Message summary: What a blessing to understand God's grace in all its truth.

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"All over the world this gospel is bearing fruit and growing, just as it has been doing among you since the day you heard it and understood God's grace in all its truth"  (Colossians 1:6).

In yesterday's message we considered this same daily text focusing on the first part, "All over the world this gospel is bearing fruit and growing". I've kept notes of my teachings through much of my ministry including sermon notes from the 30 years I served as a pastor (five of those in interim roles). Previously when using this text in my sermons I just seemed to focus on the first part.

But yesterday as I prepared the message I really was struck by the second part that I had often neglected. It seems there's a tendency in studying God's Word to do that. If a portion really grips my attention I don't always  dig deeper. So today let's dig deeper.

"Just as it has been doing among you". Here Paul goes geographically from "all over the world" to the likely small band of believers in ancient Collosae. Paul had not met these people face to face. There's no record of him being there during a missionary journey and a few verses earlier he had written, "since we heard of your faith in Christ Jesus and of the love that you have for all the saints" (1:4). This makes me consider those who may benefit from our ministry that we have never met. And that would be true for many of you.

"Since the day you heard it" The gospel had been preached in Colossae by Paul's co-worker Epaphras. Verse 7 states "just as you learned it from Epaphras our beloved fellow servant. He is a faithful minister of Christ on your behalf". The results of his preaching were not without effect. Paul was writing to those who had believed the gospel and genuine belief is transformational.

"And understood God's grace in all its truth". It began with hearing the message but resulted in understanding. That's absolutely essential. But most of all what they understood was, "God's grace in all its truth".

What is the "grace of God in truth"? It is nothing less than the heart of the gospel message. We do not deserve nor can we ever earn our salvation but it is "by grace through faith that you have been saved not of yourselves, it is the gift of God" (Ephesians 2:8).

In the prologue to John's gospel he writes a summary of Christ's mission, "And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen His glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth" (John 1:14).

Can it be said of us that we understand "God's grace in all its truth"?

Bible teacher Everett F. Harrison in his book "Colossians: Christ All-Sufficient" makes this vital point concerning today's text, "All other religions proceed on the assumption that man must commend himself to God, or, as in the case of the Galatian error, that a mixture of human effort with divine grace is required. By a simple mention of God’s grace this early in the letter, coupled with the reminder that his readers have come to know the meaning of that grace as a reality in their lives, Paul is already laying the axe to the root of legalism that he will tear out later and cast aside before the eyes of the Colossians."

Be encouraged today, Hebrews 3:13.

Stephen & Brooksyne Weber