Wednesday · Dec 31
Paul and Colossae
The Bible doesn’t say that Paul visited the city of Colossae. But we do know that Epaphras lived there ( Colossians 4:12 ). Epaphras was the first person to share the Good News about Jesus in Colossae ( Colossians 1:7 ). How did Epaphras become a Christian? We don’t know for sure. Maybe Epaphras became a Christian when Paul was in nearby Ephesus, in the a.d. mid-50s. Because of Paul’s “work, every Jew and Greek in Asia heard the word of the Lord” ( Acts 19:10 , ICB; compare Acts 20:31 ).
The book of Revelation also tells us that God’s followers shared the Good News everywhere in Asia ( Revelation 1:4 ). What was the reason for their success? The answer is Paul’s preaching. People first heard Paul’s message in Ephesus. Ephesus was the most important city in Asia Minor and a big seaport. Epaphras heard Paul preach in Ephesus. Epaphras became one of Paul’s coworkers. Then Epaphras went back home to Colossae and shared the Good News there.
The city of Colossae is nine miles (15 kilometers) southeast of Laodicea. Scientists are now starting to dig up Colossae. So, we don’t know much about this city at this time. We do know that as many as 10,000 Jews lived there. Coins from Colossae show that the people there worshiped many gods. So, Christians had a hard time sharing the Good News in Colossae. Also, Christians had a hard time staying loyal to God in that city. Philemon was another Christian who lived in Colossae. Maybe Philemon became a Christian about the same time as Epaphras.
Read Philemon 1:15, 16 . Read also Colossians 4:9 . What did Paul ask Philemon to do for Onesimus?
Roman law said that Paul must send Onesimus back to Philemon. But Paul asked Philemon to be kind to Onesimus. Onesimus was a slave. But Paul asked Philemon to think of Onesimus as his brother in Jesus Christ ( Philemon 1:16 ).
For sure, slavery is evil. We may wish that Paul told Philemon to give Onesimus his freedom. (During slavery in the United States, Ellen G. White told Seventh-day Adventists not to obey the runaway slave law. This law ordered people to send runaway slaves back to their masters.) So, how can we explain Paul’s advice to Philemon?