The Christ Church Wednesday Bible Study Group is studying the Apostle Paul's Epistle to the Colossians. Paul wrote more about Christ in this letter than in any other of his letters.
Paul wanted the Christians to understand more about Christ. This would guard them against the false teachers. In Session 2 Paul tells the church in Colossae that Christ is supreme and that He is better and more powerful than anyone or anything else. In this Session Paul contradicts every Gnostic category which we learned last week was a false teaching that said that God, because of his great majesty, could only be approached by the mediation of angels; and that they were certain rites and observances, chiefly borrowed from the law, whereby these angels might be made our friends. The Gnostics claimed a special, hidden knowledge not available to ordinary Christians but their beliefs in fact contradicted basic Bible truths!
To hear the audio of the session click on the YouTube
Paul wanted the Christians to understand more about Christ. This would guard them against the false teachers. In Session 2 Paul tells the church in Colossae that Christ is supreme and that He is better and more powerful than anyone or anything else. In this Session Paul contradicts every Gnostic category which we learned last week was a false teaching that said that God, because of his great majesty, could only be approached by the mediation of angels; and that they were certain rites and observances, chiefly borrowed from the law, whereby these angels might be made our friends. The Gnostics claimed a special, hidden knowledge not available to ordinary Christians but their beliefs in fact contradicted basic Bible truths!
To hear the audio of the session click on the YouTube
We ended last week with verses 9-11;
Colossians 1:9-11 CEV We have not stopped praying for you since the first day we heard about you. In fact, we always pray that God will show you everything he wants you to do and that you may have all the wisdom and understanding his Spirit gives. Then you will live a life that honors the Lord, and you will always please him by doing good deeds. You will come to know God even better. His glorious power will make you patient and strong enough to endure anything, and you will be truly happy.
Verses 9-11 have described how God helps Christians each day.
When God’s people have his power, they will also be happy in their spirit.
Verse 12
Colossians 1:12 CEV I pray that you will be grateful to God for letting you have part in what he has promised his people in the kingdom of light.
Christians should always be grateful to God the Father for what He did and what He did is in verses
Colossians 1:13-14 CEV God rescued us from the dark power of Satan and brought us into the kingdom of his dear Son, who forgives our sins and sets us free.
Verse 12 promises good things for the future.
Colossians 1:12 CEV I pray that you will be grateful to God for letting you have part in what he has promised his people in the kingdom of light.
Verses 13 and 14
These verses remind Christians about what God has done for them in the past. ( God rescued us). But none of this can happen without Christ. It is Christ who makes us holy. Then we are able to receive his gifts.
These verses link with verse 5.
Colossians 1:5 CEV because what you hope for is kept safe for you in heaven. You first heard about this hope when you believed the true message, which is the good news.
What is the good news?
Colossians 1:13-14 CEV God rescued us from the dark power of Satan and brought us into the kingdom of his dear Son, who forgives our sins and sets us free.
The Colossians had accepted the true message of the gospel. Therefore, they could receive all that God has prepared for them. In the Bible, ‘light’ refers to God and to his deeds.
Verse 12 says that the saints, or Christians, is in the light, the CEV says kingdom of light, verse 13 says that we have been taken from darkness into the kingdom of the Son. Both of them are talking about the same kingdom.
Jesus said, ‘I am the light of the world.’ and When we trust him, we shall have his light in our lives.
John 8:12 CEV Once again Jesus spoke to the people. This time he said, “I am the light for the world! Follow me, and you won't be walking in the dark. You will have the light that gives life.”
What’s the opposite of light?
The opposite of light is darkness. In the Bible, ‘darkness’ refers to Satan and his deeds. It also describes the time when people do not know God. Satan has power over people’s lives until they trust Christ. ‘The kingdom’ means where Christ rules as king. It does not refer to a physical place. People understood about a physical ruler and his kingdom. So Paul used this idea to explain about God’s kingdom and Satan’s kingdom in verse 13.
When people become Christians, Satan does not rule their lives any more. Satan is not their master. He cannot make them sin. He cannot make them do evil deeds. Instead, Christ rules in their lives. Christ is their new master. He has forgiven all their sins.
Christ helps Christians to obey him. He helps them to live holy lives.
Christians are no longer under the domination of Satan or sin;
How does He do this?
By the Holy Spirit.
Ephesians 5:17-21 CEV Don't be stupid. Instead, find out what the Lord wants you to do. Don't destroy yourself by getting drunk, but let the Spirit fill your life. When you meet together, sing psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs, as you praise the Lord with all your heart. Always use the name of our Lord Jesus Christ to thank God the Father for everything. Honor Christ and put others first.
Remember that we said last week that Paul had gotten a visit from Epaphras about the church in Colossae and that while he gave God the glory for them and he was happy that they had become saved he also got information that there were false teachers there also. Those false teachers were Judahizers and Gnostics and we talked about what they believed including the requirement that to get to God you needed help for the Jews is was the law and for the Gnostics it was mediators. So this rest of letter is tell the Colossians and us today why we only need Jesus and nothing else.
Let’s start at verse 15 today.
Colossians 1:9-11 CEV We have not stopped praying for you since the first day we heard about you. In fact, we always pray that God will show you everything he wants you to do and that you may have all the wisdom and understanding his Spirit gives. Then you will live a life that honors the Lord, and you will always please him by doing good deeds. You will come to know God even better. His glorious power will make you patient and strong enough to endure anything, and you will be truly happy.
Verses 9-11 have described how God helps Christians each day.
When God’s people have his power, they will also be happy in their spirit.
Verse 12
Colossians 1:12 CEV I pray that you will be grateful to God for letting you have part in what he has promised his people in the kingdom of light.
Christians should always be grateful to God the Father for what He did and what He did is in verses
Colossians 1:13-14 CEV God rescued us from the dark power of Satan and brought us into the kingdom of his dear Son, who forgives our sins and sets us free.
Verse 12 promises good things for the future.
Colossians 1:12 CEV I pray that you will be grateful to God for letting you have part in what he has promised his people in the kingdom of light.
Verses 13 and 14
These verses remind Christians about what God has done for them in the past. ( God rescued us). But none of this can happen without Christ. It is Christ who makes us holy. Then we are able to receive his gifts.
These verses link with verse 5.
Colossians 1:5 CEV because what you hope for is kept safe for you in heaven. You first heard about this hope when you believed the true message, which is the good news.
What is the good news?
Colossians 1:13-14 CEV God rescued us from the dark power of Satan and brought us into the kingdom of his dear Son, who forgives our sins and sets us free.
The Colossians had accepted the true message of the gospel. Therefore, they could receive all that God has prepared for them. In the Bible, ‘light’ refers to God and to his deeds.
Verse 12 says that the saints, or Christians, is in the light, the CEV says kingdom of light, verse 13 says that we have been taken from darkness into the kingdom of the Son. Both of them are talking about the same kingdom.
Jesus said, ‘I am the light of the world.’ and When we trust him, we shall have his light in our lives.
John 8:12 CEV Once again Jesus spoke to the people. This time he said, “I am the light for the world! Follow me, and you won't be walking in the dark. You will have the light that gives life.”
What’s the opposite of light?
The opposite of light is darkness. In the Bible, ‘darkness’ refers to Satan and his deeds. It also describes the time when people do not know God. Satan has power over people’s lives until they trust Christ. ‘The kingdom’ means where Christ rules as king. It does not refer to a physical place. People understood about a physical ruler and his kingdom. So Paul used this idea to explain about God’s kingdom and Satan’s kingdom in verse 13.
When people become Christians, Satan does not rule their lives any more. Satan is not their master. He cannot make them sin. He cannot make them do evil deeds. Instead, Christ rules in their lives. Christ is their new master. He has forgiven all their sins.
Christ helps Christians to obey him. He helps them to live holy lives.
Christians are no longer under the domination of Satan or sin;
How does He do this?
By the Holy Spirit.
Ephesians 5:17-21 CEV Don't be stupid. Instead, find out what the Lord wants you to do. Don't destroy yourself by getting drunk, but let the Spirit fill your life. When you meet together, sing psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs, as you praise the Lord with all your heart. Always use the name of our Lord Jesus Christ to thank God the Father for everything. Honor Christ and put others first.
Remember that we said last week that Paul had gotten a visit from Epaphras about the church in Colossae and that while he gave God the glory for them and he was happy that they had become saved he also got information that there were false teachers there also. Those false teachers were Judahizers and Gnostics and we talked about what they believed including the requirement that to get to God you needed help for the Jews is was the law and for the Gnostics it was mediators. So this rest of letter is tell the Colossians and us today why we only need Jesus and nothing else.
Let’s start at verse 15 today.
Photo credit: Christ Supreme Ministry
The Supremacy of Christ 1:15-23
We just got through saying that Christians were now in the kingdom of light or the kingdom of the Son, the kingdom of God and the way in is Christ. It’s Christ’s kingdom so we need to grasp who He really is.
Let’s read
Colossians 1:15-23 CEV Christ is exactly like God, who cannot be seen. He is the first-born Son, superior to all creation. Everything was created by him, everything in heaven and on earth, everything seen and unseen, including all forces and powers, and all rulers and authorities. All things were created by God's Son, and everything was made for him. God's Son was before all else, and by him everything is held together. He is the head of his body, which is the church. He is the very beginning, the first to be raised from death, so that he would be above all others. God himself was pleased to live fully in his Son. And God was pleased for him to make peace by sacrificing his blood on the cross, so that all beings in heaven and on earth would be brought back to God. You used to be far from God. Your thoughts made you his enemies, and you did evil things. But his Son became a human and died. So God made peace with you, and now he lets you stand in his presence as people who are holy and faultless and innocent. But you must stay deeply rooted and firm in your faith. You must not give up the hope you received when you heard the good news. It was preached to everyone on earth, and I myself have become a servant of this message.
Many teachers of the Bible think that this was a song of praise. Paul showed the Christians at Colossae that Christ is better and more powerful than anyone or anything else. Paul wanted the Christians to understand more about Christ. This would guard them against the false teachers.
In this passage, which was possibly adapted from early liturgy, Paul contradicts every Gnostic category!
If you don’t remember here are the main ones from last week;
The Gnostics were dualists. They saw all things in terms of two contrasting principles. On the one side was good, which was associated with the spiritual and the immaterial. On the other side was evil, which was associated with the material universe.
God Himself was perfectly good, spiritual, and totally disassociated from the material. He would not pollute Himself by any such contact! The material universe was an accident or, at worst, the error of the last of a long series of supernatural beings—intermediaries—ranked between God and matter (angles). To God, the pure Spirit, the world was alien and despicable.
To the Gnostics how jolting was the idea of an Incarnation! God become man? God take on human flesh? Never! As far as they were concerned Christ must be a lower intermediary or an "appearance"—a shadow of God cast on a screen. But God in human flesh? Unthinkable!
It was also unthinkable that God might wish to enter believers' lives. Instead the Gnostics saw the human being as trapped; a spark of the divine held captive in a fleshly prison. Salvation meant release from bondage to all that was material, including our own bodies! Resurrection? God's life, lived out in a corporate body shaped of loving men and women, in whom Christ now walks this world? Ugly! Horrible!
The Gnostic saw God as remote and inaccessible. God might be approached through the long chain of intermediaries that stretched between Him and matter. Jesus Christ might even be one of these intermediaries. But since Jesus had contact with this world, Christ's rank within the chain must be low.
Colossians 1:15 CEV Christ is exactly like God, who cannot be seen. He is the first-born Son, superior to all creation.
Jesus is the express "image of the invisible God" He is not some distant, inferior reflection.
John 1:18 CEV No one has ever seen God. The only Son, who is truly God and is closest to the Father, has shown us what God is like.
God is spirit.
John 4:24 CEV God is Spirit, and those who worship God must be led by the Spirit to worship him according to the truth.
,We cannot see him because he does not have a physical body. But Jesus said, ‘If you have seen me you have seen God the Father’).
John 14:9 CEV Jesus replied: Philip, I have been with you for a long time. Don't you know who I am? If you have seen me, you have seen the Father. How can you ask me to show you the Father?
Jesus meant that he has the same nature and character as God. So, when we learn more about Jesus Christ, we learn more about God. Christ existed before God created anything. And Christ has the place of honour over all that God created. Paul emphasised this many times in this letter.
Colossians 1:16 CEV Everything was created by him, everything in heaven and on earth, everything seen and unseen, including all forces and powers, and all rulers and authorities. All things were created by God's Son, and everything was made for him.
Christ existed before he had a physical body. God created all physical things by means of Christ. He also created everything that is not physical. This includes the angels and spirits. In this verse, heaven means the sky rather than the place where God lives. Christians believe that good angels serve God. But evil angels and spirits serve Satan, who is the chief evil spirit. The false teachers worshipped angels.
Colossians 2:18 CEV Don't be cheated by people who make a show of acting humble and who worship angels. They brag about seeing visions. But it is all nonsense, because their minds are filled with selfish desires.
They also believed that there were many ranks of angels and spirits. Paul was emphasising that Christ is greater than all the angels and spirits. God in Christ created them. So Christ has power over them. God created everything ‘for’ Christ. Therefore, Christ is the reason why everything exists.
Colossians 1:17 CEV God's Son was before all else, and by him everything is held together.
Christ maintains the physical world. This is why it works well. The sun, moon and stars stay in their correct places in the sky. Every day has the same number of hours. People in the world live because Christ keeps them alive. Christ also maintains everything that is not physical. Without Christ, everything would break down. Christ is the ruler of everything that he created.
Colossians 1:18 CEV He is the head of his body, which is the church. He is the very beginning, the first to be raised from death, so that he would be above all others.
Jesus is Head of the body, the church, and He is supreme in everything. Paul now showed that Christ created the church. The church means all the Christians in the world.
In the Bible, church never refers to a building where Christians have meetings. Christ does not live in his physical body on earth any more. Christ lives in all Christians by means of his Holy Spirit.
Romans 8:9-11 CEV You are no longer ruled by your desires, but by God's Spirit, who lives in you. People who don't have the Spirit of Christ in them don't belong to him. But Christ lives in you. So you are alive because God has accepted you, even though your bodies must die because of your sins. Yet God raised Jesus to life! God's Spirit now lives in you, and he will raise you to life by his Spirit.
Now, Christ lives on this earth in his church (the Christians). So he calls the church his ‘body’. To be ‘head’ means that Christ is the ruler of his church.
Colossians 1:19 CEV God himself was pleased to live fully in his Son.
The fullness of God resides in Him alone.
That’s what Paul said before in verse 15;
Colossians 1:15 CEV Christ is exactly like God, who cannot be seen. He is the first-born Son, superior to all creation.
Jesus Christ was not just a man. Jesus Christ is God. God lived in Christ’s human body. And God continues to live in Christ for ever. God put everything that he has into Christ. And God put everything that he is into Christ. This includes all God’s character, his nature and his power. Christ was full of God the Father.
John 14:8-10 CEV Philip said, “Lord, show us the Father. That is all we need.” Jesus replied: Philip, I have been with you for a long time. Don't you know who I am? If you have seen me, you have seen the Father. How can you ask me to show you the Father? Don't you believe that I am one with the Father and that the Father is one with me? What I say isn't said on my own. The Father who lives in me does these things.
No part of God was missing from Christ’s life.
Paul repeats this again later in;
Colossians 2:9 CEV God lives fully in Christ.
Colossians 1:20-22 CEV And God was pleased for him to make peace by sacrificing his blood on the cross, so that all beings in heaven and on earth would be brought back to God. You used to be far from God. Your thoughts made you his enemies, and you did evil things. But his Son became a human and died. So God made peace with you, and now he lets you stand in his presence as people who are holy and faultless and innocent.
In a real Incarnation—in Christ's physical body through death—God has reconciled us, bringing us into His very presence. In Christ we are "holy in His sight, without blemish and free from accusation". In fact spiritual effects are accomplished in the physical body. Again, our life in this world and our life with God are not at odds, but harmonize.
God sent his Son, Jesus Christ, to this world. He lived a perfect life. He never sinned. Christ died on the cross for us. God did not punish us. Instead, God punished Christ because of our sins.
Paul reminded the Christians at Colossae that Christ had made them clean from their sins. Christ had made them holy. God was not angry with the Christians. They were not God’s enemies. They were not separate from God. God unites people with himself by Christ. All this is the good news of the gospel. These verses do not mean that Christ’s death actually saved everyone. The Bible makes it clear that many people refuse to become friends with God. So they are still God’s enemies.
Colossians 1:23 CEV But you must stay deeply rooted and firm in your faith. You must not give up the hope you received when you heard the good news. It was preached to everyone on earth, and I myself have become a servant of this message.
Paul concluded that the Colossians should continue in their faith, "established and firm, not moved from the hope held out in the Gospel". In this way they would experience the reality of being new men and women in Christ. Christ is the sole focus, the center, and to understand newness, we must keep our lives centered in Him.
The Christians at Colossae had heard the true message of the gospel and they believed it. But they began to listen to what the false teachers taught. So, Paul urged the Christians to continue to believe God’s truth. Paul wrote his letter to them to explain more about the truth. Paul and other Christians preached the genuine message of the gospel in all areas of the world. Only the true message would cause Christians to ‘spread’ and produce ‘fruit’
We just got through saying that Christians were now in the kingdom of light or the kingdom of the Son, the kingdom of God and the way in is Christ. It’s Christ’s kingdom so we need to grasp who He really is.
Let’s read
Colossians 1:15-23 CEV Christ is exactly like God, who cannot be seen. He is the first-born Son, superior to all creation. Everything was created by him, everything in heaven and on earth, everything seen and unseen, including all forces and powers, and all rulers and authorities. All things were created by God's Son, and everything was made for him. God's Son was before all else, and by him everything is held together. He is the head of his body, which is the church. He is the very beginning, the first to be raised from death, so that he would be above all others. God himself was pleased to live fully in his Son. And God was pleased for him to make peace by sacrificing his blood on the cross, so that all beings in heaven and on earth would be brought back to God. You used to be far from God. Your thoughts made you his enemies, and you did evil things. But his Son became a human and died. So God made peace with you, and now he lets you stand in his presence as people who are holy and faultless and innocent. But you must stay deeply rooted and firm in your faith. You must not give up the hope you received when you heard the good news. It was preached to everyone on earth, and I myself have become a servant of this message.
Many teachers of the Bible think that this was a song of praise. Paul showed the Christians at Colossae that Christ is better and more powerful than anyone or anything else. Paul wanted the Christians to understand more about Christ. This would guard them against the false teachers.
In this passage, which was possibly adapted from early liturgy, Paul contradicts every Gnostic category!
If you don’t remember here are the main ones from last week;
The Gnostics were dualists. They saw all things in terms of two contrasting principles. On the one side was good, which was associated with the spiritual and the immaterial. On the other side was evil, which was associated with the material universe.
God Himself was perfectly good, spiritual, and totally disassociated from the material. He would not pollute Himself by any such contact! The material universe was an accident or, at worst, the error of the last of a long series of supernatural beings—intermediaries—ranked between God and matter (angles). To God, the pure Spirit, the world was alien and despicable.
To the Gnostics how jolting was the idea of an Incarnation! God become man? God take on human flesh? Never! As far as they were concerned Christ must be a lower intermediary or an "appearance"—a shadow of God cast on a screen. But God in human flesh? Unthinkable!
It was also unthinkable that God might wish to enter believers' lives. Instead the Gnostics saw the human being as trapped; a spark of the divine held captive in a fleshly prison. Salvation meant release from bondage to all that was material, including our own bodies! Resurrection? God's life, lived out in a corporate body shaped of loving men and women, in whom Christ now walks this world? Ugly! Horrible!
The Gnostic saw God as remote and inaccessible. God might be approached through the long chain of intermediaries that stretched between Him and matter. Jesus Christ might even be one of these intermediaries. But since Jesus had contact with this world, Christ's rank within the chain must be low.
Colossians 1:15 CEV Christ is exactly like God, who cannot be seen. He is the first-born Son, superior to all creation.
Jesus is the express "image of the invisible God" He is not some distant, inferior reflection.
John 1:18 CEV No one has ever seen God. The only Son, who is truly God and is closest to the Father, has shown us what God is like.
God is spirit.
John 4:24 CEV God is Spirit, and those who worship God must be led by the Spirit to worship him according to the truth.
,We cannot see him because he does not have a physical body. But Jesus said, ‘If you have seen me you have seen God the Father’).
John 14:9 CEV Jesus replied: Philip, I have been with you for a long time. Don't you know who I am? If you have seen me, you have seen the Father. How can you ask me to show you the Father?
Jesus meant that he has the same nature and character as God. So, when we learn more about Jesus Christ, we learn more about God. Christ existed before God created anything. And Christ has the place of honour over all that God created. Paul emphasised this many times in this letter.
Colossians 1:16 CEV Everything was created by him, everything in heaven and on earth, everything seen and unseen, including all forces and powers, and all rulers and authorities. All things were created by God's Son, and everything was made for him.
Christ existed before he had a physical body. God created all physical things by means of Christ. He also created everything that is not physical. This includes the angels and spirits. In this verse, heaven means the sky rather than the place where God lives. Christians believe that good angels serve God. But evil angels and spirits serve Satan, who is the chief evil spirit. The false teachers worshipped angels.
Colossians 2:18 CEV Don't be cheated by people who make a show of acting humble and who worship angels. They brag about seeing visions. But it is all nonsense, because their minds are filled with selfish desires.
They also believed that there were many ranks of angels and spirits. Paul was emphasising that Christ is greater than all the angels and spirits. God in Christ created them. So Christ has power over them. God created everything ‘for’ Christ. Therefore, Christ is the reason why everything exists.
Colossians 1:17 CEV God's Son was before all else, and by him everything is held together.
Christ maintains the physical world. This is why it works well. The sun, moon and stars stay in their correct places in the sky. Every day has the same number of hours. People in the world live because Christ keeps them alive. Christ also maintains everything that is not physical. Without Christ, everything would break down. Christ is the ruler of everything that he created.
Colossians 1:18 CEV He is the head of his body, which is the church. He is the very beginning, the first to be raised from death, so that he would be above all others.
Jesus is Head of the body, the church, and He is supreme in everything. Paul now showed that Christ created the church. The church means all the Christians in the world.
In the Bible, church never refers to a building where Christians have meetings. Christ does not live in his physical body on earth any more. Christ lives in all Christians by means of his Holy Spirit.
Romans 8:9-11 CEV You are no longer ruled by your desires, but by God's Spirit, who lives in you. People who don't have the Spirit of Christ in them don't belong to him. But Christ lives in you. So you are alive because God has accepted you, even though your bodies must die because of your sins. Yet God raised Jesus to life! God's Spirit now lives in you, and he will raise you to life by his Spirit.
Now, Christ lives on this earth in his church (the Christians). So he calls the church his ‘body’. To be ‘head’ means that Christ is the ruler of his church.
Colossians 1:19 CEV God himself was pleased to live fully in his Son.
The fullness of God resides in Him alone.
That’s what Paul said before in verse 15;
Colossians 1:15 CEV Christ is exactly like God, who cannot be seen. He is the first-born Son, superior to all creation.
Jesus Christ was not just a man. Jesus Christ is God. God lived in Christ’s human body. And God continues to live in Christ for ever. God put everything that he has into Christ. And God put everything that he is into Christ. This includes all God’s character, his nature and his power. Christ was full of God the Father.
John 14:8-10 CEV Philip said, “Lord, show us the Father. That is all we need.” Jesus replied: Philip, I have been with you for a long time. Don't you know who I am? If you have seen me, you have seen the Father. How can you ask me to show you the Father? Don't you believe that I am one with the Father and that the Father is one with me? What I say isn't said on my own. The Father who lives in me does these things.
No part of God was missing from Christ’s life.
Paul repeats this again later in;
Colossians 2:9 CEV God lives fully in Christ.
Colossians 1:20-22 CEV And God was pleased for him to make peace by sacrificing his blood on the cross, so that all beings in heaven and on earth would be brought back to God. You used to be far from God. Your thoughts made you his enemies, and you did evil things. But his Son became a human and died. So God made peace with you, and now he lets you stand in his presence as people who are holy and faultless and innocent.
In a real Incarnation—in Christ's physical body through death—God has reconciled us, bringing us into His very presence. In Christ we are "holy in His sight, without blemish and free from accusation". In fact spiritual effects are accomplished in the physical body. Again, our life in this world and our life with God are not at odds, but harmonize.
God sent his Son, Jesus Christ, to this world. He lived a perfect life. He never sinned. Christ died on the cross for us. God did not punish us. Instead, God punished Christ because of our sins.
Paul reminded the Christians at Colossae that Christ had made them clean from their sins. Christ had made them holy. God was not angry with the Christians. They were not God’s enemies. They were not separate from God. God unites people with himself by Christ. All this is the good news of the gospel. These verses do not mean that Christ’s death actually saved everyone. The Bible makes it clear that many people refuse to become friends with God. So they are still God’s enemies.
Colossians 1:23 CEV But you must stay deeply rooted and firm in your faith. You must not give up the hope you received when you heard the good news. It was preached to everyone on earth, and I myself have become a servant of this message.
Paul concluded that the Colossians should continue in their faith, "established and firm, not moved from the hope held out in the Gospel". In this way they would experience the reality of being new men and women in Christ. Christ is the sole focus, the center, and to understand newness, we must keep our lives centered in Him.
The Christians at Colossae had heard the true message of the gospel and they believed it. But they began to listen to what the false teachers taught. So, Paul urged the Christians to continue to believe God’s truth. Paul wrote his letter to them to explain more about the truth. Paul and other Christians preached the genuine message of the gospel in all areas of the world. Only the true message would cause Christians to ‘spread’ and produce ‘fruit’
Paul Writes About His Service To The Church
Colossians 1:24-29 CEV I am glad I can suffer for you. I am pleased also that in my own body I can continue the suffering of Christ for his body, the church. God's plan was to make me a servant of his church and to send me to preach his complete message to you. For ages and ages this message was kept secret from everyone, but now it has been explained to God's people. God did this because he wanted you Gentiles to understand his wonderful and glorious mystery. And the mystery is that Christ lives in you, and he is your hope of sharing in God's glory. We announce the message about Christ, and we use all our wisdom to warn and teach everyone, so all of Christ's followers will grow and become mature. This is why I work so hard and use the mighty power he gives me.
Colossians 1:24 CEV I am glad I can suffer for you. I am pleased also that in my own body I can continue the suffering of Christ for his body, the church.
Last week when we talked about Paul’s prayer for the Christians in Colesee we said that he prayed that the Colossians might endure with joyfulness
Colossians 1:10-11 CEV Then you will live a life that honors the Lord, and you will always please him by doing good deeds. You will come to know God even better. His glorious power will make you patient and strong enough to endure anything, and you will be truly happy.
Now here he is saying that is what he is experiencing. Remember he is writing this letter from prison. He says that he is suffering for them to complete Christ’s suffering.
This does not mean that Christ has to suffer anymore. Christ suffered and died on the cross. Christ completed his work on the cross.
John 19:30 CEV After Jesus drank the wine, he said, “Everything is done!” He bowed his head and died.
So this verse does not mean that Christ has to suffer again for our sin. Here, the word ‘suffer’ refers to the troubles that people have in their lives. Christ is in Christians. When Christians suffer, Christ suffers too.
Acts 9:4 CEV He fell to the ground and heard a voice saying, “Saul! Saul! Why are you so cruel to me?”
Acts 9:4 shows that when Paul used to hurt Christians, he hurt Christ too. Again, Paul was in prison when he wrote this letter. He was suffering because he *preached the *gospel. But he was happy to suffer because of the gospel.
Christians share Christ's sufferings because they have been redeemed, not as an aid to their redemption.
Colossians 1:25-27 CEV God's plan was to make me a servant of his church and to send me to preach his complete message to you. For ages and ages this message was kept secret from everyone, but now it has been explained to God's people. God did this because he wanted you Gentiles to understand his wonderful and glorious mystery. And the mystery is that Christ lives in you, and he is your hope of sharing in God's glory.
Paul was serving the church as an apostle.
What did we say last week about an apostle?
An apostle is a person whom God sends to lead Christians. An apostle also teaches about Jesus. A man does not decide to be an apostle. God chooses him. We hear people who call themselves Apostles, but God calls Apostles. So if God calls them they have authority which is why Paul says that at the beginning of his letter.
Colossians 1:1 CEV From Paul, chosen by God to be an apostle of Christ Jesus, and from Timothy, who is also a follower.
Ephesians 4:11-13 tells us how apostles serve the church.
Ephesians 4:11-13 CEV Christ chose some of us to be apostles, prophets, missionaries, pastors, and teachers, so his people would learn to serve and his body would grow strong. This will continue until we are united by our faith and by our understanding of the Son of God. Then we will be mature, just as Christ is, and we will be completely like him.
Paul emphasised that he had told the Colossians the complete message about the gospel. They did not need the secret information that the false teachers pretended to possess. In the past, God had not told people the complete message. There was a mystery. The Jews had the part of the Bible that we call the *Old Testament. They could read about some of God’s plan. They thought that his plan was only for Jews. But God showed his complete plan when Christ came. The ‘secret’ is that Christ lives in Gentile Christians and in Jewish Christians
Ephesians 3:7-12 CEV God treated me with kindness. His power worked in me, and it became my job to spread the good news. I am the least important of all God's people. But God was kind and chose me to tell the Gentiles that because of Christ there are blessings that cannot be measured. God, who created everything, wanted me to help everyone understand the mysterious plan that had always been hidden in his mind. Then God would use the church to show the powers and authorities in the spiritual world that he has many different kinds of wisdom. God did this according to his eternal plan. And he was able to do what he had planned because of all Christ Jesus our Lord had done. Christ now gives us courage and confidence, so we can come to God by faith.
Colossians 1:24-29 CEV I am glad I can suffer for you. I am pleased also that in my own body I can continue the suffering of Christ for his body, the church. God's plan was to make me a servant of his church and to send me to preach his complete message to you. For ages and ages this message was kept secret from everyone, but now it has been explained to God's people. God did this because he wanted you Gentiles to understand his wonderful and glorious mystery. And the mystery is that Christ lives in you, and he is your hope of sharing in God's glory. We announce the message about Christ, and we use all our wisdom to warn and teach everyone, so all of Christ's followers will grow and become mature. This is why I work so hard and use the mighty power he gives me.
Colossians 1:24 CEV I am glad I can suffer for you. I am pleased also that in my own body I can continue the suffering of Christ for his body, the church.
Last week when we talked about Paul’s prayer for the Christians in Colesee we said that he prayed that the Colossians might endure with joyfulness
Colossians 1:10-11 CEV Then you will live a life that honors the Lord, and you will always please him by doing good deeds. You will come to know God even better. His glorious power will make you patient and strong enough to endure anything, and you will be truly happy.
Now here he is saying that is what he is experiencing. Remember he is writing this letter from prison. He says that he is suffering for them to complete Christ’s suffering.
This does not mean that Christ has to suffer anymore. Christ suffered and died on the cross. Christ completed his work on the cross.
John 19:30 CEV After Jesus drank the wine, he said, “Everything is done!” He bowed his head and died.
So this verse does not mean that Christ has to suffer again for our sin. Here, the word ‘suffer’ refers to the troubles that people have in their lives. Christ is in Christians. When Christians suffer, Christ suffers too.
Acts 9:4 CEV He fell to the ground and heard a voice saying, “Saul! Saul! Why are you so cruel to me?”
Acts 9:4 shows that when Paul used to hurt Christians, he hurt Christ too. Again, Paul was in prison when he wrote this letter. He was suffering because he *preached the *gospel. But he was happy to suffer because of the gospel.
Christians share Christ's sufferings because they have been redeemed, not as an aid to their redemption.
Colossians 1:25-27 CEV God's plan was to make me a servant of his church and to send me to preach his complete message to you. For ages and ages this message was kept secret from everyone, but now it has been explained to God's people. God did this because he wanted you Gentiles to understand his wonderful and glorious mystery. And the mystery is that Christ lives in you, and he is your hope of sharing in God's glory.
Paul was serving the church as an apostle.
What did we say last week about an apostle?
An apostle is a person whom God sends to lead Christians. An apostle also teaches about Jesus. A man does not decide to be an apostle. God chooses him. We hear people who call themselves Apostles, but God calls Apostles. So if God calls them they have authority which is why Paul says that at the beginning of his letter.
Colossians 1:1 CEV From Paul, chosen by God to be an apostle of Christ Jesus, and from Timothy, who is also a follower.
Ephesians 4:11-13 tells us how apostles serve the church.
Ephesians 4:11-13 CEV Christ chose some of us to be apostles, prophets, missionaries, pastors, and teachers, so his people would learn to serve and his body would grow strong. This will continue until we are united by our faith and by our understanding of the Son of God. Then we will be mature, just as Christ is, and we will be completely like him.
Paul emphasised that he had told the Colossians the complete message about the gospel. They did not need the secret information that the false teachers pretended to possess. In the past, God had not told people the complete message. There was a mystery. The Jews had the part of the Bible that we call the *Old Testament. They could read about some of God’s plan. They thought that his plan was only for Jews. But God showed his complete plan when Christ came. The ‘secret’ is that Christ lives in Gentile Christians and in Jewish Christians
Ephesians 3:7-12 CEV God treated me with kindness. His power worked in me, and it became my job to spread the good news. I am the least important of all God's people. But God was kind and chose me to tell the Gentiles that because of Christ there are blessings that cannot be measured. God, who created everything, wanted me to help everyone understand the mysterious plan that had always been hidden in his mind. Then God would use the church to show the powers and authorities in the spiritual world that he has many different kinds of wisdom. God did this according to his eternal plan. And he was able to do what he had planned because of all Christ Jesus our Lord had done. Christ now gives us courage and confidence, so we can come to God by faith.
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