Colossians

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July 19, 2026

Walk in Christ – Colossians 2:6-7

Walk in Christ

Colossians 2:6-7

In our study of Colossians, we have seen that the apostle Paul is writing from prison in Rome to a young church in the city of Colossae. The gospel had been preached there by a servant of Christ named Epaphras (Col. 1:7; 4:12). Sinners were led to believe in the Lord Jesus Christ, and a growing and fruitful church was planted there. Epaphras traveled to Rome and gave a report to Paul of their faith in Christ, their love for the all the saints, and their hope in heaven (Col. 1:4-5).

Paul had never met the Colossians (Col. 2:1), but the report he received stirred up his pastoral concern for them. There was trouble on the horizon for this young church. They were in danger from deceptive errors that minimized the person and work of Jesus Christ. Paul warned them in Colossians 2:4 about those who would try to “deceive you with persuasive words.” And right after our passage today, Paul warns: “Beware lest anyone cheat you through philosophy and empty deceit, according to the tradition of men, according to the basic principles of the world, and not according to Christ.” (Col. 2:8).

Colossians 2:6-7 concisely encapsulate the message of Colossians, summarizing Paul’s teaching in the first part of the letter and pointing to Paul’s instructions in the later part of the letter. In these verses, Paul gives one imperative that drives his instructions: “walk in Him” (Col. 2:6).

Richard Sipes / Sermons / Colossians / 0

July 12, 2026

Protecting the Church – Colossians 2:1-5

Protecting the Church

Colossians 2:1-5

When we looked in Colossians 1, we saw how the church was grounded in the gospel truth of the person and work of Jesus Christ. We saw who Christ is as the image of the invisible God, the creator and sustainer of all things. He is the reconciler of all things and the head of the church, so that He has preeminence in all things. We saw His work of reconciliation by the blood of His cross. We saw Christ’s work through the labor and struggle of His servants in the church, preaching, warning, and teaching to present everyone mature in Christ. Jesus Christ the central focus of everything.

Now, in Colossians 2, having laid the foundation of truth in Christ, Paul focuses on guarding the church from error. Colossians 1 grounds the church in truth, Colossians 2 guards the church from error.

Richard Sipes / Sermons, Uncategorized / Church, Colossians / 0

July 5, 2026

Christ-Centered Discipleship – Colossians 1:28-29

Christ-Centered Discipleship

Colossians 1:28-29

It’s a joy to come again to Paul’s letter to the Colossians. We have seen already in Colossians 1 that Colossians is a Christ-centered book. To protect the Colossians from false teaching that was invading the church, Paul focuses on the supremacy of Christ and the sufficiency His atoning work on the cross. We saw the centrality of the gospel of Christ in Paul’s thanksgiving (Col. 1:3-8) and prayer (Col. 1:9-14). We saw the preeminence of the person and work of Christ in Colossians 1:15-23. And we saw that Christ was central to service or ministry in the church (Col. 1:24-27).

Now in Colossians 1:28-29, Paul emphasizes the centrality of Christ in the church’s discipleship. Paul does not use the word disciple or discipleship in these verses, but that is what he is describing.

Richard Sipes / Sermons / Colossians, Discipleship / 0

June 28, 2026

Servant of the Gospel – Colossians 1:24-27

Servant of the Gospel

Colossians 1:24-27

Who is Jesus Christ? Is Christ enough for salvation? How should our relationship with Him affect our daily lives? Paul’s letter to the Colossians answers these questions. Today, we pick up this letter at Colossians 1:24, where Paul describes his work as a servant of the gospel. He had just reminded the Colossian believers of Christ’s work of reconciliation accomplished through His death on the cross and revealed in the gospel (Col. 1:2-23). Now, Paul continues with the theme of the gospel and what it means for him to be a servant of the gospel.

Richard Sipes / Sermons / Colossians / 0

June 14, 2026

Reconciliation: Reality and Responsibility – Colossians 1:21-23

Reconciliation: Reality and Responsibility

Colossians 1:21-23

John Murray (1898–1975), a preacher from Scotland, taught systematic theology at Westminster Theological Seminary (WTS) from 1930 until his retirement in 1965. His book Redemption Accomplished and Applied was originally published in 1955 and has been reprinted dozens of times over the years. In it, Murray biblically explains the two sides of redemption—how Christ accomplished redemption by His atoning death and resurrection, and how redemption is applied to the lives of believers.

Christ has accomplished redemption, or to use the term found in Colossians 1, Christ has accomplished reconciliation by His substitutionary atonement for sins. But in order for that accomplished redemption to be effective, it must be applied in the life of the sinner. Unless Christ accomplished reconciliation, it could never be applied. But unless it is applied, what good does it accomplish? Christ has accomplished reconciliation on the cross and He applied it to us by faith. Another way to say this is that reconciliation is both a reality and a responsibility.

Richard Sipes / Sermons / Colossians, Reconciliation / 0

June 7, 2026

The Supreme Savior – Colossians 1:19-20

The Supreme Savior

Colossians 1:19-20

In this opening chapter of Colossians, Paul gave thanks to God for the faith and love of the Colossian believers because of their hope in the gospel (Col1:3-8). Then, by his prayers for them to be filled with the knowledge of God’s will and to walk worthy of the Lord, the apostle encouraged them to joyfully give thanks for what the Father has done for them in Christ (Col. 1:9-14). This included being delivered from Satan’s rule of darkness, being transferred into the kingdom of the Son of His love, and having redemption, “the forgiveness of sins” (Col. 1:14).

But this saving work of God rests on two things: the Person of Christ and the Work of Christ. Our redemption and forgiveness of sins depend on the qualifications of the Savior whose work accomplished redemption and forgiveness. So the apostle devoted Colossians 15-20 to describing who this “Son of God’s love” is and what He has done. As we saw last time, in Colossians 1:15-18 Paul gave a powerful description of the person of Christ. In relation to the Father, Jesus is the image of the invisible God (Col. 1:15a). In relation to the creation, Jesus is the creator and sustainer of all things (Col. 1:15b-17). And in relation to the new creation, Christ Jesus is the head of the church and firstborn from the dead (Col. 1:18). All of this proves the preeminence of Jesus Christ over all things.

Now in Colossians 1:19-20, he moves to a powerful description of the work of Christ.

Richard Sipes / Sermons / Colossians, Jesus Christ, Reconciliation / 0

May 24, 2026

The Genuine Jesus Christ – Colossians 1:15-18

The Genuine Jesus Christ

Colossians 1:15-18

It’s been said that the best way to spot a counterfeit is to truly know the genuine thing. The best way to recognize counterfeit money or a counterfeit painting is to thoroughly and accurately know the original. It’s the same way with any false teaching about Jesus Christ. The Colossian church was in danger from false teaching about Jesus Christ and the salvation that He gives. Most false teaching, then and now, distorts either the person or the work of Christ, or both. And so, Paul’s solution to the false teaching in Colosse was to remind them of the truth about who Christ is and what He has done. That’s what we find in Colossians 1:15-20.

Richard Sipes / Sermons / Colossians, Jesus Christ / 0

May 17, 2026

Rescued! – Colossians 1:12-14

Rescued!

Colossians 1:12-14

In early April 2026, U.S. forces conducted a daring, two-day operation to rescue two Air Force crew members from the 494th Fighter Squadron whose F-15E Strike Eagle was shot down over western Iran. They rescued pilot quickly in the daylight. But the weapons systems officer had to evade capture for 36–48 hours in the Zagros Mountains before being extracted. Navy SEAL Team 6 and other special operations forces executed a nighttime rescue, utilizing MH-6 Little Bird helicopters and MC-130J aircraft. The CIA conducted a deception campaign to confuse Iranian forces regarding the officer’s location, while A-10 Warthogs provided air cover. They successfully rescued the airman and treated him for injuries. It was an amazing rescue story.

Even more amazing is the story of our rescue from sin, because the Lord rescues not those who were on His side, but He rescues His enemies and those who rebelled against His rightful authority.

Richard Sipes / Sermons / Colossians, Forgiveness, Redemption / 0

May 10, 2026

Purposeful Prayer – Colossians 1:9-12

Purposeful Prayer

Colossians 1:9-12

In Paul’s letter to the Colossians, he intends for his readers to know the preeminence and sufficiency of our Lord Jesus Christ in all things so that they would live Christ-centered lives. Last time, we saw that Paul gave thanks to God for the Colossians’ faith and love, because of the hope which they heard and believed in the gospel (Col. 1:3-8). Now, in Colossians 1:9-12, Paul continues praying for this church, moving from thanking God for the work of the gospel to praying for their spiritual growth in Christ.

When you pray, who do you pray for, and what do you pray for? If God answered “yes” to all the prayers you prayed this last week, what would God have done? Would His kingdom be advanced? Would the lost be saved? Would you and other believers be more like Christ? Would our church be more fruitful? Would we know God more deeply? Would we live to please the Lord? Would we be stronger in the face of trouble? Would we be more assured of our salvation?

Paul is writing this letter to the Colossian Christians while he is in prison. Paul had not even met many of these believers, and yet here we find him praying for their spiritual growth. In our passage, Paul gives the reason why he prays for them, the nature of his prayers, the request that he makes to God for them, the desired outcome of that prayer, and the means by which God will fulfill it.

Richard Sipes / Sermons / Colossians, Prayer / 0

May 3, 2026

A Church to Thank God For – Colossians 1:3-8

A Church to Thank God For

Colossians 1:3-8

After nearly 20 years of ministry preaching the gospel of Christ and planting churches all over the eastern Mediterranean, the apostle Paul sat imprisoned in Rome. From there, he wrote his “prison epistles”. One of these he sent to the church at Colosse—a church he only knew secondhand, and yet, as we will see in our passage today, a church for which Paul was truly grateful to God. But it was also a church that was facing heretical attacks on the supremacy and sufficiency of Christ. This type of heresy would later become known as Gnosticism, emphasizing an elite, special knowledge (gnosis), and denying the deity and saving work of Jesus.

Thus, the theme of Colossians is the preeminence and all-sufficiency of Jesus Christ. Paul’s intention was that by “warning every man and teaching every man in all wisdom, that we may present every man perfect in Christ Jesus,” (Col. 1:28). He said wanted them to understand that “Christ is all and in all,” (Col. 3:11) and that “you are complete in Him” (Col. 2:10).

Last time, we saw how Paul opened the letter by greeting the church, emphasizing the authority of his apostleship by the will of God and the identity of the church as saints and faithful brethren in Christ (Col. 1:1-2). Now, in the first part of the body of the letter, Paul begins where he so often begins in his letters—with a word of thanksgiving to God (Col. 1:3-8)

Richard Sipes / Sermons / Church, Colossians / 0