The Colossian Christ

Have you ever wondered what it would be like to receive an instructional letter from one of the apostles? Paul wrote a majority of the letters to the congregations included in our New Testament, many of which were addressing issues amongst the believers—especially the divisive issues between Jews and Gentiles.

Gentile just means "nations," which could refer to “other” nations not part of the Abrahamic Covenant. It was part of God’s plan from the very beginning to “save” any nation that will trust in Him by following Him. Obviously, that was best seen beginning with Jesus’ ministry. Although the official invitation for all nations to join the Jesus Movement wouldn’t be until the days of Cornelius, Acts 10, the message was already being clearly defined for anyone listening to Jesus.

This inclusion of the Gentiles, other nations, was offensive to the Jew because of how they interpreted the promise made to Abraham. In their mind, the promise we read about in Genesis 12 was an exclusive one. However, when we read what God said to Abraham, it is virtually undeniable of God’s plan. He says, “I will make you into a great nation, and I will bless you; I will make your name great, and you will be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you, and whoever curses you I will curse; and all peoples on earth will be blessed through you.”

Later, God told Moses on Mt. Sinai, “Now if you obey Me fully and keep My covenant, then out of all nations you will be My treasured possession. Although the whole earth is Mine, you will be for Me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation.’” (Exodus 19:5-6).

After Jesus’ death, burial, and resurrection, and ascension, the church would be born (Acts 2), and it was then that the true understanding of God’s kingdom began to take shape. To have a kingdom, means you have a king, a territory, and subjects to that king. But who would qualify to be part of the kingdom? Paul’s many letters to congregations helped shed some light on this issue. The kingdom wasn’t exclusive to Jews, but instead was open to all the nations—the Gentiles!

Paul’s letter to the Colossians was helping them to see the supremacy of Christ throughout the entire world. Therefore, he makes a lot of connections for these believers, both Jew and Gentiles, between God’s creation and all people’s invitation to join this wonderful kingdom.