Colossians -Lesson 3
Colossians • Sermon • Submitted
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· 10 viewsWho Christ is, who Chirst is not, who we should be in Christ
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Colossians Outline:
Colossians Outline:
- Greeting
- Who Christ is - Chapter 1
- Who and what Christ is not - Chapter 2/3
- How to act in Christ - Chapter 3/4
- Update on Paul and a blessing - Chapter 4
Passage Outline: Col 1:15-29
- Preeminence (Supremacy) of Christ - V15-18
- Reconciled in Christ - V19-23
- Sacrificial Service for Christ V24-29
As we read the passage and study Colossians, we need to remember the main reason Paul is writing this book. To combat false teachings. So each point Paul makes in telling us who Christ is, is putting down one aspect of the false teachings.
1. Preeminence (Supremacy) of Christ. V15-18
1. Preeminence (Supremacy) of Christ. V15-18
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15 He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation.
16 For by Him all things were created that are in heaven and that are on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or principalities or powers. All things were created through Him and for Him.
17 And He is before all things, and in Him all things consist.
18 And He is the head of the body, the church, who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, that in all things He may have the preeminence.
Not going to lie there is a lot of deep theology here. And we are going to just scratch the surface. If you want to study more let me know And I will send you a document with tons of references and commentaries.
Let’s just look for a moment at verbiage used by the Paul.
Image of an invisible God
Firstborn over all creation
Created all things in heaven and earth
Visible and invisible
Thrones and dominions
Principalities and powers
All things created through and for Him
He is before and all things consist in Him
Head of the Body (church)
The beginning and firstborn from dead
and last but not least preeminence or supremacy.
From this list we can assume quite clearly that some of the false teaching was Jesus was not the center of attention.
Paul in four verses just took us on a trip from Genesis to revelations and making stops in several books along the way.
15 He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation.
I. - Jesus is the image of the invisible God.
In Gen 1:26 “let us make man in our image...
Gen 1:17 So, God created man in his own image...
So Jesus is the image of God who no one has seen. But when we see Jesus we have seen the father
9 Jesus said to him, “Have I been with you so long, and yet you have not known Me, Philip? He who has seen Me has seen the Father; so how can you say, ‘Show us the Father’?
We see the concept of image used all through the old testament when people bowed down to graven images and all through revelations with the image of the beast.
We are not to make images
Bow down to images or worship images.
Notice there are no actual mages of Jesus or God.
Take away- we are to become the image of God through Christ with the help of the Holy Spirit.
10 and have put on the new man who is renewed in knowledge according to the image of Him who created him,
II. - Now on to Firstborn
15 He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation.
The word firstborn (prōtotokos) appears eight times in the NT ; most references are figurative, although a literal sense occurs at Luke 2:7. The term appears in the plural only at Hebrews 11:28 and 12:23 referring to believers; the remaining instances in the singular always refer to Jesus Christ.
7 And she brought forth her firstborn Son, and wrapped Him in swaddling cloths, and laid Him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn.
The notion of supremacy or priority of rank tends to dominate. “Firstborn” appears on three occasions in Paul’s letters in a figurative sense with reference to Jesus Christ: Colossians 1:15, 18; Romans 8:29.
1. Firstborn of All Creation
2. Firstborn from the Dead
18 And He is the head of the body, the church, who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, that in all things He may have the preeminence.
3. Firstborn Among Many Brothers
29 For whom He foreknew, He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son, that He might be the firstborn among many brethren.
Dictionary of Paul and His Letters 1. Firstborn of All Creation
The expression “firstborn of all creation” (prōtotokos pasēs ktiseōs, Col 1:15) occurs in the opening line of the Colossian “hymn” (see Hymns) and speaks of Christ’s relationship to the creation.
This term is use to denotes a special place in the Father’s love. Isreal is the firstborn, Jesus is the firstborn.
this col terms echos the wording in Psalm 89 about the Davidic kingdom being the firstborn.
27 Also I will make him My firstborn, The highest of the kings of the earth.
The Firstborn was to take on the responsibility of carrying on the family name and and ensure the father’s legacy. Jesus is doing the same thing and now that Jesus is gone he is asking all the believers to carry on in his name.
How are you fulfilling the this responsibility?
III. - Created all things
16 For by Him all things were created that are in heaven and that are on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or principalities or powers. All things were created through Him and for Him.
To ensure correct teaching in case there was any doubt Paul makes it crystal clear who we are talking about and what and whats he has accomplished.
Jesus Created all things.
1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.
2 He was in the beginning with God.
3 All things were made through Him, and without Him nothing was made that was made.
“Word” is translated from the Greek “Logos” the essence of the written word. Jesus is the word. The Written word. you may have herd the term “Rhema” also means word but this is the meaning you get from the written word or the Spirit guided understanding of the written word, or a word of knowledge from the written word.
9 and to make all see what is the fellowship of the mystery, which from the beginning of the ages has been hidden in God who created all things through Jesus Christ;
11 “You are worthy, O Lord, To receive glory and honor and power; For You created all things, And by Your will they exist and were created.”
Just in case you there was any doubt about “all thing” Paul goes on to describe all things.
IV. - Visible and invisible - spiritual and earthly
V. - Thrones and dominions - kings and rulers
VI. - Principalities and powers - the rulers of the spiritual realm.
12 For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places.
VII. - Created for Him - Not only did Jesus create all things, he created all things for himself.
17 And He is before all things, and in Him all things consist.
VIII. - Consist in Him -
- to bring together by gathering, unite, collect
- to bring into existence in an organized manner, put together, constitute, establish, prepare
IX. - Head of the Body (church)
22 And He put all things under His feet, and gave Him to be head over all things to the church,
23 For the husband is head of the wife, as also Christ is head of the church; and He is the Savior of the body.
X. - Firstborn from dead - we talked about earlier
XI. - Last but not least preeminence or supremacy of Christ.
There should be no doubt after Paul’s discourse who Jesus is and what his position is. One more time just look at this comprehensive list.
Image of an invisible God
Firstborn over all creation
Created all things in heaven and earth
Visible and invisible
Thrones and dominions
Principalities and powers
All things created through and for Him
He is before and all things consist in Him
Head of the Body (church)The beginning and firstborn from dead
and last but not least preeminence or supremacy.
So to wrap up the first section: Christ and the Church at Colosse Col 1:15–18
A. Who Christ is (1:15): He is the visible image of the invisible God and the head of the Church.
B. What Christ has done (1:16–18)
1. In regard to creation (1:16–17, 20)
a. He created all things (1:16).
b. He sustains all things (1:17).
c. He will reconcile all things (1:20). We will get to that in the next section.
2. Reconciled in Christ - V19-23
2. Reconciled in Christ - V19-23
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19 For it pleased the Father that in Him all the fullness should dwell,
20 and by Him to reconcile all things to Himself, by Him, whether things on earth or things in heaven, having made peace through the blood of His cross.
21 And you, who once were alienated and enemies in your mind by wicked works, yet now He has reconciled
22 in the body of His flesh through death, to present you holy, and blameless, and above reproach in His sight—
23 if indeed you continue in the faith, grounded and steadfast, and are not moved away from the hope of the gospel which you heard, which was preached to every creature under heaven, of which I, Paul, became a minister.
19 For it pleased the Father that in Him all the fullness should dwell,
By this statement, Paul was refuting the Greek idea that Jesus could not be human and divine at the same time. Christ is fully human; he is also fully divine.
Nor is there more than one God; one God, in all his fullness, resides in Christ.
Paul was also refuting the false teaching that God’s “fullness” meant all the angelic powers that emanate from God, fill the space between heaven and earth, and act as intermediaries between God and humans.
Instead, Paul affirmed that God’s “fullness” dwells in Christ alone. Christ has always been God and always will be God. All of God (including his attributes, characteristics, nature, and being) indwells the Son.
When we have Christ we have all of God in human form. Any teaching that diminishes any aspect of Christ—either his humanity or his divinity—is false teaching. In him we have everything we need.
In Acts, Luke uses a know saying about Zeus and applies it to Jesus to get the point a cross.
28 for in Him we live and move and have our being, as also some of your own poets have said, ‘For we are also His offspring.’
20 and by Him to reconcile all things to Himself, by Him, whether things on earth or things in heaven, having made peace through the blood of His cross.
First, consider what this reconciliation means for humanity. There can be no peace between sinful humans and a holy God. Because people are born into sin, they cannot become good enough to be acceptable to God.
In Old Testament times, God accepted symbolic offerings. Jesus had not yet been sacrificed, so God accepted the life of an animal in place of the life of the sinner. When Jesus came, he substituted his perfect life for our sinful lives, taking the penalty for sin that we deserve.
The penalty for sin is death. We are guilty and culpable, but Jesus took the punishment. Thus he redeemed us from the power of sin and reconciled us to God.[1]
[1] Bruce B. Barton and Philip Wesley Comfort, Philippians, Colossians, Philemon, Life Application Bible Commentary (Wheaton, IL: Tyndale House Publishers, 1995), 166.
It is important to note that people are reconciled to God (“to Himself”) not that God is reconciled to people. For mankind has left God and needs to be brought back to Him.
Because of who Christ is we ought to:
• Worship him with praise and thanks
• Learn about him, for he is God
• Obey him, for he is the ultimate authority
• Love him for what he has done for us
[1] Bruce B. Barton and Philip Wesley Comfort, Philippians, Colossians, Philemon, Life Application Bible Commentary (Wheaton, IL: Tyndale House Publishers, 1995), 167.
Does this reconciliation of “all things” mean that everyone will be saved? From other passages, we know that Paul understood salvation to be something accepted or rejected by humans, who are given the choice.
The scope of God’s reconciliation is universal—it is offered to all people. But reconciliation is accomplished only for those who accept Christ as Savior.
17 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.
18 Now all things are of God, who has reconciled us to Himself through Jesus Christ, and has given us the ministry of reconciliation,
The natural mind of the unsaved sinner is at war with God
7 Because the carnal mind is enmity against God; for it is not subject to the law of God, nor indeed can be.
The sinner may be sincere, religious, and even moral; but he is still at war with God
If there is to be reconciliation between man and God, the initiative and action must come from God. It is in Christ that God was reconciled to man
19 that is, that God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself, not imputing their trespasses to them, and has committed to us the word of reconciliation.
But it was not the incarnation of Christ that accomplished this reconciliation, nor was it His example as He lived among men. It was through His death that peace was made between God and man. He “made peace through the blood of His cross” (Col. 1:20).
[1] Warren W. Wiersbe, The Bible Exposition Commentary, vol. 2 (Wheaton, IL: Victor Books, 1996), 118.
Of course, the false teachers offered a kind of reconciliation between man and God. However, the reconciliation they offered was not complete or final. The angels and the “emanations” could in some way bring men closer to God, according to the gnostic teachers. But the reconciliation we have in Jesus Christ is perfect, complete, and final.
21 And you, who once were alienated and enemies in your mind by wicked works, yet now He has reconciled
22 in the body of His flesh through death, to present you holy, and blameless, and above reproach in His sight—
Paul gave the reason why we need reconciliation. The believers in Colosse had, at one time, been alienated (separated, estranged) from God and they were his enemies. Their thoughts and behaviors had revealed, not apathy or ignorance, but hostility toward God because of sin.
They were strangers to God’s way of thinking. Wrong thinking leads to sin, which further perverts and destroys thoughts about him. When people are out of harmony with God, their natural condition is to be totally hostile to his standards
You cant sin unless you first think it. That is why Paul say to take every thought captive
5 casting down arguments and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ,
think, dwell, sin illustration
God made peace by Jesus’ blood on the cross (col 1:20). In order to answer the false teaching that Jesus was only a spirit and not a true human being, Paul explained that Jesus’ fleshly, physical body actually died. Jesus suffered death fully as a human; thus we can be assured that he died in our place. Since Jesus, as perfect God, faced death, we can be assured that his sacrifice was complete and that he truly removed our sin
Now if we could just stay away form sin and be what God calls us to after his blood was shed for us:
Holy
Blameless
Above reproach
Another way to look at this is :
Vs 21 is who you once were
vs 22 is where you now stand
and vs 23 How you must go on
23 if indeed you continue in the faith, grounded and steadfast, and are not moved away from the hope of the gospel which you heard, which was preached to every creature under heaven, of which I, Paul, became a minister.
Paul was countering countering several theologies here:
the once saved always saved theology
the I dont have to change the way I live theology
the I can do anything I want as long as I repent theology
that Salvation comes from wisdom or special knowledge
You could have never been close to God, but for the reconciliation Jesus provided in his death on the cross. But now you have have to stay with God if you are going to continue with God.
It would have been great if Paul left this verse out but just like most promises of God in the Bible this one comes with a condition too. “if indeed you continue in the faith.
Obviously from this statement we con conclude that some in the Colossian Church came to to faith but though the false teaching wondered away from the the truth.
Other conditional promises:
19 If you are willing and obedient, You shall eat the good of the land;
10 Bring all the tithes into the storehouse, That there may be food in My house, And try Me now in this,” Says the Lord of hosts, “If I will not open for you the windows of heaven And pour out for you such blessing That there will not be room enough to receive it.
11 “And I will rebuke the devourer for your sakes, So that he will not destroy the fruit of your ground, Nor shall the vine fail to bear fruit for you in the field,” Says the Lord of hosts;
Even salvation is conditional, you must accept it!!!
Other verses on how to live in light of Christ in our hearts:
3 But fornication and all uncleanness or covetousness, let it not even be named among you, as is fitting for saints;
8 Finally, brethren, whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there is any virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy—meditate on these things.
Just to name a couple
3. Sacrificial Service for Christ - (V24-29)
3. Sacrificial Service for Christ - (V24-29)
24 I now rejoice in my sufferings for you, and fill up in my flesh what is lacking in the afflictions of Christ, for the sake of His body, which is the church,
25 of which I became a minister according to the stewardship from God which was given to me for you, to fulfill the word of God,
26 the mystery which has been hidden from ages and from generations, but now has been revealed to His saints.
27 To them God willed to make known what are the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles: which is Christ in you, the hope of glory.
28 Him we preach, warning every man and teaching every man in all wisdom, that we may present every man perfect in Christ Jesus.
29 To this end I also labor, striving according to His working which works in me mightily.
24 I now rejoice in my sufferings for you, and fill up in my flesh what is lacking in the afflictions of Christ, for the sake of His body, which is the church,
Paul rejoiced in his suffering but today's christian is suffering adverse.
25 Three times I was beaten with rods; once I was stoned; three times I was shipwrecked; a night and a day I have been in the deep;
But we wont even witness to the neighbor for fear of rejection.
Why is the modern Christian so suffering adverse?
Paul never feared suffering, for he knew that God was in control, that his suffering helped others to be more courageous in spreading the gospel, and that one day all suffering would end and he (along with all believers) would be with the Father.
The New Testament abounds with warnings about suffering and words of comfort for those who are suffering.
10 Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, For theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
20 Remember the word that I said to you, ‘A servant is not greater than his master.’ If they persecuted Me, they will also persecute you. If they kept My word, they will keep yours also.
41 So they departed from the presence of the council, rejoicing that they were counted worthy to suffer shame for His name.
16 For I will show him how many things he must suffer for My name’s sake.”
Remember Paul is currently in prison with their Pastor Epaphras for the preaching of the Gospel. He is reminding them that his suffering is for their good just like Christ’s suffering brought reconciliation.
25 of which I became a minister according to the stewardship from God which was given to me for you, to fulfill the word of God,
26 the mystery which has been hidden from ages and from generations, but now has been revealed to His saints.
Paul make’s his claim of being a minister
Paul’s special message regarding the Gentiles had to do with what he called the mystery. To us today, a mystery is something eerie and perhaps frightening; but this was not the way the word was defined in Paul’s day.
Paul took aim at the false teaching using the with their own words and symbolism of special hidden knowledge.
Paul used verse 26 to show them the real mysteries that have now been revealed to the saints by the Holy Spirit.
It work noting here that there is hidden wisdom. There are things unbeliever can’t understand until they are enlightened by the Holy Spirit. Because salvation is based on grace and faith and not wisdom and knowledge.
27 To them God willed to make known what are the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles: which is Christ in you, the hope of glory.
The mystery, accordingly, is Christ himself, just as in 1 Tim. 3:16; cf. Eph. 3:3, 4, 9. It is Christ in all his glorious riches actually dwelling through his Spirit in the hearts and lives of the Gentiles. In all the preceding ages this had never been seen, but now every child of God (“saint”) could bear witness to it.
Think about the Gentiles for a minute. The excitement this message must have generated in a church composed of new believers who had no background in the church.
Once they were outside the covenants of God, but now they were members of His family. Once they were living in spiritual ignorance and death, but now they were alive and sharing in the riches of God’s wisdom in Christ.
Once they had no hope, but now they had a glorious hope because Christ now lived within! It would be good for us today to recapture some of that “first love” excitement.
28 Him we preach, warning every man and teaching every man in all wisdom, that we may present every man perfect in Christ Jesus.
Notice Paul is continuing to use the false teacher’s language of mysteries, knowledge and wisdom.
Paul’s instruction (v. 28a). Him we preach.... “For we preach not ourselves, but Christ Jesus the Lord” (2 Cor. 4:5). The false teachers exalted themselves and their great “spiritual” attainments.
They preached a system of teaching, but Paul preached a Person. The gnostics preached philosophy and the empty traditions of men (Col. 2:8), but Paul proclaimed Jesus Christ. The false teachers had lists of rules and regulations (Col. 2:16, 20–21), but Paul presented Christ.
29 To this end I also labor, striving according to His working which works in me mightily.
Paul once again making it know that this work is the work of Christ that is workings gin Paul.
This section can be summed up like this
1. The twofold ministry
a. A servant of the gospel, to make the word of God fully known
b. A servant of the church, to make the people of God fully mature
2. The twofold proclamation
a. Christ in you …
b. … the hope of glory
3. The twofold qualification
a. Fellowship in Christ’s sufferings (hardships)
b. Fellowship in Christ’s resurrection (toil)
And to sum up 1 Colossians:
All of us are not called to be apostles, but each one of us does have a God-given ministry. We can share the Gospel and be soul-winners. We can suffer for Christ and fulfill the ministry God has given us.
We can strive in prayer for God’s people and encourage them to mature. Paul took time to minister to individuals; note the repetition of “every man” in Colossians 1:28. If we minister to only a few believers, we are helping the whole church.
Are you fulfilling your God-given ministry?
Colossians and Philemon Summary of Colossians 1
Epaphras, charged with the spiritual care of the Colossians, is visiting Paul, the prisoner, in Rome. He has given the apostle a full report of conditions in the Colossian church and its twofold danger: a. of relapse into pagan vice, and b. of endeavoring, in obedience to the advice of false teachers, to supplement its faith in Christ by having recourse to man-made remedies against fleshly indulgence. He has also informed Paul about the loyalty to Christ which characterized the church as a whole. The prisoner, his heart filled with genuine love for the Colossians, decides to write them a letter. In this letter he takes the positive approach, so characteristic of him, and after a Christ-centered opening saluation, tells the addressees that he is continually thanking God for their faith in Christ Jesus and their love for all the saints, both of these (faith and love) strengthened by the hope laid up for them in the heavens, that is, the inheritance of the saints in the light. That prospect does, indeed, intensify faith in the Giver and love for all the fellow-recipients.
The hope of obtaining this inheritance is firmly grounded in the world-conquering gospel that has also made its presence felt among the Colossians, through the ministry of ever-faithful Epaphras.
Encouraged by answers to previous prayers, Paul is constantly praying that God may multiply his favors upon the Colossians, so that, while living among those whose doctrines would lead them astray, they may receive an ever clearer insight into the will of God, and may, as a result, live lives that will be spiritually fruitful in every way, and will abound in evidences of sincere and humble gratitude to God. Let them ever bear in mind that it was God who rescued them out of the domain of darkness and transplanted them into the kingdom of the Son of his love.
By means of a ringing testimony—perhaps a hymn which he is quoting—the apostle proclaims Christ as all-sufficient Savior, sovereign in both realms: creation and redemption. Therefore let the Colossians not place their confidence in anything other than Christ, for apart from him no creature has any strength either to help or to hurt. Through Christ the universe is restored to its proper relationship to God, for from his position at the Father’s right hand Christ rules the entire universe in the interest of the church and to the glory of God. He who died on the cross to save sinners holds in his hands the most distant star.
If the Colossians will keep clinging to the gospel that proclaims this sovereign and all-sufficient Christ who rescued them from their former wicked life, they will not slip back. On the contrary, this Christ will one day present them holy, faultless, and blameless before himself. Of this glorious gospel Paul had been privileged to become a minister. Because of his loyalty to that gospel he is now a prisoner in Rome, supplying in his flesh what was lacking in the afflictions of Christ. Yes, the afflictions which Christ endured were overflowing to him. But he rejoices in his God-given stewardship, and intends, by God’s grace, to give full scope to the word of God, the long-hidden but now revealed mystery, which is “Christ in you, the hope of glory.” The fact that one day Christ would be living through his Spirit in the hearts and lives of the Gentiles had been long predicted but had now become a reality. This indwelling was itself the guarantee of a glorious future. With reference to the indwelling Christ, Paul concludes the chapter by saying, “whom we proclaim, admonishing every man and teaching every man in all wisdom, in order that we may present every man perfect in Christ; for which I am laboring, striving by his energy working powerfully within me.”60