Colossians, Day 1
Clear and Present Vision
“Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, and Timothy our brother, To the saints and faithful brothers in Christ at Colossae: Grace to you and peace from God our Father” (Colossians 1:1 – 2).
In the shadow of Mount Cadmus, in what we now call Turkey, the city of Colossae was a thriving trade center and exporter of textiles to regions all over the known world in the 5th century B.C. However, when Paul wrote to the church in Colossae in the 1st century A.D., it was a much different city. The rerouting of the main trade road removed the strategic junction that drove commerce and the strong economic health of the city, and this led to the decline of the city. Colossae was predominately populated by Gentiles with a small population of Jews that had settled in the region a little more than two centuries before Paul wrote the letter. “Colossae’s mixed population of Jews and Gentiles manifested itself both in the composition of the church and in the heresy that plagued it, which contained elements of both Jewish legalism and pagan mysticism.”1
Colossians was written to a church that was established by Epaphras, who was probably the leader of the church. He had heard the gospel from Paul in Ephesus and took the message back to his hometown. This letter’s content grew out of a conversation that occurred when Epaphras spent some time with Paul in Rome.
Paul sent this letter, along with the letters to Philemon and to the Ephesians, with Tychicus, accompanied by Onesimus (Colossians 4:7; Philemon 1:10 – 12).2 The letter’s purpose was to help the people in Colossae process through the instruction and exhortations in the letter and apply biblical truth to the dangerous heresies that were disrupting the church, as well as learning how to live as fully-devoted followers of Christ. The role of Tychicus was to teach through the letter and disciple the church. The other courier, Onesimus, was a poster child for the grace of God and the authenticity of Paul’s commitment to the ministry of reconciliation. He was a former runaway slave who was changed through the power of God and was coming back home to reconcile with his master, Philemon.
There are three major characteristics of Epaphras that speak to his vision for the people of Colossae as they sought God’s “revealed will” together. First, Epaphras made a choice to love the people right where they were. I’m not just talking geographically, but I’m talking about emotionally and spiritually. I can see Epaphras working hard to make sure the church leadership was meeting the needs of the people in multiple areas as he trained leaders and loved the flock. Imagine the moment when he knew he had to go see Paul about the heresy that was erupting in the church. He was very aware that it was not going to be an easy journey, but he knew it was worth the sacrifice to save the church from destruction.
Epaphras also chose to establish the church and join in the journey of a new community of believers. I can imagine the ministry in Colossae was challenging. The economy wasn’t that great, and the city had passed its glory days. In this context, Epaphras chose to join them in their journey. I can see him teaching high-level theology classes from Paul’s points in the first part of the letter, and then discipling believers concerning how to live as fully-devoted followers of Christ from the second half of the letter.
Finally, I can imagine that Epaphras did not miss out on celebrating where God was taking them. He used his life to establish, protect, and nurture the church. He was able to observe transformed disciples furthering the kingdom of God by impacting their community with the gospel. The people of Colossae knew they could trust in the Lord completely because of Epaphras’ guidance, concern, and commitment to make sure they knew the truth.
As we walk through this week, my prayer is that we are people of the truth, and that we use our influence to disciple those around us by abiding in the truth found in the Word of God together. Spend some time this week seeking out opportunities to lead like Epaphras as we reach our community together for Christ.
Pastor Chuck
- MacArthur Study Bible, Crossway, 1782.
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Chuck Swindoll, Overview of Colossians, Found at https://insight.org/resources/bible/the-pauline-epistles/colossians