This is the first part of the church ’s mission: to reach people for Christ and to bring them to spiritual maturity in Christ.
In his commentary Exploring Colossians & Philemon , John Phillips reminds us that we are to go for every man. Mark 16:15 said every creature (every man)! What of the millions in China, India, Indonesia, and worldwide. This truth should affect every area of our lives. Our prayer time, our money handling, and what we do with our lives are all challenged to reach every man. It is time to wake up to our responsibility as believers.
Chr ist … whom we preach, warning every man, and teaching every man in all wisdom; that we may present every manperfect in Christ Jesus.
Every man! Every man! Every ma n! Paul uses the expression three times. We are to evangelize “every man,” preachingChrist with a warning not to reject Him. We are to educate “every man,” with all wisdom making known the wholecounsel of God. We are to edify “every man,” so that they might be presented fully matured to Christ. The word for“perfect” is teleios, signifying something that has revealed its end. It comes from the word telos, “the end.” Theequivalent Latin word would be finis, that is, “finished,” or “nothing beyond.” This is the first part of the church’smission: to reach people for Christ and to bring them to spiritual maturity in Christ. The three great church gifts areinvolved in this process—the gifts of the evangelist, the teacher, and the pastor.