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Study: The Colossians EpistleText For Next Sunday Morning (July 10th): Colossians 2:11-15 (May not get this far) The Supremacy of Jesus Christ in Wisdom and KnowledgeColossians 2:8-10 Last week, we finished a two week study regarding the supreme characteristic of a faithful servant of Jesus Christ. This week, we continue that theme, as well as the theme of the supremacy of Jesus Christ which we started back in chapter one. Introduction From these two passages of Scripture, two main points emerge: 1) Man rationalizes his sin and proves his utter foolishness by devising, and believing, his own philosophies about God, the universe and himself (MacArthur commenting on Romans 1:22) and 2) True, meaningful and eternal wisdom and power can be found only in God, who will one day, once-and-for-all, expose man's utter foolishness and crush it. Man in his natural state thinks he is so smart, educated, wise, intellectual, prudent, learned, academic, cultured and scholarly. Yet God, in His sovereign, eternal, omnipotent omniscience, sees man for what he truly is: an absolute fool abounding in futility. 1. The Utter Insufficiency of Human Wisdom (verse 8)Colossians 2:3 presents Christ in His supremacy in all wisdom and knowledge. In sharp contrast, man indulges himself in foolishness. Inherent in man's foolishness is false teaching (i.e., where you have the one, you have the other). Man in his natural state is so desperate to rationalize, or better yet, eliminate the God of Scripture, that he will not only concoct and embrace utter foolishness, but he also desperately desires to see others embrace it as well. So, he eagerly teaches his foolishness to anyone who will listen. That is exactly what we see in Colossians, and that is exactly what we see in our culture today. And it works! Hughes- It is possible for seemingly healthy believers to be led astray. It happens every day!" Here in Colossians 2:8, the Apostle Paul agrees. Thus Paul's command to "Beware!" It means, "Be constantly looking out, keep a watchful eye ever open." Beware of what? "Lest anyone cheat you." Or as the NASB puts it, "That no one takes your captive." The idea in the Greek is one being taken captive, carried off as a prisoner or kidnapped. As Hughes puts it, "Cultic teaching asserts a death-like grip on its followers." How is one taken captive? In answering that question, Paul gives four characteristics of seductive, dangerous and deadly philosophy. A. Deceitful Knowledge Empty Deceit- The Greek construction indicates that Paul was not condemning all philosophy (which would include Christianity since it entails ideas regarding God, the world and meaning of life), but that philosophy which empty deceit (i.e., vain speculation, that which is empty, hollow, devoid of truth, futile, fruitless, lacking any purpose and in the end, without success). More specifically, Paul is referring to that seductive, dangerous and deadly philosophy referred to as the "Colossian Heresy" which was comprised of elements of Judaism, Greek Gnosticism/philosophy, legalism, asceticism, etc. The foundation of which was a "special knowledge" in addition to Jesus Christ. It was a form of spiritual elitism which was very mysterious, complicated, spiritually arrogant and in the end, deadly. Mormonism and Scientology are two similar examples of today. The problem with human philosophy? Schaeffer- "Man cannot begin with himself and arrive at ultimate reality." Why the problem of human philosophy? It is nothing short of man's total depravity being manifested through his rebellion against God's authority. That's the real issue! Man in his natural state is desperate to eliminate God to eliminate His authority. All said, the Colossian false teachers considered their views (i.e., their philosophy) to be the epitome of wisdom. Paul summarily dismisses it as empty deceit. B. Human Knowledge Hughes- "Every cult today, even those which claim new revelation, hawk their deceptions as ancient in origin, but now brought to light....." Example- First century Judaism. MacArthur- "The Jewish leaders and teachers had encrusted the Word of God with so many customs, rituals and teachings that they were no longer able to distinguish it from the traditions of man." C. Elementary Knowledge D. Christ-Negating Knowledge 2. The All-Sufficiency of Jesus Christ (verse 9)How does one keep from being sucked into seductive, dangerous, deadly, subtle, deceitful, philosophy? By recognizing and embracing the fullness of Jesus Christ (i.e., His absolute Deity). As one commentator notes, this verse is the rock upon which all attempts to disprove Christ's Deity are shattered. Fullness- The Greek is "Pleroma." The same Greek word we studied in 1:19. In contrast to the false teaching which asserted that the divine pleroma (fullness) was spread out over innumerable emanations (i.e., lesser gods), Paul declares that all the fullness of Deity dwells in Jesus Christ and Jesus Christ alone. Dwells- Means "to settle down and be at home." Simply put, Jesus
Christ was, and is, fully God, and eternally so. O'Brien- "The essence of God, undivided and in its whole fullness, dwells in Christ in His exalted state, so that He is the essential and adequate image of God." Hughes- "But in Christ we see the face of God. Christ is the sole Temple of Deity in whom the divine glories are stored. How can we go anywhere else but to Him? This truth is great in itself. It ought to steel (fortify) us against being taken captive by deceitful, empty philosophies." Bodily- Jesus Christ was, and is, not only fully God, but also
fully human (i.e., the God-Man). 100% God, 100% man. So much God that He
was not man, so much man that He was not God. The Colossian false teachers taught that spirit was good and matter was evil. Therefore, God would never take on a human body. Paul counters by insisting on the fullness of Deity in Christ in bodily form. 3. The Completeness of the Believer (verse 10)As a result of the Fall of man into sin, man is in a helpless and desperate state of being incomplete. However, for those of us in Christ, we have been made complete. As we just noted, Jesus Christ is full of Deity. And Christ fills us. Therefore, we are full of His fullness. The perfect tense indicates this is eternally so. Complete- The Greek is "Pleroo." A form of the word "pleroma."
Believers are complete in Christ both positionally by His imputed perfect
righteousness to us (1:22) and the complete sufficiency of spiritual
resources for our maturity (2 Peter 1:3-4). In short, Christ is the
pleroma of God and we are filled with His pleroma. Head of All Principality and Power- In short, Jesus Christ is the supreme ruler over all creation, not a lesser god (i.e., an emanation) as maintained by the false teachers. Closing My Faith Has Found a Resting Place (W&C Hymnal, # 405). Teacher: Darin Lawson |