Paul’s salutation was so important to him that although he did not personally pen most of his epistles, he personally penned his salutation.
The Bible often defines words through their associations. For instance, the words salute, saluteth, and salutation involve a greeting.
Paul was one of the most religious people ever to live. In spite of his religious efforts, he was condemned to hell until he trusted Christ as Saviour.
Although no person is excluded from troubles, saints have historically understood that God extends mercy as He divvies out life’s trials.
The word blame and its various forms appears twenty-four times in scripture. In a general sense, blame is the guilty responsibility concerning a matter. In Genesis chapter 43, Judah understood the necessity of taking Benjamin if they were to buy food, but he also understood the concerns of his father. Jacob already lost Joseph; he was not prepared to lose another son, especially Benjamin. With these things in mind, Judah promised his father that Benjamin would come back to Jacob alive and well. If Judah was unable to fulfil this promise, he was prepared to bear the blame forever. Later, while in Egypt, when it appeared as though Benjamin would be taken, Judah declared his responsibility for the lad (Genesis 44:10, 32).
The traditions of men produce lives lived in vain. According to scripture, the word conversation means much more than merely words being spoken from one person to another. The context shows that the word refers to the way in which a person lives his life (2 Corinthians 1:12; 1 Peter 3:1). As such, those who build their lives upon the traditions of men may work very hard and be even deemed faithful. Yet, this life is all for naught because their lives are built upon vanity. Sadly, some of the most faithful followers of religion are those who are promoting the traditions of men from which they will gain no eternal benefits. The only conversation that proves fruitful in eternity is the one built upon the commandments of God.
Sometimes a deep chasm exists between the doctrines, traditions, and commandments of men and those that are God-ordained. Perhaps no passage better identifies this contrast than Mark chapter 7. The religious leaders of Christ’s day held “the tradition of the elders” (Mark 7:3, 5), “the tradition of men” (Mark 7:8), and their own “tradition” (Mark 7:9, 13). In doing so, they rejected “the commandment of God” (Mark 7:9). This clearly displays the critical importance of identifying whose traditions one willingly receives and accepts. If traditions are truly of the Lord, they are to be accepted and implemented into the believer’s life (2 Thessalonians 2:15). Yet, those man-made, unscriptural traditions are to be rejected altogether.
Man is not saved by works; however, through the new birth, he is “created in Christ Jesus unto” (Ephesians 2:10) and should be “zealous of” (Titus 2:14) good works. The Lord could easily save a man and immediately take him to heaven, but He chooses to leave man here on this earth to do a work for Him. Though the Lord’s work on this earth is made up of many details, it always includes “the ministry of reconciliation” (2 Corinthians 5:18). Similar to the responsibility to tell others about a known cure for a dreaded disease, every Christian has the responsibility to express to others their knowledge of the cure for the coming judgment of God and how to be reconciled to God.
The working of God is quite often misunderstood due to its complexities. God often uses multiple things and allows them to work together to accomplish His will. He does this in the life of one who has been saved but also does this to bring about that person’s salvation. Just like medications offer active ingredients to cure a physical sickness, the Lord has several active ingredients to cure spiritual sickness. Without man’s faith (Romans 10:9) and repentance (Acts 20:21), Christ’s faith (Galatians 2:16), God’s grace (Ephesians 2:5, 8), His mercy (Titus 3:5), His word (1 Peter 1:23), Christ’s blood (Hebrews 9:11-14), and the Lord’s name (Acts 4:12), salvation would be inadequate. Anything presently identified as the gospel that excludes any of the above is a false gospel.
When one side defeats another in battle, to the victor goes the spoils. This means that the victor enters the camp of the defeated and takes its valuable possessions (including women, children, material goods, etc.). With this truth in mind, the apostle Paul warned the believers at Colosse to be on guard, knowing that men would seek to spoil them through philosophy and vain deceit. In other words, accepting the philosophies of men, or false doctrines, is likened to losing a battle and allowing the enemy to rob the believer of his most valuable possessions. It is important to understand that although a believer can never lose his salvation, he can be robbed of his stability, growth, peace, and joy.
