Answer: Epaphras
"All over the world this gospel is bearing fruit and growing, just as it has been doing among you since the day you heard it and understood God's grace in all its truth. You learned it from Epaphras, our dear fellow servant, who is a faithful minister of Christ on our behalf, and who also told us of your love in the Spirit." (Colossians 1:6-8)
Epaphras was probably a disciple of Paul and established the church at Colosse. Paul wrote this letter after Epaphras brought him a report that superstitious observances and human philosophies were obscuring the gospel at this church.
"See to it that no one takes you captive through hollow and deceptive philosophy, which depends on human tradition and the basic principles of this world rather than on Christ." (Colossians 2:8)
From Quiz: BBB Bible Series: Colossians
Answer: Paul
It says in Colossians 1:1, "Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ by the will of God, and Timotheus our brother."
The book of Colossians is a letter, probably written by Paul, to the church of Colossae.
From Quiz: Colossians
Answer: Laodicea and Hierapolis
"Epaphras, who is one of you and a servant of Christ Jesus, sends greetings. He is always wrestling in prayer for you, that you may stand firm in all the will of God, mature and fully assured. I vouch for him that he is working hard for you and for those at Laodicea and Hierapolis." (Colossians 4 v. 12-13)
Colossae lay in the Lycus valley about twelve miles from both Laodicea and Hierapolis. This area forms part of the territory known as Phrygia, referred to in Luke's account of the Day of Pentecost (Acts 2 v. 10). Colossae and Hierapolis were located close to abundant supplies of water, cold water in Colossae's case and hot springs at Hierapolis. Laodicea, in contrast, developed at an intersection of trade routes and had no natural water source. Water had to be piped or carried into the town and was usually lukewarm when it arrived. This may lie behind the words used in Revelation:
"To the angel of the church in Laodicea write:
These are the words of the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the ruler of God's creation. I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot. I wish you were either one or the other! So, because you are lukewarm - neither hot nor cold - I am about to spit you out of my mouth" (Revelation 3 v. 14-16).
From Quiz: Quizzing the New Testament: Colossians
Answer: The invisible God
"He [Christ] is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. For by him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things were created by him and for him. He is before all things, and in him all things hold together." (Colossians 1:15-17)
One of the teachings Paul was refuting was the false worship and veneration of angels. One statement in these teachings was that angels created the earth and Christ was one of those angels. In this verse "firstborn" refers to Christ's position and privilege as God's son rather than his birth order.
From Quiz: BBB Bible Series: Colossians
Answer: to show that Christ is "preeminent" or "above" all things
Paul's greeting is followed by an unusually lengthy thanksgiving and prayer for the believers at Colosse. He states that he wants them to come to a deeper understanding of Christ's power and person. Paul assures the Gentile readers that although he has not personally met them, he still desires for them to become deeply rooted in Christ ALONE. He then presents three major themes that he feels that the church needs to hear.
First, he points to Christ's primary place in creation. Next, he speaks of Christ's preeminence in redemption. Finally, he demonstrates Christ's preeminence in the church.
From Quiz: A Letter to the Churches of the Lycus Valley
Answer: pray
It says in Colossians 1:9, "For this cause we also, since the day we heard it, do not cease to pray for you, and to desire that ye might be filled with the knowledge of his will in all wisdom and spiritual understanding."
Many people in the world pray and there are many different ways in which people pray.
From Quiz: Colossians
Answer: Epaphras
"All over the world this gospel is bearing fruit and growing, just as it has been doing among you since the day you heard it and understood God's grace in all its truth. You learned it from Epaphras, our dear fellow servant, who is a faithful minister of Christ on our behalf, and who also told us of your love in the Spirit." (Colossians 1 v. 6-8)
Apart from Colossians, the only other reference to Epaphras in the New Testament is in Paul's letter to Philemon. There, Epaphras is described as being imprisoned alongside Paul. This probably coincides with the time that Paul is writing to the Colossians and would explain how he had come to know about them.
From Quiz: Quizzing the New Testament: Colossians
Answer: Christ
"Christ is the visible image of the invisible God. He existed before God made anything at all and is supreme over all creation. Christ is the one through whom God created everything in heaven and earth. He made the things we can see and the things we can't see - kings, kingdoms, rulers, and authorities. Everything has been created through him and for him. He existed before everything else began, and he holds all creation together." 1:15-17
From Quiz: Paul's Letter to the Colossians
Answer: nailed it to the cross
"When you were dead in your sins and in the uncircumcision of your sinful nature, God made you alive with Christ. He forgave us all our sins, having canceled the written code, with its regulations, that was against us and that stood opposed to us; he took it away, nailing it to the cross." (Colossians 2:13-14)
Another false teaching in the church at Colosse was that Jewish law, in particular the requirement of circumcision, had to be kept by Christians to receive the benefit of their salvation. Paul refuted this teaching by stating that traditional Jewish law was canceled by Christ's death on the cross and Christ's sacrificial death was sufficient for the forgiveness of all believers' sins.
From Quiz: BBB Bible Series: Colossians
Answer: Christ, the Son of God
In 1:12-15 we see that Jesus is the firstborn of every creature, and in verses
16-18 that he was present during the creation of all things. Paul writes that He was the purpose of the creation because all things were created by Him and for Him, and that He has prepared eternal life and happiness for His people, just as He had provided an inheritance and a Promised Land for the Israelites of old.
God gives grace and glory and we are told in v. 12 what that glory is. It is the "inheritance of the saints in light".
Christians believe that, as children, (born-again believers) of God, they receive an inheritance from their Father, just as children are provided for by their earthly fathers.
From Quiz: A Letter to the Churches of the Lycus Valley
