“So That You Also May Know"

^“So that you also may know how I am and what I am doing, Tychicus, the beloved brother and faithful minister in the Lord will tell you everything. I have sent him to you for this very purpose, that you may know how we are, and that he may encourage your hearts. So that you also may know how I am and what I am doing, Tychicus, the beloved brother and faithful minister in the Lord will tell you everything. I have sent him to you for this very purpose, that you may know how we are, and that he may encourage your hearts.” (Ephesians 6:21-22 ESV)

 Even though Paul was imprisoned at the time, which he frequently was, he was sending Tychicus to the Ephesians. Not dwelling on his situation, Paul was compelled to spread the gospel himself or through Timothy, Titus, or Tychicus. Paul was devoted to the Lord and understood his purpose on earth.

We should all identify with Paul, who called himself the greatest sinner, but we are not all great sinners. When we are converted, we all have a calling, some greater and some lesser. Either way, we are all servants to the Lord. In Romans 6, Paul wrote, “But now that you have been set free from sin and have become slaves of God, the fruit you get leads to sanctification and its end, eternal life.” In Greek, the word δοῦλος (doulos) refers to a slave, which can have multiple meanings depending on its context.1 A slave (involuntarily), a bondservant (necessity), and a servant (figuratively).

We are servants of the Lord, but it does not take great acts of faith or service to be a servant. Spurgeon wrote, "The repetition of small efforts will accomplish more than the occasional use of great talents." This is a great quote to remember when we feel less than useful to the Lord. 

We always forget the omnipotence of God. While we worry about our inability to serve, whether due to health issues, obligations, the Lord already knows why, what is wrong, and what He plans to do for or with us.

In Matthew 25:35-36, Jesus said, “For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, I was naked and you clothed me, I was sick and you visited me, I was in prison and you came to me.’” It takes little cost or effort to provide someone with a bottle of water or a sandwich, yet that act could open the door to the gospel for the one receiving it. Handing someone a tract could have a greater effect on them than you know. These “small efforts will accomplish more” than you think.

Jesus said, “But whoever would be great among you must be your servant, and whoever would be first among you must be your slave, even as the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”(Matthew 20:26-28) This theme was also recorded in the Gospels of Mark (10:45) and John (13:1-17). Service, great or small, is service in the eyes of the Lord. I pray you will all hear, “Well done, my good and faithful servant.”

Grace and Peace.

1Strong’s Greek Concordance, 1401.