"Continue in the Faith”

And he is before all things, and by him all things consist: And he is the head of the body, the church: who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead; that in all things he might have the preeminence.” Colossians 1:17:18

It has been said that every heresy begins with a false doctrine of God. Certainly, any deviation from the person and work of Jesus Christ as presented in the gospel will turn men from the true faith.

The church at Colossae in Asia Minor had been founded by Epaphras who apparently visited Paul in Rome and expressed concern over teachings that were infecting the brethren. After his usual praises he reminds them of the faithful proclamation of the gospel they had heard by means of Epaphras, "our dear fellow servant, who is for you a faithful minister of Christ”(1:7). He then prayed for their "wisdom and spiritual understanding” (v. 9) so that they would walk worthy of the Lord, be pleasing to Him, exhibit the results of good works, and increase in their knowledge of God (v. 10).

Paul did not then immediately delve into the problems which required wisdom and spiritual understanding. They were apparently of a more subtle type than those which plagued the Galatians, for instance. There Paul quickly got to his point and condemned any doctrine of justification by law. Here Paul apparently thought it best merely to impress on them the exclusive claims of the gospel which he knew they had received. In particular, Paul felt the remedy to the issues at Colossae was to remind them of Who Jesus Christ was and what He had done for them (1:12-23).

Paul first gave thanks that the Father had made them all partakers of the inheritance of the saints (v. 12). All our doctrines must stem from thankfulness for the grace of God. It is this grace which even makes it possible for us to understand the things of God. Without grace we only know and believe lies.

God has delivered us from the power of darkness and into the kingdom of His dear Son (v. 13). Paul is thus reminding the Colossians that there is a darkness from which we are delivered which seeks to alienate us from Jesus Christ. We must note also that Christ has delivered us from the power of darkness into the kingdom. Too many of the "saved” look back and see what they were saved from but fail to look ahead to the work of the kingdom before them.

Paul then shows how our salvation is in Jesus Christ and how, by implication, our wisdom and spiritual understanding must be in Him. In Him "we have redemption through His blood, even forgiveness of sins”(v. 14). Redemption gives us liberty and if we stand in that liberty of Christ’s we will not be brought under the yoke of false doctrine.

Jesus Christ is the visible incarnation of the invisible God (v. 15). If we look for manifestations of God elsewhere we look in vain. He is the "firstborn” of all creation as the foundation of all and as the firstfruit (sacrificed as belonging to the Father).

Christ is the Creator (v. 16) of all things visible and invisible. This includes all spiritual beings by whatever name and even heaven itself ("I go to prepare a place for you”). All physical and spiritual beings and powers are subject to Him as Creator and Lord. All exist through and for Him. They may at times be given prominence but never preeminence. We must not look to angels, spirits, men, or institutions ("thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers”) to find truth. Though Jesus Christ may communicate power to such He does not thereby lose power or authority. Whenever we see any natural or supernatural agency as the source of truth, salvation, or knowledge we deny that much the sufficiency of Christ and His Word. "He is [a possible reference to "I am that I am”] before all things, and by him all things consist” (v. 17).

Because Christ is the Head of the body (v. 18), He alone has authority to govern the Church. All other authority is derivative. No one, therefore, has access to secret truths or hidden meanings—all such claims are attempts to manipulate by deception. Christ, as the "firstborn from the dead,” was the first to rise from the dead and the source of life for the redeemed. He must, then, "in all things” be given the preeminence. No individual, institution, or idea may attempt to claim that preeminence. This would include the attempt to make the individual’s bliss in eternity the focus of salvation. Our salvation must have as its focus the glory of Jesus Christ.

All this "pleased the Father” (v. 19) as it was ordained by His providence. Any attempt to by-pass the preeminence of Jesus Christ is thus an attempt to by-pass the Father’s will. Likewise, detracting from the offices, power, honor, and preeminence of Christ is a blasphemous affront to Father and Son.

Jesus Christ has reconciled "all things unto himself” (v.20). No other men, institution, or idea can make peace in heaven or earth, much less reconciled men to a holy God.

Paul now returns to the personal application to the Colossians: "And you, that were sometime alienated and enemies in your mind by wicked works, yet now hath he reconciled in the body of his flesh through death, to present you holy and unblameable and unreprovable in his sight” (21-22). The true gospel presented to the Colossians had their faith resting on Jesus Christ and His death as the mediatorial redemptive act. For the Colossians to look elsewhere is to abandon the gospel. This Jesus, who was the incarnate Creator, not only saves us with His sacrificed body but regenerates us with the Spirit to present us holy and blameless.

In this faith Paul urges them to continue. He has yet to refer to any problems. He has merely reminded them of Jesus Christ—His person and work. False teachers know they must make their ideas sound like the gospel; Paul reminded them of what that gospel was. If we understand Who Jesus Christ is, what He has done for us, and what we were without Him, we will be encouraged like the Colossians to remain faithful to sound doctrine.