18 With all prayer and petition pray at all times in the Spirit, and with this in view, be on the alert with all perseverance and petition for all the saints,
19 and pray on my behalf, that utterance may be given to me in the opening of my mouth, to make known with boldness the mystery of the gospel,
20 for which I am an ambassador in chains; that in proclaiming it I may speak boldly, as I ought to speak.
Vs. 18 - “With all prayer and petition pray at all times in the Spirit, and with this in view, be on the alert with all perseverance and petition for all the saints,”
“Pray at all times in the Spirit” - This sentence could easily be considered part of the “whole armor” passage (and often is). For indeed, we need to pray to the Lord for strength to be able to be strong in this spiritual battle.
“Be on the alert” - Always being ready to support other believers and Christian workers by prayer. I read somewhere (I wish I could remember the source) that an idiom for “be on the alert” was “sleep in the open” - do not seek a hiding space, but be ready to move and fight. In the open, you can see them coming. On the alert, you cannot be overcome by a surprise attack. Always be aware that Satan wants to defeat any effort a Christian will make. Satan wants you to stumble, to falter, to abandon your plans. Perseverance is required. “Don’t give up. Don’t ever give up.” (Coach Jim Valvano - He was fighting a terminal illness.)
Vs. 19 - “and pray on my behalf, that utterance may be given to me in the opening of my mouth, to make known with boldness the mystery of the gospel, “
“Pray on my behalf” - Paul was on the front lines in the battle for the faith. Scholars think he was in prison when he wrote this letter. He had been beaten, shipwrecked, threatened with death (and was sneaked out of town late at night), threatened with execution, and more. (See: 2 Cor 11:25)
“utterance may be given to me” - See: “‘WHOEVER WILL CALL ON THE NAME OF THE LORD WILL BE SAVED.’ How then will they call on Him in whom they have not believed? How will they believe in Him whom they have not heard? And how will they hear without a preacher?” (Rom 10:13-14) Every where he went he spoke of Jesus Christ and salvation through Him. He spoke in every town, in every synagogue, in every town square. He debated with the Greeks in Athens (See: Acts 17:16-31 - he was in the big leagues of debating there). Even so, Paul the trained scholar, did not rely on his own power and knowledge but on the power of the Holy Spirit.
“Mystery of the gospel” - Note: he does not mean the Gospel is a mystery, a hidden or secret knowledge that only a chosen few can know. The mystery was that it was not revealed to the people of the Old Testament times just how God was going to provide salvation to us. The saints of old knew and believed the Lord was going to provide salvation to believers.
That He would do this through the death and resurrection of His Son, Jesus Christ was not revealed until Jesus Christ came to earth. We can go back to the Old Testament and pick verses or passages and proclaim them as ‘Messianic” - and indeed they do point to the Christ. But we are now blessed with 20-20 hindsight! People could know and believe it was coming, but not know and understand the particulars.
“Now I make known to you, brethren, the gospel which I preached to you, which also you received, in which also you stand, by which also you are saved, if you hold fast the word which I preached to you, unless you believed in vain. For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received, that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, and that He was buried, and that He was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures.” (1 Cor 15:1-4)
Also see: “It is a trustworthy statement, deserving full acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, among whom I am foremost of all. Yet for this reason I found mercy, so that in me as the foremost, Jesus Christ might demonstrate His perfect patience as an example for those who would believe in Him for eternal life.” (1 Tim 1:15-16)
And: “By common confession, great is the mystery of godliness: He who was revealed in the flesh, Was vindicated in the Spirit, Seen by angels, Proclaimed among the nations, Believed on in the world, Taken up in glory.” (1 Tim 3:16)
Vs. 20 - “for which I am an ambassador in chains; that in proclaiming it I may speak boldly, as I ought to speak.”
“For which I am an ambassador in chains”. - He is in prison because he did not stop speaking of salvation through Christ. That is the gospel, the good news.
“that in proclaiming it I may speak boldly” - That is my prayer. All too often I am timid, afraid to speak out. I do not hold fast to the truth that He has not given me a “spirit of timidity, but of power, love and discipline.” (2 Tim 1:5) O Lord, forgive me for my failures. Have mercy on me!
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