THE BOOK OF COLOSSIANS CHAPTER 1

Mike Balloun teaches today. 01/21/23

THE BOOK OF COLOSSIANS CHAPTER 1

UNEDITED NOTES:
https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/559b6gnl5mus23dbzuauz/Doc3.docx?dl=0&rlkey=6d6plcufsvzj7eg695jd2vn1v

Chapter 1
Verses 1 &2 “Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ by the will of God, and Timothy our brother,
To the saints and faithful brethren in Christ which are at Colosse: Grace be unto you, and peace, from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.”
Paul was taught the Gospel of Christ and set apart by the other Apostles to spread the Good news…but was on his way to arrest Christ followers when he was arrested by Jesus. And this by the will of the Father. These words setting forth his commission in such a way as being instructive to those among the Colossians who were intent upon setting at odds the unity of God; the Father the Son and the Holy Spirit. The Godhead in unity appointed him an Apostle.

To the ‘saints’/(the words fundamental idea is separation, consecration, devotion to the service of Deity, sharing in God's purity and abstaining from earth's/the worlds defilement). An allusion to Israel who were to be God’s ‘saints’…under the Law of Moses they were commanded to be holy because their God was holy. They were to express that holiness in the outward expressions of ritual observances…of not eating certain declared unclean animals, of touching nothing dead, of keeping the Sabbath, new moons, feast and holy days, ect.
But ‘saints’ in the ‘Body’ of Christ are observers of the spirit/Spirit in the inward man unto holiness and are under no such outward earthly ordinances. Members of the ‘Body’ of Christ by redemption grace/Gods undeserved unmerited favor, have His Atonement provisions unto faithfulness of an inward changing kind in complete wholeness…namely these provisions shedding abroad in the heart ‘the agape of God’ by the Holy Spirit, the provision of mercy and ‘grace/of the divine influence of the power of the Holy Spirit upon the heart (for sin shall not have dominion over you, for ye are not under the law, but under grace (meaning the right by way of Christ’s redemptive ‘grace’ to draw by loving faithfulness upon the Holy Spirits divine influence upon your heart in maturing knowledge and understanding of the Father’s intent.”), the Mediation of Jesus the High Priest, and the Written Word.
Paul purposefully address them as ‘saints’ because it is a state that can only be applicable to the regenerated who had heard and received the Gospel of ‘grace’ with eternal life before and now the great concern of Paul in this Epistle is their going on in sanctification unto the ‘reward’…that which the enemies among them sought to stop. The 2 spiritual laws of God involved here is 1) that from the grace of imputed justification comes forth the gift of eternal life…which is unquestioned in this Epistle, but it is the 2nd greater spiritual law that is under attack; that being ‘the hope of resurrection glory’ is a ‘reward’ that only comes forth upon those maturing in loving faithfulness.
To the saints and the faithful brethren in Christ in Colossae,… in Christ can be a past tense term for all who have been redeemed; who have been brought out from the kingdom of satan, and are then incorporated into Christ’s ‘Body’ that makes up the Nation of the One New Man, by way of redemption, regardless of their active observance of the Head or not. Or in Christ can be a term for a present state in closer living communion wherein a pursuer of Christ’s reward may stand, a member of His inner circle or ‘entourage’…determined by context. Paul’s salutation is designed not to exclude anyone but exhort all, especially those teetering on believing a contrary false ‘Gospel’ and losing their standing…But if all those in Colossae were to be at that moment judged as it relates to the reward it is not likely all would have been found to be ‘in Christ’. “In Christ” is to be understood as those who were faithfully active in observing the Head…which is the keynote of the Epistle.

Paul’s fit salutation of; ‘grace’ to you, and peace from God our Father... an allusion to a new standing with God set in the Atonement of His Christ/anointed one. A standing much the superior of that in which Adam or Israel stood. A standing under grace, mercy and peace, not under the law and its curse; wrath and eternal death for disobedience (john1:17;gal3:13).
God is not “Father” to all men as some suppose, but only to saints and believers in the Atonement of Jesus His Son. (in addition it should be understood that Scripture holds forth that the “saved” children of God are ‘saved’ for a purpose; that is to be trained by the Father to be ‘sons’…firstborn joint heirs, but refusing training and discipline unto holiness they may be found ‘bastards/illegitimate’ …having taken His Name in vain…and judged unworthy of sonship hebs12. This is an example of all redeemed are brought into the Body of Christ as God’s children but not all will be found at the Judgment Seat in the……...