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"That God would open unto us a door of utterance" (logos) (Col. 4: 3).
"Let your speech (logos) be always with grace" (Col. 4: 6).
It is clear that the Apostle's prayer for utterance in Eph. 6: 19 may be the legitimate
prayer of every member of the body.
The next word in Paul's prayer that calls for attention is the twice-uttered adjective
"boldly": "That I may open my mouth boldly (parrhesia) to make known the mystery of
the gospel, for which I am an ambassador in bonds: that therein I may speak boldly
(parrhesiazomai), as I ought to speak" (Eph. 6: 19, 20). This word parrhesia is one that
should be dear to all who have been set free from the bondage of sin, the fear of man, and
the shadows of the law. It is a member of the large family of rheo, to flow. It suggests
frankness and freedom, hence a candour that amounts to boldness. Let us look at a few
of its occurrences so that we may catch something of its spirit:
"And He spake that saying openly" (Mark 8: 32).
"But lo, He speaketh boldly, and they say nothing unto Him" (John 7: 26).
"Then said Jesus unto them plainly, Lazarus is dead" (John 11: 14).
"I spake openly to the world . . . . . in secret have I said nothing" (John 18: 20).
Openness was a blessed characteristic of the Lord during his ministry on earth and we
shall find it reflected in those who knew and loved Him, when they, in turn, were sent
forth to speak in His name.
"Men and brethren, let me freely speak unto you of the patriarch David" (Acts 2: 29).
"And now, Lord, behold their threatenings: and grant unto Thy servants, that with all
boldness they may speak Thy word" (Acts 4: 29).
Paul "preached boldly at Damascus in the name of Jesus" (Acts 9: 27). The same is
recorded of his ministry elsewhere (Acts 13: 46; 14: 3; 19: 8; 26: 26), and it marks
the closing testimony of the Acts: "Preaching the kingdom of God, and teaching those
things which concern the Lord Jesus Christ, with all confidence, no man forbidding him"
(Acts 28: 31).
This frankness, fearlessness and openness, characterizes, too, our access to the Father
by the faith of Jesus Christ our Lord (Eph. 3: 12). It is this that gives us our greatest
encouragement in face of the opposition of man. If we, sinful as we know ourselves to be
by nature, have, by grace, "boldness" there, in the presence of the Lord, are we to hang
our heads and shuffle our feet in the presence even of the greatest mortal on earth? We
shall be courteous, for the Scriptures teach us so to be. We shall give every man his due,
and esteem other believers better than ourselves, but when it is a matter of speaking
freely and frankly concerning that most blessed of all revelations, "the mystery of the
gospel", may be ever pray the prayer of the Apostle in Eph. 6:
The fact that the Apostle makes so light of his imprisonment must not be
misunderstood. For the love of the Lord He was willing, not only to be imprisoned, but
to die, yet that does not indicate indifference to suffering. Such a champion of liberty as
he is revealed to be in Galatians could scarcely be conceived as enduring imprisonment