February 19
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LOVE IN THE SPIRIT
Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, and Timothy our brother,2 To the saints and faithful brothers and sisters 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 reserved 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 bearing fruit and increasing, even as it has been doing in you also since the day you heard 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
________________________________________According to the custom of letter writing in those days, the sender or author of the letter signs their names first. So, here, we know that it was Paul writing the letter and he is with Timothy his brother or brethren. Notice how he mentions his authority as an apostle of Christ assigned directly by God. Then the next part of the letter states who the letter was addressed to. In this case it was the believers in Colossae. According to David Guzik’s commentary, Paul wrote the letter while in Roman custody, probably from Rome and around A.D. 63. In Colossians 2:1, we get a hint that Paul hasn’t been to Colossae himself.
Because Paul was an apostle of Christ, he had the authority to write them instructions in this letter to the believers in Colossae. Vaughn says that the literal meaning of Apostolos in “one sent”; but at its deepest level, it denotes an authorized spokesman for God, one commissioned and empowered to act as his representative. Timothy was included in the salutation though he wasn’t an apostle. He was a brother in Christ to Paul. Paul addresses the believers in the city of Colossae which was probably the smallest city that he wrote to. But Paul thinks that the situation there was important enough for apostolic attention.
Paul must have had concerns about the Colossian heresy and wrong doctrines infiltrating the church, so he thought it was something he needed to dealt with. He mentions Epaphras in verse 7 who gave Paul a good report of their love in the Spirit.
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REFLECTION
• Why is it important for us to have a love in the Spirit?
• What happens if we do not have this kind of love?