It is abundantly clear that the believer is now counted dead with Christ and subsequently risen with Him. If these things are true, then we ought not to live after the rudiments of the world, but rather after Christ who is our Head.
In the concluding lesson of chapter two, we remind ourselves of the purpose of the book: to gain knowledge of God's will in all wisdom and spiritual understanding so that we may walk worthy and bear fruit.
Do not think yourself to be under the law (that is only a shadow of things to come), but rather as a member of Christ's body (which is the current operation of God).
By grace through faith in Christ's shed blood, we have been forgiven all trespasses and have been set free from sin.
The operation of God identifies us with Christ's death, burial, and resurrection.
Up until this point in the book of Colossians, Paul has taken (and will continue to take) every opportunity to exalt Christ. Christ is the fulness of the Godhead bodily... we are complete in Him.
Paul labours according to the ministry the Lord Jesus Christ gave him. He describes himself as being a minister of the dispensation of God, the mystery...
Paul labours according to the ministry the Lord Jesus Christ gave him. He describes himself as being a minister of the dispensation of God, the mystery...
Paul makes it clear to the Colossians that what he is communicating is the revelation of the mystery of Christ which was given to him by the resurrected, glorified, Lord Jesus Christ. The news of "Christ in you, the hope of glory" is an amazing truth! That Gentiles can be saved without Israel, without the law, and without the covenants has been revealed to us through Paul, the apostle of the Gentiles.
In this lesson we look at the incredible work Christ has accomplished for Jew and Gentile alike in this dispensation of grace. The work that Christ has done on our behalf now motivates us as saved members of the body of Christ to do reasonable service, worthy of our vocation, to the Lord.
In this lesson we delve into an incredible portion of the book of Colossians detailing the deity of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. Jesus is fully God and fully man, later to be described as, "the fulness of the Godhead bodily". Christ is the preeminent!
As believers, a prerequisite to being able to serve God is to know the will of God according to the Bible rightly divided. (Col 1:9-10) This is also referred to as the "renewed mind". This starts with understanding what Christ has done for us and who we are as saved believers in Him.
In this lesson we cover Colossians 1:9-10, which summarize the purpose of the book. Paul's desire for the Colossians is that they might be filled with the knowledge of His will in all wisdom and spiritual understanding. We must have knowledge and understanding, and know the will of God prior to being able to walk worthy. These verses teach us that as members of the body of Christ, belief must precede behavior. Good works (the fruit of the Spirit) are only possible with the proper motivation, stemming from a mind that is renewed by the word of God rightly divided.
Colossians is a rich epistle that describes the necessity of knowing and understanding the will of God in order to walk worthy. In this introduction we'll do a brief survey to understand the context and purpose of this epistle.
Colossians is a rich epistle that describes the necessity of knowing and understanding the will of God in order to walk worthy. In this introduction we'll do a brief survey to understand the context and purpose of this epistle.
