Introduction
In 1641, a young Puritan pastor named Richard Baxter arrived in the English town of Kidderminster.
When he first stepped into the pulpit, the spiritual condition of the town was bleak.
Baxter later wrote that only a “few families” showed any real interest in the things of Christ.
But Baxter refused to treat ministry as a Sunday-only task.
He preached with clarity and conviction, visited every home in the parish, catechized families one by one, prayed fervently, and lived a life that matched his message.
His goal was simple: to see Christ formed in his people.
Over the next two decades, something remarkable happened.
By Baxter’s own estimate, nearly the entire town—about 2,000 people—was brought under the power of the gospel.
Kidderminster became known throughout England as a model of Christian devotion.
Travelers reported that as they walked the streets on the Lord’s Day, they could hear psalms being sung from house to house.
Family worship became normal.
Charity increased.
Drunkenness declined.
The town itself seemed to breathe a different air.
Baxter didn’t claim credit for this transformation.
He saw himself as a tool in the hands of Christ.
His ministry became a living commentary on Colossians 2:1a, “For I want you to know how great a struggle I have for you.”
When a pastor labors faithfully—preaching Christ, shepherding souls, and praying earnestly—God delights to bring real, lasting change.
Baxter reminds us that the ordinary means of grace, carried out with extraordinary diligence, can reshape an entire community.
Even though Paul never served the Colossian Church, he nevertheless cared deeply for them.
In today’s text, Colossians 2:1-5, Paul shows us how to struggle to bring members of a church to maturity in Christ.
Scripture
Let’s read Colossians 2:1-5:
1 For I want you to know how great a struggle I have for you and for those at Laodicea and for all who have not seen me face to face, 2 that their hearts may be encouraged, being knit together in love, to reach all the riches of full assurance of understanding and the knowledge of God’s mystery, which is Christ, 3 in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge. 4 I say this in order that no one may delude you with plausible arguments. 5 For though I am absent in body, yet I am with you in spirit, rejoicing to see your good order and the firmness of your faith in Christ.
Lesson
Colossians 2:1-5 teaches us that faithful servants of Christ must be devoted to strengthening the members of the church.
Let’s use the following outline:
1. We Must Affirm Believers with Our Love (2:1-2a)
2. We Must Anchor Believers in the Truth (2:2b-3)
3. We Must Alert Believers to Error (2:4)
4. We Must Assure Believers in the Faith (2:5)
I. We Must Affirm Believers with Our Love (2:1-2a)
First, we must affirm believers with our love.
Paul begins by writing in verse 1, “For I want you to know how great a struggle I have for you and for those at Laodicea and for all who have not seen me face to face....”
These verses are more personal and convey Paul’s affection for the Colossians, even though he had not met most of them.
Paul is picturing the Christians in the three towns in the Lycus valley: Colossae, Laodicea, and Hierapolis.
The Greek word for “struggle” (agona) is vivid.
Our English word “agony” comes from this word.
Paul is fighting a hard battle for his Christian friends.
He was in prison.
So he could not visit his friends.
Therefore, he struggled for them in two ways.
First, he struggled for them in prayer.
He could not go to them, but he could pray for them.
William Barclay writes, “When time and distance and circumstance separate us from those whom we long to help, there is always one way left to help them, and that is the way of prayer” (William Barclay, The Letters to Philippians, Colossians, and Thessalonians, 3rd ed. fully rev. and updated, The New Daily Study Bible [Louisville, KY; London: Westminster John Knox Press, 2003], 148).
And second, he struggled for them in faithfulness.
He knew that if he were to become discouraged or even abandon the truth for the sake of his own safety, it would have disastrous consequences for his Christian friends.
Again, Barclay comments, “Our struggle is never for ourselves alone; the honor of Christ is always in our hands, and the faith of others is always in our keeping” (William Barclay, The Letters to Philippians, Colossians, and Thessalonians, 3rd ed. fully rev. and updated, The New Daily Study Bible [Louisville, KY; London: Westminster John Knox Press, 2003], 149).
Sometimes prayer isn’t answered immediately because God wants us to “struggle” on, to see whether we will press on or give in when nothing happens.
But this struggle with our Father is always for our good and never for our harm.
Paul goes on in verse 2a to tell them why he struggles for them: “...that their hearts may be encouraged, being knit together in love.”
Paul’s concern for the Colossians gives us key marks of a faithful church.
First, it should be a church of courageous hearts.
Paul’s prayer is that “their hearts may be encouraged.”
The Greek word for “encouraged” (parakalein) sometimes means “to comfort” and sometimes “to exhort,” but always, behind it, is the idea of enabling a person to meet a difficult situation bravely and with confidence.
Second, it should be a church united together in love.
Without love, there is no real church.
In 1764, John Newton, the former slave-ship captain, became the pastor of a small congregation in Olney, England.
What changed his people wasn’t only his preaching—it was his deep, personal love for them.
Newton visited members constantly, wrote letters of encouragement, prayed with the suffering, and carried the burdens of his flock as if they were his own.
Over time, his congregation grew in unity, joy, and spiritual maturity.
People who had once been cold to the gospel became vibrant believers.
Newton’s church became known as a place where the grace of God was not only proclaimed but embodied.
When a pastor loves his people with Christlike affection, that love becomes a catalyst for real spiritual growth.
II. We Must Anchor Believers in the Truth (2:2b-3)
Second, we must anchor believers in the truth.
Paul told the Colossians that he struggles for them so that they may “reach all the riches of full assurance of understanding and the knowledge of God’s mystery, which is Christ” (Colossians 2:2b).
Another mark that Paul gave of a faithful church is that it should be centered on Christ.
Christ is the reason the church exists, and the church must be focused on him.
In today’s culture, some churches no longer focus on Christ and his truth.
So, what do they focus on?
Some churches are driven more by culture than by Scripture.
Sermons become motivational talks.
Sin is rarely mentioned.
Christ becomes a symbol rather than the Savior.
Other churches become entertainment centers.
The liturgy is focused on performance rather than worship.
The chancel, nave, and narthex become a stage, auditorium, and foyer.
Teaching becomes shallow to avoid offending.
But, dear brothers and sisters, we must be anchored in the truth and in Christ.
We must know Christ, grow in Christ, serve Christ, share Christ, and worship Christ.
Christ must be at the very center of everything we do.
Paul continues to say of Christ in verse 3, “in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.”
Yet another mark of a faithful church is that it is equipped with every kind of wisdom.
The treasures of wisdom and knowledge are hidden in Christ.
“Knowledge” (gnosis) is the power, almost intuitive and instinctive, to grasp the truth when we see it and hear it.
“Wisdom” (sophia) is the power to confirm and to commend the truth with wise and intelligent argument, once it has been intuitively grasped.
Knowledge is that by which people grasp the truth, and wisdom is that by which people are enabled to give a reason for the hope that is in them.
All of this knowledge and wisdom is hidden in Christ.
The word “hidden” (apokruphos) means hidden from the common gaze, and therefore secret.
Paul was attacking the false teachers by using this term.
They were teaching that elaborate knowledge was necessary for salvation.
The false teachers set down that knowledge in books, which they called apokruphos because they were barred to ordinary people.
By using the same word, Paul was saying, “You false teachers say that your wisdom is hidden from ordinary people. We too have our knowledge, but it is not hidden from ordinary people; it is hidden in Christ and therefore freely available to all people everywhere.”
The gospel is not a secret hidden away, but one revealed.
Many of us are by nature gullible.
We hear of a quick way to lose weight, and we try it, only to discover that nothing happens to our bodies.
We hear there is a way to connect with God, but when we try, nothing happens.
We hear of a wonderful investment that will give us an unbelievable return on our money, and when we try it, we discover we lost money instead of making it.
But to anchor yourself in the truth, you must be in Christ.
If you are a Christian, you are in Christ.
You are in union with Christ.
All the treasures of wisdom and knowledge are hidden in Christ.
Christ has not left you helpless.
He has given you his Holy Spirit.
He helps you to grow in Christ.
He helps you to read Christ’s word.
He helps you to study Christ’s word.
He helps you apply Christ’s word to your life so that you can look more like the Christ in whom you dwell.
And the Holy Spirit puts you in the fellowship of believers who are doing the very same thing and who can help anchor you in the truth.
III. We Must Alert Believers to Error (2:4)
Third, we must alert believers to error.
Paul says in verse 4, “I say this in order that no one may delude you with plausible arguments.”
Now, Paul notes the danger the Colossian Christians face.
The false teachers were teaching error.
What they taught sounded like plausible arguments to the Colossian Christians.
Paul did not want anyone to be diverted from the truth of the gospel.
That is why he wrote this letter to the Colossians.
The antidote to the delusion of false teaching is for the believers to grow in their faith.
One commentator rightly said, “Paul believed the best defense against deception is discipleship” (R. Scott Pace, “Colossians,” in Exalting Jesus in Colossians and Philemon, ed. David Platt, Daniel L. Akin, and Tony Merida, Christ-Centered Exposition Commentary[Nashville, TN: Holman Reference, 2021], 520.
What makes false teaching attractive to so many people?
If it is so destructive, how can it be so appealing to people?
Rick Green writes:
“A former policeman … told me about being on duty during an ice storm. The ice was half an inch thick on every tree in the area. He was called to a site where ice and falling branches had brought down a power line; his duty was to keep people away from the area. ‘There was a small tree near the fallen power line,’ he said, ‘the kind with a short trunk and lots of long, thin branches. While that fallen power line crackled and popped with electricity, it was throwing sparks through the branches of that small tree. The sparks would reflect off the ice-covered branches, sending out a rainbow of glimmering colors. I stood there and watched, and wondered how anything so beautiful could be so deadly.’ ” Like any other sin, false teaching can look good and sound good. But a mature believer (one whose faith is grounded in God’s word) can see beyond the outer appearance and discern the truth (Leadership Ministries Worldwide, Practical Illustrations: Galatians, Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians [Chattanooga, TN: Leadership Ministries Worldwide, 2001], 59).
Let me give you one example of false teaching that is becoming widely accepted.
In 1950, gay marriage was illegal in the USA.
There is no polling data to say how many people accepted gay marriage in 1950, but it would have been close to 0%.
Around 2000, about 30% of Americans supported same-sex marriage.
Today, support for same-sex marriage is almost 70%, depending on the poll.
You say, “Well, that may be true of the culture, but that’s not true of the church.”
Not so fast.
Today, 70 to 74% of Roman Catholics support same-sex marriage.
66% of mainline Protestants say that homosexuality should be accepted.
And more than one-third of evangelical Protestants say that homosexuality should be accepted.
Friends, we live in a culture that is lurching into error.
But worse, we live in a time when many churches are drifting from the truth.
That is why your pastors are constantly pleading with you to get into the word of God.
We want you to attend Bible studies so you can learn the truth and avoid error.
We want to alert you to the error so that you will not fall for false teaching.
IV. We Must Assure Believers in the Faith (2:5)
And finally, we must assure believers in the faith.
Paul says in verse 5, “For though I am absent in body, yet I am with you in spirit, rejoicing to see your good order and the firmness of your faith in Christ.”
If Paul were physically present in Colossae, he would deal with the infiltration of false teaching in person.
However, he was not there.
Nevertheless, the Holy Spirit has united both him and the Colossians in Christ (see 1 Corinthians 5:3-5).
Because both are in Christ, Paul is “with [them] in spirit.”
He encourages the Colossians with the good reports he has heard about them.
The Christian community in Colossae was well-ordered in their behavior, and their firm faith in Christ was ground for the apostle’s joy.
These words indicate the congregation was still holding fast to the truth and that the false teaching had not made significant progress in Colossae.
Does your walk with Christ appeal to those who are close to you?
H.G. Bosch shares this story about walking in the Lord:
“Dr. Charles Weigle (the composer of ‘No One Ever Cared For Me Like Jesus’) visited Pasadena, California. Early that morning, he had an opportunity to walk through some of the famous rose gardens when the full fragrance of the flowers filled the air. Later in the day, he arrived at the hotel where a Bible conference was being held. As he took his seat, a man turned to him and said, ‘Dr. Weigle, I know where you’ve been. You toured one of our lovely gardens, for I can smell the pleasing aroma on your clothing.’ My prayer is that I may walk so closely with the Lord that the fragrance of his grace will pervade my being. I want them to know by my words, actions, and songs that I have been with Jesus” (Paul Lee Tan, Encyclopedia of 7,700 Illustrations: Signs of the Times, p. 1570).
If you are in Christ, you are a new creation.
That does not mean that you will have no difficulties in your life.
That does not mean that you will not experience struggles in your life.
What it means is that you have Christ in you and with you to help you through every difficulty and struggle you face.
Earlier this week, I heard Charlie Liebert’s testimony.
He had grown up in the church, but as a teenager, he drifted away.
He eventually became a hardcore, evangelistic atheist.
He got married, had two children, and had a good job.
However, he got into drinking and pornography.
His marriage started to deteriorate.
At age 35, he was invited to a Christian men’s retreat.
At that retreat, he trusted in Christ alone, by faith alone, by God's grace alone, and became a new creation in Christ.
When he went home, his wife was watching television in the living room.
He walked into the living room, and she saw him and said to him, “What happened to you? You look as if you have seen God.”
Charlie’s change was immediate and evident.
Not long after that, his wife became a Christian.
Their marriage healed, and they have gone on to serve Christ in many ways.
We must assure believers in the faith.
Conclusion
In 1872, Charles Simeon became pastor of Holy Trinity Church in Cambridge.
His congregation resisted him from the start—locking their pews, refusing to listen, and even mocking him in public.
But Simeon answered their hostility with patient, Christlike love.
He prayed daily for his people, preached faithfully whether the church was full or nearly empty, and opened his home for discipleship and encouragement.
He visited the sick, comforted the discouraged, and gently guided doubters toward Christ.
Over the years, his steady love softened hard hearts.
The congregation grew in unity, spiritual depth, and missionary zeal.
Students and townspeople alike were strengthened by his example of perseverance and grace.
By the end of his fifty-four-year ministry, Simeon had become a spiritual father to hundreds.
His life shows how a faithful servant of Christ strengthened his church's members.
I pray that God will always give you such faithful servants of Christ. Amen.
