Colossians (written)

Sunday, 26 March 2017

He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. Colossians 1:15

Words have meaning, and those words cannot be disassociated from the context of what is being said without destroying the intent of the author. Paul’s words in this verse, and in the verses to come, are precise. They are intended to cut through heresies which were already being introduced concerning Christ Jesus at that early date. In order for those at Colossae, and all believers in all ages since then, to understand proper Christological doctrine, he now writes these words about Jesus Christ.

He says that “He is the image of the invisible God.” The word is eikon. It is a word which “assumes a prototype, of which it not merely resembles, but from which it is drawn.” It is then “More than a ‘shadow,’ rather it is a replication” (HELPS Word Studies). This replication reflects what it is replicating for us to understand. There is a stress on the words “the invisible God” to lead us to grasp that Jesus Christ is revealing that which would otherwise be unknown.

God’s perfections and His very Being are seen in Christ, being completely and accurately displayed in Him. This is explained in several different ways in the Bible. A few examples are –

“No one has seen God at any time. The only begotten Son, who is in the bosom of the Father, He has declared Him.” John 1:18

“He who has seen Me has seen the Father.” John 14:9

“I and My Father are one.” John 10:30

What is being conveyed to us is that God is, but we cannot see Him. In order for us to understand Him in an intimate and personal way, He united with His creation in the womb of Mary, coming as Christ Jesus. Therefore, He is the image, or replication, of what we could otherwise not see. He explains the Father to us because He is one with the Father, having come from the Father. The choice of wording Paul gives here, and the many references elsewhere in Scripture are calling out for us to believe that Jesus Christ is God, nothing less. When referring to God, Hebrews 1:3 calls the Son “the brightness of His glory and the express image of His person.” Paul repeats this in 2 Corinthians 4:4. God is, and Jesus is God.

Paul next notes that He is “the firstborn over all creation.” The term is prototokos, coming from two words, prótos – “first” or “preeminent,” and tiktó – “bring forth.” As the scholar Bengel notes, “The pro, which is contained in prototokos, governs the genitive ktiseos. Time is an accident of the creature. Therefore the origin of the Son of God precedes all time.” In other words, Paul is not saying that Jesus is the Firstborn of all that is created, but He is the Firstborn prior to all that is created; He is eternal, having issued from the Father, and having preceded time itself.

Vincent’s Word Studies notes that, “As image points to revelation, so first-born points to eternal preexistence.” This is logically supported by the words coming in the next verse. If this were not true, then Paul could not continue on with what he will next say, and yet he will. Further, the pattern used here in Colossians 1 is repeated in Hebrews 1 and John 1, showing that it is not a mistake by Paul, but it is rather logical and proper. There is Christ, and then there is creation which follows. Logically, Christ then is God, having issued from the Father prior to the creation of time itself.

Life application: To rob Jesus Christ of His deity is to rob God of His glory. All of the work of Jesus Christ would be ascribed to a created being, but Scripture clearly shows that salvation is of the Lord, not of a creature created by Him. If you do not accept the deity of Jesus Christ, you call God a liar. The word is clear and unambiguous concerning Jesus’ deity. If you disbelieve, the error is not with the word, but with you. Stop listening to whatever cult you have been trained by, and accept the Word of God alone.

I believe that Jesus Christ is Lord. Amen.

Saturday, 25 March 2017

…in whom we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins. Colossians 1:14

This verse corresponds closely to Ephesians 1:7. “In whom” is speaking of Christ who is “the Son of His love” of the previous verse. It is through God’s Beloved Son that “we have redemption through His blood.” In the Greek, there is an article before “redemption.” It states “the redemption” and thus it sets the thought apart as the great act of redemption to which any other act (such as the redemption of Israel from Egypt) was a lesser redemption, or merely a type and shadow.

In other words, the promised Redeemer of Genesis 3:15 is realized in Christ Jesus. From that proclamation, every idea of redemption which is found in Scripture pointed to what Christ would do for us. This true redemption was realized “through His blood.” We now stand justified and free from sin’s penalty through the redemption that came by His work, and which culminated in the shedding of His blood (meaning His death) on the cross.

The term “redemption” comes from a root word which indicates the price paid to redeem a person, such as a prisoner of war. It signifies liberty from captivity, bondage, or imprisonment. We are born into sin and we are prisoners of sin, held in bondage by its power and are kept by the master of sin, the devil. This is confirmed by the devil’s words to Jesus in Luke 4 where he stated that “All this authority I will give You, and their glory; for this has been delivered to me, and I give it to whomever I wish.” Sin is a firm bond and the devil is a cruel taskmaster. However, Jesus’ mission was to destroy this power. John notes this as the principle reason for His coming –

“He who sins is of the devil, for the devil has sinned from the beginning. For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, that He might destroy the works of the devil.” 1 John 3:8

Jesus prevailed where Adam failed. What the devil gained through Adam’s disobedience, Jesus regained through His obedience. What God asks is that we simply believe this message, receive His gift, and place our trust in what Jesus has done for us. This is the “redemption through His blood.” This is the marvel of what God has done for us. In Him there is absolute victory and complete reconciliation with God the Father.

As a means of highlighting this thought, Paul next says that in Him we also have “forgiveness of sins.” This is a complementary thought to the previous clause. The word for “forgiveness” signifies the complete release of someone from an obligation or debt. Sin’s penalty is ended through the work of Christ for all who believe.

The “redemption through His blood” looks at the work of atonement from God’s perspective. “The forgiveness of sins” looks at it from our side. One can see the work of the God/Man in this; He completed both. There is the heavenly side, and there is the earthly side. Together they unite in Him for reconciliation between the two.

Charles Ellicott notes that in order from the previous verse we see the First Cause of our salvation, which is the Father’s love. Here in verse 14, we see the Efficient Cause which is “the redemption and propitiation of the Son.”

Life application: Think soberly on what you have received from God in the giving of His Son. His blood was shed so that we could be redeemed. When one puts Jesus’ cross at the front of their thoughts, it puts all things into their proper perspective. There is an eternity of fellowship with God that lies ahead of us because of the cross of Jesus Christ.

Heavenly Father, because of Your love, You sent Christ on a mission to redeem us from the world of sin, and the power of the devil. In the cross and shed blood of Christ Jesus, we have that redemption, and we have peace with You once again. What more can we add to that? Help us to be faithfully obedient to You, living lives of honor for what You have done for us. Thank You for Jesus our Lord. Amen.

Friday, 24 March 2017

He has delivered us from the power of darkness and conveyed us into the kingdom of the Son of His love, Colossians 1:13

In the previous verse, we were instructed by Paul that we have been qualified to be “partakers of the inheritance of the saints in the light.” As this is the case, we must not have possessed that right before. Paul now makes that explicit with the words, “He has delivered us from the power of darkness.”

Being delivered means that we were in a state from which we needed delivery. The word used is found in the Lord’s Prayer – “…deliver us from evil.” It is a word which indicates being rescued as if being snatched up. Therefore, we can see that in receiving Christ, we were drawn from that state to another one. It is a clear indication that all are already on the path to destruction. Only through Christ does that change. It is another validation of Jesus’ words in John 3:18 which state that we are “condemned already.”

“The power of darkness” is the dominion of Satan. This isn’t just an external force which comes against us, but rather it is a legal rule over us. Satan has authority over this world (as is seen to elsewhere in Scripture), and man must be brought out of this rule. This is what Christ came to do. John explains this purpose very clearly in his first epistle –

“He who sins is of the devil, for the devil has sinned from the beginning. For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, that He might destroy the works of the devil.” 1 John 3:8

It is this dominion, or power, of darkness which we are snatched out of. We are then conveyed “into the kingdom of the Son of His love.” The word “conveyed” is used in the manner of taking a people group from one country to another. In the writings of Josephus, he uses the word when speaking of the deporting of the Israelites by the Assyrians. They were conveyed from one kingdom to another. This is what happens to the believer in Christ. He is conveyed from the power and kingdom of Satan to that of the Lord Jesus.

Again, it shows that there can be no other path to God than Jesus Christ. If there were, then it would have been pointless for Christ to come. But only He can bring us out of that realm of darkness and into this kingdom. It is a kingdom of “the Son of His love.” This means that Christ Jesus is the object of His love. It is to Him that the kingdom is given. All rights to authority belong to Him. He is the ruler of God’s kingdom for the redeemed of the world.

Life application: If you have been led to believe that there are many paths to God, then you are a foe of God in Christ. You are indicating that Jesus’ death was not necessary in order for men to be redeemed, and that redemption can be realized in other ways. What you are espousing is a fickle God who purposely sent His Son to die for no satisfactory reason. But it is you who are being unreasonable. Think the issue through clearly, and then receive God’s wonderful gift of salvation which came at such a high cost.

Lord God, Your word teaches that there is but one way to be reconciled to You, and that is by faith in what You have done through Your Son Jesus. Old Testament and New, He is there on every page, waiting to be discovered if we will but just look. Grant us wisdom to understand that You are not a fickle God who says one thing and then does another. Rather, You have given Your word, You have sent Your Son, and You have opened a path, one path, back to You. Thank You for Christ Jesus our Lord. Amen.

Thursday, 23 March 2017

…giving thanks to the Father who has qualified us to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in the light. Colossians 1:12

This verse continues on the same train of thought that has been going on since verse 9. The words, “giving thanks to the Father” explain another way in which the saints may walk worthy of the Lord, as Paul previously noted. The reason for this is that He “has qualified us to be partakers of the saints in the light.”

Paul’s choice of the word “Father” here is referring to His relationship to the Son, through whom has come the execution of His plan of redemption. He determined the plan, and it was set in motion through the giving of His Son. In turn, for those who have received Christ Jesus, we have been qualified “to be partakers of the inheritance.” The kingdom which lies yet ahead belongs to the Son. It is His inheritance, just as any son inherits from a father. In this case, Christ is the inheritor of all things. This is seen, for example, in Hebrews 1 –

“God, who at various times and in various ways spoke in time past to the fathers by the prophets, ² has in these last days spoken to us by His Son, whom He has appointed heir of all things, through whom also He made the worlds; ³ who being the brightness of His glory and the express image of His person, and upholding all things by the word of His power, when He had by Himself purged our sins, sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high, ⁴ having become so much better than the angels, as He has by inheritance obtained a more excellent name than they.” Hebrews 1:1-4

From this, those who call on Christ likewise become “partakers of the inheritance of the saints.” What this is saying, is that the promises to the Old Testament saints continues on in the new dispensation. That which was promised to the saints of old now applies to the saints of the church. The New Covenant issued from the Old Covenant when Christ fulfilled the Old in His death.

In this establishment of the New Covenant, the promises which were given to those under the Old are now realized in the new. This does not mean that the church replaces Israel, but that which is offered pertains to those who are established through the work of Christ. To understand this, we can look at the words to Daniel concerning the inheritance of the saints as was promised to him –

“Those who are wise shall shine
Like the brightness of the firmament,
And those who turn many to righteousness
Like the stars forever and ever.” Daniel 12:3

An inheritance was promised then, and the same inheritance is promised now. Those who are contained within the active covenant are those who are partakers; from Old to New Covenant. Completing the thought, he says this covenant of the saints is “in the light.”

The idea of light here is the kingdom over which God presides. There is no darkness, as there is in the current world. This is the kingdom which God offers through Christ who is the true Light. The concepts of light and kingdom permeate the Bible, but John deals with them in great measure in his gospel and epistles. What lies ahead will be marvelous. The powers of darkness will be utterly removed, and only holiness, happiness, and the glory of God will remain.

Life application: Our hope is in a world which is so wonderfully greater than anything we can actually imagine. The world around us is hemmed in with evil, and the powers of darkness are everywhere. But for those who are in Christ, a glory lies ahead which will literally radiate out in majestic splendor for all eternity. Hold fast to your faith, and be of good cheer, even when the world seems to overwhelm you. Great things lie ahead.

Heavenly Father, it is wonderful to know that something more glorious than we can imagine lies ahead. This world, even at its best, is one of death and corruption. But You have promised one which is light, life, and glory. Thank You for having sent Christ Jesus to make all things new. Through Him, we become partakers of the promised restoration which You have purposed for the saints in the light. We await that glorious day! Amen.

Wednesday, 22 March 2017

…strengthened with all might, according to His glorious power, for all patience and longsuffering with joy;  Colossians 1:11

Again as with the previous verse, this continues the thought in which Paul explains why he and Timothy were giving thanks to God and praying for those at Colossae. He says that they may be “strengthened with all might. Paul uses the same word, first in the noun form, then in the verb form. Thus it is essentially a Hebraism where the repetition of a word is given for stress. In the Greek, it says dunamei dunamoumenoi – “being empowered with all power.” This is not intended as meaning an outward display of apostolic gifts. Rather, his prayer for this is so that they will be able to meet and overcome any temptations, perform their duties as Christians by the power of Christ’s strength, and to be able to endure any trials which they were destined to face.

His prayer is that they will be so strengthened “according to His glorious power.” The Greek here reads, “according to the power of His glory.” As God’s power is one of His perfections (He being all-powerful), Paul is praying that those in Colossae (and thus us!) will be likewise strengthened by that all-powerful hand so that they will be able to meet and overcome every obstacle, and press forward in all ways which are good and true. He expresses two of those ways with the words, “for all patience and longsuffering.”

The idea of patience is putting up with those that one could otherwise dismiss. The idea of endurance is putting up with that which one cannot dismiss. He is asking for strength for both categories. For those that could be walked away from, his prayer is that we would stick it out and endure their failings or irksome ways. For that which cannot be walked away from, like it or not, his prayer is that we would be able to continue and not be overcome by the pressure of the situation.

But, Paul goes even further when he adds in the final words of the thought as a point of true grace from God – “with joy.” His hope is not just that there will be patience and longsuffering, but that there will actually be joy in the process. In understanding that being “in Christ” is the state of the believer, then whatever we experience is what God intends for us, even if it seems terrifying, overwhelming, etc. He has ordained our steps, and so we should walk in them with a sense of joy that whatever we are facing is not being faced alone. Rather, He is there with us, and has placed us there for His sovereign purposes.

In these words, we have the mode of meeting the challenge – with all might; we have the measure – according to His glorious power; we have the anticipated result – all patience and longsuffering; and we have the state in which this process should take place – all joy.

Life application: Life sends us many difficult things that we need to deal with. Some, we could just walk away from, but that may not be the proper path to take. Some, we must endure despite it being a real headache for us. It is important for us to consider our position in Christ as we face these things. In so doing, we will be more likely to respond to them in an appropriate way. Let us pray for strength in order to meet them, and deal with them according to God’s glorious power.

Heavenly Father, life sure throws us some difficult curve balls. Even on a good day, there are things we must endure that are unpleasant. And there are those who come into our lives which can sure test our patience as well. It is so much easier to walk away from them than to put up with their nonsense. But in both cases, help us to remember Your glory and to act as lights in the dark places. Be with us in this, strengthen us according to Your power, and grant us the joy of Your fellowship as we continue to swing our bat at those difficult pitches, meeting each with a home-run according to Your wisdom. Amen.