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Colossians 4:6c – Knowing How

Picture of a man standing in a steel framed box with no walls. (Necker Cube)

[Let your conversation be always full of grace, seasoned with salt,] …so that you may know how to answer everyone.

Summary: Knowing how to answer everyone is both a gift and a skill. Paul’s final word of advice in his letter is that we should “know how to answer everyone.” 

Perhaps you have seen one of those drawings that can be seen in different ways. For example, this first one is called a “Rubin Figure,” named after a Danish psychologist, Edgar Rubin. 

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Colossians 4:6b – Salty Talk

Picture of salt being shaken out of a salt shaker.

[Let your conversation be]…seasoned with salt …

Summary: “Seasoned with salt” is a phrase that sounds interesting but lacks a connection with our modern world. Taking a look at the history of salt in biblical times might help us understand better what Paul meant. 

Let’s begin this meditation with a question asked by Job many thousands of years ago: 

“Can that which is unsavoury be eaten without salt? or is there any taste in the white of an egg?” (Job 6:6, KJV) He goes on to say, “I refuse to touch it; such food makes me ill.”

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Colossians 4:6a – Lessons in Grace

Let your conversation be always full of grace …

Summary: Paul admonishes us to fill our conversations with outsiders with grace. While that sounds simple, understanding what grace means requires some reflection on our Lord Jesus. 

This verse is important because it is the last verse of instruction in Paul’s letter to the Colossians. Everything after this involves personal business. So, let’s savor what this last sentence has to offer. 

The larger context of this passage is how we act towards “others.” My understanding of “others” in this context is people “other than” the believers who are already part of the church body. When Paul says, “Let your conversation be always full of grace …” he is talking about conversations with those who might need more grace. 

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Colossians 4:5b – Opportunity Knocking

Close up picture of an old door knocker in the shape of a lion's head.

… make the most of every opportunity.

Summary: Christian living can be confusing. People have different ideas about what it means to proclaim the Lord. This passage presents us with an opportunity to ponder what Paul is encouraging us to do. 

I have to confess that this passage makes me smile. Making the most of every opportunity sounds like something my dad would have said only he would have been talking about making money, not saving souls. 

As it turns out, this is one of those passages with a lot of variation in how it is translated. For example, the 21st Century King James Version translates the verse this way: 

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Colossians 4:5a – Wisdom

Be wise in the way you act toward outsiders…

Summary: How we act towards people says a lot about us, and it says even more about who or what we serve. 

Unsurprisingly, this passage follows the one before rather closely. To proclaim the Gospel clearly, we need to be “wise” in how we interact with others. 

Notice that Paul doesn’t say, “Be wise in the way you talk to others.” 

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Colossians 4:4 – A Cry for Help

Picture of a plane towing a banner that reads "JESUS SAVES"

Pray that I may proclaim it clearly, as I should.

Summary: Communication is an art form. Over communicating can actually garble the message. Paul asks for prayer to ensure he speaks clearly.

As we look at this passage, the first question is, “What is ‘it’?” If we back up to verse 3, Paul is asking for prayer so “God may open a door for our message ….” The message, of course, is the Gospel (Colossians 1:3-6). 

Paul follows up his request with our passage for this meditation. He wants to “proclaim it clearly.” 

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Colossians 4:3c – The Mystery of Of

Old fashioned typesetters at work with the words "mystery" and "Christ" floating in the air.

… so that we may proclaim the mystery of Christ …

Summary: Sometimes there are mysteries within mysteries. In this passage, we are presented with a mystery that involves language. Why did the translators add to God’s Word? 

You might have noticed that we sort of skipped over part of this verse in our last meditation. The reason is that I thought it might be good to spend some time focusing on the “mystery of Christ.” 

The Greek word for “mystery” is “mystḗrion,” which is very similar to our English word while at the same time sounds even more mysterious! 

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Colossians 4:3b – Unchained

… that God may open a door for our message… for which I am in chains.

Summary: Paul’s prayer request is both an example for us and something to ponder. 

One of the things I marvel at is that unlike Peter, James, John, and others, Jesus didn’t bother to leave any written instructions for us. 

Instead, the life of Jesus is recorded by four men. Only Matthew and John knew Jesus personally. Mark’s Gospel is based on second-hand information as is Luke’s. What sets Luke’s Gospel apart is that Luke was a highly educated man trained in critical thinking. 

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Colossians 4:3a – Thinking of You

Auguste Rodin's "The Thinker," with a "thought balloon" next to it with a smiley face.

And pray for us, too …

Summary: Understanding prayer is difficult because it is at the same time both incredibly simple and ultimately profound. 

If prayer is a state of keeping our mental focus on God, then everything else we think about comes before God, too. 

It is not as if God is not aware of what we think if we put ourselves first. The difference is that God knows we are not thinking about him as we should. 

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Colossians 4:2b – A Praying Attitude

Paint of the Last Supper by Carl Bloch (Public Domain)

[Devote yourselves to prayer,] being watchful and thankful.

Summary: With two simple words Paul ties the topic of prayer to two of the most powerful scenes in the life of Jesus. 

When we devote ourselves to prayer, as Paul says, to “pray without ceasing,”* he tells us to be “watchful and thankful.” 

The Greek word for “watchful” is “grēgoreúō,” meaning the same as the English word. Paul wants us to keep awake and be vigilant. 

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