Colossians 1:1-2 - Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ by the will of God, and Timothy our brother, To the saints and faithful brethren in Christ who are at Colossae: Grace to you and peace from God our Father. This Sunday we will begin a 15 week sermon series from the book of of Colossians. Paul wrote this letter during his first imprisonment in Rome to a people he had never met. As you will discover early in chapter 1, Epaphras was the leader that started this church and he is instrumental in making a connection with Paul to discuss an issue of concern for the believers at Colossae. His concern for the believers at Colossae revolved around issues that were contrived by false teachers within the community. Many were teaching that Jesus was in fact not God. As a result throughout the letter Paul describes Jesus with some of the loftiest descriptions found in the New Testament. Through the pen of Paul we discover the
doctrine of the trinity as he identifies Jesus as both creator and the recipient of creation as He takes on the form of human flesh. Paul leaves no room for the imagination as he exclaims that in Christ the fulness of deity dwells. However, before he addresses the issue at hand Paul introduces himself as an apostle. You will quickly notice the encouraging words he gives to these believers first appears at the end of verse 2. In this section Paul says “Grace to you and peace from God our Father.” When Paul uses the word “grace” he is specifically dealing with God’s good favor toward those in Christ. The root of the word also signifies that which brings joy. The Greek word is closely related to the word rejoice. The emphasis here is that the grace of God gives life to joy. Because of grace, God has demonstrated compassion toward us rather than judgement and condemnation. From that statement alone we can find much joy that ultimately leads the heart to rejoice! As we begin 2019, I want to encourage your participation in three specific areas.
Pastor Billy Comments are closed.
|
AuthorOur Pastor writes most of the blog posts we publish, however, occasionally some of our other church leadership (some staff, some volunteer) who also contribute to the New Life blog. Archives
November 2021
Categories
All
|