Colossians by Gary DeLashmutt (2009)

The Apostle Paul writes to the church in Colossae, a church he's never met, around 60 AD while imprisoned in Rome. He begins the letter by thanking God for their faith, hope, and love that overflows from the power of the gospel and continues to spread as they understand more and more about it. The gospel refers to the good news that Jesus Christ wants a personal relationship with each person and made it available through his death on the cross. As we deepen in our understanding and appreciation of the gospel, we will begin to see our lives being transformed as well.

Paul prays for the Colossians to understand how their lives can be transformed to please God. Through the transforming power of the gospel, Christians can experience more endurance, gratitude, and a growing fruitfulness in their spiritual lives, all of which are pleasing to God. The means in which God wishes to have this growth happen is through prayer, fellowship, and God's Word. Real transformation in our lives starts and begins with understanding the gospel, or the good news that Jesus died for us so we could know God personally.

Paul teaches the Colossian church about the supremacy of Jesus. Jesus Christ is the unique and perfect revelation of God. He is also the absolute owner of the entire universe and the sole redeemer of universe. It's from knowing who Jesus is that we can determine what he means for our lives. In this case, Jesus can save people and reconcile them to God through his work on the cross. Once that happens, as we focus on Jesus, we are able to see transformation in our lives.

Paul teaches the Colossians what it means to be a servant of the gospel. The gospel is the priceless revelation of God that Jesus Christ died for sinners and wants a relationship where we are identified with Jesus through the cross. Living for the gospel is motivated by understanding God's work for us, knowing Him in a more intimate way and seeing people's lives transformed. We can do this by remaining focused on Jesus, understanding God's grace for us more and sharing that with others.

Paul re-directs the Colossians focus to the Gospel, the message of Jesus' forgiveness and what he did for all people on the cross. The reason all people need Jesus' forgiveness is due to our objective moral debt before God, which makes all of us spiritually dead before Him. In spite of this, God provided Jesus Christ to pay for our debt so that we could enter into a free relationship with Him. Because Jesus Christ was God-incarnate, his payment on the cross has infinite value and covers all of our wrongdoings. Applying God's forgiveness allows Christians to have a cleansed conscience to love and serve others because of God's approval of us.

Paul continues to stress to the Colossians that spiritual growth isn't getting something more, but applying what's been given to us through Jesus. Through Jesus Christ's work on the cross, people's sin nature was disarmed and our moral debt was cancelled through Jesus' atoning sacrifice. As a result of Jesus' sacrifice, Christians are freed to have more and more freedom from sinful desires in our lives as we consider our new identity in Christ. As this happens, we are able to serve God more with our lives out of gratitude for His grace and provision through Jesus.

Through Jesus' death on the cross, he broke Satan's authority and ensured Satan's ultimate defeat. When people place their faith in Christ, they are able to experience freedom from satanic opposition in their lives. Some of the primary ways that Satan will try and oppose Christians is through accusation, deception, and temptation. Three primary ways we can stand firm against Satan's accusations are: 1) affirming promises of God's goodness and recalling His provision; 2) standing firm on God's complete forgiveness and begin relating to God with confidence in His love for us; and 3) committing ourselves to radical obedience to God.

Paul warns the Colossians against three false spiritualities that will move them away from the hope of the gospel. The first is ritualism, where Christians do external acts of service to God without dealing with the internal heart attitude towards Him in order to gain closeness with God. The second is mysticism, a type of of focus on intuition and feelings that become more trustworthy than God's Word. Lastly, there is moralism, the sense of focusing on strict obedience to morals, while neglecting what God desires, like love or compassion towards others. Each of these false ways of relating to God can hinder our ability to stand firm in the gospel.

Paul instructs the Colossians about what it means to grow mature in their relationship with Christ. The key to spiritual transformation for Christians is to make their identity in Christ the mental focus and greatest treasure. There are many ways to help foster this, through building gospel-centered friendships, sitting under God's Word and reminding ourselves of the truths that come from the gospel. Focusing on our new identity in Christ motivates us to freely and joyfully love others.

Paul continues to teach about the path to spiritual maturity to the Colossian church. The key in this process is to "put off" the old desires that don't align with our new identity in Christ and pursue or "put on" the new self that we have in Christ. These old desires inhibit our ability to live in accordance with who we are in Christ, and include self-centeredness in areas including our sexuality, speech, and general relationships with one another. This teaching includes an extensive excerpt from C.S. Lewis' book "The Great Divorce".

In order to mature in our relationship with God, the apostle Paul advocates that this can develop within our relationships with other Christians. Paul focuses on the importance of gratitude in our relationship with God. This can be cultivated through considering God's promises, being around thankful Christians, and being reminded of God's blessings. One of the primary ways we can grow in our love is through inter-dependent Christian relationships. These relationships should be characterized by: relational unity, forgiveness, and admonition towards spiritual maturity. The focal point of these relationships is sacrificial love towards one another, which comes from the love of God through Jesus Christ.

Paul gives instructions to wives and husbands on how to be successful in a marriage centered around God. As Christians understand what Jesus did for them, they will be able to respond more within marriage. For wives, that means learning what it means to submit to their husband, which means learning to be: supportive, agreeable, encouraging and helpful as the husband leads the marriage towards God. For husbands, they are to extend grace towards their wives and seek ways to sacrificially serve them like Christ. Love and forgiveness from Jesus is the key component for navigating marriage difficulties.

Paul gives instructions to the Colossians about how to spread the gospel of Jesus Christ. The focus of Paul's instruction is that God is the one who opens up opportunities to share the gospel, as evidenced through the New Testament writings. The other focus of Paul is proclaiming the gospel clearly. We can give greater clarity through using God's Word, sharing our personal experience of coming to know Jesus Christ, and practicing with fellow Christians.

Paul instructs the Colossians on how to effectively tell others about Jesus. His three imperatives include: 1) be prayerful; 2) be wise; and 3) be gracious. When Christians are prayerful, they realize that sharing ones faith begins by talking with God and that He opens up opportunities to speak with others about Jesus. Being wise entails learning to listen and effectively witness in various situations. Lastly, being gracious involves loving speech and communicating respect and acceptance in light of different beliefs and behaviors. Keeping these three things in mind will allow us to effectively communicate about Jesus in an attractive and genuine way with those who don't know God.

Paul gives instructions to slaves and their conduct of work, shedding light on principles for Christians in the workplace. The motivation to work hard in the workplace comes from living to please God. When we see this part of our lives as a way to please God, our work will come from sincerity of the heart, not for the approval of human beings. In addition, when we work hard to please God, we are looking forward to the reward we'll receive from God in the next life, as opposed to be anxiety ridden or frustrated attitudes towards our jobs. When we follow Christ and serve him in our workplace, we will have something to share, develop godly character, provide for ourselves and others and have an opportunity to be a light for Jesus.