The Letter to the Colossians part 1

Colossians: Paul’s Letter to the Forgotten City

Background

Colosse was once a prominent city for its place along trade routes. As early as Xerxes in the 5th century BC, it was a thriving town. For those who remember the timing of Daniel, that places Colosse as existing even in his day. It sat along the Little Maeander which was a branch of the Maeander River with pastures for grazing sheep and chalk deposits useful for dyeing cloth. It was a city built on trade, ranching and textiles. It was a vibrant city in its golden age. However, it 190 BC, the Romans chose its neighbor, Laodicea, as the capital of a district of 25 towns. The main highway circumvented Colosse altogether, and Colosse began to wane. By the time of Paul, it had become a small town, eclipsed by its larger neighbors and forgotten by most industry leaders. However, the Gospel reached Colosse, and the local church was building a reputation for faithfulness. Paul is encouraging their faithfulness while warning about coming wolves.

The Lord has much to say and do in small, forgotten towns.

It is widely held that Paul wrote the letter to the Colossians, and it wasn’t until the 19th century that some scholars began to question its authenticity. However, it is noteworthy that scholars in the 19th and 20th century regularly questioned everything about the Bible. Skepticism and doubt ruled the academic for some time, and even now today, skeptics abound. Three arguments exist for why Paul could not be the author, and all 3 fail to hold water. I will review them quickly as means to introduce the letter itself:

1) The letter comes later than Paul, because it addresses Gnosticism. The problem with this argument has much to do with Gnosticism itself. Gnosticism is a gumbo-like mixture of religious beliefs that became widely popular in the second century, especially after taking some Christian teachings. However, what we have learned since the 19th century is that gnosticism existed within Jewish communities as Jewish gnosticism, and it had its beginnings in the syncretic nature of paganism. Though Paul is certainly not addressing the second century gnosticism, it is conceivable some form of it existed in Colosse in the first century. 

Paul is giving a preemptive strike against false teachings.

2) The letter contains many terms Paul does not use elsewhere. This argument is tied to the first, and really only lends to Paul actually being the author. The terms in question have to do with the proto-gnosticism of the day and with the material that pre-dates Paul, such as in the hymn of chapter 1. In fact, when Ephesians (an accepted Pauline letter) is compared with Colossians, one finds many similarities and parallels. Thus, Paul is teaching much of the same material that we find Ephesians, but he is also addressing the material in the context of Colosse.

Paul is speaking the local lingo.

3) The letter does not address the same type of theology as Paul’s other letters. This argument is perhaps the weakest of the three simply by looking at what Paul does say. Each of Paul’s letters were given to address a particular issue within the local church. Paul’s description of Christ in Colossians certainly fits well with the other letters. His view of the Church as the Body of Christ is there. What is missing in Colossians is Paul’s eschatology—the end times. However, it could simply be the case the Colossians did not have need of a lesson on Christ’s Return in this letter. Colossians is more concerned with the Here and Now than the End of this Age. 

Paul is addressing the specific needs of the Colossians.

This last argument brings up an important point for when we study Scripture. It is vitally helpful to study eschatology and build our faith in what is to come. However, in our study of what will happen, we cannot forget what is happening. 

While we wait for Heaven, we cannot forget there is work to do on Earth.

So let us begin reading what God has to say for small towns with faithful churches.

Paul Gives Thanks : Colossians 1:1-8

Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, and Timothy our brother,

2 To the saints and faithful brothers in Christ at Colossae: Grace to you and peace from God our Father. Thanksgiving and Prayer

3 We always thank God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, when we pray for you, 4 since we heard of your faith in Christ Jesus and of the love that you have for all the saints, 5 because of the hope laid up for you in heaven. Of this you have heard before in the word of the truth, the gospel, 6 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, 7 just as you learned it from Epaphras our beloved fellow servant. He is a faithful minister of Christ on your behalf 8 and has made known to us your love in the Spirit.

Paul is thankful to God for the work that is being done in Colosse. Notice the reputation of Colosse is a church whose faith rests in Christ and whose love includes “all the saints.” The gospel has taken hold in Colosse, and they have responded with love for the gospel mission in all areas. 

Colosse can be described with the buzz phrase “a missional church.” But also notice Paul was not the one who started the church in Colosse. Epaphras, who scholars believe was a native Colossian, began the work in Colosse which has grown into a full-fledged local body of believers.

When we look at the relationship of Paul, Epaphras, and the Colossians, we see.

The Lord appoints a variety of people to reach a variety of people groups without regard to popularity.

Now, what do I mean by that? Paul is known as the “Apostle to the Gentiles”, but he was not the only missionary in the first century. We have no idea how many Christians were involved in the establishment of new churches, because it was widely understood that missions and Christianity just went hand-in-hand. Paul and the disciples would appoint elders over local churches, but those elders came after a mission work had took hold in a town. The missions had already started, and we see here that it wasn’t always the disciples that accomplished the mission work. 

Christians are notorious for hero-worship focusing on big-name pastors and missionaries who God has used. And though we should rejoice when someone is obedient, and God does a major work, we should also remember that Christianity has grown far more from the work of “everyday Christians” that we have never heard of. 

Just consider the phenomenon of the ‘mega-church’. There is a tendency for Christians and pastors to want to mimic what happens in a church of 1000 or more, because the hope is that if we do what they did, then we can be just as big as they are. But, there is a giant elephant in that conversation—mega-churches are not normal. In the 2000 years of church history, the idea of a single local body growing beyond 1000 people is very new, as in the last 100 years. Couple that with the current reality of churches. If you take all the pastors of SBC churches whose average attendance is less than 250 people, you could fill a Major League Baseball stadium (Replanting Rural Churches 25). 

The fact is God does not need (and I’m not even convinced He wants) mega-pastors at mega-churches to fulfill the Great Commission. Instead:

God calls each Christian to faithful obedience in the small things, and faithful willingness to let Him do the big things.

The truth is we don’t know much about Epaphras. But we do know, because of his faithfulness to minister in Colosse, the Colossian church grew and changed people’s eternities getting the attention of Paul, the Apostle.

Paul prays for Colosse : Colossians 1:9-14

9 And so, from the day we heard, we have not ceased to pray for you, asking that you may be filled with the knowledge of his will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding, 10 so as to walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing to him: bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God; 11 being strengthened with all power, according to his glorious might, for all endurance and patience with joy; 12 giving thanks[d] to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of the saints in light. 13 He has delivered us from the domain of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of his beloved Son, 14 in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.

So, how does Paul pray for such a vibrant church? He prays they continue to grow in what they are doing. Notice the verbs used:

1) Be filled with the knowledge of His will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding

Paul prays the Colossians grow in their knowledge of God and what God is accomplishing on the earth. Spiritual maturity includes study—being knowledgeable about the things of God in order to discern what is from God and what is from humans or the devil.

2) to walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing to Him

Paul prays this knowledge cuts to the heart of the Colossians in order that they may act in accordance with what they know. Head knowledge is a great thing, but if it doesn’t follow with obedience, then it’s useless. The great Anabaptist leader, Micheal Sattler wrote, “True Christians are those who carry out Christ’s doctrine in their lives.” 

3) bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God

As we grow in knowledge and obedience, we will also grow in fruit. The fruit that comes from an obedient and growing relationship with Christ we know is the love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, gentleness, and self-control that Paul lists in Galatians, but it is also the fruit of Christians bringing about more Christians. True growth is both wider and deeper—wider as the number of people showing up expands, and deeper as those people mature in obedient faithfulness. They are disciples who make more disciples.

4) being strengthened with all power, according to his glorious might, for all endurance and patience with joy

This same faithfulness grows into power and patience to endure when the blessings do not come. It is strength that comes from understanding that God will allow those difficult times and trials in order to prune and strengthen the local body. Whether in blessings or curses, whether sun or storm, or in life and in death, the believer can sing, “It is well with my soul.” That is true strength. 

5) giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of the saints in light.

What does all this study, all this obedience, all this fruit-bearing, and all this strength result in? It results in thankfulness—thankfulness that the Lord our Father has shed His love on us to turn us from darkness to light, from sinful beggars with no hope to royalty in the Eternal Kingdom of Heaven. Because at the end of this life we realize that it is not work that we have doing, it has been joining in the privilege of grace from Jesus Christ our Savior. The Father has privileged us with salvation and the ministry of pointing others to salvation as well.

As we close on our introduction to Colossians, I invite you to make this your prayer:

Lord, I give thanks for your Son who calls us out of darkness and into the light of salvation. 

Thank you for the Gospel story that continues to grow all over the world bringing eternal life to dead souls. And thank you that you brought salvation to me, as well. 

Lord, I ask that you help me be faithful and obedient to the call you have placed on my life, here in my town. Help me to grow in knowledge, to grow in obedience, to bear fruit, and to be strengthened for the task ahead. Help me to be thankful in all circumstances knowing that my goal should never be about pleasing other people, but only pleasing you.

Now, if you pray that, and you mean it, then I invite you to take the next step in being a disciple of Christ. For some, that may be the first step, which is to confess you are sinner and you need forgiveness from Jesus Christ. For some, that may be the step of being baptized. You have confessed you are a sinner, and Jesus is Lord, but you have not made that proclamation public through the act of baptism. For some, you have been reconciled to Christ and baptized, but you are not actively involved in discipling another person and being disciples by an older Christian. This most often occurs through a small group setting, like Sunday School, but it also occurs at a personal level. So, for the veteran Christian, I ask you to find two people (and I’d say do it today)—find someone who is willing to help you grow in your faith and obedience, and find someone else who is willing to learn from your faith and your obedience. If you don’t know who those people are, then now is the time to pray and ask God to point them out to you.