Before we start, it would be a good idea to remember that Paul was the apostle to the Gentiles. Everywhere he went; he spoke first to the Jews and was usually rejected by them and then went to speak to the Gentiles.  So, Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ, by the will of God and Timothy our brother is greeting the saints and the faithful brethren in Christ, which are at Colosse.

           
Grace be unto you and peace from God, our Father, and the Lord Jesus Christ. We give thanks to God and the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. Praying always for you since we heard of your faith in Christ Jesus and since we heard of the love of which you have to all the saints. For the hope which is laid up for you in heaven, whereof he heard before in the word of the truth of the gospel, which has come unto you as it is come to all the world and brings forth fruit as it does also in you; that is, it brings forth fruit in you as well as in every city in the region, since the day you heard it and knew the grace of God in truth.

           
As you also learned of Epaphras our dear fellow servant, who was for you, a faithful minister of Christ, who also declared unto us your love in the spirit. For this cause we also, since the day we heard about it, do not cease to pray for you and to desire that you might be filled with the knowledge of his will, that is, God’s will, in all wisdom and spiritual understanding.

           
That ye might walk worthy of the Lord unto all pleasing, being fruitful in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God. We pray and hope that you will learn and grow and increase in the knowledge of God and that you will please the Lord.

           
Verse 11: Strengthen with all might, according to his grace power, unto all patience and long suffering, that is, patience enduring, with joyfulness. Giving thanks unto the Father who has made us meet or suitable to be partakers of inheritance of the saints in life. Who hath delivered us from the power of darkness and has translated us into the kingdom of his dear son.

           
In whom we have redemption through his blood. We have redemption through the Father’s son who is Jesus Christ. And redemption is through his sacrifice; he shed blood. And redemption is  the forgiveness of sins.

           
Verse 15: This person, this son, is the image of the invisible God. That is, when you see this person, his shape and image, is like the invisible Father and his character and attitude is very much the image of the Father. When you see me, you see the Father as Christ said.

           
And he is the first born of every creature. That is, Jesus Christ is the first to be resurrected from physical death and changed into spirit. He’s the first born of humanity who is changed into spirit. He was God, a spirit, and he was changed into flesh and he’s now changed back into spirit again. And as such, as the first born of every creature, he’s the very first to go through that process.

           
Now in Verse 16: By him who the son Jesus Christ were all things created that are in heaven and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones or dominions or principalities or powers, that is, governments and authorities, all things were created by him and for him. And he is before all things. That is he existed before all things and by him all things consist or exist.

           
Jesus Christ existed before all physical things and through him and by him all physical things exist. And he is the head of the body. He’s the head of the church, who is the beginning, the first born from the dead, that he might in all things have the preeminence. Yes, it is Jesus Christ who is preeminent in his church. It is not Herbert Armstrong or the Pope or any man; it is Jesus Christ who has the preeminence because he is the Savior, he is the sacrifice which atones for your sins and brings you into a peaceful relationship with the Father.

           
Verse 19: For it pleased the Father that in him, in Christ the son, should all fullness dwell, and having made peace to the blood of his stake, his cross, his sacrifice, by him to reconcile all things unto himself. That is, the Father, by the sacrifice of his son, reconciled all things unto himself. By him I say, whether they be things in earth or things in heaven, everything is reconciled to God through Christ. And you that were sometimes alienated and enemies in your mind by wicked deeds yet now hath he reconciled to God.

           
In the body of his flesh through death to present you holy and unblameable and unreprovable in his sight. That is, we are holy and unblameable and we cannot be reproved or rebuked because Christ has paid the penalty for our sins. And why is it and how is it that we can’t be rebuked?

           
Verse 23: If you continue in the faith, grounded and settled, and be not moved away from the hope of the gospel which you have heard and which was preached to every creature, that is, every person which is under heaven, where I, Paul, am made a minister: Who now rejoice in my sufferings for you and fill up that which is behind the effects of Christ to my flesh, for his body’s sake, which is the church.

           
Paul says, I am suffering, follow me in the example of Christ; I am suffering for the good of the church which is his body. Whereof I am made a minister according to the dispensation of God, which is given to me for you to fulfill the word of God or to fully preach the word of God.

           
Even the mystery which had been hid from ages and generations but now is made known to his saints. To whom God would make known what is the riches of the glory of his mystery among the gentiles which is Christ in you in the hope of glory.

           
Here Paul is confirming that these people were gentiles and he is making known the riches and glory of the mystery of God among the gentiles. And the mystery he is talking about is Christ in you, the hope of glory, Christ dwelling in you. Whom we preach warning every man and teaching every man in all wisdom that we may present every man perfect in Christ Jesus.

           
Yes, if Jesus Christ dwell in you through the power of God’s spirit, you would -- can ultimately become perfect. You can ultimately conquer sin; for Jesus Christ overcame the world and he will empower you to overcome the world. You may slip now and then but through a learning process, you will develop and you will learn to overcome the world through the power of God’s spirit and the power of Jesus Christ dwelling in you.

           
Where unto I also labor, striving according to his working which works in me mightily for I would that you knew what great conflict I have for you and for them at Laodicea and for as many as have not seen my face in the flesh. That their hearts may be comforted being knit together in love, and that all riches of the full assurance of understanding to the acknowledgment to the mystery of God and of the Father and of Christ in whom are hid all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.

           
The treasure of wisdom and knowledge are hid in Christ and the Father, all wisdom and all knowledge. And this I say, let any man should beguile you with enticing words, for though I be absent in the flesh yet am I with you in the spirit, enjoying and beholding your orderliness and the steadfastness of your faith in Christ. As ye have therefore, received Christ Jesus Lord, so walk ye in him. That is, follow his example and do the things that he did, walk as he walked. Rooted and built up in him and established in the faith, as you have been taught, abounding wherein with thanksgiving.

           
Beware lest any man spoil you through philosophy and vain deceit after the traditions of men. He’s saying, you stick with the word of God and beware of the traditions of men and of the rudiments of this world which will lead you away from Christ. Beware let any man spoil you through philosophy and vain deceit after the tradition of men, after the rudiments of things of this world and not after Christ.

           
For in him, in Christ, dwelleth all the fullness of the God hath bodily. And you are complete in him which is the head of all principalities and power. Jesus Christ is the head; he is lord of all no man is your lord. In whom also he is circumcised with a circumcision made without hands in putting off the body of the sins of the flesh by the circumcision of Christ. That is, Christ was sacrificed for your sins and your sins were removed.

           
The veil in the temple between the people and the most holy place was a symbol of the sin that separated the people from God. And when Christ died that veil was rent in two -- it was torn apart; showing that the veil of sin was removed from repentant people. People who turned away from sin could be forgiven through the sacrifice of Christ and the circumcision of Christ, a circumcision of the heart and not of flesh.

           
To be buried with Christ in baptism. That is, baptism is a type of burial. The old person being buried, having been dead and buried, you are rising up a new person. Buried with him in baptism, wherein, also, you are risen with him through the faith of the operation of God, who hath raised him from the dead. And you being dead in your sins, that is, dead because of past sin and the uncircumcision in your flesh or your heart, hath he quickened together with him having forgiven you all of your trespasses and blotting out the hand writing of ordinances that was against us.

           
That is, he did not blot out God’s law. He blotted out the list of our offences, the list of those ordinances that we had broken. It’s like any man being called to judgment in a court, and when he goes before the judge; the list of his offences, the list of the accusations against him is read out. And it is that list which is blotted out through the sacrifice of Jesus Christ.

           
Blotting out the handwriting of ordinances that was against us which was contrary to us. He took it out of the way and nailed it to his cross. He destroyed the list of our offences, nailing it to the cross, covering it with his sacrificial blood. His very life he gave to reconcile us with God by destroying and tearing up that list of our offences against God. And having spoiled, that is, destroyed, principalities and powers he made a show of them openly triumphing over them in it. Let no man, therefore, judge you or condemn you in food or drink or in the respect of an holy day or of the new moon or of the Sabbath day.

           
Be very careful here. This is a couple of verses that people twist and turn and warp and totally destroy in an attempt to justify their own sin.

These people were gentiles. They have never observed God’s commandments. They had never observed Sabbath day or holy day or new moon or the laws regarding eating or drinking.

           
They were gentiles who had been part of the gentile community. Some of them had been members of the various Greek philosophies such as the Stoics and the Epicureans and many of them were vegetarians and had various other habits which were a part of these philosophies. They had never kept the commandments of God before. Now, for those who assume that people should not be condemned or could not be condemned for breaking God’s law because of what Paul is saying here. For those who assume this: Consider that these people had never kept God’s commandments; so why would people condemn them for stopping to keep what they have never kept. It just doesn’t make sense.

           
The truth is that these people were gentiles who had never kept God’s commandments. And they were now starting to keep God’s commandments, starting to put God first, starting to put the Father and Christ first, starting to build a new life and a new person in Christ, starting to keep God’s commandments. And their friends in these philosophies and family members and neighbors were starting to condemn them because they were now observing the Sabbath.

           
How many people in the church today have gone through that very thing? They start to observe the Sabbath and everyone who knows them or many of the people who know them; start condemning them. That is the truth of the matter. You can have any religion or follow any philosophy or any kind of belief or idea except the truth and people will accept it and tolerate it and get along with it. But when you start obeying God’s commandments; suddenly they look down their noses at you and start condemning you.

           
They will condemn you for keeping the Sabbath. They will condemn you for observing the holy days or the new moons or starting to eat meat if you were a vegetarian before or for drinking a little wine when before you were a tea totaler. They will condemn you for that. And Paul is telling these people you have a liberty in Christ. And that liberty is freedom from all these philosophies of men, commandments of men, and the rudiments [worldly things] of this world.

           
And you are now subject to God and Christ who saved you and gave themselves for you. And you are now doing the things of God. And because you owe so much to  Christ and the Father, you are not to build again that life of sin which you have destroyed. But you are to start rising up from baptism. And from that point, you are to start building a new life in the Father and in Christ, a new life as you are lead by the spirit of God within you, which will lead you to keep the Father’s commandments.

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Over and over and over again, I say: God is not divided against himself. He will not command you to do one thing, and then allow his spirit in you to tell you; you don’t have to, or shouldn’t do what God has commanded. God’s spirit will lead you to honor, to respect, to reverence, to hold in all esteem, and yes, to obey your Father and his Christ who was your creator. Jesus Christ, working with the Father or the one who later became the Father, created all things, as Paul tells these gentiles in Colosse. 

           
Verse 17 of Colossians 2: These things are a shadow of things to come but the body is of Christ. That is, these things; the Sabbath, the holy days and the new moons are a shadow. They picture things to come and the reality is Christ and they are all different things which picture Christ in different ways. And they picture God’s plan in different ways and what God through Christ is doing in different ways.       

           
There are those who say, we should not be observing new moons or you don’t have to because Judaism doesn’t do it. Paul here is telling these people not to let anyone condemn them for observing the new moon. And I say, good on Paul and I’m going to listen to Paul and I’m not going to let anybody in these groups calling themselves God’s people: Condemn me for obeying God’s commandment in observing the new moon.  Because they are a shadow of things to come and it is an important part or facet in understanding the calendar of God and in understanding the holy days of God and in understanding the things of God.

           
That no man beguile you of your reward in a voluntary humility in worshipping of angels, intruding into those things which he has not seen, who’s vainly puffed up in his fleshly imagination. Paul here is saying, don’t let anybody beguile you or entice you because he appears to be humble. Don’t let them entice you into the worshipping of spirits and entice you by things which he has not seen. That is, people who are trying to deceive you about things which they haven’t seen and don’t understand themselves. People putting up a pretense of humility and godliness and trying to teach you things that they know nothing about. Deceitful persons vainly puffed up in their fleshly minds.

           
Don’t let these puffed up charlatans, who may appear humble, entice you into things. They are teaching things that they know absolutely nothing about and they are wrong. And  not holding the head from which all the body by joints and bands having nourishment ministered and knit together increases with the increase of God. That is, these enticers, these seducers, these false teachers do not hold Jesus Christ as their head but rather they try to be the mediator between men and God. They try to come between you and God and they try to be the head in your eyes.

           
They distract you from Christ to themselves and try and appear like some great person or some humble and Godly person so that they can entice you and distract you away from the doctrines of God and Jesus Christ.

           
Verse 20: Wherefore if ye be dead with Christ from the things of the world, why as though living in the world are these subject to these world’s ordinances, such as touch not or taste not or handle not, which all to perish with the using after the commandments and doctrines of men.

           
Paul is saying, you stand on the word of God, the law of God, the things of God and you are no longer dependent upon the doctrines and teachings and commandments of men. You are no longer to follow the philosophies of this world and your society and the various ignorant men who teach these philosophies. You are to put God first and not men, which things have indeed in a show or an appearance of wisdom in willful worship and humility and neglecting of the body not in any honor to the satisfying of the flesh.

           
These people will say, well you have to fast regularly or you have to be vegetarian or you have to do this or do that, and these things appear to make one humble and they appear to debase the flesh in relationship with God. But in reality, they are not godly things at all. They are just deceitful things, men doing what they think is right instead of doing what God says is right.

           
Chapter 3: If he then be risen with Christ, that is, risen in baptism out of the water with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ sits on the right hand of God. If you have been buried and baptized in Christ and are risen with Christ and in Christ and seek those things that are of Christ, set your affections of things above and not on the things of the earth for you are dead and your life is hid with Christ in God. Your sinful life is dead gone, buried in the water, and you are coming up a new person in Christ. And you are to seek things of Christ and not to go back into the things of the world.

           
Verse 4 in Chapter 3: When Christ who is our life, that is, through him we have life, when he shall appear then shall we also appear with him in glory. He’s talking about a resurrection when Christ comes we shall appear with him in glory. Therefore, mortify your members; mortify your body which is upon the earth. Avoid fornication and cleanness, inordinate affection which is a reference to homosexuality, evil concupiscence and that is a great evil in our society today and in the church. People talk about this word or they probably just read over it and they don’t know what it means. The word EVIL CONCUPISCENCE means evil thoughts or evil thinking.

           
How many people love to watch pornography or they love to watch TV shows or movies where people are doing all manner of evil things and they think -- well I would never dare to do such a thing because I’m afraid of not being in the resurrection or not pleasing God but they, vicariously, get a thrill out of other people doing these things. And they think evil thoughts in their minds, even though they may not actually do evil deeds. Well, I tell you that evil thoughts will eventually lead to evil deeds. And evil thoughts do pollute your mind, and slowly but surely, they will rot your mind and they will cause God’s spirit to leave you.

           
If you’re constantly dwelling on evil things and how desirable this wicked thing must be, God’s spirit will not fight with you and strive with you indefinitely. It will leave you and you will be left to reap the rewards of such evil conduct; because evil concupiscence, that is, evil thinking, will eventually lead to evil deeds. Sin starts in the mind with a thought. And to avoid temptation, we must immediately reject the very thought of temptation out of our minds as soon as it appears, evil concupiscence and covetousness which is idolatry.

           
If we covet something which we could not rightfully have and we seek it and desire it, we are placing that thing between us and God which is idolatry. For which thing’s sake, the wrath of God comes on the children of disobedience, in the which ye also walked sometime when ye lived in them, when you lived in fornication and uncleanness and so forth.

           
But now, ye also put off all these, put off anger, wrath, malice, blasphemy, filthy communication out of your mouth. And brethren. filthy communication is not simply using words that some people find offensive. Filthy communication is lying. It is slandering. It is being a gossip, a back biter. It is saying nasty things about people. It is saying things which may not be true and it is also saying things which may be partially true. And you may be taking a little bit of truth out of context and twisting it to mean something different than what it really does mean. That is filthy communication. That is not just using words that some people find offensive.

           
Verse 9: Lie not one to another. Don’t tell lies. Seeing that ye have put off the old man with his wicked deeds. You put off your old person and you put off your sin, your evil deeds. And then put on a new person, which is renewed in knowledge after the image of him who created him or who created you. That is, when you rise up out of the water of baptism you are to put on the image of your creator. You are to become like your creator. And what did Jesus Christ do? He said, “I have kept my Father’s commandments.”  

           
And we are to become like him; we are to become renewed in knowledge after the very image of him who created us. Where there is neither Greek nor Jews, circumcision nor uncircumcision, barbarian, Scythian, bond or free, but Christ is all and in all we are all who are called of Christ, who are called of the Father and repentant and baptized and committed, we are all in Christ and equally loved by God.

           
We are all his children; we are all loved by him very, very much. And if you’re a racist, and you condemn people because they are black or brown or pink or purple or any such thing, you are condemning a child of God. You’re condemning people who are loved by God. And if you do any harm to people because of their race or if you sit in a congregation and say, oh blacks must  sit over there and all the whites over here and all the other people over there, that is wrong. That is a tremendous sin against Christ because we are all the children of God through Jesus Christ.

           
We all had our sins forgiven, we are all the children of God, and we are all loved by God. And you say, well I’m not going to sit with you, be separate from me. In that case you are arrogant, you are self-righteous, you are an abomination to God because you are offending his other children and you are a disruption in his family, in God’s family.

           
Verse 12: Put on, therefore, as the elect of God, as the children of God, as the very called of God who are holy and beloved of God bowels of mercies, kindness, humbleness of mind, meekness, long suffering, forbearing one another, that is, putting up with each other’s little idiosyncrasies and little difficulties or problems, forbearing one another and forgiving one another. If any man had a quarrel against any: even as Christ forgave you, so also do ye.

           
You are to forgive one another. And you are to love one another. And saying go sit over there, you can’t sit with me or I’m not going to associate with you or I will not go into your home or be your friend because you’re a different race. That is not love; that is not Godly love.

           
Verse14: And above all these things put on charity, which is King James English for love. For charity is the bond of perfectness. Let the peace of God rule in your hearts: to put others aside because of race nor culture or some such thing does not generate peace. It does not lead to peace. It causes offenses. It causes divisions. It causes strife.  Forgive and associate and relate with one another and let the peace of God rule in your hearts to which also you are called, you are called to peace, in one body.

           
You are together in one body and be ye thankful that the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom, teaching and admonishing one another in psalms, in hymns, in spiritual songs singing with grace in your hearts to the lord. And whatsoever ye do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God and the Father by him. That is, giving thanks to God the Father through Jesus Christ.

           
Wives submit yourselves unto your own husbands as it is fit in the Lord. Husbands love wives and be not bitter against them. Children obey your parents in all things for this is well pleasing unto the Lord. Fathers provoke not your children anger, lest they be discouraged. And I would say the same thing is true about wives. Fathers provoke not your children; husbands provoke not your wives.

           
Whenever there is something that you want or some kind of disagreement, just ask yourself, “Is this damaging my marriage or is this building it?” “Is it damaging my relationship with my children or is it building that relationship?” And then act on the answer to those questions.

           
Servants obey in all things your masters according to the flesh. That is, those who are your servants in this world obey those who are your masters in this world, you are to treat with respect and obey your masters in this world not with eye service or lips service as men pleasers. And eye service means doing things to be see. It refers to being nice when someone present is watching you and then mean and nasty and rebellious when their back is turned. You are to be pleasant respectful and obedient at all times, being so in singleness of heart fearing God.  

           
And whatsoever you do, do it heartily or with your might as unto the Lord, as you would to God and not unto men, knowing that of the Lord you shall receive the reward of the inheritance. That is, you shall receive your reward of God for ye serve the Lord Christ. But he that does wrong shall receive for the wrong that he has done and there is no respect of persons.

           
You know what? We are all going to stand before God and we’re all going to be judged. And it doesn’t matter who we think we are, God really doesn’t care. He’s going to judge everything that each and every one of us does by his word whether our name is Benedict or Armstrong or Luther or anybody else. We are all going to be judged by what we do; based on the same level and held up to the same standard.

           
Chapter 4: Masters give unto your servants that which is just and equal, knowing that he also have a master in heaven. That is, pay out the wages to our employees and to your servants in a fair and just way because you have a master in heaven whom you are looking to for your reward. So, just understand that you should be treating others the way you want to be treated by God.

           
Continue in prayer and watch in the same with thanksgiving. Withal praying also for us that God would open unto us a door of utterance to speak the mystery of Christ for I am also in bonds. Pray that I may make it manifest as I ought to speak. And I would add here to Paul, I would ask all of you to do the same for me and for others who are trying to serve God in this way. In the way of teaching God’s people; pray for them that God would help them to do that which is needful and proper and is accordance with God’s will.

           
Verse 5: Walk in wisdom toward them that are without, that is, outside the faith, redeeming the time. Let your speech be always with grace and seasoned with salt that ye may know how to answer every man. And that is a very hard thing. It often takes a lifetime of learning to know how to be diplomatic and yet say what the truth is. All my state or all my affairs shall Tychicus declare unto you, who is a beloved brother and a faithful minister and fellow servant in the Lord.

           
Whom I have sent unto you for the same purpose that he might know your state and comfort your hearts. With Onesimus, a faithful and beloved brother who was one of you, they shall make known unto you all things that done here. So, it appears that Onesimus, which we discussed in the message to Philemon, is a citizen of Colossae and he is a faithful and beloved brother. That is, after running away from his servitude, he developed in truth and became a strong person in the faith.

           
They shall make known unto you, that is, Tychicus and Onesimus shall make known unto you, all things that done here. Aristarchus, my fellow prisoner, salutes you and Marcus’ sister’s son to Barnabas touching whom you receive commandments. If he comes to you, you should receive him. And Jesus which is called justice who are of the circumcision; that is, these people are Jews. They are the circumcision. These only are my fellow workers unto the kingdom of God which have been a comfort to me.

           
Epaphras which is one of you, a servant of Christ, salutes you, always laboring fervently for you in prayers that he may stand perfect and complete in all the will of God. For I bare him record that he has a greet zeal for you, and them that are in Laodicea and them in Hierapolis. Luke the beloved physician and Demas greet you. Salute the brethren which are in Laodicea and Nymphas and the church which is in his house. And when this epistle is read among you cause that it be read also in the church of the Laodiceans and that you likewise read the epistle from Laodicea.

           
And say to Archippus; take heed the ministry that thou hast received in the Lord that you fulfill. So, this man should be encouraged to be faithful. The salutation by the hand of me Paul, remember my bonds. Grace be with you. Amen.

                                      James David Malm

Copyright 2010