colossians 2 is centered on the sufficiency of Christ and how it is Him and Him alone that brings us to the Father.
paul explains in verse 1 that he is suffering for those in colosse and in the neighboring city of laodicea and also to those he has not met before. some scholars believe this means paul had never actually been to colosse, but truthfully, i dont think it matters. what i think should be taken from this verse is that paul, as well as many Christians today are sacrificing and suffering for the greater good - that is, the betterment of His kingdom.
verse 2 explains that paul's purpose is so that the people of colosse may "be encouraged in heart and united in love, so that they may have the full riches of complete understanding, in order that they may know the mystery of God." im not going to lie, it took me a long time to finally get a grasp on the "mystery" and "kingdom" talk that you always hear in Chrstian dialogue, and truthfully...i still have trouble comprehending it sometimes!
i understand the mystery of God best when explained like this: mystery = the revelation through Jesus that God's future world of glory will be built, not only out of the Jewish nation, but from all people and mankind. so if one uses the substitution method that they learned in algebra I and replaces the word mystery with the above sentence they will see that paul's purpose is... to encourage and unite so that the colossians may know the revelation through Jesus that God's future world of glory will be built, not only out of the Jewish nation, but from all people. i dont know about you, but i find it pretty remarkable that paul was willing to go through what he did in order to help me know that i am part of God's plan.
within the rest of the chapter paul addresses two types of people: philosophers and legalists. he writes in verse 8 to make sure that "no one takes you captive through hollow and deceptive philosophy..." philosophers spend their lives trying to understand the world and the answers to life's questions. im sure we all know people like this. heck, im even guilty of this. being a religion major at a liberal arts school has made me examine things to its core rather than trusting in the Word of God. paul warns the colossians that philosophers like these "depend on human traditions and the basic principles of this world rather than on Christ." philosophers push the truth of Christ into the background and find Him insufficient for the answers when Jesus in reality is THE Truth. these type people are unable to see this Truth and therefore feel the need to dig for other answers when the answer straight in front of them.
the second type of person paul writes about are the legalists. these people are probably the ones that most of us come into contact with (at least i know i do, and similarly to philosophy, i also find myself slipping into this legalistic mindset.) legalists aren't necessarily bothered by things that they cant understand, but rather they want to know what they can do to make them a better Christian and make God love them more. paul writes in verses 20-21 "since you died with Christ to the basic principles of this world, why, as though you still belonged to it, do you submit to its rules: do not handle! do not taste! do not touch!" legalists believe that Christ's death on the cross was not enough to pay for their salvation and that their good deeds will gain them more love from God. friends, let me tell you now that this is false. false false false. let me direct you to a verse outside of colossians. it is written in ephesians 2:8 "for it is by grace you have been saved, through faith, and this not from yourselves, it is a gift of God - not by works, so that no one can boast." i believe this clearly states that our deeds, no matter how great they might seem to us, cannot and will not save us - it is by God's grace we are saved. this may sound radical to some people, but i did not pull it out of my rear it. it is written for all to see within God's Word. paul warns the colossians about these legalists because they are discrediting what Jesus did on the cross and putting Him in the background while they keep laws and good deeds as the centrality of their faith.
im going to backtrack a bit and end with verse 5. it states "for though i am absent from you in body, i am present with you in spirit and delight to see how orderly you are and how firm your faith in Christ is." this is such an encouraging verse to me. its wonderful to know that there are other believers out there who are excited to see how the Lord is working in my life and my faith. on the flip side it's also a reminder to me of how great it is to see other believers chasing after the Lord, whether it be my best friends, my boyfriend, my mentors, or a random stranger in the church pew in front of me - we are all running toward the same thing, the great and ultimate prize: Jesus Christ. by reading this verse i am also reminded that the Lord will never leave me nor forsake me. He may be absent in the body, but He is with me in spirit ever so guiding my path and holding my hand.
whew! if that's not something to chew on...i dont know what will stimulate that brain of yours.
take joy my King in what your hear
let it be a sweet, sweet sound in Your ear
I love the point you make that we're all going to the same prize, that of Christ. It's encouraging when we often get bogged down in defining ourselves as Christians, as opposed to other Christians. I think of this in reference to denominations. Rather than building each other up and encouraging each other towards the goal, we define ourselves based on what we're not, rather than what we are. We are Christians, and running for the same goal, the same prize - the glory of God through the face of Christ.
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