Colossenses 1
William Barclay · Citado em PreceptAustin
Colossenses 1:1
Barclay - With himself Paul associates Timothy; and he gives him a lovely title. He calls him the brother, a title which is given to Quartus (Romans 16:23); to Sosthenes (1 Corinthians 1:1); to Apollos (1 Corinthians 16:12). The fundamental necessity for Christian service and for Christian office is brotherliness. Premanand, highborn Indian who became a Christian, tells in his autobiography of Father E. F. Brown of the Oxford Mission in Calcutta. E. F. Brown was every man's friend; but he was specially the friend of the hackney carriage drivers, the carters, the tram conductors, the menial servants, and the hundreds of poor street boys. Later in his life, when he was travelling about India, Premanand would often meet people who had stayed in Calcutta, and they would always ask for E. F. Brown, saying, "Is that friend of the Calcutta street boys still alive, who used to walk arm-in-arm with the poor?" Sir Henry Lunn tells how his father used to describe his grandfather: "He was a friend of the poor without patronage, and of the rich without subservience." To use our modern idiom, the first necessity for Christian service is the ability to "get alongside" all kinds of people. Timothy is not described as the preacher, the teacher, the theologian, the administrator, but as the brother. He who walks in aloofness can never be a real servant of Jesus Christ. (Colossians 1 - William Barclay's Daily Study Bible) Elsewhere Paul refers to "Timothy, my son" (1Ti 1:18) and "Timothy, my beloved son" (2Ti 1:2-note) suggesting a father-son relationship in the spiritual realm. THOUGHT - The spiritual relationship between Paul and Timothy begs the question "Do you have a brother in Christ who you would call your spiritual father and discipler?" In 2012, as we see the modern church in America being led by younger, more energetic men, the crucial question to ponder if you are one of those younger men is this -- "Do you have a Paul (discipling me) and a Barnabas (encouraging me)?" I see a hesitancy or reticence on the part of many younger church leaders (men and women) to actively seek out a mature older person to disciple them and I am not sure why this is occurring. If this describes you, it is a mistake, for Solomon wrote that "The glory of the young is their strength; the gray hair of experience is the splendor of the old." (Pr 20:29NLT) W A Criswell commented "Young men delight to show strength and agility of body; whereas in old age physical strength is often replaced by wisdom and experience (Pr 16:31)." PAUL AND TIMOTHY: AN ABBREVIATED CHRONOLOGY (Note: Not exhaustive & dates are approximate) 47AD Paul's first missionary journey took him to Lystra, probably Timothy's home town, so that Timothy either witnessed or heard of Paul's stoning Acts 14 49AD Paul's second missionary journey again to Lystra, where Paul chose Timothy to come with him Acts 16:1, 2, 3 49AD Timothy followed Paul as they trekked westward across Turkey to Philippi where Timothy witnessed Paul and Silas being beaten and imprisoned for the sake of the Gospel Acts 16:22, 23 55AD 1Corinthians written - Paul sends Timothy his beloved, faithful "child" in the Lord to remind them of his ways 1Co 4:17 61AD Philippians written - excellent summary of Timothy's character based on over 10 years as a co-laborer in Christ Php 2:19, 20, 21, 22 66-67AD Paul's last written communication was to Timothy 2 Ti 1:1, 2 When we study Paul’s epistles we see that each has a dominant theme. In Romans, it is justification by faith. In Ephesians, it is the mystery of Christ and his Church. In Philippians, it is the joy which Christ brings. In Colossians, it is the absolute supremacy and sufficiency of Jesus Christ as the Head of all creation and of the Church. There is no book in the New Testament, including John’s Gospel, which presents such a comprehensive picture of the fullness of Christ as found in Colossians. Accordingly, there is no writing better-equipped to draw our hearts (our minds, our desires, etc) upward than the book of Colossians. PAUL'S POWER FOR MINISTRY How was Paul able to minister in such a powerful way? And recall that Paul commands us to continually imitate him (1Cor 11:1-note), so it would be a good thing to know what energized Paul! While I admit that I am speculating somewhat (especially because NT dating is not known with absolute certainty), I think it would fall into the category of "sanctified speculation!" Let's look at a key event in Paul's life described in 2 Corinthians 12:1-10. In 2 Cor 12:2 Paul wrote "I know a man in Christ who fourteen years ago-- whether in the body I do not know, or out of the body I do not know, God knows-- such a man was caught up to the third heaven." Who is that man? Surely this is Paul's personal testimony describing an event in which he was "raptured" (same verb [harpazo - Latin Vulgate translates it "rapturo"] used in 1Thes 4:17-note) into the Third Heaven (2Cor 12:2), to Paradise (2 Cor 12:4), and because of the surpassing greatness of the revelations, he was given "a thorn in the flesh, a messenger of Satan to buffet" him (no one knows exactly how this was manifest) to keep Paul from exalting himself. (2 Cor 12:7). And after praying three times for the Lord to take away the thorn (2 Cor 12:8), Jesus responded by teaching us a truly life changing truth... And He has said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for (My) power (dunamis) is perfected (made to reach its intended goal) in weakness." Most gladly, therefore, I will rather boast about my weaknesses, that the power (dunamis) of Christ may dwell (episkenoo) in me. Therefore I am well content with weaknesses, with insults, with distresses, with persecutions, with difficulties, for Christ's sake; for when I am weak, then I am strong. (2 Cor 12:9-10-note) See Related Article on Divine Dunamis, discussing the Spirit of Jesus Who energizes and empowers every believer for life and ministry. And so we see that the Lord Jesus clearly equates the grace that is in Him (Jn 1:14-note, Jn 1:16-17-note) with the power to live a supernatural life (cp Jn 10:10). And what is the key that unlocks the door to that abundant life? Our weaknesses (plural)! This is one of the great truths of Scripture and as with most of the profound teachings of the Bible, it is totally antithetical to the way the world thinks. The world says "up" is the way to power, but Jesus says "No, down is the way to My power!" Grace flows down, as we humbly bow at the foot of the Cross (cp James 4:6-note). And so why did I make the presumptive statement that this passage unlocks the secret for Paul's dynamic ministry (and for us who are called to imitate him -1Cor 11:1-note)? The answer requires some comparison with the chronology of the major events in Paul's life. Recall that Second Corinthians was written about 56AD, but Paul's being caught up to the third heaven and Paradise occurred 14 years earlier (2Cor 12:2-3), roughly 42AD, which would have been after his conversion (Acts 9:1-9) but before his 3 great missionary journeys. I will submit that Paul never "shed" that thorn in his side and that in a continual state of weakness he was continually in a state of supernatural strength (power) wrought by the grace which is in Christ Jesus (2Ti 2:1-note). Paul knew about grace and power and he knew Timothy and all disciples that would follow would need to depend on the same power source! The highly respected commentator Warren Wiersbe makes a similar statement declaring that 1Cor 15:10 was "the secret of Paul's great ministry," and while I totally agree (read that verse and note the repeated word!), the event which led to Paul's utter dependence on God's grace for ministry occurred in Second Corinthians 12. As always I encourage you to be a Berean (Acts 17:11-note). I could be wrong, but I can't wait to ask Paul in the future if this was the pivotal event (after his conversion of course) that fueled his dynamic distribution of the Gospel of Jesus throughout most of the Roman Empire. Below is an overview of the approximate chronology (Bible does not give specific dates) of Paul's life... 32AD - Stephen's stoning Acts 7:58, 8:1 33AD - Persecution of church (Acts 8:1-3; Phil 3:6) 34AD - Paul born again on the Road to Damascus (Acts 9:1-9) Goes to Damascus (Acts 9:10-19) Acts 9:22 says "Saul kept increasing (endunamoo in the imperfect tense) in strength." 35AD - Travels to Arabia where he spends 3 years (Gal 1:17note - most authorities say this event occurred between Acts 9:22 and Acts 9:23 - note phrase "when many days had elapsed") 46AD - Barnabas travels to Tarsus in order to seek Saul (Acts 11:25) 56AD - Second Corinthians Written BACKGROUND ON COLOSSAE and GNOSTICISM Colossae was located about 80 miles inland from the city of Ephesus, in the Lycus River Valley, in what is today the western part of Turkey (click on map below to enlarge or more photos of Colossae click HolyLandPhotos.org What is Christian Gnosticism? Click this map for the geographic relationships of Laodicea ("justice of the people" - description), Hierapolis ("holy city" - see description) and Colossae ("punishment" - see description). Located about a hundred miles east of Ephesus, its nearest neighbors were Laodicea (ten miles away) and Hierapolis (thirteen miles away). … In Paul’s day it was only an insignificant market town." (Vaughan) In fact Lightfoot said, “Colossae was the most unimportant town to which Paul ever wrote a letter.” "An unimportant town maybe, but surely not an unimportant people!" (Bell) The tributaries of the Lycus River brought a calcareous deposit of a peculiar kind that choked up the streams and made arches and fantastic grottoes. In spite of this there was much fertility in the valley. At one time Colossae was one of the prominent towns of the valley. Herodotus describes Xerxes’ march westward in 480 B.C. writing that "He came to Colossae, a great city of Phrygia situated at a spot where the river Lycus plunges into a chasm and disappears. Antiochus III (223-187 B.C.) transported about two thousand Jews from Mesopotamia to Phrygia and Lydia (Jos., Ant., 12:147-53). By the NT era Colossae was a small town in the shadow of its nearby neighbors, Laodicea and Hierapolis. Apparently the Colossian church came into being during Paul’s ministry in Ephesus, because Acts 19:10 says that Paul remained in Ephesus "for two years, so that all who lived in Asia heard the word of the Lord, both Jews and Greeks.” Thus a new, thriving church sprouted in Colossae though Paul had never been there himself. Although the specific word is not mentioned by Paul, most scholars agree that Paul wrote Colossae to counter the growing influence of Gnostics (Gnosticism) who considered themselves of superior knowledge who could help “lesser” ones attain deeper spirituality. Gnosticism is from gnosis, “to know” and thus Gnostics were the “people in the know” who considered themselves the spiritual elite. According to them, it was by knowledge as opposed to faith, that humanity was to be regenerated. Faith was suited only to the rude masses, the animal-men. Gnostics held the basic doctrine that matter (physical or created) was evil and that only the spirit was good. They reasoned that God could not be involved in creation, because being perfect he could not touch matter which was intrinsically evil. Therefore, the world came into being through a complicated process as God put forth thousands of emanations (or lesser gods), each of which was a little more distant from him, so that finally there was an emanation (a little god) so distant from God that it could touch matter and create the world. Of course, this lesser god of creation was so far removed from the ultimate God that it was evil. This reasoning led to the belief that Jesus Christ, if he really was the Son of God, could not have taken on a human body because matter is evil. This delusion spawned the Gnostic lie that Jesus was only a ghost-like phantom. To the Gnostics, Christ was not Creator, the Incarnation was not real, and Christ was not enough! So the Gnostics built a system by which one could begin with Christ and work one’s way up the series of emanations to God. In Colossae, this system (gnosis) appears to have consisted of ascetic disciplines (Col 2:20-23-note), mysticism, and legalism, all complex and proudly intellectual. Kenneth
Colossenses 1:1
Barclay - The word apostolos literally means one who is sent out. Paul's right to speak is that he has been sent out by God to be his ambassador to the Gentiles. Moreover, he is an apostle by the will of God. That office is not something which he has earned or achieved; it is something which has been given him by God. "You did not choose me," said Jesus, "but I chose you" (John 15:16). Here, right at the outset of the letter, is the whole doctrine of grace. A man is not what he has made himself, but what God has made him. (Colossians 1 - William Barclay's Daily Study Bible) Related Resources: from Gotquestions.org What is an apostle? Is God restoring the offices of apostle and prophet in the church today? What is the difference between a disciple and apostle? W E Vine says apostolos "is, lit., "one sent forth" (apo, "from," stellō, "to send"). "The word is used of the Lord Jesus to describe His relation to God, Heb. 3:1; see John 17:3. The twelve disciples chosen by the Lord for special training were so called, Luke 6:13; Luke 9:10. Paul, though he had seen the Lord Jesus, 1 Cor. 9:1; 1 Cor. 15:8, had not 'companied with' the Twelve 'all the time' of His earthly ministry, and hence was not eligible for a place among them, according to Peter's description of the necessary qualifications, Acts 1:22. Paul was commissioned directly, by the Lord Himself, after His Ascension, to carry the Gospel to the Gentiles. "The word has also a wider reference. In Acts 14:4, 14, it is used of Barnabas as well as of Paul; in Rom. 16:7 of Andronicus and Junias. In 2 Cor. 8:23 (RV, margin) two unnamed brethren are called 'apostles of the churches;' in Phil. 2:25 (RV, margin) Epaphroditus is referred to as 'your apostle.' It is used in 1 Thess. 2:6 of Paul, Silas and Timothy, to define their relation to Christ." * [* From Notes on Thessalonians, by Hogg and Vine, pp. 59-60.] (Vine's Expository Dictionary of Old Testament and New Testament Words) Gilbrant has a lengthy discussion of apostolos - Classical Greek - Apostolos is derived from the verb apostellō (643), which is a combination of the preposition apo (570), “from, off,” and the verb stellomai (4575), “keep away, stand aloof, avoid, put in order.” Apostellō means “to send off” (persons or things). In classical Greek apostolos only rarely corresponds in meaning to the New Testament understanding of the word. Its background and origin are found in the maritime language. It occurs in connection with sea voyages and military expeditions; later it designated the fleet itself. From this the term came to signify a group of men who were sent on a special task, for example, a group of settlers (Rengstorf, “Apostolos,” Kittel 1:407). Furthermore, ho apostolos signified the leader and commander of the expedition. Nevertheless, there was nothing inherent in the term which suggested anything more than someone being sent by someone else. Nothing in the term itself implied any transference of authority. The Greeks regularly used more emphatic words for this type of commissioning, such as pempō (3854), “send”; angelos (32) “messenger”; kērux (2755), “herald”; and many other such terms. Ordinarily apostolos retained this vague and indefinite definition. The papyri indicate that the term was associated with a cover letter or a note, or a passport. Naturally one must wonder why the Christian community chose such a word as a title for their leaders. However, several factors shed light on this phenomenon. First, although its heritage provided little motivation for choice, some less customary usages show how appropriate the term could be. Herodotus (1.21) employed apostolos on occasion to denote a “minister” or “messenger” (Bauer). In the Third Century B.C. we read of a “minister (apestalmenos) of the king” (Muller, “Apostle,” Colin Brown, 1:127); in all probability here the term included some idea of the transfer of the authority of the king to the minister, an idea central to the New Testament understanding. With Stoic-Cynic philosophers apostellō became a technical term for divine authorization. Within these circles a word also occurred which paradoxically stood nearer to the New Testament idea of the apostle than the term itself, namely, kataskopos (2655). Literally this word means “a spy,” but in philosophical terminology it connotes the one who inquires of human circumstances and then brings those in need a helping message from the gods. The sending and the task-oriented motifs are both present here. This “messenger” also models an ideal of poverty, which can be traced back to Socrates and Plato. They assumed that anyone bearing divine messages should be characterized by poverty and suffering. Although this is a rather striking external similarity, it must be observed that is all it is. Some suggest it may be that such a concept indirectly prompted the first Christians to avoid kataskopos, just as they avoided identification with the philosophers and hucksters and “teachers of wisdom.” The Hellenistic world was virtually overrun by itinerant philosophers and quacks of every kind. In Athens these philosophers speculated that Paul was an advocate of “strange gods” (Acts 17:16f.). Other examples suggest that apostolos could denote a “deputy” who received and put into affect a divine message, but this apparently belongs to a later period, and it may have oriental and Gnostic influences. It should hardly be considered as a background for the New Testament usage. The development and use of the word in secular Greek can, of course, hold some importance for the New Testament’s understanding of apostolos. But far more critical is the influence of the Septuagint and the Old Testament (Hebrew), and Judaism. Septuagint Usage - While apostolos occurs only once in the Septuagint, the verbs apostellō and exapostellō (1805) appear no less than 700 times. These words regularly translate the Hebrew shālach, “send” (with stress on the authority of the messenger [literally “the one sent”]). The same case applies to the passive participle shālûach (apostolos 1 Kings 14:6 [LXX 3 Kings 14:6]). This authorization, however, never concerns a position or an office but a certain, limited task. It is noteworthy that shālûach is applied to only one of the prophets—Isaiah. When he heard the Lord ask, “Whom shall I send, and who will go for us?” Isaiah responded, “Here am I; send me” (Isaiah 6:8). Despite the Old Testament limits of understanding, the rabbis used shālûach in reference to the prophets who in a unique way had proven themselves to be messengers of God by performing signs and wonders (e.g., Moses, Elijah, Elisha, etc.). They had accomplished such feats which were otherwise restricted to God. Therefore, they were considered to be His authorized messengers in a unique way. The shālûach of God not only had to speak in the name of the Lord, but he had to act on God’s behalf. This provides an interesting background for understanding Paul’s words about the “signs of an apostle” (2 Corinthians 12:12; cf. Acts 4:30; 14:3; 19:11). Intertestamental Period - There was an Old Testament background for the shālûach institution which developed in Judaism. The origin of this arrangement cannot be determined for certain, but at the turn of the First Century A.D. it had been fully developed. The rabbis maintained that the foundation was formulated in the Law (Torah). It was a specific legal institution which was based upon the principle that a messenger was furnished with authority to act on behalf of someone else. Thus, the status of a shālûach exceeded that of a simple messenger. Neither was there any suggestion that the duties of a shālûach were merely mechanically performed orders. Rather, it was recognized to be an independent course of action in which the messenger was entitled to the rights and authority of his sender. Even if the representative misused his authority, the decisions could not be revoked. A shālûach could conduct business transactions for his sender (i.e., he had “power of attorney”). The shālûach had the power to represent the bridegroom at his wedding! He could also perform legal functions including divorce. This was so irrevocable that the husband himself could not abolish the divorce (Rengstorf, “apostolos,” Kittel, 1:415). In the Mishnah the statement, “A man’s representative is like the man himself” (Berachoth 5.5), defines the role of the shālûach (Muller, “Apostle,” Colin Brown, 1:127f.). The one sent by Jewish religious authorities into the Diaspora as their representatives to the synagogues were understood to have the authority invested with the shālûach. Shālûach, however, was never used in connection with Jewish missionaries. Although the legal power of the position was a primary aspect, the functional role might be of a religious nature. A priest, as a representative of the priesthood, could be considered as the shālûach of God. The leader of the synagogue who read the prayer in the name of the assembly was called the shālûach (shālîach, Aramaic) of the synagogue. But primarily it was the messengers from the Jewish leaders in Jerusalem who were granted shālûach as their official title. It would probably be correct to say that Saul/Paul was the shālûach of the high priests when he, with written authority, went to Damascus in search of Christians to arrest. This forms a striking background for Paul’s claim to be an apostle of the Lord. Before he became an apostle, he had been a shālûach of the Jews (Acts 9:1,2), i.e., an authorized representative. In the Diaspora a shālûach was generally associated with the Greek word apostolos. The rabbis did not use this Greek term, which gradually became exclusively Christian. When Jerusalem had been destroyed (A.D. 70), those with authority to collect the annual temple tax were termed “apostles.” Josephus used the word in connection with a body of Jewish messengers to Rome (Antiquities 17.11.1). The church father Jerome said that shālûach was a Jewish title comparable to apostle (To the Galatians 1.1). Furthermore, in the Aramaic-speaking Syrian church, an apostle was called a shᵉlîach which confirms that the two words in certain instances and to a certain degree were considered equivalent. When this connection between these two words and what they denote in Judaism and Christianity is compared, it must be emphasized that the differences between a Jewish shālûach and a Christian apostle are greater than the similarities. A shālûach was usually dispatched by men, but an apostle was commissioned by the Lord himself (cf. Acts 13:1f., the sending of Paul and Barnabas; Galatians 1:1 precludes understanding this in any formal installation sense). New Testament Usage - As it has been seen, apostolos is another expression in which a Greek word was appropriated by New Testament writers which is actually little used and is rather imprecise in meaning in secular Greek. The definition of apostolos in the New Testament can by no means be established from the customary meaning in secular Greek. Neither can the implications of the word be totally explained by any equivalent Hebrew term. As has been observed, it is actually difficult to establish any precise Hebrew equivalent to apostolos. Apostolos denotes a ministry and an office that was instituted by Jesus himself: “And when it was day, he called unto him his disciples: and of them he chose twelve, whom also he named apostles” (Luke 6:13). Here, as in Matthew 10:2 and Mark 6:30, we encounter the Greek word apostolos without any further explanation as to what the word means. We note, however, that one of the most characteristics feature of apostolic ministry in the New Testament is mission. This was totally absent within Judaism’s understanding of shālûach (Matthew 28:19; Mark 16:15; Luke 24:47; Acts 1:8; 1 Corinthians 9:16,17). The apostles were sent to proclaim the gospel to the ends of the earth (Acts 1:8). This missionary call, given by the risen Lord, reaffirmed and confirmed the original call to apostleship (Matthew 10:1f.; Mark 6:7f.). This missionary orientation which is associated with the duties of apostleship should not be misinterpreted to mean that every missionary is an apostle. Charismatically endowed leaders who were called to special ministry have historically been called “apostles.” We may speak of the “apostle to the North” or the “apostle to China.” But it could prove problematic if such figures were given the authority equal to the initial apostles. In earliest Christianity the word apostolos did not possess such a precise and technical meaning as it has today. Therefore, the term in the New Testament was used in a less-than-technical sense. For instance, apostoloi was used of the messengers to the congregation in Corinth (apostloi ekklēsiōn, 2 Corinthians 8:23; cf. Philippians 2:25). The Greek term apostolos here was used differently from the way we understand the term. It would be improper to translate apostolos as “apostle” in the later formal sense of the word. Because apostolos in the ancient Christian period had such a broad meaning, it made it easy for “false apostles” (pseudoapostoloi [see 5405]) to claim apostolic authority (2 Corinthians 11:13; Revelation 2:2). The fact that apostolos was not an ecclesiastical technical term in the New Testament is attested by its usage applied to those other than Paul and the Twelve, who were also sent out by the risen Christ. For example, Barnabas (Acts 14:4,14), James the brother of our Lord (Galatians 1:19), and perhaps Silas (Acts 15:40; cf. 1 Thessalonians 1:1) were also considered to be apostles in the wider sense by the writers of the New Testament. If one recognizes that the usage of apostolos is paralleled by prophētēs (4254), “prophet,” and presbuteroi (see 4104), “elders,” which were used as fixed terms in Judaism, then it is less puzzling that apostolos only later became a technical term in ecclesiastical terminology. The striking paradox is that the technical use of the word appears only infrequently, if at all, in the New Testament. This apparently indicates that the word had early been reserved for the original apostles. If one attempts to use those remarkably few instances in Scripture to support a theory of a continued apostolic ministry within the early community, then one must also be willing to concede that such a succession involved a type of ministry inferior to the original founding apostolate. When the first congregations showed such a hesitancy to use the word, in spite of the fact that it was a common word, and when such emphatic words were used against those who “say they are apostles, and are not” (Revelation 2:2), then this should caution against assuming such a position. The unique dimension of the New Testament apostolate is its role in establishing the apostolic doctrine. The Church is “built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ himself being the chief corner stone” (Ephesians 2:20). The prophetic word of the Old Testament was fulfilled; this fulfillment was proclaimed and explained by the apostolic word of the New Testament. The apostles performed a dual task. First, they witnessed the fulfillment of the messianic prophecies in the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ. Secondly, they explained the meaning of these basic events of the salvation history. They could not only testify that Jesus died on the Cross (John 19:35), they could also preach that He died for our sins (1 Corinthians 15:3). Not only did they testify that Jesus rose from the dead, but they preached that He was raised again for our justification (Romans 4:25). Therefore Jesus also declared in His prayer as High Priest that it is through the word of the apostles that we believe on Him (John 17:20). Note that the ministry of the apostles is to advance the apostleship of Jesus Christ himself (Hebrews 3:1). Jesus had given the words of the Father to His disciples (John 17:18), and then the apostles gave the word of Christ to others. Their word was an authoritative word from God (Luke 10:16). Jesus spoke of His own mission as being sent (apostellō) from God into the world. This is a central theme, especially in the Gospel of John. To this sending of the Son by the Father we note that Jesus connected His own sending of the apostles (John 17:18). As to the apostolic calling of Paul, this was of the same foundational nature as that which the Twelve (Eleven?) experienced. No less than 14 times in his epistles Paul appealed to his calling as a basis for his authority. As he stressed in Galatians 1:12, it was the ascended Christ who had called him to be His apostle to the Gentiles. His apostleship was also accepted by the other apostles. Paul gained their approval to share the gospel with the Gentiles when they “saw” (and recognized) his work and progress (Galatians 2:7-9). They also judged him according to his fruits (Matthew 7:15-20) which were in contrast to the false prophets’. Paul acknowledged this as foundational for recognizing his apostolic calling. It is remarkable that Paul did not appeal to his validity as apostle on the basis of his visions and revelations or upon his ecstatic experiences. On the contrary, it appears that he waited 14 years before recounting that he had been caught up into the “third heaven” (2 Corinthians 12:1-6). The basis of Paul’s apostleship was not his charismatic gifts, although he certainly did not lack these. Rather, an encounter with the risen Lord on the Damascus Road was his appeal. Paul did not interpret the Damascus Road experience as some subjective event but as an objective reality which actually happened. Therefore, Paul appealed to this as a foundation for his position as an apostle. He had seen Jesus our Lord (1 Corinthians 9:1). This revelation concluded the series of revelations during which the resurrected Christ made himself known and was seen. Paul saw Him “last of all” (1 Corinthians 15:8). As the final eyewitness, he became the last great apostle of the Apostolic Age. (The Complete Biblical Library Greek-English Dictionary) Apostolos - 80x in 79v - NAS = apostle(19), apostles(52), apostles'(5), messenger(1), messengers(1), is sent(1). Matt 10:2; Mark 3:14; 6:30; Luke 6:13; 9:10; 11:49; 17:5; 22:14; 24:10; John 13:16; Acts 1:2, 26; 2:37, 42f; 4:33, 35ff; 5:2, 12, 18, 29, 40; 6:6; 8:1, 14, 18; 9:27; 11:1; 14:4, 14; 15:2, 4, 6, 22f; 16:4; Rom 1:1; 11:13; 16:7; 1 Cor 1:1; 4:9; 9:1f, 5; 12:28f; 15:7, 9; 2Cor 1:1; 8:23; 11:5, 13; 12:11f; Gal 1:1, 17, 19; Eph 1:1; 2:20; 3:5; 4:11; Phil 2:25; Col 1:1; 1Th 2:7; 1Ti 1:1; 2:7; 2 Tim 1:1, 11; Titus 1:1; Heb 3:1; 1 Pet 1:1; 2 Pet 1:1; 3:2; Jude 1:17; Rev 2:2; 18:20; 21:14. The English word "ambassador" is a good translation of apostolos because an ambassador is "an official envoy of high rank appointed by one of higher rank and authority in the government to represent and transact its business at the seat of government of some other power." Paul thought of himself as an ambassador of the King of kings, sent by Him to the Gentiles with credentials (miracles he performed) and the commission, "to open their eyes so that they may turn from darkness to light and from the dominion of Satan to God, in order that they may receive forgiveness of sins and an inheritance among those who have been sanctified by faith in Me (Acts 26:17, 18, cp other references to his ministry to the Gentiles - Ro 11:13, Gal 2:7-8, 1Ti 2:7) To reemphasize the word apostle as Paul uses it here does not merely refer to one who has a message to announce, but to an appointed representative with an official status who is provided with the credentials of his office. Apostle is also used once to describe Jesus Christ the Sent from the Father (Heb 3:1-note; John 20:21). Paul apparently wrote while he was in prison at Rome (Col 4:18-note) and sent the letter to them by Tychicus (Col 4:7-note), by whom he also sent the Ephesian letter, presumably at the same time (Ep 6:21, 22-note), as well as the letter to Philemon. As someone has written “Out of 95 verses in Colossians, 78 have a marked resemblance to Ephesians.” The difference is that in Ephesians the primary subject is the Church; while in Colossians the primary subject is Christ! SIMILARITIES BETWEEN EPHESIANS AND COLOSSIANS Eph 2:1,12 Col 1:3, 4 Col 1:23, 25 Col 3:1, 5 Col 3:8; 4:6 Apostle - (Click here or here for more notes on apostle) Related Resources on Apostle: Apostles - Nave's Topical Bible Apostle - Bridgeway Bible Dictionary Apostle - American Tract Society Bible Dictionary Apostle - Baker's Evangelical Dictionary of Biblical Theology Apostles - Holman Bible Dictionary Apostles - Hastings' Dictionary of the Bible Apostle - Hastings' Dictionary of the New Testament Apostle - Watson's Biblical & Theological Dictionary Apostle - International Standard Bible Encyclopedia Apostle and Apostleship - The 1901 Jewish Encyclopedia Apostle - Cyclopedia of Biblical, Theological and Ecclesiastical Literature American Church Dictionary Apostle American Tract Society Apostle Bridgeway Bible Dictionary Apostle Baker Evangelical Dictionary Paul the Apostle Apostle Charles Buck Dictionary Apostle Easton's Bible Dictionary Apostle Fausset Bible Dictionary Apostle Holman Bible Dictionary Apostles Hastings' Dictionary of the Bible Apostles Paul the Apostle Hastings' Dictionary of the NT Apostle Hawker's Poor Man's Dictionary Apostle Smith Bible Dictionary Apostle Webster Dictionary Apostle Watson's Theological Dictionary Apostle 1911 Encyclopedia Britannica Apostle International Standard Bible Encyclopedia Apostle Paul, the Apostle Kitto Biblical Cyclopedia Apostle The Jewish Encyclopedia Apostle and Apostleship Related Resources: John MacArthur has sermons on all of the apostles. Luke 6:12-13 Common Men, Uncommon Calling Luke 6:14 Common Men, Uncommon Calling: Peter, Part 1 Luke 6:14 Common Men, Uncommon Calling: Peter, Part 2 Luke 6:14 Common Men, Uncommon Calling: Peter, Part 3 Luke 6:14 Common Men, Uncommon Calling: Andrew and James Luke 6:14 Common Men, Uncommon Calling: John Luke 6:15 Common Men, Uncommon Calling: Matthew and Thomas Luke 6:16 Common Men, Uncommon Calling: Judas Iscariot, Part 1 Luke 6:16 Common Men, Uncommon Calling: Judas Iscariot, Part 2 Luke 6:15-16 Common Men, Uncommon Calling: James, Simon, and Judas Matthew 10:2 The Master's Men Andrew, James Son of Zebedee, John Matthew 10:3 The Master's Men, Philip and Bartholomew Matthew 10:3b The Master's Men, Matthew and Thomas Matthew 10:3-4 The Master's Men James Son of Alphaeus, Simon Zealot Matthew 10:4 The Master's Men, Part 5: Judas Iscariot QUESTION - Who was Paul in the Bible? Watch the accompanying video. ANSWER - There is much we can learn from the life of the apostle Paul. Far from ordinary, Paul was given the opportunity to do extraordinary things for the kingdom of God. The story of Paul is a story of redemption in Jesus Christ and a testimony that no one is beyond the saving grace of the Lord. However, to gain the full measure of the man, we must examine his dark side and what he symbolized before becoming “the Apostle of Grace.” Paul’s early life was marked by religious zeal, brutal violence, and the relentless persecution of the early church. Fortunately, the later years of Paul’s life show a marked difference as he lived his life for Christ and for the advancement of His kingdom. Paul was actually born as Saul. He was born in Tarsus in Cilicia around AD 1–5 in a province in the southeastern corner of modern-day Tersous, Turkey. He was of Benjamite lineage and Hebrew ancestry (Philippians 3:5–6). His parents were Pharisees—fervent Jewish nationalists who adhered strictly to the Law of Moses—who sought to protect their children from “contamination” from the Gentiles. Anything Greek would have been despised in Saul’s household, yet he could speak Greek and passable Latin. His household would have spoken Aramaic, a derivative of Hebrew, which was the official language of Judea. Saul’s family were Roman citizens but viewed Jerusalem as a truly sacred and holy city (Acts 22:22-29). At age thirteen Saul was sent to Judea to learn from a rabbi named Gamaliel, under whom Saul mastered Jewish history, the Psalms, and the works of the prophets. His education would continue for five or six years as Saul learned such things as dissecting Scripture (Acts 22:3). It was during this time that he developed a question-and-answer style of teaching known in ancient times as “diatribe.” This method of articulation helped rabbis debate the finer points of Jewish law to either defend or prosecute those who broke the law. Saul went on to become a lawyer, and all signs pointed to his becoming a member of the Sanhedrin, the Jewish Supreme Court of 71 men who ruled over Jewish life and religion. Saul was zealous for his faith, and this faith did not allow for compromise. It is this zeal that led Saul down the path of religious extremism. In Acts 5:27–42, Peter delivered his defense of the gospel and of Jesus in front of the Sanhedrin, which Saul would have heard. Gamaliel was also present and delivered a message to calm the council and prevent them from stoning Peter. Saul might also have been present at the trial of Stephen. He was present for his stoning and death; he held the garments of those who did the stoning (Acts 7:58). After Stephen’s death, "a great persecution broke out against the church in Jerusalem" (Acts 8:1). Saul became determined to eradicate Christians, ruthless in his pursuit as he believed he was acting in the name of God. Arguably, there is no one more frightening or more vicious than a religious terrorist, especially when he believes he is doing the will of the Lord by killing innocent people. This is exactly what Saul of Tarsus was: a religious terrorist. Acts 8:3 states, “He began ravaging the church, entering house after house, and dragging off men and women, he would put them in prison.” The pivotal passage in Paul’s story is Acts 9:1–22, which recounts Paul’s meeting with Jesus Christ on the road from Jerusalem to Damascus, a journey of about 150 miles. Saul was angered by what he had seen and filled with murderous rage against the Christians. Before departing on his journey, he had asked the high priest for letters to the synagogues in Damascus, asking for permission to bring any Christians (followers of “the Way,” as they were known) back to Jerusalem to imprison them. On the road Saul was caught in a bright light from heaven that caused him to fall face down on the ground. He heard the words, “Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me?” He replied, “Who are you Lord?” Jesus answered directly and clearly, “I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting” (verses 4–5). As an aside, this might not have been Saul’s first encounter with Jesus, as some scholars suggest that young Saul might have known of Jesus and that he might have actually witnessed His death. From that moment on, Saul’s life was turned upside down. The light of the Lord blinded him, and as he traveled on he had to rely on his companions. As instructed by Jesus, Saul continued to Damascus to make contact with a man named Ananias, who was hesitant at first to meet Saul because he knew Saul’s reputation as an evil man. But the Lord told Ananias that Saul was a “chosen instrument” to carry His name before the Gentiles, kings, and the children of Israel (Acts 9:15) and would suffer for doing so (Acts 9:16). Ananias followed the Lord’s instructions and found Saul, on whom he laid hands, and told him of his vision of Jesus Christ. Through prayer, Saul received the Holy Spirit (Acts 9:17), regained his sight, and was baptized (Acts 9:18). Saul immediately went into the synagogues and proclaimed Jesus as the Son of God (Acts 9:20). The people were amazed and skeptical, as Saul’s reputation was well known. The Jews thought he had come to take away the Christians (Acts 9:21), but he had in fact joined them. Saul’s boldness increased as the Jews living in Damascus were confounded by Saul’s arguments proving that Jesus was the Christ (Acts 9:22). Saul spent time in Arabia, Damascus, Jerusalem, Syria, and his native Cilicia, and Barnabas enlisted his help to teach those in the church in Antioch (Acts 11:25). Interestingly, the Christians driven out of Judea by the persecution that arose after Stephen’s death founded this multiracial church (Acts 11:19–21). Saul took his first of three missionary journeys in the late AD 40s. As he spent more time in Gentile areas, Saul began to go by his Roman name Paul (Acts 13:9). Paul wrote many of the New Testament books. Most theologians are in agreement that he wrote Romans, 1 and 2 Corinthians, Galatians, Philippians, 1 and 2 Thessalonians, Philemon, Ephesians, Colossians, 1 and 2 Timothy, and Titus. These thirteen “letters” (epistles) make up the “Pauline Authorship” and are the primary source of his theology. As previously noted, the book of Acts gives us a historical look at Paul’s life and times. The apostle Paul spent his life proclaiming the risen Christ Jesus throughout the Roman world, often at great personal peril (2 Corinthians 11:24–27). It is assumed that Paul died a martyr’s death in the mid-to-late AD 60s in Rome. So, what can we learn from the life of the apostle Paul? First, we learn that God can save anyone. The remarkable story of Paul repeats itself every day as sinful, broken people all over the world are transformed by God’s saving grace in Jesus Christ. Some of these people have done despicable things to other human beings, while some just try to live a moral life thinking that God will smile upon them on the day of judgment. When we read the story of Paul, we are amazed that God would allow into heaven a religious extremist who murdered innocent women and children. Today, we might see terrorists or other criminals as unworthy of redemption because their crimes against humanity are just too great. The story of Paul is a story that can be told today—he isn’t worthy in our eyes of a second chance, yet God granted him mercy. The truth is that every person matters to God, from the “good, decent,” average person to the “wicked, evil,” degenerate one. Only God can save a soul from hell. Second, we learn from the life of Paul that anyone can be a humble, powerful witness for Jesus Christ. Arguably, no other human figure in the Bible demonstrated more humility while sharing the gospel of Jesus Christ as Paul. Acts 20:19 tells us that he “served the Lord with all humility and with tears and with trials that happened to [him] through the plots of the Jews.” In Acts 28:31, Paul shares the good news of Jesus Christ: “Boldly and without hindrance he preached the kingdom of God and taught about the Lord Jesus Christ.” Paul was not afraid to tell others what the Lord had done for him. Paul spent all his days, from conversion to martyrdom, working tirelessly for the kingdom of God. Finally, we learn that anyone can surrender completely to God. Paul was fully committed to God. In Philippians 1:12–14, Paul wrote from prison, “I want you to know, brothers, that what has happened to me has really served to advance the gospel, so that it has become known throughout the whole imperial guard and to all the rest that my imprisonment is for Christ. And most of the brothers, having become confident in the Lord by my imprisonment, are much more bold to speak the word without fear.” Despite his circumstances, Paul praised God and continually shared the good news (see also Acts 16:22–25 and Philippians 4:11–13). Through his hardships and suffering, Paul knew the outcome of a life well lived for Christ. He had surrendered his life fully, trusting God for everything. He wrote, “For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain” (Philippians 1:21). Can we make the same claim?GotQuestions.org BY THE WILL OF GOD AND TIMOTHY OUR BROTHER: dia thelematos theou kai Timotheos o adelphos: Ro 1:1-note; 1Co 1:1 2Co 1:1, Ep 1:1-note, 2Ti 1:1-note Colossians 1 Resources - Multiple Sermons and Commentaries Colossians 1:1-2 Introduction to Colossians - John MacArthur IF GOD WILLS By the will of God - This phrase ought to be the watchword of every Christian, the "warp and the woof (weft)" undergirding all our daily activities, all our goals and aspirations, etc. It occurs 8x in the NT and all uses are by Paul - Rom 1:10; 15:32; 1 Cor 1:1; 2 Cor 1:1; 8:5; Eph 1:1; Col 1:1; 2 Tim 1:1 By (1223) (dia) is the Greek preposition dia, which means "through" and in this context describes that which "intervenes between the act of the will and the effect and through which the effect proceeds" (Zodhiates). Stated another way, dia describes the channel (God' will is the channel) of the act (Paul's appointment as an apostle). The will of God is the means by which Paul had become an apostle.
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Barclay on hagios - The word translated saint is hagios; and saint is a misleading translation. To modern ears it paints a picture of almost unworldly piety. Its connection is rather with stained glass windows than with the market-place. Although it is easy to see the meaning of hagios it is hard to translate it. Hagios, and its Hebrew equivalent qadosh (Hebrew 06918), are usually translated holy. In Hebrew thought, if a thing is described as holy, the basic idea is that it is different from other things; it is in some sense set apart. The better to understand this, let us look at how holy is actually used in the Old Testament. When the regulations regarding the priesthood are being laid down, it is written: "They shall be holy to their God" (Leviticus 21:6). The priests were to be different from other men, for they were set apart for a special function. The tithe was the tenth part of all produce which was to be set apart for God, and it is laid down: "The tenth shall be holy to the Lord, because it is the Lord's" (Leviticus 27:30; Leviticus 27:32). The tithe was different from other things which could be used as food. The central part of the Temple was the Holy Place (Ex 26:33); it was different from all other places. The word was specially used of the Jewish nation itself. The Jews were a holy nation (Ex 19:6). They were holy unto the Lord; God had severed them from other nations that they might be his (Lev 20:26); it was they of all nations on the face of the earth whom God had specially known (Amos 3:2). The Jews were different from all other nations, for they had a special place in the purpose of God. But they refused to play the part which God meant them to play; when his Son came into the world, they failed to recognize him, and rejected and crucified him. The privileges and the responsibilities they should have had were taken away from the nation of Israel and given to the Church, which became the new Israel, the real people of God. Therefore, just as the Jews had once been hagios , holy, different, so now the Christians must be hagios ; the Christians are the holy ones, the different ones, the saints. Thus Paul in his pre-Christian days was a notorious persecutor of the saints, the hagioi (Acts 9:13); Peter goes to visit the saints, the hagioi, at Lydda (Acts 9:32). To say that the Christians are the saints means, therefore, that the Christians are different from other people. Wherein does that difference lie? Paul addresses his people as saints in Christ Jesus. (Ed: See more on this phrase in comments below) No one can read his letters without seeing how often the phrases in Christ, in Christ Jesus, in the Lord occur. In Christ Jesus occurs 48 times, in Christ 34 times, and in the Lord 50 times. Clearly this was for Paul the very essence of Christianity. What did he mean? Marvin R.
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Barclay comments on the fact that the Christians have two addresses "in Colossae and...in Christ. A Christian always moves in two spheres. He is in a certain place in this world; but he is also in Christ. He lives in two dimensions. He lives in this world whose duties he does not treat lightly; but above and beyond that he lives in Christ. In this world he may move from place to place; but wherever he is, he is in Christ. (Ed: Note Barclay's application) That is why outward circumstances make little difference to the Christian; his peace and his joy are not dependent on them. That is why he will do any job with all his heart. It may be menial, unpleasant, painful, it may be far less distinguished than he might expect to have; its rewards may be small and its praise non-existent; nevertheless the Christian will do it diligently, uncomplainingly and cheerfully, for he is in Christ and does all things as to the Lord (Col 3:23-note). We are all in our own Colossae, but we are all in Christ, and it is Christ Who sets (Ed: Or at least "SHOULD SET") the tone of our living. (Colossians 1 - William Barclay's Daily Study Bible) John Eadie - The concluding words, in Christ, belonging to the entire clause, describe the origin and circuit of the believing brotherhood. Their union to Him created this tender and reciprocal connection in Him. Out of Him there was neither faith nor fraternity, for He is the object of the one and the centre of the other. (Colossians 1 Commentary) H C G Moule on in Christ - Compare the Lord’s language, John 6:56; John 14:20; John 15:1-7, and the illustration given by e.g. Ephesians 5:30.—These “brethren” are regarded as one with their Lord in respect of inseparable interest, holy dearness, and union by the life-giving Spirit (1 Corinthians 6:17); especially the latter. They are “brethren in Christ,” brothers because “in” the Firstborn Son (Romans 8:29). (Colossians 1 Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges) In Christ - see additional discussion of the present and eternal "address" of all believers - in Christ Click (and scroll down) for over 150 passages with the phrase in Christ (in Him, in the Lord, etc) If you need to be encouraged and renewed in your mind about who you are "in Christ" and Whose you are, consider making a list of the truths you glean from these NT passages and then walk out in trust and obedience to experience the fullness thereof! William MacDonald makes an interesting observation that "In Christ speaks of their spiritual position. When they were saved, God placed them in Christ, “accepted in the beloved.” (Eph 1:6-note) Henceforth, they had His life and nature (2Pe 1:4-note). Henceforth, they would no longer be seen God as children of Adam (1Cor 15:22) or as unregenerate men, but He would now see them in all the acceptability of His own Son. The expression in Christ conveys more of intimacy, acceptance, and security than any human mind can understand. The geographical location of these believers is indicated by the expression who are in Colossae. (Believer's Bible Commentary) In Christ expresses intimacy of a believers union with Christ. The preposition "in" is locative of sphere meaning that their sainthood was in the sphere of Christ, not because someone named them "saints" and not in the sphere of some worshipper of a pagan deity as the term was commonly used in the so-called "mystery" religions of Paul's day. Christ is the sphere in which the believer has his new life or as Paul phrases it in chapter 3, "Christ -- our life" (see note Colossians 3:4). Related Resource: See study on meaning and significance of locative of sphere
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Barclay - Charis is a lovely word; the basic ideas in it are joy and pleasure, brightness and beauty; it is, in fact, connected with the English word charm. But with Jesus Christ there comes a new beauty to add to the beauty that was there. And that beauty is born of a new relationship to God. With Christ life becomes lovely because man is no longer the victim of God's law but the child of his love. (Philippians 1 - William Barclay's Daily Study Bible) Barclay on charis in Galatians 1 - He wishes them grace. There are two main ideas in this word. The first is that of sheer beauty. The Greek word charis means grace in the theological sense, but it always means beauty and charm; and even when theologically used the idea of charm is never far away from it. If the Christian life has grace in it, it must be a lovely thing. Far too often goodness exists without charm and charm without goodness. It is when goodness and charm unite that the work of grace is seen. The second idea is that of undeserved generosity of a gift, which a man never deserved and could never earn, given to him in the generous love of God. When Paul prays for grace on his friends, it is as if he were saying, "May the beauty of the undeserved love of God be on you, so that it will make your life lovely, too." (Galatians 1 - William Barclay's Daily Study Bible) Grace pictures God stooping down to sinful, lost humanity in loving and tender compassion. Peace summarizes all that results in the life of a person when he accepts God’s grace as a free gift. Note the word order first grace, then peace. Chuck Swindoll notes that "Understanding what grace means requires our going back to an old Hebrew term that meant “to bend, to stoop.” By and by, it came to include the idea of “condescending favor.” If you have traveled to London, you have perhaps seen royalty. If so, you may have noticed sophistication, aloofness, distance. On occasion, royalty in England will make the news because someone in the ranks of nobility will stop, kneel down, and touch or bless a commoner. That is grace. There is nothing in the commoner that deserves being noticed or touched or blessed by the royal family. But because of grace in the heart of the royal person, there is the desire at that moment to pause, to stoop, to touch, even to bless.....To show grace is to extend favor or kindness to one who doesn’t deserve it and can never earn it. Receiving God’s acceptance by grace always stands in sharp contrast to earning it on the basis of works. Every time the thought of grace appears, there is the idea of its being undeserved. In no way is the recipient getting what he or she deserves. Favor is being extended simply out of the goodness of the heart of the giver....One more thing should be emphasized about grace: It is absolutely and totally free (Ed: But not cheap!). You will never be asked to pay it back. You couldn’t even if you tried. Most of us have trouble with that thought, because we work for everything we get. As the old saying goes, “There ain’t no free lunch.” But in this case, grace comes to us free and clear, no strings attached. We should not even try to repay it; to do so is insulting. (The Grace Awakening: Believing in Grace is One Thing. Living it is Another.) C H
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Barclay adds "that when Paul spoke of the Christian being in Christ, he meant that the Christian lives in Christ as a bird in the air, a fish in the water, the roots of a tree in the soil. What makes the Christian different is that he is always and everywhere conscious of the encircling presence of Jesus Christ. (Philippians - Daily Study Bible) Barclay goes on to explain that "There is the life that is dominated by the Spirit of God. As a man lives in the air, he lives in Christ, never separated from him. As he breathes in the air and the air fills him, so Christ fills him. He has no mind of his own; Christ is his mind. He has no desires of his own; the will of Christ is his only law. He is Spirit-controlled, Christ-controlled, God-focused (Ed: O that such would be the case with you dear reader and with this writer!)." (Colossians: The Daily Study Bible) Paul's whole emphasis is the point to people back to the sufficiency of Christ. The church at Colossae's problem was that they might get their focus off the Lord Jesus. Jesus is enough. We are complete in Him! So many do not find that Jesus is enough and seek some experience, some method, some program. Rather than submitting and bowing to Jesus as a bondslave to his Master, they refuse to surrender their rights. Paul counteracts this "empty deception" by telling them that Jesus is enough and that they need to keep focused on Him. Guy King in his exposition of Philippians (Joy Way,1952 - online version) comments on the phrase in Christ writing that... Herein lay (a) Their (referring to the saints at Philippi but applicable to saints of all places and ages!) protection from evil life. The moral condition of a heathen city would be a constant peril to any new converts, especially as they themselves had but just recently come out of that very heathenism. Philippi may not have been so utterly debased as Corinth, or Rome, but its atmosphere must have been a subversive influence threatening any who would live pure and true. Yet, they could be kept safe. Christians must, of course, remain in such hostile surroundings, for CHRIST must have there, as Mt 5:13 (note), Mt 5:14 (note) teaches, the salt, the light, and the testimony. So He Himself prays "not that Thou shouldest take them out of the world, but that Thou shouldest keep them from the evil", John 17:15. That keeping, that protection, is ministered to us in the fact of our being, not only "in the world", but more closely, "in Christ." A shipwrecked man writes a message, and throws it into the sea, in the hope that it may reach some shore. But will not the water damage and destroy it? No; for, while it is cast into the sea, it is first sealed in a bottle - and so it arrives. Yes; in Philippi, with all its destructive influences, but "in Christ" - so they are secure, and so, in spite of all antagonistic forces, they arrive at "the haven where they would be." Herein lay also (b) Their possibility of holy life. We are called not only to a negative but to a positive life - "eschew (abstain from) evil, and do good", as 1Pe 3:11(note) says. But how can a holy life be lived in such unholy surroundings? Mark that little water-spider going down to the bottom of that pond. It doesn't really belong there, even as we believers are: "in the world" ...but not of it, John 17:11, 16. The little creature has the queer, and amazing, ability of weaving a bubble of air around itself, and hidden in that it is able to pursue its way even amid such inimical conditions - in the water, but in the bubble! So we come back to our glorious truth - in Philippi, but "in Christ"; then even in the midst of the most uncongenial surroundings, the Christ-life can be lived. (King, Guy: Joy Way: An Exposition of the Epistle of Paul to the Philippians, 1952, Christian Literature Crusade) (Bolding added) Boice (in his commentary on Ephesians) also comments on in Christ noting that... The phrases in Christ, in Him, or the equivalent occur nine times just in Ephesians 1:3-23. They occur 164 times in all Paul’s writings. The phrases mean more than just believing on Christ or being saved by His atonement (the work Christ did in his life and death to earn our salvation). They mean being joined to Christ in one spiritual body so that what is true of Him is also true for us...This is a difficult concept, and the Bible uses numerous images to teach it to us: the union of a man and woman in marriage (Eph 5:22-33; notes), the union of the vine and the branches (John 15:1-17), the wholeness of a spiritual temple in which Christ is the foundation and we the individual stones (Eph 2:20, 21, 22 - notes Ep 2:20; 21; 22), the union of the head and other members of the body in one organism (1Cor 12:12-27). But whether we understand it or not, union with Christ is in one sense the very essence of salvation. John Murray, an able expositor of this theme, wrote, Union with Christ has its source in the election of God the Father before the foundation of the world and it has its fruition in the glorification of the sons of God. The perspective of God’s people is not narrow; it has the expanse of eternity. Its orbit has two foci, one the electing love of God the Father in the counsels of eternity, the other glorification with Christ in the manifestation of His glory. The former has no beginning, the latter has no end. (John Murray, Redemption Accomplished and Applied (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1955) Apart from Christ our condition is absolutely hopeless. In Him our condition is glorious to the extreme. (Boice, J. M.: Ephesians: An Expositional Commentary) (Bolding added) Guy King in his commentary on Colossians adds "Oh yes, I know they were at Colossae - breathing the fetid atmosphere of this typically pagan city. How could the fair flowers of fidelity and holiness flourish in such a place? Only because they enjoyed the nearer, purer air of being in Christ. The clever little water beetle is able to live in the muddy bed of the pond because it has the gift of weaving around itself a bubble of air. Thus it takes its own atmosphere down with it. I often invert a "let's pretend" story of a man shipwrecked on a desert island, who, happening to have his fountain pen still in his pocket, decides to write a message on a large island leaf to send to his people. Having thrown it into the sea, he could then only wait, and hope for the best. But, silly man, the leaf will soon be pulped and the message obliterated by the ocean. Oh, I forgot to mention that on his island he happened to find a bottle with a sealing top. So his SOS reached home, and led to his rescue, because though it was in the sea, it was in the bottle. Yes, although these Christians were in that Colossian sea of iniquity, they were kept safe and saintly because they were "in Christ". It is one of Paul's chief inspired conceptions, so often reiterated through all his correspondence, that we are "in Him", "in the Lord", "in Christ". What amazing privilege and prediction is here! "Christ in you, the hope of glory", he says in Colossians 1:27; and now it is the other side of the blessed truth: you in CHRIST, the hope of safety. (Colossians 1:1-2 His Tactful Approach ) WHO ARE AT COLOSSAE: tois en Kolossais: All saints on earth have at least 2 addresses as did those at Colossae for we are all also in Christ! If one visits Colossae today, the only sign of Christianity is a little plaque buried under a Muslim mosque, which has a statement to the appreciation of Epaphras, the man who may have led the Colossians to the Lord. The tragedy is that there is no longer (at the time of this writing - 2014) a church at Honaz (see links), the modern site of Colossae! Apparently very little had been entrusted to faithful men (or there were few faithful men who could be entrusted) (2Ti 2:2-note) by the Colossians who themselves seemed to have been very committed Christians (cf. "we heard of your faith in Christ Jesus and the love which you have for all the saints"). It is probable also that what was entrusted over the generations became so watered down that it became more and more difficult to discern truth from error. Ultimately the succeeding generations of Colossians were taken "captive through philosophy...rather that according to Christ." The very thing that Paul feared the most apparently happened to them! GRACE TO YOU AND PEACE FROM GOD OUR FATHER: charis humin kai eirene apo theou patros hemon: See similar benedictions/greetings in Ro 1:7, 1Cor 1:3, 2Cor 1:2, Eph 1:2, Phil 1:2, 1Thes 1:1, 2Th 1:2, 1Ti 1:2, Philemon 1:3, 2Ti 1:2, Gal 1:3, Titus 1:4. C H Spurgeon well says that "Blessed men scatter blessings. When the benediction of God rests upon us, we pour out benedictions upon others." (The Second Coming) Grace to you - This phrase if found 11x in the NAS - Ro 1:7; 1 Cor 1:3; 2 Cor 1:2; Gal 1:3; Eph 1:2; Phil 1:2; Col 1:2; 1Th 1:1; 2Th 1:2; Philemon 1:3; Rev 1:4
Colossenses 1:2
Barclay - the root idea of the word (hagios) is separation (or different). A person who is hagios is different from others because he has been separated from the ordinary run in order specially to belong to God. This was the adjective by which the Jews described themselves; they were the hagios laos, the holy people, the nation which was quite different from other peoples because they in a special way belonged to God and were set apart for his service. When Paul calls the Christian hagios he means that he is different from other men because he specially belongs to God and to God's service. And that difference is not to be marked by withdrawal from ordinary life, but by showing there a quality which will mark him out. (1 Corinthians 1 - William Barclay's Daily Study Bible) Barclay's note on 1Pe 1:15 - The Temple is hagios because it is different from other buildings; the Sabbath is hagios because it is different from other days; the Christian is hagios because he is different from other men. The Christian is God's man by God's choice. He is chosen for a task in the world and for a destiny in eternity. He is chosen to live for God in time and with him in eternity. In the world he must obey his law and reproduce his life. There is laid on the Christian the task of being different. {from Barclay's Daily Study Bible - 1 Peter) Barclay - The commonest word for the Christian in the New Testament is the Greek hagios (Greek #40), whose basic meaning is different. The Christian is not conformed to the world but transformed from the world (Romans 12:2). It is not a question of retiring from the world; it is a question of living differently within the world. (Revelation 18 - William Barclay's Daily Study Bible) Barclay's note on Heb 12:14 "pursue...holiness" - "He must aim at holiness (hagiasmos). Hagiasmos has in it the same root as the adjective hagios, which is usually translated holy. The root meaning (of hagios) is always difference and separation. Although he lives in the world, the man who is hagios must always in one sense be different from it and separate from it. His standards are not the world's standards, nor his conduct the world's conduct. His aim is not to stand well with men but to stand well with God. Hagiasmos, as Westcott finely put it, is "the preparation for the presence of God." The life of the Christian is dominated by the constant memory that its greatest aim is to enter into the presence of God. (Hebrews 12 - William Barclay's Daily Study Bible) In the phrase the Holy Spirit, hagios describes the One Who is absolutely different, absolutely holy. The idea inherent in hagios is the taking something filthy, washing it and setting it apart as something brand new, useful for a different purpose, which is a picture of salvation for we who were filthy with sin were washed in the blood of Christ, the Lamb of God, and set apart to now be God's own possession. Saints are those set apart from the world "delivered...from the domain of darkness" (Col 1:13-note) This deliverance is effected "by the sanctifying work of the Spirit" (1Pe 1:2-note) This deliverance is unto God "transferred us to the kingdom of His beloved Son" (Col 1:13-note) The upshot of this divine transaction is that believers should now live holy lives (for example Col 3:5-note). A saint is like a boat -- the boat's purpose is fulfilled when it is in the water, but it's function and usefulness deteriorates when water gets in the boat. So too for saints when too much of the world gets into them. Saints must keep their "vessels" in the water of this world but not let the water of the world get into their "vessel"! Do you need to "bail" some of the water out of your "boat"? Paul has a parallel thought writing to young Timothy to take of the truth that "if a man cleanses himself from these (things, people that have an unholy influence), he will be a vessel for honor, sanctified (hagiazo - verb form of saint), useful to the Master, prepared for every good work." (2Ti 2:21-22-note) A Chinese proverb speaks to those saints trying to live in the world and of the world "One foot cannot stand on two boats!" To reiterate the saint lives in the world, but he or she must always in one sense be different from the world and continually choose to separate himself or herself from the world. His standards are not the world's standards. (click for expository note on Romans 12:2 regarding not being squeezed into world's mold) He is "in the world" but not "of the world". A saint is someone who has become different from the world through salvation and is now set apart as "holy (different)" because he is "sanctified" (made like the Lord). This progresses as the believer advances in the process of "sanctification" (progressive sanctification) Saints have been supernaturally set apart (sanctified by the Holy Spirit, 1Pe 1:2-note; 2Th 2:13, Ro 15:16-note, Acts 20:32, 26:18, 1Co 1:30, 6:11) for a special purpose (cp s 43:7, Ep 2:10-note, Mt 5:16-note, Php 2:15-note), set apart from the world (Gal 6:14, cp Jas 4:4, 1Jn 2:15, 16, 17), the power of Sin and the fallen flesh (Ro 6:6-note, Ro 6:11-note, Ro 6:12, 13, 6:14-note) and the dominion of the devil (Col 1:13-note, Acts 26:18, Heb 2:14, 15-note) and unto God (Ro 14:7, 8, 9-notes). The fundamental ideas of a saint include... One who is separated from sin (cf Ro 6;11, 12, 13, 14-notes) One who then has the responsibility to choose to consecrate themselves daily to God as "living sacrifices" (Ro 12:1-note) One who is devoted to His service One who is a partaker of the divine nature (2Pe 1:4-note) One who continually chooses to abstain from worldly defilement (1Th 4:3-note 1Th 5:22-note, 2Ti 2:19-note, 1Pe 2:11-note) Kenneth
Colossenses 1:4
Barclay comments on faith and love of the saints at Colossae - "These are the two sides of the Christian life. The Christian must have faith; he must know what he believes. But he must also have love for men; he must turn that belief into action. (Ed: Cp 1Cor 13:1-3) It is not enough simply to have faith, for there can be an orthodoxy which knows no love. (Ed: Sound orthodoxy calls for sincere orthopraxy) It is not enough only to have love for men, for without real belief that love can become mere sentimentality. The Christian has a double commitment--he is committed to Jesus Christ and he is committed to his fellow-men. Faith in Christ and love to men are the twin pillars of the Christian life. (Colossians 1 - William Barclay's Daily Study Bible)
Colossenses 1:5
Barclay - All previous religions could be entitled “guesses about God.” The Christian gospel gives a man not guesses but certainties about God. These first few verses provide an excellent source of "truths" about the gospel. Take some time and make a list of what you learn. The writers of the New Testament adapted the term as God's message of salvation for lost sinners. Euaggelion is found in several combination phrases, each describing the gospel like a multifaceted jewel in various terms from a different viewpoint (from the NASB, 1977): the gospel of the kingdom (Mt 4:23) the gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God (Mk 1:1) because it centers in Christ the gospel of God (Mk 1:14) because it originates with God and was not invented by man the gospel of the kingdom of God (Lk 16:16) the gospel of the grace of God (Acts 20:24), the gospel of His Son (Ro 1:9-note) the gospel of Christ (Ro 15:19-note) the gospel of the glory of Christ (2Co 4:4) the gospel of your salvation (Ep 1:13-note) the gospel of peace (Ep 6:15-note) the gospel of our Lord Jesus (2Th 1:8) the glorious gospel of the blessed God (1Ti 1:11) In Ro 16:25, 26 (see note) Paul called it “my Gospel” indicating that the special emphasis he gave the gospel in his ministry. If you would like a special blessing, take an afternoon to go through all 76 uses of euaggelion in context making a list of what you learn about the gospel. The Spirit of God will enlighten your heart and encourage your spirit in a very special way...and you'll want to share the "good news" with someone because of your "discoveries"! Related Resources on the Gospel: American Church Dictionary Gospel American Tract Society Gospel Bridgeway Bible Dictionary Gospel Baker Evangelical Dictionary Gospel Charles Buck Dictionary Gospel CARM Theological Dictionary Gospel Holman Bible Dictionary Gospel Hastings' Dictionary of the Bible Gospel Hastings' Dictionary of the NT Gospel Hawker's Poor Man's Dictionary Gospel Vines' Expository Dictionary Gospel Watson's Theological Dictionary Gospel Kitto Biblical Cyclopedia Gospel International Standard Bible Encyclopedia Gospel WHAT’S SO SPECIAL ABOUT OUR GOSPEL? by Rob Morgan If we all left right now for Africa, there wouldn’t be anyone here to maintain the home base, but I do know that the Lord wants us to be a high-impact church that knows how to produce world-changers for Christ. Whether we are serving here or abroad, our lives are to be centered around the Gospel. The problem is that we don’t recognize the Gospel’s value as we should. This week I read a story in the newspaper—I didn’t clip it out and I can’t recall the specifics—but it was something to this effect. A lady got tired of some sketches and drawings in her house. She wasn’t fond of them on the wall, and she stored it on the attic, then in the basement, and then behind the furniture; and finally she just gathered them up and took them to the Goodwill store. It was there that a man saw them and instantly recognized them as being very rare and valuable. The store tried to return them to the woman, but she hadn’t left any contact information; but in dropping those sketches off, she lost a fortune. She didn’t realize the value of the treasure she possessed. There’s a hotel in Indonesia called the Hotel Tugu Bali that bills itself as a museum hotel. The owner is a man who started collecting antiques when he was twenty-five years old. At that time, Indonesians were trying to modernize their lives, and as they bought new things, they tossed out their old furniture, photographs, silver and gold and paintings and artifacts. He said they were tossing out their heritage for the sake of cheap, modern things. Over the years, he had furnished his entire hotel with the things he has collected over a lifetime, and it is every exclusive place that has been featured in magazines like “Architectural Digest.” I think it’s that way with the Gospel. We don’t value it as we should, and a lot of people are tossing it out for more modern ideas. But in so doing, they’re trading in something of immense worth for cheap modern trends that quickly fade and break and become obsolete. Today, I’d like to take a look at the subject, “What’s So Special About our Gospel,” and our text is from the first chapter of the New Testament book of Colossians. Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, and Timothy our brother, to the holy and faithful brothers in Christ at Colosse: Grace and peace to you from God our Father. We always thank God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, when we pray for you, because we have heard of your faith in Christ Jesus and of the love you have for all the saints—the faith and love that spring from the hope that is stored up for you in heaven and that you have already heard about in the word of truth, the Gospel that has come to you. All over the world this Gospel is bearing fruit and growing, just as it has been doing among you since the day you heard it and understood God’s grace in all its truth. You learned it from Epaphras, our dear fellow servant, who is a faithful minister of Christ on your behalf, and who also told us of your love in the Spirit (Colossians 1:1-8, NIV). *** The key word in this passage is this wonderful word GOSPEL. Notice how Paul uses it in verses 5 and 6: …the Gospel that has come to you. All over the world, this Gospel is bearing fruit and growing. Our English Word Gospel comes from the old Anglo-Saxon term “God’s Spell” or “God’s Story.” The Greek word on which it’s based literally means the “Good Word” or the “Good Message” or the “Good News.” This isn’t a word that was coined by the Apostle Paul; it had a greater originator than him. As we read the New Testament, we find it was the Jesus Himself who introduced this term in the Bible and chose it to summarize and encapsulate Himself and His message. As I searched this out in Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John, I found that Jesus used the word Gospel exactly four times. The first time was in Mark, chapter 8. Jesus was in the far north of Israel, in the region of Caesarea Philippi, where He issued a call for people to follow Him with committed lives. He said in verses 34ff: “If anyone would come after Me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow Me. For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for Me and for the Gospel will save it. What good is it for a man to gain the whole world, yet forfeit his soul?” Notice those words …for Me and for the Gospel. Jesus was identifying Himself with His Gospel. He is telling us that He Himself is the Good News, the message that our planet so desperately needs. Notice also that the first that Jesus used the word Gospel, it was in the context of calling people to full discipleship and predicting that many of His followers would be called on to lay down their lives for Him and for His Gospel. He was telling us that the Gospel is so important that it’s value is greater than the value of all of the rest of everything that there is in the world, for what does it profit us to gain the whole world but miss the Gospel. I’m sure you read this week about the people up in Nebraska who won the Powerball lottery. Maybe you read about the bank robbery in England that netted over forty million dollars. Suppose you were given the Powerball lottery, the proceeds from the bank robbery, Bill Gates fortune, and all the rest of the world thrown in to boot. Suppose you owned this entire planet. None of it can compare to the value of possessing this one word—the Gospel. Have you denied yourself, taken up your cross, and decided to follow Him? The second time Jesus used this word was an interesting follow up in Mark 10:28-29: Peter said to Him, “We have left everything to follow You!” “I tell you the truth,” Jesus replied, “no one who has left home or brothers or sisters or mother or father or children or fields for Me and the Gospel will fail to receive a hundred times as much in this present age (home, brothers, sisters, mothers, children and fields—and with them, persecution) and in the age to come, eternal life. Notice again how Jesus spoke of “Me and the Gospel.” He was again fusing together His person and His message. And He again spoke of the commitment we must make to Him and to His Gospel, and to the reality of persecution. The third time Jesus used this word was in Mark 13, which was His Olivet Discourse near the end of His earthly ministry when He sat on the Mount of Olives and talked about the signs of the times and the end of the age. Here again, He identified Himself with the Gospel and warned of persecution. Mark 13:9ff predicts that the last days of world history will be marked by intense religious persecution against Christians: You must be on your guard. You will be handed over to the local councils and flogged in the synagogues. On account of Me you will stand before governors and kings as witnesses to them. And the Gospel must first be preached to all nations.[1] The fourth and final time Jesus used this word was in Mark 14, when the woman came with an alabaster box of very expensive perfume and broke the box, pouring the perfume on His head. When some of the people at the reception spoke disparagingly of the woman, Jesus said: Leave her alone. Why are you bothering her? She has done a beautiful thing to me. The poor you will always have with you, and you can help them any time you want. But you will not always have Me. She did what she could. She poured perfume on my body beforehand to prepare for my burial. I tell you the truth, wherever the Gospel is preached throughout the world, what she has done will also be told, in memory of her. There are several things about all this that interest me. As I mentioned, Jesus identified Himself with His Gospel, as though He and the Gospel were virtually one and the same. He predicted that this Gospel of Himself would be preached throughout the world, but He also predicted that those who bore the message of the Gospel would encounter opposition, persecution, and even death. Every time He used the word Gospel, those were the common denominators. When we turn to the book of Acts, we find to our surprise, while all these things began to come to pass just as Jesus predicted, the actual word Gospel rarely appears. There are a few references to preaching the Gospel, but the actual word itself is used sparingly. But then, when we turn to the letters and to the writings of the apostle Paul, the use of this word just explodes. It was Paul’s great word that he adopted from Jesus Christ, and he used it seventy-six times in his letters. He used it to summarize the great message, that Jesus Christ is God Himself who came to earth in the actual person of humanity, that He died for our sins, that He shed His blood for our guilt, that He rose from the dead for our justification, and that we find new life in Christ be trusting in His finished work on the cross. Paul said on one occasion: I am not ashamed of the Gospel, because it is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes… for in the Gospel a righteousness from God is revealed, a righteousness that is by faith from first to last, just as it is written: The just shall live by faith. So the Gospel is a thing of great value; it’s the wonderful message about Jesus Christ; in fact, it is Jesus Christ and the blessings of forgiveness and eternal life He brings to our lives when we are born again by His grace through the simple act of trusting Him as our Savior. Now with that bit of historical and linguistic context, let’s go back to Colossians 1 and notice what our key passage for today tells us about the Gospel. The Nature of Our Gospel First, it gives us the nature of the Gospel. It is true. The Gospel is the very word of truth. Notice verse 5 again: …the faith and love that spring from the hope that is stored up for you in heaven, and that you have already heard about in the word of truth, the Gospel. And the end of verse 6: …since the day you heard it and understood God’s grace in all its truth. The Gospel is inherently and inerrantly true. The Psalmist said, “Forever, O Lord, is Your word settled in heaven.” Jesus said that His word cannot be broken. 2 Timothy 3 says that all Scripture is given by inspiration of God. The inspiration, infallibility, and inerrancy of the Gospel is based on the omniscience and truthfulness of God who cannot lie, and when we hold the Bible in our hands, we are holding the Gospel of truth. The evolutionists say that the Bible is wrong about the origin of life. The entertainment industry says that the Bible is wrong about morals of life. The cults say that the Bible is wrong about Jesus. The liberal philosophers say that the Bible is wrong about inerrancy. The atheists say the Bible is wrong about God. The De Vinci Code says the Bible is wrong about the four Gospels. The Social Pundits say the Bible is wrong about abortion, homosexuality, and sexual mores. The Pluralists say the Bible is wrong about its missionary and evangelizing zeal. But… The Bible is right about the origin of life. The Bible is right about moral standards of life. The Bible is right about Jesus. The Bible is right about inerrancy. The Bible is right about God. The Bible is right about the four Gospels. The Bible is right about marriage and sexual restraint. The Bible is right about its missionary and evangelizing zeal. This is the Word of Truth, inspired by God; and the Scriptures cannot be broken. That’s the nature of the Gospel. The Content of our Gospel The second special thing to notice here about our Gospel is its content. What message does the Gospel really give us? Look at the text again, beginning with verse 3: We always thank God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, when we pray for you, because we have heard of your faith in Christ Jesus and of the love you have for all the saints—the faith and love that spring from the hope that is stored up for you in heaven and that you have already heard about in the word of truth, the Gospel…. Paul told the Colossians that they had heard in the Gospel about the hope that is stored up for them in heaven. Here was a little town full of people in west-central Turkey who knew they were going to die, and they had only a vague hope about whether or not there was anything beyond the grave. Their lives were shrouded in a nagging despair. But suddenly they heard the Gospel, and it was like turning on the floodlights on a football field. They heard about the hope that was stored up for them in heaven. As I pondered this, I couldn’t help but think of Jesus’ words in John 14, which must have been conveyed to these young Colossian believers: “I go to prepare a place for you.” Could there possibly be a more comforting and reassuring verse in all the Bible? Jesus said, “I go…,” or literally, “I am going….” In other words, I’m not going to remain much longer on this little, blue planet that I’ve come to redeem. I’m going to lift off from the earth, sail into the sky, disappear in the clouds, and return to My own home of heaven. But He went on to say, “I am going to prepare a place for you.” Now, all my life I have taken vacations. That’s one thing my dad was good about; he always took us on a summer vacation, even when I was in college and graduate school; and when Katrina and I married, we continued the tradition. We’ve been all over the country and all over the world. But I have never had anyone say to me, “I’m going to travel to our destination ahead of you and get everything ready. I’m going to make sure the accommodations are pleasant. I’m going to check out the restaurants. I’m going to check on the agenda and schedules and attractions. I’m going to buy all our admission tickets, and I’ll make sure the water in the swimming pool is just the right temperature. I’m going to get everything ready for you.” If someone did that, he would either have to be a very good servant or a very good friend. But that is exactly what Jesus said to us in John 14: “I am going on ahead, in advance, to get everything ready for your arrival here. I am going to prepare a place for you.” This is the hope of the Gospel that is stored up for us in heaven. The Scope of our Gospel The third special thing about our Gospel is its scope. Notice this wonderful missionary emphasis in verse 6: All over the world, this Gospel is bearing fruit and growing, just as it has been doing among you since the day you heard it and understood God’s truth. The actual Greek wording here is quite interesting. The Greek uses the words pan and cosmos. The Gospel is Pan-Cosmos. The word pan means all. Do you remember the old Pan American Airlines. It served all the Americas. The Pan American Games are athletic competitions for the Americas. And the word Cosmos means universe, although here it seems to have a more limited meaning of the entire inhabited world. The Gospel is Pan-Cosmos in its scope. Jesus said that it would be preached through the whole world to every nation, and then the end would come. That’s the driving motive for our missionary zeal. The Transmission of our Gospel And finally, notice the transmission of the Gospel. This tremendous treasure—the Good News of Christ—came to the city of Colosse by the mouth of a little known biblical character named Epaphras. Paul never visited this town, to the best of our knowledge. It wasn’t a large city, and it wasn’t on his circuit. But this man, Epaphras, brought the message to this city. You don’t have to be well-known. You don’t to be great. You don’t have to be a fine communicator. The Gospel is shared one person at a time, person-to-person, and anyone who knows Christ can share His message with someone else. Last week while my wife and I were in Georgia, we visited with a couple who had attended our church in the early 1980s, Gary and Teresa Smith. They have a 29-year-old daughter named Heather, who has been highly involved in campus evangelism and has gone on several mission trips. Gary and Teresa told us how Heather had come to know Christ as her personal Savior. Our own daughter, Victoria, was five years old when she gave her heart to Christ and prayed to become a Christian. She was so excited that she witnessed about it to Heather, who was six years old. Heather asked her parents about being a Christian, and the next Sunday she came forward and was saved at the altar. It was a case of a five-year-old winning a six-year-old to Christ—and it was a decision that has made the fundamental difference in her life all these years. Now if a five-year-old can be the means of leading someone to Christ, don’t you think you and I can do the same? We can if we recognize and understand the exceeding greatness of the treasure we have in Jesus Christ, and if we say, like Paul: I am not ashamed of the Gospel, because it is the power of god for the salvation of everyone who believes, for the Jew first and also for the Greek.
Colossenses 1:5
Barclay - That faith and love (Col 1:4) depend on the hope that is laid up in heaven. What exactly does Paul mean? Is he asking the Colossians to show faith in Christ and love for men only for the hope of some reward that is going to come to them some day? Is this "pie in the sky"? There is something much deeper than that here. Think of it this way. Loyalty to Christ may involve a man in all kinds of loss and pain and suffering. There may be many things to which he has to say goodbye. The way of love may seem to many to be the way of a fool. Why spend life in selfless service? Why not use it "to get on" as the world counts getting on? Why not push the weaker brother out of the way? The answer is--because of the hope that is set before us. (Ed: Biblical hope is a truth that motivates holy living and loving - cp 1Jn 3:2-3). As