Colossians 1:19-23 my class notes

Colossians Class chapter 1 verses 19-23

Last time I taught, we spoke about the relationship between the books of Philemon and Colossians; today we’ll focus on the parallels from Ephesians and Colossians.

But before we begin is anyone having any problems with the rotating leaders, I know we all have different teaching styles, I just want to be sure everyone’s doing okay? Any concerns?

First read Col 1:19-23

Vs 19

It would appear from the following chapters that the false teachers at Colossae were teaching submission to spirits or angelic authorities as a way of overcoming their fear of not being found acceptable before God. Read Col. 2:8-15,18.

Questions #1 - So our question then is how are we found acceptable before God?

I like Romans 3:20-4:8 which says not by our good works done in righteousness, but by faith.

Vs 20

Christianity maintains that we are acceptable before God on account of Christ’s perfect obedience for us and his atonement for our sins, received by faith.

Question #2 – Does that mean we are we saved by works?

Yes, but we’re saved by Christ’s works not our own. Eph 1:3-14

Vs 21-22

The Colossians, like us, were once enemies of God and alienated from Him. But now we have been made 1 with Him, having been adopted and given peace with God through Christ’s passive obedience (his going to the Cross) and his active obedience (his 30+ years of moral perfection). I mention both because both were required for our salvation. If Christ was perfect but didn’t die for our sins then he would be holy and we would still be dead in our sins. If he was crucified, claiming to die for our sins, but wasn’t perfect himself then he could only die for his sins and not as the substitute for ours.

Question #3 - What was our relationship to God prior to conversion? Eph 2:1-10

Vs 23a

Genuine saving faith is enduring, its not hoping maybe we’ll be saved but being assured that all the work needed to accomplish salvation was done in Christ, it is a sure foundation. (For no one can lay a foundation other than that which is laid, which is Christ Jesus. – 1 Corinthians 3:11 ESV.)

Question #4 – Will genuine believers continue in the faith or fall away?

Genuine believers, who have been reconciled with God, will persevere in faith and obedience because aside from being declared righteous (the theological term is Justification/Justified) they are also new creations with a new disposition that now loves God, hates sin and desires obedience. (Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come. 2 Corinthians 5:17 ESV)

1John 2:19 those that fall away are to show that they were never really with us, or John 6:39-40 if you are in Christ he keeps you with him, and again John 10:29

Vs 23b

“In all creation” – again Paul uses hyperbole here (a literary exaggeration); he is now in Rome writing this letter (the Capital of the only World Superpower in his day) and his ministry has been to many of the major Roman urban centers because of that he understood himself as having already reached the entire civilized world.

And this also parallels Christ’s call to go out and peach the Gospel to the entire World. (And Jesus said to them, “Go into all the world and proclaim the gospel to the whole creation. Mark 16:15 ESV & Luke 24:45-47 Then Jesus opened their minds to understand the Scriptures, and said to them, “Thus it is written, that the Christ should suffer and on the third day rise from the dead, and that repentance and the forgiveness of sins should be proclaimed in his name to all nations.)

Wrap up question:

Because of this, instead of regularly hearing sermons like 5 more steps for you to become more self-righteous (think Joel Osteen, the Pope, Rob Bell, Brian McLaren, Rick Warren) should you be hearing sermons that regularly stress repentance and the forgiveness of sins won in Christ for you? And then should your voice in the community be ‘oh no, America’s becoming increasingly immoral’, or should it be ‘of-course America is full of sinners (you & me included) who need to repent and trust in Christ’s work accomplished for them for the forgiveness of their sins’?

Pope Benedict has written (in his book Jesus of Nazareth) and announced publicly that the Catholic Church will no longer actively attempt to convert Jews (who reject Jesus) to Christianity – (due to Romans 11) he says any converted Gentile will be in heaven (that’s the Church’s focus) and God will convert all Jews himself later - so don’t worry about it.

Rick Warren has actually asked Allah “the All-Merciful One” for forgiveness you can find this at the end of his introduction to a letter entitled “a Christians response to A Common Word between Us (Muslims) and You (Infidels/Christians)”.

Joel Osteen in a Washington Times article Osteen: Americans’ faith at all-time high Osteen says he does think Mormons are Christians - I believe that [Mormons] are Christians, I don’t know if it’s the purest form of Christianity, like I grew up with. But you know what, I know Mormons. I hear Mitt Romney — and I’ve never met him — but I hear him say, ‘I believe Jesus is the son of God,’ ‘I believe he’s my savior,’ and that’s one of the core issues.

Just an FYI - Mormon’s also believe Satan is the son of God and spirit bother to Jesus Christ and that 6 foot Quakers live on the Moon – that’s not a joke. The following quotation of the founder of Mormonism, Joseph Smith, As recorded in the Mormon's "Journal of Oliver Huntington" Vol.2, pg166 at Utah State Historical Society. "The inhabitants of the moon are of a more uniform size than the inhabitants of the earth Being about 6 feet in height, they dress very much like the Quaker style and are quite general in style, or the fashion of dress. They live to be very old though coming generally near 1000 years."

 

Rob Bell says there is no real Hell only the Hell of your own making in this world or in your mind.

Yet no one in all the Scriptures had more to say about Hell than Jesus. No stern messenger of doom from the era of the Judges, no fiery Old Testament prophet, no writer of imprecatory psalms, and no impassioned apostle not even all of them combined—mentioned Hell more frequently or described it in more terrifying terms than Jesus Himself. Rob Bell is clearly unhappy with Jesus’ teaching about hell. He finds the very idea of Hell morally repugnant and believes it is one of the main reasons “why lots of people want nothing to do with the Christian faith.” He scoffs at the idea that divine justice requires endless punishment for unrepentant sinners. In direct opposition to what Jesus Himself taught in Matthew 25:46, Bell insinuates that it would be a gross, cosmic atrocity if the doom of the reprobate is everlasting in the same sense that heaven’s blessings for the redeemed are everlasting.

 

Brian McLaren’s Gospel from page 139 from his book a New Kind of Christianity - Jesus’ gospel says the Kingdom of God is at hand [which means] God’s new benevolent society is already among us...the phrase which shimmers and glows in relation to the dominant social reality of Jesus time: the kingdom-oriented term “Christ” means “liberating king,” the one who will free God’s people from oppression, confronts and humbles their oppressors, and then lead both of them into a better day.

This sounds nice, but says nothing about sinners receiving repentance and faith for the forgiveness of their sins won by Christ, which is the Gospel and everything we just read Biblically today.