April 26, Colossians 1:1 Bible Study Notes

Welcome! 

This blog is used to share some of our notes from each day’s journaling while we were in Bible study with The Holy Spirit. At the bottom of each blog page, you’ll see which Bible we used and additional resources that may have informed our thinking and learning. We are curious and humble #Biblenerds. Each day we GET TO use the Word of God to learn more about His never-changing character, how much Jesus loves us and how The Holy Spirit guides us through a heart transformation one verse at a time. The Bible reads us just as much as we read It. 

We hope these perfectly imperfect notes help you as you join us weekday mornings 8:00 - 9:00 EST via Facebook & Youtube. And, of course, we welcome you whenever and wherever you get a chance to learn along with us! 

In His Love, 

Joy Lee & Tara Ouellette 

 

Colossians 1:1 NLT

This letter is from Paul, 

chosen by the will of God

to be an apostle of Christ Jesus,

and from our brother Timothy.

——————————

Joy’s Journal/Notes: 

❤️4 key truths discovered in V 1:1....

——————————

❤️ 1. When I FIRST know the enoughness of Jesus, I’ll then know the enoughness of myself !

PAUL OPENS LETTER STATING:

CHOSEN by the will of God to be an apostle.”

  • Paul knew it’s all about RIGHT ORDER!

Paul KNEW he was Made in the image of God for a purpose to fill this world with the SUFFICIENCY of Jesus

👉Paul knew he wasn’t defined by his best moment or his worst moment — but by the enoughness of Jesus alone

👉Paul never HUSTLED for his worthiness!

👉BECAUSE... When we operate from the LIE of : 

  • Insufficiency complexes,

  • shame mentalities

  • fear,

  • insecurity,

  • guilt,

  • comparison,

  • FOMO,

  • regret,

  • self-preservation,

  • not enough,

  • self-loathing/self-contempt ....

We can’t confidently speak into others about embracing THEIR IDENTITY through the DIETY of Jesus!

  • Shame— finding illegitimate ways to meet legitimate needs (the Collosea church!!)

  • Paul wanted to introduce the legitimacy of Jesus to the church’s legitimate needs!!!!

—————————-

❤️ 2.) I can confidently embrace His plan because I’ve confidently embraced His grace.

Paul’s BACKGROUND:

1 Tim 1:15

“This is a trustworthy saying, and everyone should accept it: “Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners (wanderers)”—and I am the worst of them all.

But God had mercy on me so that Jesus could use me as a prime example of his great patience with even the worst sinners!

Then others will realize that they, too, can believe in him and receive eternal life.”

  • Paul could Confidently and boldly address the colla-sigh (colossai) church as being a “chosen apostle” because He knew HIS SINS WERE FULLY GONE & His calling wasn’t based on what he’s done, but whose He is!

Grace means that all my mistakes now serve a purpose, instead of serving shame!”

————————

  ❤️ 3.  God’s TAILORED-fit Calling isn’t DICTATED by my surrounding 

  • v1:1 says Paul was an “APOSTLE”

  • which means to be: SENT-OUT

  • The word apostle means “one who is chosen & sent out by God as a Messenger or ambassadors for Jesus

Paul called himself an “apostle of God” (missionary sent out) but currently was confined to a prison .

Paul was NOT SHAKEN when he no longer could fulfill “his calling” (of missionary work)God have him!

  • He KNEW that if God allowed this imprisonment/quarantine, he had something AMAZING in mind!

Paul remained unshaken!   

Our identity is not in what we “do” but in who we “are” & to whom we belong!

  • (THIS SUMS UP ALL OF COLOSSIANS!)

——————————-

❤️ 4. A divine re-direction Always leads to God’s perfection.

Book of C O L O S S I ANS 

WAS PAUL’S INTERNET:

  • Paul experienced “quarantine” & could no longer “fulfill” his calling/purpose to be “SENT OUT TO ALL THE CHURCHES” the way he always did it.

He didn’t have internet or Facebook/YouTube — so his letters were his way of still being an apostle while not being able to leave his home!

If these letters were never written, we’d of missed out on much of bible!

Paul had no idea his letters would be feeding our souls 2000 Yrs later— but he DID KNOW God had something inconceivable planned as a result of his Imprisonment

  • If Paul had spent his time COMPLAINING & GROANING about “not being able to do what he was “called” to do” much of the NT would be absent.

Instead he sought God’s face & allowed himself to be RE-DIRECTED!

NOTHING IS WASTED 

———————————

Tara’s Journal/Notes:

Consider the source of who informs our thinking.

  • Called by God

  • tested/proven- shared his testimony

  • having gone through the fire of preparation

  • displaying true humility and Christ-likeness

  • not desiring a position/title

  • wanting to serve their King

  • within God’s will

  • serving God, not man

  • willing to pay the price for this calling (2 Corinthians 11:23-28) or known as counting the cost

Paul as an “APOSTLE”

Ephesians 4:11 - 13 Now these are the gifts Christ gave to the church: the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, and the pastors and teachers. Their responsibility is to equip God’s people to do his work and build up the church, the body of Christ.  This will continue until we all come to such unity in our faith and knowledge of God’s Son that we will be mature in the Lord, measuring up to the full and complete standard of Christ.

1 Corinthians 12:28, he says, in the church God has appointed first of all apostles, second prophets, third teachers, then workers of miracles, also those having gifts of healing, those able to help others, those with gifts of administration, and those speaking in different kinds of tongues.

Jim Goll defines an apostle as

  • “one called and sent by Christ to have the spiritual authority, character, gifts and abilities to reach and establish people in Kingdom truth and order,

  • especially through founding and overseeing local churches.”

  • An apostle has “a burden to build something that didn’t exist before” ~ Kim Terrell.

  • They lay the foundation of new local churches and see to it that they come into full maturity.

  • That is the church that person will be the apostle to – which means he/she will not have any authority as an apostle in other churches, which is what many today claim.

  • Paul himself wrote to the Corinthians, "Even though I may not be an apostle to others, surely I am to you! For you are the seal of my apostleship in the Lord." (1 Corinthians 9:2).

  • Apostles have a burden to ground their church in solid biblical teaching,

  • an example of which we can see in Acts 11, when Paul and Barnabas spent two years at Antioch, teaching and equipping them.

  • Apostles have the desire to train and raise up church leaders who will come into full maturity in the church, to release them, and then move on to plant another church.

  • Making themselves “redundant” is their greatest reward, as they father their spiritual children into adulthood.

  • Let us remove the mysticism from the term “apostle”, and see it for what it really is. Dick Iverson once stated in an interview, “…you don't find “Apostle” written in large letters on my door. I would rather say that I do apostolic work. It isn’t just a title, it’s work, W-O-R-K.

of Christ Jesus

I’ve noticed when “Jesus Christ” or when “Christ Jesus” is stated. I’ve learned to take note when Christ Jesus is stated, that it means that the Messiah and the Risen King is being exalted. Important for this time as the believers in Colossae were surrounded by unbelievers. 

and from our brother Timothy.

Companionship vs Comparison/competition: Timothy didn’t seem to compare or compete with Paul, he was becoming more Christ-like and learning more about the character of God through Paul’s work. They were companions ON MISSION. TOGETHER. Timothy didn’t play a small, insignificant role. He was an important contributor to the kingdom of God Paul’s mentee. 

 

Joy & Tara’s Primary Source: The Holy Spirit

Secondary Source: Holy Bible, New Living Translation. Tyndal, 1996.

Additional references: https://www.sandboxchurch.com/understanding-5-fold-ministry

https://www.umcdiscipleship.org/spiritual-gifts-inventory/en