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Scripture • World English Bible
Colossians 1:1–8
1Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus through the will of God, and Timothy our brother,
2to the saints and faithful brothers in Christ at Colossae: Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
3We give thanks to God the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, praying always for you,
4having heard of your faith in Christ Jesus and of the love which you have toward all the saints,
5because of the hope which is laid up for you in the heavens, of which you heard before in the word of the truth of the Good News
6which has come to you, even as it is in all the world and is bearing fruit and growing, as it does in you also, since the day you heard and knew the grace of God in truth,
7even as you learned from Epaphras our beloved fellow servant, who is a faithful servant of Christ on your behalf,
8who also declared to us your love in the Spirit.
World English Bible (WEB) • Public Domain
Reflection
Paul begins by giving thanks and modeling prayer for the Colossian believers. He explicitly praises their faith in Christ and the love they show toward all the saints, and he roots both in the hope laid up for them in heaven. Paul points readers back to the gospel—the word of truth—which has come to them, and he affirms that this good news is bearing fruit and growing (verse 6). That fruit is evident in trustworthy reports about their faith and love, and it calls for ongoing prayer (verse 3), steady attention to the gospel’s effect in life, and recognition of those who faithfully serve (verses 7–8). Epaphras is held up as an example: a beloved servant who taught them and reported on their love in the Spirit. From these verses we learn to give thanks for gospel fruit, to pray persistently for spiritual wisdom and steadfastness, and to honor those who faithfully proclaim and nourish the church.
Putting Faith Into Action
- Use this passage as a small-group discussion starter focused on gospel fruit; practice listening and praying for one another’s spiritual growth using verse 6 as a prompt (how have you seen the gospel bearing fruit and growing in your life?).
- In personal Bible study, memorize a specific verse from this passage (for example, Colossians 1:4 or 1:6). Journal concrete ways the gospel described here—faith, love, and hope—has shown itself in the past month.
- Use key themes from verses 3–8 (thanksgiving and prayer for the saints, the gospel’s fruit, steadfast faith, and the role of faithful servants like Epaphras) as sermon or discipleship points and assign one concrete action step for the week (pray for a believer’s growth, share one gospel story of fruit, or encourage a faithful servant).
Prayer
Father, we thank you for the faith and love you have produced among your people, and for the living hope reserved for us in heaven. We are grateful that the good news—the word of truth—has come to us and is bearing fruit and growing. Give us spiritual wisdom and understanding as we pray for one another, that our lives would reflect steadfast faith and love. Strengthen those who labor on behalf of the church, and encourage those who have been faithful in proclaiming your word. Keep us thankful and watchful as we seek to live out the gospel. In Jesus’ name, amen.
Memory Verse
Colossians 1:6 — which has come to you, even as it is in all the world and is bearing fruit and growing, as it does in you also, since the day you heard and knew the grace of God in truth, (WEB)
“which has come to you, even as it is in all the world and is bearing fruit and growing, as it does in you also, since the day you heard and knew the grace of God in truth,”
Bible Context
Read all of Colossians 1
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Bible Context
Read all of Colossians 1
Colossians 1
World English Bible • WEB
1Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus through the will of God, and Timothy our brother,
2to the saints and faithful brothers in Christ at Colossae: Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
3We give thanks to God the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, praying always for you,
4having heard of your faith in Christ Jesus and of the love which you have toward all the saints,
5because of the hope which is laid up for you in the heavens, of which you heard before in the word of the truth of the Good News
6which has come to you, even as it is in all the world and is bearing fruit and growing, as it does in you also, since the day you heard and knew the grace of God in truth,
7even as you learned from Epaphras our beloved fellow servant, who is a faithful servant of Christ on your behalf,
8who also declared to us your love in the Spirit.
9For this cause, we also, since the day we heard this, don’t cease praying and making requests for you, that you may be filled with the knowledge of his will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding,
10that you may walk worthily of the Lord, to please him in all respects, bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God,
11strengthened with all power, according to the might of his glory, for all endurance and perseverance with joy,
12giving thanks to the Father, who made us fit to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in light,
13who delivered us out of the power of darkness, and translated us into the Kingdom of the Son of his love,
14in whom we have our redemption, the forgiveness of our sins.
15He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation.
16For by him all things were created in the heavens and on the earth, visible things and invisible things, whether thrones or dominions or principalities or powers. All things have been created through him and for him.
17He is before all things, and in him all things are held together.
18He is the head of the body, the assembly, who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, that in all things he might have the preeminence.
19For all the fullness was pleased to dwell in him,
20and through him to reconcile all things to himself by him, whether things on the earth or things in the heavens, having made peace through the blood of his cross.
21You, being in past times alienated and enemies in your mind in your evil deeds,
22yet now he has reconciled in the body of his flesh through death, to present you holy and without defect and blameless before him,
23if it is so that you continue in the faith, grounded and steadfast, and not moved away from the hope of the Good News which you heard, which was proclaimed in all creation under heaven, of which I, Paul, was made a servant.
24Now I rejoice in my sufferings for your sake, and fill up on my part that which is lacking of the afflictions of Christ in my flesh for his body’s sake, which is the assembly,
25of which I was made a servant according to the stewardship of God which was given me toward you to fulfill the word of God,
26the mystery which has been hidden for ages and generations. But now it has been revealed to his saints,
27to whom God was pleased to make known what are the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory.
28We proclaim him, admonishing every man and teaching every man in all wisdom, that we may present every man perfect in Christ Jesus;
29for which I also labor, striving according to his working, which works in me mightily.
World English Bible (WEB) • Public Domain
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