In following the chronology of events in the New Testament, Paul’s letter to the Colossians is next. Remember, Paul is under house arrest in Rome, awaiting a trial that seems to never have taken place. In the last lesson we looked at his personal letter to Philemon, who was part of the assembly in Colosse. So, it was a simple matter of practicality that Paul writes to the church there at this time. In fact, he writes the letter to the Ephesian church after this and sends all three letters by Tychicus (Colossians 4:7-8, Ephesians 6:21-22), one of Paul’s most trusted companions (he will be mentioned in several of Paul’s letters written during this time, first mentioned in Acts 20:4).
The themes in this letter are very similar to the next written to the Ephesians. For that reason, I will try not to cover the same subjects twice, but point out things that may be unique to each. Following the obligatory greetings and prayer of thanksgiving for the church, Paul launches into a narrative expressing the preeminence of Christ. His purpose is to establish a contrast between the reality that is Christ, as opposed to the deceptive teachings of human philosophy and legalism that were distorting the gospel message in this church.
“Giving thanks to the Father, Who has qualified us to share the inheritance of the saints in the Light, and has delivered us from the dominion of darkness and transferred us into the kingdom of the Son of His love, in Whom we have redemption, that is, the forgiveness of sins.” (Verses 12-14) In verse 14 you will see “In whom we have redemption through his blood” in the KJV. “Through his blood” is not found in the best manuscripts and is therefore found in italics or omitted altogether in later translations.
But now the subject is Christ (the Son of His love, in verse 13). The first issue is in verse 15, where we see in the KJV in referring to Christ, “Who is the image of the invisible God”. To anyone who thinks about what they are reading, this should raise a question. How can one be the image of something invisible? “Image” is from eikon, used to describe a material or outward appearance or likeness (compare Romans 1:23, Revelation 13:14-15). Then, “invisible” is from aoratos, and means, not visible or unseen. Literally, Paul is telling us Christ has the outward appearance of the Father that is “unseen”, not invisible.
This should not be difficult to understand. In Genesis 1:26 the scripture tells us we were made in the “image” and “likeness” of God, where both tselem (resemblance) and demuwth (shape or model) refer to outward appearance. When God created man, He used Himself as the model. There are many references in scripture that describe circumstances when God appeared to men in a physical, material form. And there are literal descriptions of His outward appearance in Daniel 7:9-14, 10:5-6 (see the article on the website “The Shape of God” for detailed references).
Then in verse 16, “And all things were created by Him, in the heavens and on the earth, things both seen and unseen, whether thrones, dominions, principalities, or powers; all things were created by Him and for Him.” (For a description of thrones, dominions, principalities and powers, see Lesson 4, part 4) The preexistent Christ created everything that exists (John 1:1-3) in the vast expanse of the heavens and here on the earth. And everything He created is both “seen” and “unseen”. Now, the principle of precedence tells us all those things that are “unseen” are, in fact, not invisible, but are simply unseen.
They are all made of visible, material substance. And to emphasize this fact, Paul uses the four classifications of created beings that normally exist beyond our ability to see. But, they can be seen. The archangel Gabriel (who belongs to the above classification of dominions) appeared to Daniel and touched him (Daniel 9:21), and then he appeared to Zachariah (Luke 1:19) and Mary (Luke 1:23). There are numerous references to angels (both principalities and powers) and cherubim, seraphim and living creatures (thrones) in scripture. Then, of course, there is the example I have used before of the Lord and two unnamed angels appearing to Abraham in Genesis 18. Abraham recognized them as they walked towards him, washed their feet and prepared a meal for them. They looked like men, had dirty feet and ate food.
This brings us to verse 17, “And He existed before all things, and in Him all things consist.” The word “consist” comes from sunistemi, literally, to stand together or to be held together. The “all things” refers back to verse 16 and to all the things He created “in the heavens and on the earth”. The attempts of men to explain the origins of mankind (evolution) and the earth or the ever-expanding universe (the big bang) are inadequate and misleading. These theories can only be seen as futile attempts by ignorant men to deny the existence of an all-powerful God.
In Hebrews 1:3 Paul tells us everything Christ created in the beginning continues to exist by the power of His word. The sun, earth, moon, stars, planets, other solar systems, etc. all continue to travel through space in exactly the way He determined. The earth rotates; the sun comes up each morning and goes down at night. The seasons come and go with predicted regularity. And, yes, the climate changes. It always has and always will (until the eternal state, but that’s for a later lesson). And regardless of what some insist, man cannot control, change or destroy the climate that Christ created.
Paul continues his comments on the supremacy of Christ in verses 18-20. “And He is the Head of (His) body, the church; since He is the Beginning, the Firstborn from among the dead, so that He alone might have the preeminence. For it pleased (the Father) that all fullness should dwell in Him permanently. And having made peace by means of the His blood shed on the cross, God purposed that through the Son all things would be reconciled back to Himself, whether on earth or in the heavens.”
Some comments are in order here. First of all, there is no distinction made in scripture between the church (often called the universal church, believers in Christ wherever they might be) and the body of Christ (Ephesians 1:22-23, 4:15-16; Colossians 1:24). Then the reference to Christ being the firstborn from among the dead, as discussed before, His resurrection was always the essential element of the gospel message from the very beginning (Acts 4:1-2).
Regarding the comment in verse 19 about the “fullness” that was in Christ, this is from pleroma, a word commonly used to describe something full or complete. Here, in context, it tells us Christ possessed all the divine perfection, attributes and abilities of the Father, there is no difference, nothing lacking. Jesus said as much Himself in John 10:30, “I and My Father are One” (compare Hebrews 1:3). This is another example of specific meaning. “One” is from hen, the neuter form of the masculine heis. Both mean “one”. However, hen illustrates the fact that Jesus and the Father were two separate persons possessing the same qualities and nature. Heis would have indicated they were the same person, calling to question the reality of the Trinity.
Then in verse 20 there is an important principle in Paul’s statement, in essence, that the Father had determined that everything would be “reconciled” back to Himself through the sacrifice of His Son. This is from apokatallasso, the strongest term used to describe reconciliation. Bear with me here. The word katallasso is commonly used to describe the establishment of a relationship of peace that had not previously existed. But apokatallasso is the restoration of a relationship of peace that has been broken.
The full meaning of this word is given in verses 21 and 22 that follow. “And although you were at one time alienated from God, having a hostile attitude towards Him because of your evil deeds, yet now He has reconciled you to God in the body of His flesh through death, in order to present you holy, without blemish and free from any accusation in the Father’s presence.” And if you compare Ephesians 2:1-2, 12 with verses 12-19 in the same chapter, you can see what I meant when I said earlier that these two letters contain similar themes.
And, lastly, I have to comment on “all things would be reconciled back to Himself, whether on earth or in the heavens.” In future lessons we will see how God has planned the history of the ages in such a way that future events that have yet to unfold will, in fact, reconcile all things back to Himself and everything on the earth and in the heavens will again be at peace with Him as they were before angels and men rebelled and were cursed.