Epaphras An Example Of Conviction And Service

The Bible is full of examples of the faithfulness of man. We have some examples that are more prominent and famous. There are also examples that are more obscure. These seem to represent more of the common godly person. Epaphras is one that was faithful and fierce in his service but was not prominent in the pages of the New Testament.

Epaphras is mentioned in two books of the New Testament, Philemon and Colossians. In Philemon Paul writes, “Epaphras, my fellow prisoner in Christ Jesus, greets you” (1:23). It is clear that at the writing of this letter Epaphras was also imprisoned, assumingly for the crime of being a Christian. This speaks of his conviction in his service.

In Colossians, we are given a little more information about him. “Because of the hope laid up for you in heaven, of which you previously heard in the word of truth, the gospel which has come to you, just as in all the world also it is constantly bearing fruit and increasing, even as it has been doing in you also since the day you heard of it and understood the grace of God in truth; just as you learned it from Epaphras, our beloved fellow bond-servant, who is a faithful servant of Christ on our behalf, and he also informed us of your love in the Spirit” (Col. 1:5-8). From this passage we can discern a few things about the work of Epaphras. Paul talks about them having heard the gospel, understood it, and that it is bearing fruit. The worker behind these efforts was Epaphras. We have no record of Paul going to Colossae. However, Epaphras could have heard the message while Paul was in the region of Phrygia, either in Ephesus or Antioch of Phrygia. So Epaphras heard the message and preached it in his hometown. Then, at some point he goes to visit Paul in Rome when he was subsequently imprisoned.

At the end of his letter, Paul mentions Epaphras again. “Epaphras, who is one of your number, a bondslave of Jesus Christ, sends you his greetings, always laboring earnestly for you in his prayers, that you may stand perfect and fully assured in all the will of God. For I testify for him that he has a deep concern for you and for those who are in Laodicea and Hierapolis” (Col. 4:12-13). From this we learn that Epaphras is from Colossae. He is prayerful for the church, wanting them to “stand perfect” and “fully assured in the will of God.” Paul testifies of the deep concern that Epaphras has for the churches in Colossae, Laodicea and Hierapolis. These other cities are neighboring cities to Colossae. It is possible that he took the Gospel to those cities as well or he had worked extensively with them. It is clear from these brief glimpses of Epaphras that he was a determined worker in the kingdom. May we strive to have the same level of conviction and service.

~Josh Blackmer