“We always thank God, the Father of our Lord, Jesus Christ, when we pray for you, because we have heard of your faith in Christ Jesus and of the love you have for all the saints….” (Colossians 1:3-4)
Even as a teenager I would turn to the back part of the Bible to find the epistles of St. Paul, because they are so upbeat and positive. They cheered me up and still do. Yet if we turn to II Corinthians 6:3-13 and read of the many hardships he suffered in his ministry for Christ, we wonder how St. Paul was able to rejoice in the Lord with such optimism.
In writing to the Christians at Colossae he holds a mental photograph in his mind and yet he never visited them in person. He only heard of them from the reports of his helpers Timothy and Epaphras. After his usual greeting of “grace and peace from God our Father” (grace, the gift of the Holy Spirit, and peace, the Hebrew shalom), he tells them that he always thanks the Father of Jesus Christ when he prays for them. It’s a wonderful feeling to know that somebody is praying for us—providing it’s indeed the case and not an empty little fib. As we grow in the Spirit of God, we become attuned to prayers from others. It’s as if an antenna had gone up in our souls, and we even conjure up in our inner vision the name and even the face of the one who loves us enough to be praying for our welfare and salvation.
Then the apostle gives his reasons for thanking the Lord for them. It’s the familiar trio of faith, hope and love; however, in a different order that appears random. He thinks that the faith of those in Colossae and the love they send up to Christ for other Christians has much to do with hope—hope that is stored away for them in heaven. Later he explains (v. 27) what he means about hope. He tells them that it is the presence of Christ in their souls, “the hope of glory.” He’s writing to them as Gentiles; nevertheless, they should not despair, because they are not shut out of God’s Kingdom. They and we also are members of Christ’s body. As such we have His life in us. It’s like knowing that you are going to approach Jerusalem and the gates will be closed, but in your pocket, or rather in your heart, you have an entrance ticket. Home means that the Colossians and we also will share in that glory which is at present hidden from view to the world.
This is a great mystery, but rather than darkness at the center, Christ is there in the middle and around the edges. When the time comes, it will be shown that His death and resurrection has brought about the fullness of glory. It means that hope is not something out there beyond us, outside of us and ahead in the future, but rather it is in the deepest part of our beings, tucked away within our hearts.
What would be shown if our parish conducted a hope check? Suppose our communicants were measured by the hope we have within us and it could be tested by the faith we have in Christ Jesus manifested by the love we have for “all the saints,” meaning not only the many on the walls of our temple, but of all those potential saints who live in these times in our communities and throughout the world. Would it not require somebody with the spiritual vision of St. Paul to see what we ourselves may not be aware of and point out what we don’t know is there?