Gospel Truth, Colossians 1:5-8

Truth Rests in Hope

because of the hope laid up for you in heaven, of which you previously heard in the word of truth, the gospel (1:5)

‘because of the hope laid up for you in heaven’ (1:5a) –

• Hope is the final component of the great triad of Christian virtues: faith, hope and love (1 Cor 13:13). The Greek word for hope, ‘elpis’, is defined as ‘confident expectation or prospect.’ In the context of this verse, hope would be defined as “the full manifestation and realization of that life which is already the believer’s possession.” [1]
• Definition: ‘laid up’ – is the Greek word, ‘apokeimai’, which means ‘stored up or reserved’. The result of hope for the Christian is that they are willing to forsake the present for the future. When a person is persuaded that the treasures of this life are reserved for him in heaven, then his aspirations will also be there.
• Christians are willing to forsake the wants and desires associated with this world for a future glory that is already theirs, in Christ. Unlike the world, Christians are willing to pay now, and receive later. (Rom 8:18; Heb 11:24-27) As the martyred missionary, Jim Elliot, wrote, “he is no fool who gives what he cannot keep to gain what he cannot lose.”
• Is it selfish and carnal to be motivated by an appeal to future rewards? In Mat 6:19-20 Jesus tells his disciples to store their rewards in heaven where they will not decay and cannot be stolen. “[T]rue self-centeredness or selfishness is preoccupation with self at the expense of others and God’s will in one’s life. This kind of behavior is carnal and inconsistent with the leading of the Spirit.” [2] We should also remember that these are the works that God specifically prepared us to do (Eph 2:10). These are rewards based on our obedience, not our creativity.
• Paul’s is affirming that the Christian’s faith and love are derived from and founded upon the hope of the gospel. If there is no hope of salvation, then there will be no faith in Christ and no love for others.

‘of which you previously heard in the word of truth, the gospel’ (1:5b) –

• When the gospel had been preached to them, they were told that their rewards for this life would come in heaven, and they had embraced that.
• The gospel –
• It is good news – The Greek word for ‘gospel’ literally means ‘good news’, and appears 98 times in the KJV of the New Testament, and 101 times in the NASB. The gospel proclaims the only way to true salvation and victory over sin and death is through the person and the work of Jesus on the cross.
• Its truth – The truth that Paul was referring to here was the gospel message that Epaphras had originally preached to them concerning the birth, life, death, resurrection and ascension of Jesus Christ. This was the hope that the Colossians had originally placed their faith in. Truth is a rare commodity today. It has become relative, based on what you personally believe to be true. Religious belief has become personal and private. What is true for me, does not have to be true for you. This subjective standard of truth has spilled over into our culture where some schools teach that 2 + 2 = 5, and men can be women and women can be men simply because we think it to be true. But mankind cannot create truth; he can only discover it, because truth is objective and external to him. If what Jesus said is true, then what Mohammed and Joseph Smith said is false. There is no middle ground, no gray area, only black and white. The Bible presents Jesus as the one and only Savior for mankind. So, Jesus is either Lord of all in your life, or He’s not Lord at all.

Truth Reaches the World

‘which has come to you, just as in all the world’ (1:6a)

• The good news of the gospel of Christ is intended to be universal. It was and still is intended for the Jew as well as the gentile. The gospel transcends all ethnic, geographic, and cultural as well as political boundaries. (Mat 24:14; John 8:12; Rom 1:8, 16; 10:18; 1 Th 1:8; Rev 7:9-10) It is for all men, in every country, no matter the age or gender or race.

Truth Produces Fruit

also it is constantly bearing fruit and increasing, even as it has been doing in you also since the day you heard of it (1:6b)

• ‘also it is constantly bearing fruit and increasing’ – The gospel is not a stagnant system of ethical rules and regulations. It lives, moves and grows (Heb 4:12) as it spreads and bears fruit (Mat 13). The phrase, ‘bearing fruit’ refers to the inward growth and maturity of the individual believer, where ‘increasing’ refers to outward spread of the gospel and the growth of the church. The mark of true conversion is that the gospel will bear fruit in the believer’s life.
• ‘even as it has been doing in you also since the day you heard of it’ – Paul reminds the Colossian believers that from the first moment the gospel message was preached to them, it had bore fruit and increased, as it still was.

Truth is Rooted in Grace

and understood the grace of God in truth (1:6c)

• Definition: ‘grace’ – is the Greek word, ‘charis’, and refers to the free, unmerited favor of God; to the favor or kindness given to those who can never deserve or earn it by anything they do or refrain from doing. [3] Grace is not merited, it cannot be purchased, as if it was a commodity. There is nothing I can ‘do’ to gain it because it’s not based on my abilities, or my good works.
• Grace is the heart of the gospel message (Act 20:24). Eph 2:8 says, ‘by grace you have been saved through faith’ (Tit 2:11). Paul wanted the Colossians to understand the love and favor of God that they already had.

Truth is Reported by People

just as you learned it from Epaphras, our beloved fellow bond-servant, who is a faithful servant of Christ on our behalf, and he also informed us of your love in the Spirit. (1:7-8)

• It is very possible that Epaphras’ authority within the Colossian church was being called into question because of the false doctrines that were beginning to circulate in Asia minor. Even though Paul did not found this church, he purposely connected his ministry and his message to that of Epaphras’ giving his approval to it as an Apostle of Jesus Christ. He affirmed Epaphras as a faithful servant of Christ to the Colossians, who had faithfully preached the true gospel message to them. He made Epaphras his personal representative at Colossae, backed by his authority, and that of the Lord Jesus Christ.
• There is another very important reason why Paul affirmed Epaphras’ ministry. Paul was preparing the Colossians to hear his message calling their ability to discern truth from error into question. In essence, he was telling the Colossians that Epaphras had true spiritual discernment and they did not.
• Definition: ‘discern’ – The word means ‘to perceive by the sight or other senses or by the intellect; see, recognize, or apprehend; to distinguish mentally; recognize as distinct or different; to discern right from wrong; to distinguish or discriminate.’ [4] In a biblical context, it speaks of our ability to distinguish true doctrine from false.
• We are continually warned throughout Scripture to be on our guard against the false teachers and false doctrine trying to work their way into the church. (Duet 13:1-3; Mat 7:15; 24:11; 24:24; Mark 13:22; Acts 20:29-31; 2 Tim 3:13; 2 Pet 2:1-3; 3:17; 1 John 4:1; 2 John 1:7) We do that by doing the following:

1. Christ warned the disciples, “Take care what you listen to” (Mark 4:24). This warning concerns the messenger, his message, and his ministry. Does the man, his message, and ministry line up with the Word of God?
2. Christ also warned, “Therefore take care how you listen” (Luke 8:18). This warning concerns the motives and manner in which one listens. Are we really hungry or are we apathetic or biased against the truth? Do we have ears to hear? Are we seeking the spectacular or sensational, the new and entertaining? Do we simply want to be stroked and made to feel good? What are we seeking? Is it God or some form of self-gratification from our worship while we withhold our hearts from God and His Word? (cf. Isa. 29:13)
3. As seen in 1 and 2 Corinthians, Scripture also warns against false standards of judgment by which congregations or people tend to evaluate and respond to men, their messages, and their ministries. This especially includes eyes on personalities and style rather than biblical substance and teaching that is truly in accord with the Scriptures. As a result, people end up seeking and listening to everything from watered-down messages (sermonettes) that cater to the whimsical trends of the time to various levels of heresy. They become sitting ducks for anything that appeals to their self-centered appetites (2 Tim. 4:3-4). [5]

There are two types of discernment problems in the church:

• A lack of discernment – not being able to evaluate truth from error. Examples of this would be:
• Accepting Mormons and Jehovah’s Witnesses as Christians, or accepting Christian denominations / groups as Christians who neither teach nor believe the Gospel of Jesus Christ.
• Believing in extrabiblical teachings that have no basis in Scriptural truth, such as the health and wealth gospel, or laughing revivals where the Gospel is never shared.
• Assuming someone is a Christian because they go to church.
• There are a lot of things that are done in the Church that are totally and completely unbiblical.
• Hyper-discernment – seeing error in everything and everyone, where either no error or only minor error exists.
• Seeing one minor problem with a person’s teaching, and then calling everything they teach into question.
• Using appearance to define someone's spirituality.

As believers we are called to develop and exercise discernment (1 Ki 3:9; Isa 7:15; 11:3; Amos 5:15; Acts 17:11; Rom 12:9; 1 Co 2:14; Gal 1:9; 1 Th 5:21-22; Heb 5:14; 1 John 4:1-3; 3 John 11). And the only way that we can do that is to know the truth so well that we can spot false teachings ‘a mile away.’ We are called to test the teachings that we hear from others, to determine if they are true or not (1 Th 5:21-22). Scripture tells us to ‘hate evil and love good’ (Amos 5:15), and that is something that we have to do daily. We need to ‘contend earnestly for the faith which was once for all handed down to the saints’ – which is us! (Jude 1:3) And like the Bereans we need to search the Scriptures daily so that we know what the real biblical teachings are (Act 17:11), and are ready in season and out, to instruct others (2 Tim 4:2).

But test {and} prove all things [until you can recognize] what is good; [to that] hold fast. Abstain from evil [shrink from it and keep aloof from it] in whatever form {or} whatever kind it may be. (1 Th 5:21-22 Amp)

Footnotes

[1] W. E. Vine, Vine’s Expository Dictionary of New Testament Words, (Hendrickson Publishers: Peabody MA).
[2] J. Hampton Keathley III, 2. Paul’s Gratitude for the Colossians (Col. 1:3-8).
[3] J. Hampton Keathley III, 2. Paul’s Gratitude for the Colossians (Col. 1:3-8).
[4] Random House Webster’s Electronic Dictionary and Thesaurus, College Edition, © 1992.
[5] J. Hampton Keathley III, 2. Paul’s Gratitude for the Colossians (Col. 1:3-8).

The primary sources for this study: J. Hampton Keathley III, Paul’s Letter to the Colossians: An Exegetical and Devotional Commentary, from bible.org, Copyright ©1996-2020 Bible.org, and all attributions are reprinted with permission granted by bible.org, and John MacArthur, The MacArthur New Testament Commentary: Colossians & Philemon, (Moody Bible Institute: ©1992).

This study also uses many of the commentaries, dictionaries and the Greek Lexicon, all part of 'The Online Bible', Computer Program, © 1987-2023, Larry Pierce, http://www.onlinebible.net/, unless otherwise referenced. See Greetings and Thanksgiving, Colossians 1:1-4 for full attribution.

All Scriptures quotes are from the New American Standard Bible, 1995 Revision, unless otherwise noted. Verse links from Blue Letter Bible, https://www.blueletterbible.org/