True Hope for the Whole World

You don’t have to talk to too many people before you realize that everyone is looking for hope these days. There is so much uncertainty and the recent track record of world events seems very negative. Whether that is real or it is just because of the 24-hour news cycle, we who have put our hope in Christ have an opportunity to share good news with people.

These next fourteen weeks we will immerse ourselves in the gospel. What is the gospel, what are its implications, how do we live in it, and how do we share it with others? Today, we will start to clarify what the gospel is.

The Gospel is a Message of Hope

Paul begins his letter to this church with thanks to God. In a world ruled by unjust pagans, God is working, establishing a new ruler, His Son Jesus Christ. He has given us hope.

The church in Colossae was started by a disciple of Paul’s named Epaphras. Epaphras was from Colossae and had probably met Paul on his gospel planting tour of Asia. He joined Paul in his work and at some point, he returned home with the good news that Jesus is the Messiah of Israel and God has made Him Lord and Savior of all. Eternal life in God’s kingdom is open to anyone who repents and puts their faith and hope in Jesus. You can be freed from impurity, lust, greed, hate, anger and malice, lying, and ignorance of God. You can have new and fruitful life in Christ.

Many people in Colossae were transformed by this message and put their hope in Christ. When Epaphras goes to be with Paul in prison in Rome, he tells Paul the story of what God did in Colossae. Paul sees the significance of what has happened. The gospel has now born fruit outside the influence of the apostles in Gentile regions, out in the world.

Colossians 1:6 (ESV)

[the gospel], which has come to you, as indeed in the whole world it is bearing fruit and increasing—as it also does among you, since the day you heard it and understood the grace of God in truth,

What kind of fruit does the gospel bear?

Paul says in verses 4 and 5 that their transformation was demonstrated by three new dynamics:

Colossians 1:4–5 (ESV)

since we heard of your faith in Christ Jesus and of the love that you have for all the saints, because of the hope laid up for you in heaven. Of this you have heard before in the word of the truth, the gospel,

their faith in Christ Jesus gave them a hope laid up in heaven which resulted in a new love in their lives that can only come from the Spirit of God.

The fruit of the gospel is summed up by these three dynamics, faith, hope, and love. How do these three work together? If I have faith that Jesus is Lord and Savior who gives me new life in God’s kingdom and I hope in Him as the new ruler in God’s kingdom, I am free to love others without fear.

The gospel is a message of hope for the whole world. Is there any other?

We need to pause here and realize something very important. Paul says our hope is “laid up in heaven”.

Colossians 1:5 (ESV)

because of the hope laid up for you in heaven. Of this you have heard before in the word of the truth, the gospel,

He doesn’t say that our hope is heaven. Our hope is not that God will take us from this world to another world. That is escapism. He says our hope is laid up in heaven. Behind this one phrase is all the gospel preaching of Jesus Christ and His work to ratify that proclamation. Jesus preached, “The time is fulfilled. The kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel.” Our hope is in Jesus Christ, His rule and reign forever. His reign is fully realized in heaven now, but coming into our world when He returns.

In what do you put your hope? Are you hoping that if you come up with a better plan for your life or your family, that if you just do the right thing, things will get better? Are you hoping that if we can pass the right laws, everything will get fixed? Is your hope in better education and a new job?

There is only one hope for our world, and for our lives. Our hope is that God has made Jesus the ruler of His kingdom, and He will welcome any of us in who repent of our sin and believe in Him. God is still working in our world, transforming lives through this good news.

With whom are you sharing your hope?

The Gospel is a Message of Truth

In verse 5, Paul describes the gospel as “the word of truth.”

Colossians 1:5 (ESV)

Of this you have heard before in the word of the truth, the gospel,

The gospel is the word of the truth. It’s important to remember that the gospel wasn’t invented by the church or any man. It is God’s message to the world, and God does not lie.

We first hear the gospel in the Old Testament prophet Isaiah, who tells us that the gospel is God’s word, which is eternally true.

Isaiah 40:8–11 (ESV)

The grass withers, the flower fades, but the word of our God will stand forever.

Go on up to a high mountain, O Zion, herald of good news;

lift up your voice with strength, O Jerusalem, herald of good news;

lift it up, fear not; say to the cities of Judah, “Behold your God!”

Behold, the Lord God comes with might, and his arm rules for him;

behold, his reward is with him, and his recompense before him.

He will tend his flock like a shepherd; he will gather the lambs in his arms; he will carry them in his bosom, and gently lead those that are with young.

The good news is that God, whose word will stand forever, will save and care for His people. And it is a political message.

Isaiah 52:7 (ESV)

How beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of him who brings good news, who publishes peace,

who brings good news of happiness, who publishes salvation, who says to Zion, “Your God reigns.”

God is King.

Why is it good news that our God reigns?

For those who hope in Him and seek His reign in their lives, there is peace, happiness, and salvation. The gospel that Paul and the apostles preached is that that reign and its benefits have come to us in Jesus Christ.

This year, every political candidate will promise tell you that they will take care of you if you seek their reign. Who do you trust? Who tells the truth any more? People don’t believe politicians. But the gospel isn’t like those messages. God isn’t promising things He can’t deliver. He has already delivered on His promises in Jesus. You can have peace, happiness, and salvation now in Jesus Christ who is the Way, the Truth, and the Life. That is the word of the truth.

Think about when you hear people talk about the gospel, or even when you share it with others. Is it presented as a suggestion for your life, or are we declaring it as the truth of what God has done in Christ to reconcile sinners to Himself and establish the happiness of His kingdom in the lives of anyone who will repent and believe in Jesus?

Paul saw this truth as the power of God to transform the world.

Colossians 1:5–6 (ESV)

the word of the truth, the gospel, which has come to you, as indeed in the whole world it is bearing fruit and increasing—as it also does among you, since the day you heard it and understood the grace of God in truth,

When we declare and pass on the gospel in its simple truth, it has the power to bear fruit and increase in the whole world.

What are some reasons that it doesn’t bear fruit and increase?

The last way Paul defines the gospel in this passage is in verse 6,

The Gospel is a Message of Grace

Colossians 1:6 (ESV)

which has come to you, as indeed in the whole world it is bearing fruit and increasing—as it also does among you, since the day you heard it and understood the grace of God in truth,

The gospel is a message about God’s grace. He saves us from the wages of sin, death, by His grace shown to us in Christ, who has atoned for our sin and risen from the dead to give us life.

The gospel message also comes to us by God’s grace. None of us earns salvation. None of us earned the opportunity to hear the gospel. Paul reminds the Colossians that their faith is the result of the ministry of Epaphras, who brought the gospel to them.

Colossians 1:7–8 (ESV)

just as you learned it from Epaphras our beloved fellow servant. He is a faithful minister of Christ on your behalf and has made known to us your love in the Spirit.

God has given us peace, happiness, and salvation and opened the way into His kingdom through the work of Jesus Christ. And He has made that message known to us through the work of faithful people who have served us. The words Paul uses to describe Epaphras are “fellow slave” and “faithful servant”. Those who share the gospel with us are serving us. They are demonstrating the grace of God that they preach. And Paul concludes with reminding us that the fruit in us is love in the Spirit. We now have a heart to start the process with someone else.

Who taught you the gospel? How did their life teach you about God’s grace as much as their words?

With whom are you sharing the gospel? Would they say you are serving them? Maybe these days we feel like sharing our faith is a confrontation or trying to sell something no one wants. But what would change if we saw it as our service to those around us?

Ultimately, the gospel is a message about how Jesus the King has served us…communion.

This is true hope for the whole world. The grace of God is now available to anyone and everyone who hears God and responds in faith. Our lives can bear the fruit of love. We have hope laid up in heaven for us. Jesus Christ has been made Lord and Savior and is coming to make His kingdom as real hear as it is in heaven. Who do you know that needs this transforming message of hope?

Questions for Discussion

What is some good news from your week?

Where are you finding hope right now?

What do we learn about God in Colossians 1:1-8?

What is the gospel?

Where are you seeing the fruit of the gospel in your life right now? How does this fruit grow in us?

How can we share the gospel as “the word of the truth” in a world that has relativized the truth?

Who helped you “understand the grace of God in truth”? What can you take from their example for your own life?

How will you respond to this passage this week?

Who is someone you can share this passage with this week?