Free Bible Commentary
“Colossians 4:10-14”
Categories: Colossians“Aristarchus, my fellow prisoner, sends you his greetings; and also Barnabas’s cousin Mark (about whom you received instructions; if he comes to you, welcome him); and also Jesus who is called Justus; these are the only fellow workers for the kingdom of God who are from the circumcision, and they have proved to be an encouragement to me. Epaphras, who is one of your number, a bondslave of Jesus Christ, sends you his greetings, always laboring earnestly for you in his prayers, that you may stand perfect and fully assured in all the will of God. For I testify for him that he has a deep concern for you and for those who are in Laodicea and Hierapolis. Luke, the beloved physician, sends you his greetings, and also Demas.”
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It is so easy to lose sight of the fact that Paul had written this letter as a prisoner (verse 18), and that he had been wrongfully incarcerated for doing nothing more than serving the Lord in truth and righteousness. His conditions were not deplorable, but he had lost his freedom and mobility, and there had to have been days that he felt restless and disheartened. It was at times like these that I feel certain he must have appreciated his “fellow workers” all the more that had “proved to be an encouragement” to him (verse 11).
We all need the encouragement that only brothers and sisters in Christ can provide. It is a rich blessing to receive comforting words of support and reassurance from a person of “like, precious faith” that we know has our best interests at heart. Paul tells us in 2 Corinthians 1:3-4 that the encouragement of a fellow Christian is really the extension of God’s very own comfort. “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our affliction so that we will be able to comfort those who are in any affliction with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God.”
I want to be that kind of person because I know that God wants to use me in that capacity. He wants me to lift up my fellow, world-weary pilgrims, and help them on their journey home. It is appropriate that Barnabas, “the son of encouragement” (Acts 4:36) is named in this list of brethren who buoyed the apostle’s spirits. But let’s remember that the thing that encouraged Paul the most was that these men were ardent and dedicated “fellow workers in the kingdom of God.” The only way that we can help ourselves and others to stand “fully assured” that all will work out well in the end is to stress the importance of the need to “stand perfect…in all the will of God” (verse 12).
Please read Colossians 4:15-18 for tomorrow.
Have a great day!
- Louie Taylor
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