Welcome to week 8 of Colossians for Families! The focus of our study will be on Colossians 4:5+6 and how important it is for followers of Jesus to be A Wise Witness.
This will be the final week before we move on to a new book of the Bible. If you are just getting started or want to review what we’ve been doing so far in this study, I’ll include a link to the previous Colossians Bible study below:
Click Here for Colossians Week 7 – Continue in Prayer
What I Learned Using This Study with My Family
First, I needed to break up the Bible study into 2 lessons. My kids are 8, 6, and 3. We just couldn’t get through everything in one sitting. I imagine it will be different for everyone.
Second, some of the questions are simple, and some will take prompts from parents. For instance, in the last study, one of the questions asked us to list the things Paul was praying about for the Colossian people. My wife and I had to bring up some of the things we read in the passage. It’s going to be different for each family.
Third, go with the flow of the conversation. Don’t feel like you even have to finish all of the questions. No requirements here. The most important part is reading and studying the Bible together as a family.
Let’s Study the Bible Together
Opening Prayer
Dear Lord, thank you for all that you’ve taught us in our Colossians Bible study. You showed us your kindness by forgiving us and giving us everything we need to live this life for you. Give us eyes to see and ears to hear as we study these last 2 verses today. Amen.
Read Colossians 4:5+6
“Walk in wisdom towards outsiders, making the best use of the time. Let your speech always be gracious, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how you ought to answer each person.”
Big Idea: Paul calls followers of Jesus to walk in wisdom and be effective witnesses to outsiders.
Until this point, Paul has covered quite a bit of ground in his letter to the Colossian church. Like most of his letters, he starts off talking about WHO God is and WHAT he has accomplished for his people before giving instructions to the church. That is exactly what we see in Paul’s letter to the Colossians. At the end of this letter, Paul provides clear instructions to ensure the church represents Jesus well.
Last week, we ended our Bible study with Paul asking for prayer that he would clearly communicate the mystery of Christ. Now he is challenging the Colossians to live and speak wisely as they represent that same mystery, the Gospel, to outsiders.
Walking wisely means learning how to act in a particular situation based on the principles we have already been taught. Our verse takes it a step further – it tells us to do this for the benefit of outsiders. All of us have felt like an “outsider” at one time or another. It happens anytime you are with a group of people who already know each other or have some kind of connection with each other that you don’t have. Paul is writing to a group of Christians in the Colossian church, and he wants them to treat people outside their church well. How? In the way that they live and speak to people.
- Live wisely – a life that is full of the wisdom that comes from knowing Jesus.
- Speech will be gracious – understanding the mystery of Christ will not cause arrogance but graciousness.
- Speech will be seasoned with salt – compelling answers that keep the conversation going.
Paul expects the “outsiders” to be curious about these Christians because of their manner of living and their speech. Then, the followers of Jesus will have the opportunity to provide a compelling answer for those asking the questions. What an opportunity for us to walk in wisdom and be an effective witness to those outside the church.
Discussion Questions
1. What is wisdom? What do you think it means to walk wisely?
2. The verses tell us to walk in wisdom towards outsiders. Who is considered an outsider? Why is this so important?
3. Let’s say you are telling a friend about Jesus. Why is it so important to speak to them in a loving and kind way instead of telling them how wrong they are?
4. Paul also tells us that we should have an answer ready for our friends when they ask us what we believe – be a witness. Why is this important? And how can we practice this so we are ready when someone asks?
Memory Verse: “Let your speech always be gracious, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how you ought to answer each person.“
Family Life Application
In today’s Bible Study, we discussed the importance of living and speaking wisely – being a wise witness – as followers of Jesus. Why? So that people who don’t know Jesus will see something different. We also learned that people will have questions about what we believe. Take some time to discuss this as a family. Let’s role-play sharing your faith with another person. Have one person in the family ask about your faith, and do your best to tell them who Jesus is. Practice makes progress!
Read this article – Understanding the Gospel: A Parent’s Guide to review the main points.
Additional Resources
Understanding the Gospel: Are Parent’s Guide
Family Discipleship: A Biblical Guide for Parents
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