Colossians 2:1-7
Once again Paul speaks of his desire for the church at Colossae. Again, he is talking about one of the church’s tasks. His words draw a beautiful picture of the ministry of nurture.
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What kind of church would you like? Some pastors might say they would like a growing church. Of course, only about a third of churches in central Ohio are growing and much of that growth is transfer growth.
To be honest with you, most pastors would welcome numerical growth in their churches. I’m no different. Not only would numerical growth say we are reaching more people, it would open the door to more opportunities for service and ministry. Still, few pastors would say that’s all they want in a church—more people.
Certainly, even the most missional church member sitting on a pew wants more from a church than more people on that pew. For them, the answer to the question “What kind of church would you like?” would never simply be, “A growing church.”
Despite the growth, Paul knew the church was threatened by bad theology, corrupt practices, and eroding confidence. He wanted that church to be more than a growing church.
When you get out of bed on a Sunday morning, the only morning many of you can sleep late, you want more out of your church than the knowledge that each Sunday you will see new faces.
In this passage, in which Paul once again reminds the Colossians of his concern for them and their fellow Christians at Laodicea, the apostle outlines his vision for them, a vision which includes clues to the kind of church he would like them to have. I think it’s the kind of church that might appeal to you.
I
WOULDN’T YOU LIKE A CHURCH THAT IS
A COMMUNITY OF ENCOURAGEMENT?
My purpose is that
they may be encouraged in heart…
We’re rapidly getting to the point where an optimist may be defined as someone who believes the newspaper won’t be delivered this morning. We have some TV and radio personalities who make a fortune telling you how bad things are and then have the audacity to advertise hand baskets.
Don’t you sometimes long for encouragement?
A church should be a place where its members find regular encouragement along their pilgrimage. Encouragement literally infuses an individual or a group with courage and strength to face what comes their way.
Paul could probably see the gathering clouds of persecution and trial on the horizon. In time, Asia Minor would become the center of the persecuting frenzy. Paul knew the Colossian Christians would face trouble because of their commitment to Christ. Some of them would be beaten. Some of them would be driven from their homes. Some of them would die.
Because churches are beacons of truth in a dark world they may face danger and hostility from a culture which would rather have the truth suppressed. Then, too, it takes profound courage to stand for what is right in a world gone morally mad!
I like the comment of Ralph Sockman, “The test of courage comes when we are in the minority; the test of tolerance when we are in the majority.” If I can elaborate on that, in a world such as ours, it seems our courage is tested far more often than our tolerance. Frankly, in a world such as ours if we have the courage to take the unpopular moral stand, we will be called intolerant.
The Colossians needed to be encouraged in heart. They would face difficulties which might make their hearts fail, which would tempt them to give up. They needed the fortitude to keep going. We may not face the persecution they faced but we do face situations that might cause us to quit. Are you surprised at that?
Several years ago I heard a young woman, who had personal knowledge of the event (she was too young), say that no Christians had trouble during the Great Depression. Of course that’s simply not true. Christians lost jobs, Christians went hungry. In some places churches had to close their doors because they couldn’t pay their bills. These Christians needed courage to keep going. Christians aren’t immune to trouble but we can find courage to go on.
In the first century, Christianity was considered dangerous, in part, because Christians took it so seriously. Had they embraced a live-and-let-live attitude toward religion they would have never known persecution or opposition. Instead, they chose to proclaim Christ as Lord, to insist he was absolute deity who had sovereignty over all creation. For this they were despised.
If you see some similarities between that first-century world and ours, don’t be surprised. You’re not the first. We face similar challenges.
What was the source of the encouragement which enabled them to stand firm and work hard for Christ? Where do we find the same encouragement?
That encouragement is rooted in an understanding of who Christ is and what he has accomplished. Is there a secret to experiencing spiritual confidence and hope? Yes, Christ. But the secret is no secret. It has been revealed wherever Christ is preached. It is known by all who truly trust him.
The church that truly proclaims Christ is a place of encouragement. In such a place you learn of the One who can bring you through the toughest times. You can encounter the One who will stay with you when the going gets tough. You will be surrounded by those who have—in his Name—pledged to love as he loved.
II
WOULDN’T YOU LIKE A CHURCH THAT IS
A COMMUNITY UNITED BY LOVE?
“…welded together in love…”
There’s a lot of hate in this world. The church should be a place where love is the hallmark, a place where you will be loved—warts and all.
Weymouth’s translation of phrase “knit together in love” is a strong one. It is an attempt to grasp the intensity of the language Paul used. Those who are part of a healthy church possess a love which united them despite personality differences, economic differences, ethnic differences.
There seems to be a natural progression here. A church which continues to be encouraged by the message of Christ will become a community bound by love.
Paul understood that such a church would possess a solidarity and unity which would keep it together in the toughest times. For this reason, Paul labored to teach believers to love God and to love each other. For this reason, Paul struck swiftly and hard at anything which threatened unity.
By contrast, the false teachers were trying to create a divided community, a community of spiritual "haves” and “have nots.” If these teachers had triumphed, they would have created a group of “Super Christians” who had been taught “secret doctrines” and who had supposedly had special, mystical experiences which made them superior to ordinary Christians, who, in turn, would have been regarded as second-class citizens in the Kingdom. Love and unity are the first casualties in such a situation.
Next to fall will be the church’s integrity and its appeal to men and women who know their need of grace.
In the face of this threat, Paul prayed that these Christians would continue to see the binding power of love at word. The Colossian church had people from Jewish, Greek, Roman, and other backgrounds. They had been welded together by their common commitment to Christ. A modern day example might be those Churches in Israel where Christians of Jewish and Christians of Palestinian backgrounds worship together. That’s the power of love.
Several years ago, Josh McDowell said the two greatest fears of most young people is that they will never be loved and that they will never be able to love. When the church is what it should be, those fears will be silenced.
There’s a lot of practical theology in the little song which says:
“We are one in the Spirit, we are one in the Lord,
We are one in the Spirit, we are one in the Lord:
And we pray that all unity may one day be restored:
And they’ll know we are Christians by our love.”
III
WOULDN’T YOU LIKE A CHURCH THAT IS
A COMMUNITY KNOWN FOR SOUNDNESS?
My purpose is 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 orderly you are and how
firm your faith in Christ is.
In our day, a lot of people are sure of one thing: They are not sure of anything. They long for a solid footing. They yearn for sound beliefs. The church should be a place of soundness.
Such soundness is manifested in two area.
To begin with there is soundness of doctrine. Of course, Paul never implies that merely being able to articulate the cognitive content of the Christian faith makes one a Christian; being a Christian implies a relationship with Christ, generated by the Spirit in response to our repentance and faith. Still, the health of a church may be tested, in part, by what that church believes and teaches. This is true because what we believe is part of the “mystery” God has revealed to us, the mystery God wants to shape our world-view..
To underscore this Paul used three words to refer to the church’s doctrinal understanding. Each of them suggests something about the nature and character of what we believe.
* God gives the capacity to apprehend the truth. That’s implied by the word “knowledge.” God wants us to understand what he is doing in the world, to grasp how Christ is at the center of his plan. So, he gives us the capacity to understand. Does this mean you must become a theologian? No, but it does mean that you can understand what you need to understand to find salvation and certainty in Christ.
* God gives the capacity to apply the truth. That’s implied by the word “understanding.” Here’s an important fact about Christian doctrine. It is never intended to be knowledge for the sake of knowledge. Christian truth is to be applied to life. God gives believers the insight needed to give the truth practical expression in daily life.
* God gives the capacity to argue for the truth. That’s implied by the word “wisdom.” Throughout history there are those who would challenge God’s truth. In a healthy church, there are those who can speak up in its favor, those who can defend it and show how it speaks to our deepest concerns. In almost every great revival in the church, there were those specially gifted to defend and speak up for the truth.
In a beautiful image Paul reminds the Colossians that their exploration of the truth will never exhaust the “treasures” found in Christ. Some are concerned because Paul says this “wisdom and knowledge” is “hidden.” They shouldn’t be. It doesn’t matter if something is hidden if you know where to look. Paul has told us where to look.
We also need to remember that the soundness which marks a healthy church is manifested in soundness of devotion. (4-6)
From the earliest days of the church there have been those who would try to exalt their ideas and theories to the level of gospel-truth. Some of these ideas might be pure speculation, some of them may be wild guesses based on limited information given in the scripture. All of them had the potential to distract from the truth.
The false teachers at Colossae, whoever they may have been, were gifted talkers. Paul says they were able to “deceive…by fine sounding arguments.” As Taylor translates it, they used “smooth talk.” Somehow, as bizarre as their notions may have been, they made them sound plausible. I have no doubt that none of them began their appeals by saying, “Okay, before we start, you have to throw that Bible away, you have to forget about Jesus.”
No, they wouldn’t have done that.
In the face to this threat to the Colossians, Paul called for a resolute devotion to Christ.
The very language he used in verse 3 implies the rational for this. As McDonald points out the modifier ‘all’ excludes every other exception. “There is no other ‘treasure-house of knowledge or wisdom but Christ’…” That’s why Paul is so concerned about the impact of the false-teachers. He knew that to be talked out of Christ is to be talked into error.
With this in mind Paul calls the Colossians to be like soldiers standing with an “unbroken front” for Christ. The enemy, in this case any who would try to break through to create confusion and doubt, is skillful and relentless. The enemy’s goal is to undermine confidence in Christ the Savior and, consequently, to undermine confidence in our salvation.
It’s essential for those committed to Christ to maintain the integrity of their initial commitment. Once you’ve trusted Christ, there is never a proper time to switch our allegiance.
Paul was pleased that, despite the threats of false teachings, most of the Colossians were standing strong. He can say to them, “Just as you once trusted Christ as your all-sufficient Savior, keep on trusting in him.”
You can only know this stability when you maintain an ongoing relationship with Christ. It begins as we are “rooted” in him. Simply put, we rest on the work Christ has done for us in the past—forgiving, redeeming, reconciling, adopting, and sanctifying us. Then we seek to be “built up” in him through which we keep our faith fresh and new. In this way we gain new insight and understanding of our salvation.
Paul sees Christ as the beginning, middle, and end of our faith. Despite the enticing chatter of twenty centuries of false teachers, we never outgrow our need for Christ. Healthy Christians in a healthy church understand that.
When you realize you will never outgrow their need for Christ you’ll realize
Christ will provide all your needs. Don’t be surprised if you burst into joyous thanksgiving.
At least some of that thanksgiving will be because you’ve found a church you longed to find.
