Messengers of Holy Scripture

By Michael K. Farrar, O.D.

© God’s Breath Publications

 

Paul the apostle was an amazing man. He had been educated by his mother until the age of five. From age five to ten he studied with his father in the Hebrew Scriptures and traditional writings. At the same time, being a Roman citizen and living in a Greek and Roman environment, he received a thorough education in the Greek language, history, and culture. He was sent to Jerusalem at about the age of ten to attend the rabbinical school of Gamaliel, who was the son of Simeon the son of Hillel.

 

Paul came to faith in a radical transformation whereby Jesus appeared to Him in a vision. He was literally blinded by the Lord to get his attention and to turn from his mission of persecuting Christians to serving and encouraging them in their faith in Jesus. Through a process of personal communication with the Lord Paul was led to faith in Christ in order that the skills and talents that God had graced him with could be used to spread the gospel. When Paul became a Christian, his very thorough education was enormously helpful. He was able to assimilate Christian doctrines rapidly and relate them accurately to the Scripture teaching he had received. From his education, both from Gamaliel and in the desert from the Lord Jesus Christ, Paul developed a divine viewpoint and attitude toward human history and the ultimate truth of the gospel of Jesus Christ.

 

Paul was completely qualified for the position of apostle. The qualifications of an apostle included the following:

 

They should have seen the Lord, and been able to testify of him and of his resurrection from personal knowledge (John 15:27; Acts 1:21-22; 1 Cor. 9:1; Acts 22:14-15).

 

They must have been immediately called to that office by Christ (Luke 6:13; Gal. 1:1).

 

It was essential that they should be infallibly inspired, and thus protected against error and mistake in their public teaching, whether by word or by writing (John 14:26; 16:13; 1 Thess. 2:13).

 

Another qualification was the power of working miracles (Mark 16:20; Acts 2:43; 1 Cor. 12:8-11).

 

The apostles therefore could have had no successors. They are the only authoritative teachers of the Christian doctrines. The office of an apostle ceased with its first holders.

 

It is known that Paul wrote at least 13 of the New Testament Books and possibly even Hebrews as well. Paul wrote the Books of Colossians, Philemon, Ephesians, and Philippians during his imprisonment in Rome. Jesus brought Paul to Rome to complete the mission strategy that Jesus gave to his disciples just before his ascension into heaven. The mission was to spread the gospel to the ends of the earth. Acts 1:8 states that Jesus told his disciples they were to be his witnesses in Jerusalem, in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth. The Lord himself had told Paul, “Take courage! For as you have testified things about me in Jerusalem, so you must also testify in Rome” (Acts 23:11).

 

In compliance with the Lord Jesus’ will to have his gospel brought to Rome, Paul went there, not as an apostle who was free to go about conducting his ministry, but as an apostle in chains whose activities were limited because he was held under house arrest and guard. His imprisonment began in Caesarea years earlier. At the end of his third missionary journey Paul revisited the churches he had established in Macedonia, the northern province of Greece. From there he traveled to Jerusalem by way of Troas and Miletus. In Jerusalem the Jews mobbed Paul, because they thought he had desecrated the temple by bringing a Gentile into it. Roman soldiers came to Paul’s rescue and took him into their custody. Paul then became entangled in the Roman judicial system. He was taken to the Roman governor Felix in the provincial capital of Caesarea. Felix kept Paul imprisoned there for two years, hoping that he might receive a bribe from Paul for his freedom. Festus then succeeded Felix as governor and intended to appease the Jews by having Paul transferred for trial in Jerusalem. Paul then resorted to his right as a Roman citizen and appealed his case to Caesar in Rome. Paul was transferred by ship under guard to Rome. Enroute his ship was wrecked in a storm off the island of Malta. Paul finally arrived in Rome around A.D. 59 to 60. There he was held under house arrest and guard for the next two years. His Roman imprisonment, or captivity, has been dated as A.D. 59-61, or possibly as late as A.D. 61-63.

 

Imagine being under house arrest for sharing your faith and teaching others about Christ for years. While we may have chosen to remain quiet about our faith or risk more serious punishment and imprisonment, Paul sought to continue to proclaim the gospel.

 

During this time he was allowed visitors. Four men came to him and were given the task of carrying these Holy Letters to the churches in the known world. These men were first Tychicus, the pastor of the church at Ephesus. He would carry the letter we know as Ephesians to his church. Secondly there was Epaphroditus who would carry the letter known as Philippians to the church at Philippi where he was pastor. Next was Epaphras who would carry the letter we know as Colossians to the church at Colossae where he was a significant leader in the congregation. Finally we have Onesimus who would carry the letter we know as Philemon. This letter was addressed to the master of Onesimus named Philemon. Onesimus had run away and Paul gave this letter to Onesimus to give to Philemon. Paul used this situation to instruct Philemon to forgive Onesimus and therefore demonstrate Christian love and forgiveness. This serves as an example for us today of how to deal with issues of offense and opportunities for forgiveness.

 

These messengers would carry these divine letters to their respective churches to address specific issues that were developing in these church fellowships and encourage Christians to remain steadfast in their faith. Various threats from outside the church and within congregations were threatening the stability of the Christian faith. God used Paul to write the letters to address these threats and God used these messengers to deliver the God-inspired writings so that Christians could take a stand, remain steadfast in their faith and eliminate the dangers that threatened the early church. These letters written during Paul’s imprisonment and carried by these messengers are called the “anatomy of the church.”

 

Ephesians is about the body of believers called the church, of which Christ is the head. It addresses the believer’s position in Christ and contains information on spiritual warfare. Key verses include:

 

Ephesians 2:8-9 “For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— not by works, so that no one can boast.”

 

Ephesians 4:4-6 “There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called to one hope when you were called; one Lord, one faith, one baptism; one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all.”

 

Ephesians 5:21-25 “Submit to one another out of reverence for Christ. Wives, submit yourselves to your own husbands as you do to the Lord. For the husband is the head of the wife as Christ is the head of the church, his body, of which he is the Savior. Now as the church submits to Christ, so also wives should submit to their husbands in everything. Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her.”

 

Ephesians 6:12-13 “For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand.”

 

Colossians directs our attention to the head of the body, who is Christ Jesus our Lord. Christ is the center focus around which all Christian living revolves. Colossians stresses the fact that Christ was and is and always has been fully God. It focuses on the preeminence of Jesus in creation, redemption and godliness. Key Verses include:

 

Colossians 1:15-16 “The Son is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. For in him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things have been created through him and for him.”

 

Colossians 2:8 “See to it that no one takes you captive through hollow and deceptive philosophy, which depends on human tradition and the elemental spiritual forces of this world rather than on Christ.”

 

Colossians 3:5-6 “Put to death, therefore, whatever belongs to your earthly nature: sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desires and greed, which is idolatry. Because of these, the wrath of God is coming.”

 

Philippians shows the church walking here on the earth. The theme is Christians living as Christ would live. Philippians emphasizes how Christ became a servant and how we are to live as servants like Him. Paul speaks of his imprisonment and his deep love for the Philippians. He exhorts them to seek godliness and warns them against becoming legalistic. Key verses include:

 

Philippians 1:6 “being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.”

 

Philippians 2:3 “Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves.”

 

Philippians 3:13-14 “Brothers and sisters, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.”

 

Philippians 4:13 “I can do all this through him who gives me strength.”

 

Philemon demonstrates how we put our Christian lives into action. It illustrates how Christians live out their faith in a pagan society and gives appropriate instruction for us even today, for we still live in a pagan world. It is an example of reconciliation between a master and his slave and how forgiveness is a necessary part of the Christian life in all matters. A key verse is:

 

Philemon 4-7 “I always thank my God as I remember you in my prayers, because I hear about your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for all the saints. I pray that you may be active in sharing your faith, so that you will have a full understanding of every good thing we have in Christ. Your love has given me great joy and encouragement, because you, brother, have refreshed the hearts of the saints.”

 

God still needs messengers to carry the gospel of Christ. If you are a Christian, YOU ARE THAT MESSENGER. Accept your calling and share the gospel with friends, relatives, neighbors and co-workers. Share the Holy Word! (Matthew 28:19)