Real People in a Real Town, Really trying to Follow Jesus
- Thad DeBuhr
- 1 day ago
- 17 min read
Study Guide: Intro to Colossians
Most of us know what it feels like to be overlooked.
Maybe you grew up in a small town people only knew because it was “near” some bigger city. Maybe you worked in a place where the important people got attention and everyone else just kept things running. Maybe you have felt like your life was not big enough, loud enough, or impressive enough to matter.
Colossae was that kind of place.
By the time Paul wrote this letter, Colossae was not the famous city in the area. It was not the place everyone wanted to visit. It was not the place people were talking about. Nearby Laodicea and Hierapolis had become more important. Colossae was fading.
And yet Paul wrote them a letter.
That should make us pause.
Paul was in prison. He had never even visited Colossae. The city was not famous. The church was likely small. But Paul still cared deeply about what was happening there.
Why?
Because real people in a real city were really trying to follow Jesus.
They were trying to stay faithful while living in a world full of mixed messages. Some voices told them Jesus was good, but not enough. Others pushed rules, special experiences, spiritual secrets, and cultural pressure.
Paul writes to pull them back to the center.
And that center is Jesus.
Colossae may feel far away from us. Ancient Phrygia may sound strange. But the struggle is very familiar.
How do we keep Jesus at the center when everything around us wants to pull Him to the side?
That is why Colossians still matters.
As you go through the study guide, I would suggest reading or listening to the Bible passages in two different bible translations from this list: NIV, NLT, NASB, ESV, NKJV
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Setting the Scene
Colossians is a letter written by Paul to a church in the city of Colossae.
Paul opens the letter this way:
“Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, and Timothy our brother, to the saints and faithful brothers and sisters in Christ at Colossae.”See Colossians 1:1–2.
Right away, we learn three important things.
Paul is the author. Timothy is with him. And the letter is written to real believers living in a real place called Colossae.
Colossae was in the ancient region of Phrygia, in what is now western Turkey. It sat in the Lycus Valley, near Laodicea and Hierapolis. Those three cities were close enough that the churches knew about each other. Paul even mentions Laodicea and Hierapolis later in the letter when he talks about Epaphras praying hard for all three places. See Colossians 4:13.
Colossae had once been more important, but by Paul’s day it was past its prime. Laodicea was wealthier. Hierapolis was better known. Colossae was becoming the overlooked city in the neighborhood.
That background matters.
The people in Colossae lived in a place where many ideas mixed together. There were local Phrygian traditions, Greek ideas, Roman power, Jewish influence, and many spiritual beliefs.
This was not a simple world. It was a blended world.
That helps us understand why Paul writes the way he does.
He is not writing to people in a quiet bubble. He is writing to believers surrounded by competing voices.
Some people were pushing special spiritual knowledge.
Some were focused on rules about food, days, and rituals.
Some were fascinated with angels, visions, and spiritual experiences.
Some were mixing Jesus with whatever ideas sounded wise or powerful.
Paul does not answer by giving them one more spiritual add-on.
He gives them Jesus.
Again and again, Paul shows them that Jesus is not one spiritual option among many. Jesus is Lord over all. Jesus holds everything together. Jesus is enough.
That becomes one of the main ideas of the whole letter.
Summary of the TEACHING
In the live podcast, we did not start by jumping straight into commands or applications. We slowed down and asked better background questions.
Who wrote this letter?
Where was Colossae?
Why would Paul write to people he had never met?
What was happening in their world?
What was going right?
What was going wrong?
Those questions help us read Colossians more carefully. They keep us from treating the letter like random inspirational quotes. Colossians was written into a real situation. When we understand that situation, the letter becomes much clearer.
1. Paul Wrote the Letter, But He Had Probably Never Been There
Paul identifies himself as the author in Colossians 1:1.
This letter was likely written while Paul was in prison. Many believe it was written around AD 60–62, during the same general period as Ephesians, Philippians, and Philemon.
That means Paul is not writing from comfort. He is writing while limited, watched, and confined.
But even from prison, Paul is still pastoring people.
That is worth noticing.
Paul could not visit every place. He could not be in every room. But he could still teach, encourage, warn, and pray.
What makes Colossians especially interesting is that Paul seems to say he had not personally met many of these believers. In Colossians 2:1, he talks about those who had not seen him face to face.
So how did Paul know about them?
The answer seems to be Epaphras.
2. Epaphras Was the Connection
Epaphras is one of the key people in the background of Colossians.
Paul mentions him in Colossians 1:7–8. He calls him a faithful servant of Christ and says Epaphras told Paul about the Colossians’ love in the Spirit.
Later, in Colossians 4:12–13, Paul says Epaphras is “one of you.” That means he was likely from Colossae or closely connected to that church. Paul also says Epaphras was always struggling in prayer for them.
That tells us a lot.
Epaphras was not just a messenger. He cared deeply about these people.
A likely picture is this: Epaphras heard Paul teach during Paul’s time in Ephesus. Acts 19 tells us Paul spent a long time teaching in Ephesus, and the message spread across the whole region of Asia. Epaphras may have heard the message there, trusted Jesus, and then carried that message back to Colossae.
So Paul may not have planted the church in Colossae directly.
But his teaching helped shape the person who did.
That makes the Colossian believers something like Paul’s spiritual grandchildren.
Paul did not know them face to face, but he still had a deep responsibility to help them grow.
3. Colossae Was Small, But It Still Mattered
Colossae was not the star city of the region.
Laodicea was wealthy. Hierapolis was known for its hot springs. Colossae had history, but by Paul’s day it was fading.
A major earthquake later struck the region. Ancient sources clearly tell us Laodicea was badly damaged and rebuilt from its own wealth. Colossae seems to have declined even more over time. Today, unlike Laodicea and Hierapolis, Colossae has not been fully excavated.
That means there is a lot we do not know.
But here is what we do know: Paul wrote to them.
That alone tells us something important.
The church does not matter because the city is famous. The church matters because Jesus is at work among His people.
Paul does not treat Colossae like a forgotten place. He treats them like family.
That matters for us too.
Sometimes we think important ministry only happens in famous cities, large churches, big conferences, or popular platforms. But Colossians reminds us that Jesus sees small places. Jesus sees unknown people. Jesus sees quiet faithfulness.
The believers in Colossae mattered.
So do the believers in small towns, RV parks, living rooms, campsites, online groups, and places no one else notices.
4. The Church Was Doing Many Things Right
Paul does not begin by attacking them. He begins with gratitude.
In Colossians 1:3–8, Paul thanks God for their faith in Christ Jesus and their love for all God’s people. He says the gospel is bearing fruit and growing among them.
That is a beautiful picture.
The church was not dead.
They were not fake.
They were not a disaster.
They had real faith.
They had visible love.
The message of Jesus was changing lives.
This is important because sometimes we assume correction means failure.
But that is not how Paul handles it.
Paul can be thankful and concerned at the same time.
He can celebrate what is good while still warning them about danger.
That is a wise way to care for people.
It is possible to say, “I see your faith. I see your love. I see God at work. And because I care about you, I want to help you avoid what could pull you away from Jesus.”
That is what Paul is doing.
5. The Main Problem: Jesus Was Being Crowded Out
The biggest problem in Colossae was not that people were openly rejecting Jesus.
The problem was more subtle.
They were being tempted to add things to Jesus.
Jesus was becoming part of a crowded spiritual life instead of the center of everything.
That is dangerous because it sounds spiritual at first.
People might say:
Jesus is good, but you also need special knowledge.
Jesus is good, but you also need these rules.
Jesus is good, but you also need this spiritual experience.
Jesus is good, but you also need this philosophy.
Jesus is good, but you also need this tradition.
Paul’s answer is clear.
No.
Jesus is not a starting point you move beyond. Jesus is not one piece of the puzzle. Jesus is not one voice in a crowd.
Paul says that in Jesus, “all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell.” See Colossians 1:19.
He also says that in Jesus “are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.” See Colossians 2:3.
That means the deepest wisdom is not found by moving away from Jesus. It is found by going deeper into Jesus.
6. Some Were Chasing Special Knowledge
Colossians 2:2–4 gives us a clue that some people were being tempted by claims of special insight or impressive arguments.
Paul says he wants them to know Christ, “in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.” Then he says, “I say this so that no one may deceive you by fine-sounding arguments.”
That tells us the danger was not obvious nonsense.
It probably sounded wise.
It sounded deep.
It sounded impressive.
That is often how false teaching works.
It does not always come dressed like rebellion. Sometimes it comes dressed like depth.
The message may have sounded like:
Ordinary believers know the basics, but we know the deeper secrets.
Paul responds by saying that Christ Himself is the treasure.
You do not need to graduate beyond Jesus.
You need to be rooted more deeply in Him.
See Colossians 2:6–7.
7. Some Were Obsessed With Rules
Colossians 2:16 mentions food, drink, festivals, new moons, and Sabbaths.
These were likely connected to religious rules and calendar practices. Some may have had Jewish roots. Some may have been blended with local customs.
Paul is not saying Jewish practices were bad in themselves. Paul was Jewish. Jesus was Jewish. The early church was deeply connected to Israel’s story.
The problem was when these practices became a measuring stick for who was truly spiritual.
Paul says not to let anyone judge them by these things. Why?
Because Jesus is the reality those things were pointing toward. See Colossians 2:17.
Rules can look strong.
They can feel safe.
They can give people a sense of control.
But rules cannot replace Jesus.
Paul’s warning is not against obedience. Paul cares deeply about how Christians live. Later in the letter, he gives very practical instruction about anger, speech, forgiveness, family, work, and prayer. See Colossians 3–4.
The issue is this: rule-keeping cannot make you complete.
Only Jesus can do that.
See Colossians 2:10.
8. Some Were Fascinated With Spiritual Experiences
Colossians 2:18 mentions people who delight in false humility and the worship of angels, going on and on about visions.
This is one of the more debated parts of the letter. We should be careful not to pretend we know every detail.
But the main idea is clear enough.
Some people were being drawn toward spiritual experiences that shifted attention away from Jesus.
They may have been fascinated by angels, visions, mystical practices, or claims of special access to the spiritual world.
Paul’s concern is not that the spiritual world is fake.
Paul believes in angels. Paul believes in visions.
Paul believes there is more going on than what we can see.
The problem is when people become more focused on spiritual experiences than on Jesus Himself.
Paul says these people are not holding firmly to the Head. See Colossians 2:19.
That image matters.
Jesus is the Head.
The church is the body.
If the body loses connection to the Head, it cannot grow in a healthy way.
Experiences can be powerful.
But they are not the center.
Jesus is.
9. Some Were Mixing Worldviews
Colossians 2:8 gives one of the clearest warnings in the letter:
“See to it that no one takes you captive through hollow and deceptive philosophy.”
Paul is not against thinking. He is not against learning. He is not against asking good questions.
The problem is empty thinking that pulls people away from Christ.
In Colossae, the believers lived in a world full of mixed ideas. Local religion, Greek thinking, Roman power, Jewish tradition, and other spiritual practices were all in the air.
It would have been easy to treat Jesus like one ingredient in the mix.
Paul says no.
Jesus is not one ingredient among many.
In Colossians 1:15–20, Paul gives one of the highest and clearest descriptions of Jesus in the New Testament.
Jesus is the image of the invisible God.
All things were created through Him and for Him.
He is before all things.
In Him all things hold together.
He is the head of the body, the church.
That is Paul’s answer to a mixed-up world.
He does not give them a better mix.
He gives them a bigger view of Jesus.
10. Colossians Is About Staying Centered
The theme of Colossians is not complicated.
Stay centered on Jesus.
That does not mean the letter is shallow. It is deep. But its depth keeps leading us back to the same place.
Jesus is supreme.
Jesus is sufficient.
Jesus is central.
In plain terms:
Jesus is above everything.
Jesus gives us what we need.
Jesus belongs at the center of life.
That is why Colossians is so helpful for modern believers.
We also live in a world full of mixed messages. We hear voices from politics, entertainment, social media, religion, self-help, family expectations, and personal ambition.
Some of those voices may say helpful things. Some may say harmful things. But none of them belong in the center.
Only Jesus does.
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Why We Look at "Wrong" and "Right" Applications
Whenever we study the Bible, we have to ask two questions.
What did it mean then?
What does it mean for us now?
If we skip the first question, we can make the Bible say almost anything we want.
That is especially important with Colossians.
This letter talks about deep topics: spiritual powers, rules, wisdom, worship, identity, and how Christians should live. These are the kinds of topics people often use to push their favorite agenda.
Some people read Colossians and use it to attack all tradition.
Some use it to attack all deep study.
Some use it to attack all spiritual experiences.
Some use it to support their own version of Christianity as the only faithful one.
But Paul is not writing to help us win arguments.
He is writing to help believers stay faithful to Jesus.
So before we rush to apply this letter, we need to let the letter speak in its own setting.
Paul is writing to real people in a real city. They are trying to follow Jesus in a confusing world. They are being pulled by competing voices. Paul helps them see Jesus more clearly.
That is the key.
Right application starts with seeing Jesus clearly and letting Him reshape our lives.
❌ APPLYING IT WRONG
One wrong way to apply Colossians is to treat the city as unimportant because it was obscure.
We might think, “If Colossae was small and forgotten, why does this matter?”
But that misses the point.
Paul’s letter shows us that small places matter to God. Unknown churches matter to God. Ordinary believers matter to God.
Another wrong way is to use Colossians to act like learning background and context does not matter.
Someone might say, “Paul says Jesus is enough, so we do not need all this history, geography, and culture.”
But that misses how the Bible works.
The letter itself was written into history. Knowing the setting helps us understand why Paul says what he says. Context does not replace Jesus. Context helps us understand the message about Jesus more clearly.
Another wrong way is to use Colossians to reject all rules.
Paul warns against rule-based religion in Colossians 2:16–23. But he does not say, “Live however you want.”
In Colossians 3, Paul gives strong instructions about putting away anger, lies, sexual sin, greed, and cruel speech. He also tells them to put on compassion, kindness, humility, patience, forgiveness, and love.
So the problem is not obedience.
The problem is thinking rules can replace Jesus or make us spiritually superior.
Another wrong way is to use Colossians to mock all spiritual experiences.
Paul warns about people who were obsessed with visions and angels. See Colossians 2:18.
But Paul is not saying God never works in powerful or surprising ways. The Bible includes dreams, visions, angels, healings, and miracles.
The issue is not whether spiritual experiences can happen.
The issue is whether those experiences pull attention away from Jesus.
Another wrong way is to read Colossians mainly as a weapon against another group of Christians.
It is easy to say, “Those people are the ones adding to Jesus.”
But Colossians should make all of us examine our own hearts.
What do I add to Jesus?
What do I treat as the real sign of being spiritual?
What voice am I letting shape me more than Christ?
The letter should not first make us point fingers.
It should first make us pay attention.
✅ Applying it the Right Way:
The right way to apply Colossians is to begin where Paul begins.
He starts with Jesus.
Before Paul gives many commands, he gives the church a bigger view of Christ.
That matters.
Christian growth does not begin with trying harder to become impressive. It begins with seeing Jesus more clearly and learning to live from that center.
A right reading also pays attention to the real setting.
Colossae was not a famous city. It was a real place with real pressures. The people lived in a mixed culture with many competing ideas. That helps us understand why Paul keeps warning them about being pulled away.
We should ask similar questions about our own world.
What voices are trying to disciple us?
What messages shape how we think about success, identity, truth, family, money, politics, comfort, and faith?
What do we add to Jesus without realizing it?
A right reading also remembers that Paul is both encouraging and correcting.
He thanks God for their faith and love. See Colossians 1:3–8.
Then he warns them about danger. See Colossians 2:4, 2:8, 2:16, and 2:18.
That means healthy correction does not have to be harsh or cold. Paul shows us how to care for people with both warmth and truth.
A right reading also sees the Jewish background without forcing it.
Paul mentions festivals, new moons, and Sabbaths in Colossians 2:16. Those words connect with the Jewish calendar and Israel’s worship life in the Old Testament. But Paul says these things were a shadow, and Christ is the reality.
That does not mean the Old Testament is bad. It means the story was always moving toward Jesus.
A right reading also pays attention to geography.
Colossae was near Laodicea and Hierapolis. The churches in that area were connected. Paul tells the Colossians to share this letter with the church in Laodicea and to read the letter from Laodicea. See Colossians 4:16.
That means these churches were not meant to be isolated.
They needed each other.
That is still true.
Following Jesus was never meant to be a solo project.
A right reading asks:
How does this letter help us stay centered on Jesus?
How does it warn us about drift?
How does it help us live faithfully in a confusing world?
How does it teach us to grow as a community, not just as individuals?
That is the kind of reading that sets us up well for the rest of this study.
Questions to Chew on and Discuss:
These questions are designed to help you personally dig deeper into the passage and help guide your discussions in your Journey Groups and Me & 3 small groups.
The Facts: What does it say?
Who wrote Colossians, and who was with him when he wrote it? See Colossians 1:1.
What do we learn about Epaphras from Colossians 1:7–8 and Colossians 4:12–13?
What nearby cities are connected to Colossae in the letter? See Colossians 4:13–16.
The Meaning: What does it mean?
Why does it matter that Paul likely had not visited Colossae in person?
What does Paul’s care for a small, overlooked church teach us about what matters to God?
Why would a mixed culture make it harder for the Colossian believers to keep Jesus at the center?
The Heart: What am I hearing?
Where do I feel most tempted to add something to Jesus?
What voices in my life compete most for my attention and trust?
Do I ever assume that small or quiet faithfulness matters less than public or impressive ministry?
The Hands: What will I do?
What is one way I can keep Jesus more central in my daily life this week?
Is there one voice, habit, or influence I need to examine more carefully?
Who is one person I can encourage, like Paul encouraged the Colossians?
Journey Group OR ME & 3 Small Group Discussion Starters:
Whether you're helping facilitate a small group, talking about this passage one-on-one with a friend, or even just need a topic to guide the conversation at the dinner table, these ideas can help start a good group conversation before you dive into the passage and questions in this study guide.
Discussion Starter 1
Colossae was not a famous city, but Paul still cared deeply about the believers there. What does that teach us about the value of ordinary people and ordinary places?
Discussion Starter 2
Paul’s main concern was that Jesus was being crowded out by other things. What are some things that crowd Jesus out in our world today?
🧩 SUM IT UP
Colossians was written by Paul to believers in a small, overlooked city called Colossae.
Paul had probably never been there, but he cared about them because Epaphras had brought him news about their faith, love, and struggles.
The church was doing many things right. They had real faith in Jesus and real love for each other.
But they were also facing pressure.
Some people were pushing special knowledge. Others were focused on rules. Others were chasing spiritual experiences. Others were mixing Jesus with the ideas of the culture around them.
Paul writes to bring them back to the center.
That center is Jesus.
Colossae may be obscure, but their struggle is very familiar.
We also live in a world full of competing voices. We also face pressure to add things to Jesus. We also need to be reminded that Jesus is not one piece of our lives.
He is Lord over all.
The message of Colossians is simple, but powerful:
Jesus is enough. Jesus is supreme. Jesus is sufficient. Jesus belongs at the center of everything.
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