Colossians 1:1 Meaning: Called Through God's Will, Not Our Own

The word “apostle” (apostolos) meant a messenger sent with a commission. In the wider Greek world it could be a naval envoy or an ambassador. Paul uses it deliberately: he is not a self-appointed teacher but a man under orders. That is why he adds “through the will of God.” The Greek preposition dia here points to the channel or agent: God’s will is the means by which Paul became an apostle. He did not volunteer for this; he was chosen.

The second key word is “brother” (adelphos). It carried the full weight of family belonging. Timothy shared the same Father, the same faith, the same hardships. Paul could have called him a coworker, a son in the faith, or even a fellow apostle. He chose brother instead. That word reminds us that gospel work is not a solo career. The most authoritative voice in the early church placed himself next to someone he called family. Authority and brotherhood both have their source in God’s will.

Protestant commentators often note that Paul is careful never to call Timothy an apostle. Calvin says Paul insists on his own apostleship because the Colossians had never seen him and needed to know that his letter carried Christ’s authority. The Cambridge Bible points out that the phrase “through the will of God” appears similarly in several Pauline openings (1 Corinthians 1:1, 2 Corinthians 1:1, Ephesians 1:1), suggesting it was a consistent way of grounding his mission in God’s initiative. Matthew Henry observes that Paul joins Timothy with himself even though Timothy was not an apostle, a sign of Christian humility and partnership. Across traditions, readers agree: Paul’s authority is real but not his own, and he exercises it in community, not isolation.

Some readers think Paul includes Timothy as a co-apostle, as if “Paul and Timothy, apostles.“ The greeting does not say that. Paul calls himself an apostle; he calls Timothy a brother. The distinction matters. Timothy is not an apostle in the same sense, he has not seen the risen Christ or received a direct commission to found churches. Paul lifts Timothy up not by inflating his title but by calling him family. That is a more beautiful kind of honor: the bond of shared faith, not a shared office.

This week, try noticing the difference between what you do because God has given it to you and what you do because you feel you have to prove something. Paul’s apostleship was “through the will of God,” not through his own resume. If you are a parent, a teacher, a neighbor, or someone behind a desk, that same God has placed you where you are. You do not need to manufacture your own authority. And you do not need to do it alone. Who is your brother or sister, the person you can send a text to, pray with, or simply tell the truth to? That partnership is part of the calling.