For in Him All the Fullness of God Was Pleased to Dwell1
In the letter to the church at Colossae Paul had to deal with many dangerous errors and troublesome practices. Therefore it is better known for its serious warnings than for those tender expressions that are so abundant in his letter to the Philippians.
Colossians 1:1-20
1Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, and Timothy our brother,
2To the saints and faithful brothers in Christ at Colossae:
Grace to you and peace from God our Father.
3We always thank God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, when we pray for you, 4since we heard of your faith in Christ Jesus and of the love that you have for all the saints, 5because of the hope laid up for you in heaven. Of this you have heard before in the word of the truth, the gospel, 6which has come to you, as indeed in the whole world it is bearing fruit and increasing—as it also does among you, since the day you heard it and understood the grace of God in truth, 7just as you learned it from Epaphras our beloved fellow servant. He is a faithful minister of Christ on your behalf 8and has made known to us your love in the Spirit.
It is delightful to hear one servant of God praise another like this. There is far too little of this in our day. True soldiers of Christ have a high regard for their comrades and are glad to promote their good reputation. Paul praises Epaphras to the Colossians as his way of recommending that worthy brother to them. Anything less may have destroyed his influence on them and injured the cause of Christ as a result.
9And so, from the day we heard, we have not ceased to pray for you, asking that you may be filled with the knowledge of his will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding, 10so as to walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing to him, bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God;
The Colossian church needed to gain understanding as much as the church of Philippi needed to achieve unity. They were easily deceived and led away from the gospel. We need to know the gospel well and hold on to it firmly, because there are many around us who will mislead and trick us if we let them.
11being strengthened with all power, according to his glorious might, for all endurance and patience with joy, (To work and to suffer, and to rejoice in both, is the unique mark of Christians. We need God’s grace for this and there is always an infinite supply to uphold us. Nothing short of the glorious power of God can create Christians or sustain them after they are born again.) 12giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of the saints in light. 13He has delivered us from the domain of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of his beloved Son, 14in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.
Now that the apostle has touched this string we may expect sweet music. His expert ability is never so much at home as when he is singing the praises of the Lord Jesus. Listen as he exalts the Son of God.
15He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. 16For 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. 17And he is before all things, and in him all things hold together. 18And 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. 19For in him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell, 20and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven, making peace by the blood of his cross.
If Jesus were not God the Son, then Paul’s language would be both ridiculous and blasphemous. What more could be said? Is not every word straining to describe the glory of the Redeemer? Blessed be his name. Jesus is everything to us. We adore him as Creator, Leader, Completeness, and Peacemaker. Let others say what they will about him; we will never stop singing his praises. Happy will be the day when all those in heaven and earth for whom the Savior died will join in one happy choir around his throne, united in one body through the atoning sacrifice. Even now we anticipate their victorious song and sing, “Worthy is the Lamb.”2
1 Colossians 1:19
2 Revelation 5:12
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