Sanctification in Colossians 3.1-5 (Doctrinal Bible Church in Huntsville, Alabama)

Doctrinal Bible Church

Pastor-Teacher Bill Wenstrom

Wednesday November 8, 2023

Sanctification Series: Sanctification in Colossians 3:1-5

Lesson # 8

In Colossians 3:1-5, the apostle Paul teaches the Colossian Christian community the doctrine of sanctification.

Colossians 3:1 Therefore, if, and let us assume that it is true for the sake of argument that each and every one of you have been raised up with Christ and we agree that this is true. Then, continue to make it your habit of diligently seeking after the things above, where Christ is existing in a state of being seated at God’s right hand. (Pastor’s translation)

Now, in Colossians 3:1, we have a first class conditional statement which is designed to persuade these faithful Christians in Colossae to appropriate by faith their identification with Christ in His resurrection in order to live the Christian way of life.

This first class condition is tied to the one in Colossians 2:20 with the latter speaking of the Colossians’ identification with Christ in His death and the former with His resurrection.

Both form the basis of the Christian way of life.

Christ died and was raised in order for the Christian to live a life of holiness, to grow to spiritual maturity and to produce good works which are pleasing to the Father.

Thus, the protasis of a first class condition in Colossians 3:1 is resuming Paul’s thought from Colossians 2:20 where he uses a first class conditional statement to persuade them to appropriate by faith their identification with Christ in His death.

This identification freed them from the power of the sin nature, Satan, and his cosmic system and the Law.

Now, in Colossians 3:1, Paul is linking this identification with Christ in His death with the Colossians’ identification with Christ in His resurrection.

Therefore, Paul is persuading the Colossians that they must appropriate by faith their identification with Christ in His resurrection to live the Christian way of life while simultaneously appropriating by faith their identification with Christ in His death to deal with the false teaching of the Judaizers.

So the inference in Colossians 3:1 indicates that the Colossians have died with Christ, “therefore,” they have been raised with Christ and he says this same exact thing in Romans 6:5 and 8.

Just as Jesus Christ’s death is meaningless without His resurrection so the Christian’s identification with Christ in His death is meaningless without their being identified with Him in His resurrection.

The reason for this is that His resurrection vindicated Him in the sense that it demonstrated the Father had accepted His work on the cross to deal with the problem of personal sins, the sin nature, spiritual and physical death, enslavement to Satan and his kingdom, and condemnation from the Law and the wrath of God.

These faithful Christians in Colossae whom Paul was addressing in this epistle were already obeying this command in Colossians 3:1.

This is indicated by two passages in this epistle.

First, in Colossians 1:3-5, the apostle Paul informed these faithful Christians in Colossae that he gave thanks to the Father in prayer for them after hearing about their faith in Jesus Christ and that they were practicing the love of God with one another.

Then, in Colossians 2:5, he asserts that he was rejoicing over the fact that they were disciplined and specifically their dedication which was produced by their faith with regards to their union and identification with Jesus Christ.

“The things above” is a reference to the spiritual values and holy standards which characterize God and His people and which standards are met by the believer when they appropriate by faith their identification with Christ.

It is also related to the spiritual blessings associated with the believer’s union and identification with Christ in His crucifixion, death, burial, resurrection and session.

Thus, Paul is exhorting the Colossians to make every effort to experience their sanctification which would be the result of appropriating by faith their identification with Christ in His crucifixion, death, burial, resurrection and session at the right hand of the Father.

This would fulfill a two-fold purpose: (1) To experience the spiritual blessings associated with this union and identification resulting in the glorification of the Father and spiritual growth. (2) To experience and manifest God’s holy standards and values in the Christian’s life.

Colossians 3:2 Each and every one of you continue making it your habit of concentrating on the things above, not on the things on earth. (Pastor’s translation)

Now, here in verse 2, Paul is exhorting the Colossians to focus their thinking upon these holy or godly standards and values and spiritual blessings related to their union and identification with Christ.

Thus, Paul is exhorting the Colossians in verse 2 to focus their thinking on their sanctification.

Colossians 3:3 because each and every one of you has died. Consequently, the life of each and every one of you is concealed with Christ by means of the power of God the Father. (Pastor’s translation)

Now, here in Colossians 3:3, the apostle Paul presents the reason for the command and prohibition in Colossians 3:2 by asserting that the Colossians have died with Christ which speaks of their identification with Christ in His death through the baptism of the Spirit.

Then, he presents the logical result of this identification with Christ in His death by asserting that the eternal life of the Colossians is concealed with Christ by means of the omnipotence of the Father.

Thus, they are to continue making it their habit of concentrating on the things above and not on the things on earth because they have died with Christ and consequently their eternal life is concealed with Christ as well by means of the omnipotence of the Father.

The reference to the eternal life of the Colossians being hidden with Christ is a reference to their identification with Christ in His resurrection.

This interpretation is supported by Paul’s teaching in Romans 6:4 in which he asserts that the Christian has been buried with Christ through baptism in His death so that as Christ was raised from the death through the glory of the Father so to the Christian might walk in new life.

Also, in Romans 6:8, he asserts that if the Christian has died with Christ, they will also live with Him.

So the Christian’s possession of eternal life is directly related or is the result of their being identified with Christ in His resurrection.

They were identified with Christ in His death and resurrection so that they might possess and experience eternal life.

Colossians 3:4 When Christ, the life of each and every one of you, enters into the state of being revealed, then, at that time, each and every one of you will, as a certainty be revealed with Him in a state of glory. (Pastor’s translation)

Colossians 3:4 is a temporal clause which teaches that the revelation of Jesus Christ to the Colossians will take simultaneously with the Colossians being revealed with Christ in a state or glory.

The emphasis with this temporal clause is to encourage the Colossians that they will be revealed in glory with Christ when He does appear to them.

Again, the emphasis is not if Christ will appear to them but that He will appear to them and this will result in their being glorified with Him in a resurrection body.

Now, here in verse 4, Paul asserts that when Christ is revealed, then the Colossians will also be revealed with Him in a state of glory.

If the church age believer is guaranteed a resurrection body at the rapture or resurrection of the church when Christ appears to the church, then they must continue to live their lives in the meantime in a manner which is consistent with this future event which will take place in all of their lives.

So in Colossians 3:4, the apostle Paul is speaking of the Colossians’ sanctification in a perfective sense.

Colossians 3:5 Therefore, I solemnly charge each and every one of you to put to death the members of that which belongs to your earthly nature with regards to the practice of sexual immorality, sexual impurity, sexual lust, evil desire as well as that which is greed which is, as an eternal spiritual truth characterized as idolatry. (Pastor’s translation)

Now, the command issued by Paul in Colossians 3:5 is an inference from his previous statements recorded in Colossians 3:1-4.

In verse 5, Paul solemnly issues another command which requires that the Colossians put to death the members of that which belongs to their earthly nature with regards to the practice of immorality, impurity, passion, evil desire and greed.

The Colossians must put to death the members of their bodies with regards to the practice of immorality, impurity, passion, evil desire and greed based upon the fact that they have died with Christ and have been raised with Him.

In other words, the command in verse 5 is issued based upon the fact that the Colossians are identified with Christ in His death and resurrection.

When Paul issues this command, he is doing so with a sense of urgency.

Paul’s statements in Colossians 1:3-5 and 2:5 make clear that the Colossians were already obeying this command along with the others in this epistle since they affirm that the Colossians were obedient to the gospel.

This obedience manifested itself in their conduct with each other in that they were exercising God’s love toward one another.

This obedience protected them from the practice of the sins listed in Colossians 3:5.