains around his wrists, he takes the papyrus in his hands, holds the brush between his fingers, and he writes, “I’m writing this with my own hand.”

And he looks down at those hands with chains around them because he’s given his life to this battle. And he says, what many brothers and sisters of ours would say today from North Korean labor camps to Iranian prisons, “Remember my chains”. Don’t forget, we’ve got brothers and sisters who this week will have opportunities to point people to Jesus, and it could cost them their lives. And we live in a land where we’re free to do that. All the more so, we should be bold. He says, “Remember my chains. Pray that I’ll speak it clearly”. Implication: “I’ll pray that you’ll speak it clearly.” And then he says the exact same thing he started at the beginning of the letter, he says, “Grace be with you”. Ah, grace.

Don’t live to spread this gospel spiritual battle because of guilt, because you feel bad. “I guess I’m supposed to do this obligation”. No, because you’re so overwhelmed by the grace and the love of God. What if you read Psalm 103 this morning, the benefits of God, the steadfast love, the grace. The Lord is gracious and merciful, slow to anger and abounding steadfast love, his love in your heart. So live to spread. And he sets it down, rolls it up, says Tychicus, it’s all yours now. 

Who Can You Invite to Come Next Sunday who Doesn’t Know Jesus?

So, church, let’s do this together. Every one of us plan our parts. Let’s get on, let’s stay on the walkie-talkie all the time. I hope you view prayer totally different as a result of Colossians 4. And especially this week. Let’s pray for each other. Let’s pray for open doors, to invite people, knowing you’re going to have opportunities to invite people that I won’t have. I’ll have opportunities to invite people that you won’t have and maybe nobody else will have.

Let’s pray for open doors. Let’s walk through them and let’s pray. Could I invite you even to fast at some point this week from a meal for a day, more, just for power next Sunday? For every one of our pastors who are preaching the gospel they need, we need you praying and fasting for power to make the gospel clear. And don’t stop there. Pray for pastors all across our city who are preaching the gospel, and pray for our brothers and sisters who are spreading the gospel all over the world. Let press in and pray that God will bring countless people over the next week from bondage to sin and death to everlasting life in him. Pray that God would liberate captives this week.

So I want to lead us into a moment of prayer and reflection before God. You and the walkie-talkie, and if you’re not a follower of Jesus, I know I hope that you’ve not gotten too lost in this wartime imagery, but the picture is in sin all of us, in sin separated from God. God has made a way for us to be forgiven of sin, restored a relationship with him. If you’ve never put your faith in Jesus to be forgiven of sin and freed from captivity to it, to experience relationship with God, I invite you to trust in Jesus today. And when you do, and for all who have, look at a world where so many people around us are separated from God on a road that leads to everlasting suffering. Get on the walkie-talkie. And let’s ask. So here’s what I want you to reflect on specifically over the next couple of months. One, who can you invite to come next Sunday, who doesn’t know Jesus?

What does the passage say?

1. Read Colossians 4:2–18 aloud as a group. Before interpreting or applying the passage, share observations about it.
   1. What two commands did the Apostle Paul issue in today’s passage? (Col 4:2, 5)
   2. What commands about prayer did the Apostle Paul offer the saints and faithful brothers in Christ at Colossae? (Col 4:2–4)
   3. What commands about their relations with ‘outsiders’ did he offer them? (Col 4:5–6)
   4. In today’s passage, who did Paul specifically identify as his associates and/or fellow workers? (Col 4:7–17)
2. How would you explain or summarize today’s passage in your own words?

What does the passage mean?

1. In Col 4:2 and 5, the Apostle Paul told the faithful believers in Christ at Colossae to “Continue steadfastly in prayer …” and “Walk in wisdom toward outsiders, …”. In the overall context of the book of Colossians, what enables followers of Jesus to do these things? (Col 1:2, 9, 15–20, 2:1–4, 3:1–5, 16, 4:18c)
2. What stands out to you most as you read and consider today’s passage?

How can we apply this passage to our lives?

1. What encourages you to pray? What discourages you from praying? How might the things that enable followers of Jesus to continue steadfastly in prayer spur your heart and, therefore, your prayers on to maturity, in and through Christ?
2. Consider your typical interactions with others. What heart posture normally governs your involvement in those interactions? What are the ultimate motivations in your heart that drive and shape those interactions? How might the things that enable followers of Jesus to walk in wisdom spur your heart and, therefore, your interactions on to maturity, in and through Christ?
3. Followers of Jesus are in a spiritual battle every day, for our lives and for the lives of people around us. Prayer is one of our spiritual armaments (cf. Eph 6:18). This week, as we approach Easter Sunday, how might you specifically devote yourself to this privilege of prayer–steadfastly, watchfully, lovingly, and thankfully on behalf of others in an eternity-focused, eternally-significant way?
4. Every moment has the potential to bring about everlasting fruit in your life and the lives of those with whom you interact. Going forward, how might you intentionally and specifically adjust your heart posture and ultimate motivations toward others, walking in wisdom in the LORD, so that your interactions might yield eternal life and everlasting fruit?
5. Who can you invite to come to church next Sunday who does not know Jesus? How will you intentionally invite them to come?

Colossians 4:2–18 (English Standard Version)

Further Instructions

2 Continue steadfastly in prayer, being watchful in it with thanksgiving. 3 At the same time, pray also for us, that God may open to us a door for the word, to declare the mystery of Christ, on account of which I am in prison— 4 that I may make it clear, which is how I ought to speak.

5 Walk in wisdom toward outsiders, making the best use of the time. 6 Let your speech always be gracious, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how you ought to answer each person.

Final Greetings

7 Tychicus will tell you all about my activities. He is a beloved brother and faithful minister and fellow servant in the Lord. 8 I have sent him to you for this very purpose, that you may know how we are and that he may encourage your hearts, 9 and with him Onesimus, our faithful and beloved brother, who is one of you. They will tell you of everything that has taken place here.

10 Aristarchus my fellow prisoner greets you, and Mark the cousin of Barnabas (concerning whom you have received instructions—if he comes to you, welcome him), 11 and Jesus who is called Justus. These are the only men of the circumcision among my fellow workers for the kingdom of God, and they have been a comfort to me. 12 Epaphras, who is one of you, a servant of Christ Jesus, greets you, always struggling on your behalf in his prayers, that you may stand mature and fully assured in all the will of God. 13 For I bear him witness that he has worked hard for you and for those in Laodicea and in Hierapolis. 14 Luke the beloved physician greets you, as does Demas. 15 Give my greetings to the brothers at Laodicea, and to Nympha and the church in her house. 16 And when this letter has been read among you, have it also read in the church of the Laodiceans; and see that you also read the letter from Laodicea. 17 And say to Archippus, “See that you fulfill the ministry that you have received in the Lord.”

18 I, Paul, write this greeting with my own hand. Remember my chains. Grace be with you.

Sermon Recap

As followers of Jesus, we are in a spiritual battle every day – not just for our lives, but also for the lives of people around us who are on a road that leads to everlasting suffering. And, as infantry on the ground, God has given us a method of communication with Him, to be in contact with Him as our Commander. That communication method is called prayer.

• Talk to God about people.
• Talk to people about God.
• Jesus removes barriers between us.
• Jesus heals brokenness between us.
• We all need brothers and sisters like this in our lives.
• We all need to be brothers and sisters like this in others’ lives.
• Every person matters in God’s kingdom.
• Every single moment has the potential to bring about everlasting fruit.