I struggle with Paul’s super long sentences. There’s good stuff in them but I have to unpack them. Kind of like coming home from a trip where everything was stuffed back in the luggage with no sense of organization. What goes where? How do I process the unpacking?
Colossians has been where I have been camping. Just the first twelve verses consists of three sentences. Have you read them? Read them!
“Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ by the will of God, and Timothy our brother, To the saints and faithful brethren in Christ who are at Colossae: Grace to you and peace from God our Father. We give thanks to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, praying always for you, since we heard of your faith in Christ Jesus and the love which you have for all the saints; because of the hope laid up for you in heaven, of which you previously heard in the word of truth, the gospel which has come to you, just as in all the world also it is constantly bearing fruit and increasing, even as it has been doing in you also since the day you heard of it and understood the grace of God in truth; just as you learned it from Epaphras, our beloved fellow bond-servant, who is a faithful servant of Christ on our behalf, and he also informed us of your love in the Spirit. For this reason also, since the day we heard of it, we have not ceased to pray for you and to ask that you may be filled with the knowledge of His will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding, so that you will walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, to please Him in all respects, bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God; strengthened with all power, according to His glorious might, for the attaining of all steadfastness and patience; joyously giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified us to share in the inheritance of the saints in Light.”
Colossians 1:1-12 NASB1995
See what I mean? How do you unpack from that trip!?!
There’s a lot of praying going on. Interceding on their behalf, Paul encourages those believers at Colossae to continue in the truth of the gospel. He knows that truth continues to bear fruit for the kingdom of God in all the world.
His prayers are for love to be manifested in knowledge with spiritual wisdom and understanding. He encourages to walk the walk and talk the talk so the fruit is more abundant. He knows the more exposure one has to the goodness of God, the more fellowship is possible.
The results being strength from Him, steadfastness, patience, joyous thanksgiving. All of which comes from the One who provides a great inheritance.
He packed a lot in three sentences. He gave the road map for the trip. The destination, a camping spot for eternity.
