It is hard to imagine what a shock to the first century world Christianity must have been. Was it a new religion, or was it a sect of Judaism? This new approach to faith—this Gospel—didn’t only accept people from different nations, it actively sought them. It intentionally broke down barriers. It was strange; it was different, but it was beautiful and attracted people in throngs. Even the people of the church in Colossae had much to figure out. In order to help them navigate all of this, the apostle Paul wrote them a letter that speaks a lot about identity: who Christ was, and who they now were as believers in Christ.
