Paul Explains Why Jesus Is Superior Series

Colossians 2:8-15 [NLT]

January 9, 2013

Oak Park Baptist Church – Wed Bible Study Series

Colossians Bible Study

Paul’s explains the exclusivity of Christ:

Paul has just told the believers in Colossae and Laodicea about how special it was for them to know and have Christ in their lives!

Paul was wanting to push across the message of WHY Christ was better… of WHY Christ was exclusive… of why they should ignore these false teachers who downplayed Christ and uplifted the works/deeds of humanity.

Paul tells them first in v6-7 --- first of all you have Christ so don’t let them fool you with their slick words or the fancy packaging of their message. Christ is superior… and in v8-15 we find Paul explaining WHY Christ is more excellent!

8Don’t let anyone capture you with empty philosophies and high-sounding nonsense that come from human thinking and from the spiritual powers of this world, rather than from Christ.

Ok, v8 is Paul’s continued encouragement for the believers in Colossae. Here is Paul saying ONCE again how they should not be fooled by these people!

V6-7 refer to the believers being ‘In Christ’ and with Christ dwelling in them… they should NOT fall prey to these well crafted arguments… no matter how persuasive they may seem!

The word here in v8 for capture is a military word for prisoner of war. What Paul is implying here is that if these believers accepted the false teachings of these people that they would be taken captive by this teaching…

taken captive away from their witness and serving God. Paul is not speaking to salvation here, but the misleading of God’s people with false teaching!

When a believer listens to one who is teaching a false doctrine or false gospel… they are led astray, and it is like being taken captive! You are then OUT OF the game!

You can no longer serve Christ as He wants you to serve Him… but you are captive to a false teaching! Here Paul warns these believers to NOT fall prey to this sort of thing…

Then Paul launches into a beautiful explanation of WHY they can be confident in Christ and WHY they should not be led astray by false teaching!

9For in Christ lives all the fullness of God in a human body.

The first reason is found in v9 where Paul speaks to the completeness of Christ! These false teachers were spreading the teaching that Jesus was not actually here in the flesh but he only appeared to be in the flesh… Their philosophy sounds super spiritual, but it fails God’s test!

They taught that all spirit was good and all flesh was bad… while true that all flesh has sinned and had fallen short… while it is true that the sin nature was passed down thru the flesh… Christ came born miraculously of a virgin!

Many of us see Jesus being born of a young woman who was a virgin as being the great miracle of Jesus’ birth, but that was minor compared to this…

Jesus was born FROM sinful man, but yet was born without sin! This is the miracle of Christ’s birth! Christ wrapped himself in the sinful flesh of humanity and yet did not sin!

God uses the flesh to paint a picture of His love through the presence and life of His Son, Jesus! God overcame the sin nature and so this approach from these teachers sells God short and incapable.

We know that God is neither… God is not short-sighted and God is not INcapable! God overcame sin and conquered evil in the conception of Jesus!

All of who God is… was wrapped up in the fleshly body of Jesus Christ! He was truly God with us… God wrapped in flesh! Paul wanted these believers to understand this… I want US to understand this… God was physically present here in this world wrapped as Jesus of Nazareth.

In v10 Paul continues his explanation:

10So you also are complete through your union with Christ, who is the head over every ruler and authority.

In this verse we find Paul giving great encouragement to many… These false teachers had taught that these people in Colossae lacked for the deeper spiritual truths and therefore were NOT part of God’s circle.

The truth was NOT as they saw it… the truth was and still is that Jesus was God wrapped in the flesh, and because you are IN CHRIST… YOU are completely saved! Your hope is found solely IN CHRIST! There is nothing to add… you can take nothing away from Christ!

You are ‘In Christ’ and because of His authority that God gave to Him… you are covered… you are saved completely! Isn’t that great and wonderful news!!? Because Jesus was and is completely God… YOU are completely saved and need no other thing/teaching!