Jesus as the Second Adam in Colossians 1

In Colossians 1 Jesus is "the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation...the head of the body, the church. He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead" (vv.15-18).

He images God, just as Adam did. He is the firstborn of creation, like Adam was. He is the head of a family, just as Adam was. His family will multiply and increase to cover the whole earth too, and according to verses 4-5 this happens as the gospel spreads over the whole earth and the church grows in numbers, good works and knowledge ( "the word of the truth, the gospel, which has come to you, as indeed in the whole world it is bearing fruit and growing", cf. v.10).

Lines could be drawn to Acts 6:7; 12:23; 19:20 where the word of God increases, Romans 6, the Great Commission, and all the 'new Adam' figures in the OT who also receive their own mandate/promise of increase (i.e. Noah, Abraham, etc - Gen 9:1, 6-7; 12:2; 17:2,6,8; 22:17-18; 26:34,24; 28:3-4; 35:11-12; 47:27; Ex 1:7; Lev 26:9; Ps 107:38; Is 51:2; Jer 3:16; 23:3; Ezek 36:10-11, 29-30)... anything else?

All credit to Greg Beale.

Bible study on Colossians 4:2-6

Sorry for the lack of posting recently.

For what it's worth here is a bible study I've written on the 5 verses of Colossians 4:2-6. I've tried to make a meal out of 82 words by bringing in the whole of chapter 1, and then through that bringing to mind all or Paul's ministry!

We'll see whether it works.

It took ages to write, mainly because it took me a while to figure out how to do the formatting in MS Word 2007.

Imperatives and indicatives

Wonderfully clear post from Tim Chester:

Think how you would summarise Ephesians 5:1 in your own words: 'Be imitators of God, therefore, as dearly loved children.'

I wonder if your summary focused on the call to imitate God or the description of Christians as 'dearly loved children'?

It is all too easy for us to hear only the commands of Scripture and miss the descriptions out of which they arise. The prescription to behave like God only makes sense as the outworking of the description that we are God’s children. The imperatives (commands) of the New Testament always arise out of the indicatives (description). We are already God's dearly loved children so let's live as God’s dearly loved children by imitating our Father.

Reading Paul, and to a lesser extent other Biblical writers, as arguing from indicative to imperative, is probably one of the most important things I've ever been taught. But I sometimes struggle to spell out exactly what it means. It is easy to trot out "be what you already are", but it is more difficult to explain what that really means.

Melanchthon in his commentary on Colossians 3:1 helpfully breaks it down into three things:

1. cause to effect - what will make us be
2. what is due from us - what we ought to be
3. what is possible - what we have the resources to be

I find that quite helpful in actually applying it to my life.

BTW this is my 500th post on this blog. Crazy stuff!

A bible study on Colossians 3:1-4

Quite a short bible study. 4 verses, 20 minutes and enough follow-up questions in reserve to keep us there all day.

Since, then, you have been raised with Christ,
        set your hearts on things above,
where Christ is seated at the right hand of God.
        Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things.
For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God. When Christ, who is your life, appears, then you also will appear with him in glory.

1. What is Paul's command to the Colossians, and to us, in these verses?

• What are "the things above" we should set hearts and minds on?
• How do we set our hearts and minds on these things?

2. Paul doesn't give commands without reasons. Here he gives reasons based on the past, present and future realities of our lives.

Looking at the different tenses that Paul uses, what are these realities?

Past: "You have been raised", "you died"

• When did these things happen?
• Is "death and resurrection" over-the-top language for what happened to us?

Present: "Christ is seated at the right hand of God", "your life is now hidden with Christ in God"

• Why should we be encouraged that Christ is seated at the right hand of God?
• What does Paul mean by "life"?
• In what way is our life "hidden" with Christ?

Future: "When Christ, who is your life, appears, then you also will appear with him in glory"

• Why/how will we "appear in glory"?
• What will no longer be around in the future?

3. Will thinking about our past, present and future, and "setting our minds on things above", make any difference to our external lives? ... answer now, or wait for next week's exciting instalment to find out.

A bible study on Colossians 2:6-15

Listening to: Andrew Bird: Andrew Bird & the Mysterious Production of Eggs

Feedback welcome.

2My goal is that they may be encouraged in heart and united in love, so that they may have the full riches of complete understanding, in order that they may know the mystery of God, namely, Christ, 3 in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge. 4 I tell you this so that no one may deceive you by fine-sounding arguments. 5 For though I am absent from you in body, I am present with you in spirit and delight to see how disciplined you are and how firm your faith in Christ is.

6 So then, just as you received Christ Jesus as Lord, continue to live your lives in him, 7 rooted and built up in him, strengthened in the faith as you were taught, and overflowing with thankfulness.

8 See to it that no one takes you captive through hollow and deceptive philosophy, which depends on human tradition and the elemental spiritual forces of this world rather than on Christ.

9 For in Christ all the fullness of the Deity lives in bodily form, 10 and in Christ you have been brought to fullness. He is the head over every power and authority. 11 In him you were also circumcised with a circumcision not performed by human hands. Your sinful nature was put off when you were circumcised by Christ, 12 having been buried with him in baptism, in which you were also raised with him through your faith in the working of God, who raised him from the dead.

13 When you were dead in your sins and in the uncircumcision of your sinful nature, God made you alive with Christ. He forgave us all our sins, 14 having cancelled the charge of our legal indebtedness, which stood against us and condemned us; he has taken it away, nailing it to the cross. 15 And having disarmed the powers and authorities, he made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them by the cross. (TNIV)

• What was the Colossians' problem before they were Christians (vv. 13-14)? [Dead/indebted/condemned/power and authorities against them]

• What did God in Christ do in the past to solve this problem (vv. 13-15)? [God forgave us having: (i) nailed legal indebtedness to the cross; and (ii) disarmed the powers and authorities]

• What did the Colossians 'do' in their past so that Christ’s work was effective for them? [v.6: "received Christ"; v.12: "baptism…through your faith"; Why did I put 'do' in scare-quotes?]

• What two paths could the Colossians take from where they are (vv. 6-8)? [live in Christ or be taken captive by human philosophy]

• In what way is one path hollow and the other full?

• Why do hollow ideas deceive us and capture us?

• Remembering the passage 2 weeks ago as well as this week's, how has Paul helped the Colossians live in Christ rather than be deceived? [(i) he prayed that they may know Christ and understand the riches we have in him; (ii) he has reminded them of the worth of Christ and what he has done for them]

• How can we help each other?

An Anatomy of Christian Righteousness

Listening to: Franz Schubert: Piano Sonatas (Uchida)

"Our theology" said Luther, consisted of a distinction between two kinds of righteousness:

the active and the passive, so that morality and faith, works and grace, secular society and religion may not be confused. Both are necessary, but both must be kept within their limits. (Lectures on Galatians, 1531-1535, cited in p.21 The Genius of Luther's Theology)

Melanchthon in his commentary on Colossians 2:10-15, the consummate teacher (rather than preacher), offers an anatomy of our passive/Christian righteousness. First he observes that for Paul the definition of Christian Righteousness is "In Christ you are complete" (NIV: "you have been given fullness in Christ"). He further analyses things by observing two differences between Christian and human Righteousness:

1. "Christian righteousness satisfies God, because it believes that the Father has forgiven for Christ's sake" [DK: Christ acts on the Father]
2. "the Holy Spirit, who puts the flesh to death, brings Christian righteousness into being" [DK: Christ acts on us]. This is further divided into:
   1. putting to death: "Putting to death, or repentance, is to recognize sin and to be truly afraid of God's judgement"; and
   2. bringing to life: "Bringing to life is for the conscience the conscience being raised up through faith or trust; for it to seize hold of the consolation of believing that God has forgiven one's sins for Christ's sake". This "Making alive contains two things":
      1. "taking away a bad conscience. For, when God has forgiven sins, he effects peace and joy in our hearts through faith. After that, we dare to be sure he has forgiven us, and dare to call him Father"
      2. "governing through the Holy Spirit.... in the kingdom of Christ, where he watches over them through the Hoy Spirit [and] defends them against the snares of the devil"

PS: I know I must stop posting with titles like this one. It almost seems heretical.

The Colossian heresy

Was there one?

I'm not convinced. Partly because sermons on Colossians I have heard always seem to take a long time explaining it because it is not at all clear from the text. And whenever they have finished explaining it I never feel that anything has been added to the exposition.

However false teachings clearly are in view. Paul's purpose for the letter seems to be found in Colossians 2:1-5:

For I want you to know how great a struggle I have for you and for those at Laodicea and for all who have not seen me face to face, that their hearts may be encouraged, being knit together in love, to reach all the riches of full assurance of understanding and the knowledge of God's mystery, which is Christ, in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge. I say this in order that no one may delude you with plausible arguments. For though I am absent in body, yet I am with you in spirit, rejoicing to see your good order and the firmness of your faith in Christ.

Focussing on this particular passage we learn that:

• Paul had not met the Colossians and Laodiceans (suggesting a more general purpose of creating a relationship and general encouragement)
• He intended the letter to be read in two places, so it has a general purpose to both communities.
• He sees false teaching as something that may come and which needs preventative rather than restorative medicine (note the future tense of many of the mentions of false teaching).
• He rejoices in their order and faith (again suggesting that nothing is afoot as yet).

A bit of a rambling post but hopefully you get my drift.

Plea to preachers: don't get sidetracked from the exultation of Christ which is so clear in this wonderful letter.