A Heart’s Encouragement

My beloved friends in Christ,

As we sit with Scripture in hand this morning, sipping our cocoa on a cool morning, I want you to know something of the heart behind these words from the apostle Paul. Writing from prison, burdened for a church he had never visited, he opens the second chapter of his letter to the Colossians with these lines:

“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, 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, in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.” (Colossians 2:1–3, ESV)

Paul’s “struggle” is not mere anxiety. The word he uses carries the weight of an athlete’s contest or a soldier’s conflict—labor that costs something. He is pouring himself out in prayer, in teaching, and in loving concern for people he has only heard about, and for others still farther away. Distance does not diminish his care. In this we see a picture of the pastoral heart Christ Himself forms in His servants: a willingness to contend for the spiritual well-being of others, whether we stand in the same room or are separated by many miles and many years.

What is the aim of that struggle? That hearts would be encouraged. Encouragement here is not empty cheerfulness; it is the strengthening that comes when truth is pressed deeply into the soul. Paul wants their hearts strengthened so that they may be “knit together in love.” The image is of a body being joined and held together, not by external rules or impressive experiences, but by the bond of love. Love is the atmosphere in which real understanding grows. When we are isolated by fear, pride, or division, we become vulnerable to every new teaching that promises something more. When we are knit together in love, we stand firm.

And what are we to reach? “All the riches of full assurance of understanding and the knowledge of God’s mystery, which is Christ.” The Colossian believers were being tempted to look beyond Christ—to philosophy, to special visions, to additional regulations—as if the mystery of God were still waiting to be unlocked by the spiritually elite. Paul insists the opposite: the mystery is Christ Himself. Full assurance does not come from accumulating secret knowledge; it comes from coming to know Christ more deeply. In Him “are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.” The word “hidden” does not mean concealed from us; it means deposited and secured in Him. Everything we need for true wisdom and true knowledge is not scattered across competing systems or reserved for a privileged few. It is all found in the person of Jesus.

This is why Paul labors so earnestly. He is not fighting for their loyalty to himself, but for their confidence in Christ alone. Every false teaching that diminishes Christ or adds to Him ultimately leaves the heart poorer. Only in Him do we find the riches that satisfy.

I invite you to sit with this for a few quiet moments and let it percolate through you as water through coffee grounds.

Reflection questions

• Where in your life right now do you sense the need for your heart to be encouraged and strengthened?
• In what ways has love—love from Christ and love within the body of Christ—held you together when other things threatened to pull you apart?
• Are there places where you have been tempted to look for “something more” beyond Christ, whether in ideas, experiences, or additional rules? How does this passage call you back to Him as the place where all the treasures are found?

Prayer
Father, thank You for the love that knit us to Christ and to one another. Strengthen our hearts today. Give us full assurance that in Your Son are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge, and keep us from looking anywhere else. Knit us more tightly together in love, that we might encourage one another until we see Him face to face. Through Jesus Christ our Lord, Amen.

With affection in Christ,
Your fellow sheep