COLLOSSIANS 4

REVIEW

1) Heresies don’t just spring up out of nowhere. they are demonically inspired deception.

2) Heresies appeal to ignorance of truth or a perceived unmet need.

3) Heresy grows in a life that is not centered in Christ.

4) Heresies, like the demons that inspired them, are still alive today.

People who blame others, give their responsibility and authority to others for their freedom.

Do your work unto the Lord, not because of who they are, but because of “whose” you are.

COLOSSIANS CHAPTER 4

Colossians 4:1 NLT

1 Masters, be just and fair to your slaves. Remember that you also have a Master—in heaven.

Paul finishes a thought started at the end of the Chapter three; this probably should be Colossian 3:26.

It is important to note a few things about slavery as referenced here.

Colossians 4:2–4 TPT

2 Be faithful to pray as intercessors who are fully alert and giving thanks to God. 3 And please pray for me, that God will open a door of opportunity for us to preach the revelation of the mystery of Christ, for whose sake I am imprisoned. 4 Pray that I would unfold and reveal fully this mystery, for that is my delightful assignment.

Paul’s exhortation to prayer.

Colossians 4:5–6 TPT

5 Walk in the wisdom of God as you live before the unbelievers, and make it your duty to make him known. 6 Let every word you speak be drenched with grace and tempered with truth and clarity. For then you will be prepared to give a respectful answer to anyone who asks about your faith.

When is last time someone asked you about your faith?

Colossians 4:6 AMP

6 Let your speech at all times be gracious (pleasant and winsome), seasoned [as it were] with salt, [so that you may never be at a loss] to know how you ought to answer anyone [who puts a question to you].

Here’s a great prayer for every believer: God put a guard at the gate of my mouth, that I might speak words that bring hope and value to the life of others.

Paul honors and exhorts his fellow laborers in the Gospel:

Colossians 4:7–8 TPT

7 Tychicus will tell you about what is happening with me. I have sent him to you so that he could find out how you are doing in your journey of faith, and bring comfort and encouragement to your hearts. For he is a beloved brother in Christ, a faithful servant of the gospel and my ministry partner in our Master Yahweh’s work.

Tychicus

Colossians 4:9 NLT

9 I am also sending Onesimus, a faithful and beloved brother, one of your own people. He and Tychicus will tell you everything that’s happening here.

Onesimus - Went back to the place of his worst life.

Though he was once a slave, a person of no earthly substance and position, Paul considered him as a brother and equal partner in the Gospel.

I Ain't Comin' Back - by Dolphus Weary

Mendenhall, MS

It's a compelling story of the power of prayer and the faithfulness of God to those who serve his people and refuse to abandon the city.

Colossians 4:10–11 TPT

10 Aristarchus, a fellow prisoner here with me, sends you his love. And Joshua (who is also called Justus) along with Mark, the cousin of Barnabas, also send you their loving greetings. You have already been informed that if Mark comes to you, receive him warmly. These three men are the only ones of the circumcision who have aided me here in the work of the kingdom of God, and they have been a great blessing to me.

Aristarchus - Fellow inmate.

Marcus - nephew of Barnabas - Reconciled to Paul Acts:15-38. (Silas instead)

“A good friend is someone you can call to bail you out of jail?”

Colossians 4:12–13 NLT

12 Epaphras, a member of your own fellowship and a servant of Christ Jesus, sends you his greetings. He always prays earnestly for you, asking God to make you strong and perfect, fully confident that you are following the whole will of God. 13 I can assure you that he prays hard for you and also for the believers in Laodicea and Hierapolis.

Look at what Paul praises about one of their own.

Colossians 4:14 NLT

14 Luke, the beloved doctor, sends his greetings, and so does Demas.

Luke - author of the Gospel of Luke as well as the Book of the Acts of the Apostles.

Demas? Debated as to date of authorship; before or after 2 Timothy 4:10.

2 Timothy 4:10 NLT

10 Demas has deserted me because he loves the things of this life and has gone to Thessalonica. Crescens has gone to Galatia, and Titus has gone to Dalmatia.

Colossians 4:15 NLT

15 Please give my greetings to our brothers and sisters at Laodicea, and to Nympha and the church that meets in her house.

Nympha - Male or Female name in ancient Greece - Meaning Bride, most translators, including the KJV, translate this in the the feminine form.

Colossians 4:16 NLT

16 After you have read this letter, pass it on to the church at Laodicea so they can read it, too. And you should read the letter I wrote to them.

The Epistle of the Laodiceans? Most believe it was actually the letter to the Ephesians due to its style and theme.

Colossians 4:17 NLT

17 And say to Archippus, “Be sure to carry out the ministry the Lord gave you.”

Colossians 4:18 TPT

18 Now finally, I, Paul, write this with my own handwriting, and I send my loving greetings to you! Remember me in my imprisonment. May the blessings of God’s grace overwhelm you!