I was struck by this verse at the end of Colossians:

And say to Archippus, “See that you fulfill the ministry that you have received in the Lord.” (Colossians 4.17, ESV)

Who was Archippus? All the commentators, I think, assume he is a leader of the church. A “minister,” since he “received a ministry in the Lord.” For example, here’s the note from The Passion Translation:

It is believed that Archippus was a spiritual leader in the region of Colossae, perhaps the bishop of Laodicea; he is also mentioned in Philem. 2. We can only speculate why Paul wanted this exhortation to be made to him. Some believe he was a minister of Christ who was discouraged and needed to be exhorted to not abandon his calling.

The fact is, no one knows. He’s only mentioned here and at the beginning of Philemon, a letter sent along with the letter to the Colossians to Philemon, who lived in Colossae.  

I believe everyone has received a ministry in the Lord, and it could be their regular work. And it needs to be fulfilled. How do we know Archippus wasn’t the custodian? Or maybe he was running a business to help meet people’s needs? I am VERY thankful for all the people at my hospital last week fulfilling their ministry, whether they knew it was from the Lord or not. (Some did, and I may write about them later.) We checked in for surgery at 5:30a, Tuesday, July 28, and people were there! Very impressive. Everything ran like clockwork because everyone: doctors, nurses, assistants, physical and occupational therapists, custodians, people in the dining hall… were fulfilling their callings – their ministry.  

I wrote almost three years ago about being asked to bless the food at a birthday party because “Bob is the closest thing we have to a minister here.” I prayed, but not before saying, “We’re all ministers here.”

“Minister/ministry” is just a word for “serve,” the word that’s used in this vignette from the life of Jesus:

And he arose and left the synagogue and entered Simon’s house. Now Simon’s mother-in-law was ill with a high fever, and they appealed to him on her behalf. And he stood over her and rebuked the fever, and it left her, and immediately she rose and began to serve them. (Luke 4.38, 39, ESV)

Archippus might have been discouraged and needed encouragement, to be sure. But it’s pure assumption that the “ministry” was ecclesiastical and not something else. The very idea that Paul would encourage an ordinary guy doing ordinary things seems beyond our grasp. 

So let me leave you with the most important thing I can say to you:

See that you fulfill the ministry you have received from the Lord…whether it’s school-teaching, computer programming, car sales, hair styling, jewelry making, whatever. And along the way, I believe your ministry includes, as I wrote recently, seeking God, loving people, and teaching others to do the same.

Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for human masters, since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving. (Colossians 3.23, 24, NIV)