Colossians 1:3-5

Colossians 1:3-5

We give thanks to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, at all times while praying for you all after hearing about your faith in Jesus Christ and the love that you all have into all of the holy ones because of the hope that is being established for you all in heaven, which you all heard beforehand in the word of truth of the Gospel …

Thoughts for Today

First Thought:

Paul tells the people in Colossae that He and His associates remember them fondly. They pray for them.  They give thanks for them.  Paul may not even know them all, but he is celebrating because of them!  He does not need to know them in order for rejoicing to exist.  He isn’t jealous because of their ministry.  He is not envious of their reputation.  He hears about their love for Christ and it causes him to rejoice.

How easy is it for you to rejoice when you hear about the faith of other people?  Why should we be able to rejoice when we hear about faith?

Second Thought:

There is a reason for the rejoicing.  Paul has heard about their love for the holy ones.  People who are in faithful relationships with Jesus Christ love the holy ones.  I just got finished a thought on how cool it is that Paul can rejoice for other Christians, and here we find out that Paul is able to rejoice because he sees other people treating God’s holy ones in the same manner.  In other words, love breeds love.  Graciousness to others breeds people being gracious to you.  The Colossians love the holy ones of God, so it is easy for Paul to love them.

Are you treated by other people of faith according to how you treat people of faith?  In what way does this pattern reflect the love god had for us and how that can inspire us to love others?

Third Thought:

This dynamic of rejoicing comes from one central core: we have the promise of eternal life as told to use in God’s Word.  God does indeed love us.  He has made it possible for us to know eternal life.  He has made it possible for us to have an eternal perspective instead of a worldly perspective.  Because of this, we can focus on other people and rejoice with them.  We can love other people and join them in celebrating their growth in faith.  It is our eternal perspective in God’s love that is the root of our faithful obedience and our love for others.

How often do you think about your salvation?  How should that perspective drive our decisions and actions?

Passage for Tomorrow: Colossians 1:6-8