Colossians 4 -

¹ Masters, provide your slaves with what is right and fair, because you know that you also have a Master in heaven.

Further Instructions

 ² Devote yourselves to prayer, being watchful and thankful. ³ And pray for us, too, that God may open a door for our message, so that we may proclaim the mystery of Christ, for which I am in chains. ⁴ Pray that I may proclaim it clearly, as I should. ⁵ Be wise in the way you act toward outsiders; make the most of every opportunity. ⁶ Let your conversation be always full of grace, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how to answer everyone.

Final Greetings

 ⁷ Tychicus will tell you all the news about me. He is a dear brother, a faithful minister and fellow servant^[a] in the Lord. ⁸ I am sending him to you for the express purpose that you may know about our^[b] circumstances and that he may encourage your hearts. ⁹ He is coming with Onesimus, our faithful and dear brother, who is one of you. They will tell you everything that is happening here. ¹⁰ My fellow prisoner Aristarchus sends you his greetings, as does Mark, the cousin of Barnabas. (You have received instructions about him; if he comes to you, welcome him.) ¹¹ Jesus, who is called Justus, also sends greetings. These are the only Jews^[c] among my co-workers for the kingdom of God, and they have proved a comfort to me. ¹² Epaphras, who is one of you and a servant of Christ Jesus, sends greetings. He is always wrestling in prayer for you, that you may stand firm in all the will of God, mature and fully assured. ¹³ I vouch for him that he is working hard for you and for those at Laodicea and Hierapolis. ¹⁴ Our dear friend Luke, the doctor, and Demas send greetings. ¹⁵ Give my greetings to the brothers and sisters at Laodicea, and to Nympha and the church in her house.
 ¹⁶ After this letter has been read to you, see that it is also read in the church of the Laodiceans and that you in turn read the letter from Laodicea.
 ¹⁷ Tell Archippus: “See to it that you complete the ministry you have received in the Lord.”
 ¹⁸ I, Paul, write this greeting in my own hand. Remember my chains. Grace be with you.
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⁶ Let your conversation be always full of grace, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how to answer everyone.




Most of these thoughts are from Barns' Notes on the Bible:


Here Paul is talking of how we should be treating each other in speech. Being "full of grace" would show how our words and ultimately our thoughts are governed by Christ. Rather than being negative and cynical, we would be mild, polite, and honest in our conversations. If others know we are Christians, these attributes will display the character of Christ through our actions and conversations, instead of having to force the nature of Christ over those around us. This is graceful. This shows people that we care enough about them to respect who they are, and where they have come from.

To the Greek, salt was a symbol for wit. In Barns' Notes on the Bible, it is said "Here the meaning seems to be, that our conversation should be seasoned with piety or grace in a way similar to that in which we employ salt in our food. It makes it wholesome and palatable." If our conversation is not filled with grace, it is flat, uninteresting, and often leading to damage. Whereas grace will make it what God intended; worth while, useful, and beneficial to everyone. 

Finally, when we are engaged in conversation, it is not that we are to have the answers to all, but that we will have humility in responding. In a well known topic of conversation, we can contribute truthfulness without over embellishing; that our answers would be loving and kind. In reverse, if we are ignorant of a topic introduced, we stay humble, and accept explanation. This way we will not overcompensate for our lack of knowledge, which allows for shame, frustration, and discomfort to surface. Or worst of all, so we never let dishonesty regarding ourselves take hold.

A Godly conversation is filled with love, respect, honesty, and leads to truth, always.

Thank you Lord for revealing your strategy of engaging in conversation.