Text: Colossians 4:2-18 (NKJV)
2 Continue earnestly in prayer, being vigilant in it with thanksgiving; 3 meanwhile praying also for us, that God would open to us a door for the word, to speak the mystery of Christ, for which I am also in chains, 4 that I may make it manifest, as I ought to speak. 5 Walk in wisdom toward those who are outside, redeeming the time. 6 Let your speech always be with grace, seasoned with salt, that you may know how you ought to answer each one.
7 Tychicus, a beloved brother, faithful minister, and fellow servant in the Lord, will tell you all the news about me. 8 I am sending him to you for this very purpose, that he may know your circumstances and comfort your hearts, 9 with Onesimus, a faithful and beloved brother, who is one of you. They will make known to you all things which are happening here. 10 Aristarchus my fellow prisoner greets you, with Mark the cousin of Barnabas (about whom you received instructions: if he comes to you, welcome him), 11 and Jesus who is called Justus. These are my only fellow workers for the kingdom of God who are of the circumcision; they have proved to be a comfort to me. 12 Epaphras, who is one of you, a bondservant of Christ, greets you, always laboring fervently for you in prayers, that you may stand perfect and complete in all the will of God. 13 For I bear him witness that he has a great zeal for you, and those who are in Laodicea, and those in Hierapolis. 14 Luke the beloved physician and Demas greet you. 15 Greet the brethren who are in Laodicea, and Nymphas and the church that is in his house.
16 Now when this epistle is read among you, see that it is read also in the church of the Laodiceans, and that you likewise read the epistle from Laodicea. 17 And say to Archippus, “Take heed to the ministry which you have received in the Lord, that you may fulfill it.”
18 This salutation by my own hand—Paul. Remember my chains. Grace be with you. Amen.
Devotional Thoughts and Commentary:
Paul here commands the Colossian Christians to persevere in prayer, and he shares a prayer request with them. Though imprisoned, Paul is not bemoaning the rough situation that he is in; rather, he requests prayer for an opportunity to preach the good news of Jesus Christ where people would hear it. He was imprisoned because of his service for Jesus, and the normal human reaction would probably be to become bitter. Not so with Paul- he takes it as an opportunity to catch up on his reading and writing and to look for opportunities to preach.
In verses 5 and 6, he cautioned the believers to be careful what they say and do around believers. God always sees, yes. They shouldn't act ungodly toward other Christians, true. However, one's testimony among the unbelievers ("those who are outside") only needs one slip-up to be ruined forever. I once had a youth pastor who had lost his previous pastoral position because of a testimony lost to the community when someone he had never met saw him driving home while drinking an IBC Creme Soda. He didn't even do anything wrong, yet his testimony was so marred that he had to leave ministry in that community! Furthermore, they were instructed to redeem the time, especially with unbelievers. Any one of them could die at any moment and go to eternity in Hell, so we should make the most of our time with them to show and share the good news of Jesus's salvation.
I am not going to go through every person mentioned in this personal note at the end, but I think we should not that it is so important to take time to thank people that God took space in His inspired Word to record it.
In the final verse here, one might be taken aback. "Hold on, Paul only wrote these little personal things at the end? What? How is this 'book' even in the Bible?!?" Paul normally used an amanuesis (or, scribe) to take dictation to write his letters. Many people think this was because the thorn in his flesh (2 Corinthians 12:7-10) might have been bad eyesight, making handwriting very difficult. This does not take away from his authorship of this or other books nor does it take away from their weight in Scripture. See also 1 Corinthians 16:21 and 2 Thessalonians 3:17 for other such examples.
Applications:
Take time to pray, or, take extra time to pray. It is probably the most neglected spiritual disciple among Christians, but it is also one of the most important.
Make the most of your time with unbelievers! They may not know it, but their eternal destiny might be locked into Hell at any moment.
Remember to thank people, and I don't just mean a courtesy "Thank You." Praise isn't just for our children, so hand it out when appropriate. In fact, publicly thank and praise people whenever possible and appropriate.
Other Studies from Colossians
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