-Here is further confirmation that what Paul knew about the faith of these Colossian believers he had heard from Epaphras. As we read in the previous verse, Epaphras was the one who had planted the church, and he was now serving (with) Paul, which provided the opportunity for Epaphras to bring him up to speed on them.
-But more than that, it is what Epaphras told Paul about the assembly in Colossae that got Paul’s attention and should get ours as well. According to him, the believers in Colossae had love. And not just any love - they had God’s love, born of His Spirit and directed towards one another. This was further proof of their bonafide faith. Jesus Himself had told the first disciples that the way people would know that His people were in fact His people would be by the love they have for one another (John 13.34-35). Not just some kindred spirit or affection arising out of some shared mutual interests. We’re talking selfless, sacrificial, giving and forgiving, faithful love without condition or bias or any strings whatsoever, devoid of pettiness or jealousy or pretense. It bridges barriers of status and culture and muscles through perceived slights and quirks of personality. It pursues oneness with those who God has gathered out of the world to be a family and asks, ‘How are you really? How can I help you? What can I do for you?’ And then it serves, this love of God which He puts in the hearts of His children, flowing through their veins and out of their lives into the lives of their brothers and sisters, sharing, meeting needs, helping, encouraging and building up - love is the watermark, it shows for sure that my faith is genuine, the real McCoy.
-Which now gives us two identifying traits of genuine faith: it loves, and it spreads. It is not simply a moral code or a set of do’s and don’ts I try my best to follow. It is not simply being nice to people or about having a place to go on Sunday morning. It is not me trying to survive the evils and perils of the world with my life and family and beliefs as intact as humanly possible. It is the devolution of self, my self becoming more radically self-less, more all about Jesus and all about others. It is God changing my life in a way that changes those around me for the better and forever. That’s what was happening in Colossae. Is it happening in me?
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