New Testament Scripture: Colossians 1:3-14 1 3 In our prayers for you we always thank God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, 4 for we have heard of your faith in Christ Jesus and of the love that you have for all the saints, 5 because of the hope laid up for you in heaven. You have heard of this hope before in the word of the truth, the gospel 6 that has come to you. Just as it is bearing fruit and growing in the whole world, so it has been bearing fruit among yourselves from the day you heard it and truly comprehended the grace of God. 7 This you learned from Epaphras, our beloved fellow servant. He is a faithful minister of Christ on our behalf, 8 and he has made known to us your love in the Spirit. 9 For this reason, since the day we heard it, we have not ceased praying for you and asking that you may be filled with the knowledge of God’s will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding, 10 so that you may walk worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing to him, as you bear fruit in every good work and as you grow in the knowledge of God. 11 May you be made strong with all the strength that comes from his glorious power, so that you may have all endurance and patience, joyfully 12 giving thanks to the Father, who has enabled you to share in the inheritance of the saints in the light. 13 He has rescued us from the power of darkness and transferred us into the kingdom of his beloved Son, 14 in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins. The Word of the Lord. Thanks be to God.
Colossae was a small city in what is now modern-day Turkey. It was not a major city but made up of Gentile and Jewish believers. The church likely began when Epaphras heard the gospel through Paul’s ministry in Ephesus and took the message back home to Colossae. It is likely that Paul never visited this city, but that Epaphras came to visit Paul in prison and told him of the church in Colossae. The church in Colossae was being tempted to turn away from Jesus by a combination of mystical polytheism and observing the laws of the Torah. These new Christians grew up worshipping a variety of Greek gods who govern different parts of human life and Jesus was just another god to worship. Then there was tremendous pressure to commit to the laws in the Torah to complete their commitment to the Messiah. These false teachings caused division and confusion about the authority and sufficiency of Jesus. So Paul wrote this letter to reinforce the greatness of Jesus, to encourage the church to ground themselves in the true gospel, and to 2 correct all the false teachings they were being exposed to by reminding them of who Jesus was and what he did on behalf of all humankind. Paul addresses the church, the one he has never met, as siblings in Christ. This highlights the connectedness of the larger family of God. Paul didn’t need to know them to understand that because they share the belief in Jesus Christ, they share in the family of God. Paul also doesn’t start by shaming or wagging his finger at them but by giving thanks to God for their faith, love, and hope. He is grateful for their faith in Jesus Christ, their love for all people, and that they have put their hope in someone greater than the things of the world. They have put their trust in Jesus and are learning to live that out as a young church. They are not just believing the right things, but practicing a new kind of life — one shaped by love, community, and the will of God. Paul wants to first remind them of who they are. Isn’t this where we should all begin? When we are faced with a discussion or begin to question who we are, we need to be reminded that we are God’s children. That we are made by a loving God and filled with God’s love through the Spirit. This practice grounds us, refocuses us, and can help dispel any myths that come from ourselves or others that try to convince us of any other truth. Paul celebrates that the gospel is “bearing fruit and growing” among them — not just in their hearts, but in their relationships. “You have heard of this hope in the word of truth, the gospel… which is bearing fruit and growing throughout the whole world.” When the gospel takes root, it changes how people treat each other. It creates a community of love. This church is amazing at showing up for others, not because they are told to but because they notice and they care. I see this in our pastor’s aide ministry that visits church members at home. They show up each month to make sure those who can not make it to church regularly or at all and those who have experienced loss see the love of Jesus through their church. I see this in our young parents who step up to support one another from providing dinner to new parents, to helping carpool others’ children around, to making time to simply check in and be with one another. 3 I see this in the Presbyterian Women who gather monthly to share wisdom and grow in their understanding of what it means to be faithful followers of Jesus. They don’t just stop at studying the Word but practicing it. They see a need, no matter how great or small, and together find a way to meet it and they send cards to other women encouraging them when they are going through difficult times. I see this when we give the church an opportunity to help those in need through the Angel Tree or an emergency food drive for DEAM, you show up. In just a few weeks, all but 3 angels have been sponsored. A week ago we announced that DEAM needed help in stocking their pantry with so many more folks in need of help with basic necessities and you all came through with so much love and food. The church members and preschool donated 2 carloads of food weighing 492 pounds with more to come! This is the kind of love Paul is talking about — the kind that naturally grows when the gospel takes hold of hearts. You can’t manufacture that kind of community; it’s the fruit of Christ living in us. Christian community is where we learn love — not in theory, but in practice. We show up at church each week, study scripture, sing hymns, and pray which are so important but we can’t stop there. We have to practice what we have heard and believe to be true out in the real world. Over time we slowly begin to reflect Jesus, together. We don’t learn love in isolation — we learn it by living it. Paul prays that they will be filled with the knowledge of God’s will “in all spiritual wisdom and understanding,” so that they may live lives worthy of the Lord. Knowing God’s will isn’t about mastering information; it’s about transformation. It’s not something you memorize — it’s something you live. When I first learned to drive, I read the manual and watched the videos — I knew all the facts about driving. But none of that prepared me for sitting behind the wheel at a busy intersection for the first time! It wasn’t until I actually drove — until I backed into a mailbox, got honked at, got lost trying to find my destination, and tried again — that I truly learned how to drive. Following Jesus is the same way. We don’t learn His way by just reading about it. We learn it by living it — by forgiving someone who wronged us, by serving someone in need, by choosing kindness when anger would be easier. It’s through practice that our hearts begin to understand what God’s will really looks like. 4 Paul prays that they would be “strengthened with all power… so that you may have great endurance and patience.” This life of love isn’t easy. There are misunderstandings, disappointments, and sacrifices. But God gives us strength to endure and joy to keep going. This is a promise that we can hold on to even in our despair- God is always going to be with us. There are seasons when we cannot imagine that things will get better or that we will ever come out on the other side, but during that process we can trust not only that God is present but that we are learning more about how to discern God’s will for us. And as we practice this new way of life together, we discover something: the more we walk in love, the more we experience the life of Christ Himself. We get an opportunity to come together as a church family and learn from one another. Not coming with an agenda or with the intent to change the hearts and minds of the others, but we come together because we respect one another and we share the same goal of faithfully following Jesus. The Spirit moves within us as we discern a way forward together. We won’t always get it right, we will learn by living. We will learn what it looks like to really listen, to forgive, encourage, and love each other as God desires. Paul ends with this powerful reminder: “He has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son He loves.” This isn’t just about being forgiven — it’s about being transformed into a whole new way of living. A life marked by love, gratitude, and light. And this new life can only be learned by living it — day by day, moment by moment, in the company of others who are learning too. To follow Jesus means to learn His way — a way of love, patience, and community. It’s not a solo journey, and it’s not something we can master from a distance. We learn it by walking it together, strengthened by His Spirit, filled with His love, and guided by His will. So may we, like the Colossians, be rooted in faith, overflow with love, and live out the will of God, learning it by living it, one step at a time.
Benediction 5 Learning God’s will and living in God’s way is not just information we take in but something we have to practice each day. We are made to live in community, not just a community of like minds but a community of believers who might not always agree but who are committed to the journey to grow in the ways of Jesus. Go out from this place rooted in faith, overflowing with love, living out the will of God by living it, one step at a time. May the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ and the love of God and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all, this day and in all the days to come. Amen.
Rev. Emily Wilmesherr
Decatur Presbyterian Church, Decatur GA
November 16, 2025
