Opening Greeting (Colossians 1:1-2)
‘Paul, an Apostle of Jesus Christ, through the will of God, and Timothy our brother, to the saints and faithful brothers in Christ at Colossae.'
As usual Paul begins by stating his credentials. He is an Apostle of Christ Jesus. When Jesus was preparing for the future ministry of His followers He selected from among them twelve whom He called Apostles (Luke 6:13; see also Matthew 10:2-4; Mark 3:13-19). The word means ‘those sent forth' and can mean simply duly appointed messengers, but here it had the technical sense of those especially selected by Christ Himself to be witnesses to His life and teaching. It was in this sense that Paul also claimed Apostleship, on the same level as the twelve, as the Apostle to the Gentiles, a status accepted by Peter and the other Apostles (Galatians 2:7-9; 1 Corinthians 9:1; 1 Corinthians 9:5; 2 Corinthians 12:11-12; 1 Thessalonians 2:6).
‘Through the will of God.' Paul stresses that his Apostleship was not man made, nor even by his own choice, but directly within the will of God. It was He Who had chosen Him and set him apart from his birth to be an Apostle (Galatians 1:15) as He had with the Servant of the Lord (Isaiah 49:1; Isaiah 49:5) and Jeremiah before him (Jeremiah 1:5).
‘And Timothy our brother.' Timothy has clearly grown to a stature whereby he can be linked with Paul in greeting (whereas other important men are not - Colossians 4:10-14). It would seem that he was well known to the Colossians for he is not mentioned in Ephesians, which was probably intended for a number of churches, and was written around the same time. ‘Our brother.' Not an Apostle but to be accepted as ‘a brother'. The early church had a deep sense of being a family. (For Timothy see Acts 16:1 on; Philippians 2:19-22; and the letters to Timothy).
‘To the saints' (hagioi). This describes all those who belong to Christ and are members of His church. They are ‘sanctified (hegiasmenoi) in Christ' (1Co 1:2; 1 Corinthians 6:11; Hebrews 2:11; Hebrews 10:10; Hebrews 10:14) and therefore ‘saints' (sanctified ones). They are ‘set apart' as His for a holy purpose (the main significance of the word ‘sanctify'), indwelt by His Holy Spirit, and separated to His use. It is noteworthy that earlier letters are addressed to churches as such but that Paul later moves to the more personal address as here.
‘And faithful brothers in Christ at Colossae.' This indicates that while entry into the blessing of Christ is by faith, evidence of it is found in faithfulness. The words that follow are spoken to those who faithfully follow Him. Note the final ‘in Christ'. It is in Him, and only in Him, that all blessing is found, and it is He alone Who can keep us faithful.
Colossians 1:2, ‘Grace to you and peace from God our Father.'
‘Grace to you.' Nothing can be more desirable than to have God looking on us and acting towards us in love and favour, and this is what is signified by grace. It is the undeserved love and consequent saving activity of God. Thus Paul wants the Colossians to know that he desires for them only that they enjoy the experience of the grace of God, something which does not need to be earned but is freely given..
‘And peace.' Peace results from grace, but the kind of peace mentioned here is also God's gift, flowing from Him to us. Once we know that we are right with God, and experience His graciousness towards us, we have peace with God (Romans 5:1), so that we are flooded with His peace (Galatians 5:22) and enjoy such peace, prosperity and success of spirit that our hearts can only overflow. For, however things may seem to smile on us, if God is not pleased with us, we cannot fully know peace. The very foundation then of peace in our hearts is the favour of God, by which we enjoy true and genuine prosperity of spirit through the work of His Spirit, and find the peace of God which passes all understanding guarding our thoughts and hearts (Philippians 4:7). This is what Paul wished for, and prayed for, for the Colossians.
‘From God our Father.' His words to them come from the One Who is over all, but Who is especially their Father. In the first century this would convey the idea of a rather austere figure, a figure of authority as well as that of tenderness.
Usually Paul links ‘and the Lord Jesus Christ' or similar in his greeting, and later manuscripts include it here. But this reading is probably the original, if only because of its uniqueness. Possibly he has in mind what he is about to write and does not want to pre-empt it.