Our Daily Scripture – 8/26/25 (Tuesday)

SCRIPTURE:  COLOSSIANS 1

INTRODUCTION:

Colossians is the third letter written by Paul from prison in Rome.  Epaphras was one of Paul’s converts who founded the church in Colosse.  He came to Rome and told Paul that there were false doctrines being introduced in the church. They combined ideas from other philosophies and religions (such as paganism, Judaism and Greek thought) with Christian truth.  They taught them to worship angels and follow special rules and ceremonies.  Paul wrote to the Colossians to oppose these false teachers.  He reminded them that Jesus is God and Head of the Church.  He is supreme over everything.  His death is able to save us from our sins and through him, we are free from man-made rules.  He emphasized the importance of our relationship to God and we are to make his interest our top priority.

MEMORY VERSE:

“He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation.  For by him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things were created by him and for him.” (Colossians 1:15-16)

THANKSGIVING AND PRAYER(1-14)

Paul thanked God of the faith and love of the Colossian believers that were bearing fruit and growing.

Paul prayed for them these things:

  1. To fill them with the knowledge of his will through all spiritual wisdom and understanding. (v. 9)
  2. To live a life worthy of the Lord and  please him in every way. (v. 10a)
  3. To bear fruit in every good work and grow in the knowledge of God. (v. 10b)
  4. To be strengthened with all power according to his glorious might so that they may have great endurance, patience and joy. (v. 11)
  5. To give thanks to the Father, who has qualified them to share in the inheritance of the saints in the kingdom of light. (v. 12)
  6. To be rescued from the dominion of darkness and bring them into the kingdom of the Son he loves, in whom they have redemption, the forgiveness of sins. (v. 13-14)

THE SUPREMACY OF CHRIST (vs. 15-23)

  1. He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. (v. 15)
  2. By him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things were created by him and for him. (v. 16)
  3. He is before all things, and in him all things hold together. (v. 17)
  4. He is the head of the body, the church. (v. 18a)
  5. He is the beginning and the firstborn from among the dead, so that in everything he might have the supremacy. (v. 18b)
  6. God’s fullness dwells in him. (v. 19)
  7. All things, whether things on earth or things in heaven are reconciled through him by making peace through his bleed, shed on the cross. (v. 20)

Paul become a servant to proclaim to every creature under heaven this gospel:

Once you were alienated from God and were enemies in your minds because of your evil behavior.  If you continue in your faith, established and firm, not moved from the hope held out in the gospel, he will reconcile you by Christ’s physical body through death to present you holy in his sight, without blemish and free from accusation.

PAUL’S LABOR FOR THE CHURCH (vs. 24-29)

Paul rejoiced in suffering for the church. He became a servant by the commission God gave him to present the word of God in its fullness – the mystery that has been kept hidden for ages and generations, but is now disclosed to the saints.  God has chosen the saints to make known among the Gentiles the glorious riches of Christ, the hope of glory.  Paul proclaimed the gospel with all his energy and power by admonishing and teaching everyone with all wisdom in order to present everyone perfect in Christ.

THOUGHTS:

Epaphras was a convert of Paul at Ephesus.  He returned to Colosse, his hometown and founded the Colossian church.  When he visited Paul at Rome, he told Paul about the problem of the Colossian heresy.  This prompted Paul to write this letter.

MISCONCEPTION OF THE COLOSSIAN CHURCH THAT PAUL REFUTED:

  1. They believed that matter is evil.  They argued that God would not have come to earth as a true human being in bodily form. / Paul stated that Christ is the image and the exact likeness of God is himself God, but he died on the cross as a human being.
  2. They believed that God did not create the world because he would not create evil. / Paul proclaimed that Jesus Christ was also God in the flesh, who is the creator of both heaven and earth.
  3. They said that Christ was not the unique Son of God but rather one of many intermediaries between God and people. / Paul explained that Christ existed before anything and is the first born of those resurrected.
  4. They refused to see Christ as the source of salvation, insisting that people could find God only through special and secret knowledge. / Paul openly proclaimed the way of salvation is through Christ alone.

Paul preached the Good News to the Gentiles, to the hostile Jewish leaders and even to his Roman guards.  When people listened and believed in the message, their lives were changed.  God’s Word is not just for our information.  It is for our transformation.  When you become a Christian, you should begin a new relationship with God with a changed purpose, direction, attitude and behavior. Your new life must have love that comes from the Holy Spirit that shows your new life in Christ.  Do you show love to your neighborhoods and communities?  Are you bearing fruits in your life to reach others to Christ?

Paul had not met the Colossians, but he faithfully prayed for them.  We can also pray for others these things:

  1.  That they learn spiritual knowledge and understand what God wants them to do.
  2.  That they honor and please God.
  3.  That they continually do good and kind things for others.
  4.  That they learn to know God better and better.
  5.  That they be strengthened with God’s glorious power.
  6.  That they can have great patience and endurance.
  7.  That they will be joyful and give thanks to God always.

The way to be free from sin is to trust Jesus Christ to take it away.  We must stand firmly in the truth of the Good News, putting our confidence in Jesus alone to forgive our sins, to make us right with God and to empower us to live the way he desires.  When God forgives our sins, our record is wiped clean.  No matter what you have done or what you have been before, God’s forgiveness is for you.

Paul called his suffering Christ’s suffering because all his sufferings are related to Christ.  When Christian suffer, Christ feels it with us. But this suffering can be endured joyfully because it changes lives and brings people into God’s kingdom.

The false teachers in the Colossian church believed that spiritual perfection was a secret and hidden plan exclusively for a few privileged people.  Paul said that he was proclaiming the word of God in its fullness, not just a part of the plan.  He also called God’s plan a message that was kept secret for centuries and generations past.  This did not mean that only a few would understand.  It means that it was hidden until Christ came.  Through Christ, it was made open to all.  God’s secret plan is to have his Son, Jesus Christ live in the hearts of all who believe in Him. And salvation is available through faith in Christ.  Have you received Jesus Christ as your personal Savior?