Read Colossians Chapters 1-4

As we start this week in our verse-by-verse exploration of the book of Colossians, my first encouragement to you would be for you to take time read the entire book of Colossians in one sitting. The book of Colossians is a letter that the apostle Paul wrote to the church at Colossae in response to a growing threat that has come to his attention. We wouldn’t read a letter we received from a loved one or friend in bite-sized chunks the first time we read through the pages. It makes sense to read through this letter in order to get the overall mood, purpose, theme, and effect of the letter for the original readers (listeners).

Although Paul is the obvious author of the letter to the Colossians, history tells us that Paul did not plant this church himself. Rather, this church was planted by Epaphras during Paul’s ministry to the church at Ephesus. Epaphras, a visitor from Colossae, came to believe in Christ through Paul’s preaching at Ephesus. He took the Gospel message back to Colossae and planted a church there. Paul served as an advisor to Epaphras in this endeavor, and when Epaphras came to him for help with a growing threat to this church, Paul penned this profound letter as a response while under house arrest in his first imprisonment in Rome.

The threat that had come to the church at Colossae was from false teachers who were propagating what is known as Gnosticism. The term Gnostic comes from the Greek word “gnosis” which means “to know”. The Gnostics believed that they were spiritually elite because they had all the answers. The true threat that came from Gnosticism is the belief that all matter is evil. It would follow that, if all matter is evil, God and Jesus could not have directly participated in creation and Jesus could not have taken on human form. So, for the Gnostic, Christ was not the creator, the incarnation wasn’t real, and Christ was not enough to bring salvation to a world in great need. The Gnostics treated the Colossian believers are simple-minded bumpkins who desperately needed to be enlightened to the “truth”.

As a true understanding of the identity of Christ is essential to the Gospel message, Epaphras brought his concerns to Paul. Over the next few months, we will soak our hearts into Paul’s response to this important church.

Questions to consider:
After reading through the letter to the Colossians all in one sitting, what themes stand out to you?
Considering the threat of Gnosticism the Colossian church faced, what threats does the church face in our days?
Ask God today to speak deeply to your heart as we study the Letter to the Colossians.