Colossians 1:1-2 1Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, and Timothy the brother, 2To the saints in Colossae and the faithful brothers [and sisters] in Christ, grace to you and peace from God our Father.
This letter starts off like other letters Paul wrote. The letter claims Paul as the author and Timothy as the co-author. Paul identifies himself as an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God. Apostle has two nuances to it. Broadly, it literally means “one who is sent” as a representative of another. In the early church, it has the sense of a missionary sent out with the message of the gospel. More narrowly, it refers to a select group of early Christian leaders who were sent out directly by Jesus himself. These were people who witnessed the Jesus in his ministry, death, and resurrection. Although there is no evidence that Paul actually saw the historical Jesus in person, Paul still claims the position of apostle because of his vision of the resurrected Jesus on the road to Damascus.
Paul was “sent out” by Christ Jesus with the mission of preaching the message of the gospel to the Gentile world. His apostleship came by the will of God. He explains this more clearly in Galatians 1:11-24. He was running from Christ as fast as possible by persecuting the church. But Christ captured him and changed him. This was all God’s doing and a matter of God’s grace and mercy (1 Timothy 1:13-14).
This letter is co-authored by Timothy the brother. The description the brother suggests the Colossians had some familiarity of Timothy. It shows the close familial relationship of Timothy to Paul. This simple description misses the significant place Timothy had in Paul’s ministry. He was Paul’s close companion who traveled extensively with Paul. He is also listed as a co-author of 2 Corinthians, Philippians, Colossians, 1 and 2 Thessalonians, and Philemon. Timothy may have been around to help Paul in prison, such as making sure he was cared for and being the communicator with the outside world.
The letter is addressed to believers in the city of Colossae. Saints (hagios)literally means “holy ones.” This was a description of Christians. This speaks more to the status of Christians before God than any moral attribute. All true believers are made holy by the blood of Christ. This holiness develops and grows over time and become evident in holy living. Paul could even call the fleshly Corinthians “saints” (1 Corinthians 1:2). The Colossians are also the faithful brothers [and sisters] in Christ. It is possible to interpret this as a separate group but mostly likely, he is referring to the Colossians as faithful and in Christ. Faithful brothers would be inclusive of sisters also.
Paul next gives his typical greetings of grace and peace. The source of these is God our Father. The word grace was similar to the typical Greco-Romans greeting of the day. Paul infuses this greeting with great theological significant. Grace comes from the Father, is mediated through the Son, and is experienced through the Spirit. Peace (eirēnē) was the typical greeting among Jews. God is the source of peace (Romans 15:13) and makes it possible to experience this peace through what Jesus Christ did on the cross (Romans 5:1). With this greeting, Paul was pointing out to the Colossians where they could find grace and peace.
Paul wrote this letter while in prison. This may have been his imprisonment in Rome. Therefore, it is known as a “Prison Epistle.” As far as the New Testament indicates, he had never visited the church in Colossae. He spent several years in Ephesus, which is located not far from Colossae, so it is possible that he had visited this city during his stay in Ephesus. The church in Colossae may have started as an offshoot of Paul’s Ephesian ministry. Even though he may not have visited this church, he was intimately concerned about it. Some of the members of the church in Ephesus may have had contacts with the city of Colossae, and so they spread of gospel of Jesus Christ to their friends and acquaintances in Colossae.
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