Prisoners of Jesus Christ

Study: #651 –Church in the Houses From: September 14 – 20, 2010

TOPIC: "Prisoners of Jesus Christ" Ephesians 3:1-7 The Apostle Paul was in a prison in Rome. From there he wrote to the siblings. What great love! There was no tribulation in him, or any evil intention to accuse anyone; in him there was only love for his brothers. How much do you complain when like Paul you have to suffer for someone? Or do you not complain? It is believed that was Paul’s first imprisonment. He expected the Emperor Nero to be the one to judge him. Why would he be judged? Because of his love for the siblings! Concerning love Nero had no jurisdiction. There was nothing there that Nero could possibly understand. The Jewish themselves accused Paul, his compatriots with upset faces and poisoned hatred and with their malicious accusations. Paul lived in Rome, he had rented a house and there he received his friends. He was in prison day and night. He could not move, he was chained to a roman soldier in the wrist so that he would not escape. That is why Paul is called prisoner of Jesus Christ. He wasn’t Nero’s prisoner. Paul clearly understood of whom he was prisoner, of Christ!, because Paul lived for his Lord and not for himself. No one else could make the apostle live anything else but what the Lord Christ wanted him to live. Anyone else could say that Paul was a prisoner of Rome, but Paul himself says that he is a prisoner of Jesus Christ! We will act according to what we see or perceive. For example, if you go to prison for Jesus Christ it will be as you see it and believe. Either you will feel abused due to the harassment or you will feel honored for being a valedictorian of a great cause. You will see things either as a punishment or as a privilege. This is how things really are. When you are going through trials and adversities, when you are hated because of your Christian principles, you may find yourself to be a victim of society or, on the contrary, you may feel as a champion of the cause of Christ. That is why we can see Paul today as a good example, who did not consider himself as a prisoner of Nero but of Christ. Can you listen to yourself when you say “That person is on to me” or, “This other person is tormenting me and won’t take me out of the prison in his heart?” After all, you will be the one to choose whose prisoner you really are, or say like Paul: “I am a prisoner of Christ! Beloved, because of the hard experience these men went through, we can see that in confinement we learn what is necessary for us to learn. Paul needed imprisonment, incitement and everything else that mortified him so that all these wonders that came from God would not make him vain. Is it not like this, that we can easily become vain and arrogant? But, when we see our weaknesses and how small we are, then we consider giving selfrespect and honor only to God who is the greatest and Almighty. Paul had received the revelation of God’s great secret. The hidden secret that was now revealed to him, that the gentiles are also heirs and members of the same body and sharers of the promise of Jesus Christ thru the gospel. The gospel of the grace of God for salvation and eternal life is also for us, not only for the Jewish. What Paul received on the road to Damascus was what I (the pastor) received in the street where I grew up; it also arrived for you in San Sebastián, Aguadilla, Perú, Venezuela, New York, Nicaragua, Chile, Bogotá, Margarita Island, etc. Well, this gospel of grace and salvation is our great treasure. Acts 26:16-18 says: “Now get up and stand on your feet. I have appeared to you to appoint you as a servant and as a witness of what you have seen of me and what I will show you. I will rescue you from your own people and from the GENTILES. I AM SENDING YOU TO THEM to open their eyes and turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan to God, so that they may receive FORGIVENESS OF SINS AND A PLACE AMONG THOSE WHO ARE SANCTIFIED BY FAITH IN ME.” This brought freedom to you and to me. God revealed this great mystery to Paul. God tells Paul that He also gives us, the gentiles, forgiveness of sins and heritage among the saint; you must understand that among the saints are all these great men: Abraham, Noah, Job, David, Samuel, Jeremiah, etc. It is wonderful that God included us with His nation, Israel! That was a totally new discovery, nobody knew of this, it was revealed to Paul in prison, when he had chains in his hands, while he was receiving lashes, or experiencing the terror of a shipwreck, in sleeplessness, in sickness, in all kinds of losses; in all this, so that he would know that he was a prisoner of Jesus Christ, not of the circumstances surrounding him. And you, my brother, are you willing to suffer with that same honor, like Paul? Let us learn to suffer for Christ without regrets, understanding that we have already received it all, forgiveness, salvation, eternal life and heritage among the saints! The Jewish despised the gentiles as if they had no value for God. They were only considered for them to be annihilated. We, the gentiles, had no laws or commands, we did not have access to God and the Jews knew this well. But, God called a Jewish like Paul to bring light to us; it was necessary for him to be a prisoner so that he would not exalt himself with such revelation and responsibility. Thru Paul, the only and new path to God would open for us, the gentiles. It is incredible that the grace and the glory of God would be open for you and for me, the gentiles. It was Paul who made that great discovery of having God’s favor for all the nations. If Paul had not been willing, then it would have been difficult for Christianity to exist in the world. If you are not a prisoner of Christ you will not be able to carry on the gospel to where we are supposed to take it. Are you? Do you want to be a prisoner of Christ like Paul? In Galatians 2:7, 9 we see again that Paul was entrusted with the task of preaching the gospel to the Gentiles, to those who are not circumcised. What has been entrusted to you? Paul is someone who suffered for Christ doing what was asked; he knew it was not easy. But, to suffer for Christ is our glory. It is to share the sufferings of Christ Himself and the opportunity to demonstrate that our loyalty towards God, our Savior, is real. Like Paul, let us be faithful to our call. Amen.