Prisoner

“For this reason I, Paul, the prisoner of Christ Jesus for the sake of you Gentiles”

Ephesians 3:1

When was the last time you identified yourself as a ‘prisoner’?

Not a very flattering description, is it?

Yet that is exactly how Paul described himself to the Ephesian church.

Paul, more often than not, identified himself as an apostle of Jesus Christ.

However, in this verse he lays aside the title of the office and takes on the ministry position.

Far too often we are after the title at the expense of the ministry

What I mean is we want the label without the corresponding burden.

Paul knew what it was like to be a prisoner in an illustrative sense but also in a very real sense.

He served the Lord behind prison walls and he served the Lord outside of them but in either case he served the Lord as a ‘free man.’

You see the iron bars and the heavy, bolted door he found himself locked behind could never take away his freedom in Christ.

I am blessed to serve the Lord in a country where I am not thrown in prison because of my faith.

But I have many brothers and sisters, as you read this blog, who are not that fortunate.

Because of their faithfulness to Him, they are behind prison doors.

If you are like me, I encourage you to thank God for your freedom today but pray for those who, although they remain free in their spirit, find themselves in chains for their service.

Won’t you do that right now?