Introduction - Colossae
was a small, undistinguished Roman city of Asia Minor Tarsus . This epistle could be called a particular
letter, or a situational letter--that is, it was written to address a
particular situation or need--in this case, it was written to address and
correct doctrinal error. The young
Christians at Colossae were vulnerable
to false teaching. Paul was aware that
this threat existed, and the letter to the Colossians, with its high and superb
Christology resulted.
I. Paul’s Greeting
and Opening Comments, 1: 1-8
A.
Apostolic greeting, vv. 1-2
1. Sent with a Christ-centered
message, v.1a.
2. Convinced that God's will can
be determined, v.1b.
3. Key partnerships in the
Gospel:
a.
Novices
b.
Peers
c.
Advanced
4. The Audience, v.2
a. Hagios = saints, people who have been pronounced holy because of
Christ's sacrifice and their faith
b. Faithful brothers -
people charcterized by consistent godliness, those striving for the advancement of the Kingdom.
c. At Colossae - local
church with a specific geographic, strategic position and mission to reach people in Colossae .
d. Grace and peace -
Grace results in peace - hostility ceases between us and God. Jesus
made peace through the blood of His cross.
B.
An expression of thanksgiving, vv. 3-8
a. For the faith of the
Colossians, vv. 3-4
b. For the love of the
Colossians, v. 4
c. For the hope in the
Gospel, v. 5a
d. For the truth, v. 6a
e. For the power of the
Gospel, v.6b
f. For a faithful
witness (Epaphras), vv. 7-8
i. Fellow
servant = syn/doulos
ii. Faithful servant = pistos diakonos
iii. Encourager - found positive
reports to make to Paul
II. There are
specific Affects and Demands of Biblical Faith, 1: 9-14
A.
The Quest of Genuine Faith, vv. 9-11
1. Completely aware of God's
purposes, v.9
2. Completely aligned with God's
character, v.10a
3. Completely active in God's
service, v.10b
4. Completely devoted to
discipleship, v.10c
5. Completely dependent on God's
power, v.11a
6. Completely committed in
adversity, v.11b
B.
The Gifts of Genuine Faith, vv. 12-14
- Acquittal, sanctification,
repentance, redirection, deliverance, translation, redemption, forgiveness
III. Christ is the
Heart of Biblical Faith, 1:15-23
A.
Jesus is the Key to understanding God the Father, v. 15a. He is God made manifest.
B.
Jesus is preeminent over all Creation, v. 15b (prototokos)
C.
He is the Person, Power, and Agent behind Creation, v. 16
D.
He has Command over any intelligent Beings, or inanimate Objects which exist in
either the Visible or Invisible Realms, v. 16
E.
He gives both Cohesiveness and Order to all Creation, v. 17
F.
He is preeminent over the church, v. 18
G.
He is the first to be resurrected from the Grave, v. 18. "Chief One" - key to all other
resurrections.
H.
His Preeminence is in Cooperation with God the Father, vv. 19-20
I.
He rights the Chaos which Occurred because of the Fall through the Cross, v.
19-20
J.
He brings men and women back into a right Relationship with Himself, v. 21-22a
K.
He Positions the Saints in His Holiness, v. 22b
L.
He affects Perseverance on behalf of the Redeemed, v. 23
IV. Christian
Leadership Strengthens Biblical Faith, 1:24-2:2a
A.
Christian Leaders are Committed to Sacrificial Service, v. 24
B.
Christian Leaders are trusted to Fully and Faithfully share God's Word, v. 25
C.
KEY VERSES: vv.26-27, Concerning "Mystery" (musterion)
1. Progress of revelation (Galatians
4:4)
2. Progress of the Gospel - Gentile
mission
3. Problem of the Colossian heresy
4. Power of Christ's incarnation -
indwelling Holy Spirit
D.
Christian Leaders work at Making Disciples, vv.28-29. Toil = agon
E.
Christian Leaders care and go the Extra Mile, vv.2:1-2a
V. Beware of
Assaults on Biblical Faith, 2: 2b-23
A.
God’s Mystery to the Colossians was Christ, v 2b
KEY
VERSE: epignosis, musterion - Knowing God is
not the special property of any small group--anyone can know and belong to God
through Christ.
B.
God’s Wisdom for the Colossians was Christ, v. 3.
C.
THESIS, v.4-8: God's Desire for His Church is Orthodoxy!
1. Christianity is a
"received" faith, vv. 6
2. Keep to the Canon of Scripture,
v.7
3. Understand Principles of
Interpretation (hermeneutics), v.7
4. Know the characteristics of
Cults:
A
cult is a religious belief system that masquerades as Christian, but differs in
significant ways from Biblical Christianity.
a. Addition -
does the group/movement in question add to the word of God?
b. Subtraction -
does the group/movement in question subtract from the divinity of Christ?
c. Multiplication
- does the group/movement in question multiply the requirements
for salvation?
d. Division -
does the group/movement in question divide the followers' loyalty between God and their organization?
Some
false religious systems are particularly insidious because they promote syncretism,
which is the "mixing and blending of religious ideas and practices from a
wide range of sources" (N.T. Wright, Colossians). Syncretistic systems are a concern because
they retain just enough similarity to historic Christianity to lead people into
deception. Ecclesiastes says "there
is nothing new under the sun" (1:9).
Proof of that is the Watchtower heresy (Jehovah's Witnesses). It is nothing more than a repeat of the
controversy Arius (AD 250-326) of Alexandria
who was pronounced a heretic at the first Council of Nicaea for his assault on
Trinitarian theology. If you were Satan
and you had a go-to tactic that consistently worked, why would you go away from
it? The Jehovah's Witnesses practice
Neo-Arian-ism. That's all.
The
Colossian heresy had several elements:
a. Gnostic - mystery
religion, pagan religion
b. Jewish - Jewish
legalism
c. Christian - vestiges
of Christianity, trappings but not essence
Dr.
Greg Harris suggested this outline for understanding the false religious idea
that was influencing this congregation:
P - Philosophical -
appeal to wisdom and human pride
R - Ritualistic -
incorporated religious elements of Judaism
A - Asceticism -
erroneous view of matter that led to polar views of the body and the practice of
religion:
(i) Extreme
self-denial - "matter is evil, the body is to be treated harshly"
(ii) Extreme
indulgence - "whatever is done in the flesh has no bearing on the spirit."
M - Mysticism - worship
of Angels
D. Dichotomy - God can't
come into contact with matter, consequently there were "aeons" and "demi-gods" between
God and people. It was an unnecessary complication
and an outright denial of the incarnation.
D.
God’s focal point for the Colossians’ faith was Christ, vv. 9-15
1. He is fully divine, v. 9a
2. He is fully human, v. 9b
3. He satisfied the requirements of
God and the needs of men and women, v. 10
4. He gives significance to religious
rituals, vv. 11-12
5. His resurrection enables our
regeneration, v.13
6. Through His cross, He cancelled
the debt of our sin, v. 14
7. He pulverized spiritual opponents
(including any supposed spiritual hierarchy of aeons, emanations, or angelic beings) through His victory on the cross
(paradox), v. 15
E.
God’s favor cannot be won through religious performances, vv. 16-23
1. Religious ceremonies are
affective only if they direct us to Christ, vv.16-17
2. Religious “experiences” do not
take precedence over God’s revealed Word, vv. 18-19
3. Religion does not affect real
piety, vv. 20-23
a. Christ delivers us
from superstitions (e.g., horoscopes), v.20a
b. Christ delivers us
from legalism, vv.20b-22
c. Christ delivers us
from religious contortions, v.23
VI. Practice
Biblical Faith, 3: 1-4: 1
A.
Faith gives us new and improved goals and motivations, vv. 1-4
1. Energetically prioritize life for
the Kingdom, 3:1
2. Train your mind to think of God's
Kingdom, 3:2
3. Remind yourself who you are in
God's Kingdom, 3:3
4. Live with Expectancy concerning
the Coming Kingdom
B.
Faith gives us new moral realities, vv. 5-9
1. Regarding sexual impulses and
acts, v.5
2. Thorough and continual
repentance, vv.6-7
3. Regarding emotional understanding
and behavior, v.8a
4. Regarding use of speech, vv.8b-9
5. Regarding old prejudices, vv.
10-11
C.
Faith creates a new community, 3:12-4:1
(toward
one another and concerning forgiveness), vv. 12-13
1. Chosen by God, v.12a
2. Made holy by God, v.12a
3. Loved by God, v.12a
4. In relationship dynamics,
vv.12b-15
5. As thankful worshippers, vv.16-17
D.
Faith gives us a new view of their families, vv. 18-21
1. Creation order for marriage,
vv.18-19
2. Parent/child relations, vv.20-21
E.
Faith gives us new standards for a Christian society, vv. 22-4:1
1. Authority and submission,
vv.22-24
2. Authority and accountability,
vv.25-4:1
VII. Proclaim
Biblical Faith, 4:2-18
A.
The Gospel is made effective through prayer, vv. 2-4
B.
The Gospel is made for the market place, vv. 5-6
C.
The Gospel is made available to the world through an intricate network of
friends, vv. 7-18
1. Tychicus, beloved brother,
faithful servant, fellow bondslave, v. 7
2. Onesimus, reformed runaway, v. 9
3. Aristarchus, Paul’s cell-mate, v.
10
4. A mature Cousin Mark, v. 10
5. Jesus Justus the Jew, v. 11
6. Epaphras, local hero, vv. 12-13
7. Luke and Demas, v. 14
8. Assorted others who might have
needed nudging, vv. 15-17
9. The Great apostle to the
Gentiles, v. 18
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