“We always thank God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, when we pray for you, since we heard of your faith in Christ Jesus and of the love that you have for all the saints” (Colossians 1:3-4).
Did you know that the Apostle Paul never traveled to Colossae? To the church at Colossae, Paul was an unknown. If he showed up at their front door, they would not have recognized him. But something about the church at Colossae caught Paul’s attention. It was something so great that he wanted to introduce himself to them and praise them for it.
It was their love.
The church at Colossae was noted for it’s faith and love. Love is what made the difference in their faith. The church at Ephesus, Colossae’s neighbor, had once lost its love (Revelation 2:4). In fact, Jesus actually said they, “Abandoned” the love they had at first (ESV).
If there is one character trait that you would be known for, what would it be? What is the single thing that marks your reputation? Is it love? In another of Paul’s letters, I Corinthians, Paul noted the overarching importance of love, saying that no matter what he did for the Lord, if he had not love then he was, “Noisy,” and “Nothing.”
Memory Verse
“Faith, hope, and love abide, these three; but the greatest of these is love” (I Corinthians 13:13).
Application
Take a spiritual inventory of your life today. Amongst your attributes, what place has love? How can you express your love for Christ and for others today? What will it take for you to become a person of love?
