Col 1:1-8 The Word of Truth, the GOSPEL

Colossians  •  Sermon  •  Submitted
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Our hope for living comes from Jesus Christ. He is the GOOD NEWS! Our faith in the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ must be the foundation of our life. When it is, our faith in Christ works in us a love for the saints, as well as for the lost. That is when the gospel bears fruit by spreading to others. Someone HAS to SHARE the GOSPEL for it to SPREAD. It is the Christlike thing to do.

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thing to do.
Key Verse:
Big Idea: Our hope for living comes from Jesus Christ. He is the GOOD NEWS! Our faith in the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ must be the foundation of our life. When it is, our faith in Christ works in us a love for the saints, as well as for the lost. That is when the gospel bears fruit by spreading to others. Someone HAS to SHARE the GOSPEL for it to SPREAD. It is the Christlike thing to do.

Colossians 1:1–8 NASB95
1 Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ by the will of God, and Timothy our brother, 2 To the saints and faithful brethren in Christ who are at Colossae: Grace to you and peace from God our Father. 3 We give thanks to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, praying always for you, 4 since we heard of your faith in Christ Jesus and the love which you have for all the saints; 5 because of the hope laid up for you in heaven, of which you previously heard in the word of truth, the gospel 6 which has come to you, just as in all the world also it is constantly bearing fruit and increasing, even as it has been doing in you also since the day you heard of it and understood the grace of God in truth; 7 just as you learned it from Epaphras, our beloved fellow bond-servant, who is a faithful servant of Christ on our behalf, 8 and he also informed us of your love in the Spirit.
Colossians 1:1–8 NASB95
1 Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ by the will of God, and Timothy our brother, 2 To the saints and faithful brethren in Christ who are at Colossae: Grace to you and peace from God our Father. 3 We give thanks to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, praying always for you, 4 since we heard of your faith in Christ Jesus and the love which you have for all the saints; 5 because of the hope laid up for you in heaven, of which you previously heard in the word of truth, the gospel 6 which has come to you, just as in all the world also it is constantly bearing fruit and increasing, even as it has been doing in you also since the day you heard of it and understood the grace of God in truth; 7 just as you learned it from Epaphras, our beloved fellow bond-servant, who is a faithful servant of Christ on our behalf, 8 and he also informed us of your love in the Spirit.
PRAY
INTRO: HOPE
It is good to be home. Just got back from CO on Thursday evening. Drove home from Houston IN SNOW…in TX…in December. Wow.
I was tempted to try to move our Christmas celebration to Friday morning, because I would love to have a White Christmas. Of course, by the time I got home, there was no snow.
I can only HOPE that it might snow again this Christmas.
Christmas is a good season for HOPE. There is obviously something special about Christmas and the contagious hope that comes with this season.
HOPE (Merriam-Webster) - to desire with expectation of obtainment or fulfillment
NT Dictionaries - expectation, looking for, confidence.
HOPE for Christmas Presents - friend’s sister’s car at 16 yr old.
WHAT ARE YOU HOPING FOR? NOT FOR CHRISTMAS, BUT FOR YOUR LIFE, FOR YOUR FAMILY?

HOPE

Hope can get misplaced. We can hope in things that, though they might be obtained, end up being not what we expected them to be. (Ananias and Sapphira - )
Hebrews 11:1 NASB95
1 Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.

Colossians 1:1 NASB95
1 Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ by the will of God, and Timothy our brother,
Unrealistic expectations lead to disappointment and frustration
BUT, realistic or TRUE expectations can lay a proper foundation on which strong faith can be built.
Not a power struggle - but a truth struggle.
THUS, Colossians - the Truth about Christ

Colossians 1 NASB95
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. We give thanks to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, praying always for you, since we heard of your faith in Christ Jesus and the love which you have for all the saints; because of the hope laid up for you in heaven, of which you previously heard in the word of truth, the gospel which has come to you, just as in all the world also it is constantly bearing fruit and increasing, even as it has been doing in you also since the day you heard of it and understood the grace of God in truth; just as you learned it from Epaphras, our beloved fellow bond-servant, who is a faithful servant of Christ on our behalf, and he also informed us of your love in the Spirit. For this reason also, since the day we heard of it, we have not ceased to pray for you and to ask that you may be filled with the knowledge of His will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding, so that you will walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, to please Him in all respects, bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God; strengthened with all power, according to His glorious might, for the attaining of all steadfastness and patience; joyously giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified us to share in the inheritance of the saints in Light. For He rescued us from the domain of darkness, and transferred us to the kingdom of His beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins. He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. For by Him all things were created, both in the heavens and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things have been created through Him and for Him. He is before all things, and in Him all things hold together. He is also head of the body, the church; and He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, so that He Himself will come to have first place in everything. For it was the Father’s good pleasure for all the fullness to dwell in Him, and through Him to reconcile all things to Himself, having made peace through the blood of His cross; through Him, I say, whether things on earth or things in heaven. And although you were formerly alienated and hostile in mind, engaged in evil deeds, yet He has now reconciled you in His fleshly body through death, in order to present you before Him holy and blameless and beyond reproach— if indeed you continue in the faith firmly established and steadfast, and not moved away from the hope of the gospel that you have heard, which was proclaimed in all creation under heaven, and of which I, Paul, was made a minister. Now I rejoice in my sufferings for your sake, and in my flesh I do my share on behalf of His body, which is the church, in filling up what is lacking in Christ’s afflictions. Of this church I was made a minister according to the stewardship from God bestowed on me for your benefit, so that I might fully carry out the preaching of the word of God, that is, the mystery which has been hidden from the past ages and generations, but has now been manifested to His saints, to whom God willed to make known what is the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory. We proclaim Him, admonishing every man and teaching every man with all wisdom, so that we may present every man complete in Christ. For this purpose also I labor, striving according to His power, which mightily works within me.
Colossians 1:1 NASB95
1 Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ by the will of God, and Timothy our brother,
Colossians 1:1 NASB95
1 Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ by the will of God, and Timothy our brother,
Paul (AUTHOR) - apostle of Jesus Christ by will of God - someone who is sent out (set away) for specific purpose/mission
apostle of Jesus Christ by will of God - someone who is sent out (set away) for specific purpose/mission
in 9 out of 13 Pauline epistles, he describes himself as an apostle
Seems from and that Paul did not start this church

Do you know your mission?

Ephesians 2:10 NASB95
10 For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them.
DISCIPLESHIP And Timothy our brother - Paul had Timothy with him, participating with him in the apostolic work of the defense/preaching of the gospel and the discipleship of the saints
in 6 out of 13 Pauline Epistles, Paul includes Timothy in intro

Colossians 1:2 NASB95
2 To the saints and faithful brethren in Christ who are at Colossae: Grace to you and peace from God our Father.
(AUDIENCE) - To the saints (holy ones) and faithful brethren in Christ in Colossae - in Asia Minor, suffering from buffet-style heresies - opponents to the true gospel of Christ.
Colossae - in Asia Minor, suffering from buffet-style heresies - opponents to the true gospel of Christ.
GNOSTICISM - ‘special knowledge’
Dualism - material is evil, spiritual is good
Judaism - legalism from Jews
Spirit powers of the universe - pre-buddhism/hinduism type of karma
Agnosticism - God is remote and inaccessible
Struggling with their history and traditions to lay a foundation of REAL/TRUE HOPE. Their foundation is being attacked.

Colossians 1:3 NASB95
3 We give thanks to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, praying always for you,
Paul is praying consistently (‘praying’ [proseuchomai] is in PRESENT tense) to God for the church in Colossae, even though he most likely had not been there, or at least didn’t start this church. ()
They (Paul, Timothy, and Colossian church) have God and Jesus Christ in common.
TRUTH POINT: Paul lays that foundation that God is the Father of Jesus Christ, showing Jesus to be equal with God. ()
John 5:17–18 NASB95
17 But He answered them, “My Father is working until now, and I Myself am working.” 18 For this reason therefore the Jews were seeking all the more to kill Him, because He not only was breaking the Sabbath, but also was calling God His own Father, making Himself equal with God.

Colossians 1:4–5 NASB95
4 since we heard of your faith in Christ Jesus and the love which you have for all the saints; 5 because of the hope laid up for you in heaven, of which you previously heard in the word of truth, the gospel
Paul and Timothy have been praying for this church since they heard of the church’s:
FAITH in Christ Jesus
LOVE for all the saints/believers
Paul reinforces the things that need to continue to grow. FAITH in CHRIST, leads to BEING CHRISTLIKE, means LOVING OTHERS FIRST.
Their faith and love ‘have arisen from the HOPE laid up for you in heaven’ [NET]
Colossian church HEARD of this HOPE in the Word of truth - the gospel.
Faith is the soul looking upward to God; love looks outward to others; hope looks forward to the future. Faith rests on the past work of Christ; love works in the present; and hope anticipates the future. Geisler, N. L. (1985). Colossians. In J. F. Walvoord & R. B. Zuck (Eds.), The Bible Knowledge Commentary: An Exposition of the Scriptures (Vol. 2, p. 669). Wheaton, IL: Victor Books.

Colossians 1:6 NASB95
6 which has come to you, just as in all the world also it is constantly bearing fruit and increasing, even as it has been doing in you also since the day you heard of it and understood the grace of God in truth;
The GOSPEL
Word of truth -
Has come to Colossian church, as well as ‘in the world’
Just as in rest of world, the GOSPEL has been
Bearing fruit
Representative - mature fruit
Reproductive - new fruit
increasing/spreading/growing
Acts 5:33–39 NASB95
33 But when they heard this, they were cut to the quick and intended to kill them. 34 But a Pharisee named Gamaliel, a teacher of the Law, respected by all the people, stood up in the Council and gave orders to put the men outside for a short time. 35 And he said to them, “Men of Israel, take care what you propose to do with these men. 36 “For some time ago Theudas rose up, claiming to be somebody, and a group of about four hundred men joined up with him. But he was killed, and all who followed him were dispersed and came to nothing. 37 “After this man, Judas of Galilee rose up in the days of the census and drew away some people after him; he too perished, and all those who followed him were scattered. 38 “So in the present case, I say to you, stay away from these men and let them alone, for if this plan or action is of men, it will be overthrown; 39 but if it is of God, you will not be able to overthrow them; or else you may even be found fighting against God.”
Understood as the GRACE of GOD in TRUTH
TRUTH - reality lying at the foundation of a matter
1 Corinthians 15:3–4 NASB95
3 For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received, that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, 4 and that He was buried, and that He was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures,
Colossians 1:13–14 NASB95
13 For He rescued us from the domain of darkness, and transferred us to the kingdom of His beloved Son, 14 in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.
Ephesians 2:8–10 NASB95
8 For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; 9 not as a result of works, so that no one may boast. 10 For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them.
HE SAVED US from the sin and fallenness - the pride, the anger, the wrongful HOPE of this WORLD. He has given us TRUE HOPE! To live in the here and now for Christ, because of our HOPE for the future.
The GOSPEL is not just FIRE INSURANCE.

Colossians 1:7–8 NASB95
7 just as you learned it from Epaphras, our beloved fellow bond-servant, who is a faithful servant of Christ on our behalf, 8 and he also informed us of your love in the Spirit.
Epaphras
From Colossae ()
Fellow Prisoner at some point ()
Beloved, fellow, faithful bond-servant
Colossian believers heard the GOSPEL from Epaphras
Prayer warrior - prayed for continued maturity (Col 4:12-13)
Shared gospel with Colossae, shared news of Colossian church with Paul and Timothy - that they were loving.

WHAT NOW?

In this Christmas season, especially in the U.S., we can get wrapped up in the Holiday itself:
PRESENTS, PRESENTS, PRESENTS...
Travel plans and events and food
the WHAT and the WHEN and the WHERE
Let us not forget the WHO and the WHY?
Is the HOPE that you have for the future leading to FAITH in Christ and LOVE for others?
Is your HOPE yielding a life that is consistently looking more and more like Jesus - that is constantly bearing fruit and spreading?
Let us, this Christmas season, life today like we are hoping and expecting the return of our Savior tomorrow.
Is this HOPE producing fruit
Let us know Jesus Christ. Let us believe in Jesus Christ. Let us love Jesus Christ. Let us live for Jesus Christ.

1 Corinthians 15:58 NASB95
58 Therefore, my beloved brethren, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that your toil is not in vain in the Lord.
John 17:3 NASB95
3 “This is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent.
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