Colossians 2.10a-The Colossians Were Made Complete By Means of Their Union and Identification with Jesus Christ
Wenstrom Bible Ministries
Pastor-Teacher Bill Wenstrom
Sunday November 22, 2015
Colossians: Colossians 2:10a-The Colossians Were Made Complete By Means of Their Union and Identification with Jesus Christ
Lesson # 49
Colossians 2:8 See to it that no one takes you captive through philosophy and empty deception, according to the tradition of men, according to the elementary principles of the world, rather than according to Christ. 9 For in Him all the fullness of Deity dwells in bodily form 10 and in Him you have been made complete, and He is the head over all rule and authority. (NASB95)
“In Him you have been made complete” presents the reason why the faithful Christians in Colossae were to obey Paul’s command in Colossians 2:8.
“In Him” contains the figure of metonymy meaning that the person of Jesus Christ is put for the Colossians union and identification with Jesus Christ which is indicated by the fact that Paul is speaking of Jesus Christ from the perspective of His relationship to the Colossians.
It expresses the idea that the Colossians were made complete spiritually “by means of their union and identification with Christ.”
“You have been made complete” is composed of the following: (1) verb eimi (εἰμί), “you have been” (2) verb plēroō (πληρόω), “made complete.”
The verb eimi means “to exist in a particular state or condition” indicating that these Christians were “existing in the state or condition” of being made complete by means of their union and identification with Jesus Christ.
The present tense of the verb eimi is a gnomic present, which indicates these faithful Christians in Colossae “as an eternal spiritual truth” existed in the state or condition of being made complete by means of their union and identification with Jesus Christ.
The verb plēroō is employed in a figurative sense and means “to be made complete” which indicates that the Colossians were made complete by means of their union and identification with Jesus Christ.
The perfect tense of the verb plēroō is an intensive perfect which is used to emphasize the results or present state produced by a past action.
The present state is that the Colossians are made complete by means of their union and identification with Jesus Christ.
The past action is the moment of their conversion when they exercised faith in Jesus Christ as their Savior and were declared justified by the Father.
Simultaneously at the moment of justification, they were identified with Jesus Christ in His crucifixion, death, burial, resurrection and session at the right hand of the Father through the baptism of the Spirit.
The passive voice of this verb means that the subject receives the action of the verb from either an expressed or unexpressed agency and this is specifically a “divine passive” since the agency expressed is the Colossians’ union and identification with Jesus Christ.
This indicates that the Colossians received the action of being made complete by means of their union and identification with Christ which was accomplished at the moment of justification through the baptism of the Spirit.
Colossians 2:8 Don’t stop making it your habit of watching out for anyone belonging to a group who would seek to take each and every one of you captive through empty, deceitful philosophy based upon the tradition produced by human beings, based upon the elementary teachings promoted by the cosmic system, which are by no means based upon the teaching originating from Christ. 9 The reason for this command is that in Him, the totality of attributes which compose the divine nature permanently dwell in bodily form. 10 Also, by means of your union and identification with Him, each and every one of you as an eternal spiritual truth exist in the state of being made complete, who is, as an eternal spiritual truth existing in the state of being the head over each and every ruler and authority. (My translation)
Colossians 2:10 contains two declarative statements.
The first provides the second reason as to why the faithful Christians in Colossae must obey the apostle Paul’s command in Colossians 2:8.
Here in Colossians 2:10 the apostle Paul asserts that by means of their union and identification with Jesus Christ, each and every one of these faithful Christians in Colossae as an eternal spiritual truth existed in the state of being made complete and this means that they were lacking nothing with regards to their salvation.
It expresses the sufficiency of their union and identification with Jesus Christ’s crucifixion, death, burial, resurrection and session to provide them eternal salvation.
It expresses the idea that their union and identification with Jesus Christ in His crucifixion, death, burial, resurrection and session was sufficient to deliver them totally and completely from eternal condemnation.
It was sufficient to deliver them totally and completely from spiritual and physical death, condemnation from the Law, personal sins as well as enslavement to the sin nature and Satan and his cosmic system.
This first statement also indicates that the Colossians were made complete in the sense that they are now partakers of the divine nature (cf. 2 Pet. 1:4).
This is indicated by the fact that Paul’s statement in Colossians 2:10 is directly related to his statement in Colossians 2:9 that the totality of attributes which compose the divine nature permanently dwell in the person of Jesus Christ.
The verb plēroō in Colossians 2:10 is related to the noun plērōma in Colossians 2:9 which speaks of the totality of attributes which compose the divine nature and together, they are composing a play on words.
Paul is not saying that the Colossians now possess the divine nature or that they were elevated to the same stature as Jesus Christ but rather it simply means that they were partaking of the divine nature of Jesus Christ by means of their union and identification with Jesus Christ.
It also means that they are partakers of Jesus Christ’s divine nature because He indwells them permanently (cf. Col. 1:27).
When Paul mentions the Colossians’ union and identification with Christ, he is referring to the fact that at the moment they believed in Christ, the omnipotence of the Spirit caused them to become identical and united with Christ in His crucifixion, death, burial, resurrection and session.
This is called in Scripture, the “baptism” of the Spirit.
“Sanctification” 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 and is accomplished in three stages: (1) Positional (2) Experiential (3) Perfective.
Sanctification deals with conforming the believer to the holiness of God and reproducing it in the believer.
At the moment the believer was declared justified through faith in Jesus Christ, the omnipotence of God the Holy Spirit caused the believer to become identical and united with the Lord Jesus Christ in His crucifixion, His spiritual and physical death, His burial, resurrection and session.
It also ascribes to the believer the qualities and characteristics of the Lord Jesus Christ.
The baptism of the Spirit results in positional sanctification and the potential to experience sanctification in time and the guarantee of perfective sanctification at the resurrection of the church.
By positional, 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, identifying him 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” is the believer’s “entrance” into the plan of God for the church age resulting in eternal security as well as 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 function of the church age believer’s spiritual life in time 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).
“Experiential sanctification” is the post-conversion experience of the believer who is in fellowship with God by confessing any known sin to the Father when necessary followed by obedience to the Father’s will, which is revealed by the Spirit through the Word of God.
Experiential sanctification 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 justification.
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).