Read chapter in full: www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Colossians+1&version=ESV
COLOSSIANS
Introducing Colossians
“More! More!” urged our son John when I laid down the spoon after feeding him.
“Again! Again!” pleaded our daughter Sara as I turned the last page in the book I was reading to her.
Their cries for more pudding or stories are echoed in our culture’s search for more—more power, more money, more knowledge, more gadgets, more furniture, more clothes—more everything!
Books on self-improvement and success flood the market. Gurus gain eager followers by offering enlightenment, power and secret wisdom. Millions read horoscopes every day.
We cry for “more” not only in our society but also in the church. If only we had more wisdom, more maturity, more power, more faith. To fill these needs we attend seminars, go to concerts, hear celebrity speakers and read their latest books.
Colossians was written to Christians with similar longings. They didn’t know who and what they already had. False teachers urged them to add rules, ascetic practices and new philosophies to their Christian faith. Then they would have fullness of life. Paul writes to satisfy their desire for more by showing that they already had fullness in Christ.
Paul never traveled to Colossae, a city in the Lycus River valley about a hundred miles east of Ephesus and twelve miles from Laodicea. But somehow he met Epaphras, the man who had taken the gospel to Colossae, and Philemon, the host for the local house church. While in prison in Rome, Paul learned from Epaphras about the Colossian church and the pressures threatening their peace and stability.
These “faithful brothers” had not turned away from faith in Christ. Paul’s warm, friendly letter affirms their positive qualities and the changes in their lives. But he warns them against being deceived by “fine-sounding arguments” (2:4) or being captured by “hollow and deceptive philosophy, which depends on human tradition and on the basic principles of this world rather than on Christ” (2:8).
The temptation to add ascetic practices, regulations or “superior knowledge” threatened their dependence on Christ alone for the fullness of life they wanted. The early Gnostics boasted about a spiritual “fullness” not previously experienced. They promised to complete and perfect the simple and elementary faith introduced by Paul and Epaphras. They emphasized a deeper knowledge of God, reserved for a special few, and an experience of greater power.
Colossians is Paul’s strongest declaration of the uniqueness and sufficiency of Christ, his full authority over all powers and the fullness of life he gives. Paul spells out the implications of this fullness of life again and again in the letter.
Like the Colossians, we are bombarded by longings for something more. But Paul thunders in Colossians, You already have fullness in Christ. Enjoy it! “For in Christ all the fullness of the Deity lives in bodily form, and you have been given fullness in Christ” (2:9-10). The purpose of these quiet times is to help you discover the scope, reality and implications of the fullness of life you have in Christ. Paul’s letter to Philemon gives principles for mending broken relationships that apply to us as well.
Chapter 1 (ESV)
Before you begin today’s reading and reflection, take a few minutes to create or find a “sacred space”. If you’re in your room, make yourself a small space with as few distractions as possible. Put aside any books, music, magazines; turn off your phone; get away from your email/facebook; turn off your music; etc.
Now, pull out your Bible, and as you take some deep breaths, pray this short prayer: “Lord, help me be still and listen to your voice now and throughout this day and the next. Amen.”
(You can choose to read the whole chapter, or just the passage that is shown)
15 He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. 16 For by him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things were created through him and for him. 17 And he is before all things, and in him all things hold together. 18 And he is the head of the body, the church. He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, that in everything he might be preeminent.19 For in him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell, 20 and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven, making peace by the blood of his cross.
21 And you, who once were alienated and hostile in mind, doing evil deeds, 22 he has now reconciled in his body of flesh by his death, in order to present you holy and blameless and above reproach before him, 23 if indeed you continue in the faith, stable and steadfast, not shifting from the hope of the gospel that you heard, which has been proclaimed in all creation under heaven, and of which I, Paul, became a minister.
Reflection
- Chapter in a Glance: Without Christ, Christianity is nothing. Paul offered prayers for the Colossians (vv3-14), and made a profound affirmation of Christ’s supremacy (vv15-23) and his living presence in the believer (vv24-29).
- We often hear: “All roads lead to Rome. Everyone is eventually going to the same place. How can Christians say Jesus is the only way to God?”What is your response?
- In this passage, Paul adamantly declared Christ’s supremacy over every being and every idea. It is the central truth of Christian faith. Christ is Lord over all creation and is the reconciler between God and his creation. Our lives are built upon it, shaped in every way by it. Through Christ’s reconciliation we may be given back to God holy, blameless, and irreproachable. God is the all-powerful ruler of heaven and earth. God expresses his supreme power in this world in the person of Jesus. God still expresses His supreme power in this world – through us!
- Silently reread verses 21-23, inserting your name every time Paul says you. What emotion, phrases, or thoughts come to you? What insight do you have about Jesus Christ, your new life in Him? Talk to God, wait and listen to Him speaking to you.
Prayer & Journaling:
Stay with God for a little longer. Continue to converse with God and listen to what he wants to tell you.
If you have a prayer journal, as you listen to God, write down a few thoughts, questions, words, names, drawings, or anything that has come to your mind during this time.
Family Time (Begin this time by reading the passage above using a children’s Bible. If your children are younger, you may read vv15-18 only.)
Paul reminds us that Christ began the work of the church on earth. Today, believers usually carry on that work through a local church organization. How much do you know about your local church? As a family talk to a long-time member of the church who can tell you some of the church history.
Proverbs for Today 22:19-21
19 That your trust may be in the Lord,
I have made them known to you today, even to you.
20 Have I not written for you thirty sayings
of counsel and knowledge,
21 to make you know what is right and true,
that you may give a true answer to those who sent you?