Douglas Moo (14)
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the startling claim that a man who had recently lived and been crucified by the Romans was the one in whom all things are held together. What holds the universe together is not an idea or a virtue, but a person: the resurrected Christ. Without him, electrons would not continue to circle nuclei, gravity would cease to work, the planets would not stay in their orbitsThe letters to the Colossians and to Philemon (pp. 125-126). Grand Rapids, MI: William B. Eerdmans Pub. Co.
God does, indeed, by his grace and through his Spirit, work to preserve his people so that they will be vindicated in the judgment; but, at the same time, God's people are responsible to persevere in their faith if they expect to see that vindicationThe letters to the Colossians and to Philemon (p. 144). Grand Rapids, MI: William B. Eerdmans Pub. Co.
"Barbarian" is an onomatopoeic word (one that sounds like what it means), used by Greeks to mock the way non-Greeks spoke ("bar bar bar")The letters to the Colossians and to Philemon (p. 271). Grand Rapids, MI: William B. Eerdmans Pub. Co.
But this "putting to death" of sin is not only demanded by our incorporation into Christ; it is also empowered and effected by it. Union with Christ, because it puts us in a new relationship to sin and brings us into the sphere of the Spirit's power, will impact the way we live. Ultimately, then, the imperative "put to death" in this verse must be viewed as a call to respond to, and cooperate with, the transformative power that is already operative within us.The letters to the Colossians and to Philemon (p. 244). Grand Rapids, MI: William B. Eerdmans Pub. Co.
The past experience of dying with him and being raised with him is the basis for our present status as people whose heavenly identity is real and secure, yet hidden, an identity that will be gloriously manifested in the futureThe letters to the Colossians and to Philemon (p. 244). Grand Rapids, MI: William B. Eerdmans Pub. Co.
we find Paul to be asserting four things about the false teachers: (1) they put a great deal of stock in ascetic practices, perhaps to induce visions; (2) they are so concerned with calling on angels as a means of protection from evil forces that they are virtually worshiping them; (3) they focus on visions they have experienced, perhaps citing the content of those visions in their teaching; and (4) they display, perhaps because of their boasting about visions, an arrogance that reveals a worldly orientation.The letters to the Colossians and to Philemon (p. 229). Grand Rapids, MI: William B. Eerdmans Pub. Co.
The term hagios taps into an important Old Testament tradition, according to which Israel was called out from among the nations to be God's own people (see esp. Exod. 19:6; Dan. 7:18, 22, 25, 27). Some of the modern translations seek to capture this nuance by translating God's holy people (TNIV; NLT) instead of the traditional "saints." As Moule remarks, "Â 'Saint' is, to modern ears, misleading, for the Hebrew and Greek words are concerned less with any excellence of character (however much that may be implied as a result) than with the commitments and loyalties of the Church to the God who had made her his own."Moo, D. J. (2008). The letters to the Colossians and to Philemon (p. 78). Grand Rapids, MI: William B. Eerdmans Pub. Co.
Indeed, to seek a definite list of meanings would be to miss the inclusive sense that Paul usually seems to have in mind. "In Christ" is Paul's way of saying that believers are now "located" in a new "place" - the kingdom of God's Son (v. 13) - that carries with it a total reorientation of one's existenceMoo, D. J. (2008). The letters to the Colossians and to Philemon (p. 77). Grand Rapids, MI: William B. Eerdmans Pub. Co.
"in Christ" is to belong to him as the originator and ruler of the new age of redemption that his death and resurrection inaugurated (in contrast to being "in Adam"
Moo, D. J. (2008). The letters to the Colossians and to Philemon (p. 77). Grand Rapids, MI: William B. Eerdmans Pub. Co.
The notion of an innocent, "transparent" literary device of epistolary pseudepigraphy, in other words, appears to be largely a modern scholarly invention, designed to reconcile a "false" claim of authorship in a letter with the acceptance of that letter as an authoritative and canonical witness to the truth of ChristMoo, D. J. (2008). The letters to the Colossians and to Philemon (p. 38). Grand Rapids, MI: William B. Eerdmans Pub. Co.
The word prÅxtotokos ("firstborn"), while often used in the literal sense of the first to come from the womb, takes on a metaphorical significance based on the ancient attribution of preeminence to the first to be born. Thus, Israel is called God's "firstborn" (Exod. 4:22), and God says of David in Psalm 89:27 that "I will appoint him to be my firstborn, the most exalted of the kings of the earth." This latter text is probably especially important for Colossians 1:15, since Psalm 89 rings with messianic allusions, and Paul has just been describing Christ in messianic/kingly terms (vv. 12-14). It may be noted in this regard that the author to the Hebrews also uses prÅxtotokos as a christological title in a messianic context (Heb. 1:6; cf. v. 5)
Moo, D. J. (2008). The letters to the Colossians and to Philemon (p. 119). Grand Rapids, MI: William B. Eerdmans Pub. Co.
But why bring in this high Christology here? The Christology serves the greater purpose of the letter by setting forth Christ as the exclusive instrument through whom God created the universe (vv. 15-17) and through whom he is in the process of pacifying the universe (vv. 18-20). The word pas (variously translated "all," "every," "each"), occurring eight times in these verses, is the thread that binds the verses together. Whatever precise form the false teaching at Colossae took, it is at least clear that it was tending to question Christ's exclusive role in providing spiritual growth and security, and, thereby, his exclusive role in the universe at large (see, e.g., 2:9-10, 19). The false teachers, it appears, argued from cosmology to spirituality: because the universe was filled with spiritual powers of various sorts, ultimate spiritual "fullness" could be achieved only by taking them all into consideration (see esp. Paul's counterargument in 2:14-15). Thus Paul in the hymn places particular emphasis on the supremacy of Christ-in both creation and redemption-over the powers (vv. 16, 20)
Moo, D. J. (2008). The letters to the Colossians and to Philemon (p. 111). Grand Rapids, MI: William B. Eerdmans Pub. Co.
Paul obviously uses the language and concepts of the hymn as his christological ammunition in fighting the false teachers. This consonance between "hymn" and the rest of the letter can be explained in two ways. (1) Paul quotes a hymn that provides the theology he needs to combat the false teachers. (2) Paul composes a hymn that enunciates the theology he will use to combat the false teachers. Deciding between these options is difficult
Moo, D. J. (2008). The letters to the Colossians and to Philemon (p. 110). Grand Rapids, MI: William B. Eerdmans Pub. Co.
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