Scripture Reading(s)
Colossians 1:1-14
1:1 Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, and Timothy our brother,
1:2 To the saints and faithful brothers and sisters in Christ in Colossae: Grace to you and peace from God our Father.
1:3 In our prayers for you we always thank God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ,
1:4 for we have heard of your faith in Christ Jesus and of the love that you have for all the saints,
1:5 because of the hope laid up for you in heaven. You have heard of this hope before in the word of the truth, the gospel
1:6 that has come to you. Just as it is bearing fruit and growing in the whole world, so it has been bearing fruit among yourselves from the day you heard it and truly comprehended the grace of God.
1:7 This you learned from Epaphras, our beloved fellow servant. He is a faithful minister of Christ on your behalf,
1:8 and he has made known to us your love in the Spirit.
1:9 For this reason, since the day we heard it, we have not ceased praying for you and asking that you may be filled with the knowledge of God’s will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding,
1:10 so that you may lead lives worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing to him, as you bear fruit in every good work and as you grow in the knowledge of God.
1:11 May you be made strong with all the strength that comes from his glorious power, and may you be prepared to endure everything with patience, while joyfully
1:12 giving thanks to the Father, who has enabled you to share in the inheritance of the saints in the light.
1:13 He has rescued us from the power of darkness and transferred us into the kingdom of his beloved Son,
1:14 in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.
Reflections
This is a letter of both encouragement and reminder for the church to hold on to the truth of the Gospel. The Gospel is the centre and root of what holds the Church together. The truth of what Christ has done for us drives us into a unifying love for Him. It is what gives us reason to worship Him not just every Sunday as a church, but every single day.
The heart of the Gospel is also what gives us true joy and strength to keep pressing on in this world. It gives us comfort during hard times and joy during our sad moments. It provides us with strength when we are weak and gives us reason to keep carrying on this life.
The Gospel also provides us with a hope that is unlike any other. That hope centers on our sin being erased and no longer being defined by our rebellious ways. It gives us hope that we serve a God who unconditionally loves and cares for His children. The ultimate hope we have rests in that we will one day be with Him and that we will no longer have to suffer or deal with the weight of sin in our lives.
Our joy is found in Christ alone, our peace is found in His promises to never leave us, and our lives are placed safely in His hands.
What does God want from us? Many have spent their lives trying to answer this question. Paul prayed for the saints in the Colossian church that,
that you may lead lives worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing to him, as you bear fruit in every good work and as you grow in the knowledge of God.
Paul firstly desires that the Colossians live lives that are worthy of the Lord, though, none of us are actually worthy of the Lord. Secondly, Paul wants them to produce good fruit. The life that is pleasing to God is one that is proven out by good fruit. Lastly, Paul desires for them to grow in the knowledge of God.
Paul’s instructions are very reminiscent of the desires God laid out for His people in Micah 6:8.
He has shown you, O mortal, what is good.
And what does the Lord require of you?
To act justly and to love mercy
and to walk humbly with your God
(Micah 6:8)
People speak of Christianity being full of rules but I would differ. We must simply follow Jesus and love the Lord and others. Everything else will follow.