| Teacher: Rusty Kennedy Series: Colossians |
Rusty's Notes | |
- Moving from Biblical/Historical Truth to Application
- Declaring and defending the Word vs demonstrating the Word in your life.
- We must keep in mind that the pagan religions of Paul’s day said little or nothing about personal morality.
- A worshiper could bow before an idol, put his offering on the altar, and go back to live the same old life of sin.
- What a person believed had no direct relationship with how he behaved, and no one would condemn a person for his behavior.[1]
- What Paul wanted believers to connect with is understanding your connection with Jesus greatly impacts what you “do” in life.
- Paul turned his thoughts to a more positive aspect of Christian living in this section of Scripture.
- The foolish attempts at sanctification found in 2:20–23 often entrap Christian people.
- This is chasing agendas.
- The real issue is the outlook found in 3:1–4.
- Here Paul explained the nature of the Christian’s higher calling (3:1–2) and the reasons to seek this higher calling (3:3–4).
- Although this section focuses on the Christian’s new values, clearly these values are rooted in conversion.
- Conversion includes a radical change of mind which produces the desire for separation from the world.[2]
COLOSSIANS 3
1 So if you have been raised with Christ,
- Our exalted position in Christ is not a hypothetical thing, or a goal for which we strive.
- It is an accomplished fact.[3]
- 1) Set your heart on things above (moral)
- The right hand represents power and position of privilege.
- Hebrews 10:12-14 - But this man, after offering one sacrifice for sins forever, sat down at the right hand of God., 13 He is now waiting until his enemies are made his footstool. 14 For by one offering he has perfected forever those who are sanctified.[4]
- 2) Set your mind on things above (mental)
- Jesus not only died for our sinful nature, but he died so that the power of sin could be conquered.
- This is Romans 6-8
- Jesus is not peripheral to life; He is life.
- He imparts God’s life, and He is the center around which life should be oriented.[5]
- Eternal life wasn’t some separate gift I received.
- I received a life in Christ… which is eternal.
- What is your life? (baseball, Colts, sports, cars, work/business, kids, your spouse, your knowledge, clothing/shopping, food, travel)
- We can talk all day about these things… but just let me talk about Jesus… that is real life.
- I can go to a ballgame wearing the opponent’s jersey… in Chicago… the southside… and not one person ridicules me or condemn me for being the enemy.
- In fact, they actually talk to me and are friendly.
- The glory of Christ will captivate the minds of unbelievers as well as believers.
- It is not your nature… but actions of your flesh.
- In the first list of vices, Paul identified five sins which relate to personal actions.
- Four of them consistently refer elsewhere to sexual sins, to which he added a fifth, covetousness.
- The individual who commits them thinks more of himself than he does of others.
- For Paul, sexual sin harmed the individual himself—it was a sin against one’s own body (1 Cor 6:18);
- it ruins relationships;
- it contributes to autonomy—the anti-God spirit;
- and it represents a lack of self-control.
- These all characterize the old self.[6]
- Paul states the obvious.
- Paul has already declared that we have been given the power.
- No matter how deep we are into our bad choices, we have the power to make excellent choices.
- Paul is referring to life without Christ but now, they are in Christ.
- A behavior was established (in the body/flesh) and patterns occurred.
- Now you have a new nature but former behavior patterns still exist.
- As you are learning about how you have already been sanctified, your behaviors are being sanctified.
- Your behaviors are changing and lining up more with who you are as a new creation.
- A lie is any misrepresentation of the truth, even if the words are accurate.[7]
- Several scholars point out that moralists commonly used lists of fives to identify their moral concerns.[8]
- “old self” – sinful nature
- “new self” – new nature/creation
- Man was created in the image of God (Gen. 1:26–27).
- This involves man’s personality (intellect, emotion, will) and man’s spirituality (he is more than a body).
- When man sinned, this image of God was marred and ruined.
- Adam’s children were born in the image of their father (Gen. 5:1, 3).[9]
- Maturing in what you know, from the image of Adam to the image of God.
- You have already been made in the image of God from the image of Adam.
THE CHRISTIAN LIFE
12 Therefore, as God’s chosen ones, holy and dearly loved, put on compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience, 13 bearing with one another and forgiving one another if anyone has a grievance against another. Just as the Lord has forgiven you, so you are also to forgive. 14 Above all, put on love, which is the perfect bond of unity. 15 And let the peace of Christ, to which you were also called in one body, rule your hearts. And be thankful. 16 Let the word of Christ dwell richly among you, in all wisdom teaching and admonishing one another through psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs, singing to God with gratitude in your hearts.
- Admonishing has the element of strong encouragement. It is generally practical and moral, rather than abstract or theological.[11]
- Sometimes you have to remind others about who they truly are
- In context of this letter to the beloved at Colosse, Paul is reminding the believers they have two choices: 1) walk by your flesh or 2) walk by your Spirit.
- Sometimes you have to verbally remind people of who they are in Christ and what it looks like to walk as a new creation.
- I believe it is the Spirit's responsibility to teach us and cause us to walk by the Spirit.
- But many times the Spirit will use the spiritually mature to vocalize the difference of flesh and Spirit.
[1] Wiersbe, W. W. (1996). The Bible exposition commentary (Vol. 2, p. 133). Victor Books.
[2] Melick, R. R. (1991). Philippians, Colossians, Philemon (Vol. 32, p. 279). Broadman & Holman Publishers.
[3] Wiersbe, W. W. (1996). The Bible exposition commentary. Wheaton, IL: Victor Books.
[4] Christian Standard Bible (Heb 10:12–14). (2020). Holman Bible Publishers.
[5] Barry, J. D., Mangum, D., Brown, D. R., Heiser, M. S., Custis, M., Ritzema, E., Whitehead, M. M., Grigoni, M. R., & Bomar, D. (2012, 2016). Faithlife Study Bible (Col 3:4). Lexham Press.
[6] Melick, R. R. (1991). Philippians, Colossians, Philemon (Vol. 32, pp. 291–292). Broadman & Holman Publishers.
[7] Wiersbe, W. W. (1996). The Bible exposition commentary (Vol. 2, p. 136). Victor Books.
[8] Melick, R. R. (1991). Philippians, Colossians, Philemon (Vol. 32, p. 288). Broadman & Holman Publishers.
[9] Wiersbe, W. W. (1996). The Bible exposition commentary (Vol. 2, p. 136). Victor Books.
[10] Barry, J. D., Grigoni, M. R., Heiser, M. S., Custis, M., Mangum, D., & Whitehead, M. M. (2012). Faithlife Study Bible. Bellingham, WA: Logos Bible Software.
[11] Melick, R. R. (1991). Philippians, Colossians, Philemon (Vol. 32, p. 304). Broadman & Holman Publishers.
[12] Christian Standard Bible (Col 3:1–17). (2020). Holman Bible Publishers.
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