Bible Commentaries
Colossians 1

Verses 1-2

Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, and Timothy our brother, To God's holy people in Colossae, the faithful brothers and sisters in Christ: Grace and peace to you from God our Father. Colossians 1:1-2

Paul was not writing the Colossians as some well-wisher or even as a Christian teacher or prophet. He was writing them as an apostle (Gk. apostolos), as one sent out from God for their benefit. He was not just someone sent from the church in Jerusalem or from any other place, but one sent by Christ himself.

We note that apostles did not travel alone, but Paul had with him a group of fellow-workers. That in itself should be a rebuke to the "Lone Ranger" type Christians today.^(F1)

One of the most faithful fellow-workers or "brothers" in the gospel was young Timothy. We see him present here with Paul. The apostle refers to him only as a "brother" and not as a fellow apostle. The English Baptist scholar Peter Pett remarks here on the "deep sense of being family" that was evident in the early church. Not only was the church a family but they were holy people (Gk. hagioi) or fellow saints (sanctified ones) before God.^(F2)

The term "saints," used here in many other translations, usually strikes us moderns as rather strange, since the word and concept have been so abused and distorted by the church throughout the last two thousand years. Often when we hear the word, we think of stained-glass figures with halos around their heads, or we think of derogatory terms like holy-rollers or sourpusses in the church.

The evangelist Ray Stedman says, "Many think of the word holy as a synonym for grim. Holy people, they feel, are sanctimonious, long-faced killjoys…one little girl said on seeing a mule for the first time: 'I don't know what you are but you must be a Christian; you look just like grandpa!'" ^(F3)

As we have said, the letter of Colossians was addressed to a small and insignificant city. It was a city located 112 miles (180 km.) inland and due east in ancient Phrygia from the great center of Ephesus. In Paul's Roman times the area was a part of the province of Asia. Colossae was situated very near the two other biblical cities of Laodicea and Hierapolis (4:13). All were located in the rich Lycus (Lykos) River Valley. The church at Colossae no doubt came into being indirectly as a result of Paul's approximate three-year ministry in the city of Ephesus (Acts 19:1-41:20:13-38).^(F4)However, the apostle plainly states (2:1) that he himself had never been in the city. Paul will mention later that the church at Colossae actually resulted from the work of Epaphras (v. 7).

Verses 3-6

PAUL'S THANKSGIVING AND PRAYER

We always thank God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, when we pray for you, because we have heard of your faith in Christ Jesus and of the love you have for all of God's people – Colossians 1:3-4

Today it strikes us as amazing that Paul would express such thankfulness and exert such faithfulness in praying for a group of people he had never met. He had only heard of their faith and love, but he had never been there to experience it. We see in other letters of Paul how he habitually prayed in earnest for Christians he had never met. For instance, he had never been to the great capital city of Rome and yet he still prayed regularly and sincerely for the Roman believers (Romans 1:9-10).

In the church today we seldom pray for the people that we sit next to each week at the assembly. No doubt, we also fail to express a deep thankfulness for these nearby saints of God. We need to learn a lesson from Paul, that we should thank God at all times and for all people, especially the dear saints of God whom we know and with whom we associate regularly (Ephesians 6:18).

Paul continues with his long sentence saying, "…the faith and love that spring from the hope stored up for you in heaven and about which you have already heard in the true message of the gospel that has come to you (1:5-6a)." In 1 Corinthians 13:13, Paul mentions what might well be called the three pillars of the Christian church. These are faith, hope and love. In the church we hear a significant amount about faith and love, but hope seems to be the orphan of the three. At this writing I am 77 years old, and I have been a Christian and in the church most of the time since I was a small boy. Truthfully, I can hardly ever remember hearing a sermon on hope. I have heard a few hopeless sermons and maybe some hopeful ones now and then, but hardly ever a sermon just on hope.

This seems really strange since Christian hope is such a wonderful thing. In this day, so few people around us have hope. It appears that our philosophers have drained off almost every drop of it from our society. But in Christianity we have wonderful hope. We immediately think of several aspects of this Christian hope. There is the hope of eternal life that is promised us (Titus 1:2). There is the hope of a bodily resurrection (1 Corinthians 15:42-43). There is the blessed hope of Jesus' appearing (Titus 2:13). Then there is the hope of a glorified church (1 Thessalonians 2:19; Ephesians 5:27). Someone once expressed this in a little jingle, "Life without Christ is a hopeless end, but life with Christ is an endless hope."

We note that the hope Paul speaks of is a hope that is laid up in heaven. There are many things in the Christian life that we can enjoy right now to some degree. The theologians call this "realized eschatology," or enjoying last things even now while we live on earth. However, there are things still laid up in heaven and for these we hope. For instance, we cannot experience the bodily resurrection now, and neither can we enjoy the full sight and full fellowship with our Savior. The scholar C.F.D. Moule says, "hope is the certainty that, in spite of the world's ways, God's way of love has the last word." ^(F5) There are many other unspeakable and unknowable joys of heaven that we still do not have. So, it is for the things we do not yet have that we hope. If we have them, of course, there is no reason to hope for them.

"In the same way, the gospel is bearing fruit and growing throughout the whole world – just as it has been doing among you since the day you heard it and truly understood God's grace" (1:6b). The preacher and commentator Warren Wiersbe says of this, "The Word of God is the only seed that can be planted anywhere in the world and bear fruit." ^(F6)

In the church we need to pay a lot more attention to the matter of bearing fruit. With just a casual observation we can see that fruit bearing seems to be a main obsession of all living things in the world around us. When the Lord returns, he will be looking for fruit. To refresh our memories, we have an abbreviated list of the Christian's fruit in Galatians 5:22-23. In this list we see things like love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, gentleness, and even self-control. It is troubling that so much of this fruit seems to be missing in the church today.

We see in this verse that the gospel is designed to produce such fruit in us. We can rest assured that it is producing great fruit among Christians in other parts of the world today just as it was in Paul's day. There is nothing like a big red apple hanging on the tree. People don't want our words or our sermons. They want to see fruit. They long to see love, peace and joy in our lives. They are literally starving for the fruit that should be on our tree.

At the beginning of verse six Paul speaks of the gospel that has come to us. Here in this portion of the verse he speaks of our hearing the gospel. We can all thank God that the gospel has come to us. We must remember that it was through people that the gospel came. I remember in my childhood those two or three evangelists in our area who labored so hard to bring the gospel to us all. I received it and my young life was saved and changed. We all need to pass on that which we have received as the clergyman Henry Burton has said it:

Have you had a kindness shown?
Pass it on:
Twas not given to thee alone,
Pass it on:
Let it go along the years,
Let it wipe another's tears,
Til in Heaven the deed appears
Pass it on.^(F7)

Verses 7-8

THE MINISTRY OF EPAPHRAS

You learned it from Epaphras, our dear fellow servant, who is a faithful minister of Christ on our behalf, and who also told us of your love in the Spirit. Colossians 1:7-8

This verse makes clear that it was Epaphras who founded the church at Colossae and not Paul (cf. 2:1; 4:12-13). However, the work at Colossae, as we have indicated, no doubt resulted from Paul's great work in the area and especially his work at Ephesus. We know that this Epaphras was a fellow worker of Paul and on at least one occasion a fellow prisoner (Philemon 1:23). The New International Bible Dictionary notes that his name is a shortened form of Epaphroditus, but that he is not to be confused with the person of this name mentioned elsewhere (Philippians 2:25; 4:18). ^(F8)Epaphras had apparently come to visit Paul in prison. After telling Paul of the church's great love he must have shared the distressing news of the heresy developing in the church.

Verses 9-12

THE MAKEUP OF PAUL'S GREAT PRAYERS

For this reason, since the day we heard about you, we have not stopped praying for you. We continually ask God to fill you with the knowledge of his will through all the wisdom and understanding that the Spirit gives, Colossians 1:9

We have already spoken somewhat of Paul's prayers. In this and the next few verses we can see the structure of his prayers and realize how different Paul's prayers were than our own. Already we have noted how Paul prayed on a continuous basis for the churches, even the ones he had never visited. Here we begin to see what Paul prayed for. He prayed that these new Christians would be filled with knowledge, spiritual wisdom and understanding. In Ephesians 1:17-23, we see another of Paul's prayers, and we realize that he was essentially praying the same way, that these other new believers would receive the spirit of wisdom and revelation; that the eyes of their hearts could be enlightened; that they might know the hope of their calling and the riches of their inheritance in the saints. It is strange indeed that we no longer pray this way for fellow believers. Perhaps this is part of the reason why our modern and postmodern churches often live in the dark.

The great Princeton professor, Henry van Dyke (1852-1933) once prayed this beautiful prayer:

Grant me the knowledge that I need
To solve the questions of the mind.
Light Thou my candle while I read,
To keep my heart from going blind.
Enlarge my vision to behold
The wonders you have wrought of old. ^(F9)

We need to take a closer look at some of the words in Colossians 1:9. Wiersbe notes that the Greek word for "knowledge" (epignosis) is to be translated "full knowledge." ^(F10) Barclay helps us take a look at two other Greek words in the verse. He remarks on "spiritual wisdom" or sophia in the Greek, saying that this is the knowledge of first principles. Then he deals with "understanding" or sunesis in the Greek, which is described as critical knowledge. Together, they indicate that we should be able to apply the knowledge of these first principles to all the matters that may arise in our lives.^(F11)

Obviously, Paul was beginning to introduce his attack on the heresy at Colossae. The false teachers had made much of Greek words like sophia and sunesis. They promised the people "full knowledge" and a special wisdom. However, here Paul declares that such things are already the heritage of the saints of God through the Lord Jesus Christ. In 1 Corinthians 1:24, Christ is actually called the "wisdom of God."

Paul continues, "so that you may live a life worthy of the Lord and please him in every way: bearing fruit in every good work, growing in the knowledge of God, …" (1:10). We note here that Paul immediately puts feet to his prayer as he launches into the Christian Walk. It was the great American evangelist D. L. Moody who once said, "Every Bible should be bound in shoe leather." Paul is insistent that we all actually "walk out" our theology in every-day life. In the Hebrew world this is known as "halakhah" and is taken from the Hebrew word for "walk." As the ancient preacher John Chrysostom (d. AD 407) put it, "With faith Paul always couples conduct." ^(F12)

At this point R. C. Lucas, the Anglican evangelical cleric, quotes Lohse who says, "In the instruction of primitive Christianity, understanding of the will of God is always connected with the command to follow God's will and do it." ^(F13) Lucas himself goes on to say, "The harvest of wisdom is works. Special knowledge (gnosis) leads usually to conceit, whereas the knowledge of God (epignosis) should lead to love for others rather than forourselves." ^(F14)

We see here that Paul returns to the important subject of fruit bearing. We cannot overemphasize this subject and yet, it seems so lacking in the present-day church. In the final analysis, fruit is not something just to be seen or admired, but something to be eaten and something to nourish and refresh a starving pagan world.

Paul speaks on, "being strengthened with all power according to his glorious might so that you may have great endurance and patience, and giving joyful thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of his holy people in the kingdom of light." (1:11-12). It would profit us here to also look at some important Greek words. The word "endurance" is hupomone in the Greek. Barclay says of this word, "It means not only the ability to bear things, but the ability, in bearing them, to turn them into glory." ^(F15) The word speaks of a fortitude that cannot be defeated… It is a steadfast endurance; a keep-on-keeping-on. The great preacher Charles Spurgeon once said, "By perseverance the snail reached the ark." The word "patience" or makrothumia in the Greek has to do with long-suffering or really "patience with people." ^(F16)

Paul urges us to live a life of thanksgiving because of what Christ has done. He has really done it all. Through him the Father has qualified us to share in this glorious inheritance of the saints. It is nothing we have done but all of what Christ has done. Arno Gaebelein says of this, "There can be no greater acceptance of us in heaven than God gives us now in Christ, for even there we shall stand accepted in him alone." ^(F17)In other words, "We are in!" "In Christ, we have made it!" But it is all because of him and not in any sense because of us. He is the one who opened our eyes and qualified us.

The great Apostle Paul was saved in a moment and appointed to go to the Gentiles. His mission from Jesus was "to open their eyes and turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan to God, so that they may receive forgiveness of sins and a place among those who are sanctified by faith in me" (Acts 26:18).

Verses 13-14

RESCUED AND DELIVERED

For he has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins" Colossians 1:13-14

In the US, it is now almost a weekly thing to see SWAT teams rescue defenseless little children in schools or other innocents from dangerous and life-threatening situations. These events are usually brought about by the evil acts of heavily armed and dangerous criminals. ^(F18)Here we can imagine ourselves, once blindfolded, in darkness and held captive by the most dangerous predator in the whole universe – Satan or the devil.

Suddenly, in our weakened and helpless state, we are rescued from the dominion of darkness and just as suddenly we are transferred into the kingdom of light. Not only do we receive redemption but we receive the forgiveness of all our sins. The Greek word metestesen or "brought into" as seen here in the NIV is translated conveyed, transferred, and translated, in several other versions of the Bible. Wiersbe says of it, "This word was used to describe the deportation of a population from one country into another. History records the fact that Antiochus the Great [ruled BC 222-187] transported at least two thousand Jews from Babylonia to Colossae…Earthly rulers transported the defeated people, but Jesus Christ transported the winners." ^(F19)

Paul says we now have the forgiveness of sins. The Greek term used here is aphesis and it had the meaning "to send away." Utley feels it is an allusion to the great Day of Atonement in which the scapegoat bearing the sins of Israel was sent away into the wilderness.^(F20)In Ephesians 1:7-8 Paul says, "In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God's grace that he lavished on us with all wisdom and understanding."

Verses 15-18

THE ABSOLUTE SUPREMACY OF CHRIST

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

In the following verses we have what is likely one of the greatest confessional statements related to Christ and his ministry in all of scripture. It is thought that this section might even include the remnants of an early Christian hymn or and early confession of faith.^(F21)

With these words Paul seriously begins to declare war on the heretics at Colossae. In our introduction we spoke briefly about the Colossian Heresy. Now, Paul will deal with it point by point and totally dismantle it.

As we have said, the Gnostics began with the idea that the earth and everything in it was totally evil and the spiritual realm was totally good. Rather than a world created out of nothing by a good God, the Gnostics believed it was created out of evil matter by an evil god. This evil god was really just an emanation from the true God, but he had grown ignorant and evil in his separation. As the Gnostics saw things, Jesus Christ was not unique but just one of many.^(F22)

Paul immediately deals with this false idea. He says that Jesus is the image (Gk. eikon) of the invisible God. He further claims that he is the firstborn (Gk. prototokon) of all creation. Barclay mentions that eikon is the word often used for "portrait" in the Greek language. He says the nearest equivalent in English would be the word "photograph." He relates how in ancient times a legal document would often include some description or distinguishing marks of the contracting parties. The word used for such a description was eikon.^(F23)

The Greek word prototokon, or firstborn, really has nothing to do with the sense of time. Rather it is commonly a title of honor. We see this word used in Psalm 89:27 (LXX) of the Messiah. It is a word that indicates special honor. Paul is making plain that Jesus was not some creation of God or some emanation that was lowly and ignorant of God. Paul is saying that Jesus deserves the highest honor of all creation.^(F24)

Albert Barnes, the nineteenth century Presbyterian theologian and commentator mentions how Romans 8:29 states that Jesus is the firstborn among many brethren and how Colossians 1:18 states that he is firstborn from the dead. He says, "The expression does not mean that he was 'begotten before all creatures,' as it is often explained, but refers to the simple fact that he sustains the highest rank over the creation." ^(F25)

"For in him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things have been created through him and for him. He is before all things, and in him all things hold together" (1:16-17). Long ago the church father Ambrose (330-397) said, "If the Son, then, is not begotten within limits of time, we are free to judge that nothing can have existed before the Son, whose being is not confined by time." ^(F26) We need to pause and try our best to take in this incredible statement about Jesus in these verses. We know that God the Father could have made the world, but the Bible is clear that he delegated this great task to the Son. Jesus made the world and the universe. In John 1:1-3 we read, "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning. Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made."

Simply speaking, we can say with all confidence that Jesus made the world and the universe. John tells us how he did it. He spoke them into existence with his powerful word (Gk. logos). Now today this might sound quite impossible, maybe it even sounds a little like some fairy tale. However, it might be of interest to know that now some of our sharpest minds in quantum physics are assuring us that the universe is not just a material thing. It is interesting how some of the great physicists have described the universe. James Jeans says it is like a "thought." Werner Heisenberg describes it as an "idea," while George Wald says it is like "mind." Perhaps the most interesting description comes from J.A. Wheeler who claims that the universe is like "information."^(F27)

It is important that we actually quote from this latter person, the great American theoretical physicist John Wheeler (1911-2008). Wheeler, who was professor emeritus at Princeton, collaborated with Einstein and Neils Bohr and was one of the pioneers in the field of nuclear fission. He says, "When I first started studying, I saw the world as composed of particles. Looking more deeply I discovered waves. Now after a lifetime of study, it appears that all existence is the expression of information." ^(F28)

Obviously, Wheeler and these other great scientists are coming quite close to the idea that the universe came about through the word. We see the same thing in the life forms around us. Now we know that they are information- based. This all happens through the mysterious substance the scientists now call DNA. Researcher and writer, Nancy Pearcy notes that, "The structure of DNA is precisely parallel to the structure of languages and computer programs." ^(F29)

When we ponder these things, we realize how powerful the word of God must be. If God's word can create a whole world and universe, just think what God's word can do for us! Jesus can certainly recreate us in his likeness. He can certainly take care of all our little problems as well. We no doubt remember the story of the Roman centurion who requested that Jesus heal his servant. The centurion said, "…Lord, I do not deserve to have you come under my roof. But just say the word, and my servant will be healed" (Matthew 8:8). Jesus spoke the word (v. 12) and the servant was immediately healed.

In this majestic verse we have another great mystery revealed to us. Not only did Jesus make the world but he actually sustains it by his powerful word (cf. Hebrews 1:3). Just think of that! The sun came up this morning because of the word of God. The tides come in because of the word and our hearts beat because of the word. This information fairly defeats the doctrine of Deism which claims that God made the world but left it to run on its own. We can see how clearly Paul's teaching here utterly demolishes the Gnostics. We should also add that this verse demolishes the extremely popular and pervasive Darwinian and Secular Humanistic worldviews of today.

The Lord Jesus is intimately concerned with every aspect of his world. He does not deal with it long-distance through some imaginary emanations. He helps the rose open its petals. He helps the baby take its first breath. Yet, he is before all things. In him everything holds together. We can say with all certainty that if the word of God should be withdrawn from this universe for a moment it would simply disintegrate.

Paul is not finished. There is another great mystery he wants to make plain, "And he is the head of the body, the church; he is the beginning and the firstborn from among the dead, so that in everything he might have the supremacy" (1:18). Jesus is not only head of the whole creation he is also head of the church. Some have spoken of the present world and universe as the "old" creation and they look at the church as the "new" creation.

The church is totally his. He has formed it and redeemed it by himself. He is the head of this spiritual body. The great fifth century church father Augustine once said, "For the resurrection we Christians know already has come to pass in our head, and in the members it is yet to be…That which has preceded in the head will follow in the body." ^(F30)

We need to just pause and think about how important the head is. The head with its mind directs and orders the church. The head with its eyes watches over every aspect of the church. The head with its ears and nose is super sensitive to all that is going on in the church. The head, with its mouth, receives nourishment and gives instruction for the church. Every nerve, ligament and movement of the body is directed by the mind or the head.

Jesus is the "alpha" or the beginning of everything (Revelation 1:8). Absolutely nothing can come before him. He is supreme and preeminent. He is the firstborn from the dead. In his resurrection he was the first person to come out of the grave with a glorious, resurrected body. Others had died and been resurrected, but in time they died again. Jesus rose from the grave, never to die again.

Verses 19-20

JESUS HAS ALL THE FULLNESS OF GOD

For God was pleased to have all his fullness dwell in him, Colossians 1:19

The Gnostics were very fond of the word "fullness" (Gk. pleroma). The word conveys the idea of being fully equipped. It was a word that was often used to describe a ship as it was fully loaded and ready for voyage. Here we see first of all that Christ has received all the fullness of God. Wiersbe sees pleroma as a key word in the book of Colossians.^(F31) He mentions, that in a second sense, a form of the word is used in 2:10 where Paul adds, "and in Christ you have been brought to fullness. He is the head over every power and authority." No doubt, this statement of Paul was another great blow to the tottering Gnostic theology.

Paul continues saying, "and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether things on earth or things in heaven, by making peace through his blood, shed on the cross" (1:20). We see here that Christ not only made the world and universe; he not only maintains the cosmos; but he is also its redeemer. The Gnostics had it partly right, that the flesh was defiled, but that defilement was due to the biblical fall and not to their own philosophical schemes. The first three chapters of Genesis tell us how God made the whole creation, including man and woman, and how he declared the whole creation "good." However, in Genesis 3, we learn about humanity's disobedience and how they fell from their glorious abode with God. Since that time all humanity has become defiled by the sin virus. It almost seems that sin is actually in the DNA of humankind.

Jesus came to the earth specifically to liberate humanity from its sinful and fallen condition (John 12:27). He did this by giving his life as a sacrifice on the cross in order that his shed blood might redeem all those who would believe. We can be sure that the cross and the blood were offensive to the Gnostic heretics just as they are still offensive to many today. Yet, this is the only pathway to God. He cannot be reached by emanations or by any other intellectual devices that humans may propose. 1 Timothy 2:5-6 sums it up well, "For there is one God and one mediator between God and mankind, the man Christ Jesus, who gave himself as a ransom for all people. This has now been witnessed to at the proper time."

We note in 1:20, that Christ came to redeem the whole creation. It sounds mysterious but Christ came to redeem things in heaven as well as in earth (cf. Job 15:15). We know that heavenly angels are not humans but spiritual beings. Certainly, Paul is not speaking of angelic redemption of some sort. Barclay mentions an idea that was put forth by the church father Theodoret (393-457) and later espoused by the theologian Erasmus (1466-1536). The point is that the heavenly beings were somehow reconciled to man rather than to God. Behind this suggestion is the idea that the angels were angry with humankind because of the latter's transgression and somehow the work of Christ took away their wrath as they saw God's great love for humans.^(F32)

Obviously, we cannot probe into the mysteries that are still secret things and still belong wholly to God (Deuteronomy 29:29). In Ephesians 6:12, we see that our struggle is not against fleshly things but against evil spiritual authorities who are somehow still in the heavenly places. These will in the end be thrown down through the power of Jesus' blood (Revelation 12:11). We can say with confidence that there will be new heavens and a new earth when the great redemption plan is finished (2 Peter 3:13). We can rest assured that God will wholly redeem the creation from lowly humankind to the farthest reaches of space.

We should note here that Paul is not preaching some sort of universal reconciliation, where all people will eventually be saved. This idea has been around for a long time, even since the days of the church father Origen in the third century. It is noted in Acts 3:19-21 that Christ will restore everything spoken of by the prophets and not just "everything."

Verses 21-23

THE RECONCILIATION OF CHRIST

Once you were alienated from God and were enemies in your minds because of your evil behavior. Colossians 1:21

Paul here describes the horrible results of the fall on the minds of people. Their minds have been corrupted and literally taken over by the devil. He uses an interesting word to describe this alienation of minds. It is the Greek word apellotriomenous, which has the meaning of being "transferred to another owner." It is a transfer from God to Satan and to self. This transfer of ownership has seriously affected us in our minds, in our thinking and thus in our behavior.^(F33)

This alienation has become particularly clear in the writings of our philosophers, especially since the "so called" Enlightenment or the 17th and 18th centuries. The prolific commentator James Burton Coffman remarks how the philosopher Jean-Jacques Rousseau, the father of the Romantic Movement, filled our heads with a lot of garbage concerning the "natural man" and the "noble savage," that supposed uninhibited human animal. He relates how Will and Ariel Durant in their history have said that Rousseau "had more effect upon posterity than any other writer or thinker of the eighteenth century." ^(F34)

Rousseau, by his thought and unethical lifestyle, led us down the path of deception, and was in a real sense the father of the Bohemian and lawless lifestyles we see so much today. Much "Enlightenment" philosophy continued on this path. It resulted in Friedrich Nietzsche (1844-1900) becoming the father of the "God is dead" movement in philosophy and theology. It was Nietzsche himself, and not God who later died, and he died insane. All this culminated in Jean-Paul Sartre (1905-1980) the French philosopher, who also lived a deplorable lifestyle, and who finally declared the universe to be irrational and absurd.^(F35)

Paul says in 2 Corinthians 4:4, "The god of this age has blinded the minds of unbelievers, so that they cannot see the light of the gospel that displays the glory of Christ, who is the image of God." If the blinders could be taken off of humanity even for a moment, people would stand astounded at the glory of the Creator God. Unfortunately, the way for much of modern man's confusion and blindness in the mind was aided by the philosophers themselves, who began to elevate man's intellect and his rationalism. The result was that man's intellect eventually was proclaimed as "autonomous."

It was up to René Descartes (1596-1650), who has been dubbed "The Father of Modern Philosophy," to open the door wide open to human intellect and to its reason. He is perhaps best known for his philosophical statement "Cogito ergo sum" (I think, therefore I am). Descartes did much to make the mind autonomous. Charles Pope carries out the implications of Cartesian thinking:

Reality is not "out there" but it is only in my mind. It is what I think that matters…This leads to a lot of the absurdity of modern times…For example, …Cartesian retreat into the mind allows many to continue to think of abortion abstractly… And the mind, detached from reality can do some pretty awful rationalizing. …The same is true for the issue of homosexuality. Any rudimentary look into the biology and design of the body makes it clear that something is disordered with homosexual activity…All that seems to matter is what they think. It is opinion, not reality, that wins the day. ^(F36)

"But now he has reconciled you by Christ's physical body through death to present you holy in his sight, without blemish and free from accusation – " (1:22). We can thank God for the "buts" of scripture. We were in an awful mess, "but" God moved to reconcile and redeem us. Praise the Lord! As we can see, this reconciliation could not possibly have come through our fallen and depraved minds or through any of our ideas. It had to come solely from God. The simple gospel truth is that through the sacrifice of Jesus on the cross and through his blood we have been made holy, without blemish and beyond accusation. Here we think of that blessed old hymn by Robert Lowry (1826-1899):

What can wash away my sin?
Nothing but the blood of Jesus;
What can make me whole again?
Nothing but the blood of Jesus.

This is all my hope and peace –
Nothing but the blood of Jesus!
This is all my righteousness –
Nothing but the blood of Jesus!

Chorus

Oh! precious is the flow
That makes me white as snow;
No other fount I know,
Nothing but the blood of Jesus ^(F37)

Through Jesus and his blood, we have been reconciled and redeemed. Now the Bible tells us that in Christ we have a new mind. It is the mind of Christ (1 Corinthians 2:16). By God's grace we have been given a complete mind transplant!

Paul now adds one important thought saying, "if you continue in your faith, established and firm, and do not move from the hope held out in the gospel. This is the gospel that you heard and that has been proclaimed to every creature under heaven, and of which I, Paul, have become a servant" (1:23). It has been said in rhyme, "If your faith fizzles before you finish, it is because it was faulty from the first!" ^(F38) Here Paul brings up the important doctrine of the perseverance of the saints (cf. 1 John 2:19; Revelation 3:5). I once heard it said that it is really Christ who perseveres and not us in the real sense. It is Christ in us who is the hope of Glory as Paul will go on to say in verse 27.

The Bible always leaves us with a certain tension in this area and it seems grace works that way. We were chosen in him before the foundation of the world (Ephesians 1:4), but we must continue to the end to be saved (Matthew 10:22). A lot of this mystery is explained in God's great foreknowledge. Somehow, he knows those who will finish the race and those are his chosen ones. It is beyond the mind of man to unravel such mysteries.

Paul declares that this gospel has been proclaimed throughout the world. He no doubt has reference to the known world or the Roman world. Paul may have some reference here to the general revelation found in the creation (Romans 10:18), but most likely in the context it is the proclamation of the saving gospel of Christ. It is amazing how the gospel penetrated the whole of the Roman world with the first few generations of Christians.

Verses 24-25

PAUL'S GREAT APOSTOLIC WORK

Now I rejoice in what I am suffering for you, and I fill up in my flesh what is still lacking in regard to Christ's afflictions, for the sake of his body, which is the church. Colossians 1:24

This is a puzzling statement. At first reading it sounds like there was something incomplete about Christ's suffering and death. We can be sure that was not the case. Seattle professor of biblical studies, Robert Wall, says that Paul's emphasis here is not on God's salvation but on the church and its union with the suffering Christ.^(F39)

The whole subject of suffering has become a very unpopular one for the western church. Some folks today feel that the proper amount of faith prevents suffering entirely. This is obviously an unbiblical approach as we can see in many scriptures (i.e. 2 Corinthians 4:10; Philippians 1:12; Galatians 2:20, & 2 Timothy 2:11-12). In 2 Corinthians 1:5 Paul remarks, "For just as we share abundantly in the sufferings of Christ, so also our comfort abounds through Christ."

There is no way we can be connected to the Suffering Servant of Isaiah 53 without bearing some of his suffering and rejection he bore.^(F40) It is a part of the cross we are instructed to carry. Paul realized he was bearing this cross of suffering and rejection on behalf of the church and that the rest of the church would also have to bear it (Philippians 2:17). This cross of Christ we are to bear has absolutely nothing to do with redemption. That work was completed once for all and forever at Calvary. It rather has to do with identification.

"I have become its servant by the commission God gave me to present to you the word of God in its fullness – " (1:25). Paul had become "a" suffering servant somewhat like the Suffering Servant of Isaiah. He had done so to bring the full word of God or the full gospel to the Colossians. "The Greek word for 'commission' is oikonomia, which envisions the effective and orderly work of a household or business; it is the same word from which we derive the word economy…Paul understands his calling and ministry within the context of a 'household,' God's household (1 Corinthians 3:10-15; Romans 1:11-12; Ephesians 2:19-20)." ^(F41)

Paul continues saying, "…the mystery that has been kept hidden for ages and generations, but is now disclosed to the Lord's people. To them God has chosen to make known among the Gentiles the glorious riches of this mystery, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory" (1:26-27). The Gnostics were intent upon sharing some spiritual secrets or deep mysteries with the Colossian saints. Here, Paul gives them a mystery so deep that the 21st century church is still thinking about it and trying to fully understand it.

In Ephesians, which as we have seen is almost a companion epistle to Colossians, Paul shared several other deep mysteries of the faith. He shared how we were chosen before the creation of the world (1:4); how God's purpose was to bring everything in heaven and earth together in Christ (1:10); how we are even now seated with Christ in the heavenly realms (2:6); how we are no longer foreigners but fellow citizens with God's people (2:19); and how we Gentiles are now heirs together with Israel and members of one body (3:6).

The so-called mysteries that the Gnostics wished to share were supposedly hidden from most people since they were of an esoteric nature. However, the mysteries Paul wished to share were not hidden but were now freely available to all who were in Christ. The Greek word Paul uses is musterion and it has to do with things that were once hidden but are now fully revealed to the church of God. In comparison to the Gnostics' cheap "dime store" mysteries, this mystery is full of "glorious riches." Here is the mystery, "Christ in you, the hope of glory." And to think, this great mystery is even given to the Gentiles!

In this one mystery, the secret to everything that pertains to the Christian life is included. The Christian life is not through us our wisdom or strength, but it is through Christ and in Christ. As the Apostle himself once said, "I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me" (Galatians 2:20).

Paul says, "He is the one we proclaim, admonishing and teaching everyone with all wisdom, so that we may present everyone fully mature in Christ. To this end I strenuously contend with all the energy Christ so powerfully works in me" (1:28-29). Here we see that the proclamation of the gospel includes admonishing and teaching. In Modern and Postmodern times, we have let these two things slide. If we are going to be a so-called "seeker friendly" church, we do not dare to admonish anyone and neither can we afford to do any real serious teaching from the Bible.

Paul's goal was to present people perfect in Christ. The word "perfect" throws us off a bit because we all know that none of us is perfect. However, the Greek word here is telos, and it has the meaning of being "fully equipped for an assigned task." It does not mean "sinless" but is rather involved with functional maturity.^(F42)

To this end Paul has been in labor and struggles that have required all his energy. The word for "labor" here is the Greek kopio, and it means that one is toiling almost to the point of exhaustion. The Greek word for "striving" is agonizomai, and it means agonizing or putting out great effort as in an athletic contest. ^(F43)It is of interest that a form of the latter word was the same one used of Jesus as he prayed in the Garden of Gethsemane and as his sweat was likened to great drops of blood.