Sometimes concluding remarks feel like a courteous goodbye or just a random handful of leftover thoughts the author wanted to wrap up with. And so oftentimes we miss the importance of a conclusion. Think about some of the best movie cliff hangers you’ve experienced this last year and how they left you on the edge of your seat wanting more. That’s my prayer for us as we turn our attention to the last four sentences of Paul’s letter to the Ephesian church.
Ephesians 6:21 – 24…
21 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. 22 I have sent him to you for this very purpose, that you may know how we are, and that he may encourage your hearts. 23 Peace be to the brothers, and love with faith, from God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. 24 Grace be with all who love our Lord Jesus Christ with love incorruptible.
It’s hard to believe that we’ve spent over a year studying this book together. It feels surreal to me to be preaching the final four verses of this text. And in some ways I feel sad because this book has been deeply personal for me. A lot can happen in a little over a year.
Think back over the last year of your life for a moment. What was one of the highest points of the last year for you? What was one of the lowest points? How would you sum up the last year? If you could draw attention to some of the major themes of your life from the last twelve months, how would you do it in just four short sentences?
Like any good movie or any good book, our lives are made up of plotlines with high points, low points and tension in between those points. There are things that seem clearer to us today than they did a year ago. And some things may seem foggier than they did a year ago. We are all a work in progress. We haven’t arrived yet. The story isn’t over yet. We are not in Heaven yet.
Sometimes in our pursuit of earthly goals, weather godly or ungodly, we can rush forward with such eagerness that we miss out on some important moments. Sometimes it’s easy to do this when we study the Bible. We look for answers to some our deepest questions. We study some of the major story lines. And we remember. We remember David and Goliath. We remember Adam and Eve. We remember Daniel and the Lion’s den. But sometimes it’s easy to miss the small seemingly unimportant things. Like concluding remarks written by a church planting pastor to a small church in Ephesus.
Sometimes concluding remarks feel like a courteous goodbye or just a random handful of leftover thoughts the author wanted to wrap up with. And so oftentimes we miss the importance of a conclusion. Think about some of the best movie cliff hangers you’ve experienced this last year and how they left you on the edge of your seat wanting more. That’s my prayer for us as we turn our attention to the last four sentences of Paul’s letter to the Ephesian church.
My prayer is that what Paul says here would leave us hungry for more. Hungry for more of the mysteries of God’s Word. Hungry for more of the gospel. Hungry for more of the Father’s presence. Hungry for more of the power of the Spirit. Hungry for more of Jesus. So what’s in the conclusion of Paul’s letter to the Ephesians? He concludes with words about a faithful friend, a reminder of the major themes and a statement about an undying love for Jesus.
Here’s the big idea, Jesus is the faithful friend and the major theme that anchors my undying love for him.
#1: A Faithful Friend… (21 – 22)
In verses 21 – 22 Paul begins his concluding remarks with some words about a dear friend in the gospel. He says “So that you also may know how I am and what I am doing, Tychicus the beloved brother and faithful minster 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.” I can think of nothing more encouraging than a faithful friend for every season.
Paul describes this kind of friend with his description of Tychicus. Tychicus is someone who will represent Paul faithfully. He is a beloved brother and he has shared in the ministry of the gospel faithfully. And he is coming to the Ephesian’s with this letter in his hand to encourage their hearts. Every one of us needs a friend like Tychicus. Every one of would do well to strive to be a friend like Tychicus.
The Scriptures teach us that the words of an enemy are laced with flattery but the words of a faithful friend will oftentimes cut deeply. We also know that a faithful friend is someone who is willing to give up his life for his friends. An even better friend gives up his life for his enemies. Do you have a friend like this? Can you imagine being a friend like this?
I think we all know the pain of unfaithful friends. We all know the disappointment and struggle with being a faithful friend. The good news of the gospel is that Jesus is a faithful friend who will never leave you or forsake you. You may know what it’s like to be misrepresented or to feel completely alone or to be so discouraged that you struggle to face another day.
I imagine that discouragement and loneliness were constant companions for Paul as awaited his execution in his jail cell with a Roman guard chained to him. We certainly know that Paul was in this prison cell because of false charges from people who should have been his friends. He knew the pain of being misrepresented. He knew betrayal and he knew rejection.
But he also knew what he had written to the Ephesians. He knew the Savior that his letter describes. He knew that in Christ we have an eternally faithful friend who faced the harshest of false accusations, the brutality of abuse, the pain of betrayal by close friends and the rejection of those he came to serve.
And Paul also knew that all of the pain and suffering of this life has been overcome at the cross and the empty tomb. We all need a Tychicus and we all need to be more like Tychicus. But in reality, Tychicus is merely a reminder of a more important friend who will never leave you, never reject you and will never use you for his own sinful pleasure.
Jesus is a faithful friend for every season. This is why the next part of Paul’s conclusion is so important, because it points to some of the major themes of the message of the gospel.
#2: The Major Themes… (23)
Major themes are so important because they work to keep us anchored when the circumstances of life are swirling out of control. Paul couldn’t control the outcome of his predicament. The only thing in front of him was certain death at the hands of his enemies. Trivial arguments at this point were useless. It’s crazy how when we are younger we love to argue about the stupidest things but when we get older and nearer to death we hopefully begin to major in the majors rather than majoring in the minors.
This is what Paul does in verse 23 when he says “Peace be to the brothers, and love with faith from God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.” Paul’s heart was anchored in the major themes of the gospel. He cared not for trivial arguments. His main message was the gospel and to the gospel he was shackled. He was shackled to the gift of God in the gospel. He was shackled to the gifts of peace and love with faith that comes from God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
I don’t know about you, but peace seems to be a precious commodity for us in these days where anxiety, fear and worry are the name of the game. Everything from so-called news outlets to department stores sell their bags of goods with anxiety and fear as the main source of motivation. Better watch out, if that political candidate wins our nation goes down the tube. Better buy this new thing or you’ll be on the outside of popular culture.
When you choose to live in a counter cultural way you’ll need real peace to anchor your soul to. When you survey all the hate and evil we are confronted with daily you’ll need a real love to anchor your heart to. When you ponder all of the unfaithfulness in our world you’ll need an authentic faith that will weather the storm. This kind of peace, love and faith will not come from within you and it won’t come from anything this world has to sell you.
True peace is found in Christ’s work at the cross. Through his work at the cross you are transformed from being an enemy of God because of your sin into a son or daughter of God because of what Christ has accomplished. Through the cross of Christ you can experience true love that would die for an enemy. In the cross of Christ you find the only thing worth placing your faith in for all of eternity.
In the cross of Christ we have the major theme of all the Scriptures by which we can anchor our hearts and our souls for every season of life. In this same cross we are empowered with a love that never dies, which brings me to the final point in Paul’s letter to the Ephesians.
3: An Undying Love… (24)
As Paul brings his letter to a close he is concerned that the Ephesians would let anything corrupt their love for the Lord Jesus Christ. This is why he closes his letter out in verse 24 with these words “Grace be with all who love our Lord Jesus Christ with love incorruptible.” He wants the Ephesians to experience a life that is characterized by an undying love for Jesus.
There are many things that can bring corruption into my love for Jesus. There are many competing loves that contend with my love for Jesus. The love of sex, the love of money, the love of reputation, the love of success, the love of respect, the love of comfort, the love of knowledge, the love of possessions. The list of competing loves that could corrupt my love for Jesus is endless. What is it right now that is competing with your love for Jesus?
This can be a fearful thing to think about. And yet there is the promise of the gift of grace in the gospel. Grace is the unearned favor of God upon a sinner to receive the love of Christ and the only result of a sinner who has experienced the grace of God is an undying love for Jesus.
Sometimes I worry about whether or not I will make it to the end. What if sin becomes so strong that I walk away from Jesus? What if persecution comes and I don’t stand firm in my faith? What assurance do I have that I will remain faithful till the end? How can I be assured that I will persevere with a love for Jesus that is incorruptible?
The answer that I hang my hat on is the free gift of God’s grace. God’s grace towards me is what will enable me to stand firm and persevere until the end. God’s grace upon me is all that keeps my heart and soul anchored in the midst of every storm. God’s grace upon me is all that produces an undying love for Christ that overcomes every other love that comes my way.
Conclusion…
We all need a faithful friend and his name is Jesus. We all need major themes to anchor our hearts and souls to and those themes are like arrows that point us to Jesus. We all need the grace to live with an undying love for Christ and his work at the cross and the empty tomb is what produces this kind of incorruptible love. Jesus is the faithful friend and the major theme that anchors my undying love for him.
In Christ we can sit securely in our friendship with Christ. In Christ we can walk faithfully according to the major themes of the gospel. And in Christ we can stand firm with an undying love for our Lord Jesus Christ. So sit securely my friends, walk faithfully brothers and sisters and stand firm in the gospel. Amen?
Prayer…
Father help us to sit securely in the friendship we have in Christ. Help us to walk faithfully anchored to the major theme of the gospel which is Christ. Help us to stand firm in an undying love for Christ. Amen.