Main idea: Follow Jesus, forget favouritism. Jesus is all that is needed to experience the fullness of God. Don't follow false doctrines that give rules to follow. Don't listen to human requirements. We have equality in Christ.
Who wrote it?
The letter has a greeting which appears to say the letter is from Paul and Timothy. Paul's authentic letters are Galatians, Romans, 1 and 2 Corinthians, Philemon, Philippians, and 1 Thessalonians. Debate remains on whether Paul or an imitator wrote Colossians, Ephesians, and 2 Thessalonians. It is widely agreed that an imitator of Paul wrote 1 and 2 Timothy, Titus. The authorship question does not detract from Scripture being inspired by God. I discuss the authorship of the pastoral letters here. The book of Hebrews does not have the hallmarks of letters that Paul authentically wrote.
Who delivered it? This letter to the Colossians was carried and delivered by Tychicus, a dear brother and servant in the Lord, who will update them on everything Paul is doing. Tychicus was likely travelling with Onesimus, delivering the letter to the Ephesians, Colossians, and Philemon on the same trip (Ephesians 6:21, Colossians 4:7-9, Philemon 1:10-13).
When was it written?
It appears Paul wrote it later in his ministry, about AD 60-62. He states he writes from prison, perhaps under house arrest in Rome (Acts 28:14-31). The city of Colossae was nearly destroyed by an earthquake around AD 60-64. It appears that Philemon, Colossians, and Ephesians were written at a similar time, carrying a similar message of equality in Christ. Encyclopedia Britannica states that of the 155 verses in Ephesians, 73 have parallels with Colossians. Galatians was written quite a bit earlier, but Paul's message did not change. Romans has themes similar to Galatians. I provide a timeline of Paul's letters in my post on Galatians.
Who is the audience?
The brothers and sisters in Christ in Colossae. Paul and Timothy ask that the Colossians share the letter with the churches in Laodicea and Hierapolis (Colossians 4:13-16). These three cities are in the Lycus Valley of Asia Minor (now Turkey). It appears that Paul never visited Colossae since Paul greets no one by name and speaks of "hearing" of their faith (Colossians 1:4). The letter states that Epaphras told Paul that he taught the message of God's grace to the Colossians told Paul and Timothy of the Colossian's love (Colossians 1:7-8). Epaphras is from Colossae (Colossians 4:12) and continues to work for those in Laodicea and Hierapolis. Epaphras is a fellow prisoner with Paul (Philemon 1:23). It appears that Paul did not personally visit Colossae (Colossians 1:4), Laodicea (Colossians 2:1) or Hierapolis.
Why is it written?
Epaphras has explained to Paul some of the pressures felt by the church of Colossae, so Paul wrote this letter to encourage them to address the issues Epaphras had raised to stay the course in their faith in Jesus. Paul lifts up Christ and his work and discusses his own suffering for the body of Christ, the church. The ideas or errors that are threatening the church of Colossae, and describing our new life in Christ.
Reflections:
Ephaphras is generally credited as the founder of the church in Colossae. Since Epaphras was from Colossians, the question remains as to how Epaphras heard the message. It wasn't from Paul. Epaphras may have heard it on a trip to Jerusalem, or from the many followers of Jesus who travelled to fulfil the Great Commission they had received from Jesus.
For my fiction series, I often look at biblical facts and how fiction may fit into the factual framework. While the Colossians learned about Jesus from Epaphras, they may have also had other teachers. It is very possible that an early apostle to Colossae was Junia, who was in Christ before Paul and outstanding among the apostles (Romans 16:7). We know many details of Paul's missionary journeys, but few historic details of the missionary journeys of the other apostles. It could fit in the biblical facts that Junia was an early apostle to the Lycus Valley, including Colossae, Laodicea, and Hierapolis.
Colossians 1:1-14)
Paul and Timothy say that they have prayed for the Colossians ever since Epaphras told them about them. They thank God that the message that they learned from Epaphras is producing good fruit. The writer expresses the prayer that the reader can live a life pleasing to God, strengthened to endure. Paul gives thanks to God who has qualified all believers - Jews and Gentiles - to share in the inheritance of God's people.
"so that you can live lives that are worthy of the Lord and pleasing to him in every way: by producing fruit in every good work and growing in the knowledge of God (Colossians 1:10)
"live a life worthy of the calling you have received." Ephesians 4:1
Reflections:
God has made us all equal heirs in God's family. This means women and men equally inherit membership in God's kingdom and that both women and men inherit the full rights of sons. "If we are children, we are heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ" (Romans 8:17).
Colossians 1:15-23
This appears to be a hymn of praise reinforcing a creed of early beliefs:
Jesus is the image of God,
all things were created by Jesus and for him, visible and invisible, thrones or powers
Jesus existed before all things and holds all things together
Jesus is the head of the body, which is the church
Jesus is the beginning, and through Jesus God reconciled all things to himself
You who were once estranged are reconciled to God and made righteous
Reflections:
This passage portrays Christ as superior in power, authority, and status, not a derivative or subordinate to the Father, but existing from the beginning, a co-creator with the Father and the Spirit. The reference to the head of the body is directly beside the statement that Jesus holds all things together. I see this as Jesus being the nerve center of the body, receiving feedback from the senses of the body parts and sending instructions to the body parts so that all parts of the body can work together. Together, the head and the torso represent unity and strength. The word head is not being used to infer CEO or King but instead is used to show how the head holds everything together in peace and unity. The word head also means origin or source, and indeed, Christ is the source or beginning of the church.
"He existed before all things, and all things are held together in him. He is the head of the body, the church, who is the beginning..." (Colossians 1:17-18).
"we will grow to become the mature body of him who is the head, that is, Christ. From Christ the whole body, joined and held together by every supporting ligament, grows and builds itself up in love as each part does its work (Ephesians 4:15-16).
I discuss more about the head as the unifying force in my discussion on Ephesians.
Did you know that the Bible calls women cornerstones, and Jesus the chief cornerstone? This article examines several references to Christ as the Head of the Church and chief cornerstone.
Colossians 1:24- 2:5
Paul discusses his suffering as a cause of rejoicing because it serves Christ's body, the church. Paul says God commissioned him to reveal the great mystery. Paul wants to assure them of God's great mystery, the unity of Christ living in believers, holding us all together as one.
I want their hearts to be encouraged and united in love, so that they may have all the riches of assured understanding and have the knowledge of God’s mystery, that is, Christ, in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge. (Colossians 2:2)
Paul explains to the Ephesians that his main reason for referencing how the man and woman are made one in marriage is to describe the great mystery of the unity between Christ and the church.
For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and the two will become one flesh.” 32 This is a great mystery, but I am speaking about Christ and the church. (Ephesians 5:31)
Colossians 2:6-23
Now we get to the part where Paul addresses the concerns Epaphras has raised. Paul advises them to walk in Christ, live in Christ, grow in Christ, and watch that no one fools them with lies, philosophies or human traditions.
As you therefore have received Christ Jesus the Lord, continue to walk in him, rooted and built up in him and established in the faith... Colossians 2:6
walk in the way of love, just as Christ loved us and gave himself up fo us Ephesians 5:2
They could be listening to astrologists or Greek philosophers who teach that secret knowledge is the key to salvation. Paul reminds them of the great mystery of unity between Christ and the church, and that Christ, the head of every ruler, lives in them.
They could be listening to Judaizers who teach that Gentiles who believe in Jesus must also follow Jewish laws. Paul compares the physical circumcision of the Jewish faith to the spiritual circumcision removing our fleshly desires (sins). Paul says when we were dead in the uncircumcision of sin, God made us alive, erasing our bad record and its legal demands. You are not condemned on matters of food or drink or observing various Jewish laws. Don't let anyone disqualify you, put you down or insist you follow their human way of thinking. Instead, hold fast to the head, Christ, who nourishes the whole body and holds us together by its ligaments and tendons.
And when you were dead in trespasses and the uncircumcision of your flesh, God[e] made you alive together with him, when he forgave us all our trespasses, erasing the record that stood against us with its legal demands. Colossians 2:13-14
But God proves his love for us in that while we still were sinners Christ died for us. Romans 5:8
Do not let anyone disqualify you, insisting on self-abasement ... not holding fast to the head, from whom the whole body, nourished and held together by its ligaments and tendons, grows with a growth that is from God. Colossians 2:17-19 NRSVUE
Reflections
The references to the head (Col 1:18, 2:19) are followed by a description of how the body is held together by the ligaments and tendons, with the head as the source of nourishment and the central nervous system. The reference to the head as a ruler and authority (Col 2:10) explains that all believers have come to fullness in Christ, with Christ, the ruler united with us. It says nothing about us being subservient to the head, but everything about Christ as the head, uniting us, holding us together, being the source of our nourishment and the beginning of the church, Christ's body.
Paul tells believers not to let anyone disqualify them or insist on their self-abasement. Some of the Jewish laws encouraged self-denial as a way to reduce self-indulgence. As Christians began to see themselves as sinful and depraved, they thought that God wanted them to suffer. Some, like Martin Luther, fasted to the point of damaging the digestive system. Others slept in the cold without a blanket or carried out self-flagellation, severely punishing themselves for disobedience, thinking that whipping or torturing themselves would cleanse them of their sins. Today, we recognize that God does not want you to flog or whip your body.
Some Christians today do encourage the faithful to beat themselves up emotionally, to think of themselves as worthless and depraved. Calling women secondary or subordinate is a form of emotional flagellation. Telling an LGBTQ+ person that they don't or cannot exist or are doomed to condemnation is also a form of flagellation. Paul tells us not to follow these human teachings and not to submit to the rules and regulations of the flesh. Christ's suffering was sufficient punishment. Christ makes you blameless. Reduce self-indulgence not by punishing yourself but by walking in Christ.
Colossians 3:1-9: Our Old Life
Paul describes our old life with a partial list of vices: promiscuity, fornication, lust, anger, spite, slander, obscene language, lies and deceit.
"put to death... whoredom, uncleanness, passion, evil desire, covetousness, which is idolatry... put off, even ye, the whole -- anger, wrath, malice, evil-speaking, filthy talking -- out of your mouth....Lie not one to another, having put off the old man with his practices (Colossians 3:5, 8-9 Young's Literal Translation)
Many modern translations replace "whoredom and fornication" with "sexual immorality". Whoredom means promiscuity, prostitution. Fornication means sex outside of marriage, including pornography. When preachers define sexual immorality as homosexuality, it has a two-fold impact:
incorrectly condemning LGBTQ+ people who are faithful to their partner, and
acquitting heterosexuals who are guilty of promiscuity and pornography
In several of Paul's letters, he provides partial lists of wrongdoings. His purpose is to remind us of our previous unrighteousness and how Christ has made us righteous. Since we are saved through faith in Christ, these lists are not threats to our salvation. They are to contrast our old ways to our new, Spirit-filled ways. This pattern is repeated in Colossians, Galatians, Romans, and Corinthians. I discuss this pattern in my article on 1 Corinthians 5-7.
Colossians 3:10-14 Our New Life
In our new life in Christ, the differences between us fall away. This idea is reinforced in most of Paul's letters (Col 3:11, Galatians 3:28, Romans 10:12, Eph. 2:14-16). We are equal heirs in God's realm, regardless of ethnicity or gender or any other characteristic God gave us. We have equal freedom and authority under Christ to do any task.
put on the new... where there is not Greek and Jew, circumcision and uncircumcision, foreigner, Scythian, servant, freeman -- but the all and in all -- Christ. (Colossians 3:10-11)
There is no longer Jew or Greek; there is no longer slave or free; there is no longer male and female, for all of you are one in Christ Jesus. And if you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham’s offspring, heirs according to the promise. Galatians 3:28-29 NRSVUE
Reflections:
Those who support male authority and female subordination in the church will explain that no more male and female (Galatians 3:28) refers only to the idea that all people access salvation in the same way. Whether we are male or female, we are saved by faith. This interpretation ignores the many places where Scripture says the differences are abolished not only in salvation but in our place in God's realm. All parts of Christ's body are equally worthy. All believers become equal heirs. I have a separate article here exploring the many views of the meaning of "neither male nor female"
Paul also describes our new life, providing a list of behaviours that show we are walking in Christ. The list is similar in Galatians, Ephesians, and Colossians.
"...clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience. Bear with one another and, if anyone has a complaint against another, forgive each other; just as the Lord[f] has forgiven you, so you also must forgive. Above all, clothe yourselves with love, which binds everything together in perfect harmony. (Colossians 3:12-14 NRSVUE)
the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control." Galatians 5:22-23 NRSVUE
"...walk in a manner worthy of the calling to which you have been called, 2 with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love" Ephesians 4:1-2 NRSVUE
Colossians 3:15- 4:1 Contrasting the old and the new
Paul describes unity in the body of Christ, where all believers, regardless of gender, teach and admonish one another. All believers, regardless of gender, submit to one another. Paul describes a mutual service, not a one-way authoritarian leadership structure.
Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly; teach and admonish one another in all wisdom; and with gratitude in your hearts sing psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs to God. Colossians 3:16
be filled with the Spirit sing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs to one another, singing and making melody to the Lord in your hearts, 20 giving thanks to God the Father at all times and for everything in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, 21 being subject to one another out of reverence for Christ. Ephesians 5:18-21
Paul references the Roman world to help new Christians understand the Great Mystery of Christ living in each one of us.
In the Roman world, the patriarch held the power of life or death over his wife, children, and slaves. The oldest living male in a household became the pater familias and could legally exercise autocratic authority over his extended family. The term is Latin for "father of the family" or the "owner of the family estate". Paul did not challenge the Roman societal structure but instead challenged individuals to change their hearts and acknowledge Jesus as the ruler.
In God's realm, Jesus is the Lord. Jesus has the power of life or death over all men, women, and children, slave and free, foreigner or citizen. Wives are to submit to their husbands since it is appropriate for all believers to submit to one another. The husband no longer has power over his wife and household. He is to be loving. Children are to aim to please the Lord, and parents are to show patience and understanding. Paul asked slaves to focus not on serving their earthly master but on serving their lord, Jesus. He asked slaveowners to acknowledge that a slave was not their property but a fellow member of Jesus's body, worthy of equal respect. Paul reshapes the Roman cultural structure to one where all individuals love and serve one another as part of Christ's body. Our whole lives are transformed when we live in Christ.
Colossians 4:2-18 Showing by Actions
Paul asks for their prayers that God would open a door so they can preach about the Great Mystery of Christ. Paul explains that Tychicus, who is carrying and reading aloud this letter, will explain everything from the letter and inform them about what has happened to Paul. He is accompanied by Onesimus, who was a slave who ran away from Philemon, a Colossian Christian. Tychicus and Onesimus may have delivered the letter to the Colossians at the same time as the letter to Philemon. Paul requested that Philemon not punish his runaway slave but accept him as a faithful brother in Christ. Without telling the Colossians to break the Roman law about slavery, Paul shows them how to act in Christ, treating one another as equal heirs, whether they are slaves or free, male or female.
Paul mentions fellow workers who are Jews: Aristarchus, John Mark (Barnabas's cousin), and Jesus (called Justus). Paul also commends Epaphras, who is a Gentile, one of the Colossians.
Paul greets the brothers and sisters in Laodicea, specifically Nympha, who seems to be the host and leader of the church in her house in Laodicea. Paul shows his support of Nympha's ministry by mentioning her in this way. My next novel will show Junia sharing the news of Jesus with Nympha in Colossae and planting a church in Nympha's home.
Paul also tells Archippus to complete the ministry that the Lord has given him. It seems that Epaphras has informed Paul that the Lord has given Archippus a special task and Archippus is hesitant to complete it. This letter mentions Archippus when Paul is discussing the church in Laodicea, but Paul's letter to Philemon indicates Archippus is living in Colossae. That letter names three individual leaders in Colossae: Archippus, Apphia (called a sister and a co-worker), and Philemon, and greets the congregation who meets in Philemon's house (Philemon 1:2).
Elaine Ricker Kelly Author is empowering women with historical fiction about women in the Bible and early church and Christian blogs about women in leadership, church history and doctrine. Her books include:
Forgotten Followers from Broken to Bold, Book 1 (2022)
The Sword A Fun Way to Engage in Healthy Debate on What the Bible Says About a Woman's Role (2023)
Because She Was Called: from Broken to Bold, Book 2, A Novel of the Early Church, imagines Mary Magdalene's trip to testify before the emperor (2024)
Walk with Mara on Her Healing Journey: 21 Steps to Emotional Resilience (2024)
Sources:
"Book of Colossians Summary: A Complete Animated Overview", BibleProject, November 1, 2016, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pXTXlDxQsvc
Miller, Stephen M. The Complete Guide to the Bible. Barbour Pub, 2007.
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