Colossians (written)

Tuesday, 25 April 2017

So let no one judge you in food or in drink, or regarding a festival or a new moon or sabbaths, Colossians 2:16

Colossians 2:16-19 are instructional, and they are so plain and simple to understand that it is almost impossible to believe people that some people can’t get them right. This is especially so with verses 16 & 17. But the modern Hebrew Roots movement, along with countless theologians, and even whole denominations from the past and present, simply ignore what Paul says, and they go about mandating things which are as clearly set aside in Christ as anything else He came to accomplish.

Having just shown in the preceding verses that the Law of Moses is annulled, completely and entirely, he now explains what that means in regards to observances mandated under that same law. This list is not speaking of Gentile observance, but of those things found in the Law of Moses itself. They are complete, they are fulfilled, and they are no longer required. To say otherwise is a heresy because it is then saying that Christ did not fulfill the law, which He did – in fact – fulfill. Don’t be a heretic; instead pay attention to Paul’s words.

“So let no one…” This is referring to each individual’s personal standard of life and practice in Christ. What Paul is warning against is that each person is to not be swayed by the false judgments of anyone else in relation to himself. He wants no one to “judge you.” One stands or falls based on where they put their hopes. If one places their hope in the work of Christ Jesus alone, then that person is to not let another person judge them based on anything else but that finished work of Christ.

The words, “in food or drink” refer solely to the dietary restrictions of the Jews as mandated under the Law of Moses. There is now no such dietary restriction in relation to this law because the law is annulled in Christ. Because it is annulled, the command to not eat pork died with the annulling of the law. The command to not eat shellfish died with that same annulment. This is true for every single dietary restriction found in the Law of Moses. They no longer exist because the Law of Moses is superseded by the New Covenant. A Christian is to not let anyone judge them for eating whatever they wish. This is plain, clear, and not difficult to understand.

He next says, “or regarding a festival.” The Greek word is heorté, and it refers to a feast day, such as the feasts of the Lord found in Leviticus 23. Any mandated feast day of the Law of Moses is done; it is completed in Christ; and it is obsolete. A Christian is to not let anyone judge them for not observing such a feast day. This is plain, clear, and not difficult to understand.

Paul next says, “or a new moon.” The New Moon is the first day of each month of the Hebrew calendar. This note from Paul is referring to observing this day as a type of celebratory feast under the Law of Moses. It is referred to over 20 times in the Old Testament, and it is an observance which the Jewish people faithfully adhered to. A Christian is to not let anyone judge them for not observing a New Moon. This is plain, clear, and not difficult to understand.

Finally for verse 16, Paul mentions “sabbaths.” The word in Greek is plural, and it is referring specifically to the weekly Sabbath Day requirement of the Old Testament. The plural is noted because it was a weekly feast day, and thus there were many sabbaths each year. It is also inclusive of any special Sabbaths which were mandated under the law. The same plural terminology is found in the Old Testament concerning the weekly Sabbath over 100 times. Exodus 31:31 for example, while speaking of the weekly Sabbaths, refers to them in the plural. The Sabbath is fulfilled in Christ. Hebrews 4:3 says that we rest in Him now. Therefore, a Christian is to not let anyone judge them for not observing a Sabbath Day. This is plain, clear, and not difficult to understand.

As a point of doctrine: There is no such thing as a Sunday Sabbath. The Sabbath is a Saturday, and only a Saturday. Christian tradition eventually started to claim that worshiping on the Lord’s Day (Sunday) had replaced the Saturday Sabbath. The claim is that this day of worship was now the “Sunday Sabbath.” This is incorrect. There is one Sabbath, and it is a Saturday. It is fulfilled in Christ. He is our Sabbath rest (Hebrews 4:3).

In support of what is stated here, the following verses are given –

“But now after you have known God, or rather are known by God, how is it that you turn again to the weak and beggarly elements, to which you desire again to be in bondage? ¹⁰ You observe days and months and seasons and years. ¹¹ I am afraid for you, lest I have labored for you in vain.” Galatians 4:9-11

Paul calls such observances, “weak and beggarly elements,” and he calls them “bondage.” Don’t pursue that which is weak and beggarly, and do not be brought into another’s bondage.

“One person esteems one day above another; another esteems every day alike. Let each be fully convinced in his own mind. ⁶ He who observes the day, observes it to the Lord; and he who does not observe the day, to the Lord he does not observe it. He who eats, eats to the Lord, for he gives God thanks; and he who does not eat, to the Lord he does not eat, and gives God thanks.” Romans 14:5-6

Paul is clear that whatever day a person observes or does not observe is totally up to the individual. Whatever a person eats or does not eat is also completely up to that individual. There are no such requirements levied on the follower of Christ.

“I will also cause all her mirth to cease,
Her feast days,
Her New Moons,
Her Sabbaths—
All her appointed feasts.” Hosea 2:11

Here in Colossians, Paul uses the same form as that of Hosea 2:11. It shows us that the things he is talking about in this verse – “feast days, New Moons, and Sabbaths” – are the same as which were required under the Law of Moses. They are now fulfilled in Christ; their being mandated for God’s people is annulled, and a new dispensation has been introduced which has set aside the previous one. To reintroduce these as requirements is to say that what Christ did was insufficient to save. It is to set aside His grace and attempt to merit God’s favor on one’s own merits. It is a self-condemning act. It is heresy. Do not be a heretic.

Life application: Either Paul’s words (which are plain and clear) are our doctrine for the Gentile-led church age, or they are not. If they are not, then Christ’s fulfillment of the law is useless to you. Go back and observe those rites which you feel will make God happy with you. But be advised that all you are actually doing is building a diving board for an eternal swim in the Lake of Fire.

Lord God, thank you ever so much for those faithful believers in Christ who we can stand with. Together we can ward off the forces of deceit and wickedness which come against us. And thank You for Your word which allows us to unite in this way. We have sure directions concerning what You would desire of us. In using them, and in doing so together as a unified body, we are ready to face those who would challenge us to depart from what is right, holy, and decent. Thank You for this source of encouragement and strength which is there for us. Amen.

Monday, 24 April 2017

Having disarmed principalities and powers, He made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them in it. Colossians 2:15

This commentary will be a bit long, but it it is hoped that you will receive it gladly, despite the length.

The first word of this verse in the Greek has brought about innumerable commentaries of great length and of endless speculation as to its true meaning. It is apekduomai. It comes from two separate words, joined together by Paul, to make a new word. Apo means “away from,” and ekdyo means “go down and completely away from.” Thus it means “to strip oneself.” HELPS Word Studies notes that, “The double prefixes (apo, ek) strongly emphasize the depth of the renouncing. This ‘renunciation (stripping right off) is very emphatic.’” Paul uses this word which he coined one more time in the New Testament, in Colossians 3:9. In that verse, there is little disagreement as to its intended translation –

“Do not lie to one another, since you have put off the old man with his deeds,”

Because of the context of the words of this verse, scholars and translators alike have tried to come up with words which agree with their presuppositions about what Paul must be saying. As it is in the middle voice, it is to be taken as meaning “from,” not “for.” In other words, it would not mean, “He stripped for Himself something,” but rather “He stripped from Himself something.” The Pulpit Commentary notes that Paul employs compounds of dyo in the middle voice seventeen times elsewhere, and they are always in the sense of “putting off [or ‘on’] from one’s self.”

As noted, there are a long list of ideas as to the meaning of the first clause because of this unusual word. Some see this as having “put off the body of His flesh.” This would mean that He put off His physical body, and in the process He disarmed the principalities and powers which held sway over the physical body. This then would closely align with the thought of Colossians 3:9 above where the old man is stripped away. However, Christ did not possess “the old man” in His flesh. He is the new Man. The context cannot be speaking of this.

Others see this as having stripped away the angelic hosts through which the law was given. This would stand against the false teaching of the Judaizers. Others see this as Christ having divested the armor of the “infernal powers of darkness” (Gill). But this would not suit with the middle voice of the verb. On and on commentators have gone, attempting to translate this verb in order for it to make sense. Charles Ellicott gives one possible translation as, “…having unclothed Himself, He made a show of principalities and powers.” After saying this, he goes on to say that there is want of a connection to the phrase except to define it as “putting off the flesh” as was noted above. But, as we have shown, this makes no sense. Christ was sinless.

What needs to be done is to take the verb in its obvious, simple form. This is what Ellicott has done, except he then made an incorrect supposition as to what is “stripped.” It should thus be translated as, “Having stripped Himself, He made a show of principalities and powers.” With this translation, there is no need to then allegorize the action by saying it must be referring to the flesh of His body. Instead, it should be taken exactly as one would expect – He stripped Himself, and was thus naked. Instead of there being a want of a connection, the connection is perfectly obvious if aligned with the fall of man in the first place –

“And they were both naked, the man and his wife, and were not ashamed.” Genesis 2:25

This lack of shame was because of their state of innocence in regard to sin. But after the fall, this was no longer the case –

So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree desirable to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate. She also gave to her husband with her, and he ate. 7 Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they knew that they were naked; and they sewed fig leaves together and made themselves coverings.

⁸ And they heard the sound of the Lord God walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and Adam and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the Lord God among the trees of the garden.

⁹ Then the Lord God called to Adam and said to him, “Where are you?”

¹⁰ So he said, “I heard Your voice in the garden, and I was afraid because I was naked; and I hid myself.”

¹¹ And He said, “Who told you that you were naked? Have you eaten from the tree of which I commanded you that you should not eat?” Genesis 3:6-11

Immediately after the giving of the law, these words were spoken by the Lord to Moses –

“Nor shall you go up by steps to My altar, that your nakedness may not be exposed on it.” Exodus 20:26

In this verse of Exodus 20, it is not speaking of mere physical nakedness, but of what that nakedness implies, based on what occurred in Genesis 3. Shame of nakedness is how sin first manifested itself. And it was the lust of the eyes, the lust of the flesh, and the pride of life by which that sin came about. Man wanted to be like God, rising to His level. The earthen altar of Exodus 20 was to be without steps because man cannot rise to the level of God.

The higher the altar, the greater the sin is revealed, and thus the more nakedness is exposed. God instead made it known that He would condescend to become a Man and meet us on our own level. In Revelation 3, as Jesus speaks to the churches, He says this –

“I counsel you to buy from Me gold refined in the fire, that you may be rich; and white garments, that you may be clothed, that the shame of your nakedness may not be revealed.” Revelation 3:18

The nakedness of the body only pictures our revealed sin. Christ came to take that away and to cover us with His righteousness. It was He who hung naked on Calvary’s cross so that we could be covered by Him. This is what Paul is referring to here. It is a literal stripping of Himself, exposing the innocence of the Lamb of God who bore no sin. In this He did make a show of “principalities and powers.”

Christ’s sinless nature, seen in His exposed flesh, thus exposed the darkness of these forces for what they truly are. In so doing, “He made a public spectacle of them.” What Adam and Eve had attempted to hide, and what the priests of Israel were commanded to keep hidden from the presence of an infinitely holy God, is the sin-nature of man. What Christ demonstrated was a sinless nature, proving He is God. His naked, body, there on the cross, demonstrated this to them. He publically shamed those powers and thus in stripping Himself, He stripped them, “triumphing over them in it.”

The final words of this verse in Greek are en auto. They are translated one of two ways, “in it,” or “in Him.” “It” would refer to the cross itself; “Him” would refer to Christ. As God is the subject throughout the passage, it is certainly referring to Christ, and it should be translated as “in Him.” God made a public spectacle of the principalities and powers, triumphing over them in Christ. The Seed of the woman, promised just a few verses after the account of the hiding of the nakedness of Adam and Eve, had done exactly what the Lord had promised. The head of the serpent was crushed, sin was defeated, Christ had prevailed. This then is the correct translation and interpretation of what is otherwise a wholly misunderstood verse –

“Having stripped Himself, He made a show of principalities and powers; He made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them in Him.”

Life application: Isn’t the word great! It tells us of the marvelous work of Jesus, promised since the beginning of time. And He came right on time to do what was promised. Take time today to thank the Lord for this marvelous gift we call the Bible which in turn tells us of the most marvelous gift of all – our Lord Jesus Christ.

Lord God, at the very fall of man, You promised that You would send the Messiah to come and restore all that we had so terribly fouled up. It was our disobedience which brought about all of the pain and suffering since then. But in Christ, that is now over. We have an eternal hope of dwelling with You in a paradise once again. Hallelujah for what You have done. Great things lie ahead for Your redeemed. Thank You, O God, for our Lord Jesus Christ who makes all things new! Amen.

Sunday, 23 April 2017

…having wiped out the handwriting of requirements that was against us, which was contrary to us. And He has taken it out of the way, having nailed it to the cross.  Colossians 2:14

Where people go to get their theology explains where their theology stands. In the case of the Judaizers of the world, they would rather go anywhere than to Paul to get their theology. God gave the people of Israel a body of law which is termed “The Law of Moses.” It was written down for the people, and maintained for their instruction and life-practice. It is what is known to us now as the Old Covenant. In the coming of the Messiah, a new covenant was promised. That is found in Jeremiah 31:31. With the introduction of the New, the Old was annulled (Hebrews 7:18), it was made obsolete (Hebrews 8:14), and it was taken away (Hebrews 10:10).

That is what Paul is referring to here. The Law of Moses was, as he says, “wiped out.” The word in Greek is exaleiphó. It means to completely remove, obliterate, blot out, erase, wipe away, to cancel (such as when rubbing out a writing or seal impression left on a tablet). It was used to cancel obligations and/or entitlements to which extended benefits and entitlements. The explanation of the word is sufficient, but its use elsewhere testifies to the meaning. It is seen five times in the New Testament. Three are found in Revelation 3:5, 7:17, and 21:4. Each has the sense of either blotting out or wiping away.

In Christ, God has “wiped out the handwriting of the requirements that was against us.” The law stood against us by bringing death. Paul explains this in Romans 7, summing up this principle in verses 10 and 11 –

“And the commandment, which was to bring life, I found to bring death. ¹¹ For sin, taking occasion by the commandment, deceived me, and by it killed me.” Romans 7:10, 11

The law is a body of commandments, both moral and civil, which brings death, not life. It stands opposed to us because we are incapable of meeting its demands. And so God wiped out this handwriting – both moral and civil – that was against us, and “which was contrary to us.” The word translated as “contrary” means to set over against, or opposite. It is used one other time in the New Testament. In Hebrews 10:27 it is translated as “adversaries.” Because of our fallen human nature, the law stood against us. It was hostile to us as is an adversary.

But it is God’s law, God’s standard. And so in order to rescue us from it, He did something marvelous by sending Jesus. Jesus lived the life we could not live, and then He gave that life up in fulfillment of the law which stood opposed to us. In that act, it says that “He has taken it out of the way.” There is a change in tenses here. The “having wiped out” was in the aorist tense. At a specific moment, the handwriting of the law was wiped out. In having “taken it out” the tense changes to the perfect tense. It is taken out completely and forever. As Christ said on the cross, “It is finished.” The debt is paid, it is paid perfectly, and it is paid forever.

And this was accomplished through the death of Christ, God “having nailed it to the cross.” The verb is found nowhere else in Scripture. It is an explanation of how Christ was affixed to the cross, and it is a metaphor for what also happened to the law. What Paul is saying is that Jesus’ body is metaphorically used as the law itself. As He fulfilled the law, He thus represents the law, embodying it. In His being nailed to the cross, the law was thus nailed to the cross. In His death, the law died. The law which stood opposed to us is done. The verb is again in the aorist tense. At that defining moment when Christ was nailed to the cross, the law was nailed to the cross.

Question: How can it be that you would desire to go back to the law which died with Christ’s death? What type of perverse, unholy attitude would you display towards the work of the Lord? Was what He did for you of so little value that you would tread upon His shed blood by reinserting a law which was annulled through His death? May it never be so!

As a point of doctrine: The law remains in effect for those who have not come to Christ. In Christ, we are judged by Christ’s perfect fulfillment of the law. For those not in Christ, they will be judged by the revelation God has given them. For Gentiles without the law, they will be judged by God’s general revelation. For those with the law, they will be judged by that specific revelation. In both such instances, only death can be the verdict. In Christ, only life can be the outcome.

Life application: The law is fulfilled and annulled. Get over it.

Lord God, if I have but one boast in this life, it is in the cross of Jesus Christ my Lord. Amen.

Friday, 21 April 2017

…buried with Him in baptism, in which you also were raised with Him through faith in the working of God, who raised Him from the dead. Colossians 2:12

This verse partly resembles Romans 6:4 –

“Therefore we were buried with Him through baptism into death, that just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life.”

Paul, ensuring that those in Colossae understand this crucial point of doctrine, states it again while giving it more force than that which he wrote in the epistle to Rome. He says, “…buried with Him in baptism.” There is an article in front of “baptism.” Therefore, it reads either “the baptism,” or “your baptism.” Further, this is in the aorist tense, and so it makes this act of burial contemporary with the circumcision noted in the previous verse. In essence, when you were circumcised with the circumcision of Christ, you were also buried with Him in baptism.

This then is a spiritual, not a physical, baptism which is being spoken of. It is the baptism of the Holy Spirit – the total immersion of the old man into Christ’s death, being completely covered by His righteousness and thus resulting in us being “in” Christ. The sealing of the Spirit is the baptism of the Spirit; it is a one-time act which moves us from Adam to Christ. Water baptism then is only an outward sign of the inward change which takes place in us. This is another reason why sprinkling of infants is of no value. It is show without substance.

Paul continues with, “…in which you were also raised with Him.” Again, this is a spiritual raising, not our final conversion when we shall be made like Him at the resurrection. This raising is a moral conversion. When we were circumcised (made right in our heart, and acceptable to God), we were buried (where our sin and the old man was covered over), and we were also raised (putting on the new man who is morally covered in Christ’s righteousness, and deemed acceptable to God). The entire process occurs when one receives Jesus Christ through faith. As Paul says, “…through faith in the working of God.”

This faith is speaking of God’s working in Christ on our behalf. Christ died for our sins, and God raised Him to life. It is the constant theme of Paul where the focus is on the resurrection. Faith in this is the heart of the gospel. If the wages of sin is death, and if death could not hold Christ Jesus, then Christ obviously had no sin of His own. If this is so, then those who die in Him have had their sins removed in His death, and are thus deemed as sinless before God. Therefore, they too will be raised. Nothing can thwart this from taking place. All of this happens to us spiritually the moment we trust in the gospel message, and therefore the physical aspect of what occurs must logically follow. It is also another, of countless verses, which clearly show us the truth of eternal salvation. If we are deemed as sinless, then we are saved – once and forever.

It is God “who raised Him from the dead.” God looked upon the work of Christ, declared it acceptable, and therefore Christ was raised. When we trust in Christ, God looks upon our faith, and declares it acceptable. His merits are imputed to us, and we are granted the circumcision, the removing of the old man, and the moral conversion to a new and acceptable being.

It must be remembered why Paul is saying these things. There were those who claimed that something more was necessary to be perfected, even as a follower of Christ. Here is how Paul stated it in verse 8 –

“Beware lest anyone cheat you through philosophy and empty deceit, according to the tradition of men, according to the basic principles of the world, and not according to Christ.”

Paul is showing that the gospel transcends the traditions of men, and is not according to the basic principles of this world. What He offers is so far above those things that they are utterly useless. It would make no sense at all to fall back on Greek or Jewish practices which could not possibly have any bearing at all on what has occurred in the believer in Christ. Paul will perfectly and clearly explain this in the verses ahead.

Life application: If you have received Jesus Christ, the law is dead to you. Why on earth would you go back and adhere to principles of a law which is obsolete and nullified through the work of Christ? You have died with Him, you have been buried with Him, and you have been raised to newness of life because of Him. Now live for God in the New Covenant; put away the old!

Thank You, Lord God, for the New Covenant which comes through Christ’s work, and which fulfilled the Old Covenant in His death. Now, that is obsolete. It has been nailed to the cross, and that which stood opposed to us can have no power over us. Sin is defeated in Christ! So why would we willingly choose to return to a covenant which is nullified in Him? Let us put our trust and faith in what He alone has done. All praises to the name of Jesus! Amen.