Read:
After his trip to Ephesus, Paul went back to Jerusalem, where he was arrested. Under Roman Law, Jews didn’t have the authority to carry out capital punishment. Jesus, a Jew, was taken to Pontius Pilate and put to death. But Paul, a Roman citizen, had special rights. His Roman citizenship allowed him to appeal to Caesar, which is how he eventually ended up in Rome.
Even in Prison, Paul wasn’t alone. His friends provided food, and he was allowed to write letters and receive visitors who shared news from other churches.Tychicus delivered Paul’s letters to Colossae and Ephesus, including the personal letter to Philemon. Onesimus, Philemon’s slave who had come to faith in Christ traveled with him. (Read Philemon for the rest of that story!)
Paul also had companions: Aristarchus, who had traveled with him, and Mark, the cousin of Barnabas. This is the same Mark who left on Paul and Barnabas’ first missionary journey, causing a split between them. Barnabas took Mark, Paul took Silas, and they went their separate ways. But now, Mark had returned, and the Colossians were encouraged to welcome him. This is also the same Mark who later wrote the Gospel of Mark!
We sometimes skim over the end of Paul’s letters, thinking the personal greetings don’t matter.. But names like Philemon, Onesimus, and Mark are reminders that these letters were written in real life, full of relationships, conflict, and reconciliation. They also serve as a call to prayer.. Paul asks the Colossians to “remember my chains.” Even today, Christians around the world face persecution—some for simply reading the Bible, others at risk of imprisonment or even death.
Let’s remember our brothers and sisters in chains. Let’s pray for them, lift them up, and stand with them in spirit, even if we cannot be there in person.
Pray: Dear God, I am blessed to be able to freely follow you. Give strength and courage to Christians around the world who risk their lives for what they believe. Use their lives to show those around them that you are loving, faithful, merciful, and powerful. Use their lives to bring more people to Christ. Amen.