Colossians 4 Commentary
No one is self-made. Not in the Body of Christ! Paul needed the prayers of the saints at Colossae and Laodicea. Verse 3. The LORD wants us to survive and thrive on the intersession of the brethren.
The calling upon Paul’s life was such that Heaven always responded when he knocked. A special mission guaranteed Paul an ‘easy’ link to the LORD via visions and special revelations. Yet Paul would still ask the brethren at Colossae to “stand in the gap”.
What God does… He has subjected the success of an important mission to the petitions and requests of his children. It means the voice of the ‘lowly’ placed saint is mightily important to God! Paul knows it and goes ahead and enlists the prayers of the brethren.
A godly master knows all good things come from the LORD – the ultimate Master. He wants to treat his slave with the same generosity he received from Heaven. Equalization of dispensed blessings.
The immediate thought is that we shouldn’t funnel out God’s generosity grudgingly. Don’t receive with an ever-open and infinitely wide mouth, then dispense the blessing with a narrow (probably even blocked) outlet. Let generosity flow as received!
No blind prayers! Persistence is key. Watch and be alert. Be thankful.
Outsiders would be people outside of the church. Be wise how you interact with them, gracefully and seasoned with salt. It should always be an opportunity to share the love of Christ.
Paul’s imprisonment wasn’t an isolated event. Many other believers suffered in the same way. Aristarchus is one of them – probably in the same prison as Paul. Rome is a possible location as we can see Paul freely interacting with other believers. They come in and go.
The mention of “Mark, the cousin of Barnabas” is interesting. In the early years of ministry, Paul and Barnabas differed over Mark. Acts 15. We can make some beautiful guesses. Paul is never one to let pride hinder God’s work. It won’t contaminate his heart. The ‘rejected’ Mark is now a co-worker and a “comfort” to Paul. Verse 11.
Carefully consider your relationships in the church. The rejected brother may be your “comfort” tomorrow. And if you are rebuked and corrected, if your work rate comes under fire from others, don’t put a full stop to your relationship. We are still a team. Paul and Mark are real Christians! You can sense Paul’s feelings toward Barnabas – tender and recognition.
Luke is still with Paul at this Moment. You wonder why he cut short the Book of Acts! It tells you one thing: The Spirit determined the end of the story. Other details are needless. The star of the script is Jesus and not Paul. There is simply no space for mortals!
Look at Paul. You would never guess he is in chains! He must remind us. When Christ is the focus, such troubles as imprisonments become less important.
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