Old Testament Reading: 1 Chronicles 16:1–5; 7-13; 34

“And they brought in the ark of God and set it inside the tent that David had pitched for it, and they offered burnt offerings and peace offerings before God. And when David had finished offering the burnt offerings and the peace offerings, he blessed the people in the name of the LORD and distributed to all Israel, both men and women, to each a loaf of bread, a portion of meat, and a cake of raisins. Then he appointed some of the Levites as ministers before the ark of the LORD, to invoke, to thank, and to praise the LORD, the God of Israel. Asaph was the chief, and second to him were Zechariah… [etc.] [verse 7] Then on that day David first appointed that thanksgiving be sung to the LORD by Asaph and his brothers. Oh give thanks to the LORD; call upon his name; make known his deeds among the peoples! Sing to him, sing praises to him; tell of all his wondrous works! Glory in his holy name; let the hearts of those who seek the LORD rejoice! Seek the LORD and his strength; seek his presence continually! Remember the wondrous works that he has done, his miracles and the judgments he uttered, O offspring of Israel his servant, children of Jacob, his chosen ones! [Verse 34] Oh give thanks to the LORD, for he is good; for his steadfast love endures forever!” (1 Chronicles 16:1–34, ESV)

New Testament Reading: Colossians 2:1-7

“For I want you to know how great a struggle I have for you and for those at Laodicea and for all who have not seen me face to face, that their hearts may be encouraged, being knit together in love, to reach all the riches of full assurance of understanding and the knowledge of God’s mystery, which is Christ, in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge. I say this in order that no one may delude you with plausible arguments. For though I am absent in body, yet I am with you in spirit, rejoicing to see your good order and the firmness of your faith in Christ. Therefore, as you received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in him, rooted and built up in him and established in the faith, just as you were taught, abounding in thanksgiving.” (Colossians 2:1–7, ESV)

*****

Please excuse any typos and misspellings within this manuscript. It has been published online for the benefit of the saints of Emmaus Reformed Baptist Church, but without the benefit of proofreading.

Introduction

Colossians 2:1-7 should be viewed as a kind of introduction to the main body of Paul’s letter. He’s about to address the false teaching that threatened the church in Colossae head-on. This he will do in Colossians 2:8-23. After urging the Colossians to reject the false teaching, Paul provides instructions to the Christians in Colossae on how they ought to walk instead. You can see the beginning of this portion of his letter in Colossians 3:1: “If then you have been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth”, etc. Colossians 3:1-4:6 is very practical. Colossians 2:1-7 sets the stage for all of this—Paul’s confrontation of the false teaching in 2:8-23, and his instruction for the Christian life in 3:1-4:6. 

We considered Colossians 2:1-3 last Sunday. Given that Paul is about to confront false teaching within the church in Colosse, it was necessary that he first assure the saints of his true love and concern for them. This he does in verse 1, saying, “For I want you to know how great a struggle I have for you and for those at Laodicea and for all who have not seen me face to face…” After this, Paul stated his objectives positively.  We see this in verses 2-3 where Paul reveals that he struggled inwardly, in prayer, and in writing, so that, one, their hearts would be encouraged; two, they would be knit together in love; and three, they would reach all the riches of full assurance of understanding and the knowledge of God’s mystery, which is Christ, in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge. We considered all of this last Sunday. 

Today, we will focus on verses 4 through 7. In these verses, Paul does three things. First, he states his purpose negatively (v. 4); secondly, he encourages good order in the church and firmness in the faith (v. 5), and thirdly, he issues a direct command (v. 6-7).  

The Purpose Or Objective Of Paul’s Struggles, Negatively Stated

First, we will consider the purpose or objective of Paul’s struggles, negatively stated. Verse 4: “I say this in order that no one may delude you with plausible arguments.” Positively, Paul struggled inwardly, in prayer, and in writing to encourage the saints, to see them knit together in love, and to see them mature in Christ. Negatively, he wished to protect them from being misled by persuasive false teachers.  

Verse 4 begins with the words “I say this.” To what do the words “I say this” refer? I suppose these words could refer to everything that Paul has said in his letter up to this point. It is more likely that these words refer to what he has just said in verses 1 through 3.  And I think it is most likely that the words, “I say this”, refer specifically to what he has just said about Christ, namely, that “in [Christ] are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.”

Where is true wisdom and true knowledge found? They are found in Christ. This means that if we wish to have true wisdom and knowledge, we must have Christ. And the way to grow in wisdom and knowledge is to dig into Christ to grow in our understanding of him. 

How does a person dig into Christ, exactly? In other words, if a person, having heard that “all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge” are hidden in Christ, wishes to dig into Christ to search for those treasures and to have them as their own, where must they go and what must they do?  

Will a person find the treasures of wisdom and knowledge that are hidden in Christ by looking inward to their own feelings or reason? Will they find it by looking outward to contemplate the world that God has made? Will they find it by looking to those the world considers to be knowledgeable and wise—to the scientists, the philosophers, and the religious elite? While we may admit that a certain kind and degree of wisdom and knowledge may be obtained by looking inward, outward, and to others, the true wisdom and knowledge of which the Apostle speaks will not be found here, for the true wisdom and knowledge of which the Apostle speaks is found in Christ, and Christ cannot be descovered through human reason, scientific inquiry, or philosophical speculation. 

Where, then, must a person go to find Christ and the treasure of wisdom and knowledge that is found in him? There are two places where Christ and the wisdom and knowledge of Christ may be found:

One, Christ may be discovered in pages of Holy Scripture, the writings of the divinely inspired Apostles and prophets, which God has preserved for us. It is true. The Scriptures do not only reveal Christ to us. In the Scriptures, we learn of God and his creation, man and the duty God requires of him, our sin and the misery it brings, and the way of salvation through Jesus Christ. Though the Scriptures reveal more than Christ to us, it is fair to say that Christ is the central figure of Holy Scripture, for it was through Christ, as the eternally begotten Son from the Father, that all things were made. Christ the Son upholds all things. He is the one through whom the  Father speaks. And he is the one through whom the Father redeems. Where is the truth about Christ found? Not naturally within our minds and hearts, not in nature, not in others, but in God’s Word. “Long ago, at many times and in many ways, God spoke to our fathers by the prophets, but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed the heir of all things, through whom also he created the world” (Hebrews 1:1–2, ESV). And where do we find this prophetic word? Where do we find the truth about Christ the Son, his person, and his work? In the Holy Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments. “In [Christ] are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.” If you wish to know Christ and to mine the treasures of wisdom and knowledge that are hidden in him, you must go to the Scriptures.  

The second place that Christ and the treasures of wisdom and knowledge that are hidden in him may be found is in the church, provided that the ministers of the church are faithful to read and to proclaim Christ from the Holy Scriptures, as God has called them to (see Colossians 1:24-29; 1 Timothy 4:13-16). 

So, why did Paul say that “in [Christ] are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge”? In verse 4, he reveals that he said this “in order that no one [would be able to] delude [the Colossians] with plausible arguments.”

To delude is to deceive. If the Colossians would only remeber that “in [Christ] are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge”, and that Christ is revealed in the Gospel that he and Epaphras preached and in the Scriptures, they would not be so easily deceived by false teaching.

Here in verse 4, Paul says that he was especially concerned to protect the Colossians against those who would deceive them with “plausible arguments”. The Greek word translated as “plausable arguments” means “plausible, but false, speech resulting from the use of well-constructed, probable arguments—‘convincing speech, plausible language’” (Louw-Nida, 33:31). The NET translates this Greek word using the phrase, “arguments that sound reasonable.” The NKJV says, “persuasive words.” The NASB says, “persuasive arguments.” The NIV84 says, “fine-sounding arguments.” The KJV says, “enticing words.”

I’m sure you get the point. Some people know how to make fine-sounding arguments and to persuade others with enticing words that are, in fact, untrue. How is the Christian protected from this threat? Remembering that “in [Christ] are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge” and that Christ is revealed to us in the Holy Scriptures is where we must start. We must test everything—even the finest sounding persuasive arguments—against what God has said to us about Christ as found in the Holy Scriptures.  

It is interesting to note that when the church in Colossae was threatened by false teaching, the church sent one of their ministers, Epaphras, to meet with Paul the Apostle, who was imprisoned at the time, to inquire of him, to receive his authoritative word, and to deliver his word to the saints. I see an analogy here. Churches, living in every time and place, should expect their ministers to do the same thing that Epaphras did. When seeking to encourage, strengthen, mature, and protect the church from division and spiritual harm, her ministers must run to the Apostles and Prophets,  inquire of them, receive from them, and deliver their inspired words to members of Christ’s body, the church. The Apostles and Prophets are dead and gone, but we have their inspired words inscripturated for us and preserved—and we confess that the Holy Scriptures are sufficient to meet our every need.       

To be clear, when Paul warned the Colossians about being deceived by persuasive arguments, he did not intend to forbid persuasive argumentation altogether. After all, Paul was making persuasive arguments as he wrote this letter! No, Paul wished to protect the church from those who were skilled in the art of persuasion but who spoke falsehood and error. In his commentary on this text, Davenant quotes Tertullian, who says, “Impostors have the art to persuade before they teach; but truth persuades by teaching, not teaches by persuading” (Davenant, 370).

Beware of impostors, brothers and sisters. Beware of those with persuasive powers who teach things not clearly derived from the word of God. I hope you would prefer to sit under a pastor who is boring and lacks eloquence, and yet clearly derives his doctrine from the word of God, over a teacher who is exciting and eloquent, whose doctrine is not clearly rooted in Scripture, but springs from his own sinful heart and head. 

Why did Paul struggle inwardly, in prayer, and in writing? Positively, he wished to encourage them, to see them knit together in love, and to grow their true knowledge of Christ. Negatively, he wished to protect them from those who would delude them with persuasive arguments, not derived from Scripture, but from philosophical reasonings, mystical experiences, and vain speculations. 

Good Order In The Church And Firmness In The Faith Encouraged

Next, Paul seeks to protect the Colossians from false teaching and division by encouraging good order in the church and firmness in the faith they had already received. Verse 5: “For though I am absent in body, yet I am with you in spirit, rejoicing to see your good order and the firmness of your faith in Christ” (Colossians 2:5, ESV).

Paul was absent from the Colossians in body. He was in prison, either in Rome or in Ephesus. He was separated from them by many miles and could not, at that time, come to them. And yet he said he was with them in spirit. By this, Paul meant that he was with them, by virtue of their shared union with Christ. Paul had been regenerated by the Holy Spirit and spiritually united to Christ by faith, and so had they. This faith-bound and spirit-wrought union with Christ was not hypothetical to the Apostle, and neither was it simply a nice way of speaking; it was real! And so Paul really meant it when he said, “For though I am absent in body, yet I am with you in spirit…” More than this, Paul was with the saints in Colossae, and the saints in Colossae were with him, through Paul’s connection and interaction with their minister and messenger, Epaphras. Epaphras came to Paul as a representative of the saints in Colossae, and he would soon return to the saints in Colossae (and Laodicea and Hierapolis) as a representative of Paul, as he carried his letter to them. When Paul said, “for though I am absent in body, yet I am with you in spirit…”, it was not just a nice thing to say; he really meant it.

Paul also said that he was “rejoicing to see [their] good order and the firmness of [their] faith in Christ” (Colossians 2:5, ESV). The Greek word translated as “rejoicing” is a participle in the present tense. This means that as Paul wrote this letter from prison, he was, at that time, rejoicing to see the Colossians’ good order, etc. How did he see their good order and the firmness of their faith? Was there something mystical going on here? Could Paul see the church in Colosse from his prison cell? I don’t think so. He could see (perceive or comprehend) their good order and the firmness of their faith through the report that Epaphras gave.   

Why would Paul feel the need to tell the Colossians that he was “rejoicing to see [their] good order and the firmness of [their] faith in Christ”? Well, by expressing his joy in these things, he highlighted their goodness and encouraged the church to continue in them. 

What does Paul mean by “good order”? The Greek word means “to arrange in order. A setting in order; hence, order, arrangement, disposition, especially of troops; an order or rank in a state or in society” (Strongs, 5010). The word is used elsewhere in the New Testament to describe the order of the priesthood of Aaron and Melchizedek. And Paul uses the same word in 1 Corinthians 14:40, where he famously says, “But all things should be done decently and in order.”

Our God is a God of order. Consider the order of the natural world. Consider the order of the angels. Consider the order within humanity. There is governmental order, order within families, and order within the church. Where things are well ordered, there is beauty. Good order helps to facilitate love, joy, and peace among men. Where there is disorder, sin, and suffering prevail. 

Dear brothers and sisters, local churches must be properly ordered. Though we confess (in Second London Confession 1.6) that “there are some circumstances concerning the worship of God, and government of the church, common to human actions and societies, which are to be ordered by the light of nature and Christian prudence, according to the general rules of the Word, which are always to be observed”, we also confess (in Second London Confession 26.4) that “The Lord Jesus Christ is the Head of the church, in whom, by the appointment of the Father, all power for the calling, institution, order or government of the church, is invested in a supreme and sovereign manner…” The church must be ordered according to the command of the Lord Jesus Christ, therefore. The worship of the church must be well ordered. The government of the church must be well-ordered. And the doctrine of the church must be well-ordered too. 

Just as a well-ordered army will not be easily overrun, neither will a well-ordered church be overrun by divisive people, false believers, and false teachers. The church must be well-ordered in her doctrine, well-ordered in her worship, well-ordered in her reception and removal of members, well-ordered in her appointment and removal of officers. The elders and deacons of the church must be well-ordered and faithful to do what God has called them to do. And the members must be well-ordered and faithful to do what God has called them to do.

To be clear, order is not the end goal. Rather, it is a means to an end. What is the highest goal of order? The glory of God and Christ in the church is the highest goal. Love amongst the brethren is also a lofty goal. Unity and peace amongst the members are goals. Good order is a means to these ends. Good order is a great facilitator of love, joy, unity, and peace. 

Why should a husband and father strive to have his household well-ordered? Why should a wife and mother labor so hard to see that it is so? What is the point of all of the planning, time management, shopping, cooking, cleaning, teaching, and discipline within the home? Is the order itself the point of it all? Is money in the bank and a clean home your highest goal? I hope not. The household is to be well ordered so that God is glorified in the home, and so that love, unity, peace, and joy may prevail. The goal is to see husbands and wives, parents and children, knit together in love and growing in maturity in the things of life and in the Lord. And so it is in the church. While good order must not be our highest goal, it is a great facilitator of love, joy, unity, and peace, and a great protection against division. It is a means to higher ends. 

Here is what Davenant says about order in the church. “There is nothing more beautiful or useful than order, nothing more shameful or injurious than confusion. Admirably does Nazianzen write concerning this matter, Orat. 26. ‘Where order prevails, there beauty shines brightly; where there is [lack] of order, there arise in the air storms, upon the land commotions, by sea inundations, in cities seditions, in bodies [desieses], and among souls sins. Order comprehends celestial and terrestrial things; there is order among rational beings, order among irrational ones; order among angels, order in the stars, order in all things.’ No wonder, since God himself is not the author of confusion, but of harmony, and that especially in the churches of the saints, 1 Cor. xiv. 33” (Davenant, 375). 

Good order was not the only thing the Apostle rejoiced to see in the Colossians. He also rejoiced to see “…the firmness of [their] faith in Christ.” In the previous sermon, I highlighted the obvious difference in tone between Paul’s letter to the Galatians and his letter to the Colossians. Paul’s letter to the Galatians is much firmer and more confrontational.  Why? Because the false teaching threatening the Galatians was worse, and the saints in those churches were floundering badly. But it appears that the saints in Colossae had, up to this point, remained firm in the faith, and so the Apostle encouraged them to continue by expressing his joy over their firmness of faith.

A Direct Command Issued

Finally, we come to the direct command found in verses 6 through 7: “Therefore, as you received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in him, rooted and built up in him and established in the faith, just as you were taught, abounding in thanksgiving” (Colossians 2:6–7, ESV).

The command is to “Walk in [Christ Jesus the Lord]”. Walking is sometimes used in the Scriptures as a metaphor for living. To walk in Christ is to live in him, moment by moment, day by day, and week after week. To walk in Christ is to be empowered by him, to live for him and for his glory, and to seek to obey him in thought, word, and deed. Isn’t it interesting that Paul refers to Christ as Christ Jesus the Lord? To walk in Christ involves honoring him as Lord. 

These saints in Colosse had received Jesus Christ by believing the gospel of Jesus Christ that Epaphras had preached to them. Christ came to dwell in them through the agency of the Holy Spirit. Now, having received Christ Jesus the Lord, they were to walk in him. 

You should know that Paul will have a lot more to say about walking in Christ later in this epistle. In Colossians 3:1-4:6, Paul provides us with a great deal of practical instructions for walking in Christ. First, he addresses the Christian’s personal walk (3:1-11). After that, he teaches us how to walk in Christ in the church (3:12-17). Next, he instructs us how to walk in Christ in the home (3:18-4:1). Finally, he tells us how to walk in Christ before a non-believing world (4:2-6). 

Here in Colossians 2:6-7, Paul prepares our minds to receive all of that rich teaching by delivering this initial command: “Therefore, as you received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in him…”. And then he employs metaphorical language to encourage us to abide in Christ and to mature in him: “rooted and built up in him and established in the faith, just as you were taught…”

There are things going on grammatically in the Greek text that are difficult to bring over into English here. 

The word translated as rooted is in the perfect tense and the passive mood. The passive mood indicates that the subject of the sentence is being acted upon. This means that the Colossians did not root themselves in Christ, but that they were rooted in Christ by another, namely, God. The perfect tense indicates that the action occurred in the past and has produced a state of being or a result that exists in the present (in relation to the writer). So then, by the grace of God, the Colossians had been rooted in Christ in the past, and they were rooted in Christ still. Like a plant that sends its roots down into the soil to be anchored in the soil and to draw its nutrients from the soil, leading to fruitfulness, the Colossians had, by the grace of God and through Spirit-wrought faith, sunk their spiritual roots down into Christ. In this metaphor, Christ is the soil. We are the plants. The grace of faith are the roots—the means by which we are connected to Christ. Though rare, the word translated as rooted could also be used to refer to the way in which a building is rooted in the earth through its foundation. This might be what Paul means, given that the other terms he employs are architectural rather than agricultural. Either way, you get the point. Paul wanted the Colossians, and all who have placed their faith in Christ along with them, to remember that they had been rooted in Christ by faith in the past and that they were rooted in him still.     

The word translated as “built up” means to increase. It is used to describe the building of a building upon a foundation. Those who have received Christ Jesus as Lord are to  “walk in him.” Having been rooted in him, like a building rooted in the earth through its foundation, the believer is to be built up more and more in Christ. We are to increase. This participle is not in the perfect tense, but the present, indicating that it is an ongoing activity or process. Again, the voice is passive, indicating that the subject os being acted up. Having been rooted by God in Christ, the believer in Christ must then, by the grace of God, be built up in Christ.  

The word translated as “established” means “to increase in inner strength, with the implication of greater firmness of character or attitude—‘to receive more inner strength, to be strengthened in one’s heart’” (Louw Nida, 74.17). This word is also passive and in the present tense. This is a process. This is something that must be done to us, by the grace of God.

And what were the Colossians being established in? The faith. What faith? Here, faith does not refer to personal trust, but to a body of doctrine or teaching, that is to say, the truth. The definite article helps us to see this. It is not faith, but the faith” that we are to be established in. And so does what Paul says next: “just as you were taught.” So then, the Colossians, and we with them, were to be increasingly established in the faith that Epaphras had taught them at the start. 

Lastly, Paul says, abounding in thanksgiving. To abound is to have something in abundance. And what were the Colossians, and we with them, to abound in? Thanksgiving. The Greek word is εὐχαριστίᾳ. The participle, abounding, is not in the passive voice, but is active. Here, the subject is not being acted upon, but is acting. The meaning is this: As believers in the Lord Jesus Christ, we are to walk in Christ, and this will involve us overflowing with thanks to God. Thanks for what, you ask. All things. But especially for Christ and all of the benefits he brings to those who are united to him by faith. Paul says the same thing in Ephesians 5:20, where he instructs the believer to give “‘thanks always and for everything to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ…” (Ephesians 5:20, ESV). He will return to this theme in Colossians 4:2, where he commands us to “Continue steadfastly in prayer, being watchful in it with thanksgiving.”

Prayer