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Many Christians want to spend more time in God's word, but they're not always sure where to start. That's why Pastor Skip Heitzig wrote Soaring Above It All, a one-year devotional that helps you understand the big picture of the Bible from Genesis to Revelation through clear, engaging daily readings. Whether you're new to Scripture or have studied it for years, this devotional will help deepen your understanding of God's word. Pre-order your copy today wherever books are sold. Now here's today's message from Pastor Skip Heitzig.

Skip Heitzig: You want unbelievers to drink living water by your lifestyle and by your words, by your speech. You want to make them thirsty for what God can quench their thirst with. So let your speech be gracious, be with grace, but seasoned with salt. Now that's the balance. You always want to be nice and respectful and courteous and winsome, right? You know, I always say if you want to win some, you need to be winsome. You need to be winsome in order to win some.

You want to be nice, you want to be courteous, you want to be sweet, you want to be respectful, but you also want to be honest and pure and even convicting. You want to speak truth to the filth and rot of this world, and it might sting. You can do it in love, but it should be honest and pure and right. So be with grace, seasoned with salt, that you might know how you ought to answer each one. Every conversation you have, they're watching, they're observing, they're judging, and they're listening. So let your activity walk in wisdom; let your speech be with grace, seasoned with salt.

Now we have final greetings as we close this book out, and who knows, we might even close before our time. What we have as he closes this letter, and we don't have this in all of Paul's letters, we certainly have it at the end of the book of Romans in chapter 16, there's a list of 26 names, perhaps 28 people, but 26 by name in Romans 16. Here we have, I'm going to call it a verbal photograph of Paul's friends, some of Paul's friends.

Some of us don't even picture Paul as having friends. You know, he's Paul the Apostle; he's kind of aloof, maybe a little cranky, speaking truth to power, but he had friends. You know why he had friends? Because he was friendly. That's what Proverbs says; a man who has friends must himself be friendly. And there was a lot of people on his team that he relied on and he collaborated with.

Verse 7 mentions one of them, Tychicus. Who is he? Well, he says he's a beloved brother, faithful minister, and fellow servant in the Lord who will tell you all the news about me. I'm sending him to you for this very purpose, that he may know your circumstances and comfort your hearts. We read about this guy named Tychicus five times in the New Testament.

He was with Paul in the city of Ephesus in the book of Acts. Remember when Paul lived in Ephesus for like three years and he taught there? And while he was there toward the end of his stay, a big riot broke out. And there was this huge amphitheater that seats—I've been to this amphitheater, a theater, Roman theater, seated 25,000 people. And it was crowded with the people in Ephesus who were rioting against Paul because he was preaching Christ and the worship of Diana was being, they thought, attacked by Paul. And so this big riot broke out. Paul was delivered from their hand, and among that group that was with Paul in Ephesus was this guy named Tychicus.

When Paul leaves Ephesus to go to Macedonia, there are seven people that went with him. One of them was this guy named Tychicus. So he was a beloved brother, he was a part of Paul's team, and he becomes that team that collected money from Gentile congregations. Remember the money that he was collecting for the poor saints in Jerusalem who were under persecution? He was part of that team.

So he calls him a beloved brother, faithful minister, fellow servant in the Lord. Now Paul's sending Tychicus to Colossae, he says, to fill them in on Paul's condition and what's been going on in the ministry there. I'm also sending him to you for this purpose that he may know your circumstances and comfort your heart. So he's going to tell me what he sees in the church when he comes. That's one.

Second one that he mentions is Onesimus. Now I want you to mark that name. With Onesimus, and I love how he describes him, a faithful and beloved brother who is one of you. Onesimus was a runaway slave who had been owned by Philemon. It is believed, we can't prove it, but the scholarship behind this is pretty much the same, that probably Onesimus was not that easy to get along with, rebelled against Philemon in Colossae, stole money from him, and ran away to Rome to get lost in the crowd.

What's dangerous in those days about being a runaway slave is that if you were caught, they would brand you on the forehead with the letter F. Not for ABCD EF like you failed in school, but fugitivus. You were a fugitive from the law and you were killed without a trial. They'd brand you and they'd kill you. So it was dangerous to be a runaway slave. He thought he could blend in with the population in Rome.

While he was in Rome, he probably encountered Paul the Apostle or some of the church members there who brought him to Paul. We believe Paul led him to Christ because Paul refers to him in the book of Philemon under these terms of "my own son" that he brought him to faith in Christ. What I love is that you have a faithless slave who may have stolen money and ran away rebelling against his master, but here Paul says "a faithful and beloved brother." Why? Because he met someone in Rome; not Paul, he met Jesus. And he was now a slave of Jesus.

And in being a slave of Jesus, he wants to do the right thing. And he says, I'm sending Tychicus with Onesimus, a faithful and beloved brother who's one of you, a Colossian. They will make known to you all the things that are happening here. Okay, we have enough time to look at a couple verses in the book of Philemon. So turn to Philemon real quickly. That's to the right, right before the book of Hebrews. It's a little book, so it's easy to miss. Just keep going to the right right before the book of Hebrews, you get to a single chapter book or letter, the letter of Philemon.

And in verse 8 of Philemon, he says this: "Therefore, though I might be very bold in Christ to command you what is fitting, yet for love's sake, I'd rather appeal to you—being such a one as Paul the aged" (he really wasn't that old in my opinion or from my perspective) "and now a prisoner of Jesus Christ, I appeal to you for my son Onesimus, whom I have begotten while in chains." I've led him to faith in Christ while here in Rome. "Who was once unprofitable to you." Onesimus means profitable. The name means profitable. And so it's a play on words. He was unprofitable to you, but now he is profitable to you and to me.

"I am sending him back." So evidently Paul said, "You know, you broke the law. You're a slave of Philemon. You need to go back. You need to turn yourself in. Now, he may let you go, he might receive you as a brother, we don't know, but you have to go back." So he is sending him back to Colossae where Philemon lives. "I'm sending him back. You therefore receive him, that is my own heart, whom I wished to keep with me that on your behalf he might minister to me in my chains for the gospel. But without your consent, I wanted to do nothing that your good deed might not be by compulsion, but as it were voluntary. For perhaps he departed for a while for this purpose, that you might receive him forever, no longer as a slave, but more than a slave, a beloved brother, especially to me, but how much more to you, both in the flesh and in the Lord."

Look, he was faithless to you, he ran away from you, but that was BC, before Christ. Now he's met Christ. I'd love him to serve with me, but that's up to you. I'm sending him back. You can send him to me and I'll make use of him, but receive him as a brother. So that's his story.

Guest (Female): This is Connect with Skip Heitzig. Your support helps reach people every day with biblical truth that brings hope, encouragement, and direction for real life. If you've ever wondered how to stay grounded when our culture is constantly pulling you in different directions, Pastor Skip's study through Colossians is for you. In Expound Colossians, you'll gain a deeper understanding of who Jesus is, why he is completely sufficient for every season of life, and how God's truth gives you confidence to stand firm in your faith. Your generosity helps extend the reach of Connect with Skip Heitzig, connecting more people around the world to God's word. Request Expound Colossians when you give $50 or more at connectwithskip.com/offer or by calling 800-922-1888. Now here's more from Pastor Skip.

Skip Heitzig: And have you ever thought that a lot of us would never be able to get together were it not for Christ? I'm guessing there are enough things in our lives that would divide us naturally, but because of Jesus Christ, we're one. We're family.

So he lists number one, Aristarchus. In verse 10, he was also a Macedonian who was with Paul in Ephesus, went to Jerusalem when Paul was arrested, went to Caesarea when Paul was arrested, was on that boat ride to Rome, was with Paul while he was imprisoned in Rome. So he was a great guy. "My fellow prisoner," he calls him. "He greets you, with Mark the cousin of Barnabas, about whom you received instructions. If he comes to you, welcome him."

Now this Mark was Mark the writer of the second Gospel. He was Barnabas's cousin. Mark's mother had a home Bible study in Jerusalem; the early church used to meet in her home, according to Acts chapter 12. This Mark accompanied Paul on the first missionary journey, made it all the way to the first stop, Cyprus, and then when they crossed over from the island of Cyprus to Perga in Pamphylia, he turned tail and went back home to Jerusalem.

When Paul was ready to take his second missionary journey after he completed that, Barnabas said, "Hey, let's take Mark again." Paul said, "No way. He ratted out on us the first time, I'm not bringing him the second time." There was such a contention between Paul and Barnabas. Paul said, "You go your way, I'll go mine." Paul took Silas, went on his second missionary journey. Barnabas and Mark went together on their journey. Evidently, this strained relationship is now good, patched up. Paul says, "If Mark comes to you, receive him."

And then verse 11, the third Jewish man on the list, Jesus—not our Jesus, but this Jesus who is called Justus. Jesus, Yeshua, Joshua was a very common name in those days. "These are my only fellow workers for the kingdom of God who are of the circumcision." They're the three Jewish people. "They have proved to be a comfort to me."

Verse 12, first Gentile, Epaphras, who is one of you, a bondservant of Christ, greets you, always laboring fervently for you in prayers that you may stand perfect and complete in all the will of God. Now Epaphras, he was a church planter. Epaphras, we read about at the beginning of the book, he's the guy that started the church at Colossae. He was a guy that was in Ephesus, heard Paul preach, got saved, goes back to his hometown of Colossae, starts a church, probably in the house of Philemon where the church started.

And he loved that church so much, being its pastor, that he decided "I'm going to walk 1300 miles," take a boat and walk the rest of the way in those days, to Rome to tell Paul of the problems that are going on in this church. Maybe he can write a letter, which he does. So that's Epaphras. He's one of you, he's a bondservant of Christ, greets you, always laboring fervently for you in prayers that you may stand perfect and complete in all the will of God. For I bear him witness that he has great zeal for you and for all who are in Laodicea and those in Hierapolis.

It is believed that Epaphras started the church in Colossae and probably started the church nine miles away in Laodicea and started the church next door to Laodicea in Hierapolis. So he's like a Gentile church planter; we believe he started at least those three churches. So he combines them here, Paul does.

Verse 14, you know this name, Luke. He wrote the Gospel of Luke. "The beloved physician and Demas greet you." Isn't it interesting that Paul traveled with a medical doctor who attended to Paul even though Paul had the gift of healing? And Paul many times would see miraculous healings at his hand in his ministry, yet he was practical and he traveled with Luke. Oh, by the way, Luke wrote the Gospel of Luke and the Book of Acts.

Now, most of us think that Paul wrote most of the New Testament. He did not. If you were to count up not the books but the amount of words that are used by Luke and by Paul, Luke beats Paul. So Luke, a Gentile doctor, in terms of verbosity, in terms of word count, contributed more to the New Testament.

By the way, something else quickly about Luke: Luke was faithful to the very end. The very last letter that Paul writes—anybody know what that is? The very last letter Paul ever wrote before he kicked the bucket. Anybody? Second Timothy. At the end of that, he says, "Look, I know my time's up, I'm going to die." He said, "Only Luke is with me." At the very end, it was Luke who stood by him.

Notice somebody else on the list who wasn't by him: "Luke, the beloved physician and Demas greet you." Now Demas is mentioned by Paul three times in the New Testament. He's called here just Demas; he's called a faithful brother or coworker, fellow worker in another place. But the very last mention of Demas is not so flattering. In 2 Timothy chapter 4, that very last letter that Paul writes before he dies, he says this: "Demas has forsaken me, having loved this present world." Here's a man who tried to serve two masters, and he loved one and left the other. Demas has forsaken me, having loved this present world.

But here things are good. Luke, a beloved physician and Demas greet you. Greet the brethren who are in Laodicea, and Nymphas and the church that is in his house. In Laodicea, the church met in the house of Nymphas. In Colossae, the church met in the house of Philemon. Thank you, you're listening. In the earliest days, the church met in homes, private homes, because of the persecution of the Roman Empire. It wasn't until the persecution began to die out around the third century that formalized church buildings became a thing. So the church was meeting in homes.

Verse 16, "Now when this epistle is read among you, see that it is read also in the church of the Laodiceans, and that you likewise read the epistle from Laodicea." And the word "read" means read it aloud. That's what they did. They'd take Paul's letters, a congregation would meet, and they would read it out loud and the service centered around the writings of Paul the Apostle.

Now, notice that he says, "Read this letter as you gather, but also read that in the church of the Laodiceans, and get the Laodicean letter and read that in the church of Colossae." And you say, "Well, it's a sort of a shame that we don't have the epistle to the Laodiceans." You may be right; you may be wrong. Some scholars believe that the letter to the Ephesians fits the bill here of the letter to the Laodiceans.

We do know that the letter that they received, Colossae received, was the same time he sent the letter to the Ephesians and he sent also the letter to Philemon; same journey. In Ephesians chapter 1, I just want to read a couple verses, you don't have to turn there. "Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ by the will of God, to the saints who are in Ephesus, and faithful in Christ Jesus." The oldest manuscripts we have do not include the words "in Ephesus." It's left out, non-descript.

So scholars have come to the conclusion that the letter to the Ephesians was a regional letter, and when he says the letter to the Laodiceans, it was that regional letter that included Ephesus, Laodicea, you also read it in Hierapolis, you also read it in Colossae. You get the picture? These were circulating letters. They were not just for one congregation, but they were adopted and used in other congregations as well. So read both of those letters.

Now, verse 17, and we have just enough time to finish the book. "And say to Archippus, 'Take heed to the ministry which you have received in the Lord, that you may fulfill it.'" Now you wonder, well, who is this guy Archippus? Now you don't have to turn there, but let me read a verse to you out of that book I just read, Philemon, right? Philemon lived in Colossae. Listen to what he writes: "To Philemon, our beloved friend and fellow laborer, to the beloved Apphia and Archippus, our fellow soldier, and the church that is in your house."

Philemon lived in Colossae, the church of Colossae met in his house. It's written to Philemon, somebody named Apphia, which is probably his wife, and to this guy Archippus, who we believe was the son of Philemon. Now get this. While Epaphras leaves the congregation at Colossae and goes to Rome to tell him bad juju's going on in Colossae, "You've gotta write a letter," that he probably left Archippus in charge. And he's feeling a little bit skittish and like he doesn't match up and he's not good enough, and so he says this: "Say to Archippus, 'Take heed to the ministry which you have received in the Lord and fulfill it.'" It's a way to encourage him, push him. The very first church Bible study I ever taught was by a pastor who wanted to push me to do a Bible study, to encourage me to fulfill my ministry in the Lord.

And then he concludes: "This salutation by my own hand, Paul." That is, he writes the last sentence with his own hand and signs it. "Remember my chains. Grace be with you. Amen." Another book under your belt. Way to go.

Guest (Female): We're so glad you joined us today on Connect with Skip Heitzig. Before you go, remember that when you give $50 or more this month, we'll send you Expound Colossians as our thanks. This encouraging verse-by-verse study will help you discover why Christ is enough, how to stand firm in God's truth, and how to live each day with confidence in him. Your support helps keep this Bible teaching ministry reaching people around the world with the life-changing truth of God's word. Give today at connectwithskip.com/offer or call 800-922-1888. See you next time.

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