20 - SPEAK UP TO HEAVENMarch 5, 1961
Henry F. Kulp
Ephesians 6: 18 - 24 Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and watching thereunto with all perseverance and supplication for all saints; And for me, that utterance may be given unto me, that I may open my mouth boldly, to make known the mystery of the gospel, For which I am an ambassador in bonds: that therein I may speak boldly, as I ought to speak. But that ye also may know my affairs, and how I do, Tychicus, a beloved brother and faithful minister in the Lord, shall make known to you all things: Whom I have sent unto you for the same purpose, that ye might know our affairs, and that he might comfort your hearts. Peace be to the brethren, and love with faith, from God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. Grace be with all them that love our Lord Jesus Christ in sincerity. Amen.
Here Paul tells us to pray always, and what a rebuke such a phrase must be to the majority of us. Most of us are always busy at a thousand things, but I am sure prayer is not one of the things, as a matter of fact I am sure that prayer is the last thing we think of doing. We do almost everything else before we pray. We are in trouble, so we seek out our friends and ask them what they would do if they were in such a circumstance. But it is only after we have exhausted the best advice of others that we start to pray if we are sick—we try every remedy that has ever been concocted or when human help fails us, then we start to pray. We lose our loved ones and we are bowed down with grief and sorrow, with plenty of weeping, but only when we can cry no more do we pray, actually with many of us, prayer is the final resort, it is the last thing we do, but Paul says, pray always.
1/ At first it may seem that the Apostle tells us to do that which is utterly impossible to do. How can we pray always? It is a matter of being in constant fellowship with God, in constant harmony with Him.
2/ Then, notice, the Lord would not only have me be concerned with my own affairs, I am to pray for all saints. Then Paul says, pray for me. It is important that we stop at this point and contemplate. Paul wants them at Ephesus to pray for him—but how does he want them to pray for him? For better health? No, he was a sick man, no question about it—he was a man who knew constant physical pain, but he didn’t pray that this pain would be relieved—and he also didn’t ask them to pray for him that he might have more money, that his needs might be met—no, not at all. I am sure he had very little, but he didn’t ask them to pray for that. He asked them to pray that he might be bold. He might open his mouth boldly to make known the mystery of the Gospel. First of all, from this, we can see that is necessary if a man is proclaiming the truth that we pray for him, rather than criticize him.
Acts 14: 1 And it came to pass in Iconium, that they went both together into the synagogue of the Jews, and so spake, that a great multitude both of the Jews and also of the Greeks believed.
Right away it comes to our mind that this Scripture implies that one may so speak that no one will believe. What is needed is not only the word of the preacher, but the message backed up by prayers of the faithful of God. You might say this is not necessity, but it was. God raised Paul up for a very definite purpose to be the Apostle of the Gentiles, but even so, He said, I need you and want you to pray for me. He was not just putting words in this Epistle. God was not just writing words for the sake of having them here—this is the real truth. Every preacher needs someone to pray for him—he needs people in back of him, praying for him. I am sure Paul had some quirks of personality that made him unbearable at times. I am sure he clashed with certain people over personality traits, I am sure he wasn’t always just what he should have been—we know that. But nevertheless the thing that was necessary was that these people at Ephesus pray for him. And so it is for every preacher.
3/ I am sure at the Judgement Seat of Christ our Lord a Savior Jesus Christ will reward the Apostle Paul, and especially when He rewards him as a soul-winner, and a man who persevered and run the race faithfully, And I am sure that Christ will call up many of the saints we have never heard of and have them stand with Paul, for they were his fellow-helpers in his ministry. And Christ will say—you held up this man, Paul’s hands in prayer—therefore you will share in the reward.
And I am sure any true preacher of God, any true servant of God would be glad to share his crown with those who prayed earnestly and continually for him. You may not be able to be a soul-winner. You may sow the seed, but you may not have that certain gift, but you can pray for those who do have the gift. I believe if you do it earnestly and sincerely that you will share in that preacher’s reward.
4/ Then Paul says, He is to speak boldly the mystery of the Gospel. It is still a mystery. His message was unique.
Let us go back to Romans 11: 13 For he says, For I speak to you Gentiles, inasmuch as I am an apostle of the Gentiles, I magnify, that means glorify my office.
He had a unique position. How often folks have come to me this past week and they said that the Apostle Paul took the place of Judas, and again may I stress how ridiculous this thought is. Paul was not one of the Twelve, he was not numbered with the Twelve—he was a special minister, an especial apostle to the Gentiles, and he proclaimed to the Gentiles a new message, that was not known until Paul brought it forth. But first let us consider and show you that Paul was not an apostle to take Judas’ place. He was not one of the Twelve—not considered one of the Twelve.
Acts 1: 20--22 For it is written in the book of Psalms, Let his habitation be desolate, and let no man dwell therein: and his bishopric let another take. Wherefore of these men which have companied with us all the time that the Lord Jesus went in and out among us, Beginning from the baptism of John, unto that same day that he was taken up from us, must one be ordained to be a witness with us of his resurrection.
But we know there are those who said Paul was to be the successor to Judas, and when the disciples chose Matthias, they said that the disciples made a mistake, but actually it is not the disciples who made the mistake, it was the theologians who made the mistake. And they have been making this same mistake because it is a foolish one, and they showed their ignorance of the Word of God, and especially of this chapter.
5/ Matthias was God’s man to take Judas’ place, not the Apostle Paul.
Peter in Acts 1: 20 For it is written in the book of Psalms, Let his habitation be desolate, and let no man dwell therein: and his bishoprick let another take.
Peter points out that from the book of Psalms his bishopric shall be taken by another, also another had to be chosen because the Lord Jesus Christ had promised that as a body of twelve, they should occupy twelve thrones in His Kingdom.
Matthew 19: 28 And Jesus said unto them, Verily I say unto you, That ye which have followed me, in the regeneration when the Son of man shall sit in the throne of his glory, ye also shall sit upon twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel.
6/ The men who say that Paul was to take the place of Judas tell us they didn’t wait until after the day of Pentecost to pick the successor. That they were not to pick the successor, but God was to pick the successor. And again they are showing ignorance of the Word God. God had given them authority, official authority to act for their Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ in His absence.
For He said, Matthew 18: 18,19 Verily I say unto you, Whatsoever ye shall bind on earth shall be bound in heaven: and whatsoever ye shall loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven. Again I say unto you, That if two of you shall agree on earth as touching any thing that they shall ask, it shall be done for them of my Father which is in heaven.
Notice, that if two of you shall agree on earth as touching anything they shall ask, it shall be done for them of my Father Who is in Heaven. He had been talking about going away and He had given them authority when He was away to take charge of things just like this.
7/ Then the charge that the disciples acted first and then prayed later is again so untrue.
Act 1: 15 And in those days Peter stood up in the midst of the disciples, and said, (the number of names together were about an hundred and twenty,)
And in those days Peter stood up in the midst of the disciples and said—in what days? The proceeding verse explains that they were days of much prayer.
Verse 14 These all continued with one accord in prayer and supplication, with the women, and Mary the mother of Jesus, and with his brethren.
It was only after continued and united prayer that the matter of another apostle to take Judas’ place was brought up.
8/ Then notice, Acts 1: 21, 22 Wherefore of these men which have companied with us all the time that the Lord Jesus went in and out among us, Beginning from the baptism of John, unto that same day that he was taken up from us, must one be ordained to be a witness with us of his resurrection.
Here Peter tells us the basic requirement was very exacting, and there were not many who could fulfill it. Out of 120 only two could meet the basic requirement, and certainly the Apostle Paul could not meet it. They had to follow the Lord Jesus Christ throughout His entire ministry. Notice what Jesus Christ said elsewhere, Matthew 19: 28 Ye which have followed Me shall sit upon twelve thrones, and then…
Luke 22: 28, 29 Ye are they that have continued with Me in My temptations. And I appoint unto you a kingdom, as my father hath appointed unto me;
Temptations means testings, and I have appointed unto you a kingdom—so no doubt Matthias and Barnabas were the only two who were eligible for the vacant throne, and before they chose one of the two, before they did that, they prayed.
Acts 1: 24 And they prayed, and said, Thou Lord which knowest the hearts of all men, show whether of these two Thou hast chosen, Finally, Matthias was indeed the choice, and it was God’s choice as well as the disciple’s choice.
9/ Then God put His stamp of approval upon the choice of Matthias.
Acts 2: 4 And they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance.
Had the 120 been out of the will of God in such an important matter, none of them would have been filled with the Holy Spirit, so remember Paul was not one of the Twelve. He was an ambassador and he was the Apostle to the Gentiles, and he brought this mystery and something that was brand new.
10/ Then notice in the 20th verse For which I am an ambassador in bonds: that therein I may speak boldly, as I ought to speak.
I am an ambassador in bonds. He was an ambassador in bonds, but still he was an ambassador. Bonds did not stop him, chains did not stop him, they did not hinder him in any way, shape or form. The ambassador is one who pleads for men and women to be reconciled to God in the place of Christ Who is not here physically.
II Corinthians 5: 20 Now then we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God did beseech you by us: we pray you in Christ's stead, be ye reconciled to God.
You may have a thousand and one excuses why you can’t testify for Jesus Christ. Paul could have found them, but Paul did not use excuses, he constantly was an ambassador witnessing for Jesus Christ.
11/ I am an ambassador on bonds—that is a remarkable declaration. Take the ambassador from the court of St. James. He comes to Washington, he has many medals and decorations on him, but here is an ambassador from the highest court of Heaven and he says do you want to see my decorations? And he points to his chains and he says, I am an ambassador in chains. This Scripture always reminds me of another Scripture.
Galatians 6: 17 From henceforth let no man trouble me: for I bear in my body the marks of the Lord Jesus.
God does not want to see your decorations, but He wants to see your scars—what have you endured for Jesus Christ?
12/ Ephesians 6: 21, 22 But that ye also may know my affairs, and how I do, Tychicus, a beloved brother and faithful minister in the Lord, shall make known to you all things: Whom I have sent unto you for the same purpose, that ye might know our affairs, and that he might comfort your hearts.
Paul gives us the only personal word in this epistle. When he says pray for others and pray for himself, he realizes it is impossible to pray without a certain intelligence about these things, and for this reason Paul dispatches Tychicus to carry news of his affair to the church.
13/ Now notice the language he uses concerning this brother—a beloved brother, and a faithful minister to the Lord. Tychicus must have been a very delightful man to meet. It is not often that the two things that are mentioned here are combined in one man. Beloved, and faithful.
Generally speaking, a man who is considered a beloved brother so gracious and kind and gentle and easy-going that everybody likes him because he does not reprove or warn anyone, and they say, My isn’t he nice? People love the preacher who is so gracious and kind when he preaches, he doesn’t hurt anyone, he doesn’t reprove sin, he doesn’t point out sin, and so people say, My, he is such a lovely person. He is really loved. We might call him today, a good mixer, but on the other hand, the faithful brother is apt to be so rigid that he gets a little bit legal and goes around clubbing this one and that one saying I don’t care what people think of me, I’m going to preach the truth no matter who it hurts, and he becomes a rather disagreeable person, and you don’t care to get too close to a person like that, but this man combined both assets, A beloved and faithful brother. Actually we should try to be just this. We should be like this man.
14/ Then we come to the benediction in verses 23, 24 Peace be to the brethren, and love with faith, from God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. Grace be with all them that love our Lord Jesus Christ in sincerity. Amen.
The word, translated, sincerely in the Greek is incorruptibility. We are to love the Lord Jesus Christ in incorruptibility. Certainly he is not talking about grace being incorruptible, we know that is true. But love may be corruptible.
Romans 12: 9 Let love be without dissimulation. Abhor that which is evil; cleave to that which is good.
Let love be without dissimulation, without pretense. Love should be genuine, and of course, it is only the love of God is genuine, and it should be in our hearts and shine forth from our hearts.
What a wonderful epistle we have studied and how we praise God for it.
AMEN
Ref: 03/05/1961 / 20 - SPEAK UP TO HEAVEN / 12/07/2020
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