INFORMING MINDS & COMFORTING HEARTS
Posted by Pastor Greg Allen on March 10, 2024 under 2024 |
Bethany Bible Church Sermon Message from March 10, 2024 from Ephesians 6:21-22
Theme: We greatly bless one another when we keep each other informed and comforted in the blessings of Christ.
(All Scripture is taken from The New King James Version, unless otherwise indicated).
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One of the ways that we can best learn the important spiritual lessons of life is by looking at other people who live them out in front of us. Our heavenly Father knows that we need real-life human examples in order to fully comprehend the things He teaches us. And so, He very wisely gave us good, godly people as examples of the things He wants us to learn.
As we come this morning to the closing section of the New Testament book of Ephesians, we find that the apostle Paul lifts up a man as an example to us. It gives us the only personal reference that Paul makes in the whole letter, and it’s about a man named Tychicus. I believe Tychicus was meant to be an example to us of what we ought to do with the things we’ve learned in this letter.
In Ephesians 6:21-22, Paul wrote;
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; whom I have sent to you for this very purpose, that you may know our affairs, and that he may comfort your hearts (Ephesians 6:21-22).
Paul, who was in prison at the time, sent Tychicus not only to inform these believers about him and his circumstances, but also to deliver this letter and teach the believers about the things that are taught in it. And when we put these particular words into the larger context of the whole letter, they set Tychicus before us a living example of how you and I, dear brothers and sisters, are to put the great truths we’ve learned in it to work in one another’s lives.
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Now; think back for a moment to what this wonderful letter has already told us. It began in 1:3 by giving us one of the most startling affirmations we could ever hear;
Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ … (Ephesians 1:3).
The apostle Paul—writing under the power and authority of the Holy Spirit—let us know that we who are in a relationship with Jesus Christ by faith are, right at this moment, blessed with every spiritual blessing from God in the heavenlies as a present possession. Those blessings are all ours right now through Christ. And throughout the first three chapters of this letter, the apostle Paul unfolded those blessings to us; and helped us to see them so that we would rejoice in them and thank God for them. In those first three chapters, it’s as if the apostle Paul opened up the spiritual treasure box for us, and shows us how immeasurably rich we truly are in Christ.
And then, in the last three chapters, Paul went on to explain to his readers how they’re to put those blessings to work in everyday living. In 4:1, he wrote;
I, therefore, the prisoner of the Lord, beseech you to walk worthy of the calling with which you were called … (4:1).
And from then on to the end of the letter, Paul showed us how to live victorious Christian lives in the light of the riches that are ours in Christ. And what’s more—as we’ve been seeing over the past several weeks—he specifically reminded us of how we need to protect our enjoyment of those blessings. We war against a fierce spiritual enemy who seeks to keep us from putting those blessings to work. Paul exhorted us to put on the full armor that God has given us, and to march forward so that we can share the blessings of Christ to the world through the message of the gospel.
Now; you and I could never be all that the apostle Paul was. He was a unique man with a unique calling. He was the one—as he writes in Ephesians 3—who had been given the unique privilege of revealing these great spiritual truths to us. But it’s our job to then rise up and minister these great truths to one another.
And that—in part—is why God preserved these closing words to us about this man Tychicus. Tychicus is being lifted up to us as an example of how you and I can minister to each other, and bless one another through the great truths that are declared in this letter. It’s through Tychicus’ example that we learn that we greatly bless one another when we keep each other informed and comforted in the blessings that are ours in Christ.
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Now; as for the details about the life of this man Tychicus, we know nothing at all from history … apart, that is, from what the apostle Paul tells us. But if you were to pick up a Bible concordance and look up his name, you’d find that Tychicus appears a surprising number of times in the New Testament’s story. And every time we read about him, it’s always a good report. (Think of that! If your story was to be recorded forever in the pages of the Bible, wouldn’t it be a wonderful thing if the only things the Bible said about you were good things?)
It’s interesting that, in the original language, his name ‘Tychicus’ means ‘Chance’. But as we learn what we can about him, we find that there was nothing ‘chancy’ about him at all. He was a reliable, diligent, trustworthy servant of God who set an admirable example for us to follow.
So; let’s begin this morning by answering the question …
1. WHO WAS THIS MAN TYCHICUS?
The first time we hear mention of him is in Acts 20. That chapter tells us about some of the events of Paul’s third great missionary journey. He had spent a long time ministering in the city of Ephesus. It had been a tumultuous ministry, and his preaching had even caused a terrible riot to occur in the city. But many people believed on the Lord Jesus as a result of his preaching. And personally, I suspect that one of those who believed was this man Tychicus.
Now; God had laid it on Paul’s heart to gather a special donation together from the Gentile churches in Macedonia and Achaia. He wanted to gather this gift and give it to the persecuted Jewish Christians who were living in the city of Jerusalem. It was a powerful way of letting those Jewish Christians know how much their Gentile brothers and sisters in Christ loved them and cared for them. And so; in the course of gathering this generous gift of love, he made plans to go through the cities of Asia Minor.
But in preparing to take this important gift to the Jewish Christians, he also wanted to make sure that he brought along some good, faithful representatives of the Gentile churches. And so, Acts 20:4 tells us;
And Sopater of Berea accompanied him to Asia—also Aristarchus and Secundus of the Thessalonians, and Gaius of Derbe, and Timothy, and Tychicus and Trophimus of Asia (Acts 20:4).
So; here are some important things we learn about Tychicus. He was a man from Asia Minor—very likely a convert to the Christian faith from the city of Ephesus. And what’s more, as he grew in the faith, he became a godly and faithful ministry partner to Paul. He was someone that Paul could trust to accompany him on this important mission and to help see to the safe delivery of this significant financial gift to the Jewish believers. Paul was glad to have him as a part of the team of traveling companions who supported him in this important work.
Apparently, the church at large shared Paul’s view of Tychicus. In fact—although we can’t be absolutely sure of it—there are some Bible scholars who believe that Tychicus was the faithful ‘brother’ that Paul mentions in 2 Corinthians 8:18-19; whom he described in this way …
the brother whose praise is in the gospel throughout all the churches, and not only that, but who was also chosen by the churches to travel with us with this gift, which is administered by us to the glory of the Lord Himself … (2 Corinthians 8:18-19).
When it came to such an important gift, Paul wouldn’t have brought someone along unless he could be esteemed by the church to be trustworthy in the work. And that’s what this man Tychicus was; a trustworthy traveling companion and ministry partner to Paul.
Now; another thing we learn about Tychicus is found at the end of another of Paul’s letters—that is, the letter to the Colossians. The apostle Paul had written that letter at about the same time as he wrote the letter to the Ephesians. And when Paul closed his letter to the Colossians, he wrote something that sounds very much like what we find in our passage this morning. In Colossians 4:7-9, he wrote;
Tychicus, a beloved brother, faithful minister, and fellow servant in the Lord, will tell you all the news about me. I am sending him to you for this very purpose, that he may know your circumstances and comfort your hearts, with Onesimus, a faithful and beloved brother, who is one of you. They will make known to you all things which are happening here (Colossians 4:7-9).
When Paul wrote the letter to the Colossians, he was in prison for preaching the gospel—just as was the case in his letter to the Ephesians. And since the believers in Colossae were concerned for Paul’s well-being—and since he couldn’t come to them himself—he sent his trustworthy ministry partner Tychicus to exhort and comfort them. He penned that letter and gave it to Tychicus, and told him, “Now, please take this to my brothers and sisters in Colossae and read it to them. Tell them that I’m doing alright. Keep them informed; and comfort their hearts … not only with the news about me, but also with the rich spiritual truths I write about in this letter.” He knew that he could trust Tychicus to do this faithfully because Tychicus had already proven to be a faithful ministry partner. And this would mean, of course, that just as Tychicus faithfully delivered the letter to the Colossians, he would have also faithfully delivered the letter to the Ephesians that we’re reading from today.
But there’s more. Did you notice that Paul also sent a man named Onesimus along with Tychicus? Onesimus was a man who had been a servant to another Colossian Christian named Philemon. When he was still an unbeliever, Onesimus had gotten into some very serious trouble of some kind. It seems that he had stolen from his master Philemon and then went on the run. Somehow—we’d have to say that it was in the providence of God—he ended up encountering Paul along the way. And while Paul was in prison, he led Onesimus to the Lord. Onesimus was now a transformed Christian brother, and he had also become a valuable ministry partner to Paul. But Paul didn’t feel that it was right to keep Onesimus with him without Philemon’s permission. So, when Tychicus came to Colossae, he sent Onesimus along with him—and also sent a brief note to urge Philemon to forgive his former servant and accept him as a brother in Christ.
We have that tiny letter in our Bible as the Epistle to Philemon. And do you realize what this means? This man Tychicus was used by God to faithfully hand-deliver at least three letters that we have in our New Testament today. Back in Paul’s day, that was the only way to deliver letters. And it was a risky thing to do. The one who bore the letter might get captured, or attacked along the way; and the letter itself might be destroyed or confiscated, and never be delivered at all. But you and I will forever owe an immense debt of gratitude to Tychicus; because God entrusted to him the great responsibility of protecting and delivering three precious letters for the benefit and blessing of His churches—Colossians, Philemon, and Ephesians. Tychicus has passed great spiritual truth on to us!
And so; there’s another thing we learn about this man Tychicus. He was a reliable deliverer of Paul’s messages to the churches. The churches of God have been blessed throughout the centuries because of Tychicus’ faithfulness. How grateful Paul must have been for him! How grateful we should be for him too!
There’s more that we learn about this man Tychicus—this time, in the New Testament letter to Titus. Titus was a pastor whom the apostle Paul had set to serve in a very difficult place. He was sent to serve on the island of Crete; where there were many false teachers on the loose, and where many of the Christians had been careless and lazy in their faith. Titus needed to appoint good faithful elders in the church, and teach the people to behave in ways that were in keeping with sound doctrine.
Now; Pastor Titus was very faithful in his work. But apparently, his work on the island of Crete was only meant to be temporary. Paul had a personal need for his help and service. And so, at the end of this tiny letter—in Titus 3:12—Paul wrote to Titus and said;
When I send Artemas to you, or Tychicus, be diligent to come to me at Nicopolis, for I have decided to spend the winter there (Titus 3:12).
Paul wasn’t sure yet who it would be that would come to replace Titus in this important work. It was a little ‘up in the air’ at that time. But it would be either a man named Artemas or our dear brother Tychicus—one of these two reliable servants of the Lord. And this teaches us yet another thing about Tychicus. He was available to drop whatever else he may have been doing in the support of Paul’s ministry, and go at Paul’s urging to Crete and replace Titus whenever necessary. Paul could trust Tychicus to be one of the two men that he could confidently send out to this important task—knowing that Tychicus would be up to the task, and would faithfully release Titus to come to Paul’s aid.
So; here’s yet another thing we learn about Tychicus. He was a very adaptable man who was ready and available to minister in the cause of Christ—in whatever way he was called to do so. Someone once said that the only ‘ability’ God needs from us is our full ‘avail-ability’. And Tychicus was a faithful servant who was readily available—ready to adapt to the work that God had given him!
There’s one more passage in the New Testament that tells us about this man Tychicus. It happens to be found at the end of the very last letter that the apostle Paul wrote before he laid down his life for the Lord Jesus. It’s found in the final section of Paul’s second letter to Timothy.
Paul was in prison again for his preaching. He wasn’t sure when it would happen, but he knew for a certainty that he would be executed for his faith. And it must have been a hard time for him; because many of his trusted ministry partners had left him when he needed them the most. Some had sadly departed from the faith; others had become too distracted by other worldly concerns to be the help to him that he needed. And so he wrote this letter to Timothy—who was still serving faithfully in the church in Ephesus—to encourage him in the Lord.
Paul longed to have Timothy with him one more time before he went to be with the Lord. And so, he wrote—in 2 Timothy 4:11-12;
Only Luke is with me. Get Mark and bring him with you, for he is useful to me for ministry. And Tychicus I have sent to Ephesus (2 Timothy 4:11-12).
And just think of that. At a time when Paul was nearing the end of his life, he had faithful Tychicus with him. I believe that Tychicus had become a dear friend and needed support in Paul’s later years. And I believe that Paul had also become very dear to Tychicus. But if it was necessary, Tychicus was willing to depart from Paul and go to serve in Ephesus so that Timothy could come to Paul. It says a great deal about Tychicus that Paul could trust him with the ministry at Ephesus. But it also says a great deal about him that he was willing to take that ministry if Paul urged him to do so.
This teaches us yet one more important thing about this man Tychicus. He was a committed and sacrificial servant to the Lord’s work in times of need—faithful to Paul at a time when others were departing; but also willing to go at Paul’s call even if he was more inclined to stay.
So; what kind of a man was this man Tychicus? We see from these various passages that he was a faithful ministry partner and companion, a faithful and trustworthy deliverer of God’s word to God’s people, a ready and available minister to the churches, and a committed servant in times of need. His example teaches us what kind of people we need to be toward one another, in the Lord’s service, if we would put the great truths of this letter to work in one another’s lives.
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Now; let’s look again at Paul’s words in our passage this morning. In Ephesians 6:21-22, Paul wrote to the Ephesian believers and said;
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; whom I have sent to you for this very purpose, that you may know our affairs, and that he may comfort your hearts (Ephesians 6:21-22).
And this helps us to ask another question about Tychicus …
2. WHAT QUALITIES DID PAUL COMMEND IN HIM?
First of all, we see that he was commended as “a beloved brother”. That would mean that Tychicus was a man of a lovely and sweet nature. He was a man who fulfilled his ministry in the service of the Lord Jesus in a way that was like the character and manner of the Lord Jesus Himself. He would have been a pleasurable fellow Christian to be around, and would have left his brothers and sisters feeling more in love with him after he had served them. That’s a very high commendation.
But you’ll notice that Paul also commended him as a ‘faithful minister in the Lord’. That would mean that Tychicus wasn’t so lovely and sweet that he didn’t also do the hard things in ministry that needed to be done. He didn’t seek to build friendly and warm relationships with others in the household of faith at the expense of fidelity to the truth. The people of God would have been confident that he would faithfully preach and teach the word—even when it might be hard to do so.
And dear brothers and sisters; if we’re going to apply the wonderful things that we learn from the Book of Ephesians in everyday life—and if we’re going to build one another up in the knowledge of these things and truly bring comfort to one another—then both of those realities need to be at work in us. We need to be genuinely loving toward one another, forgiving of one another’s faults, and compassionate, tender, and warm toward one another. But we also need to be committed to the truth of God’s word, and to strongly exhort one another to rise up and obey our Lord’s commands as we find them in the pages of Scripture, and to call one another to a walk of holiness and purity. Both of these things need to be characteristics of our lives toward one another.1
Think here of the Lord Jesus. There was no one who ever walked the earth that was more tender or loving than Him. We’re told in the Bible that some of the most notorious sinners were inclined to Him and wanted to be close to Him. They felt welcomed by Him, and they were drawn to the healing power of His compassion and love for them in their need. But there was also no one who ever spoke the truth more faithfully than He did. Those who were the most outwardly religious and superficially pious were the most offended by the truth that He spoke from the Father. Tychicus was, in that respect, very much like His Lord and Master. And if we want to be useful to our Lord and Master in helping one another grow in the truths of this marvelous letter, we need to be that way too.
And let me add one more quality that Paul commends in Tychicus. We find it in the list of things that he mentions in Colossians 4:7. In that passage, Paul said some of the same things that we find in our passage in Ephesians. He said that Tychicus was “a beloved brother” and a “faithful minister”; but he also added that he was a “fellow servant in the Lord”. And what that meant was that Tychicus didn’t consider himself to be a free agent in the work of God. He brought both his manner as a “beloved brother”, and his reputation as a “faithful minister” into cooperation with others who were also in the service of the Lord. He was a true ‘team-player’ in the Lord’s service; so that he was an effective supporter of what others were called to do in the Lord’s work.
When these three things are brought into balance in the service of Jesus Christ by the power of the Holy Spirit—compassionate love, a faithful ministry, and a humble attitude as a ‘fellow servant’—then we can truly be used by God to bring the wonderful truths that we find in this letter to bear in one another’s lives.
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And that leads us, finally, to ask …
3. WHAT DO WE LEARN TO DO FROM HIS EXAMPLE?
And it boils down to two things that Paul told his Ephesian readers that this remarkable man Tychicus would come and do for them. First, we’re told that he would come and inform their minds. Paul wrote of Tychicus, “ whom I have sent to you for this very purpose, that you may know our affairs …”
Paul had just asked for the prayers of God’s people for his ministry—especially considering that he was in prison. We find that he asks the Ephesian believers in verse 19 that they would pray for him that God would give him utterance in the truths of the gospel, and also the courage to speak what needed to be said. And he sent Tychicus to them so that he could inform them directly about what was going on in Paul’s life and imprisonment—so that they’d know exactly how to pray.
Brothers and sisters in Christ, one of the ways we can learn from Tychicus’ example is how important it is that we keep one another informed. We need to be open with one another about how we’re doing and what our struggles in life and in the faith are, so that we can pray for one another effectively. As we’re learning to walk in a manner that is worthy of our calling in Christ, we desperately need the fellowship and support and prayers of each other. That requires information.
And second, Paul told the Ephesian believers that Tychicus would also be coming to them “that he may comfort your hearts”. Certainly, in the immediate sense, this would be so that they would know exactly how Paul was doing; so that their hearts would be relieved of their concerns for him. But I believe there’s more. By bringing this wonderful letter to them—and by also coming personally to read it and explain to them the things that Paul said in it—Tychicus was also bringing comfort to their hearts by unfolding to them the rich spiritual blessings that are theirs—right then and there—through their relationship of faith in Jesus.
And so, brothers and sisters in Christ; another of the ways that we can learn from Tychicus’ example is how vital it is—in being informed of one another’s needs—that we bring comfort to one another by exhorting one another in the glorious truths we find in this letter. We need to know those truths ourselves, and experience the power of them in our own lives, so that we can then bring true comfort and encouragement to one another in them during times of need.
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I have grown to love this man Tychicus. I look forward to meeting him in heaven one day; and thanking him for the ways that he made himself available to the Lord in his work … protecting and providing for us a rich heritage of God-breathed truth through this wonderful letter.
But I’m also inspired to follow his example. I hope you are too. We can be blessed very much by reading the letter to the Ephesians; but we can greatly bring that blessing to one another when we do as he did—informing one another’s minds and comforting one another’s hearts in the blessings of Christ.
Let’s do so.
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1I’m adapting this observation from H.A. Ironside, In The Heavenlies (Neptune, NJ: Loizeaux Brothers, 1937), pp. 339-340.
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