Studying Colossians part 2: Two Themes

I have the privilege of currently working on Sunday School material for my church, Falls Baptist Church, from the book of Colossians; I have personally benefited greatly from this study. In Part 1 I discussed key resources (I reiterate: David Pao's commentary is the overall best commentary). Now I will discuss two key themes that really stood out to me.

"Vision for the Cosmos with Christ as center"--these words by Scot McKnight (2018 NICNT commentary) provide, in my opinion, an excellent summary of Colossians' greatest theme. Indeed, the supremacy of Christ in all things resonates throughout the book. Michael J. Gorman (Apostle of the Crucified Lord) well states that Colossians "exalts Christ as the cosmic sovereign, the preexistent Wisdom of God in whom God's fullness dwells, whose death has liberated those who believe from the hostile powers of the universe, and whose resurrection has raised them to sit with him above the defeated powers."

Consequently, the first major motif in Colossians is nothing more than "in Christ." Notice how consistently this expression or a related one occurs in the epistle: 1:2 ("in Christ"), 1:4 ("in Christ"), 1:14 ("in whom we have . . ."), 1:16 and 17, "by Him" (Greek en autō), 1:19 ("in Him"), 1:28 ("in Christ Jesus"), and that's all only in the first chapter! In addition, we have the amazing rhetorical reversal in 1:27, that Christ is in us!

In Jesus Christ dwells deity (2:9), "in Him" we are complete (2:10), and "in Him" we are spiritually circumcised, precisely because Jesus Christ's entire body was "circumcised" (i.e., "cut off," meaning "killed") on the cross for our sake! Consequently, Jesus' death and resurrection (2:12-15) have demonstrated that the entire universe revolves around Him, and that we can be participants with His glory.

This lays the foundation for the Apostle Paul's attack against the false teachers threatening the Colossian (and Laodicean) believers. [In the paragraphs below I am borrowing some general ideas from Pao's commentary, McKnight's commentary, and Köstenberger/Kellum/Quarles NT Intro The Cradle, the Cross, and the Crown] The second key theme of Colossians is related to the first but develops as a reaction against the false teachers, namely, that spiritual maturity is unattainable without being "in Christ."

The problem with the false teachers was that they were striving to attain to the "heavenlies" by "earthly" means. For them, spiritual enlightenment could be attained by personal self-discipline, mystical-spiritual experiences ("worship of angels" in 2:18 is probably a subjective genitive, i.e., the angels' worship of God; the false teachers thought they could attain to the heavenly realm and worship alongside angels), combined with strict Torah-observance. In other words, the key to being spiritual was "Torah + self-discipline + mystical spiritual experiences."

All of this the Apostle Paul vehemently rejects, simply because they are based on "earthly" things (2:8, 20; ironically enough, since the false teachers wished to attain to "heavenly" things!) They all miserably fail, and are even ineffective in countering the temptations of the flesh (2:23, "no value when faced with the indulgence of the flesh").

Consequently, Colossians gives us the key to evaluating all teaching, good and bad. As Pao writes, "Any teachings that challenge the supremacy and sufficiency of Christ are to be unmasked to reveal their true nature as personal spiritual forces that threaten the Christian community."

The question we ask must be, "Does this teaching exalt Christ above all others?" For the false teachers, Christ was merely a footnote to spiritual maturity, which was attained through self-effort. With this in mind, we are in better shape to analyze various doctrines in the world:

·       To the heretics trying to seduce the Colossians, the Apostle Paul says, “Why are you seeking in the Torah and self-effort what is abounding over in Jesus Christ?” 

·       To the Roman Catholics of today we might say, “Why are you seeking in Mary and church tradition what can come only from Jesus Christ?” 

·       To the Mormon we might say, “Why are you looking for ‘another revelation’ [Book of Mormon] when Jesus Christ has already revealed Himself to us?” 

·       To the hyper-charismatic we might say, “Why are you seeking spirituality in tongues when true spirituality can only come from listening to Jesus?”

·       To the Buddhist we might say, “Why are you seeking enlightenment from meditating in search of a higher spirituality when He Who is true Enlightenment has robed Himself in the flesh to come seek you?”

·       To ourselves, we might say, “Why am I rooting my own identity and value in what I have or have not accomplished, or what other people think of me, when my value and worth come from being rooted in Jesus Christ?!” (Col 2:10). 

Studying Colossians part 1: Resources

Here at my church (Falls Baptist) we have recently begun a Sunday School series focusing on Colossians. I have definitely been edified and challenged by this study, particularly the role of the phrases "in Him/in Christ" throughout Colossians, a repeated theme that should cause us to focus on the supremacy of Jesus Christ above everything else. I appreciate how Scot McKnight articulates it: Colossians is about "Vision for the Cosmos with Christ as Center."

In part 2 I will discuss some of the key themes in Colossians. Here I want to introduce the reader to some of the best resources.

First, commentaries:If you can only afford one commentary on Colossians, buy David W. Pao, Colossians and Philemon, in the series Zondervan Exegetical Commentary on the New Testament. This is turning into one of my favorite NT commentaries, period. Pao combines solid conservative scholarship (which is not so hard to come by) with theological and practical insight (which is hard to come by!) In other words, Pao actually cares about the theological and practical significance of the text of Scripture (see, for example, his excellent discussion of the Wheaton revival on page 179). Whether or not this is or will be a hallmark of the ZECNT series as a whole remains to be seen!

The most recent conservative commentary of significance is Scot McKnight's Letter to the Colossians in the NICNT series (replacing the older volume by Fee). It has much to commend it, though his treatment of baptism rubs me (a Baptist!) the wrong way. In addition, the commentaries by Douglas J. Moo (Pillar) and F. F. Bruce (older NICNT) are both worth getting. For a commentary more practically oriented and easier to read (though still scholarly), see David Garland, Colossians, Philemon, in the NIV Application Commentary series (dear reader of a more KJV-oriented perspective, please do not let the title of the series turn you away from its value. By the statement of the KJV translators themselves [read the preface!], the NIV should still be considered the Word of God, "be it not fitly translated for phrase . . .")

Finally, an "oldie-but-goodie" would be J. B. Lightfoot, St. Paul's Epistles to the Colossians and Philemon, which can be obtained quite cheaply on Amazon (and might even be public domain). Be warned, though--Lightfoot expects you to be able to read all the Latin he quotes! Nonetheless, if you're willing to dig, you can find nuggets of gold in Lightfoot's works.

Now, as for other resources:
It's always good to have a solid "New Testament Introduction" or two in your library, since these focus on matters of authorship, background, provenance, setting, date, etc. of each New Testament book. The classic evangelical NT Intro is by D. A. Carson, Douglas Moo, and Leon Morris, An Introduction to the New Testament (inexplicably Morris' name dropped off in later editions). However, I much prefer The Cradle, the Cross, and the Crown: An Introduction to the New Testament by Andreas J. Köstenberger, L. Scott Kellum, and Charles L. Quarles (I require this for my seminary students). Granted, I'm biased (the first two authors were professors of mine at SEBTS), but this book is superior in its treatment of the background of each book and the current theological controversies in NT studies, in my humble-but-correct opinion. In addition, The New Testament in Antiquity by Burge, Cohick, and Green is very helpful in its discussion of the background of each NT book, including Colossians.

Finally, for serious study you should have access to a "New Testament Theology" book or two, which will focus on the theological themes of each book of the New Testament (or the New Testament as a whole; the methodology will vary). Frank S. Thielman's Theology of the New Testament: A Canonical Approach is what I require my seminary students to read in the class "New Testament Biblical Theology," and it has a chapter devoted to Colossians. In addition, Michael J. Gorman's Apostle of the Crucified Lord: A Theological Introduction to Paul and His Letters has some excellent material devoted to Colossians.

"If the foundations be destroyed . . ." [DON'T SAY THAT!!] Or, why context remains indispensable for legitimate Bible study

 For both the Spring semester and Summer School (which just concluded today at BCM), I had the privilege of teaching Hermeneutics to a total of 25-30 students. I had a fabulous time! The student's were very engaged with the topic, and I can think of only one other class that I could possibly be more excited about (1 Peter). Our main textbook was Duvall and Hayes' Grasping God's Word, with Sire's Scripture Twisting as also required reading.

As I stress with my students, properly studying the context of any passage remains essential. Even Proverbs—possibly the one book in the Bible where you could grab a couple verses and not be too concerned about what precedes and follows—even in Proverbs the reader must understand the ongoing conflict between "Lady Wisdom" versus the "Strange Woman," as well as how the entire book must be read in light of 1:7.

A perfect example of the importance of context is in how well-meaning Christians quote Psalm 11:3—"Boy, this country [or church, or society, or local coffee shop] sure is going downhill fast! You know, if the foundations be destroyed, what can the righteous do?" Indeed, how many messages have been preached with that as the tagline, generally focusing on what the "foundations" are and how we need to get back to whatever they are?

Friend, if we truly pay attention to what Scripture is saying, you'll understand that true believers are not supposed to be saying "if the foundations be destroyed . . ." Consider the entire Psalm. In verse 1, we have the basic theme: David trusts in the Lord. Then, immediately following, we have discordant voice introduced: that of "Naysayers," the ones who wish David to abandon hope and join them in their doom and gloom philosophy.  "Flee to the mountains," they say. With parallelism in verse 2—"The wicked are bending their bow, they're getting ready to shoot!" Why? "To shoot at the righteous."

Here's the key—the "Naysayers" are still talking in verse 3! In other words, verse 3 is not the theme of the Psalm, the message we should take to heart. Rather, verse 3, "If the foundations be destroyed . . ." is the very statement David (and the Psalm) rebukes!

The (perhaps well-meaning) "Naysayers," then, are bemoaning the fact that everything's crumbling, and they've thrown up their hands in despair—"It's too late! The foundations are destroyed! What can good people do about it?"

Listen to King David's rebuke—"The Lord is in his holy temple, his throne is in the heavens, God's eyes are quite aware of what's going on, and God will take care of things!"

My friends, when you state (whatever the circumstances), "If the foundations be destroyed, what can the righteous do?", quite possibly you have allowed yourself to join the side of the "Naysayers" and are seriously questioning the Sovereignty of God! So long as the Lord is in His sacred temple, so long as God reigns from heaven, the question is absurd at best and dangerously close to sacrilege at worst.

This is not to downplay or in any way minimize true, Biblical Lament. I have made it a point to introduce legitimate Lament to my students as an under-neglected genre (with thanks to Dr. Heath Thomas of Southeastern who radically changed my thinking on this matter). True Biblical Lament cries out to God in despair, even questions God, yet does so from the perspective of faith.

Psalm 11:3, however, is not Lament; rather, it is whining, a "woe is us" attitude that focuses on the deterioration of society (or whatever) and forgets God has called us to a sacred mission to be the light to the world. In other words, when we bemoan the fact that the light seems to be going out in the world, we are actually bemoaning our own failure with the suggestion that God himself has not adequately equipped us.

Context, then, remains essential to any legitimate study of the Bible. Yet many preachers and teachers strip verses out of their context as if it didn't matter, as if those verses could appear anywhere. Folks, the Holy Spirit has inspired location just as much as content! As an example of the absurdity of being able to conduct legitimate interpretation without context, I play a little game with my Hermeneutics students: I have them divide up into teams, then try to guess the location in the Bible, the significance, and the application of the following passages (#6 is especially difficult—no student has successfully guessed or interpreted it yet!) Also, one of these is not actually from the canonical books but from the Apocrypha (Brenton's translation; all others are in KJV English); can you guess which one? Some of these are actually kind of easy, some are tough.

Let's Play: Guess that Context!

1. And the sword shall abide on his cities, and shall consume his branches, and devour them, because of their own counsels.

2. Binding his foal unto the vine, and his ass's colt unto the choice vine; he washed his garments in wine, and his clothes in the blood of grapes:

3. Thy disciples fast not

4. Insomuch as God hath delivered us from great perils, we thank him highly

5. The mountains were not found.

6. bestow that money for whatsoever thy soul lusteth after, for oxen, or for sheep, or for wine, or for strong drink, or for whatsoever thy soul desireth

7. And thy meat which thou shalt eat shall be by weight, twenty shekels a day: from time to time shalt thou eat it.

8. So she gleaned in the field until even, and beat out that she had gleaned: and it was about an ephah of barley.