Colossians 1:1-4 | Food for Thought
Background
Who wrote it? Paul wrote this during one of his imprisonments (Rome, Caesarea, Ephesus). While he knew a couple of people from Colossae personally, he hadn’t planted the church there. A local named Epaphras did. Epaphras likely came to visit Paul while he was in prison to let him know about the church and seek his counsel. With the help of Timothy, Paul sent Epaphras back to Colossae with a letter in-hand.
Why did he write it? From what Paul had heard from Epaphras, the church in Colossae was doing great! It was on still relatively new, thriving, and committed to the gospel. That said, the church was in a city steeped in pagan spirituality that had a mix of Law-following, non-believing Jewish folks. Paul wanted to encourage the church in Colossae by reminding them of what God had already done in them, commending them for their faithfulness, and letting them know that Jesus is above all - creation, spirituality, religion, etc.
Christ alone is supreme and more than enough to bring them to God, grow them in God, and finish the work he began in the gospel. We get to remain steadfast in Jesus and let him shape our faith, hope, and life together as individuals, families, and communities.Anything else about Colossae? It had been a booming city in Asia minor, but a new highway bypassed Colossae and drew traffic to the neighboring city of Laodicea. It never had a chance to recover from the economic slump, as the city was destroyed by an earthquake in the mid-60s AD., only a couple of years after Paul died. The city would never be rebuilt remains largely unexcavated today.
Questions
Paul had only just heard about the church in Colossae, but he already started praying for them - both with thanksgiving and future hope and growth. He didn’t wait around for prayer requests or have to know a bunch of people personally; he proactively prayed for their faith, maturity, and continued fruit.
How would you describe Paul’s approach to prayer?
What about the content of his prayers? What is he focusing on? What does that reveal about his deepest desires for other brothers and sisters?
How does this compare / contrast with your own prayer life?
Paul makes a point that there’s more than enough to be thankful for because of Jesus and his work.
How often does gratitude show up in your prayers? …in your feelings towards the church or the Lord?
How often are you grateful for the work that God’s doing / the fruit that he’s bearing in other people’s lives or parts of the world?
If Paul is trying to keep the Colossian church anchored to Jesus and the gospel alone, why would he begin his letter with all that he’s thankful about in Christ?
What role can gratitude serve in your own life to that same end?
Paul also makes a point of showing that there’s always more room to grow in and more to gain from Christ.
Again, if Paul is trying to keep the Christians in Colossae rooted in Jesus, why would he tell them about all the more there is to experience in Christ?
How is the fact that there’s more to grow actually good news for us?
When you read the list of things he’s praying for, what’s the one thing that you want the most? Why?
Paul ties a lot of what he’s heard and lot of what he hopes back to the gospel, the nature and character of God, and the person and work of Jesus.
Why would he go out of his way to connect everything to Jesus so explicitly?
What impact would that produce in the Colossian church?
How can we do that for one another?
What do the last few verses say about you? How can we know this to be true about ourselves?