CHRISTIAN GREETINGS

Colossians 1:1
This is a letter from Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ by the will of God, and from Timothy, the
brother, to the dedicated people of God and faithful brothers in Christ who are in Colosse.

A DEDICATED Christian cannot write a single sentence without making clear the great beliefs
which underlie all his thought. Paul had never actually been in Colosse and so he has to begin by
making clear what right he has to send a letter to the Colossians. He does that in one word; he is
an apostle. The word apostolos literally means one who is sent out. Pauls right to speak is that
he has been sent out by God to be his ambassador to the Gentiles. Morever, he is an apostle by
the will of God. That office is not something which he has earned or achieved; it is something
which has been given him by God. You did not choose me, said Jesus, but I chose you (John
15:16). Here, right at the outset of the letter, is the whole doctrine of grace. A man is not what he
has made himself, but what God has made him.
With himself Paul associates Timothy; and he gives him a lovely title. He calls him the
brother, a title which is given to Quartus (Romans 16:23); to Sosthenes (1 Corinthians 1:1); to
Apollos (1 Corinthians 16:12). The fundamental necessity for Christian service and for Christian
office is brotherliness.
To use our modern idiom, the first necessity for Christian service is the ability to get
alongside all kinds of people. Timothy is not described as the preacher, the teacher, the
theologian, the administrator, but as the brother. He who walks in aloofness can never be a real
servant of Jesus Christ.
Another interesting and significant fact is that this opening address is to Gods dedicated
people and to the faithful brothers in Colosse. In the matter of opening addresses Pauls custom
changed. In his earlier letters he always addressed the letter to the Church. 1 and 2
Thessalonians, 1 and 2 Corinthians and Galatians are all addressed to the Church of the district
to which they are sent. But beginning with Romans his letters are all addressed to Gods
dedicated people in such and such a place. It is so in Romans, Colossians, Philippians and
Ephesians. As Paul grew older, he came more and more to see what matters is individual people.
The Church is not a kind of abstract entity; it is individual men and women and children. As the
years went on, Paul began to see the Church in terms of individuals hence this style of greeting.
The opening greeting closes with a most significant placing of two things side by side. He
writes to the Christians who are in Colosse and who are in Christ. A Christian always moves in
two spheres. He is in a certain place in this world; but he is also in Christ. He lives in two
dimensions. He lives in this world whose duties he does not treat lightly; but above and beyond
that he lives in Christ. In this world he may move from place to place; but wherever he is, he is
in Christ. That is why outward circumstances make little difference to the Christian; his peace
and his joy are not dependent on them. That is why he will do any job with all his heart. It may
be menial, unpleasant, painful, it may be far less distinguished than he might expect to have; its
rewards may be small and its praise non-existent; nevertheless the Christian will do it diligently,
uncomplainingly and cheerfully, for he is in Christ and does all things as to the Lord. We are all
in our own Colosse, but we are all in Christ, and it is Christ who sets the tone of our living.1

1 Barclay, W. (Ed.). (1975). The letters to the Philippians, Colossians, and Thessalonians (electronic ed., pp. 103
105). Philadelphia: The Westminster John Knox Press.