Colossians 4:14-18
by Dr. Grant C. Richison
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Colossians 4:14
"Luke the beloved physician and Demas greet you."
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"Luke the beloved physician"
This is the Luke that wrote Luke and Acts. He was Paul's associate on two
missionary expeditions. He joined Paul on the second missionary journey
at the city of Troy (Acts 16:10).
Here we learn that Luke is a physician. Luke was not only a physician but
a "beloved" physician. Paul loved his personal physician. Luke
ministered both with the hand and the heart.
Paul specifically does not name Luke among the Jewish Christians just listed.
He was a Gentile convert (cf. II Tim. 4:11; Phile. 24) and probably a Greek.
He may have been a student at the University of Tarsus. Luke wrote both
the gospel of Luke and the book of Acts.
It is interesting that two of the writers of the gospels are with Paul during
this prison confinement. They both have already written their gospels.
No doubt Paul would have read them by now.
PRINCPLE: Faithfulness under duress is true friendship.
APPLICATION: Demas had the same advantages as Luke. Both were companions
of the apostle. They had the same teaching and example. Two children brought
up in the same family can turn to different directions. One will follow
Christ, the other will deny him. One will rebel, the other will yield to
the teaching of the Word.
We can attribute the fall of Demas to love of the world (II Tim. 4:10).
Luke remained true to Paul in his difficulties. This is an issue of character.
Would your character stand under pressure?
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"and Demas greet you"
This is the Demas who two years later forsook Paul because he loved this
present world (II Tim. 4:10). Demas probably did not forsake Christ (cf.
Philemon 24). Luke, however, remained with Paul in his hour of danger.
Paul gives no commendation of Demas. There may be a suggestion that even
at this time he was not sure of his stability.
Demas' supreme passion was the world (II Tim. 4:10). Diotrephes' supreme
passion was to have the pre-eminence (III Jn. 9). Demetrius' supreme passion
was the truth (III Jn 12). These three men were characterized by their
supreme passions. The difference lay in their commitment.
PRINCIPLE: Many make a grand entrance and later fade from dynamic Christian
living.
APPLICATION: It is sad to see a person fail toward the end of their career.
In this verse we see contrasting examples of faithfulness and unfaithfulness.
Luke the faithful physician remained with Paul during his difficulty p;
"Only Luke is with me" (II Tim. 4:11). Everybody else left Paul
in his dire moment of danger. Demas unfaithfully preferred his skin to
his conscience.
May not God allow us to finish our lives in famous fashion.
Colossians 4:15
"Greet the brethren who are in Laodicea, and Nymphas and the church
that is in his house."
Now we come to the salutation of the epistle to the Colossians (4:15-18).
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"Greet the brethren who are in Laodicea"
Laodicea was located near Colosse. Paul sends salutations to them as well.
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"and Nymphas"
Paul names Nymphas as an outstanding Christian. She was outstanding because
she held an upstanding reputation. It is possible to translate this sentence
"Nympha, and the church which is in her house." If so, she is
the only woman mentioned in this chapter. She opened her home to hold a
church there. No church can operate very long without women.
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"and the church that is in her house"
Christians were forced to worship in houses since public worship was dangerous
(Jn 20:19; cf. Acts 28:23,30). It may be that the church at Laodicea met
in Nymphas' house. Meeting in houses was the common practice (Acts 12:12;
16:40; Rom 16:5; I Cor. 16:19; Philemon 2). Church buildings came later.
The church met in homes while the heathens met in temples. There were no
church edifices before the third century. Christians met in homes for the
first 250 years of the church's existence. Some churches met in gravel
pits, caves, fields or forests.
PRINCIPLE: All God expects of us is to do what we can with what we have.
APPLICATION: Nympha may not have been able to preach, sing or play, but
she could open her house to be used of God. She did what she could with
what she had. This is all God expects of us.
Colossians 4:16
"Now when this epistle is read among you, see that it is read also
in the church of the Laodiceans, and that you likewise read the epistle
from Laodicea."
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"Now when this epistle is read among you"
Paul expects that Colossians will be read publicly in the assembly both
in Colossians and Laodicea. This stipulation for reading the Word publicly
gives some indication of how the early church practiced worship.
"Read" means to exegete Colossians. Few churches expound the
Bible verse by verse. God wants us to study the Word.
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"see that it is read also in the church of the Laodiceans"
Paul also expected that Colossians would be read publicly in the church
of the Laodiceans as well. New Testament churches shared the books of the
Bible. Colossians was obviously intended for other churches as well. It
was intended for the church of today.
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"and that you likewise read the epistle from Laodicea"
The Epistle from Laodicea is now lost. It did not belong to the authorized
books of the Bible known as the "canon." The canon is those books
which the church as deemed inspired.
Not all epistles that Paul wrote were inspired. However, the Laodicean
letter may be the book of Ephesians.
The first and seventh of the churches of Revelation are Ephesus and Laodicea.
The letter was sent first to Ephesus then to the other churches on that
circuit ending up at Laodicea. Therefore, this epistle may be Ephesians.
Circular letters written by Paul were to be read by all the churches in
that area.
PRINCIPLE: God has designed the local church as the place for growth in
the Word of God.
APPLICATION: Local churches are geographically pinpointed. Born again
people make up the local church. These people support the missionary enterprise
around the world. That is where they should study the Bible from a gifted
pastor.
Do you attend a church where you are taught the Word of God?
Colossians 4:17
"And say to Archippus, 'Take heed to the ministry which you have
received in the Lord, that you may fulfill it.'"
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"And say to Archippus, "Take heed to the ministry"
Archippus was a minister at Colosse. Paul challenges the church to admonish
him to be diligent about doing his work. Evidently he was sidetracked with
things of less moment.
Archippus may be the son of Philemon (Phile 2). He may have ministered
in Colosse at Epahras' absence. In Philemon, Paul asks Philemon to fee
his slave Onesimus. Now he chastises his son for not staying sharp in the
ministry. Philemon still remained his friend, however!
"Take heed" means to watch out. The ministry is not the ability
to balance a cup of tea or make proper clucking noises at any kind of party.
"Take heed" in this context means to concentrate on ministry.
Some ministers do everything but teach the word. Here Paul says "Get
with it." (Cf. I Tim. 4:16; Ac 20:28; II Tim. 4:5; I Tim. 1:12; Acts
20:24).
"Ministry" is used 3 ways in the New Testament: 1) leader of
the national entity (Rom 13:1,2) 2) universal priesthood of the believer
(II Cor 3:6-4:1) and 3) pastor of the local church (Eph 3:7; 6:21). Here
the idea is the pastor of local church.
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"which you have received in the Lord"
All true ministry is "received in the Lord." It comes from God's
appointment and leading.
A person does not get into the ministry because he is holier than anyone
else. You will never believe this, but it is true. A true minister does
not go into some secret sanctuary where the touch of the world never quite
reaches him. He does not go into the ministry because he is sheltered.
The reason anyone is in the ministry is because of the grace of God.
We have a tendency to put the ministry on a pedestal. Every minister is
a member of the human race as well p; if he is a normal person! He
is no monastic who lives in a hypothetical, esoteric, abstruse life on cloud
30. He is a very normal person like anyone else. He has a gift from God
by grace and that is it.
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"that you may fulfill it"
Paul also challenged both Archippus and the Colossians to complete their
ministry. This may be an indication of the later declension of the church
(Rev. 3:14f).
God expects us to complete our ministry.
PRINCIPLE: God expects us to finish what we start to do ministry-wise.
APPLICATION: God gives to every single Christian a ministry to equip the
saints (Eph. 4). God expects us to carry on the work of ministry. God
does not want us to simply meet to worship and learn. He wants us to leave
something behind.
Do you want to accomplish all that God has designed for you? Phil 3:12
Colossians 4:18
"This salutation by my own hand-Paul. Remember my chains. Grace
be with you. Amen."
This verse is Paul's specific salutation.
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"This salutation by my own hand-Paul."
Paul dictated the Colossian letter to someone else and they wrote it down.
Paul writes the salutation by his own hand (cf. 1 Cor. 16:21; Gal. 6:11;
2 Thes. 3:17; Phile. 19).
The salutation by Paul's own hand is an indication of its authenticity.
It may also indicate that he had poor eyesight and needed a secretary to
write most of the epistle.
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"Remember my chains."
Finally Paul makes a request for himself. It might do well for us to remember
his chains today. He was hounded and oppressed in most cities where he
ministered. He spent many months in jail. We should give thanks to God
for the contribution this man made to Christianity.
This is probably a request for prayer.
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"Grace be with you"
"Grace" means God bestows benefits. This is a prayer that God
will give his daily operating grace upon the Colossians.
Every epistle that Paul wrote he closed the same way p; with an emphasis
upon the grace principle. It was his spiritual trademark (II Thes. 3:17,18).
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"Amen"
"Amen" means "I believe it." Paul affirms that daily
operating grace is necessary for a consistent Christian walk.
PRINCIPLE: We need grace daily to live the Christian life.
APPLICATION: Do you think that things are going hard for you? Think of
what Paul faced in his life for the cause of Christ. "Whenever you
become discouraged or disillusioned, think of me in my chains. Remember
that I am a living example of daily drawing upon grace from God."
Are you daily drawing upon the grace of God?
Copyright © 1995, Dr. Grant Richison. All rights reserved.
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