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Ephesians 6:21 – The Beloved Waiter

Posted on April 11, 2012 by Will

But that you also may know my affairs and how I am doing, Tychicus, a beloved brother and faithful minister in the Lord, will make all things known to you;

Truth to Learn

God gives recognition to those who serve humbly.

Behind the Words

The words “that you may know” are translated from the verb eidō, which technically means “to see.” However, as in English, it is used in the sense of seeing with the mind, or knowing something. It is expressed here in the subjunctive mood indicating the possibility or probability of knowing.

“My affairs” in translated from ta kat eme, which literally means “the things concerning me.”

The word “doing” is from prassō, which refers to “something done repeatedly or continually.” It is sometimes translated as “practice,” but here it refers to the general activities of daily living.

“Beloved” is translated from agapētos. This is based on the verb agape, which refers to “a self-sacrificing love.” It is a stronger expression than phileō, meaning “brotherly love.” Paul expressed it here with the definite article, so it could be translated as “the beloved.”

“Minister” is from the Greek word diakonos. This is derived from the verb diakō, meaning “to run errands.” It is the word used to describe someone who serves others while they are eating, what we would call “a waiter.”

Meaning Explained

The Apostle Paul has finished his teaching in this letter to the Christians in the church at Ephesus. He now concludes with a very brief salutation. Paul has a singularity of purpose in his letters to the various churches, that of proclaiming the doctrines of the Christian faith. He spends almost no time at all telling about himself. Instead, he suggests that his dear friends talk to Tychicus about what is happening to him.

What do we know about Tychicus? He is first mentioned in Acts 20:4 where we learn two things about him. The first is that he was from Asia (modern day Turkey) of which Ephesus was the capitol city. The second thing we learn about him is that he was faithful to the Apostle, having accompanied him during part of his travels. It is possible that he became a Christian as a result of Paul’s two year ministry in Ephesus, although we are not told that anywhere.

Another thing that we learn about this man, based on today’s verse, is that he has spent much time with Paul in the Roman prison. Because of this, he is able to tell the brothers and sisters in Ephesus all about what has been happening with Paul. The Apostle refers to Tychicus as “the beloved brother.” This indicates that not only was he a very special friend to Paul, but he was well known among the Ephesians. Finally, we learn that this man was a faithful minister; in other words, he was not hung-up on how great he was. Rather, he was a humble servant, willing to do whatever the Apostle needed him to do.

Application

Most often, those who are called out as special are those who have accomplished some great feat. Not so with Tychicus. He was special because he was a humble servant. What would your pastor say about you? Does he even know who you are?

In God's service, for His glory,

Ephesians 1:6 – Amazing Grace

Posted on July 31, 2011 by Will

Ephesians 1:6 – Amazing Grace

to the praise of the glory of His grace, by which He made us accepted in the Beloved.

Truth to Learn

God loves us with the same love He has for Jesus Christ.

Behind the Words

The word “praise” is translated from epainos, composed of epi, meaning “upon” or “on” and ainos, meaning “praise given for benefits received.” Epainos refers to applause or commendation given in recognition of something that was done.

“Glory” is from doxa, which is derived from the verb dokeō, meaning “to think or suppose.” Doxa primarily means “thought or opinion, especially favorable opinion.” In a secondary sense it means “reputation, praise, honor, or splendor.”

“Grace” is from charis which we looked at back in verse two. It refers to “favor, good will, or kindness, especially that which causes joy and gratification.”

The expression “made us accepted” is from charitoō, which is a verb form of charis. It means “to endue with special honor” or “to greatly favor.”

“Beloved” is translated from agapaō, meaning “to love with a perfect, self-sacrificing love.” It is expressed here in the perfect tense, indicating past completed action with an ongoing effect, where the emphasis in on the effect. That is, God perfectly loved the Second Person of the Godhead (His Son) in the past, and the result is that He is His beloved Son.

Meaning Explained

The opening phrase of this verse, “to the praise of the glory of His grace” is a Hebraism, that is, a method of thought of the Hebrew people. The meaning they would ascribe to this phrase is “to His glorious grace!” In other words, by His choosing us and determining beforehand that we will be adopted as His children, God is shining the spotlight fully on His amazing grace. God did not have to choose us and He did not have to legally make us His children. We do not deserve to be chosen by Him, and we certainly do not deserve to be adopted into His family. And, He did not do these things for our benefit; He did them to show to all of creation how magnificent His grace is.

Were it not for God’s holiness and righteousness, we wouldn’t need His grace. Because He is holy, he is completely separated from all sin and sinfulness. Therefore, but for His grace, He could not fellowship with us. Because He is righteous, He always does what is right, and He must judge (condemn) every sin and every sinner. Therefore, but for His grace, we are condemned as sinners and destined for Hell.

In the second chapter of this letter, Paul will get into a deeper explanation of this marvelous grace of His. For now, he tells us that by this grace, “He graced us in the beloved.” In other words, He showed great favor and bestowed great honor on us by placing us in His beloved Son. In Him we possess all that the Father loves in His Son. Thus, we are perfectly loved!

Application

What a blessing to know that God sees His beloved Son every time He looks at a Christian. The Father loves you and me with the same love with which He has always loved the Son. By His grace, He loves us with the love of Christ! How great is that?!

In God’s service, for His glory,

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

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Romans 16:8 – My Beloved Brother

Posted on June 15, 2011 by Will

Romans 16:8 – My Beloved Brother

Greet Amplias, my beloved in the Lord.

Truth to Learn

Some people were specially honored by the Apostle Paul.

Behind the Words

“Amplias” is a shortened form of the Latin name Ampliatus, meaning “enlarged.” Some Greek manuscripts have the full name rather than the shortened form.

“Beloved” is translated from agapētos, which is based on agape, meaning “a perfect self-sacrificing love.” There are two different Greek verbs translated “love” in the New Testament. The first is Phileō, referring to a “brotherly love” or “fondness” as expressed between good friends. The other is agapaō, which indicates more than just emotion. It implies action which is directed toward the benefit of the beloved even at the expense of personal sacrifice on the part of the loving one.

Meaning Explained

Paul spends the entire first half of this final chapter of the letter to the church at Rome giving greetings to specific people who are associated with the church. Each one of these people is someone whom Paul considers worthy of greeting. In some cases he tells us a little about the person (or persons) but in others, like Amplias in today’s verse, he tells us almost nothing.

What we do know about Amplias is that Paul considers him beloved in the Lord. In other words, he considers Amplias more than just a friend. We don’t know what Amplias did to earn such an esteemed position in Paul’s mind, but whatever it was, Paul expresses a level of affection for this person that he offers to few others; in fact, of all those greeted in this letter only four are referred to as beloved by Paul. They are Epenetus (Romans 16:5), Amplias (Romans 16:8), Stachys (Romans 16:9), and Persis (Romans 16:12).

Though Paul is the Apostle to the Gentiles, well known by virtually everyone in the church throughout the known world at that time, he did not consider himself above others in the church, especially those who labored fervently for God. In his first letter to Timothy, Paul referred to himself as the chief of all sinners:

This is a faithful saying and worthy of all acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, of whom I am chief. (1Timothy 1:15)

In this passage in 1Timothy, Paul has recounted some of the despicable things he did before he got saved. And yet, in 1Timothy 1:15 he does not say, “of whom I was chief,” he said, “of whom I am chief.”

The Apostle Paul does not think of himself as better than other Christians. He is well aware that apart from God’s grace he is destined for hell just like the rest of us. And, out of his humility he gives recognition to a number of unknown people who give their all for their Savior. In today’s verse we see him giving recognition to one of his dearly beloved friends, Amplias.

Application

Imagine how honoring it must have been for a simple Christian man like Amplias to receive recognition in a church letter from the Apostle Paul. What would be even better would be to receive recognition from our Lord as He ushers us into heaven with, “Well done, good and faithful servant!” Will God say that about you? Remember, how you serve Him now will have eternal consequences.

In God’s service, for His glory,

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

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Romans 11:28 – Not Your Enemies

Posted on December 6, 2010 by Will

Romans 11:28 – Not Your Enemies

Concerning the gospel they are enemies for your sake, but concerning the election they are beloved for the sake of the fathers.

Truth to Learn

The descendants of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob are God’s beloved people whom He will rescue one day.

Behind the Words

The word translated, “concerning” is the Greek word kata, which primarily means “down.” However, this word has many nuances that imply position or relation. As it is used in this sentence it expresses “the relation in which one thing stands towards another.” So, we could translate it as “with respect to” or “as it relates to.”

“Enemies” is translated from the Greek word, echthros, which is based on the verb echthō, meaning “to hate.” Thus, echthros means “one who is hateful or odious, an enemy.” In this verse it refers to those who are odious in the sight of God. God is not saying that the Jews are His enemies, but that they are enemies of the gospel message.

The word translated “election” is eklogen, based on the verb eklegō, which is made up of ek, meaning “out” or “out of” and legō, meaning “to choose.” Thus, eklogen refers to the act of choosing or the selecting some out of a larger collection.

“Beloved” is from the Greek word agapētos, which is based on the verb agapaō, meaning “to love in a social or moral sense.” It means to be ultimately concerned for the welfare of the one who is loved. Agapētos refers to the one who is loved.

Meaning Explained

Paul has been explaining that it was the rejection of the Messiah by the Jews that occasioned the gospel (good news) to be proclaimed to the Gentiles. Remember, also, that Paul is talking in generalities about groups of people, not specific individuals. He starts off the current verse with, “With regard to the gospel, they are enemies.” He is not saying that the Jews are the enemies of Christians. He is saying that the Jews are enemies of the gospel message; they are hateful of the message regarding Jesus being the Messiah and that salvation and the righteousness of God is obtained by believing that Jesus died to pay for the sins of all mankind.

But, Paul goes on to say, with respect to God’s selecting who are righteous and who aren’t, they are beloved because of God’s covenant with the patriarchs. This may be a reference to Deuteronomy 10:15 which says,

The LORD delighted only in your fathers, to love them; and He chose their descendants after them, you above all peoples, as it is this day.

The point is that God choose the Israelites as His special people and though they rejected their Messiah, God will one day turn back to them and restore their position of blessedness because of the covenant (the one sided contract) that He made with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.

Application

We should not hate the Jewish people even though they are hateful of the gospel message. Instead, we should recognize that they, as a nation, are loved by God. Sometime in the future He will remove Christians from the earth and once again bless the Jewish people when their Messiah comes as their conquering king.

In God’s service, for His glory,

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

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Romans 9:25 – His Beloved Children

Posted on September 1, 2010 by Will

Romans 9:25 – His Beloved Children

As He says also in Hosea: “I will call them My people, who were not My people, and her beloved, who was not beloved.”

Truth to Learn

God chooses people, not nations, and all of His chosen ones are His beloved children.

Behind the Words

The word “people” is from laos, which refers to “a people, nation, a number of people joined together by common bonds.” Another word translated “people” is nēmos, which refers to one’s own populace. Paul is showing that God’s people are not just a single nation or ethnic group, but His own select group of people united in Him.

“Beloved” is from a form of agapaō, which means “to esteem or love, indicating a commitment of the will and of finding one’s joy in something or someone.” It is the kind of self-sacrificing love in which the lover is focused on the best possible good for the beloved rather than self.

Meaning Explained

In the previous verse Paul turned a corner in his dissertation on the doctrine of election. He left off his discussion as to why and how His choosing is true. He now goes on to show the Jewish Christians in Rome the fact that God has always had a plan for non-Jews (Gentiles) as well as the sons of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob (Jews).

As we already pointed out, the Jewish Christians in the early years of the church believed that the Jews were a called nation. That is, the sons of Jacob had a special privilege in their relationship with God simply because God chose Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. Since this previous verse would come as a shock to many of these Jewish Christians, Paul quotes from the Old Testament prophets to show that it has always been God’s plan to select from the Gentiles as well as from the Jews.

The quotation in this verse is from the book of the prophet Hosea in which he says

And I will have mercy on No-mercy. And I will say to Not-my-people, You are My people. And they shall say, My God. (Hosea 2:23)

Since the Jewish believers were so proud of the fact that to them had been entrusted the Oracles of God (see Romans 3:2), and they believed, as we do, that these Holy Scriptures contained the very words of God, this becomes a very powerful demonstration to these Jewish Christians that the church is to be made up of both Jews and Gentiles. Peter discovered this in a miraculous way in chapter 10 of the book of Acts. Paul makes a very powerful argument to the Gentile members of the church in the book of Ephesians that the sacrificial death of Jesus on the cross broke down the wall of partition between the Jews and the Gentiles.

But now in Christ Jesus you who were once afar off are made near by the blood of Christ. For He is our peace, He making us both one, and He has broken down the middle wall of partition between us, (Ephesians 2:13-14)

Application

We who are not descendants of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob can rejoice in the fact that He chooses individuals to his family. And, as individuals we are to serve Him in joyful thanksgiving because He has chosen us to be His own children. Are you a true child of God?

In God’s service, for His glory,

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

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Romans 1:7 – The Called Saints

Posted on July 16, 2009 by admin

Romans 1:7

To all who are in Rome, beloved of God, called to be saints: Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

Truth to Learn

All Christians have been called by God, and we are saints.

Behind the Words

“Beloved” is translated from agapētos, meaning “one who is loved.” It is from the verb agapaō, which means “to love with a self-sacrificing love.”

The word translated “saints” is the Greek word hagios, which means “something which is pure and set-apart for God’s use.”

Meaning Explained

As I said when we looked at the first verse of this letter, it is customary for such a letter to contain a salutation in the opening portion identifying both the sender and the intended audience. Paul identifies himself right away, but not until verse seven does he identify his intended recipients. This epistle was written to the Christian believers who were at that time living in the city of Rome, center of the great Roman Empire. This letter was written around the year 58 AD, which would be very early in the reign of Nero (the Christian hater) as Emperor.

From the English translation it appears that Paul is saying that he is writing to everyone in Rome, proclaiming them to be beloved of God and to be given the title of saints. That’s not what the Greek sentence construction says, however. It says, “to the ones who are in Rome, who are beloved of God, who are saints that are called ones.” In other words, the letter is to those people in Rome who are both beloved of God and who are called. This is the same calling that is referred to in the previous verse.

For those of you who don’t believe in the doctrines of election and eternal security, I want to be very clear. The Apostle Paul believed in both of these doctrines and taught them as truth. He believed that genuine Christians are those who were “chosen in Him (Christ) before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before Him” (Ephesians 1:4). We are not Christians because we did something; we are Christians because God did something. For that reason, Paul says that we are “saints” who have been called by God.

And yes, every Christian is a saint! It does not require special canonization by the church for us to be saints. The Bible teaches very clearly that all believers are saints. I want to emphasize, as we pointed out in the previous verse, that Paul is not saying that the beloved of God are referred to as saints, rather that we are called by God to be saints.

Paul then completes this verse with a standard blessing of grace and peace from both God the Father and from our Lord Jesus Christ.

Application

The thing I want us all to take away from today’s verse is the privilege and honor we have as Christians that we have been specifically selected by God and called to a life of holiness and service to the King of Kings. What a great honor! Anything less than complete submission and obedience to Him does not meet His expectation of us and is a waste of time and effort.

Humbling, isn’t it? Are you up to the challenge?

In God’s service, for His glory,

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

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