Colossians Chapter 1

We all get unsolicted letters - junk mail comes almost every day. We like to get letters but we often just bin junk mail, we destroy it with barely a thought. This letter to the church in Colosse came from Paul who many had barely met - see 2 verse 1, some had not met Paul in Colosse and Laodecia (further down the valley). We don't know if he had been there for sure. He travelled through the region but he is not recorded there. He may have gone there on his 3rd missionary journey via the Lycus valley to Ephesus - see Acts 19, he arrived at Ephesus, stayed there for 2 years. All in the province of Asia heard God's word - verse 10, this included Colosse. It had a wide impact. It may be that some Colossians had heard Paul while he was in Ephesus, they may have gone to hear him, it is likely that many had not.
Was the letter an early form of junk mail? Certainly not! even though we don't know who sent some things we do not discard them it. A hundredth birthday telegram from the Queen is an example. Even though the Colossians had no personal knowledge of him, they knew of hima and he was widely respected throughout the churches as a leader. athe Colossians would have felt priveleged to get a letter from Paul, to them in particular. It was not very personal and dealt with issues personal to them. How was this possible? Was it written when he was close to Colosse? No, from Rome - in prison 1000 miles away when he also wrote to the Phillipians. How could he be so well informed?
He had recieved a visit from Epaphras, their minister who came to faith through Paul's ministry. He revered and loved Paul. He became a minister in Colosse and Laodicia. When he heard about Paul's imprisonment in Rome he went to visit Paul in Rome, this was an immense encouragement for Paul while he was in prison awaiting trial. There were problems with the church in Rome. Paul was concerned with the work of the Gospel. He heard about your churches in Colosse and Laodici. It was good to get news so he could pray for them as we do for other churches - encouragement and discouragements.
Verses 7 and 8 - Epaphras gave Paul news about their love in the Spirit, good things and difficulties they faced and needed addressing. Epaphras was concerned about wrong teaching infiltrating the church. Paul deals with them in tender loving way. Paul felt he could speak directly to the church.
Verse 1 - the introduction is short, it says who he was a nd the basis of his authority, he was an apostle, he does not labour this as if they should be in undue awe of him. He had God given authority from Jesus so he could deal with errors in the church. Few outsiders had the authority to address errors as Paul did. We have to exercise care with outsiders who try to lord it over us. He also stresses his relationship with them.
Verse 2. He refers to them as saints and believers and brothers. He also stresses what they share - God OUR father. He draws closer to them so he can teach the. He was a great apostle. He still remembers thay are brothers in Christ and shows them the respect they deserve. We should treat other christians as fellow believers. He then follows his normal pattern by expressing thanks to God. Paul was not just following a pattern, it is very sincere.
Verses 3 to 8 This section is personal, relevant and important. He does not praise the, or thank them but God for he deserves the credit and thanks for what has gone on in Colosse. When we pray we often pray for their needs, we often don't thank God for our fellow believers. We forget to give thanks for saving them and putting them where they are. Parents like to be thanked by their children - children often forget to say it as we do to God. We should stop and thank God for what he has done. There is an endless list of what he has done for them. Paul thanked God for them even though he had concerns for them - they were christians. Paul didn't have to say this, he would have said thisquickly. Why did he write and say thanks at some length? To encourage them and so he did not look down on them. He wanted to show interest in them so they realised he had concerns for them.
The Colossians commended themselves:
a) Their faith in Jesus Christ - they didn't just say the right things like a parrot - we can train them but is does not mean anything. True faith is not a matter of saying the right words. Faith combines both belief and actions, it applies the truth of the gospel we have believed in. The Jews believed they had been born into faith. On the road to Damascus Paul had seen Jesus and believed and preached the gospel to thousands who had come to believe in Jesus. Many feel uncomfortable when hearing the gospel because of their sin - John 3 verse 18, they shun the light.
People who are not christians do not like to be told about hell and sin. If this is a natural reaction, how do we come to faith? Because God will not abandon us, he has chosen us by grace and calls us into his kingdom.
There are many small struggling churches, we often grieve over their weaknesses, we should think God for these churches and what they do. Faith is the means of entry into the kingdom, love is the evidence - 1 John 4, we love God who we are a reflection of. If we love God and hate our brothers we make God a liar. Christian love is unique. We are the object of God's love, our sin is repulsive to him, he turns away from it. Jesus bore the punishment for our sins in his body on the tree. When Christans display this love it shows God's spirit is at work and shows faith at work. If someone shows love and concern for us we thank them for it. We thank God for that as well.
Faith, love and hope. The Colossians faith and love spring from their hope, how? Hope is stored up for them in Heaven as a treasure - see 1 Peter 1 verse 4. It is the ultimate goal for all christians - enjoyed in unending joy. It is wonderful, the greatest hope anyone can have. It is not a mere wish. It is a certainty, not a vague wish, a confident expectation that what God has pronised will be fulfilled. At Christmas all children have hopes for what will come and what they will get. We have hope about what we will get in Heaven .
Our love for God and other Christians will be enlarged. Is our hope for eternity as strong as it? If we are not a christian we cannot know this hope until we put our faith in Christ - it is a wish with no reallistic hope.
b) The Gospel. They were in danger of going astray and they needed reminding of the truth of the Gospel. It turned the world upside down, 500,000 believers by the end of the apostolic era. It is not easy for moslems to convert, it is so for Jews and other religions as well. The early believers faced many persecutions and oppositions. Despite this, the gospel had a great effect. Why? It was not just the skill of the preachers. Many faithfully preached the gospel. Or cutting edge church planting schemes, but the message they preached, they did not add or take away from it but they stuck to the message they had received. No one should add or take away from it, it ruins it. Many leave bits out to make it palatbale. We need all of it, it is effective because God makes it so. When Jesus died on the cross he did something we cannot do for ourselves. We would have no hope. How should we respond? We must stay faithful to it. God determines what the outcome will be. He has promised he will use the message he has given us. We must give thanks to God for it.