Colossians 1.1-2-Paul's Salutation
Wenstrom Bible Ministries
Pastor-Teacher Bill Wenstrom
Sunday December 21, 2014
Colossians: Colossians 1:1-2-Paul’s Salutation
Lesson # 5
Colossians 1:1 Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ by the will of God, and Timothy our brother. (NASB95)
Colossians 1:1 Paul, an apostle owned by Christ who is Jesus by the will of God, along with Timothy our spiritual brother. (Author’s translation)
Here in verse 1, we have the identification of the author of this epistle to the Colossians, namely the apostle Paul who also identifies his companion at the time, namely his close friend and fellow servant, Timothy.
The apostle Paul informs the Colossians whom he never met that he was an apostle of Christ Jesus “by the will of God” which means that in eternity past before anything was created, the Father from His omniscience knew that Paul would trust in His Son Jesus Christ as Savior on the road to Damascus.
He sovereignly chose Paul to make that decision meaning that He saw from His omniscience that Paul would trust in His Son and then decreed that this decision would take place in time.
In eternity past the Father sovereignly chose Paul to be an apostle of His Son and so Paul’s apostleship was based upon God’s initiative and choice and not his or any human being’s.
Colossians 1:2 to the saints and faithful brethren in Christ who are at Colossae: Grace to you and peace from God our Father. (NASB95)
“And faithful brethren” is composed of the following: (1) conjunction kai (καί), “and” (2) adjective pistos (πιστός), “faithful” (3) noun adelphos (ἀδελφός), “brethren.”
The conjunction kai is used in an epexegetical sense meaning that it is introducing a phrase which describes specifically the recipients of this epistle indicating the word is defining specifically for the reader who Paul is addressing in this epistle.
The noun adelphos means “brothers and sisters” indicating that these Christians in Colossae were related to each other and the Lord Jesus Christ through regeneration.
It is modified by the adjective pistos which means “faithful” and is describing the recipients of this epistle as remaining loyal to Paul’s apostolic teaching in contrast to those Christians who were not because they were obeying the false teaching of an Essene branch of the Judaizers.
Colossians 1:2 to the saints located in Colossae, specifically the faithful brothers and sisters in union with Christ: Grace to all of you resulting in peace from God our Father. (Author’s translation)
In Colossians 1:2, the apostle Paul identifies the recipients of this letter, namely they are “the saints located in Colossae, specifically the faithful in union with Christ.”
The word “saints” describes all the members of the body of Christ who have been set apart through the baptism of the Spirit at the moment of conversion in order to order serve God exclusively.
This word is related to sanctification which is the direct result of the baptism of the Spirit and is related to the prepositional phrase “in union with Christ” which is a reminder to these faithful Christians in Colossae as to what God has done for them through the baptism of the Holy Spirit and it denotes His viewpoint of them.
“In union with Christ” means that at the moment of their conversion, the omnipotence of God the Holy Spirit causes them to become identical and united with Christ and ascribed to these faithful Colossian believers the qualities and characteristics of Christ.
The prepositional phrase en Christo, “in union with Christ” denotes that the sinner has been entered into “union with” Jesus Christ through the baptism of the Spirit the moment they were declared justified by the Father as a result of exercising faith in His Son Jesus Christ as their Savior.
This union is indivisible and eternal in the viewpoint of God as a result of the omnipotence of the Holy Spirit identifying the justified sinner with Christ in His physical death.
This prepositional phrase speaks of the sanctification of these faithful Colossian Christians which is a technical theological term for the believer who has been set apart through the baptism of the Spirit at the moment of conversion in order to serve God exclusively.
Sanctification is accomplished in three stages: (1) Positional (2) Experiential (3) Perfective.
By positionally, I mean that God views the believer as crucified, died, buried, raised and seated with Christ since at the moment of conversion, the Holy Spirit placed the believer in union with Christ.
This identifies the Christian with Christ’s crucifixion (Romans 6:6; Galatians 2:20), His death (Romans 6:2, 7-8; Colossians 2:20; 3:3), His burial (Romans 6:4; Colossians 2:12), His resurrection (Romans 6:5; Ephesians 2:6; Philippians 3:10-11; Colossians 2:12; 3:1) and His session (Ephesians 2:6; Colossians 3:1).
“Positional sanctification” results in two categories of positional truth (1 Corinthians 1:2, 30; 1 Peter 1:2; 1 Thessalonians 5:23; Ephesians 5:26-27; Hebrews 2:11; 10:10; Acts 20:32; 26:18; Romans 6:3, 8; 2 Thessalonians 2:13).
“Retroactive” positional truth is the church age believer’s identification with Christ in His death and burial (Romans 6:3-11; Colossians 2:12) or in other words, when Christ, died God considers the believer to have died with Him.
“Current” positional truth is the church age believer’s identification with Christ in His resurrection, ascension and session (See Ephesians 2:4-6; Colossians 3:1-4) or in other words, when Christ was raised and seated at the right hand of the Father, the Father considers the believer to have been raised and seated with Christ as well.
“Positional sanctification”: (1) What God has done for the church age believer. (2) His viewpoint of the church age believer. (3) Sets up the potential to experience sanctification in time. (4) Provides the believer with the guarantee of receiving a resurrection body.
“Experiential sanctification” is the post-conversion experience of the believer who is in fellowship with God through obedience to the Father’s will, which is revealed by the Spirit through the communication of the Word of God (John 17:17; Romans 6:19, 22; 2 Timothy 2:21; 1 Peter 3:15; 1 Thessalonians 4:3-4, 7; 1 Timothy 2:15).
It is only a potential since it is contingent upon the church age believer responding to what God has done for him at the moment of conversion, therefore, only believers who are obedient to the Word of God will experience sanctification in time.
“Perfective sanctification” is the perfection of the church age believer’s spiritual life at the rapture, i.e. resurrection of the church, which is the completion of the plan of God for the church age believer (1 Corinthians 15:53-54; Galatians 6:8; 1 Peter 5:10; John 6:40).
It is the guarantee of a resurrection body and will be experienced by every believer regardless of their response in time to what God has done for them at conversion.
All three stages of sanctification refer to the process of conforming the believer into the image of Jesus Christ, which is the Father’s plan from eternity past (Romans 8:28-30).
“Specifically, the faithful brothers and sisters” indicates that these Christians in Colossae were remaining faithful to Paul’s apostolic teaching in direct contrast to those Christians who weren’t because they were listening and obeying the false teaching originating from the Essene branch of the Judaizers.
It is describing the recipients of this epistle as remaining loyal to Paul’s apostolic teaching in contrast to those Christians who were not because they were obeying the false teaching of an Essene branch of the Judaizers.
This epexegetical clause in Colossians 1:2 indicates that Paul is acknowledging that the Colossian believers were remaining faithful to his apostolic teaching despite the false teaching propagated in their area.
Epaphras would have informed Paul of their faithfulness.
In Colossians 1:2, the noun charis, “grace” refers to the means by which grace might be received, namely through the mind and thinking of Christ, the Word of God, which is inspired by the Spirit of God.
The Spirit, through the communication of the Word of God to the believer reveals God the Father’s grace policy to the believer.
The noun charis, “grace” here in Colossians 1:2 refers to the Holy Spirit speaking through the communication of the Word of God to the believer’s human spirit or new Christ nature regarding the will of the Father.
By responding to the Spirit’s appeal here in Colossians 1:2, the recipients, would be obedient to the commands in Ephesians 5:18 and Colossians 3:16, which when obeyed produce the same results.
In Colossians 1:2, we have a figure of speech with this word charis which is called metonymy meaning the effect is put for the cause or in other words, the thing effected for the instrument which effects it. Here grace is put for the Word of God which effects grace.
Therefore, the Spirit of God speaking through the communication of the Word of God to the believer’s human spirit regarding the will of the Father is the means by which grace is received by the believer.
The greeting is more than just that, but rather it is in fact, a Spirit inspired desire that the recipients of this letter, namely the faithful believers in Colossae would respond to his apostolic teaching in this epistle regarding the will of the Father for them.
Paul states that these faithful Christians in Colossae would experience the peace of God in and among themselves as a result of appropriating the grace of God as its communicated by the Spirit through the teaching of the Word of God.
“Peace” in Colossians 1:2 refers to the peace of God that is produced by the Spirit in and among believers.
The Spirit does this when believers obey the commands and prohibitions that He guides Paul in issuing them in this epistle and specifically, if they obey his teaching concerning false teachers.
“From God our Father” indicates that God the Father is the “source” of this grace which results in peace in and among the recipients of this epistle when they appropriate by faith these instructions which results in obedience.