Our time.

Our time

Col 4:7-18

Our mission today is to learn all we can about how Epaphras prayed, and who and what he prayed for.

Col 4:12-13

He is praying for his own congregation, the people he knows most intimately and cares about the most.

Notice he is always doing this. This is his
constant concern and daily priority.

 We are exhorted to
pray always (Rom 1:10) …without ceasing
(1Th 5:17)…

…night and day
(2Ti 1:3)
…to persist in prayer
(Luk 11:5-8)…

Rom 12:12
rejoicing in hope, persevering in tribulation, devoted to prayer,

to strive in our prayers (Rom 15:13) …to pray at all times in the Spirit

Eph 6:18 With all prayer and petition pray at all times in the Spirit, and with this in view,

be on the alert with all perseverance and petition for all the saints,

Col 4:12-13

Notice he is laboring.

Prayer is hard work!

Notice this labor is an earnest thing.

What you are praying about, who you are praying for – MATTERS to you.

“Laboring earnestly” is one word in the Greek, a verb. It carries with it the sense of being in a battle, in a fight.

When Epaphras prays for them, he is engaged in a spiritual battle.

That you may stand perfect.

That you may stand fully assured.

Fully assured in all the will of God.

Col 1:25-29

The assurance he wants for the saints in the Lycus valley
is a FULL assurance.

Col 2:1-5

The prayer of Epaphras in chapter 4 is a very fitting conclusion to the letter.

Col 4:12-13

The occasion for the letter was the trip Epaphras made to Rome to inform Paul about the situation of the saints at Colossae.

Col 1:6-8

Epaphras came from Colossae. And he had founded the church there after he had been evangelized by Paul.

Epaphras knew first-hand about the spiritual dangers the saints faced.

Paul crafted the letter of Colossians to address the great concern that Epaphras had for the saints there.

They were a small band of brothers in a sea of hostility.

In this first generation, every life, every servant of Christ, mattered.

The good news about Jesus Christ must be shared anew by each new generation of saints.

The word of God, its existence, its integrity, and its preaching, must be preserved in each generation.
 

That means our lives, and our ministries, also matter.

Especially our prayers – as we labor mightily in them in the face of much opposition.

Please pray for the evangelists and Pastor-Teachers.

Those prayers have never been more critical than they are today.

2Ti 3:1-4:5

This is our time, and this is the battle for our time.