Col 1:24-2:10

Transition from his prayer--which has introduced his basic theological and practical concerns for the Colossians--to the body of his letter. He does this, as he often does in his letters, by giving an account of his ministry.

The goal of Paul's ministry is laid out clearly for us--

that he might present every man perfect in Christ Jesus.

And toward this end there are three things which Paul does:

1) he suffers

2) he ministers

3) he preaches

And as he makes clear in verse 29,

it is the working of Christ within him that enables him to labor and to strive.

As a minister of the gospel of Jesus Christ,

this is my calling:

to suffer,

to minister,

and to preach,

so that I might present you perfect in Christ Jesus.

So let us look at how Paul views his own ministry,

and what that teaches us about who Christ is,

what he has done for us,

who we are in Christ,

and what that means for our lives.

The Pattern of Paul's Ministry:

I. (suffering for the body) Now I rejoice in my sufferings on your behalf,

and I fill up what is lacking of the afflictions of Christ in my flesh

on behalf of his body,

which is the church, (v24)

transition from 1:1-23:

Having set forth the gospel of the supremacy of Christ in creation and redemption,

Paul moves on to describe his own ministry.

Christ is firstborn

--therefore we as those who are born into the kingdom

also participate in whatever Christ has received.

Christ suffered,

therefore we suffer. (John 15:18-21, no servant is greater than his master).

(I Peter 2:21--For to this you were called, because Christ also suffered for us,

leaving an example that you should follow in his steps.")

Those who follow Christ will suffer.

But, Paul is saying something more

All of us will suffer for Christ;

because we have chosen to follow him,

we will face the same persecution that he did

But Paul does not say that he suffers for Christ,

but for the church!

--he is Christ's representative to the church (v25)

--and those who present the word of God in its fulness

must expect to "fill up" in their flesh

what is lacking in regard to Christ's afflictions.

Why are pastors subject to special attacks from the world, the flesh and the devil?

Because they are commissioned by God to preach and minister.

Christ's sufferings as an atonement for sin are absolutely unique;

no one can share in that.

Yet Christ's sufferings as the faithful prophet who boldly spoke the word of God

were shared by the prophets of old,

and by the apostles and pastors of the new testament era.

Remember Jesus' words in Matthew 21:33ff and Matt 23:37

Just as the prophets of old were beaten and killed,

so also Jesus Christ was beaten and killed

and so will all who minister in his name.

These sufferings are still not complete

and are filled up through the faithful suffering of Christ's ministers

--through the martyrs

("the blood of the martyrs is the seed of the church" is a biblical idea).

Hugh Latimer and Nicolas Ridley

"Be of good comfort Master Ridley and play the man.

We shall this day light such a candle by God's grace in England

as I trust shall never be put out."

Thomas Cranmer listened--and recanted;

the fear of death was too strong

Then, at the last moment, he recanted his recantation,

plunging the hand that had signed the recantation into the flames,

holding it in the flames, crying out "Lord Jesus,

receive my spirit"

Note why Paul suffers

--not for Christ, but "for you",

"for the sake of his body, which is the church."

And yet note that Paul rejoices in his sufferings

because he knows that the church is growing and the gospel is spreading.

II. (ministering the mysteries of God) of which I became a minister,

according to the stewardship of God which was given to me

so that you might fulfill the Word of God,

the mystery which has been hidden

from the ages

and from the generations

but now is revealed to his saints,

to whom God willed to make known

what are the riches of the glory of this mystery

among the Gentiles,

which is Christ in you, the hope of glory; (v25-27)

Now Paul says that he suffers for the sake of the body of Christ:

Paul is the servant of the church

(Mt. 20:24-28 whoever would be great must be the servant of all)

by the commission of God

This word "minister" can be translated "servant"

but it is never used of a house servant.

It is official service.

A priest "serves" at the altar, offering sacrifices.

Even so, a minister of the gospel is a servant of the gospel.

He is called to serve the body of Christ by proclaiming the mystery of God.

Paul uses the word "stewardship" or "administration" to describe his task.

God has called him to be a steward

--not for himself,

--not for his own glory,

but (v25) this stewardship was given to Paul by God, FOR YOU,

so that you might fulfill the Word of God,

--which is the mystery kept hidden for ages (v26)

--which is Christ in you the hope of glory (v27)

What is this 'mystery'?

First, a mystery is not something which is impossible to understand.

A mystery, as Paul says in v26, is something which has been hidden,

but is now revealed.

Contrast between OT and NT

--OT did not have Christ living in them or the indwelling presence of the HS (Num. 11:29; Dt 29:4; Jer. 31:33-34).

--NT did. Imagine being a Jewish Xn in the first century,

having grown up under the sacrificial laws, without "Christ in you"

--only being able to approach God through the sacrificial system

--and then coming into the "glorious riches of this mystery"

of the indwelling presence of Christ.

No wonder Paul is so excited about the gospel!! (cf. vv28-29)

Hence the church as the body of Christ is a radically new thing for Jewish Christians;

they were used to being God's people,

but to be this intimately related to God himself was a glorious thing.

And yet (v27) it is especially among the Gentiles

that this glorious truth is being made known.

The language of mystery often deals with the inclusion of the Gentiles

because this was something which God had not revealed clearly in the OT.

Certainly every Jew knew that it was through Abraham that all the nations would be blessed,

but they had no idea that the Gentiles would become equal with Jews in Christ.

(Rom. 16:25-27; Eph 3:3-6, 9).

Because ultimately the mystery of God is "Christ in you, the hope of glory."

Remember v5--the hope which is laid up for you in heaven?

and v23--if you continue in the faith, grounded and steadfast,

and are not moved away from the hope of the gospel which you heard?

Here Paul makes clear that our hope IS Christ.

He himself IS the hope of glory.

and that is why our hope does not disappoint!

Because Christ's presence with us and IN us is the guarantee

of our participation in his inheritance.

Where is your hope?

What are you trusting in?

Probably somewhere at home you have pegs where you hang your coat and hat.

If the peg is solidly attached to a stud in the wall,

then you can hang a lot on that peg.

But if it's just attached to the sheetrock,

then it'll come crashing down when you hang your winter coat on it.

Hope is like a peg you hang your life on.

If your hope is hanging on anything except Christ,

then when difficulties come,

it'll come crashing down,

and there'll be a big mess on the floor.

But if your hope is rooted in Christ.

If he is the stud you nail your hope to,

then in all the storms of life,

you will have a safe anchor.

Because the mystery of God is Christ in you--the hope of glory

III. (preaching the gospel of Christ) whom we preach

admonishing every man

and teaching every man

in all wisdom,

in order that we may present every man

perfect in Christ;

unto which end I labor

striving (agonizing) according to His working which works in me with power. (v28-29)

And so it is Christ whom we preach.

And this proclamation consists of two parts:

--admonishing (something which we tend not to see much of today:

rebuking, encouraging, confronting, challenging, etc.)

This is the function of discipling and disciplining, i.e., training in godliness.

--teaching (the more common form of proclaiming Christ)

How does Paul proclaim Christ? with all wisdom (what is wisdom? knowing how to live in

God's world--where do you get this wisdom? 2:2-3, Christ, in whom are hidden...)

for the purpose that "we may present everyone perfect in Christ"

--Paul desires to stand before Christ

and present each member of his flock before his master,

and to hear Jesus' voice say, "well done".

Paul has a fire burning in his heart to see the Colossians

live up to who they are in Christ.

And even so,

I have a fire burning in my heart to see you

live up to who Christ has made you to be through his death and resurrection.

In one sense, Paul's job (and my job) is easy:

the work of Christ has made you perfect!

You ARE a new creation in Christ.

You ARE complete in Him.

But you are so mule-headed that you (and I--we're in this together!)

refuse to live up to who we already are in Christ!

God has given us all spiritual blessings that are in Christ.

He has poured out his Holy Spirit upon us.

He has given us new hearts, new life, and has renewed us in the image of Christ.

He has declared us righteous in Christ, and has sanctified us with the blood of Christ.

Yet we do not live as righteous, holy people.

We are like dogs after a bath.

The first thing a dog wants to do after he bathes,

is go run around outside and get dirty again!

Even so, though we have been washed with the blood of Christ,

we can't seem to wait to jump back into the mud puddle of our sin!

This is why Christ has appointed ministers in his church

--to admonish and to teach,

warning of the consequences of sin,

and proclaming the wonders of what Christ has done.

And so (v29) Paul labors,

"striving (ah! hear this!) according to **his** working which works in me mightily."

Paul agonizes (word for striving) in his labors to present every man perfect in Christ.

This is to be true in all ministers of the gospel.

But not for a moment does Paul think that his own strength is sufficient (II Cor. 12:9).

It is simply by the grace and strength of Christ that he labors.

Yet, 2:1, Paul is still struggling! The Christian life is never passive.

We struggle, but with Christ's energy and strength.

It is not our own strength, but it is our struggle.

The GOAL of Paul's Ministry

What is the point of Paul's struggle for the Colossians?

--and for all "who have not seen my face in the flesh"--which includes YOU!

that their hearts may be encouraged

Every thing else in this passage refers back to this.

The goal of Paul's ministry was to present everyone perfect in Christ Jesus.

The fruit which he sought was that their hearts might be encouraged.

That they might understand the mystery of God and have full assurance,

not merely in an intellectual manner,

but in the deepest part of them--the heart.

That their hearts might be encouraged.

(do the three parts of the person--heart/flesh-basic desires/thoughts-words-deeds)

It is here--at the heart--that Paul desires to encourage you.

How?

How does this get fleshed out for Paul?

Our hearts are encouraged by three things:

1) the love and fellowship of the body

2) the true knowledge of Christ

3) the good order and steadfast faith of the church

1) our hearts are encouraged through being knit together in love (v2)

The word he uses which is translated "knit together",

could also be translated "instructed" or "proven".

That our hearts are instructed in love, or proven by love.

This is no mushy sentimentality which lacks content.

This is a love which is rooted and grounded in the reality of the gospel.

But there is no danger that Paul is falling into intellectualism either,

because his next phrase, "into all the riches of the full assurance of understanding",

blends the heart and the mind in the opposite direction.

Although he is using all sorts of intellectual words in verses two and three,

--"understanding", "knowledge", "wisdom"--

this is no abstract intellectual knowledge,

this is a knowledge and a wisdom which are hidden in the person of Christ.

So what does it mean to have our hearts knit together in love? or by love?

Recall what Paul said back in 1:4

--that he gave thanks to God ever since he heard of their faith in Christ Jesus

and their love for all the saints.

We saw that their hope in Christ had produced faith toward God

and love toward one another.

Paul is now saying that his suffering and agonizing for the Colossians

is to produce a greater love for one another,

as they see Word of God growing and spreading throughout the world.

Paul is merely following the teaching of Christ,

who said that it was by the love of Christians for one another

that the world would know that Christ was sent by the Father.

And this love is the bond which knits us together (cf. Col. 3:14)

I recently watched an episode of "Mad About You" which saddened me.

Paul and Jamie had hit an all-time low in their marriage.

They had been trying to have a baby for more than a year,

and both of them were working long hours.

Their relationship was falling apart.

It was brilliantly done.

Their acting sounded exactly like relationships I've seen.

Every conversation blew up in their faces.

Every word was taken in the wrong way.

You could see that they wanted to love each other,

but simply didn't know how.

They wanted to communicate,

but had nothing to start with.

Then, at the end,

Paul comes home to pack his stuff, finds Jamie asleep,

and can't bear to leave.

They don't resolve any of their problems,

they just go to bed together.

The final scene shows Jamie holding a pregnancy test that reads positively.

As the screen faded to black,

I was left with a hollow feeling in the pit of my stomach.

In a real marriage,

their problems will come back within weeks--maybe months.

In a real marriage,

having children will only make matters worse.

The script-writers could find no better solution to Paul and Jamie's problems

than sending them to bed.

That may provide a temporary solution.

It may renew the dying embers of their love for a moment,

but those of you who are married know that sex does not produce love.

The Paul and Jamies of this world have nothing else to cling to.

The Apostle Paul offers a better encouragement.

He proclaims a love which can knit your hearts together,

both in your families,

and in the church.

This love is found in Christ.

Imagine what our homes would look like if our hearts were more knit together in love.

Imagine what our church would look like if we sought to put the interests of others

ahead of our own.

But Paul tells us how this is to happen.

You see, the passage could be well translated, "in order that their hearts may be encouraged being knit together by love and unto all riches of the full assurance of understanding"

It is only when you have grasped the height and depth of the great love

with which God the Father has loved us in Christ Jesus,

that we can love one another.

It is only when we have the full assurance of the knowledge of Christ

--when we have known and understood the mystery of Christ in you,

the hope of glory

--that our hearts will receive the encouragement

which knits us together in love.

AND this is our second point: that

2) our hearts are encouraged through the knowledge of the mystery of God, namely Christ,

in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge (v3)

Our hearts are knit together BY love and FOR all the riches of the full assurance of understanding.

This doesn't go over too well in our individualistic culture,

but Paul is telling us that we will only have assurance of understanding--

in other words, that we will only come to a true knowledge

of the mystery of God--together.

We need each other.

If all we do is study our Bibles by ourselves,

we will not come to an understanding of the truth.

If all we do is live in our own little corner, we will not have our hearts knit together by love,

neither will we have full assurance of our understanding of the mystery of God.

What are the full riches of complete understanding? What is the mystery of God?

**Christ himself**

The mystery which has been revealed to the Gentiles is Christ in you,

the hope of glory.

In him are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.

No knowledge is true knowledge unless it is rooted in Christ;

no wisdom is true wisdom unless it flows from Christ.

That is why the most brilliant pagan scientist or philosopher are ultimately fools

--because they insist on interpreting the world apart from Christ.

They may be *right* about a lot of things,

but they know nothing as it really is,

because everything has its true meaning and purpose in Christ

[who is the one in whom all things hold together,

the one who created all things in the first place! (1:15-17)].

This is going to be a key argument for Paul later (2:8-10, etc.).

Because Paul is concerned that the Colossians are being deceived and cheated

by the philosophies that surround them.

But Paul wants you to see that knowing Christ is only possible

if you are encouraged in heart and united in love (note the "that" in verse 2).

In other words, you need each other.

Here is where all the body language of chapter one comes to a head:

it is through your love and encouragement of one another

(stimulated and nourished by Paul [v1] and other ministers of the gospel)

that you will come to the full knowledge of Christ.

Not simply that you will intellectually instruct one another,

although that plays a part in it,

but rather that your love is an indispensable key

to open the door to true knowledge and understanding.

After all, the church is a body,

and the body can only grow in knowledge if the parts work together. (Eph. 4:14-16).

The Colossians were under siege.

There was some sort of Jewish mysticism saying that true wisdom and knowledge

could only be had through the worship of angels (v18)

and the observance of special days (v16)

And many of the Colossians appear to have been lured away

or beaten down by this false teaching.

So Paul emphasizes that the full assurance of understanding cannot be had apart from Christ.

Indeed this is why Paul inserts this section from 1:24-2:5

where he insists that his own ministry is a necessary part of Christ's sufferings.

Paul is claiming that the apostolic teaching is the only place

where we can find the truth about the mystery of Christ.

All these false teachers should be easy to spot,

because they will teach something other than what Paul had already proclaimed. Therefore he says in verses 6-7......

This word "received" in verse 6, refers to their reception of the apostolic teaching.

They will only grow and remain steadfast in Christ

if they hold fast to what the apostles taught.

Recall what Paul had said in 1:23

--he is concerned that the Colossians may be led away by these false teachers.

In the early church,

before the New Testament was collected and published as a complete volume

(which was only done in the fourth century),

each church had collections of the apostolic books,

but there were some people who disagreed

about exactly which books belonged in the canon.

How could you tell which churches were Christian?

There were lots of heretical groups teaching about Jesus

--some said that he was not really God;

others said that he was not truly a man.

Still others combined Christian teaching with Greek or Jewish mysticism

and came up with really wacky teachings--such as Marcion,

who taught that the Old Testament God and the New Testament God

were two different Gods,

and that Jesus was the servant of the NT God

who defeated and destroyed Yahweh and the whole OT religion.

So when you moved to a new town, how would you know which church to go to?

The way that the early fathers knew,

was by something they called apostolic succession.

Apostolic succession meant that the pastors of the true churches

had to be trained and ordained either by an apostle,

or by someone who had been trained and ordained by an apostle.

This worked quite well for many centuries.

Just like Paul trained Timothy and Titus and sent them to pastor churches,

so also they followed his command and trained others after them.

If you think about it, it makes a lot of sense.

The apostles had been given their authority by Christ,

and if you were looking for a pastor,

you wouldn't want a man who had studied all by himself,

you would want a man who had received the best training available.

Studying with Paul, John,

or later, Timothy, Titus, or Clement

would be the only way to guarantee that a man's theology was orthodox.

A sure test of orthodoxy was to see if a teacher accepted the apostolic teaching,

and was in fellowship with other pastors who accepted the apostolic teaching.

Paul is telling the Colossians something like that.

Only listen to those who preach what we apostles preach.

Don't listen to all these new-fangled preachers who would lead you astray.

Which brings us to our final point:

3) our hearts are encouraged through the good order and steadfast faith of the church (v4-5)

Paul contrasts the "persuasive words" of the world with the faith that you have been taught.

The wisdom of this world is not to lead us astray.

The church should not be concerned with clever arguments, but with living as Christ's body,

steadfast in the faith, unmoved from the hope of the gospel.

Paul tells you this to warn you against deceivers.

As long as you are orderly and firm in faith (v5),

growing in love and encouragement (v2),

and growing in the true knowledge of Christ (v3)

then no one will deceive you with "fine-sounding arguments".

How will you avoid being deceived?

This will come through the good order and steadfastness of your faith in Christ. (v5)

Or to paraphrase verse 6, Be who you are in Christ.

True order in the church is a delight.

Not a man-made order, all stiff with rigid rules and prohibitions,

but the order that comes from the love and encouragement that is in Christ.

Here Paul commends them for their orderly worship and life together

(in contrast to his admonishment to the Corinthians

that they START doing everything decently and in order!)

and praises them for standing steadfast.

Paul rejoices that they have not fallen away from the faith,

and encourages them to persevere in their calling.

As we bring everything in our lives into subjection to Christ,

we find freedom in him.

Even so,

as our life and worship in the church is ordered by the wisdom of Christ,

we will continue to find our joy and encouragement in HIM.

Who is Christ?

What has he done for our salvation?

Who are we in Christ?

And what does that mean for our lives?

These are the questions which Paul is answering for the Colossians,

He has now finished the first part:

Christ is the image of the invisible God,

in whom are all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge,

by whom all things were made,

and in whom all things hold together.

And he is the firstborn of creation, and the firstborn from the dead,

so that he might be preeminent in everything.

Only the creator could be the redeemer.

Only God can save.

Therefore the fulness of God dwelt bodily in Christ Jesus,

and through his death and resurrection,

Jesus has reconciled us

--who were once alienated and enemies of God--

to the Father

Therefore Jesus Christ is our only hope and salvation.

And Christ in you is the true hope of glory.

And Christ has also given you the apostolic teaching,

that the suffering, ministry, and preaching of Paul

and of other ministers of the gospel

might one day present the spotless bride of Christ to her bridegroom.

God's plan of salvation includes not only the accomplishment of our redemption in Christ,

but also the means of our salvation,

which comes through the preaching of the Word,

so that the mystery of God might be proclaimed among the Gentiles

--among YOU.

This is Who Christ Is,

and what he has done for our salvation.

Now, from 2:6 through the rest of the book,

Paul will tell us who we are in Christ,

and what that means for our lives.