February 26
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BE ESTABLISHED IN YOUR FAITH
6 Therefore, as you have received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in Him, 7 having been firmly rooted and now being built up in Him and established in your faith, just as you were instructed, and overflowing with gratitude. – Colossians 2:6-7
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Paul presents to the Colossians their responsibilities and what is expected of them when they accepted the Lord Jesus Christ. In verse 6, he admonished them to walk in Him. In other words, since we are given a new life in Christ, we are expected to follow and go by His teachings and truth.
In the gospel of Luke, we are given the criteria for being a follower or disciple of Jesus such as:
• They must be able to give up all the things they love and make Jesus their priority
• They must be ready to give up their lives for the sake of Jesus’ purpose
• They must be able to suffer or carry their cross
• They must be able to count the cost of being a believer
Luke was a close friend of Paul, who referred to him as “the beloved physician” (Colossians 4:14). Paul also refers to Luke as a “fellow laborer” (Philemon 1:24). Luke joined Paul in Troas in Asia Minor during Paul’s second missionary journey (Acts 16:6–11). Luke was left in Philippi during the second missionary journey (Acts 17:1) and picked up again to travel with Paul in the third journey (Acts 20:5). Luke accompanied Paul on his journey to Jerusalem and Rome and was with him during his imprisonment there (2 Timothy 4:11). He was a disciple of Paul but the way he explains the cost of being a follower is probably what it means to “walk with Jesus.”
Paul emphasizes in this letter to be rooted in Christ, which means to constantly abide in Him, following all his teachings and living the same life Jesus led for all believers to follow. Luke gives us a parable of the ten lepers in his gospel which focuses on the importance of gratitude and Paul resounds the same words to the Colossians.
We know that the writers of the bible were all inspired by the Holy Spirit and used by God to bring truth about Christ. According to Jonathan Petersen on his article on “When was each book of the Bible Written?” The gospel of Luke and the Letter to the Colossians were written in the same time period between AD 60-62. Luke must have been discipled by Paul himself and so we see how in sync they were in their teachings about Christ.
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REFLECTION
• Can you say that you are established in your faith in Jesus? Why or why not?