Introduction

A guy had told all of his friends about the great steak he'd eaten downtown the day before. A group of them decided to head down and see if was really as large and delicious as he was making it out to be. The group was seated in the back of the restaurant. After looking over the menu, they ordered and waited, hungrily, for their large, delicious pieces of gigantic steaks. To their collective disappointment, the waiter brought out some of the smallest steaks they'd ever seen. "Now see here," the very embarrassed guy said to the waiter. Yesterday when I came down here you served me a BIG, juicy, steak. Today, though, when I have my friends invited, you serve small miniature steaks! What is the meaning of this?" "Yes, sir," replied the waiter, "yesterday you were sitting by the window."

Please turn to Ephesians 3:1

While your turning to our passage, Ephesians 3:1, I have a short story From Pastor Richard Smith, from Cotton Wood Falls, Kansas. He writes, While I conducted my usual Tuesday evening prison ministry, my wife decided to attend a local home sales party. Our 15-year-old daughter, Faith, was at home and later told us about a call she had taken from one of our church members. It went like this: "Hello, is your father home?" "No, he's in jail," Faith said. "Well, then, is your mother home?" "No, she's at a party." The church member still reminds us of that call.

I had intended to cover the passage from Ephesians 3:1 to 12, but as I began, I could not help the thoughts coming into my mind about and around the first verse

Now, Ephesians 3:1 is

An introduction to this part of Scripture, but is quite telling in and of itself

For this reason I, Paul, the prisoner of Christ Jesus for you Gentiles;

Body

I, Paul, the prisoner of Christ Jesus

If you recall the story in Acts 22 and following Paul was accused of desecrating the temple

There arose such a clatter that the Roman garrison commander arose to see what was the matter

Paul was taken into custody

Later because of a rumored assassination attempt, the garrison commander sent Paul to Caesarea to the governor there, a Roman by the name of Felix

Paul spent about two years in Caesarea as a prisoner having appealed to caesar as was his right as a Roman citizen

Then Paul was sent to Rome and was a prisoner there for about two years

But, Paul denies the power of Rome and caesar and tells the Christians in Ephesus that he is a prisoner of Christ

I found a beautiful illustration about being God’s prisoner.

Mark Reed of Camarillo, California, tells this little story. Eating lunch at a small cafe, I saw a sparrow hop through the open door and peck at the crumbs near my table. When the crumbs were gone, the sparrow hopped to the window ledge, spread its wings, and took flight. Brief flight. It crashed against the window pane and fell to the floor. The bird quickly recovered and tried again. Crash. And again. Crash. I got up and attempted to shoo the sparrow out the door, but the closer I got the harder it threw itself against the pane. I nudged it with my hand. That sent the sparrow fluttering along the ledge, hammering its beak at the glass. Finally, I reached out and gently caught the bird, folding my fingers around its wings and body. It weighed almost nothing. I thought of how powerless and vulnerable the sparrow must have felt. At the door I released it, and the sparrow sailed away. As I did with the sparrow, God takes us captive only to set us free.

Paul knew that he was the prisoner of Christ Jesus

Now, if you look at the verse, Ephesians 3:1 you will see that Paul knew precisely why he was a prisoner

For this reason I, Paul, the prisoner of Christ Jesus for you Gentiles;

He knew that he was a prisoner of Christ because of the gentiles

Paul’s foot steps were dogged by evil men, Jews, who wanted Paul dead

Just listen to Paul’s own testimony in 2 Corinthians 11:23-27

Are they ministers of Christ?; I speak as a fool; I am more: in labors more abundant, in stripes above measure, in prisons more frequently, in deaths often. {24} From the Jews five times I received forty stripes minus one. {25} Three times I was beaten with rods; once I was stoned; three times I was shipwrecked; a night and a day I have been in the deep; {26} in journeys often, in perils of waters, in perils of robbers, in perils of my own countrymen, in perils of the Gentiles, in perils in the city, in perils in the wilderness, in perils in the sea, in perils among false brethren; {27} in weariness and toil, in sleeplessness often, in hunger and thirst, in fastings often, in cold and nakedness;

Evil men could not stand the fact that the gospel was being preached to the gentiles

But, in 1 Corinthians 9:16, we know that Paul was driven to preach the good news of salvation in Jesus Christ

For if I preach the gospel, I have nothing to boast of, for necessity is laid upon me; yes, woe is me if I do not preach the gospel!

Even when he was being taken to Rome Paul preached the gospel to people he met on the way

Being a prisoner of Christ in Caesarea and then in Rome protected Paul from those who wished to harm him

It gave him time to rest and minister to those around him

Was he a prisoner because of the gentiles?

Yes, he was

He was accused of taking a gentile, Titus to be exact, into the temple

But, on the other hand Paul was given time to minister

He wrote a number of his epistles while in prison

Which make up a significant part of our New Testament

He ministered to the church at Rome

He recuperated before going to Spain

So we can see that Paul was a prisoner of Christ

Because of the gentiles

And on behalf of the gentiles

The effect of the Christian life lived out in difficult situations is often quite dramatic and forceful in its impact on the non-Christian. An article that appeared in Christianity Today (June 21, 1974), was about Christians in the Soviet Union. A former criminal, Kozlov, later a church leader, wrote of life in a Soviet prison: "Among the general despair, while prisoners like myself were cursing ourselves, the camp, the authorities; while we opened up our veins or our stomachs, or hanged ourselves; the Christians (often with sentences of 20 to 25 years) did not despair. One could see Christ reflected in their faces. Their pure, upright life, deep faith and devotion to God, their gentleness and their wonderful manliness became a shining example of real life for thousands."

Their pure, upright life, deep faith and devotion to God, their gentleness and their wonderful manliness became a shining example of real life for thousands."

Many of us, if not all of us, are prisoners

I’ll get to that in a moment, but very often busy Christians are knocked off their feet for a reason

Listen to Moses in Exodus 14:13-14

And Moses said to the people, "Do not be afraid. Stand still, and see the salvation of the LORD, which He will accomplish for you today. For the Egyptians whom you see today, you shall see again no more forever. {14} "The LORD will fight for you, and you shall hold your peace."

In 2 Chronicles 20:16 - 17, Jahaziel the son of Zechariah, tells King Jehoshaphat

'Tomorrow go down against them. They will surely come up by the Ascent of Ziz, and you will find them at the end of the brook before the Wilderness of Jeruel. {17} 'You will not need to fight in this battle. Position yourselves, stand still and see the salvation of the LORD, who is with you, O Judah and Jerusalem!' Do not fear or be dismayed; tomorrow go out against them, for the LORD is with you."

Remember when Paul had his encounter with Christ on the road to Damascus, he was blinded

And after 3 days the Lord sent Ananias to talk to Saul and help him see again

Why 3 days, Saul, Paul, needed the time to think, to reflect on what had happened

Sometimes the Lord slows us down as well

A.W. Tozer - In an effort to get the work of the Lord done we often lose contact with the Lord of the work and quite literally wear our people out as well. I have heard more than one pastor boast that his church was a "live" one, pointing to the printed calendar as a proof-something on every night and several meetings during the day. Of course this proves nothing except that the pastor and the church are being guided by a bad spiritual philosophy. A great many of these time-consuming activities are useless and others plain ridiculous.

Oswald Chambers - The people who are always desperately active are a nuisance; it is through the saints who are one with him that God is doing things all the time. The broken and the jaded and the twisted are being ministered to by God through the saints who are not overcome by their own panic, who because of their oneness with him are absolutely at rest, consequently he can work through them.

J. B. Phillips - Study the poise and quietness of Christ. His task and responsibility might well have driven a man out of his mind. But he was never in a hurry, never impressed by numbers, never a slave of the clock.

As I have said, we may all be prisoners like Paul

Now, get this scenario, Paul is a prisoner in Rome

He is in a house chained to a Roman Soldier, his guard

However, he has been given the privilege of having his friends and acquaintances visit him at any time

Timothy, Titus, Luke, Tychicus and Onesimus among others visited him daily, some may have lived with him

Paul sent these friends to see how things were going in the various churches

In Ephesians 6:21, Paul tells the Ephesians and us that Tychicus was one messenger he sent to Ephesus

So, we see that even though Paul’s body was a prisoner of Caesar

His spirit was allowed to continue to minister to the saints

We know by way of Christian tradition that many were saved during his time as a prisoner

Many of those soldiers chained to Paul for the eight hours a day, day in and day out learned of the Christian God and salvation through Christ

Many of Caesar’s household also became believers

Paul couldn’t roam about preaching the gospel, but the Holy Spirit brought those He wanted to Paul.

I truly want to scream out or cry because the Merandas gave up a ministry where people were coming to them to be saved

They really didn’t have to go out to them

But, we see evidence that Tutus or Timothy or some one else had visited the church at Ephesus and gave Paul a report on what they observed

Notice Ephesians 1:15 & 16, Paul says that he heard about their faith and love for the all saints

Therefore I also, after I heard of your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for all the saints, {16} do not cease to give thanks for you, making mention of you in my prayers:

This shows us that even though a prisoner, Paul’s ministry was not curtailed, just different

Just imagine being chained to a Roman Soldier constantly, what people say today 24/7

One wrist chained to the wrist of your guard

Many of us today are prisoners of another kind

We are prisoners of age

Unable to do the things we did in the past

It is easy to become discouraged because the things we once easily accomplished are now extremely difficult

Not long ago, it was in 1996, to be precise, many of us built the last addition to our church

I was in on much of it, I remember being beside Don, Pastor Von, Lloyd and others putting the roof on, boards and the felt, then the shingles

Now, just 11 years later, I would be hard pressed to even venture on to the roof

And two of those good men have gone to be with the Savior

Others are prisoners of another kind

Pain makes the simplest things so very difficult

Our loneliness often imprisons us

Our responsibilities hamper our freedom

Are you a prisoner?

Only you can fully access your prison

But, even if we cannot move about

Like Paul chained to our guard 24/7

We can have a ministry

What ministry?

My mother-in law is 95 this year and she has slowed down a little from the days in Congo

But, up until she had to move out of her bungalow, she spent many hour ministering to the old folks of the community where she lived

Many of the old folks are not as old as she, but God has given her a spirit to be a companion to the lonely and those unable to read or walk, many infirmities

We do not have to be able to knock people down and beat them over the head with our big black Schofield Bibles

Sometimes just being a gentle, loving companion can bring more and better results for our Savior

Another ministry is one of faith filled prayer

Two men look out through the same bars: One sees the mud, and one the stars.

What do you see?

I see stars.

I am presenting many different things in our Bulletin flyer

The persecuted church

Christians among the Muslims who refuse to recant their faith in the Savior

Hated and tortured by their own family members

Christians in China

People who disappear off the face of the earth because of their evangelistic efforts

Thoughts and ideas to incorporate into your prayer life

Why I must preach the gospel

Experiences of insight and faith of the saints of past centuries

For those who are able, a half an hour listening to children recite their verses on Wednesday evening is a vital ministry

Young lives can be changed for the better

Young hearts are more easily capture by our Savior than adults

I absolve those who can’t be a listener because of some physical problem of any involvement in AWANA, but I do not absolve even those folks from praying for the program.

In Matthew 17:20, Jesus has told us

So Jesus said to them, . . . assuredly, I say to you, if you have faith as a mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, 'Move from here to there,' and it will move; and nothing will be impossible for you.

For sure I do not know what your prison is, I have my own

But, as long as God gives me breath, He has something for me to do

And without further guidance, I will continue to do what I have been doing

Preaching and teaching the gospel

Coming along side those who need council, comfort, and help

Solomon in the Ecclesiastes, says this

Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with your might;

What can your hand do?

What is your hand drawn to do?

God has given each of us life

What are we going to do with it

Or what are we going to do with the rest of it?

But, as for me, as long as God gives me breath, He has something for me to do

I will do what I can