Look Around You: God Still Has Many Faithful Saints (Colossians 1:1-3)
Given the state of things, it’s easy to feel like you’re the only one who “gets it” and to despair. If we’re operating primarily by pride, we will isolate ourselves and have no hope. However, the Gospel truth kills our pride and opens your eyes to the reality that there are many other faithful saints, and that you are united to them in brotherhood in Christ. Rather than despair, this brings us to gratitude to God. In this study we’ll look at how Paul exemplified these ideas in his greeting to the Colossian church.
Join me as I walk through Colossians 1:1–3 using the T.H.I.N.K. Method of Biblical Study. Get a taste for how this method works and how it can enrich your own time in the word.
To learn about the T.H.I.N.K. Method of Biblical Study I used here, go here: thethink.institute/thinkmethod.
Below, I’m sharing with you my own study notes, so you can see how I use this method and, I hope, get inspired with a tool to help you study the word deeply.
My study notes on Colossians 1:1–3:
Initial Observations:
Who:
The characters and their characteristics
Paul:
An apostle of Christ Jesus
A man of constant prayer (1:3)
Timothy:
A brother in Christ
Co-laborer with Paul
The saints at Colossae:
Faithful
Brothers in Christ
Groups with similar characteristics today:
Similar to Paul:
Local church pastors
Ministry leaders serving local churches
Similar to Timothy:
Pastoral fellows, pastors-in-training
Missionary co-laborers
Similar to the saints at Colossae:
Local church members
Christian podcast listeners
What:
Genre: Epistle
Most important event or idea: Paul is greeting the Colossian saints.
Problem, need or sin being addressed:
Apostolic guidance and encouragement
Holiness and faithfulness on the part of the saints
Grace and peace from God
Solidarity with one another and God in Christ (saints are brothers, brothers in Christ, and Christ is God’s son)
Prayer—The apostle giving the guidance has been praying for them. He has been thanking God for them. And even his wish of “grace and peace” is a mini-prayer. Paul is about to address false teaching they’ve been dealing with, and he begins by appealing to their faithfulness, godliness and his prayerfulness. This is the central need addressed in this short passage.
When:
Time written: Approximately 62 AD (so ESV study Bible).
Events that happened before this:
Jesus died and rose again (33 AD)
Paul converted (33)
Paul visited Jerusalem (36)
Paul’s visit to Jerusalem for famine relief (44–47)
Paul’s first missionary journey (46–47)
Paul’s visit to the Jerusalem apostolic council (48–49)
Paul’s second missionary journey (49–51)
Paul’s third missionary journey (including 3 years in Ephesus) (52–57)
Epaphras converted in Ephesus and evangelized Colossae (52–57)
Paul under house arrest in Rome (62)
Paul hears from Epaphras about Colossae (62).
How the passage connects with what has come before:
The conversion of the Colossian saints was an indirect result of Paul’s having evangelized Ephesus. Epaphras the Colossian heard Paul at Ephesus, believed the Gospel, and returned to evangelize his home town and plant the Colossian church.
Paul has just come off of his journey to Rome recorded in Acts 27–28.
Paul has heard from Epaphras that a false teacher has been teaching Jewish-pagan syncretism under the guise of Christianity.
Similar situations we might find ourselves in:
Having loved ones being swept up in false teachings
Knowing fellow Christians being troubled by errant doctrines that are unbiblical
Feeling like the state of the church is dire and hopeless—not thinking to pause and give thanks to God for the faithfulness of the saints who are holding fast.
Seeing the church straying and desiring to remain faithful and holy, unified with other Christians who share a similar desire.
Where:
Place the author and audience were living:
Paul: imprisoned at Rome.
The Colossian saints: in the small city of Colossae
What it was like: Where false teachings were creeping in. Their church was about a decade old at this point.
Parallels between their culture and ours:
False teaching is encroaching on the American church and within Cru, and many are being led astray.
We need to pursue unity with faithful brothers, and that unity must be grounded in Christ.
We need to be in prayer, praying for both grace and peace as well as thanking God for the faithfulness of holy brothers in Christ.
How:
How this points to Jesus and/or the Gospel: It affirms that Jesus is the One who unites the Brothers, that He is the Son of God, and that it is by the will of God that we are able to serve Him in our callings (as Paul calls himself an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God).
How this reminds me of other Bible passages:
Paul consistently wishes his audience grace and peace from God, through the Lord Jesus.
He asserts his credentials as an apostle, giving the credit to God for him having that status.
How this solves the problems or sins being addressed:
Paul’s statement that he thanks God for their faithfulness, as well as his mentioning of their confraternity as brothers in Christ, points up the fact that, for Christians, true unity is a product of our union with Christ, our adherence to true doctrine, and something to be celebrated with gratitude to God.
The apostolic guidance and warnings Paul is about to give is going to grow out of the soil of his diligent prayer life for them.
Why:
Why did God include this passage in the Bible? He wanted to illustrate the reality that Christians are brothers, united in Christ, and that our faithfulness is a joyful thing worth celebrating—a thing about which we should express our gratitude to God.
Relevance for today: Yes, things are looking bleak in America; far more churches are closing than being planted, leftist doctrines are infiltrating our churches and ministries, and our government is isolating us and working against us. However, in the midst of this, there are faithful brothers in Christ, about whom we can, and should, thank God always in our prayers.
Why God wanted me to read this today: He wanted to encourage me to thank Him for such brothers in my own life, to let them know I am grateful for them, and to make sure my teaching is growing from a bed of rich, consistent prayer for the ones I am teaching.
T.H.I.N.K. About the Passage
Teaching
About God:
God wanted Paul to be an apostle.
God gives grace and peace
God is responsible for the faithfulness of the saints
God is the Father of Jesus Christ
Jesus is Lord and Christ
The World
The world is being changed according to the will of God.
Even a small church in a small city like Colossae can be important in God’s sight.
Man
Mankind is united in brotherhood in Christ
Mankind is reliant on the will of God (e.g. Paul’s apostleship and the Colossian church’s faithfulness)
Man needs help (Paul had help from Timothy)
When men are faithful, it’s something to praise God about.
Myself
My role in Christ’s kingdom is due to God’s will.
It is important for me to co-labor with godly brothers.
I need to thank God more for the faithfulness of other Christians.
I should make sure my teaching and addressing of cultural challenges is growing from roots that are firmly planted in prayer. AKA I need to pray more, and to be more thankful for the people I see God working through.
Big Idea:
Thank God for keeping other Christian brothers faithful today.
Heart:
How does the Teaching go against popular ideas or cultural values?
We value comfort, so we go either go along with false ideas or complain when we are made uncomfortable by them—rather than praying and thanking God for those who have not capitulated.
How have I or others specifically failed to live up to the Teaching?
I spend more time worrying than I do praying about the things I worry about.
I spend very little time thanking God for the faithfulness of those who have not given in to false ideologies.
How does this passage confront the…
Lust of the flesh: Laziness keeps us scrolling rather than in prayer.
Lust of the eyes: Desire and curiosity keeps us focused on new news rather than timeless truths, and the goodness and faithfulness exhibited by churches and believers, that never makes the headlines.
Pride of life: Unhealthy desire to be known as someone with the answers, or to pile on someone getting dragged on Twitter. Sinful fear of being disrespected or tyrannized rather than sober assessment of the situation, gratitude for the good and prudent planning in the face of the evil. This is the key point for me.
Heart condition God is addressing here: Pride is self-focused and makes the ideological battle we are in all about oneself. However, opposing evil ideologies with prideful motives will not yield godly results—because you can’t fight sin with more sin. Pride isolates, but godly gratitude is outward focused and celebrates the good God is doing in and through others.
Improvement:
How this passage points to the truth of the Gospel: It is a reminder that God’s light shines in the midst of darkness—even growing darkness. He has saints that He is keeping faithful.
Jesus’s death unites ethnic half-breeds like Timothy, pure-blood Jewish men like Paul, and Gentile outsiders like the Colossians. There is no ethnic distinction at the foot of the cross.
God’s abundant grace is working in the lives of other blood-bought sinners-made-saints—and not just internally, but in a way that overflows and becomes visible.
Christ’s atoning death, burial and resurrection resulted in my own personal redemption and sanctification, but also in the redemption of others, whose ongoing sanctification and steadfastness I should celebrate, especially in the face of pressures and forces working against them.
How the Gospel presents a truer, better message than the ideas or values this passage confronts:
On the one hand, pride and fear go hand in hand. Pride hates what the “elites” are pushing, primarily because it is injurious to the ego of the citizen/self. This pride causes the individual to self-isolate and do more complaining, worrying and even prepping, but all for the preservation and exaltation of the self.
On the other hand, the Gospel is a testament to the impotence of the natural self on its own, and utter reliance a man has on the external, supernatural Savior.
Whereas pride says: “Rage against the evil ones pushing this ideology that will wrong you!” the Gospel says, “Rejoice that the God who sent His Son to die to redeem you is also keeping other brothers faithful in the fight against evil. As you prepare for battle… thank Him!”
How the Gospel is better than...
Our efforts to be good? Our natural desire is to fight hard in our own strength. However, Jesus already smashed evil, overcoming it forever by His death and resurrection. All future battles are just cleanup. Our efforts are not in vain, insofar as they are in service to Christ. And He’s given us compatriots—brothers—in the battle. Thank Him.
Our attempts to satisfy ourselves: Fighting for our own rights (in the face of tyranny), or our own rightness (in the face of false teaching), can bring about a certain kind of satisfaction. However, fighting for Christ, in light of what He’s done, along with our brothers, is far more satisfying—and eternally effective.
How we are liberated to believe and obey this passage’s Teaching:
I don’t pray for my brothers in Christ like I should, because my pride keeps me too self-focused.
I don’t thank God for other faithful believers like I should, because my pride is self-isolating and acts like blinders, so I don’t notice their faithfulness like I ought to. Jesus died for my sinful pride and set me free.
Now my pride no longer needs to control me. I am united with my brothers and given new sight to see their faithfulness, to thank God for them, to pray for them, and to let them know I’m praying for them.
How does the Gospel improve our situation? Jesus’ death destroys our isolating pride and liberates us to unite with other faithful believers, turning to God in gratitude and prayer.
Now What?
How can I apply this, by looking for the faithfulness of other believers in every arena of life?
At home: Bring up stories to my wife and kids about the faithfulness of other believers. Thank God for these saints during family worship and prayer times.
Aliza is probably the best example I know of this. She loves the Lord and is serving Him faithfully in our home, at church, via social media, at the hospital when that’s needed, etc.
In my work: Pray for our supporters, subscribers and audience regularly [/clients, coworkers, boss(es)], and publicly celebrate their faithful “wins.”
We have many ministry supporters, some of whom I speak with regularly, who are biblically faithful, love the Lord and His word, and are passionate about keeping the Gospel front and center. They hate false ideologies because they love God’s truth.
The ThinkSquad group (FB, Gab, and Signal especially) are a shining example of this.
With my church: Text my pastors and community group members encouragement.
At Redeemer Fellowship Joe, Jimmy, Pat, the elders I know best, are holding fast to the Gospel and the word of God. Brian and Jeff too.
In my social life: Regularly pray for and stay updated with my friends through the PrayerMate app. Do this consistently and let them know I’m praying for them.
My friends Khaldoun Sweis, Micah Morgan, Pastor Raef Chenery, Tim Smith and the men of the Elgin Trail Life group are holding the line.
Guys I know in other cities (too many to count) like the Gruber brothers of Carpe Fide, Eli Ayala of Revealed Apologetics, pastor and author Blake White, and Tom Schmidt in Naperville IL (Cross of Christ Church) are all serving the Lord diligently.
Khaldoun Sweis and I just went to Milwaukee for the County Before Country Express talks, along with 500 faithful saints. Something to be grateful for!
In my personal life: Stop doomscrolling the news and social media. Look for the good, especially the stuff not making the headlines, and spend ample time in the word, the ultimate good news.
For my community, society, or nation: Find out who our local magistrates are, and especially, whether any of them are Christians. Reach out in support and prayer.
Who else needs to hear this? The ThinkSquad/podcast audience. Readers of the Think Institute blog. My wife and children.
Next step: record a podcast episode walking through this passage. Spend time today in the PrayerMate app. Continue reaching out to ministry partners for prayer needs.
Knowledge Needed:
Unanswered questions to explore further:
What was the heresy the Colossians were believing?
Objections someone might raise (and my responses):
“Things really aren’t as bad as you’re making them out to be. Tyranny, false teaching, etc.” Answer: as believers, we must judge by God’s word. When Government is overstepping its God-ordained authority, and when false teachings rooted in anti-theistic Marxist ideology are making headway in the church, that is not the time to downplay the severity of the situation. However, in the grandest sense, things really aren’t doom and gloom, because Jesus Christ is reigning over the whole situation (cf. Mt 28:18).
How this passage activated my curiosity:
I want to know more about Colossian Heresy!
Conclusion: Thank God for keeping other brothers faithful, today
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