Overview of Colossians

As I prepare for the quiz meet this Saturday, I need to be able to share with my quizzers what Paul was saying when he wrote to the Colossians. So I’m going to read quickly through, looking for key verses, and then I’ll summarize its message.

 

1:3-6 - 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.

 

1:10-12 - And we pray this in order that you may live a life worthy of the Lord and may please him in every way: bearing fruit in every good work, growing in the knowledge of God, being strengthened with all power according to his glorious might so that you may have great endurance and patience, and joyfully giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of the saints in the kingdom of light.

 

1:21-23 - Once you were alienated from God and were enemies in your minds because of your evil behavior. But now he has reconciled you by Christ's physical body through death to present you holy in his sight, without blemish and free from accusation-- if you continue in your faith, established and firm, not moved from the hope held out in the gospel. This is the gospel that you heard and that has been proclaimed to every creature under heaven, and of which I, Paul, have become a servant.

 

1:28-29 - We proclaim him, admonishing and teaching everyone with all wisdom, so that we may present everyone perfect in Christ. To this end I labor, struggling with all his energy, which so powerfully works in me.

 

2:13-15 - When you were dead in your sins and in the uncircumcision of your sinful nature, God made you alive with Christ. He forgave us all our sins, having canceled the written code, with its regulations, that was against us and that stood opposed to us; he took it away, nailing it to the cross. And having disarmed the powers and authorities, he made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them by the cross.

 

2:20-23 - Since you died with Christ to the basic principles of this world, why, as though you still belonged to it, do you submit to its rules:"Do not handle! Do not taste! Do not touch!"? These are all destined to perish with use, because they are based on human commands and teachings. Such regulations indeed have an appearance of wisdom, with their self-imposed worship, their false humility and their harsh treatment of the body, but they lack any value in restraining sensual indulgence.

 

3:12-17 - Therefore, as God's chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. Bear with each other and forgive whatever grievances you may have against one another. Forgive as the Lord forgave you. And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity.

    Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace. And be thankful. Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom, and as you sing psalms, hymns and spiritual songs with gratitude in your hearts to God. And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.

 

4:12-13 - Epaphras, who is one of you and a servant of Christ Jesus, sends greetings. He is always wrestling in prayer for you, that you may stand firm in all the will of God, mature and fully assured. I vouch for him that he is working hard for you and for those at Laodicea and Hierapolis.

 

4:17 - Tell Archippus: "See to it that you complete the work you have received in the Lord."

 

Paul begins, as usual, by thanking God for the Colossians. Specifically, he is thankful that the hope found in the gospel has led them to live lives of faith and love. Paul also prays for them to bear fruit, be strengthened, and joyfully give thanks to the Father. These are our proper responses to the gospel.

 

Paul sums up the gospel, too. He always weaves it into his letters. Here, he sums it up this way: “You were alienated from God – His enemies. But God reconciled you to Himself by Christ’s death so that you can be holy. This hope depends on our faith in Christ.” The gospel is the starting point for everything Paul teaches – for all of life, as he says at the end of chapter 1.

 

The gospel results in great blessings for Christians. These include life, forgiveness, and freedom from the “written code.” It is because Christ died to give us these blessings that we are no longer to depend on rules for salvation. We aren’t saved because we avoid touching, tasting, or involving ourselves in certain activities, and we aren’t saved because we take part in good activities; we are saved only because of Jesus Christ!

 

What flows from this life that depends on Jesus Christ is spiritual. Compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, patience, forgiveness, putting up with each other’s faults, and most of all – love. Christians are at peace with one another, and we ought to be very thankful people because of what Christ has done for us all. Our songs and our speech should be centered on Jesus Christ, and what we do should be done as His servants.

 

Epaphras is an example of someone who does this. His life is characterized by prayer for his fellow believers. His hope is for their growth and maturity. Paul is an example, too, as he encourages Archippus to keep working at what God has given him to do. We need each other’s prayers and encouragement.

 

Essentially, Paul says that there are right and wrong ways to live, but we don’t follow rules for the sake of our salvation. Instead, we seek to live by the spiritual changes Christ brings to our lives, knowing that He is working in us and gladly making every effort to receive what He gives. We depend on Christ, and so we seek to live according to what He gives us, keeping Him in mind.