Based on the LGG Study Journal, Christ Is All I Need / Week 3 Day 3
Today’s Road Map for Our Journey: Colossians 2:1-5(SOAP: v3); 1 Corinthians 1:18-31
~ in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge – Colossians 2:3
As we head into the fourth week of our journey through Paul’s letter to the Colossian believers, we find Paul struggling with the fact that he has not yet met the people. Remember, God has called Paul to serve the Church, but because he is under house arrest in Rome, he has not been able to meet some of the ‘Churches’ [people] that have been established. He is receiving updates on them, praying for them, and writing to them, but it is not the same as knowing them and meeting with them face-to-face.
Actually, our little group that gathers here online day after day started for a similar reason. During the 2020 pandemic and those early months of quarantine, I struggled with not being able to gather in person with the ladies from my Sunday and Wednesday groups. I would send cards and texts, but it just wasn’t the same as seeing their faces and discussing what we were learning or how we had seen God working in and around us. We tried Zoom meetings but had little success, so out of desperation I began sharing words of encouragement and eventually short devos via Facebook – and here we are today. While I love our little group, I can truly understand Paul’s struggle with not being able to meet/know the people in a more personal way.
While I feel certain that Paul was somewhat comforted by being able to write to and receive messages about and/or from the Church, I am equally confident of the challenge it presented for him in the task of serving them. Yet, he did not quit striving to fulfill his responsibility to them and others like them. He encouraged them in unity and in standing firm to the message of the Gospel, teaching and reminding them even through his letters to rest in the assurance of their understanding of Jesus Christ, especially the knowledge and the mystery of God. His goal was to prepare them and protect them from being deceived by those who would present other messages that would cause them to waver in the faith they had placed in Jesus Christ.
I particularly love the way Paul explained that the message of the Gospel is like a hidden treasure that can only be found in Christ. As Bibleref.com explains, “Treasures are often hidden for the sake of keeping them safe. In this case, the knowledge and wisdom are kept in Christ, but made available to those who believe in Him.”
Blessed are those who find wisdom,
Proverbs 3:13-18
those who gain understanding,
14 for she is more profitable than silver
and yields better returns than gold.
15 She is more precious than rubies;
nothing you desire can compare with her.
16 Long life is in her right hand;
in her left hand are riches and honor.
17 Her ways are pleasant ways,
and all her paths are peace.
18 She is a tree of life to those who take hold of her;
those who hold her fast will be blessed.
Friends, it is clear from the personal struggle Paul shares with the Colossian believers that fulfilling God’s call upon his life to serve the Church by making the message of Christ known to others involves the heart. It means caring enough to follow up, to encourage them, to get to know them despite the physical distance between them, and to be vulnerable enough to let them get to know him. It requires praying for them and continually sharing and resharing the message in the hope that those who hear it will search it out for themselves and hold on to it as the valuable treasure that it is.
Not to sound like a warped record that repeats itself (yes, I realize that I just dated myself – lol), but we have all been called to make the message of the Gospel known. This means that we must spend time in God’s Word, seeking to understand it, to communicate it, and to defend it well.1 One of the groups that I used to lead was called ‘Women of the Word’, and our tagline was ‘getting into the Word and letting the Word get into us.’ Our goal was to study it daily, to discuss it weekly, to search for it as treasure and store it deep within our hearts, to let it flow freely from our lips2, and to let it shine like a light from our lives wherever we were3. Which, come to think of it, that tag-line is appropriate for this group as well.
Reflection and Application
Check out this list of beautiful treasures. According to today’s passage, where can they be found?
Wisdom and Knowledge: True understanding of God’s design, purpose, and reality.
Redemption and Forgiveness: Freedom from sin and guilt through His blood.
Eternal Life: The very life and presence of God dwelling inside the believer.
Peace and Joy: A deep, content spirit that remains steady regardless of outside circumstances.
The Mystery of God: The revelation of God’s grace and plan made clear to believers.
Response of Prayer
Lord Jesus, prod my heart and the heart of every reader today to know You better. Help us to grow in wisdom, knowledge, and understanding of You and Your Word. Help us not only to read and hear it but to faithfully apply it, living it out daily.
Response of Worship
Quote of the Day
The Bible defines true wisdom and knowledge as knowing God and applying His will to our lives.
Christ is All I Need, LGG Journal p106
The More We Know
- 2 Timothy 2:15 ↩︎
- “Out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks.” Matthew 12:34 ↩︎
- “You are the light of the world—like a city on a hilltop that cannot be hidden. 15No one lights a lamp and then puts it under a basket. Instead, a lamp is placed on a stand, where it gives light to everyone in the house. 16In the same way, let your good deeds shine out for all to see, so that everyone will praise your heavenly Father. Matthew 5:14-16 ↩︎
Me From the Inside Out 