Be Like Epaphras: Rooted, Laboring, Sending Leaders

Devotional

Day 1: Rooted to Send: When the Gospel Takes Hold

The gospel doesn’t just inform—it transforms. Like Epaphras, who carried truth 100 miles on foot to his people, we’re called to let Christ’s message root itself so deeply in us that it overflows into action. Leadership begins when the gospel moves from head to heart to hands. True readiness isn’t about skill but surrender to the work God wants to do through ordinary people. [55:41]

“We always thank God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, when we pray for you, since we heard of your faith in Christ Jesus and of the love that you have for all the saints, because of the hope laid up for you in heaven. Of this you have heard before in the word of the truth, the gospel, which has come to you, as indeed in the whole world it is bearing fruit and increasing—as it also does among you, since the day you heard it and understood the grace of God in truth, just as you learned it from Epaphras our beloved fellow servant.”
(Colossians 1:3–7, ESV)

Reflection: Whose faithfulness in your life modeled what it means to carry the gospel beyond words? How is God calling you to let His truth “overflow” through your actions this week?

Day 2: Wrestling in Prayer for Your People

Prayer isn’t passive—it’s labor. Epaphras didn’t just mention names to God; he wrestled for his community’s spiritual maturity. Like a coach drilling fundamentals, persistent prayer shapes both the intercessor and those being prayed for. Real leadership bleeds into midnight texts, grocery store conversations, and knees worn from fighting for others’ faith. [58:59]

“Epaphras, who is one of you, a servant of Christ Jesus, greets you, always struggling on your behalf in his prayers, that you may stand mature and fully assured in all the will of God. For I bear him witness that he has worked hard for you and for those in Laodicea and in Hierapolis.”
(Colossians 4:12–13, ESV)

Reflection: Who are three people you’re called to “wrestle for” in prayer this month? What specific aspect of spiritual growth (maturity, assurance, obedience) does each one need most?

Day 3: Your Metron: The Space Where God Assigned You

Leadership isn’t about expanding territory—it’s stewarding your God-given sphere. Epaphras didn’t envy Paul’s platform; he served his own people. Your “metron” might be a cubicle, carpool line, or family dinner table. Faithfulness looks like planting gospel seeds in the soil beneath your feet, not chasing someone else’s harvest. [01:02:00]

“But we will not boast beyond limits, but will boast only with regard to the area of influence God assigned to us, to reach even to you.”
(2 Corinthians 10:13, ESV)

Reflection: Where have you been comparing your influence to others’ assignments? What practical step can you take this week to cultivate the “soil” God already gave you?

Day 4: Multiplication Starts at Your Kitchen Table

The most strategic leadership often happens in unnoticed places. Epaphras multiplied ministry by training Archippus, not just preaching to crowds. Discipleship isn’t a program—it’s showing your kids how to repent, modeling integrity at work, or letting a younger believer shadow your quiet time. Eternal impact grows in the dirt of daily obedience. [01:13:36]

“And these words that I command you today shall be on your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise.”
(Deuteronomy 6:6–7, ESV)

Reflection: Who is watching your faith in action this season? What ordinary moment this week could become a mentoring opportunity if you’re intentional?

Day 5: Ordinary People Accomplishing Extraordinary Assignments

God’s kingdom advances through available nobodies. Epaphras’ name was hard to pronounce, but his obedience changed cities. You don’t need a title—just a willingness to say “yes” to the assignment in front of you. The gospel multiplies when regular people live sent lives, whether across oceans or across the street. [01:11:34]

“And say to Archippus, ‘See that you fulfill the ministry that you have received in the Lord.’”
(Colossians 4:17, ESV)

Reflection: What “ordinary” assignment have you been undervaluing? How might embracing it as God’s specific call change your perspective today?

Sermon Summary

Epaphras gives the church a picture of leadership that does not depend on platform, personality, or a crowd. The Gatorade call to “Be Like Mike” shows how easily people admire somebody’s success and try to copy the outside stuff. But leadership in God’s kingdom is not built by shoes, image, charisma, or a fancy ministry. The Bible puts the ultimate guide for leadership right in front of God’s people.

Paul introduces Epaphras as a dearly loved fellow servant and a faithful minister of Christ. The gospel reached Epaphras through Paul’s ministry, took root in him, and then moved through him into Colossae and the whole Lycus Valley. Epaphras did not merely hear the truth about Jesus. He believed it, carried it, and let it reshape his life. God raised a leader from within to reach his own people.

Epaphras also shows that ready leaders labor for people. Paul calls him a servant of Christ Jesus who is always wrestling in prayer and working hard for the churches of Colossae, Laodicea, and Hierapolis. The word metron gives language to that kind of responsibility: an area of ministry God has assigned. A metron is not territory to control or a collection of buddies to enjoy. It is people God has entrusted for prayer, encouragement, difficult conversations, love, and spiritual responsibility.

Archippus shows where that labor is headed. Paul tells him to pay attention to the ministry he received from the Lord and accomplish it. The gospel did not stop with Epaphras, because faithful leadership multiplies. The measure of a leader is not the crowd gathered around them, but the leaders produced and sent. Parents, ministry leaders, church members, and ordinary believers all carry different assignments, but each assignment calls for the same thing: availability before God.

God’s sending may lead across the world, across the office, across the street, or across the dinner table. The home becomes a mission field when children see prayer, repentance, Scripture, and faith shaping real decisions. The kingdom grows as ordinary people become available, labor for their people, and prepare others to accomplish the ministry God gives them.

Jesus stands behind every true leader and every faithful ministry. Good works cannot save sinners or restore their relationship with God. Christ died for sin, rose again, forgives, restores, fills believers with the Spirit, and gives ordinary people eternal purpose. The church responds by saying names, praying for souls, asking God for courage, and becoming willing to be sent.

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Key Takeaways

1. Leadership multiplies leaders, not crowds. Epaphras did not build a ministry around himself and then let it die with him. Archippus received a ministry from the Lord and was called to carry it forward. Faithful leadership always asks not only, “What can I accomplish?” but also, “Who am I preparing?” [70:18]
2. Your metron carries spiritual responsibility. A sphere of influence is more than a place of comfort, control, or convenience. God entrusts real people to be loved, encouraged, challenged, and carried before Him in prayer. A late-night text, a hard conversation, or a quiet walk alongside someone can become holy labor. [66:11]
3. Availability matters more than impressive assignments. God does not give every person the same ministry, but He calls every believer to be available. Being sent is not merely a destination; it is a posture that places home, work, gifts, and plans before the Lord. God may send someone across the world, but He may also send someone across the dinner table. [72:04]
4. Jesus gives leaders their real purpose. Jesus is not another leadership expert offering better advice for an already self-directed life. Christ forgives sin, conquers death, restores broken people, and sends them with eternal purpose. Leadership without Christ may gather activity, but only Christ gives new life.

## [85:07]

Youtube Chapters

[00:00] - Welcome
[44:21] - Rooted and Ready for Leadership
[45:16] - The Call to Be Like Mike
[50:00] - The Bible as the Leadership Guide
[50:48] - Meet Epaphras
[52:19] - The Measure of a Leader
[55:21] - Raised From Within
[58:07] - Laboring for Others
[60:52] - Understanding Your Metron
[67:48] - Leadership That Multiplies
[72:04] - Being Sent Is a Posture
[73:07] - The Home as a Mission Field
[76:03] - Serving and Raising Up Others
[80:14] - Ordinary People Grow the Kingdom
[82:26] - Jesus Makes New Life Possible
[87:06] - Saying Names and Wrestling in Prayer

Bible Study Guide

Bible Reading

Colossians 1:3-8
“We always thank God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, when we pray for you, since we heard of your faith in Christ Jesus and of the love that you have for all the saints, because of the hope laid up for you in heaven. Of this you have heard before in the word of the truth, the gospel, which has come to you, as indeed in the whole world it is bearing fruit and increasing—as it also does among you, since the day you heard it and understood the grace of God in truth, just as you learned it from Epaphras our beloved fellow servant. He is a faithful minister of Christ on your behalf and has made known to us your love in the Spirit.” [52:56]

Colossians 4:12-13
“Epaphras, who is one of you, a servant of Christ Jesus, greets you, always struggling on your behalf in his prayers, that you may stand mature and fully assured in all the will of God. For I bear him witness that he has worked hard for you and for those in Laodicea and in Hierapolis.” [58:27]

Colossians 4:17
“And say to Archippus, ‘See that you fulfill the ministry that you have received in the Lord.’” [01:08:32]

2 Corinthians 10:13
“But we will not boast beyond limits, but will boast only with regard to the area of influence God assigned to us, to reach even to you.” [01:01:51]

Observation questions

In Colossians 1:3-8, what fruit of the gospel was already visible in the Colossian church, and what role did Epaphras play in bringing that gospel to them? [53:40]
What three descriptions in Colossians 4:12-13 show how Epaphras labored for the churches in the Lycus Valley? [59:02]
According to Colossians 4:17, where did Archippus’s ministry come from, and what was he told to do with it? [01:11:14]
How is a God-assigned “area of influence” different from a group of people someone simply enjoys being around or wants to control? [01:05:55]

Interpretation questions

Paul calls Epaphras “one of you” and a faithful minister of Christ. Why might God often raise leaders from within a community rather than relying only on well-known or highly visible people? [57:49]
Epaphras prayed that believers would stand mature and fully assured in God’s will. What might mature, steady faith look like in a person facing ordinary pressures at home, work, or school?
If a believer’s metron is an area of ministry assigned by God, what kinds of spiritual responsibility should that person take for the people God has placed nearby? [01:06:18]
Archippus received a ministry from the Lord rather than inventing one for himself. How can a believer tell the difference between chasing an impressive opportunity and faithfully responding to an assignment God has already placed before them? [01:20:14]

Application questions

Who are the people God has already placed in your life—at home, in your workplace, in your neighborhood, or in this church? Which one person may need more than a casual greeting from you this week? [01:05:18]
Epaphras wrestled in prayer for real people by name. Whose name do you need to carry before the Lord more faithfully, and what specific spiritual need can you pray for in that person’s life? [01:27:18]
A metron is not territory to control; it is people entrusted to us for love, encouragement, prayer, and sometimes difficult conversations. Is there a conversation you have been avoiding because it may be uncomfortable? What would loving honesty look like? [01:06:25]
Being sent is a posture of saying, “My life, work, gifts, and home belong to God.” Which area of your daily life is hardest to place fully before God, and what would availability look like there this week? [01:12:19]
If you are a parent, grandparent, or someone with influence over younger people, what would it look like for them to see real faith in your life—prayer, Scripture, repentance, or decisions shaped by trust in God? [01:13:36]
Leadership multiplies when someone asks, “Who am I preparing?” Is there someone you could invite alongside you in serving, learning Scripture, praying, or following Jesus? What is one simple next step you could take? [01:10:11]
Jesus does not merely offer better leadership advice; He saves sinners, gives new life, and sends His people with purpose. Where are you tempted to depend on being a “good person” instead of trusting Christ, and how does the gospel change the way you see your purpose? [01:25:07]

Sermon Clips

60s

“The responsibility might be different. The number of people might be different, but the requirement is the same. As a church, I ask you, we need to be available. We need to be available. We need to pay attention. We need to remain faithful. And probably most importantly, we can accomplish the ministry you've received let from the Lord. So I ask you, where's God sending you? As you listen, as you've learned, listen to the weeks through this series, where is God sending you? And the question maybe, you know, not whether your assignment looks impressive to someone else or the question isn't really whether, you know, this thing or that thing. The question is whether you will be faithful to the assignment God is putting in your life.”

54s

“Epiphras was reached. He became rooted. He labored for his people. And Epiphras carried the gospel in himself and through himself. Now the question really comes to us, are you content in simply being reached? Will you be raised up by others? Don't wait for the impressive assignment. Don't assume someone else is gonna do it. Make yourself available. Be willing to be sent and by the grace of God through prayer, through availability, through all these things that we keep talking about, accomplish it.”

55s

“And that's why this foundational truth of today's message is so important. Again, the measure of leaders is not the crowd that they gather, but rather that the leaders that they send. Doesn't matter how many people at your table. Doesn't matter if you don't have a fancy ministry. Arceus did not invent his ministry. Paul tells him, pay attention to the ministry we received from the Lord. It's received from the Lord. Arceus didn't go to the local Starbucks and recruit a bunch of people to start church. He received it from the lord. His responsibility wasn't to compare to the other ministries out there. His responsibility was just to see where god is working and letting it keep working through him.”

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