Category: Colossians

Salty

Colossians 4

Saturday, August 27, 2022

We are commanded to be salty.  WAIT. Salty?  Maybe I should clarify.  We are not talking about salty sailors, that would use coarse language and tell crude jokes.  We are not talking about the 21st century definition of “salty”, meaning bitter or upset from embarrassment.  We are talking in terms of a tasty preservative that not only keeps eternally, but seasons our meats, cheeses, and daily bread.

“You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled underfoot.” – Matthew 5:14

While salt is essential to carry out some of our basic metabolic processes,  in all honesty, I don’t think this is why we crave it.  We desire a dash here and there because it just makes every food a little better. Popcorn pops.  Steak Sizzles.  Chocolates Chimes. Even allegedly flavorless water tastes better with a little salt in it (that’s right those alkaline waters are, you guessed it, salt-enhanced). It is so magnificent that many of us commit a foodie faux pas and reach for salt before we even taste our food.  We can’t resist.  So how does this desire “to make it better” sneak its way into our subconscious?

Well, here’s the science (from a guy that taught a science class one time).  Salt is ionized, so it attracts the water particles and in turn, aromas in the air surrounding your food.  Also, salt stimulates the taste buds, waking them up, so it enhances the taste along your tongue.  Finally, salt even suppresses bitter and sour flavors by dulling their neural transmissions to the brain.  It is in these very ways we, too, can be salty.

“Be wise in the way you act toward outsiders; make the most of every opportunity. Let your conversation be always full of grace, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how to answer everyone.” -Colossian 4:5,6

1. Be gracious and attractive.  Christians wear the compassion of Christ when we accept his death on the cross as payment for our sin. We have nothing to boast about except for our Savior. While anyone could be watching us live on any given day, the sense of those on the outside are most heightened when they know they have wronged you, yet you forgive, when you experience great loss yet rejoice, and when you exceed all others but maintain humility, giving glory to God.  In these instances, we are to act to attract.

2. Be shrewd and stimulate discussion. While we may have specific rules or cultural norms at work, school, or the grocery store regarding the proselytization of those who are not like-minded, I truly believe people are far more ready to have conversations regarding their faith than we give them credit for.  What starts as a favor at the well, ends in a testimony about Jesus.  Likewise, when we hear hopelessness, desperation, anger, frustration, trial, it is time for a dash of salt.  “Tell me about faith.” “Is it okay if we pray together?” “Here’s what Jesus said about this.”

3. Suppress the bitter and the sour.  While the first two focus on what’s outside coming in, the bitter and the sour are rolling around on the inside. When we make it our purpose to be the light of Christ, we suppress our own desires to be recognized for our struggle by leaving them at the cross.  We dull our persecution by making it our testimony.  Our sickness and our pain are the platform to share faith. In this world, we will have trouble, but we can take heart! He has overcome it all.  Finally, in those moments when the bitter continues to bleed and the sour continues to seep, it is time for us to consult the Word of God and lean on someone else’s flavoring so we don’t lose our saltiness.

As you walk away from your home and step into the world, hear the coarseness and bemoaning of (the other type of) salty people.  What you may have found most irritating before is the sound of those who are looking for grace, wisdom, and relief from their struggle. Be ready with an answer.  Be ready to reach for the salt, so someone else can share in its eternal life.

-Aaron Winner

Questions for Reflection and Discussion

  1. Can you think of a specific time when you failed to “act to attract” or make the most of a salty opportunity with an outsider? Instead, your words, actions, and attitudes (or lack thereof) may have left behind a bad taste.
  2. Looking back, what could you have done differently?
  3. How can you make the most of the next opportunity?
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For the Lord

Colossians 3

Friday, August 26, 2022

My junior and senior years of high school were not the proudest moments as a student.  I failed my math class my junior year and was forced to take a remedial course. My senior year, I failed two more courses; one of them was service learning.  It’s embarrassing to admit as someone who had the tools to be exceptional and as someone who speaks daily into the lives of adolescents, but I was unmotivatable.  I had determined I was going to expend the least amount of effort possible to cross the finish line of high school graduation. However, that didn’t stop one teacher from trying to spur me forward.  My AP Biology Teacher, Mr. Amato, passed back another failed test to me somewhere at the close of winter of my senior year.  As he did so, he looked me in the eyes and said to me “Do everything as it’s for God.”  The statement hit like daggers. It came from a place outside of church in a very public school.  It momentarily pierced my impervious hardened heart towards my school work, and I felt truly ashamed of my effort. I wish I could continue the story and state that I aced my next test, or even, passed the class, but neither happened. However, my labor for the Lord, spurred by these words, has happened in a classroom further down the road.

There are some of us who will get the opportunity to share our faith stories with an audience of hundreds or even thousands. Our account will be spread far and wide of the miracle of Jesus Christ in our life, but our story is best told, not in quantity, but quality.  All of us will first and foremost have a ministry to our family, our friends, and for those we work for and alongside. How well do we listen to instructions? Follow through on our word? And present our absolute best in the work that exists in front of us? We may be more knowledgeable than the CEO, have more experience than our district manager, or could teach the class far better than our professor (quick note: definitely not the case in AP Bio), but who will ever know through our lack of focus, negligible efforts, and lack of compliance?  Whether you are the boss or the bondservant, you work for the gospel of Jesus Christ in your efforts.

Slaves, obey your earthly masters in everything; and do it, not only when their eye is on you and to curry their favor, but with sincerity of heart and reverence for the Lord. Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for human masters, since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving. Anyone who does wrong will be repaid for their wrongs, and there is no favoritism. – Colossians 3:22-25

God has placed you where he needs your testimony to shine. We are not ourselves saviors, but we do reflect the light of Jesus Christ when we work like him. It doesn’t mean that we are to be workaholics or slaves to our jobs.  We are to render to Little Caesars what is Little Caesars. Working 9 to 5 means we are on the clock. We don’t cut corners.  We work harder, not to get ahead, but to build the platform on which to share our testimony. Chances are if we don’t like our work, yet love the Lord and see it through completion, it will be noticed.  But what if it isn’t?  Your inheritance isn’t found in your work or your career. The promise of promotion isn’t the driving force behind your labor. There is ministry in the few hours spent at church for the Lord, but equally, or possibly more so, in the 40 hours working for the man.  You will infinitely be repaid for your efforts by the one for whom you slave, Jesus Christ. Be God’s vessel wherever you are. Do it for the Lord.

“ Let the message of Christ dwell among you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom through psalms, hymns, and songs from the Spirit, singing to God with gratitude in your hearts. 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.” – Colossians 3:16, 17

-Aaron Winner

Questions for Reflection and Discussion

  1. Whether you are a student, an employee, a boss and/or a family member, how can you do it today as working for the Lord?
  2. What negative work habits can you work on overcoming so you can be a positive witness to those around you?
  3. What positive role models have you seen in the workplace/school?
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Fine-Sounding Arguments

Colossians 2

Thursday, August 25, 2022

Have you noticed that some of the greatest wisdom on this planet is defining a word by again, using that same word?  Here are some examples: Fair is fair. Business is business. The rules are the rules. A deal is a deal. Love is love.  While each of these sayings have a context and a more nuanced understanding, it tends to oversimplify complex issues that need some mulling over.  We accept these phrases because it makes our logic simpler and dismisses further discussion.  Fine-sounding arguments such as these may not be all they are cracked up to be.

Even worse, an apologist, for any belief under the sun, can use the words of God in the wrong context or without a key understanding and can distort it immensely.   In Matthew 4, Jesus actively combats the words of God taken out of their context.  The world is rapidly filling with empty arguments that lead to the rebranding and normalization of sin.  Like Jesus, it is our responsibility to call it out for what it is. And surely, God did say we will die, in a second death if we buy in, sell out, give up ourselves to these false teachings. Truth is truth.  Here are three ways for your eyes and ears to discern between the eternal wisdom of God or the shallow echoes of hollow human reason.

My goal is that they may be encouraged in heart and united in love, so that they may have the full riches of complete understanding, in order that they may know the mystery of God, namely, Christ, in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge. I tell you this so that no one may deceive you by fine-sounding arguments. For though I am absent from you in body, I am present with you in spirit and delight to see how disciplined you are and how firm your faith in Christ is. – Colossians 2:2-5

Did God really say it?  While I believe that God has inspired wisdom since the Bible was composed, including some of what I hope is wisdom in this blog, you can’t go wrong believing only what is already written from Genesis to Revelation.  Well, God didn’t say anything about social media, phones, or college?  Truth.  But what he did say was how to treat your neighbor, how to spend your time, and how you should work.  These truths found in scripture are living and active.  If we truly feel we are faced with some ethical dilemma that is completely unique to us in our present state, we should pray for wisdom because God gives wisdom generously to all without finding fault.

Who, exactly, does it benefit? Jesus makes an important distinction between behaviors that are motivated by God and those that are motivated by self. Prayer, tithing, and fasting are all wonderful disciplines for every Christian to take up. However, when we do it in public or take God’s glory by making it about ourselves, we are not feeding our relationship with God; we are feeding our ego.  Jesus makes the case that motives and intentions are every bit as important as the action we take. Truth may be on the side. I can eat or drink whatever I wish, but it may cause a stumbling block for another. If I knowingly offer advice that gives me permission to act for my benefit alone, then my words are not heavenly Father’s.

Does it advance the Kingdom of God? When our Savior heals on the Sabbath, he speaks clearly to this measure. Isn’t it right to work for the Lord on the Lord’s day?  To act more like Him?  To worship him in not only words but action?  Choosing to live for God is vastly different than choosing what goes on your plate.  There are some clear lines drawn in the sand. The gate is narrow, and only those who intend to deceive you will widen it.  There are simply behaviors and relationships that God doesn’t give his permission or his blessing.  It doesn’t advance the Kingdom of God to make allowances for habitual, unrepented behavior.  A short-term gain of a warm-body in a seat on Sundays is an eternal loss when sin isn’t confronted.  We accept the whole of God’s moral will or we are rejecting the lot.  This wisdom can burn like a good rubbing alcohol, but it also allows us to heal and be cleansed.

My hope and prayer for the church of today is that we can rid ourselves of these fine-sounding arguments, and make the case for sound, Godly discernment. Wisdom and life stem from Him alone.

“So then, just as you received Christ Jesus as Lord, continue to live your lives in him, 7 rooted and built up in him, strengthened in the faith as you were taught, and overflowing with thankfulness.” Colossians 2:2-7

-Aaron Winner

Questions for Reflection and Discussion

  1. Reading Colossians 2 what are some of the dangers Paul is warning the church to avoid? What does he want the church to stay focused on?
  2. Where do you see God’s word and wisdom being distorted by fine-sounding arguments. Pray for wisdom and discernment to see clearly.
  3. What is the end result for those who are led astray and deceived?
2022 SeekGrowLove Bible Reading PlanDownload

The Creator’s Firstborn

Colossians 1

Wednesday, August 24, 2022

Before Adam, before the fall, there stood Christ. While his life wouldn’t begin for another 4000 years, God had already set salvation in motion.  It is why the stars and the sand could speak to Abraham. It is how Isaiah could see visions of one crying out, “prepare the way”.  It was the fabric that held two genealogies together to come crashing into miraculous birth in Bethlehem. It is the very dead Jesus being raised by His Father to be the firstfruits of the resurrection and giving him preeminence as a King in the life to come.  

The Son is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. For in him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things have been created through him and for him. He is before all things, and in him all things hold together.  – Colossians 1:15-17

Jesus Christ wasn’t Plan B because of a fall of man in the Garden of Eden. He wasn’t a contingency plan to be used in emergencies only.  He is the culmination of God’s love for man and the inevitability of the selfish nature of freewill.  In him, through him, and for him, ALL things were created. Things of heaven. Things of earth. Things we can see. Things we can’t.  And it all makes sense because of his life.  God, the Father of Jesus, is the author of providence and will.  Jesus Christ has been given the place as the executor, the head, the mediator, our way back to God after wandering in the desert, ritualistic religion, or feeling foreign in our own body.

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, and do not move from the hope held out in the gospel. – Colossians 1:21-23a

The fullness of the word of God is revealed.  It isn’t a mystery. It is available to anyone, anytime. No matter the amount of struggle or hate we fortify and reinforce in our minds, our hearts are attuned to Jesus because he is stitched and woven into every creation, including each one of us.  Oh, how God was mindful of us. He knew. His creation surrounds us and testifies of His glory, which in turn, is distilled in Jesus Christ. My prayer is we all recognize that the glory of God can exist in each one of us when we live as Jesus lived, placing the Firstborn of Creation into our hearts, and embracing the very context for existence.

Lord, our Lord, how majestic is your name in all the earth! You have set your glory in the heavens. Through the praise of children and infants you have established a stronghold against your enemies, to silence the foe and the avenger. When I consider your heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon and the stars, which you have set in place, what is mankind that you are mindful of them, human beings that you care for them? – Psalm 8:1-4

-Aaron Winner

Questions for Reflection and Discussion

  1. How would you describe Jesus, The Creator’s Firstborn, to someone who has never heard of him before?
  2. What does creation teach you about the Creator and His plans?
  3. What does it mean to you to be reconciled to God through Christ?
2022 SeekGrowLove Bible Reading PlanDownload

Which Will You Be?

Isaiah 21-22 and Colossians 4

Today we are going to look at two different groups of God’s people: those in Jerusalem at the time of Isaiah’s writing and those in Colosse at the time of Paul’s writing. Which will you be?

In many of the previous chapters of the book of Isaiah we read about God’s coming judgments on Israel and Judah’s neighbors and sometimes her enemies. It’s not all bad reading what disasters are coming to your wicked neighbors. Yay, God! Go get em! Show em who’s boss! But, it gets downright personal in chapter 22 as the prophecies of judgment and doom now center on Jerusalem, God’s Holy City. What did they do to deserve this? Well, much. Other scriptures tell of Jerusalem’s idol worship and shedding of innocent blood and even sacrificing their own children. But specifically in Isaiah 22 we are told of their pride and arrogance, their celebrations and their disregard for God. When they saw danger on the horizon they did everything in their own power to protect themselves, including tearing down houses to strengthen the wall and building reservoirs. “But, you did not look to the One who made it, or have regard for the One who planned it long ago” (Isaiah 22:11 NIV). What would have changed if they had only called out to God for help?

God was waiting for His people to seek Him, to turn to Him, to cry out to Him, to confess and mourn and repent. But, instead, they were too busy. Busy with their preparations to save themselves. Busy with their sins. Busy with their celebrations and feasting and misplaced joy. Busy in their “town full of commotion…city of tumult and revelry.” (Isaiah 22:2 NIV).

They had abandoned God first. He was still calling out to them on that day (Isaiah 22:12). But, they were busy. They drowned out the sound of God’s voice with their sinful busy-ness and celebrations. So, His holy and righteous judgement was coming.

Contrast this tragic picture with what we read in Colossians 4 as Paul is closing out his letter to the church in Colosse with his final instructions and greetings. He urges the church, “Devote yourselves to prayer, being watchful and thankful” (Colossians 4:2 NIV). And, while he’s got the people praying – he says pray for me, too. Paul requests prayers for open doors (not to physically get out of house arrests, but open doors to reach more people), for opportunities to proclaim Christ and for clear communication in his ministry. And further on, I love his description of Epaphras, “a servant of Jesus Christ…He is always wrestling in prayer for you, that you may stand firm in all the will of God, mature and and fully assured” (Colossians 4:12 NIV). These people are busy, too – in prayer – in seeking God and in ministry . They are praying for their spiritual leaders and churches and those who will hear God’s message, and asking for prayer. Rather than ignoring God and drowning out His voice, they are seeking God regularly and whole-heartedly, coming to Him in prayer, always desiring to do more for Him and His Son.

Which group are you more like today?

Do you have see any similarities between yourself and God’s people in Jerusalem? Are you surrounded with so much commotion that you miss God’s voice calling out to you? Is he asking you to mourn when you are busy celebrating and feasting? Are you so caught up in your self-preservation preparations that you have neglected to call out to God? Do you rely on yourself instead of on God? When you see trouble coming do you invest time in creating a longer to-do list, throw a party, or fall to your knees before God? What would be different in your life and in your community if you called on Him in prayer instead of trying to do it your own way?

Do you see any similarities between yourself and God’s people in Colosse? Are you devoted to prayer, being watchful and thankful? Are you praying for open doors – not to get ahead or out of a jam – but to advance God’s gospel message? Are you busy praying for your Christian brothers and sisters and leaders and missionaries? Are you asking others to pray for your ministry? What would it look like if you spent time today wrestling in prayer?

Praying for you today – to Stand Firm in God’s Will, mature and fully assured

-Marcia Railton

Read or listen to today’s Bible reading plan passages at BibleGateway here – Isaiah 21-22 and Colossians 4

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What Would You Do For God?

Isaiah 19-20 and Colossians 3

I really just wanted to talk about Colossians today. But, I couldn’t. I try to avoid embarrassing discussions of nakedness. But, today I can’t.

Isaiah 20 is an incredibly short though (at least for me) difficult chapter to read. And it is one I definitely don’t remember learning in Sunday School class growing up. We learned about Isaiah, the faithful servant of God who had a powerful calling from God. When he saw a vision of God’s majesty he crumbled in unworthiness and guilt, but then God cleansed him with a burning coal to his lips and Isaiah boldly declared, “Here am I. Send me!” (Isaiah 6:8). We knew Isaiah wrote lots of chapters with many warnings and some beautiful passages of the promised Messiah. But, we didn’t know about the humiliation of chapter 20.

Today we read, “At that time the Lord spoke through Isaiah son of Amoz. He said to him, ‘Take off the sackcloth from your body and the sandals from your feet.’ And he did so, going around stripped and barefoot.” (Isaiah 20:2 NIV). No, argument is recorded. Just obedience. “And he did so.” And, it wouldn’t just be for the day or even a week – but for three years! Commentaries kindly mention he would still have had a loin cloth (a.k.a – underwear). But that’s not too reassuring to Isaiah, his family, or his readers today.

It is natural to ask WHY, God? There has to be a reason why a loving God would ask His faithful servant to go through this embarrassing and painful object lesson for three long years. In this case I believe God was having Isaiah dramatically get the people’s attention to remind them just how degrading and dehumanizing their lives would be as prisoners of war (who were often marched around in such fashion). And, that is what they will become if they choose to forsake the Lord and put their trust instead in foreign ungodly allies like Egypt and Cush.

It makes me wonder – what am I willing to do for God? What amount of personal pain, sorrow, and humiliation am I willing to endure in order to be doing what God has asked of me? Am I more concerned about what men will think of my service to God, or what God would say? Certainly Isaiah would have never lasted for three nearly naked years if he held in greater regard the approval, understanding or encouragement of his peers over pleasing God.

Could I have done what Isaiah did? I think when faced with God’s awesome majesty I could say, “Here am I. Send me!”. After all, it sounds like pretty good resume material to be a messenger for God – I bet it’s a job that comes with some great benefits, too. I would even name my baby boy Maher-Shalal-Hash-Baz (meaning quick to the plunder, swift to the spoils) just as Isaiah did for God. That is an object lesson I feel I would willingly participate in, even though others might laugh and ridicule my choice. But, is there a cut off line where my loyalty and devotion to God would end? Is there a job He could ask of me that I would say ‘no’ to? I hope not.

Too often when we sign on for a position working for the Almighty, we try to choose what it will look like. “I will go here for God and do this for God.” And everyone will be amazed. But, sometimes, God has different plans. Bigger plans. Sometimes, more confusing plans. Sometimes, plans that will take you far out of your comfort zone and even into the midst of personal pain, loss, turmoil, and ridicule.

While the apostle Paul never faced the exact same jobs Isaiah endured, he also gained a lot of experience facing trials and difficulties, misunderstanding and persecution while following God, and His Son Jesus. He wrote in Colossians 3:17 “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.” We can learn a thing or two from both Paul and Isaiah about serving the Lord.

What would you do for God?

-Marcia Railton

Maybe, you are interested in writing a day of devotions? This week was going to be covered by a young pastor from Indiana, but instead…he is anticipating a slightly early arrival of his first son – so if anyone would like to write for a day -contact Marcia at mjmjmrailton@gmail.com. And, remember the growing Paul family in your prayers.

Read or listen to today’s Bible reading plan passages at BibleGateway.com here – Isaiah 19-20 and Colossians 3

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“Philemon: Itty Bitty Book…Phenomenal Cosmic Message”

Daily Reading: Colossians 1-4; Philemon

The best movies are more than a fun way to spend a couple of hours, they leave us with something. And a film doesn’t have to be deep and dramatic to be able to find lessons in it. Analogies are everywhere. Learning can come from many places.

Our devotional trailer opens on a fleeing man, Onesimus, with the voiceover telling us, “Under Roman law, there were no limits to the punishment a slave master could inflict on a runaway slave….but sometimes redemption comes when we least expect it. ”

Onesimus somehow found Paul, and over time he grew a faith…and a friend, it seems. At some point, Paul sent a letter to Onesimus’ former owner, telling him he was sending the slave back to his previous master.

“ I am sending him—who is my very heart—back to you… If he has done you any wrong or owes you anything, charge it to me.”

Charge it to me.

Do you see how Paul is mirroring the story of the cross here?

In this story we are Onesimus. Like him, each of us deserves punishment. We owe a debt. And like him, someone offered to take the punishment on our behalf, to pay our debt.

Someone has given us a second chance.

Maybe you’ve never really been in the position of needing a true second chance. Or maybe you have and you’ve just forgotten how demeaning and low it can feel. The graciousness of Paul, to speak of Onesimus as ‘my son’, ‘my very heart’, and ‘a dear brother’ must have allowed Onesimus to hold his head high as he returned to his former home.

The account of Onesimus and Philemon may be a short one, but the way that Paul used this opportunity to illustrate the gospel story is pure genius.

Maybe, in Onesimus, Paul wanted each of us to know that we are beloved. That we are worth saving. We are worth sacrificing for.

Maybe he’s telling us that knowing our true value allows us to hold our heads high as we live in our ‘former home’ until our forever home is ready for us. We are Abba’s children. We are Christ’s dear brothers and sisters.

This would be one movie that would pack an emotional punch, and you could be sure you’d leave the theater changed…if you were really paying attention.

And speaking of paying attention—the next time you are unsure of your standing, remember that you have a letter in your pocket that says, “Charge it to me,” and lift your head a little.

-Susan Landry

Today’s Bible reading passages can be read or listened to here at BibleGateway – Colossians 1-4 and the itty bitty book of Philemon

Tomorrow we will read the book of Ephesians.

2020 Chronological Bible Reading PlanDownload

Clarification of the Christ

Colossians 1:15-20

colossians 1 15 NIV

I love to look deeper into these verses in Colossians to fully understand what Paul was writing and why. Paul was poetic in his language and using wording that the Israelites used to describe the personification of wisdom. If you look through the Old Testament it is not likely that you will find the phrase “Holy Spirit”. You will however find the term “Spirit of God” which we discover is the same thing, God’s power within us. Likewise “word of God” is not seen in the Old Testament. Once there is a reference to the “word of the LORD” but the majority of the references toward the Word of God are seen describing this personification of wisdom. A different way of saying the same thing. Jesus is the living embodiment of the Word of God.

“He is the image of the invisible God” – Jesus is called the image of God in these verses and in 2 Corinthians 4:4. In Hebrews 1:3 he is described as “the radiance of God’s glory and the exact representation of His being”. Two truths are revealed through the first half of this verse: God has remained unseen “no one has ever seen God” John 4:18 and second, Jesus reveals the nature and character of God for he is the image of God in which humanity was originally created in Genesis 1:26. It is the image that we as the faithful will be transformed into upon Jesus’ return.

“The firstborn over all creation” – Paul borrowed from his Jewish upbringing; firstborn was a Hebrew way of saying someone was especially honored. The nation of Israel was called firstborn (Exodus 4:22), as was David (Psalm 89:27). The word, in these instances, did not refer to their physical birth but to their place of honor before God. So here Paul is saying that Jesus has a place of honor over all creation.

“By him all things were created” seven times in these verses Paul mentions “all creation”, “all things”, and “everything” stressing that the Christ is supreme over all through the power God granted him. The tense at the end of this verse was not translated correctly in the NIV, it says “all things were” however the original language was not past-tense “were” rather present “are”.

“Before all things” like with firstborn this does not speak of time but importance. The Christ is before all things in importance for it is only through him that all things will be restored.

“All things hold together” he will usher in a new age in which sinful man will be redeemed and united with our holy God.

This passage speaks of the importance of the Christ, the place of honor over all things that he holds. Additionally it points to both Jesus’ place of honor over the church and those who will be resurrected to eternal life as well as a chronological order. Jesus was the beginning of the church as we know it. And he was the first, and only one to this point, which God raised to new life. We the faithful will follow suit once Jesus returns.

“All (his) fullness dwell” (his) was added to many translations which adds to the confusion and skepticism that people may have concerning these verses. Before moving forward think about what happens to those who come to God through Jesus. We are filled with God’s spirit, His power and character, at least to a point. But Jesus was filled with the fullness of God, all power and authority were given to him. He also displayed the nature, character, and attributes of God. Paul also had another reason for his choice of words, “fullness” was a popular term among the Gnostics who used it to refer to the combination of all supernatural influences. So Paul used their own word to elevate the Christ above all other religious ideas and systems.

“To reconcile to himself all things” Jesus’ death, burial, and resurrection set the stage for not only the faithful to be made new but also all of creation. Unfortunately it does not mean that everyone will be saved from sin and ultimately death. We have free will and we make our own choices. But God does not give up on us. I believe that even those He has already seen reject Him are given daily opportunities for redemption.

It is important that we have a clear understanding of who Jesus is and the reason that we need a Christ, Messiah.

To be continued… (by someone else)

Jeff Ransom

 

(Editor’s Note – Thank you Jeff for finishing off the book of Proverbs with us this week, and giving us two free theme days to think on!  Tomorrow we will begin looking at the book of Revelation – one chapter a day through the month of November.  And in December we will finish off the New Testament with the book of Luke.  So many precious things in God’s Word!  Keep taking it in.)

Opportunities

Colossians 4

Colossians 4 5

One of the most important parts of being a human is making empathetic connections. I would describe an empathetic connection as finding a basis of similarity so you can start to build a relationship. These connections are crucially important to the Christian faith. As Christians we are to be ambassadors for Christ, helping people understand and live out the Gospel so they may be in the Kingdom of God. Often, I waste opportunities to do this very thing. But Paul has an easy way of reminding us by using a couple of object lessons in

Colossians 4:2-6 “Devote yourselves to prayer, keeping alert in it with an attitude of thanksgiving; Praying at the same time for us as well, that God will open up to us a door for the word, so that we may speak forth the mystery of Christ, for which I have also been imprisoned; that I may make it clear in the way I ought to speak. Conduct yourselves with wisdom toward outsiders, making the most of the opportunity. Let your speech always be with grace, as though seasoned with salt, so that you will know how you should respond to each person.”

Our empathetic connections we make with others are drastically important for when we share the Gospel. I would say Paul is using the illustration of a door and salt to describe how we are to handle people who we are supposed to share the gospel with. The door represents hospitality, welcome, and family. In other words, treat others as if you were inviting them into your home. Allow them to be comfortable. Remember we as Christians are not called to comfort, but to carry our cross (even though it’s hard sometimes). Treat them just like Jesus would have treated you. The salt represents preparedness (that which I am unqualified to talk about but here I go anyway) Salt was used as a preservative in the time Paul wrote this, therefore he is referring to our speech having been thought out and planned. Just like someone who wants to cook a steak but doesn’t know what seasoning they will cook it with, Paul calls us to be patient.

Be kind to those who are ignorant of the Gospel and those who might not live a lifestyle you don’t accept. The only way you will be able to effectively share the Gospel is through a relationship that shows them Christ’s love before they are changed.

Jesse Allen

Together

Colossians 3

Colossians 3 14

It is not always easy getting along with people in the church. When I first became a Christian, I thought after that point it might all become easier and I was just along for the ride at that point. However, God has challenged me to grow and to even get along with people I never thought I could. Has that ever happened to you? It appears Jesus joins all of us together no matter the strife that does and will happen.

Paul recognizes this in Colossians 3:14-15

“Beyond all these things put on love, which is the perfect bond of unity. Let the Peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in one body: and be thankful.

What Paul said here is that Love is what “Holds us Together”. That is because of Christ’s rule in our hearts. But we must allow Him to rule. Today I want you to think of the people you never got along with until some Church or camp activity and thank God for them. Maybe even let them know too!

Jesse Allen

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