In Colossians 4:18, Paul closed his letter to the church in Colossae by asking them to “remember his chains.” Traditionally, scholars have understood Paul as writing the letter of Colossians from his imprisonment in Rome. He refers to his imprisonment elsewhere in 2 Timothy 1:8, 16, asking Timothy to “not be ashamed of him as the Lord’s prisoner.” Paul felt that there was a need to exhort Christians to remember those who are in prison for their faith in Christ and to not be ashamed them. Here are three ways that Christians can remember their brothers and sisters in Christ who are in chains for their faith:
1) Prioritize the Kingdom of God – Christ calls us to put His kingdom first. Regardless of the national allegiances that we pledge, our first allegiance is to Christ and His kingdom. When a woman like Twen Theodros imprisoned in Eritrea for “meeting with other Christians,” our thought should not be “not my country, not my problem.” Instead, we should recognize that Twen Theodros is more a part of our family than any unbelieving American. Because of Christ, we have more in common with believers who do not speak our language than neighbors who share common interests but do not have faith in Christ. We will never genuinely care for those who are in chains until we prioritize the Kingdom of God.
2) Pray for the Persecuted – Following the apostle Paul’s example, we see that prayer is a means of remembrance. In Philippians 1:3, Paul writes, “I thank my God upon every remembrance of you,” which, given the thanksgiving section of his letter, means that Paul prayed every time God brought the Philippian church to his mind. One of the best ways to keep the persecuted church in your prayer life is to utilize resources like the International Mission Board, the Joshua Project, Barnabas Fund, or Operation World.
3) Encourage Those Imprisoned – Through ministries like Voice of the Martyrs and Open Doors, Christians can write letters of encouragement to Christians who are imprisoned around the world. These ministries provide guidelines for writers and translations for the prisoners. Can you imagine how encouraging it must be to receive a letter from another Christian that is praying for you in a different part of the world? This is a very practical way for Christians can encourage other Christians around the world.
As Paul’s letters reveal, when one member of the body of Christ suffers, we should all share in that suffering. We should resolve to remember the chains of our brothers and sisters who are imprisoned and persecuted. We can do this by prioritizing the Kingdom of God, praying for the persecuted, and encouraging those who are imprisoned.
CBH
