In perhaps the most explicit teaching on the Christ in the New Testament, Paul says: 1) all that we can know of God is seen in Jesus because the visible man Jesus reveals the invisible God to us, and 2) Jesus has priority in every way as the Father has given authority over all creation to Jesus. Written to a community in danger of leaving the gospel, Paul emphasizes that Christ and the cross are essential to getting the gospel right.
Paul is thankful for what God has done in the Colossian church to bring about their faith and salvation through Jesus Christ which has resulted in their faith and love of their fellow believers. What has transformed their thinking and who they identify as their people is the hope which results from understanding and believing the gospel of Jesus Christ.
The first two verses of Colossians follow the typical greeting for a New Testament letter: the author(s), the recipient(s), greetings. Paul identifies what his readers should understand about him. Then he explains who he considers his readers to be, particularly in relationship to God.
Study questions, maps, charts, key words, history, background, outlines, and links to help you study Paul’s epistle to the Colossians.
Have you decided to read through the Bible as one of your New Year’s Resolutions? Here’s a great selection of plans to help you keep that resolution.
If pressed could you discern the actual gospel of Jesus Christ from a counterfeit? Especially if the skewed message came from within mainstream evangelicalism?
This December you can have a Mary Christmas or a Martha Christmas. Learn the difference.
How can anything that fits under a Christmas tree transform the life of the recipient from misery to joy?
The more I study the Lord’s Prayer, the more I conclude the prayer asks for one and only one thing: that God would make us completely righteous once and for all.
“When was it written?” Here’s the most likely order in which the books of the bible were written.
Krisan Marotta is a Bible teacher and host of Wednesday in the Word, the podcast about what the Bible means and how we know.