24th July 2023
Christ is enough
This study is the thirteenth in a series of studies on the books of the New Testament
(Colossians – read in 8 minutes)
He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. For in him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things have been created through him and for him. Colossians 1:15-16 (NIV)
Beginning at the end, there is a revealing passage in the final verses of this, one of four ‘prison epistles’ from Paul. He mentions eight ‘fellow-workers’, both Jew and Gentile who are invested in the progress of the Colossian Christians, who send greetings. (Colossians 4:7-14). It provides an image of a vibrant work being done in difficult circumstances, including imprisonment (v.18), and an outpouring of love for the new converts.
The other comment worth noting is Paul’s reference to a letter written to the church in Laodicea (v.16). He encourages them to exchange letters, suggesting that the two epistles have different content. This expands our understanding of Paul’s ministry work – even when he is not free to travel. He spent time composing carefully structured letters that become a ministry to those first century Christians – and to us today. There are possibly other letters he wrote that were either lost or did not make it into the New Testament canon.
To return to the beginning. In the opening paragraph, after praising the Colossians for their faith and love, Paul provides a route map of what he intends to cover. This is a planned letter. He prays for their understanding, acknowledging their teaching from Epaphras but indicating this should be a continuing process (Colossians 1:9). He then ties that knowledge to how it should affect their everyday lives (vv.10-12). The rest of the letter is built around these two perspectives.
The knowledge they need to grow in, is expanded by Paul in a majestic poem about who Jesus is (vv.15-20). Full of creation imagery from Genesis, it explains how the full character of God is presented in a human – the Creator, the crucified and the first born from the dead. ‘He is before all things…’ (v.17). Underlining the completeness that is in Jesus, the word ‘all’ is used eight times in this short passage describing Jesus as the ‘head of the body, the church…’ (v.18).
This knowledge is to counter the various influences experienced by the Colossians – from a world of multiple pagan gods, often fickle and requiring careful navigation, to pressure from Jewish converts who could not accept that Christ was enough and had, through his sacrifice, made the ‘works of the law’ of no effect: they were under grace – forgiven. The complex rules of the Old Covenant had found their reality in Christ. Paul refers to this knowledge as ‘the mystery’ (v.26), and contrasts it to ‘hollow and deceptive philosophy’ (Colossians 2:8).
He goes on to develop how this knowledge should play out in their family lives, in their relationships, recognising that ‘Christ is all, and is in all’ (Colossians 3:11). So there should be ‘compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience’ (v.12). There should be forgiveness and gratitude and prayers. Not a bad model for any church that looks to Christ as ‘all, and in all’.
Prayer
Father, thank you for the wisdom and love you gave to your servant Paul, for his understanding of the fullness there is in Christ and for the knowledge that we do not need anything else. In Jesus’s name, Amen.
Study by Maggie Mitchell
About the writer:
Maggie Mitchell attends the Northampton congregation of Grace Communion International and is Chair of the Pastoral Council
Local congregation:
GCI Northampton
Ecton Village Hall
78A High Street
Ecton
Northampton
NN6 0QB
Local congregational contact:
Maggie Mitchell
Email: maggie.mitchell@btinternet.com
Word of Life contact:
wordoflife@gracecom.church