Podcast appearances and mentions of christ col

This episode explores the language and meaning behind the fullness of God dwelling in Christ (Col 1:19). Beginning by setting the verse in its context of Wisdom Christology, we turn to examine the verse's often-overlooked origins in Psalm 68:16. Finally, we look at Sirach's portrayal of God sending his wisdom to dwell in the temple, specifically by becoming incarnate in Simon the high priest. The result is a christologically-rich illustration of Jesus, the climactic embodiment of God's wisdom. To view the video version of this episode, go here: https://youtu.be/Xe7L4mbeAN4                     Visit Amazon to buy your copy of A Systematic Theology of the Early Church: https://amzn.to/47jldOc    Visit Amazon to buy your copy of Wisdom Christology in the Gospel of John: https://amzn.to/3JBflHb     Visit Amazon to buy your copy of The Son of God: Three Views of the Identity of Jesus: https://amzn.to/43DPYey    To support this podcast, donate here: https://www.paypal.me/10mintruthtalks    Episode notes: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1Bo8745lX-CHxFU-OFwUcg1lIDv9Rg6Iumu2-jdDoCZc/edit?usp=sharing    Subscribe on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@BiblicalUnitarianPodcast        Follow on Instagram: https://Instagram.com/biblicalunitarianpodcast  Follow on X (Twitter): https://twitter.com/OneGodPodcast  

JESUS IS ENOUGH 1. The Fullness of Christ (Col. 1:19-20; 2:9-10) 2. The Failure of Self-Reliance (Luke 18:14) 3. The Danger of Denial (Matthew 7:22–23)   NEW CITY CATECHISM Q33. Should those who have faith in Christ seek their salvation through their own works, or anywhere else? A33. No, they should not, as everything necessary to salvation is found in Christ. To seek salvation through good works is a denial that Christ is the only Redeemer and Savior (WCF 7.3, 8.1, 8.5, 8.8, 11.1, 14.2, 16.5; WLC 70, 71; WSC 30, 33).  

IntroductionRedemption has a purpose beyond just our personal salvation. Yes, that is part of it, but there is more. The Heidelberg Catechism makes clear that we are redeemed by a specific God who personally reveals himself. He is one God and three persons. He is Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Each of these persons shows their connection to creation and our redemption. His goal is not just to save, but to commune with his people. The driving question is: what does it mean to be set apart as disciples of the Trinitarian God, and why does that designation matter?The Father of All CreationThe Father is the source of all life. This means that generally He gives life to all creation. He is the one who brought this world into existence through the word: Christ (Col. 1:15-20). This whole creation knows God. He sustains even those who reject him, which speaks to his patience and character. The Father specifically gives life to his people. More specifically, the Father is the one who elects and calls his people before the foundation of the world. The Father sent Christ on Christ's successful mission. Thus, he is the father of his creation and the father of his redeemed people. The Son of Our DeliveranceChrist is both the means of creation and the agent of redemption. We mentioned in the previous point that this whole world has its existence in Christ. Christ is the word. Christ is also the one who secures our life. His resurrection is the precedent for eternal life. He moves from asserting God's promises to fulfilling them with authority. "All authority has been given to me" is not a tyrant's boast; it is the declaration of a risen Redeemer who has accomplished the work he set out to do. The beauty of Christ's farewell speech in Matthew is that Christ secured the authority for the church to exist, and Christ is with his church until the end of the age.The Holy Spirit of Our SanctificationHe gives life to this creation. This means that all creatures, all creation, and humanity receive their life from him. (Psalm 104:29-30)The Spirit also gives life to God's people. The Spirit indwells Christ's people. You cannot have Christ without the Spirit. Christ is with His people, and Christ is with his church until the end of the age. So, when we have the Spirit, we have Christ dwelling with us individually and as the body of Christ. ConclusionOur redemption is carried out by the Trinitarian God. God does care for this creation, but how much more for his church. The Great Commission belongs to the church, not just to individuals, and it is carried out under Christ's authority while he remains present with his church. The call to make disciples begins with prayer and humility, trusting that it is the Father who calls normally through Gospel preaching, the Son who redeems, and the Spirit who gives life. Our identity is secure in Christ, and nothing will annul what he has decreed. Let us be empowered by our God, and let us walk in him.

Colossians 3:16a A series of expository sermons, walking through the Book of Colossians.  Preached in the Sanctuary of Bethesda Shalom, England, Sunday 5th March 2026. 

Tom Kook continues our study in Colossians, explaining the supremacy of Christ from 1:15-20.

Colossians 3:1-4 A series of expository sermons, walking through the Book of Colossians. Preached in the Sanctuary of Bethesda Shalom, England, Sunday 22nd February 2026. 

Colossians 2:1-9 A series of expository sermons, walking through the Book of Colossians.  Preached in the Sanctuary of Bethesda Shalom, England, Sunday 1st February, 2026. 

Buried with Christ, Col 2:12, Baptismal Service, Pastor Darren Rogers 18th Jan 2026 pm

Ben Green

Colossians 1:15-19 A series of expository sermons, walking through the Book of Colossians.  Preached in the Sanctuary of Bethesda Shalom, England, Sunday 4th December, 2026. 

Here I continue on what is exclusive Psalmody and how each Psalm is the words of Christ (Col 3:16). We look at the Psalms as 1. the inspired Word of God, 2. elevating our mind to a mature reading of the Bible 3. the words of Christ

St. Justin Popovic (+1979) the great Serbian theologian of the 20th century, explains the nature and veracity of God being Judge of all creation. "It is natural for the heavenly Sower," writes St. Justin, "who has abundantly sown the seed of eternal, divine truths in the earth of the human soul, to come and see how much of that seed has rotted in the mire of lust, been strangled by the thorns of passion or withered by the coals of sinfulness, and how much has grown and yielded divine fruit, and, also, to reap and winnow the ripe ears of corn."A reading from The Orthodox Church and Ecumenism by St. Justin Popovic, p. 85-88.NOTE: The meaning of Theanthropic: divine (in Greek theos = God) and human (in Greek anthropos = man); the Theanthropos = the God-Man, i.e. Jesus Christ, the incarnate Son of God.

Experience a profound reflection: everything visible and invisible is made through Christ and for Christ (Col 1:16). This audio brings you the message of hope, creation, and purpose grounded in the divine. Join the movement of the Good Shepherd who leads all creation with mercy and truth. ➡️ Subscribe for more teachings from The Good Shepherd Project: https://www.priestsforlife.org/goodshepherd/ priestsforlife.org

Circumcision and baptism are not opposing signs but complementary marks of one covenant promise. Both point to the same gospel and the same Savior—Christ Himself. Circumcision looked forward in faith to the Redeemer who would be “cut off” for His people, while baptism looks back in faith to His finished work on the cross and resurrection. Each sign declares that God consecrates His people to Himself, calling them to die to sin and live to righteousness in Christ. Together, they reveal one covenant of grace that unites God's people across all generations in the same salvation and the same Messiah.

We need to know our identity (Prov 23:7). It has 2 sources: our (1) CREATION in Adam (Gen 1:26-27) & (2) REDEMPTION in Christ. Since we're born in Adam, we share his identity as God's image, to reflect & express His glory. As part of our identity, He created us male or female. In Adam, we all sinned & are under divine judgment. Our nature, inherited from Adam, is prideful rebellion against God. Man's collective sin became so bad, God judged it at Noah's Flood, after which He told man to fill the earth (Gen 9:1). But man rebelled again at Babel (Gen 11:1-9). So, God scattered man over the earth, dividing us into nations. This is God's will, designed to restrain the spread of sin. It's God's idea to create national identities, with different characteristics, that are part of our identity & inheritance in Adam. We embrace & celebrate these aspects of our identity, as we should embrace our God-given sexual identity. As man separated into nations, they developed their own cultures & ways, so certain genes became dominant in populations, creating different abilities & appearances. Though we're divided into nations, we belong to one human family in Adam (Acts 17:26), and so share a common inheritance (good & bad), so we're all equal. Globalism tries to override the power of nation states to set up a one-world government. This was Nimrod's vision at Babel, so he could rule over all mankind. A rebel against God (Gen 10:9), running the world is a worst-case scenario. Satan is trying to rebuild Babel, putting his antichrist in charge of a one-world government (called Babylon). He'll succeed for a short time before Christ destroys it at His Return, and sets up His one world Government. Although many aspects of our natural inheritance & identity are God-given, the great problem is that we also inherit from Adam his identity & nature as a sinner. So, part of our natural identity is that by natural birth, we belong to a fallen race under Divine Judgment, whatever other natural positive qualities we might have. God has a solution for the Fall. Christ came as the 2nd Adam, to be the head of a new human race in Him, the source of a new identity. He came to bring forth a New Creation, a new family in Himself. In His death as the last Adam, He took on Himself all the fallen aspects of our Adamic inheritance of sin & death, and cancelled it, and by His resurrection He brought us into a new inheritance in the New Covenant, the firstborn from the dead of a New Creation, a new species of humanity, with His spiritual DNA. For those who receive Him as Saviour & Lord, He provides a New Birth of our spirit, making us a New Man in Christ. Thru our union with Him, we receive a new nature, identity & origin-history, for we've died & risen with Christ, and now belong to Him. As our 1st (physical) birth in Adam made us an inheritor of Adam, so our new (spiritual) birth in Christ makes us an inheritor of all that's Christ's (John 1:12-13, 3:3-7, Eph 4:23-24). We still have the God-given aspects of our natural identity & inheritance (gender, gifts, personality & nation), but our new identity & inheritance in Christ is far more important & dominant. By our union with Christ, all God's blessings of God are ours in Christ (Rom 8:32, 2Cor 1:20, Eph 1:3). Whoever we are in the natural, the most important truth about us is who we are in Christ (Col 3:9). In this New Creation reality, Christ is all important, and He is in us all. We're all equal in Him. National & natural distinctions still exist, but are overwhelmed by the greater truth of our identity in Christ – we belong to Him, created in His image, in God's family & Kingdom. National distinctions & natural differences count for nothing as far as our inheritance in Christ is concerned (Phil 3:4-7). We're all equal inheritors of salvation & eternal life (Rom 10:12-13). God has no favourites (2Cor 5:14-17). The new overrules and supersedes the old. We don't just have a new individual identity in Christ, but a new corporate identity. We're not just individuals; together we form one New Man in Christ (Eph 2:8-15), His New Creation, one People of God, one Body & Bride of Christ, one forever Family, living stones forming a single Temple of God. We're God's people, redeemed by His Blood (Rev 5:8-10). We have a common origin in His death & resurrection, a common identity in Christ, and a common purpose to live for (glorify) Him who loved us (Gal 3:26-28). We are all ONE (entity) in Christ Jesus (Gal 3:28). As in Adam, we're all of one blood (Acts 17:26), so in Christ, we're of one blood (the Blood of Christ). Being in Christ & His family is our primary (core) identity. Our allegiance to Christ overwhelms all other loyalties, and His command is to love one another. We celebrate our natural & national diversity, but most of all we celebrate our identity & unity in Christ, where God has broken down all racial divisions.

Aujourd'hui nous sommes le mercredi 10 septembre et nous fêtons Saint Némésien et ses compagnons, martyrs des premiers siècles en Afrique du Nord.Me voici Seigneur. Que ton Esprit ouvre mes oreilles à ta parole. Donne-moi la grâce et le courage de t'imiter dans mon quotidien : dans mes choix comme dans... Chaque jour, retrouvez 12 minutes une méditation guidée pour prier avec un texte de la messe ! A retrouver sur l'application et le site www.prieenchemin.org. Musiques : Aimer c'est tout donner de Éditions de l'Emmanuel interprété par Orchestre Philharmonique de Prague - Musiques pour prier n° 5: Symphonie pour Dieu © Éditions de l'Émmanuel ; La prière de Jésus, ou la prière du coeur de Harpa Dei interprété par Harpa Dei - Pas d'album © Creative Commons Youtube Audio Library.

A new MP3 sermon from Walking With Christ is now available on SermonAudio with the following details: Title: The Peace of Christ (Col. 3:15) Subtitle: Colossians Speaker: Jeremy Preece Broadcaster: Walking With Christ Event: Devotional Date: 9/1/2025 Bible: Colossians 3:15 Length: 6 min.

A new MP3 sermon from Walking With Christ is now available on SermonAudio with the following details: Title: The Word of Christ (Col. 3:16) Subtitle: Colossians Speaker: Jeremy Preece Broadcaster: Walking With Christ Event: Devotional Date: 9/1/2025 Bible: Colossians 3:16 Length: 5 min.

Big Idea: To live sent with our feet, we must first focus our eyes on Christ 1. Creation is focused on Christ (Col 1:15-16) 2. The Father's love is focused on Christ (Mk 1:9-11, Jn 3:35, 10:17, 17:22-26) 3. The Spirit's ministry is focused on Christ (Jn 14:26, 16:13-14) 4. The Bible's message is focused on Christ (Jn 5:39-40, Lk 24:26-27) 5. The founding and authority of the church is focused on Christ (Col 1:18, Eph 1:22-23, 2:19-21) 6. Our identity is focused on Christ (Rom 6:5-8, 2 Cor 5:16-17, Gal 2:20) 7. Our future is focused on Christ (Phil 3:20-21, Tit 2:11-13, 1 Th 4:15-18) 8. Our salvation is focused on Christ (Acts 4:11-12, Col 1:13-14, Rom 5:6-9)

A new MP3 sermon from Walking With Christ is now available on SermonAudio with the following details: Title: Freedom in Christ (Col 2:6-23) Subtitle: Colossians Speaker: Jeremy Preece Broadcaster: Walking With Christ Event: Devotional Date: 8/15/2025 Bible: Colossians 2:6-23 Length: 10 min.

The Reconciliation of All Things to Christ Col 1:13-20(08/10/25)

The Reconciliation of All Things to Christ Col 1:13-20(08/10/25)

How should we understand the words, “in him all things were created” in Col 1.16? Although commonly taken to mean Christ created the universe, this view has contextual, structural, and exegetical problems. In what follows I’ll name six problems with old-creation readings before laying out why a new creation approach makes sense. I presented this talk at the 2025 Unitarian Christian Alliance (UCA) conference in Uxbridge, England. Scroll down to see the full-length paper. For those listening to the audio, here’s a quick reference to Colossians 1.15-20 Strophe 1 (Col 1.15-18a) 15a      who is (the) image of the invisible God, 15b      firstborn of all creation 16a      for in him were created all things 16b                  in the heavens and upon the earth, 16c                  the visible and the invisible, 16d                  whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities 16e      all things have been created through him and for him 17a      and he is before all things 17b      and all things hold together in him 18a      and he is the head of the body of the Church,[12] Strophe 2 (Col 1.18b-20) 18b      who is (the) beginning, 18c      firstborn from the dead, 18d                  in order that he may be first in all things, 19        for in him was pleased all the fulness to dwell 20a      and through him to reconcile all things in him, 20b      making peace through the blood of his cross 20c                  whether the things upon the earth 20d                  or the things in the heavens Here’s Randy Leedy’s New Testament Diagram Here are the slides in the original PowerPoint format Download [13.82 MB] Here are the slides converted to PDF Loading... Taking too long? Reload document | Open in new tab Download [3.16 MB] To read the paper, simply scroll down or read it on Academia.edu.   Listen on Spotify   Listen on Apple Podcasts —— Links —— Check out these other papers by Sean Finnegan Support Restitutio by donating here Join our Restitutio Facebook Group and follow Finnegan on X @RestitutioSF Leave a voice message via SpeakPipe with questions or comments and we may play it out on the air Who is Sean Finnegan?  Read his bio here Get Finnegan’s book, Kingdom Journey to learn about God’s kingdom coming on earth as well as the story of how Christianity lost this pearl of great price. Get the transcript of this episode Intro music: Good Vibes by MBB Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported (CC BY-SA 3.0) Free Download / Stream: Music promoted by Audio Library. Below is the paper presented on July 25, 2025 in Uxbridge, England at the 2nd annual UCA UK Conference. Access this paper on Academia.edu to get the pdf. Full text is below, including bibliography and end notes. Colossians 1.16: Old Creation or New Creation? by Sean P. Finnegan Abstract  How should we understand the words, “in him all things were created” in Col 1.16? Although commonly taken to mean Christ created the universe, this view has contextual, structural, and exegetical problems. In what follows, I will explain the difficulties with the various old creation readings of Col 1.16 along with five reasons for a new creation approach. Then I'll provide a new creation reading of Col 1.16 before summarizing my findings in the conclusion. Introduction  Colossians 1.15-20 is a fascinating text of great importance for Christology. Commonly understood to be a hymn, it is fascinating in its cosmic scope and elevated Christology. Although many commentators interpret Paul[1] to say that Christ created the universe in his pre-existent state in Col 1.16, not all scholars see it that way. For example, Edward Schillebeeckx writes, “There is no mention in this text of pre-existence in the Trinitarian sense.”[2] Rather he sees “an eschatological pre-existence, characteristic of wisdom and apocalyptic.”[3] G. B. Caird agreed that Paul's focus in Col. 1.15-20 was not pre-existence (contra Lightfoot), rather, “The main thread of Paul's thought, then, is the manhood of Christ.”[4] In other words, “All that has been said in vv. 15-18 can be said of the historical Jesus.”[5] James Dunn also denied that Paul saw Christ as God's agent in creation in Col 1.15-20, claiming that such an interpretation was “to read imaginative metaphor in a pedantically literal way.”[6] James McGrath argued that “Jesus is the one through whom God's new creation takes place.” [7] Andrew Perriman likewise noted, “There is no reference to the creation of heaven and earth, light and darkness, sea and dry land, lights in the heavens, vegetation, or living creatures,”[8] also preferring a new creation approach.[9] To understand why such a broad range of scholars diverge from the old creation interpretation of Col 1.16, we will examine several contextual, structural, and exegetical problems. While explaining these, I'll also put forward four reasons to interpret Col 1.16 as new creation. Then I'll provide a fifth before giving a new creation reading of Col 1.15-20. But before going any further, let's familiarize ourselves with the text and structure. The Form of Col 1.15-20  To get our bearings, let me begin by providing a translation,[10] carefully structured to show the two strophes.[11] Strophe 1 (Col 1.15-18a) 15a      who is (the) image of the invisible God, 15b      firstborn of all creation 16a      for in him were created all things 16b                  in the heavens and upon the earth, 16c                  the visible and the invisible, 16d                  whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities 16e      all things have been created through him and for him 17a      and he is before all things 17b      and all things hold together in him 18a      and he is the head of the body of the Church,[12] Strophe 2 (Col 1.18b-20) 18b      who is (the) beginning, 18c      firstborn from the dead, 18d                  in order that he may be first in all things, 19        for in him was pleased all the fulness to dwell 20a      and through him to reconcile all things in him, 20b      making peace through the blood of his cross 20c                  whether the things upon the earth 20d                  or the things in the heavens Here I've followed the two-strophe structure (1.15-18a and 18b-20) noted more than a century ago by the classical philologist Eduard Norden[13] and repeated by James Robinson,[14] Edward Lohse,[15] Edward Schweizer,[16] James Dunn,[17] Ben Witherington III,[18] and William Lane[19] among others. By lining up the parallel lines of the two strophes, we can clearly see the poetic form. Strophe 1 15a who is (the) image… 15b firstborn of all creation 16a for in him were created all things… 16e  all things have been created through him… Strophe 2 18b who is (the) beginning, 18c firstborn from the dead … 19 for in him was pleased all… 20a and through him to reconcile all things in him… Such striking repeated language between the two strophes means that we should be careful to maintain the parallels between them and not take a grammatical or exegetical position on a word or phrase that would disconnect it from the parallel line in the other strophe. Some scholars, including F. F. Bruce,[20] Michael Bird,[21] David Pao,[22] among others proposed vv. 17-18a as an independent transitional link between the two strophes. Lohse explained the motivation for this unlikely innovation as follows. Above all, it is curious that at the end of the first, cosmologically oriented strophe, Christ is suddenly referred to as the “head of the body, the church” (1:18a κεφαλή τοῦ σώματος τῆς ἐκκλησίας). Considering its content, this statement would have to be connected with the second strophe which is characterized by soteriological statements. The structure of the hymn, however, places it in the first strophe.[23] For interpreters who prefer to think of the first strophe as cosmogony and the second as soteriology, a line about Christ's headship over the church doesn't fit very well. They restructure the form based on their interpretation of the content. Such a policy reverses the order of operations. One should determine the form and then interpret the content in light of structure. Lohse was right to reject the addition of a new transitional bridge between the two strophes. He called it “out of the question” since vv. 17-18a underscore “all things” and “serve as a summary that brings the first strophe to a conclusion.”[24] Now that we've oriented ourselves to some degree, let's consider old creation readings of Col 1.16 and the problems that arise when reading it that way. Old Creation Readings  Within the old creation paradigm for Col 1.16 we can discern three groups: those who see (A) Christ as the agent by whom God created, (B) Wisdom as the agent, and (C) Christ as the purpose of creation. Although space won't allow me to interact with each of these in detail, I will offer a brief critique of these three approaches. As a reminder, here is our text in both Greek and English. Colossians 1.16 16a      ὅτι ἐν αὐτῷ ἐκτίσθη τὰ πάντα 16b                  ἐν τοῖς οὐρανοῖς καὶ ἐπὶ τῆς γῆς, 16c                  τὰ ὁρατὰ καὶ τὰ ἀόρατα, 16d                  εἴτε θρόνοι εἴτε κυριότητες εἴτε ἀρχαὶ εἴτε ἐξουσίαι· 16e      τὰ πάντα δι' αὐτοῦ καὶ εἰς αὐτὸν ἔκτισται· 16a      for in him were created all things 16b                  in the heavens and upon the earth, 16c                  the visible and the invisible, 16d                  whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities 16e      all things have been created through him and for him 1. Christ as the Agent of Creation Scot McKnight is representative in his claim that “The emphasis of the first stanza is Christ as the agent of creation … and the second is Christ as the agent of redemption.”[25] This view sees the phrase “in him were created all things” as Christ creating the universe in the beginning. However, this position has six problems with it. Firstly, the context of the poem—both before (vv. 13-14) and after (vv. 21-22)—is clearly soteriological not cosmogonical.[26] By inserting vv. 15-20 into the text after vv. 13-14, Paul connected the two together.[27] V. 15 begins with ὅς ἐστιν (who is), which makes it grammatically dependent on vv. 13-14. “It is widely accepted,” wrote Dunn, “that this passage is a pre-Pauline hymn interpolated and interpreted to greater or less extent by Paul.”[28] By placing the poem into a redemptive frame, Paul indicated how he interpreted it. The fact that God “rescued us from the authority of darkness and transferred (us) into the kingdom of his beloved son” is the controlling context (v. 13).[29] As I will show below, I believe vv. 15-20 are ecclesiology not protology, since ecclesiology naturally flows from soteriology. Rather than remaining in the old domain of darkness, vulnerable to malevolent spiritual powers of this age, Colossian Christians are transferred into the new domain of Christ. The context makes it more natural to interpret the creation language of vv. 15-16 in light of Christ's redemptive work—as references to new creation rather than old creation. Doing so retains the contextual frame rather than jumping back to the beginning of time. A second problem arises when we consider the phrase “image of the invisible God” in v. 15. Although some see a Stoic or Wisdom reference here, I agree with F. F. Bruce who said, “No reader conversant with the OT scriptures, on reading these words of Paul, could fail to be reminded of the statement in Gen. 1:26f., that man was created by God ‘in his own image.'”[30] Immediately after making humanity in his own image, God blessed us with dominion over the earth. Philo also connected humanity's image of God with “the rulership over the earthly realms.”[31] But if the Christ of v. 15 is the pre-existent son prior to his incarnation, as the old creation model posits, “How can he be the ‘image of God,'” asked Eduard Schweizer, since “the one who is thus described here is not the earthly Jesus?”[32] It is precisely by virtue of his humanity that Jesus is the image of God not his pre-existence.[33] Thus, image-of-God language points us to the creation of a new humanity. A third problem is that “firstborn of all creation” prima facia implies that Christ is a member of creation (a partitive genitive). This is how Paul thought about Christ as firstborn in Rom 8.29 when he called Christ “firstborn among many brothers and sisters.” Clearly he saw Christ as a member of the “ἀδελφοῖς” (brothers and sisters). Furthermore, “πρωτότοκος πάσης κτίσεως” (firstborn of all creation) in v. 15 parallels “πρωτότοκος ἐκ τῶν νεκρῶν” (firstborn from the dead) v. 18. Although the former (v. 15) can be taken as a genitive of subordination (firstborn over creation) or as a partitive genitive (firstborn of creation), the latter (v. 18) is unambiguously partitive. Because v. 18 includes the word ἐκ (from/out of), instead of a multivalent genitive, it must mean that Jesus was himself a member of the dead prior to his resurrection. Likewise, he was the firstborn member of creation. To take v. 15 as a genitive of subordination and v. 18 in a partitive sense allows theology to drive exegesis over against the clear structural link between v. 15b and v. 18c. In fact, as the BDAG noted, Christ is “the firstborn of a new humanity.”[34] He is chronologically born first and, by virtue of that, also preeminent.[35] Fourthly, the phrase, “ἐν αὐτῷ” (in him), implies soteriology not protology as it does throughout the Pauline corpus. The prepositional phrases “in Christ,” “in the Lord,” “in him,” and others that are similar occur more than a hundred times in Paul's epistles. McKnight elucidated the sense nicely: “This expression, then, is the inaugurated eschatological reality into which the Christian has been placed, and it also evokes the new-creation realities that a person discovers.”[36] Creation in Christ is not likely to refer to Genesis creation. In fact, apart from Col 1.16, there is no text within Paul or the rest of the Bible that speaks of the origin of the universe as something created “in Christ.”[37] Sadly translators routinely obscure this fact by translating “ἐν αὐτῷ” as “by him.”[38] Amazingly, the NASB and ESV render “ἐν αὐτῷ” as “in him” in every other usage apart from Col 1.16![39] For the sake of consistency, it makes better sense to render “ἐν αὐτῷ” as “in him” and let the reader decide how to interpret it. Fifthly, the line, “and he is the head of the body, the Church” (v. 18a) clearly roots the first strophe in redemptive history not creation. Our English translations follow Robert Estienne's verse divisions, which confusingly combine the last line of the first strophe (v. 18a) and the first line of the second (v. 18b), obscuring the native poetic structure. As I made the case above, the structure of the text breaks into two strophes with v. 18a included in the first one. As I mentioned earlier, vv. 15-20 are a pre-existing poem that Paul has modified and incorporated into the text of Colossians. Ralph Martin pointed out that the poem contains “no less than five hapax legomena” and “about ten non-Pauline expressions.”[40] Additionally, there appear to be awkward additions that disrupt the symmetry. These additions are the most explicitly Christian material. It is likely that the original said, “and he is the head of the body” to which Paul appended “the church.” Edward Schillebeeckx commented on this. In Hellenistic terms this must primarily mean that he gives life and existence to the cosmos. Here, however, Colossians drastically corrects the ideas … The correction made by Colossians is to understand ‘body' as a reference to the church, and not the cosmos. This alters the whole perspective of the cultural and religious setting … The cosmic background is reinterpreted in terms of salvation history and ecclesiology. In fact Christ is already exercising his lordship over the world now … however, he is doing this only as the head of the church, his body, to which he gives life and strength. Thus Colossians claims that the church alone, rather than the cosmos, is the body of Christ.[41] If this is true, it shows Paul's careful concern to disallow a strictly old creation or protological reading of the first strophe. For by inserting “of the church,” he has limited the context of the first strophe to the Christ event. “The addition of ‘the church,'” wrote Dunn, “indicates that for Paul at any rate the two strophes were not dealing with two clearly distinct subjects (cosmology and soteriology).”[42] Karl-Joseph Kuschel wrote, “The answer would seem to be he wanted to ‘disturb' a possible cosmological-protological fancy in the confession of Christ … to prevent Christ from becoming a purely mythical heavenly being.”[43] Thus Paul's addition shows us he interpreted the creation of v16 as new creation. Lastly, theological concerns arise when taking Col 1.16 as old creation. The most obvious is that given the partitive genitive of v. 15, we are left affirming the so-called Arian position that God created Christ as the firstborn who, in turn, created everything else. Another thorn in the side of this view is God's insistence elsewhere to be the solo creator (Isa 44.24; cf. 45.18). On the strength of this fact, modalism comes forward to save the day while leaving new problems in its wake. However, recognizing Col 1.15-20 as new creation avoids such theological conundrums. 2. Wisdom as the Agent of Creation Dustin Smith noted, “The christological hymn contains no less than nine characteristics of the wisdom of God (e.g., “image,” “firstborn,” agent of creation, preceding all things, holding all things together) that are reapplied to the figure of Jesus.”[44] Some suggest that Col 1.15-20 is actually a hymn to Wisdom that Paul Christianized.[45] The idea is that God created the universe through his divine Wisdom, which is now embodied or incarnate in Christ. Dunn explained it as follows. If then Christ is what God's power/wisdom came to be recognized as, of Christ it can be said what was said first of wisdom—that ‘in him (the divine wisdom now embodied in Christ) were created all things.' In other words the language may be used here to indicate the continuity between God's creative power and Christ without the implication being intended that Christ himself was active in creation.[46] Before pointing out some problems, I must admit much of this perspective is quite noncontroversial. That Jewish literature identified Wisdom as God's creative agent, that there are linguistic parallels between Col 1.15-20 and Wisdom, and that the historical Jesus uniquely embodied Wisdom to an unprecedented degree are not up for debate. Did Paul expect his readers to pick up on the linguistic parallels? Afterall, he could have just said “in her were created all things” in v. 16, clearly making the connection with the grammatically feminine σοφία (Wisdom). Better yet, he could have said, “in Wisdom were created all things.” Even if the poem was originally to Wisdom, Paul has thoroughly Christianized it, applying to Christ what had been said of Wisdom. However, the most significant defeater for this view is that applying Wisdom vocabulary to Christ only works one way. Wisdom has found her home in Christ. This doesn't mean we can attribute to Christ what Wisdom did before she indwelt him any more than we can attribute to the living descendants of Nazis the horrific deeds of their ancestors. Perriman's critique is correct: “The point is not that the act of creation was Christlike, rather the reverse: recent events have been creation-like. The death and resurrection of Jesus are represented as the profoundly creative event in which the wisdom of God is again dynamically engaged, by which a new world order has come about.”[47] Once again a new creation approach makes better sense of the text. 3. Christ as the Purpose of Creation Another approach is to take ἐν αὐτῷ (in him) in a telic sense. Martha King, a linguist with SIL, said the phrase can mean “in association with Christ everything was created” or “in connection with Christ all things were created.”[48] Lexicographer, Joseph Thayer, sharpened the sense with the translation, “[I]n him resides the cause why all things were originally created.”[49] William MacDonald's translation brought this out even more with the phrase, “because for him everything … was created.”[50] The idea is that God's act of creation in the beginning was with Christ in view. As Eric Chang noted, “Christ is the reason God created all things.”[51] G. B. Caird said, “He is the embodiment of that purpose of God which underlies the whole creation.”[52] The idea is one of predestination not agency.[53] Christ was the goal for which God created all things. A weakness of this view is that purpose is better expressed using εἰς or δία with an accusative than ἐν. Secondly, the parallel line in the second strophe (v. 19) employs “ἐν αὐτῷ” in a clearly locative sense: “in him all the fullness was pleased to dwell.” So even though “ἐν αὐτῷ” could imply purpose, in this context it much more likely refers to location. Lastly, Paul mentioned the sense of purpose at the end of v. 16 with “εἰς αὐτὸν ἔκτισται” (for him has been created), so it would be repetitive to take “ἐν αὐτῷ” that way as well. To sum up, the three positions that see Col 1.16 as a reference to old creation all have significant problems. With these in mind, let us turn our attention to consider a fourth possibility: that Paul has in mind new creation. Reasons for a New Creation Reading I've already provided four reasons why Col 1.15-20 refers to new creation: (1) calling Christ the image of God points to the new humanity begun in Christ as the last Adam;[54] (2) since the firstborn of the old creation was Adam (or, perhaps, Seth), Jesus must be the firstborn of the new creation; (3) saying Jesus is the head of the church, limits the focus for the first strophe to the time following the Christ event; (4) the context of the poem, both before (vv. 13-14) and after (vv. 21-22) is soteriological, making an old creation paradigm awkward, while a new creation view fits perfectly. The Catholic priest and professor, Franz Zeilinger, summarized the situation nicely: “Christ is (through his resurrection from the realm of death) Lord over the possession granted to him, of which he is the ἀρχή (beginning) and archetype, … and head and beginning of the eschatological new creation!”[55] Additionally, a new creation paradigm fits best with Paul's elaboration of what visible and invisible things in heaven and on earth he has in mind. Once again, here's our text. 16a      for in him were created all things 16b                  in the heavens and upon the earth, 16c                  the visible and the invisible, 16d                  whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities 16e      all things have been created through him and for him By specifying thrones, dominions, rulers, and authorities, we discern Paul's train of thought. Form critics are quick to point out that v. 16d is Paul's addition to the poem. Without it, the reader may have thought of sky, land, and animals—old creation. However, with v. 16d present, we direct our attention to political realities not God's creative power or engineering genius. Martha King noted the two possible meanings for εἴτε: (1) specifying the “invisible things” or (2) giving examples of “all things.” Taking the second view, we read “in him were created all things, including thrones, dominions, rulers, and authorities.”[56] Randy Leedy also presented this position in his sentence diagrams, identifying v. 16d as equivalent to v. 16c and v. 16b, all of which modify τὰ πάντα (all things) at the end of v. 16a. (See Appendix for Leedy's diagram.) Perriman pressed home the point when he wrote: The fact is that any interpretation that takes verse 16 to be a reference to the original creation has to account for the narrow range of created things explicitly listed. … The Colossians verse mentions only the creation of political entities—thrones, lordships, rulers and authorities, visible and invisible—either in the already existing heaven or on the already existing and, presumably, populated earth. What this speaks of is a new governmental order consisting of both invisible-heavenly and visibly-earthly entities.”[57] Understanding v. 16d as equivalent to “all things” in v. 16a nicely coheres with a new-creation paradigm. However, taken the other way—as an elaboration of only the invisible created realities—v. 16d introduces an asymmetrical and clumsy appendix. A New Creation Reading of Col 1.16 Now that we've considered some problems with old creation views and some reasons to read Col 1.16 from a new creation perspective, let's consider how a new creation reading works. New creation is all about the new breaking into the old, the future into the present. G. F. Wessels said, “Paul made clear that there is a present realized aspect of salvation, as well as a future, still outstanding aspect, which will only be realized at the eschaton.”[58] New creation, likewise, has future and present realities. Exiting Old Creation Before becoming part of the new creation, one must exit the old creation. “Our old humanity was co-crucified“ (Rom 6.6). “With Christ you died to the elemental principles of the world” (Col 2.20). “As many as were baptized into Christ Jesus, were baptized into his death” (Rom 6.3). We were “co-buried with him through baptism into the death … having been united with the likeness of his death” (Rom 6.4-5). Our death with him through baptism kills our allegiance and submission to the old powers and the old way of life “in which you formerly walked according to the zeitgeist of this world, according to the rule of the authority of the air, the spirit which now works in the children of disobedience” (Eph 2.2). Entering New Creation As death is the only way out of the old creation, so resurrection is the only way into the new creation. “You have been co-raised with Christ” (Col 3.1). God “co-made-alive us together with him” (Col 2.13).[59] By virtue of our union with Christ, we ourselves are already “co-raised and co-seated us in the heavenlies in Christ Jesus” (Eph 2.6). The result of this is that “we also may walk in newness of life” (Rom 6.4). For those who are “in Christ, (there is) a new creation; the old has passed away, behold (the) new has come into existence” (2 Cor 5.17). “They have been ‘transported,'” wrote Schillebeeckx, “they already dwell above in Christ's heavenly sphere of influence (Col 1.13)—the soma Christou … that is the church!”[60] Community For the people of God, “neither circumcision is anything nor uncircumcision but a new creation” is what matters (Gal 6.15). Those who “are clothed with the new” are “being renewed in knowledge according to the image of him who created, where there is no Greek and Jew, circumcision and uncircumcision, barbarian, Scythian, slave, (or) free, but Christ (is) all and in all” (Col 3.10-11). Through Christ God has nullified the law “in order that he might create the two into one new humanity in him” (Eph 2.14-15). Thus, within new creation, ethnic identity still exists, but it is relativized, our identity in Christ taking priority ahead of other affiliations and duties. Lifestyle When the lost become saved through faith, they become his creation (ποίημα), “created in Christ Jesus for good works” (Eph 2.10). This means we are to “lay aside the former way of life, the old humanity corrupted according to deceitful desires” and instead be clothed with “the new humanity created according to God in righteousness and holiness of the truth” (Eph 4.22-24). Rather than lying to one another, we must “strip off the old humanity with its way of acting” and “be clothed with the new (humanity), renewed in knowledge according to the image of the one who created it” (Col 3.9-10). “The ones who are Christ's have crucified the flesh with the passions and the lusts” and instead “walk by the spirit” (Gal 5.24-25). Ultimately, All Creation Although new creation is currently limited to those who voluntarily recognize Jesus as Lord, all “creation is waiting with eager expectation for the unveiling of the children of God” (Rom 8.19). Because of the Christ event, the created order eagerly awaits the day when it will escape “the enslavement of corruption” and gain “the freedom of the glory of the children of God” (v. 21). Like a bone out of joint, creation does not function properly. Once Christ sets it right, it will return to its proper order and operation under humanity's wise and capable rulership in the eschaton. Eschatology God predetermined that those who believe will be “conformed to the image of his son, that he be firstborn among many brothers and sisters” (Rom 8.29). Thus, the resurrected Christ is the prototype, “the first fruits of those who have fallen asleep” (1 Cor 15.20). Whereas “in Adam all die, so also in Christ all will be made alive” (v. 22). We await Christ's return to “transform the body of our humble station (that it be) shaped to his glorious body according to the energy which makes him able to also to subject all things to himself.” (Phil 3.21). This is the end goal of new creation: resurrected subjects of God's kingdom joyfully living in a renewed world without mourning, crying, and pain forevermore (Isa 65.17-25; Rev 21-22). The Powers Taking Col 1.16 as a new creation text adds key information about the present governing powers to this richly textured picture. In Christ God created thrones, dominions, rulers, and authorities. He made these through Christ and for Christ with the result that Christ himself is before all things, and in Christ all things hold together (Col 1.17). He is the head of the body, the Church (Col 1.18). We find very similar language repeated in Ephesians in the context of Christ's exaltation.[61] Ephesians 1.20-23 20 Which [power] he energized in Christ having raised him from the dead and seated (him) on his right (hand) in the heavenlies 21 far above all rule and authority and power and dominion and every name named, not only in this age but also in the one to come; 22 and he subjected all things under his feet and gave him (as) head over all things in the Church, 23 which is his body, the fullness of the one who fills all things in all. The parallels are striking. Both speak of Christ's resurrection, Christ's exalted position of authority over all the powers, Christ's role as head of the church, and both mention the fullness. It's easy to miss the connection between these two passages since most think of Eph 1.20-22 as ascension theology and Col 1.15-20 as creation theology. But, if we adjust our thinking to regard Col 1.16 as new creation, we see how the two fit together. In Ephesians we see Christ's ascension to God's right hand as the reason for a cosmic reordering of authorities with the result that all rule, authority, power, and dominion are subjected to him. (Though we may be accustomed to reading these powers in Eph 1.21 as only malevolent owing to Eph 2.2 and 6.12, the list here must be mixed, since only benevolent powers will survive the final judgement and continue into the age to come.) Instead of exaltation, in Colossians Paul employed the language of creation to describe Christ's relation to the powers. Perhaps lesser terms like reassign, reorder, or establish were just too small to adequately express the magnitude of how the Christ event has changed the world—both in heaven and on earth. The only term big enough to convey the new situation was “creation”—the very same word he routinely used elsewhere with the meaning of new creation.[62] We can gain more insight by considering what the powers of Eph 1.21 and Col 1.16 mean. McKnight saw them “as earthly, systemic manifestations of (perhaps fallen) angelic powers—hence, the systemic worldly, sociopolitical manifestations of cosmic/angelic rebellion against God.”[63] I partially agree with McKnight here. He's right to see the powers as both heavenly and earthly, or better, as the heavenly component of the earthly sociopolitical realities, but he has not made room for the new authority structures created in Christ. John Schoenheit helpfully explained it this way: Not only did Jesus create his Church out of Jew and Gentile, he had to create the structure and positions that would allow it to function, both in the spiritual world (positions for the angels that would minister to the Church—see Rev. 1:1, “his angel”) and in the physical world (positions and ministries here on earth—see Rom. 12:4-8; Eph. 4:7-11).[64] We must never forget that Paul has an apocalyptic worldview—a perspective that seeks to unveil the heavenly reality behind the earthly. He believed in powers of darkness and powers of light. In Christ were created thrones, dominions, rulers, and authorities (Col 1.16). He is “the head of all rule and authority” (Col 2.10). These new creation realities make progress against the old powers that still hold sway in the world outside the Church. Although the old powers are still at work, those who are in Christ enjoy his protection. With respect to the Church, he has already “disarmed the rulers and authorities” (Col 2.15). We can don “the armor of God that we be able to stand against the methods of the devil” (Eph 6.11) and “subduing everything, to stand” (v. 13). We find glimpses of this heavenly reality scattered in other places in the Bible. Peter mentioned how Christ “is on the right hand of God, having gone into heaven, angels and authorities and power having been subjected to him” (1 Pet 3.22). In John's Revelation, he addressed each of the seven letters to the angels of their respective churches.[65] Although it's hard for us to get details on precisely what happened at Christ's ascension, something major occurred, not just on earth, but also in the spiritual realm. Jesus's last recorded words in Matthew are: “all authority in heaven and upon earth was given to me” (Mat 28.18-20). Presumably such a statement implies that prior to his resurrection Jesus did not have all authority in heaven and earth. It didn't exist until it was created. Similarly, because of his death, resurrection, and ascension, Christ has “become so much better than the angels as the name he has inherited is superior to them” (Heb 1.4). Once again, the text implies that Christ was not already superior to the angels, but “after making purification of the sins, he sat on the right hand of the majesty on high” at which time he became preeminent (Heb 1.3). Perhaps this also explains something about why Christ “proclaimed to the spirits in prison” (1 Pet 3.19). Another possibility is that Christ's ascension (Rev 12.5) triggered a war in heaven (v. 7) with the result that the dragon and his angels suffered defeat (v. 8) and were thrown out of heaven down to the earth (v. 9). Sadly, for most of the history of the church we have missed this Jewish apocalyptic approach that was obvious to Paul, limiting salvation to individual sins and improved morality.[66] Only in the twentieth century did interpreters begin to see the cosmic aspect of new creation. Margaret Thrall wrote the following. The Christ-event is the turning-point of the whole world … This Christ ‘in whom' the believer lives is the last Adam, the inaugurator of the new eschatological humanity. … Paul is saying that if anyone exists ‘in Christ', that person is a newly-created being. … In principle, through the Christ-event and in the person of Christ, the new world and the new age are already objective realities.[67] New creation is, in the words of J. Louis Martyn “categorically cosmic and emphatically apocalyptic.”[68] In fact, “The advent of the Son and of his Spirit is thus the cosmic apocalyptic event.”[69] In Christ is the beginning of a whole new creation, an intersecting community of angelic and human beings spanning heaven and earth. The interlocking of earthly (visible) and heavenly (invisible) authority structures points to Paul's apocalyptic holism. The Church was not on her own to face the ravages of Rome's mad love affair with violence and power. In Christ, people were no longer susceptible to the whims of the gods that have wreaked so much havoc from time immemorial.[70] No, the Church is Christ's body under his direct supervision and protection. As a result, the Church is the eschatological cosmic community. It is not merely a social club; it has prophetic and cosmic dimensions. Prophetically, the Church points to the eschaton when all of humanity will behave then how the Church already strives to live now—by the spirit instead of the flesh (Gal 5.16-25). Cosmically, the Church is not confined to the earth. There is a heavenly dimension with authority structures instantiated under Christ to partner with the earthly assemblies. God's “plan for the fulness of the times” is “to head up all thing in the Christ, the things upon the heavens and the things upon the earth in him” (Eph 1.10). Although this is his eschatological vision, Zeilinger pointed out that it is already happening. [T]he eschatological world given in Christ is realized within the still-existing earthly creation through the inclusion of the human being in Christ, the exalted one, by means of the proclamation of salvation and baptism. The eschaton spreads throughout the world in the kerygma and becomes reality, in that the human being, through baptism, becomes part of Christ—that is, in unity with him, dies to the claim of the στοιχεῖα τοῦ κόσμου (2.20) and is raised with him to receive his eschatological life. The people thus incorporated into the exalted Christ thereby form, in him and with him, the new creation of the eschaton within the old! The body of Christ is thus recognizable as the expanding Church. In it, heavenly and earthly space form, in a certain sense, a unity.[71] The Church is a counter society, and embassy of the future kingdom shining the light of the age to come into the present in the power of the spirit with the protection of Christ and his heavenly powers over against the powers of darkness, who/which are still quite active—especially in the political realities of our present evil age (Gal 1.4). We bend the knee to the cosmic Christ now in anticipation of the day when “every knee may bend: heavenly and earthly and subterranean” (Phil 2.10) and “every tongue may confess that Jesus Christ (is) Lord” (v. 11). Christ's destiny is to fulfil the original Adamic mandate to multiply, fill, and have dominion over the earth (Gen 1.28). He has already received all authority in heaven and earth (Mat 28.18). God has given him “dominion over the works of your hands and put all things under his feet” as the quintessential man (Ps 8.6). Even so, “Now we do not yet see all things subjected to him” (Heb 2.8), but when he comes “he will reign into the ages of the ages” (Rev 11.15). Until then, he calls the Church to recognize his preeminence and give him total allegiance both in word and deed. Conclusion We began by establishing that the structure of the poetic unit in Col 1.15-20 breaks into two strophes (15-18a and 18b-20). We noted that Paul likely incorporated pre-existing material into Colossians, editing it as he saw fit. Then we considered the problems with the three old creation readings: (A) Christ as the agent of creation, (B) Wisdom as the agent of creation, and (C) Christ as the purpose of creation. In the course of critiquing (A), which is by far most popular, we observed several reasons to think Col 1.16 pertained to new creation, including (1) the image of God language in v. 15a, (2) the firstborn of all creation language in v. 15b, (3) the head of the Church language in v. 18a, and (4) the soteriological context (frame) of the poem (vv. 13-14, 21-22). To this I added a fifth syntactical reason that 16d as an elaboration of “τἀ πάντα” (all things) of 16a. Next, we explored the idea of new creation, especially within Paul's epistles, to find a deep and richly textured paradigm for interpreting God's redemptive and expanding sphere of influence (in Christ) breaking into the hostile world. We saw that new Christians die and rise with Christ, ending their association with the old and beginning again as a part of the new—a community where old racial, legal, and status divisions no longer matter, where members put off the old way of living and instead become clothed with the new humanity, where people look forward to and live in light of the ultimate transformation to be brought about at the coming of Christ. Rather than limiting new creation to the salvation of individuals, or even the sanctifying experience of the community, we saw that it also includes spiritual powers both “in the heavens and upon the earth, the visible and the invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities” (Col 1.16). Reading Col 1.15-20 along with Eph 1.20-23 we connected God's creation of the powers in Christ with his exaltation of Christ to his right hand “far above all rule and authority and power and dominion and every name named, not only in this age but also in the one to come” (Eph 1.21). The point from both texts is clear: as “the head of the body, the Church” (Col 1.18; Eph 1.22), Christ is “before all things” (Col 1.17), “first in all things” (Col 1.18), and “far above all” (Eph 1.21), since God has “subjected all things under his feet” (Eph 1.22). Christ is preeminent as the firstborn of all new creation, “the new Adam … the starting point where new creation took place.”[72] Although the old powers still hold sway in the world, those in the interlocked heaven-and-earth new creation domain where Christ is the head, enjoy his protection if they remain “in the faith established and steadfast and not shifting away from the hope of the gospel” (Col 1.23). This interpretation has several significant advantages. It fits into Paul's apocalyptic way of thinking about Christ's advent and exaltation. It also holds together the first strophe of the poem as a unit. Additionally, it makes better sense of the context. (The ecclesiology of Col 1.15-18a follows logically from the soteriological context of vv. 13-14.) Lastly, it is compatible with a wide range of Christological options. Appendix Here is Col 1.16 from Leedy's sentence diagrams.[73] Of note is how he equates the τὰ πάντα of 16a with 16c and 16d rather than seeing 16d as an elaboration of τά ὁρατά. Bibliography Bauer, Walter, Frederick William  Danker, William F. Arndt, F. Gingrich, Kurt Aland, Barbara Aland, and Viktor Reichmann. A Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament and Other Early Christian Literature. 3rd ed. Chicago: The University of Chicago Press, 2000. Bird, Michael F. Colossians and Philemon. A New Covenant Commentary. Cambridge, England: The Lutterworth Press, 2009. 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Zondervan Exegetical Commentary of the New Testament, edited by Clinton E. Arnold. Grand Rapid, MI: Zondervan, 2012. Perriman, Andrew. In the Form of a God. Studies in Early Christology, edited by David Capes Michael Bird, and Scott Harrower. Eugene, OR: Cascade Books, 2022. Philo. The Works of Philo. The Norwegian Philo Concordance Project. Edited by Kåre Fuglseth Peder Borgen, Roald Skarsten. Piscataway, NJ: Gorgias Press, 2005. Robinson, James M. “A Formal Analysis of Colossians 1:15-20.” Journal of Biblical Literature 76, no. 4 (1957): 270–87. Schillebeeckx, Eduard. Christ: The Experience of Jesus as Lord. Translated by John Bowden. New York, NY: The Seabury Press, 1977. Schoberg, Gerry. Perspectives of Jesus in the Writings of Paul. Eugene, OR: Pickwick Publications, 2013. Schweizer, Eduard. The Letter to the Colossians. Translated by Andrew Chester. Minneapolis, MN: Augsburg Publishing House, 1982. Smith, Dustin R. Wisdom Christology in the Gospel of John. Eugene, OR: Wipf & Stock, 2024. Snedeker, Donald R. Our Heavenly Father Has No Equals. Bethesda, MD: International Scholars Publications, 1998. Thayer, Joseph Henry. A Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament. Peabody, MA: Hendrickson, 1996. Thrall, Margaret. The Second Epistle to the Corinthians. Vol. 1. The International Critical Commentary, edited by C. E. B. Cranfield J. A. Emerton, G. N. Stanton. Edinburgh, Scotland: T&T Clark, 1994. Wachtel, William M. “Colossians 1:15-20–Preexistence or Preeminence?” Paper presented at the 14th Theological Conference, McDonough, GA, 2005. Wessels, G. F. “The Eschatology of Colossians and Ephesians.” Neotestamentica 21, no. 2 (1987): 183–202. Witherington III, Ben The Letters to Philemon, the Colossians, and the Ephesians: A Socio-Rhetorical Commentary of the Captivity Epistles. Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 2007. Yates, Roy. The Epistle to the Colossians. London: Epworth Press, 1993. Zeilinger, Franz. Der Erstgeborene Der Schöpfung. Wien, Österreich: Herder, 1974. Footnotes [1] Since the nineteenth century biblical scholars have been divided over whether Paul wrote Colossians. One of the major reasons for thinking Paul didn't write Colossians is his exalted Christology—the very conclusion this paper seeks to undermine. A second major factor to argue against Pauline authorship is the difference in vocabulary, but this is explainable if Paul used a different amanuensis. The theologically more cosmic emphasis (also evident in Ephesians) is likely due to Paul's time in prison to reflect and expand his understanding of the Christ event. Lastly, the proto-Gnostic hints in Colossians do not require dating the epistle outside of Paul's time. Although Gnosticism flourished at the beginning of the second century, it was likely already beginning to incubate in Paul's time. [2] Eduard Schillebeeckx, Christ: The Experience of Jesus as Lord, trans. John Bowden (New York, NY: The Seabury Press, 1977), 185. [3] Schillebeeckx, 185. [4] G. B. Caird, Paul’s Letters from Prison, New Clarendon Bible, ed. H. F. D. Sparks (Oxford, England: Oxford University Press, 1976), 177. [5] Caird, 181. [6] James D. G. Dunn, The Epistles to the Colossians and to Philemon, New International Greek Testament Commentary, ed. Gasque Marshall, Hagner (Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 1996), 91. “[W]hat at first reads as a straightforward assertion of Christ's pre-existenct activity in creation becomes on closer analysis an assertion which is rather more profound—not of Christ as such present with God in the beginning, nor of Christ as identified with a pre-existent hypostasis or divine being (Wisdom) beside God, but of Christ as embodying and expressing (and defining) that power of God which is the manifestation of God in and to his creation.” (Italics in original.) James D. G. Dunn, Christology in the Making, 2nd ed. (Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 1996), 194. [7] James F. McGrath, The Only True God: Early Christian Monotheism in Its Jewish Context (Urbana, IL: University of Illinois Press, 2009), 46. [8] Andrew Perriman, In the Form of a God, Studies in Early Christology, ed. David Capes Michael Bird, and Scott Harrower (Eugene, OR: Cascade Books, 2022), 200. [9] In addition, biblical unitarians routinely interpret Col 1.16 as new creation. See Anthony F. Buzzard, Jesus Was Not a Trinitarian (Morrow, GA: Restoration Fellowship, 2007), 189–90, Robert Carden, One God: The Unfinished Reformation, Revised ed. (Naperville, IL: Grace Christian Press, 2016), 197–200, Eric H. H. Chang, The Only Perfect Man, ed. Bentley C. F. Chang, 2nd ed. (Montreal, QC: Christian Disciples Church Publishers, 2017), 151–52, Jeff Deuble, Christ before Creeds (Latham, NY: Living Hope International Ministries, 2021), 163–66, John A. Lynn Mark H. Graeser, John W. Schoenheit, One God & One Lord, 4th ed. (Martinsville, IN: Spirit & Truth Fellowship International, 2010), 493–94, Donald R. Snedeker, Our Heavenly Father Has No Equals (Bethesda, MD: International Scholars Publications, 1998), 291–92, William M. Wachtel, “Colossians 1:15-20–Preexistence or Preeminence?” (paper presented at the 14th Theological Conference, McDonough, GA, 2005), 4. [10] All translations are my own. [11] Stophes are structural divisions drawn from Greek odes akin to stanzas in poetry or verses in music. [12] Throughout I will capitalize Church since that reflects the idea of all Christians collectively not just those in a particular local assembly. [13] Eduard Norden, Agnostos Theos: Untersuchungen Zur Formengeschichte Religiöser Rede, 4th ed. (Stuttgart, Germany: B. G. Teubner, 1956), 250–54. [14] James M. Robinson, “A Formal Analysis of Colossians 1:15-20,” Journal of Biblical Literature 76, no. 4 (1957): 272–73. [15] Edward Lohse, Colossians and Philemon, Hermeneia (Minneapolis, MN: Fortress Press, 1971), 44. [16] Eduard Schweizer, The Letter to the Colossians, trans. Andrew Chester (Minneapolis, MN: Augsburg Publishing House, 1982), 57. [17] Dunn, The Epistles to the Colossians and to Philemon, 84. [18] Ben  Witherington III, The Letters to Philemon, the Colossians, and the Ephesians: A Socio-Rhetorical Commentary of the Captivity Epistles (Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 2007), 129. [19] William L. Lane, The New Testament Page by Page, Open Your Bible Commentary, ed. Martin Manser (Bath, UK: Creative 4 International, 2013), 765. [20] E. K. Simpson and F. F. Bruce, The Epistles to the Ephesians and the Colossians, The New International Commentary on the New Testament, ed. Ned B. Stonehouse (Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 1957), 65. [21] Michael F. Bird, Colossians and Philemon, A New Covenant Commentary (Cambridge, England: The Lutterworth Press, 2009), 50. [22] David Pao, Colossians and Philemon, Zondervan Exegetical Commentary of the New Testament, ed. Clinton E. Arnold (Grand Rapid, MI: Zondervan, 2012), 87. [23] Lohse, 42. [24] Lohse, 43–44. [25] Scot McKnight, The Letter to the Colossians, New International Commentary on the New Testament, ed. Joel B. Green (Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 2018), 144. [26] Col 1.13-14: “who rescued us from the authority of darkness and transferred (us) into the kingdom of his beloved son in whom we have the redemption, the forgiveness of the sins.” Col 1.21-22: “And you being formerly alienated and hostile in thought in the evil deeds, but now he reconciled (you) in his body of the flesh through the death to present you holy and blameless and irreproachable before him.” [27] In fact, we can easily skip from vv. 13-14 to vv. 21-22. [28] Dunn, Christology in the Making, 187–88. [29] Sadly, most translations erroneously insert a paragraph between vv. 14 and 15. This produces the visual effect that v. 15 is a new thought unit. [30] Bruce, 193. [31] Moses 2.65: “τὴν ἡγεμονίαν τῶν περιγείων” in Philo, The Works of Philo, The Norwegian Philo Concordance Project (Piscataway, NJ: Gorgias Press, 2005). See also Sirach 17.3. [32] Schweizer, 64. [33] For a helpful treatment of how the image of God relates to Christology, see Anna Shoffner Brown, “Nothing ‘Mere’ About a Man in the Image of God” (paper presented at the Unitarian Christian Alliance, Springfield, OH, Oct 14, 2022). [34] Walter Bauer et al., A Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament and Other Early Christian Literature, 3rd ed. (Chicago: The University of Chicago Press, 2000), s.v. “πρωτότοκος,” 2.a. [35] Franz Zeilnger wrote, “Christ is temporally the first of a series that essentially proceeds from him, and at the same time its lord and head.” Franz Zeilinger, Der Erstgeborene Der Schöpfung (Wien, Österreich: Herder, 1974), 182. Original: “als “Wurzel” ist Christus zeitlich der erste einer Reihe, die wesentlich aus ihm hervorgeht, und zugleich ihr Herr und Haupt.” [36] McKnight, 85–86. [37] The closest parallels are 1 Cor 8.6; Heb 1.2; and John 1.3, which employ the preposition δια (through). Upon close examination these three don't teach Christ created the universe either. [38] ESV, CSB, NASB, etc. Notably the NET diverges from the other evangelical translations. Roman Catholic, mainline, and unitarian translations all tend to straightforwardly render “ἐν αὐτῷ” as “in him” in Col 1.16; cf. NABRE, NRSVUE, OGFOMMT, etc. [39] Chang, 150. [40] Ralph Martin, “An Early Christian Hymn (Col. 1:15-20),” The Evangelical Quarterly 36, no. 4 (1964): 198. [41] Schillebeeckx, 186. [42] Dunn, Christology in the Making, 191. [43] Karl-Joseph Kuschel, Born before All Time?, trans. John Bowden (New York, NY: Crossroad, 1992), 336. [44] Dustin R. Smith, Wisdom Christology in the Gospel of John (Eugene, OR: Wipf & Stock, 2024), 5–6. For more on wisdom Christology in Col 1.16 see Dunn, The Epistles to the Colossians and to Philemon, 89, Roy Yates, The Epistle to the Colossians (London: Epworth Press, 1993), 18–19, 23, G. B. Caird, New Testament Theology, ed. L. D. Hurst (Oxford, England: Clarendon Press, 2002), 46, McGrath, 44, 46. [45] See Dunn, The Epistles to the Colossians and to Philemon, 89. See also Yates, 18–19, 23. [46] Dunn, Christology in the Making, 190. [47] Perriman, 199. [48] Martha King, An Exegetical Summary of Colossians (Dallas, TX: SIL International, 1992), 53. [49] Joseph Henry Thayer, A Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament (Peabody, MA: Hendrickson, 1996), s.v. “ἐν,” 1722. He recognized the cause was both instrumental and final. [50] William Graham MacDonald, The Idiomatic Translation of the New Testament (Norfolk, VA: Bibleworks, 2012). [51] Chang, 147. Similarly James McGrath wrote, “[I]f all things were intended by God to find their fulfillment in Christ, then they must have been created “in him” in the very beginning in some undefined sense, since it was axiomatic that the eschatological climax of history would be a restoration of its perfect, original state.” McGrath, 46. [52] Caird, Paul’s Letters from Prison, 172. [53] “God so designed the universe that it was to achieve its proper meaning and unity only under the authority of man (Gen. 128; Ps. 86). But this purpose was not to be implemented at once; it was ‘to be put into effect when the time was ripe' (Eph. 110), when Christ had lived a human life as God intended it, and had become God's image in a measure which was never true of Adam. Only in unity with ‘the proper man' could the universe be brought to its destined coherence. For one who believes in predestination it is but a small step from this to saying that the universe was created in him.” Caird, Paul’s Letters from Prison, 178. [54] See also Paul's Adam Christology in Rom 5.12-21; 1 Cor 15.21-22, 45-49. [55] “Christus ist (durch seine Auferstehung aus dem Todesbereich) Herr über den ihm verliehenen Besitz, dessen ἀρχή und Urbild er ist, … und Haupt und Anfang der eschatologischen Neuschöpfung!” Zeilinger, 188. [56] King, 54. [57] Perriman, 200. [58] G. F. Wessels, “The Eschatology of Colossians and Ephesians,” Neotestamentica 21, no. 2 (1987): 187. [59] I realize my translation is awkward, but I prioritized closely mirroring the Greek over presenting smooth English. The original reads, “συνεζωοποίησεν ὑμᾶς σὺν αὐτῷ.” [60] Schillebeeckx, 187. [61] Scholars who make this connection include Caird, New Testament Theology, 216, Caird, Paul’s Letters from Prison, 177, McGrath, 44, Perriman, 201. [62] In fact, only two of the texts I cited above explicitly say “new creation” (2 Cor 5.17 and Gal 6.15). In all the others, Paul blithely employed creation language, expecting his readers to understand that he was not talking about the creation of the universe, but the creation of the new humanity in Christ—the Church. [63] McKnight, 152. [64] Mark H. Graeser, 493. [65] Rev 2.1, 8, 12, 18; 3.1, 7, 14. [66] See Gerry Schoberg, Perspectives of Jesus in the Writings of Paul (Eugene, OR: Pickwick Publications, 2013), 280–81, 83. [67] Margaret Thrall, The Second Epistle to the Corinthians, vol. 1, The International Critical Commentary, ed. C. E. B. Cranfield J. A. Emerton, G. N. Stanton (Edinburgh, Scotland: T&T Clark, 1994), 423, 26–28. [68] J. Louis Martyn, Theological Issues in the Letters of Paul (Nashville, TN: Abingdon Press, 1997), 122. [69] Martyn, 121. [70] Whether the old gods actually existed or not is a topic beyond the scope of this paper. Interested readers should consult Michael S. Heiser, The Unseen Realm: Recovering the Supernatural Worldview of the Bible (Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press, 2019). [71] “[D]ie in Christus gegebene echatologische Welt verwirkliche sich innerhalb der weiterhin existenten irdischen Schöpfung durch die Einbeziehung des Menschen in Christus, den Erhöhten, mittles Heilsverkündigung und Taufe. Das Eschaton setzt sic him Kerygma wetweit durch und wird Wirklichkeit, indem der Mensch durch die Taufe Christi Teil wird, d. h. in Einheit mit ihm dem Anspruch der στοιχεῖα τοῦ κόσμου stirbt (2, 20) und mit ihm auferweckt sein eschatologisches Leben erhält. Die so dem erhöhten Christus eingegliederten Menschen bilden somit in ihm und mit ihm die neue Schöpfung der Eschata innerhalb der alten! Der Christusleib ist somit als sich weitende Kirche erkennbar. In ihr bildet himmlischer und irdischer Raum gewissermaßen eine Einheit.” Zeilinger, 179. [72] “Der neue Adam … Ausgangsort, in dem sich Neuschöpfung ereignete,” Zeilinger, 199. [73] Randy A. Leedy, The Greek New Testament Sentence Diagrams (Norfolk, VA: Bible Works, 2006). This is now available in Logos Bible Software.

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Send us a textPaul continues to deal with the Gnostic believers who taught that intellectualism was the way to salvation. He presents the reality of the body of Jesus Christ and His sacrifice as the only way of salvation.He also reveals the mystery that has been hidden in past ages. This part of the letter chapter 2, is a great encouragement to the Colossians. If you listen carefully, it will be a great encouragement to you the listener. 

Send us a textIn his letter to the Colossians, Paul is answering the Gnostic belief that Jesus didn't really have a physical body. They were the "intellectuals" of the day and couldn't muster any simple faith.Paul outlines the character and work of Christ  in a beautiful and compelling way that should really turn any heart.How much do you know about Jesus? this message provides a good founation upn which you can build more knowledge.

Brandon Steele | 05.11.25 | ethoschurch.org

     The Bible recognizes Satan's world-system and warns us not to love it. John writes and tells the Christian, “Do not love the world nor the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh and the lust of the eyes and the boastful pride of life, is not from the Father, but is from the world” (1 John 2:15-16). We live in a fallen world, and John's command is intended to warn us of real danger. First, John opens with the negative particle Μὴ Me, which is followed by the Geek verb ἀγαπάω agapao, which is in the imperative mood—the mood of command. The word ἀγαπάω agapao denotes desire or commitment to something or someone. Allen comments on love: "In its essence love is two things: a desire for something and a commitment to something … Whatever it is you desire and whatever you're committed to, that's where your time and resources will go. If you love football, that's where your time and resources will go. If you love hunting or fishing, that's where your time and resources will go. If you love your spouse, you desire to spend time with her and you are committed to her. Love is more than an emotional feeling. Love requires a commitment of time and resources."[1]      John then gives the object we are not to desire or be committed to, namely, the world (τὸν κόσμον). The Greek word κόσμος kosmos is used in Scripture to refer to: 1) the physical planet (Matt 13:35; Acts 17:24), 2) people who live in the world (John 3:16), and 3) the hostile system created and controlled by Satan that he uses to lure people away from God (1 John 2:15-16). It is this third meaning that John has in mind. Hence, the word κόσμος kosmos refers to “that which is hostile to God…lost in sin, wholly at odds with anything divine, ruined and depraved.”[2] Concerning, the word κόσμος kosmos, Allen writes: "Sometimes the word “world” is used to refer to the organized evil system with its principles and its practices, all under the authority of Satan, which includes all teachings, ideas, culture, attitudes, activities, etc., that are opposed to God. A fixation on the material over the spiritual, promotion of self over others, pleasure over principle—these are just a few descriptors of the world system John is talking about. The word “world” here means everything that opposes Christ and his work on earth. Jesus called Satan “the ruler of this world” (John 14:30; 16:11), and Paul called him “the god of this world” (2 Corinthians 4:4). In Luke 16:8 Jesus referred to all unsaved people as “the sons of this world.”[3]      Satan's world-system consists of those philosophies and values that perpetually influence humanity to think and behave contrary to God and His Word. This operating apart from God is first and foremost a way of thinking that is antithetical to God, a way of thinking motivated by a desire to be free from God and the authority of Scripture, a freedom most will accept, even though it is accompanied by all sorts of inconsistencies and absurdities. Chafer writes: "The kosmos is a vast order or system that Satan has promoted which conforms to his ideals, aims, and methods. It is civilization now functioning apart from God-a civilization in which none of its promoters really expect God to share; who assign to God no consideration in respect to their projects, nor do they ascribe any causality to Him. This system embraces its godless governments, conflicts, armaments, jealousies; its education, culture, religions of morality, and pride. It is that sphere in which man lives. It is what he sees, what he employs. To the uncounted multitude it is all they ever know so long as they live on this earth. It is properly styled “The Satanic System” which phrase is in many instances a justified interpretation of the so-meaningful word, kosmos."[4] Lightner adds: "The world is the Christian's enemy because it represents an anti-God system, a philosophy that is diametrically opposed to the will and plan of God. It is a system headed by the devil and therefore at odds with God (2 Cor 4:4). Likewise, the world hates the believer who lives for Christ (John 17:14). The Lord never kept this a secret from his own. He told them often of the coming conflict with the world (e.g., John 15:18-20; 16:1-3; 32-33; cf. 2 Tim 3:1-12). It is in this wicked world we must rear our families and earn our livelihoods. We are in it, yet are not to be a part of it."[5]      Many people who live in Satan's world-system exclude God and Scripture from their daily conversations. Some actively exclude God from their daily lives because they feel He offers nothing of value to them, or they are afraid to mention Him for fear of persecution. Most exclude God passively, in that they just don't think about Him or His Word. This exclusion is true in news, politics, academic communities, work and home life. God is nowhere in their thoughts, and therefore, nowhere in their discussions (Psa 10:4; 14:1). These are the agnostics and atheists. But there are others in Satan's world-system who are very religious, and these are the worst kind of people, because they claim to represent God, when in fact they don't. In the Bible, there were many religious people who spoke in the name of the Lord (Jer 14:14; 23:16-32; Matt 7:15; Acts 13:6; Rev 2:20), claiming to represent Him, even performing miracles (Deut 13:1-4; Matt 24:24; 2 Th 2:8-9; Rev 13:13). The Pharisees, Sadducees and Scribes where this way, and they said of themselves, “we have one Father: God” (John 8:41b). But Jesus saw them for what they really were and said, “You are of your father the devil, and you want to do the desires of your father” (John 8:44a). The religious—like Satan—are blinded by their pride. Humility must come before they will accept God's gospel of grace, and it does no good to argue with them (2 Tim 2:24-26). These false representatives loved to talk about God, read their Bibles, pray, fast, give of their resources, and spent much of their time in fellowship with other religious persons. Theirs is a works-system of salvation, which feeds their pride; giving them a sense of control over their circumstances and others.[6] These false organizations and their teachers appear as godly and righteous, but Paul described them as “false apostles, deceitful workers, disguising themselves as apostles of Christ” (2 Cor 11:13). Though very religious, these are in line with Satan, who operates on corrupt reasoning and is a deceiver. Paul goes on to say, “No wonder, for even Satan disguises himself as an angel of light. Therefore, it is not surprising if his servants also disguise themselves as servants of righteousness, whose end will be according to their deeds” (2 Cor 11:14-15).      The contrast between the growing Christian and the worldly person is stark, as their thoughts and words take them in completely different directions. The growing believer thinks about God and His Word all the time, as “his delight is in the law of the LORD, and in His law he meditates day and night” (Psa 1:2). The word law translates the Hebrew word תּוֹרָה torah, which means law, direction, or instruction. Navigating the highways of this world can be tricky, and the believer needs the direction or instruction God's Word provides. It is our divine roadmap for staying on God's path and getting to the destination He intends.      At the core of Satan's world-system is a directive for mankind to function apart from God, and when obeyed, people produce all forms of evil, both moral and immoral. We should understand that Satan's system is a buffet that offers something for everyone who rejects God, whether that person is moral or immoral, religious or irreligious, educated or simple, rich or poor. Satan is careful to make sure there's even something for the Christian in his world-system, which is why the Bible repeatedly warns the believer not to love the world or the things in the world. We are to be set apart (Col 2:8; Jam 1:27; 4:4; 1 John 2:15-16). Lightner notes, “The world is the Christian's enemy because it represents an anti-God system, a philosophy that is diametrically opposed to the will and plan of God. It is a system headed by the devil and therefore at odds with God (2 Cor 4:4).…It is in this wicked world we must rear our families and earn our livelihoods. We are in it, yet are not to be a part of it.”[7] It is important to understand that we cannot change Satan or his evil program; however, we must be on guard, for it can and will change us if we're not careful to learn and live God's Word.      At the moment of salvation, God the Father “rescued us from the domain of darkness, and transferred us to the kingdom of His beloved Son” (Col 1:13), and now “our citizenship is in heaven” (Phil 3:20). This transference is permanent and cannot be undone. Once this happens, we are hated by those who remain in Satan's kingdom of darkness. For this reason, Jesus said to His disciples, “If the world hates you, you know that it has hated Me before it hated you. If you were of the world, the world would love its own; but because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, because of this the world hates you” (John 15:18-19; cf. John 16:33; 1 John 3:13). Love and hate in this context should be understood as accept or reject, which can be mild or severe in expression. When praying to the Father, Jesus said, “they are not of the world, even as I am not of the world” (John 17:14b), and went on to say, “I do not ask You to take them out of the world, but to keep them from the evil one” (John 17:15). It is not God's will that we be immediately removed from this world at the moment of salvation, but left here to serve as His representatives to the lost, that we “may proclaim the excellencies of Him who has called you out of darkness into His marvelous light” (1 Pet 2:9). We are not to participate in worldly affairs that exclude God, but are to “walk as children of Light” (Eph 5:8), manifesting the fruit of the Light “in all goodness and righteousness and truth, trying to learn what is pleasing to the Lord” (Eph 5:9-10), and we are told, “do not participate in the unfruitful deeds of darkness, but instead even expose them” (Eph 5:11).      The growing Christian faces real struggles as Satan's world system seeks to press him into its mold, demanding conformity, and persecuting him when he does not bend to its values. The world-system not only has human support, but is backed by demonic forces that operate in collaboration with Satan. Scripture tells us “our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world forces of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places” (Eph 6:12). The battlefront is more than what is seen with the human eye and is driven by unseen spiritual forces. As Christians living in the world, we are to be careful not to be taken “captive through philosophy and empty deception, according to the tradition of men, according to the elementary principles of the world, rather than according to Christ” (Col 2:8). Realizing the battleground is the mind, we are to think biblically in everything, which is our only safeguard against the enemy (2 Cor 10:3-5).      As Christians we face situations every day in which we are pressured to compromise God's Word. We face difficulties at work, school, home, or other places, in which we are confronted by worldly-minded persons, both saved and unsaved, who demand and pressure us to abandon our biblical values. There is room for personal compromise where Scripture is silent on a matter; however, where Scripture speaks with absolute authority, there we must never compromise! Wiersbe correctly states, “The world, or world-system, puts pressure on each person to try to get him to conform (Rom 12:2). Jesus Christ was not ‘of this world' and neither are His people (John 8:23; 17:14). But the unsaved person, either consciously or unconsciously, is controlled by the values and attitudes of this world.”[8]      By promoting the gospel and biblical teaching, the church disrupts Satan's domain of darkness by calling out of it a people for God. By learning God's Word, Christians can identify worldly conversations and activities and either avoid them or seek to redirect them by interjecting biblical truth, which should never be done in hostility. When sharing God's Word with others it's proper to know that not everyone wants to hear God's truth, and even though we may not agree with them, their personal choices should be respected (Matt 10:14; Acts 13:50-51). We should never try to force the gospel or Bible teaching on anyone, but be willing to share when opportunity presents itself. At times this will bring peace, and other times cause disruption and may even offend. In this interaction, the growing Christian must be careful not to fall into the exclusion trap, in which the worldly person (whether saved or lost) controls the content of every conversation, demanding the Christian only talk about worldly issues, as Scripture threatens his pagan presuppositions. Having the biblical worldview, the Christian should insert himself into daily conversations with others, and in so doing, be a light in a dark place. He should always be respectful, conversational, and never have a fist-in-your-face attitude, as arrogance never helps advance biblical truth (2 Tim 2:24-26). The worldly-minded person may not want to hear what the Christian has to say, but he should never be under the false impression that he has the right to quiet the Christian and thereby exclude him from the conversation. Dr. Steven R. Cook   [1] David L. Allen, 1–3 John: Fellowship in God's Family, ed. R. Kent Hughes, Preaching the Word (Wheaton, IL: Crossway, 2013), 96–97. [2] Walter Bauer, A Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament and Other Early Christian Literature, p. 562. [3] David L. Allen, 1–3 John: Fellowship in God's Family, 96. [4] Lewis S. Chafer, “Angelology Part 4” Bibliotheca Sacra 99 (1942): 282-283. [5] Robert P. Lightner, Handbook of Evangelical Theology: A Historical, Biblical, and Contemporary Survey and Review (Grand Rapids, MI: Kregel Publications, 1995), 206. [6] There are many church denominations today that call themselves “Christian”, but who come with a false gospel in which human works are added as a requirement for salvation (i.e., Catholics, Methodists, Church of Christ, Mormons, Jehovah's Witnesses, etc.). [7] Robert P. Lightner, Handbook of Evangelical Theology, p. 206. [8] Warren Wiersbe, The Bible Exposition Commentary, New Testament, Vol. 2, p. 18.

A new MP3 sermon from Truth Matters Church is now available on SermonAudio with the following details: Title: Freedom in Christ (Col 2:6-23) Subtitle: Expository Devotionals Speaker: Jeremy Preece Broadcaster: Truth Matters Church Event: Devotional Date: 5/9/2025 Bible: Colossians 2:6-23 Length: 10 min.

Paul's message is a warning to believers against deceptive philosophies and legalistic teachings that threaten to challenge our freedom in Christ. He emphasizes the sufficiency of Christ's sacrifice, urging believers to remain rooted in Him and not be swayed by religious rites and human wisdom.

The Passion Prayers of Jesus“Our technologies permit us to manipulate time and space. They leave distance annihilated, cause things to grow and improve productivity.” - Michael KratsiosIf you are a born again believer, there are two ways that you have already experienced spiritual time travel.The first way is that the Bible teaches that if you are a believer, you were crucified with Christ (Gal. 2:20), died with Christ (Rom. 6:8), buried with Christ (Col. 2:12), raised with Christ (Col. 2:12), made alive together with Christ (Eph. 2:5), raised up with Christ to heavenly places (Eph. 2:6), fellow heirs with Christ (Rom. 8:17), are one spirit with Christ (1 Cor. 6:17), will be with Christ after death (Phil. 1:21, 23), will return with Christ when He returns to earth (Rev. 17:14, 2 Tim. 2:12).The second way is that in the last 72 hours of Jesus' passion week, He prayed many specific prayer requests that still get answered today 2,000 years after He prayed them!The prayer of restoration for believers.“Simon, Simon, behold, Satan demanded to have, that he might sift you like wheat, but I have prayed for you that your faith may not fail. And when you have turned again, strengthen your brothers.” - Luke 22:31-32The prayer of thanks despite an impending ordeal (Matthew 26:26-29; Mark 14:22-25; Luke 22:17-20; 1 Cor. 11:23-26)The prayer for basic discipleship commitments of followers (Jn. 17:1-26). -That Christians will grow in their relationship with God (v. 3, 5)-That Christians will be good stewards of God's words (v. 8) -That Christians will know their eternal security in Christ. (v. 9-10)_-That Christians will experience unity (v. 11, 22-23)-That Christians will experience the fulfilling joy of Jesus (v. 13)-That as Christians live in the world they will be protected from the Evil one (v. 15)-That Christians will ‘bathe' regularly by obeying the Bible's truths (v. 17)-That Christians will reproduce as they go out into the world (v. 18, 20).-That Christians will be with Jesus and behold His Heavenly glory (v. 24)-That Christians will be known for having the love of Jesus within (v. 26)The prayer of surrender despite personal anguish (Mark 14:36)He was pierced for our transgressions. - Isa. 53:5aWhen they look on Me, on Him whom they pierced. - Zech. 9:10bIt was the most unusual trial outcome ever – Jesus was proclaimed innocent, yet executed as if He was guilty.The prayer of forgiveness (Luke 23:34)The prayer that our sin caused (Matthew 27:46)The prayer of completion (Luke 23:46; John 19:30)The prayer of blessing over a meal (Luke 24:30-31, 35)The prayer of blessing (Luke 24:50-52)Consequently, He is able to save to the uttermost those who draw near to God through Him, since He always lives to make intercession for them. - Heb. 7:25

Send us a textToday, we dig into how Paul declared that in Christ, there is neither Greek nor Jew, bond nor free. Since we have put off so many things by coming to Christ, Paul encourages us to put on better things. He gives us wonderful instruction for how to live, and how we are to treat one another. Despite putting on mercy, kindness, and many other things, he entreats us to put on charity above all these things.In our Q&A segment, we were asked the following question: While listening to Mary did you Know, I began thinking about the Lord and Mary… when she got to Heaven, did she have a glad reunion with her Son, or a reunion with her Savior… or did she do both?This is a glorious episode, one with which we are proud to offer to our listeners… give it a listen and let us know what you think! 

These messages are from Ocean City Baptist Church in Ocean City, NJ. Visit oceancitybaptist.org for more information.

Bill Kittrell continues our sermon series, Colossians: Celebrating the Supremacy of Christ, in Colossians 3:12-15 with this week's message titled "Put On Christ."

Bill Kittrell continues our sermon series, Colossians: Celebrating the Supremacy of Christ, in Colossians 3:12-15 with this week's message titled "Put On Christ."

Work is a good gift of God that has been frustrated by sin, but redeemed by Christ. We are free to serve our earthly masters when we see that it is a way to serve our true heavenly Master Jesus and provides an opportunity to love and serve our neighbor. This message was preached by Pastor Erick Cobb on October 13, 2024.

Send us a textToday, we have the pleasure of going over some of the most powerful verses one can read! We talk about how it is by Jesus all things were created, and that includes in heaven and on earth, and things visible and invisible. Everything was created by Him, but also for Him as well. He was before all things, and it is by Him that all things consist. He is the head of the body, He is the firstborn of the dead, and He is to have the preeminence. In our Q&A segment, we were asked an interesting question: Were Adam and Eve Jews? We feel this study will be a blessing to all who listens, so go ahead!  

Audio Recording Sermon OutlineSpeaker: Rev. Scott StrickmanSermon Series: SabbathLeviticus 23:3, Colossians 2:16-19, Revelation 1:9-11 (ESV)3 “Six days shall work be done, but on the seventh day is a Sabbath of solemn rest, a holy convocation. You shall do no work. It is a Sabbath to the Lord in all your dwelling places.Colossians 216 Therefore let no one pass judgment on you in questions of food and drink, or with regard to a festival or a new moon or a Sabbath. 17 These are a shadow of the things to come, but the substance belongs to Christ. 18 Let no one disqualify you, insisting on asceticism and worship of angels, going on in detail about visions, puffed up without reason by his sensuous mind, 19 and not holding fast to the Head, from whom the whole body, nourished and knit together through its joints and ligaments, grows with a growth that is from God.Revelation 19 I, John, your brother and partner in the tribulation and the kingdom and the patient endurance that are in Jesus, was on the island called Patmos on account of the word of God and the testimony of Jesus. 10 I was in the Spirit on the Lord's day, and I heard behind me a loud voice like a trumpet 11 saying, “Write what you see in a book and send it to the seven churches, to Ephesus and to Smyrna and to Pergamum and to Thyatira and to Sardis and to Philadelphia and to Laodicea.”Sermon OutlineWe are nourished to grow when we connect with God each week by looking up to Christ.1. HeadCol 2:19 “…holding fast to the head…”Col 2:18 “… puffed up without reason by his sensuous mind…”2. SubstanceCol 2:17 “these are a shadow of the things to come, but the substance belongs to Christ”Col 2:16 “let no one pass judgment on you… with regard to… sabbath”3. LordRev 1:10 “in the Spirit on the Lord's day” (Lev 23:3 “a holy convocation”)Col 2:16, 18 “let no one pass judgment on you”, “let no one disqualify you”Prayer of ConfessionAlmighty God, you are above all. We humble ourselves, admitting our need of forgiveness. We have been puffed up, thinking we are fine apart from you. We have been prideful, striving to earn what we could never attain. We have sought life in the shadowy things but not in the substance, Jesus Christ. Our restless souls are mired in the mess we have made because of the sinful thoughts and actions that spring from our corrupt hearts. We are setting our minds above, to where Christ is seated, to remember your mercy and ask again for forgiveness. Bring rest to our weary souls, and nourish us for the growth that comes from you alone. Amen.Questions for ReflectionWhat nourishes your soul? As you look back, what has helped you grow?Why is Jesus described as a “head”? What is it about a head that is important for us to understand?What practices can you prioritize on the first day of the week to help you put your mind in connection with the mind of Christ? What can you do to help you see what Jesus wants you to see?What can go wrong if you are chasing mystical experiences?How can keeping a sabbath day become burdensome?What can we learn from Jesus being presented as the “substance”, with all that was before him being shadow?What is significant about Christians gathering weekly on the day Jesus was raised? How is the gospel a help for anyone trying to keep the discipline of a day of rest? What challenges will come up as you try to keep this practice and why is God's grace important for working through them? What kind of rest is possible when you are working the gospel into your life (what weighs on you that can be lifted as you gain the mind of Christ and his grace)?

Audio Recording Sermon OutlineSpeaker: Rev. Scott StrickmanSermon Series: SabbathLeviticus 23:3, Colossians 2:16-19, Revelation 1:9-11 (ESV)3 “Six days shall work be done, but on the seventh day is a Sabbath of solemn rest, a holy convocation. You shall do no work. It is a Sabbath to the Lord in all your dwelling places.Colossians 216 Therefore let no one pass judgment on you in questions of food and drink, or with regard to a festival or a new moon or a Sabbath. 17 These are a shadow of the things to come, but the substance belongs to Christ. 18 Let no one disqualify you, insisting on asceticism and worship of angels, going on in detail about visions, puffed up without reason by his sensuous mind, 19 and not holding fast to the Head, from whom the whole body, nourished and knit together through its joints and ligaments, grows with a growth that is from God.Revelation 19 I, John, your brother and partner in the tribulation and the kingdom and the patient endurance that are in Jesus, was on the island called Patmos on account of the word of God and the testimony of Jesus. 10 I was in the Spirit on the Lord's day, and I heard behind me a loud voice like a trumpet 11 saying, “Write what you see in a book and send it to the seven churches, to Ephesus and to Smyrna and to Pergamum and to Thyatira and to Sardis and to Philadelphia and to Laodicea.”Sermon OutlineWe are nourished to grow when we connect with God each week by looking up to Christ.1. HeadCol 2:19 “…holding fast to the head…”Col 2:18 “… puffed up without reason by his sensuous mind…”2. SubstanceCol 2:17 “these are a shadow of the things to come, but the substance belongs to Christ”Col 2:16 “let no one pass judgment on you… with regard to… sabbath”3. LordRev 1:10 “in the Spirit on the Lord's day” (Lev 23:3 “a holy convocation”)Col 2:16, 18 “let no one pass judgment on you”, “let no one disqualify you”Prayer of ConfessionAlmighty God, you are above all. We humble ourselves, admitting our need of forgiveness. We have been puffed up, thinking we are fine apart from you. We have been prideful, striving to earn what we could never attain. We have sought life in the shadowy things but not in the substance, Jesus Christ. Our restless souls are mired in the mess we have made because of the sinful thoughts and actions that spring from our corrupt hearts. We are setting our minds above, to where Christ is seated, to remember your mercy and ask again for forgiveness. Bring rest to our weary souls, and nourish us for the growth that comes from you alone. Amen.Questions for ReflectionWhat nourishes your soul? As you look back, what has helped you grow?Why is Jesus described as a “head”? What is it about a head that is important for us to understand?What practices can you prioritize on the first day of the week to help you put your mind in connection with the mind of Christ? What can you do to help you see what Jesus wants you to see?What can go wrong if you are chasing mystical experiences?How can keeping a sabbath day become burdensome?What can we learn from Jesus being presented as the “substance”, with all that was before him being shadow?What is significant about Christians gathering weekly on the day Jesus was raised? How is the gospel a help for anyone trying to keep the discipline of a day of rest? What challenges will come up as you try to keep this practice and why is God's grace important for working through them? What kind of rest is possible when you are working the gospel into your life (what weighs on you that can be lifted as you gain the mind of Christ and his grace)?

Big Idea: Working for Christ is an inside out endeavor Jesus-centered, inside out work has a renewed: 1. Scope (3:23a) 2. Focus (3:23b) 3. Motivation (3:24)

Bill Kittrell continues our sermon series, Colossians: Celebrating the Supremacy of Christ, in Colossians 1:15-20 with this week's message titled, "The Glorious Christ."

Bill Kittrell continues our sermon series, Colossians: Celebrating the Supremacy of Christ, in Colossians 1:15-20 with this week's message titled, "The Glorious Christ."

Weekly radio program broadcast on 19 stations. Schedule & stations: https://olivebranchchurchofchrist.org/radio-stations

Send us a Text Message.Have you ever wondered why some Christians thrive in their faith despite severe persecution while others struggle with temptation and sin in the relative ease of the West? In this compelling episode, we uncover the inspiring story of Roy and Jillian Orpin, missionaries in Thailand whose unwavering dedication led to significant spiritual conversions among the Mio people, even as they faced heartbreaking trials, including Roy's tragic death. Their story serves as a powerful contrast to the comfort many of us experience, urging us to keep our eyes fixed firmly on Jesus Christ, as Paul encourages in Colossians 3:1-4.Navigating the battle against temptation often feels like a losing game. We challenge the ineffective "just say no" approach and delve into the transformative power of seeking Christ in His fullness. Drawing from Paul's teachings, we explore how true victory over sin isn't found in sheer willpower but in communion with God and embracing our new identity in Christ. By focusing on Christ's supremacy, character, power, presence, and love, we find strength and transformation that surpass any self-imposed legalistic efforts.Modern life is rife with idols that promise happiness but deliver emptiness. Through personal stories and literary insights, we examine how the pursuit of earthly pleasures often leads to disillusionment. Drawing on Ray Bradbury's "Dandelion Wine," we highlight the transient nature of worldly joys and stress the profound contentment found in Christ. Reflecting on the sacrifices made by missionaries and the eternal hope in Jesus, we call believers to grow in faithfulness and non-believers to discover the lasting happiness that only Jesus can provide. Join us in this heartfelt journey towards true joy and purpose in Christ.Support the Show.

Send us a Text Message.A few years back, a Hebrew Roots documentary was released called "The Way," in which they interview all sorts of Torah-keepers and really make a case for why people should be keeping the Torah feasts, avoiding Christmas and Easter, eating biblically clean (kosher), keeping the seventh day Shabbat, and so on. (And for the record, I see no problem with anyone choosing to do any of those things. If that's the way you feel led to live out your faith, go for it!) But most Torah keepers don't view it as an optional way of life. No, they preach it as the only correct way to follow Jesus. And once they cross the line from optional to required, they've entered the unbiblical and dangerous waters of Torahism, which champions a false gospel that requires more than faith in Jesus to be righteous. In that the trailer for that documentary. they pose 17 common Hebrew Roots questions designed to challenge mainstream Christianity. And in this video we answer them all. We also respond to 10 "contradictions" leveled at the Church.Soli Deo Gloria!Defending the Biblical Roots of ChristianityOur websiteOur YouTube ChannelProf. Solberg's BlogSupport our Ministry (Thank you!)Links Mentioned in this EpisodeGrafted Into What? Jews, Gentiles & Israel5 Reasons we can't follow the Gospel and the Law at the same timeTorah Shadows of Christ (Col. 2:16-17)One Law for the Native and the StrangerA Case for Sabbath-keeping: Part 1 (OT) | Part 2 (NT)Clean & Unclean Foods - Examining Monte Judah's teaching on the kosher food laws: Part 1 | Part 2Chapters00:00 Introduction03:08 Fielding the questions05:13 #1 If Yeshua kept the law why don't we?06:03 #2 Why did the apostles keep the feasts?06:39 #3 Why does the Church claim Israel's blessings?07:39 #4 How can something everlasting come to an end?08:34 #5 How could the definition of sin change?10:38 #6 Why did Paul celebrate Passover?10:57 #7 How is Jesus sinless if He broke the Sabbath?11:08 #8 Why did Peter still not eat unclean food?14:10 #9 Why did Paul say he keeps the law? 15:00 #10 Why do we act like some Torah laws are silly?16:54 #11 How can the Church change the Sabbath?17:47 #12 Isn't disobeying the law offensive to Jesus?18:44 #13 Why did Paul say the law is spiritual? 19:13 #14 Can Christians celebrate Wiccan holidays?20:28 #15 Why do you say the law is too difficult?23:54 #16 Why don't we keep Passover?25:41 #17 Why don't we keep Saturday Sabbath?26:04 Addressing Ten "Contradictions"

Because God's goal in our salvation is that we would be remade in the image of Christ, we also must pursue this as our goal, seeking to walk daily by faith with Christ, yielding to His life-transforming work in and through us.--I. God's Goal in Your Salvation is to Re-make You into the Image of Christ- Gal 4-19, etc- 1- The Goal of Your Salvation is Christ-likeness- -To see Christ formed in you--- 2- Sanctification is the Process by which your life is being reshaped into Christ's image daily-- 3- God's big goal in redemption is to see the beauty of His image restored in us through faith--II. God's goal to reshape your life into Christ's image must now become Your Goal in Life- Col 3-9-10- Eph 4-20-24-III. How do we pursue Christ formed in us-- How do we cooperate with God's grace in this--- -1- It starts with conversion- -2- Look to Him to do this work- That's the promise- This is His purpose for you as a Christian-- -3- Set your mind to be renewed as you learn to think like Christ- Col 3-1-2- -4- Fix your Eyes on Jesus Daily and Follow Him- - -5- Depend on the work of the Holy Spirit whom God has given to lead you to Christ daily-

A new MP3 sermon from Truth Matters Church is now available on SermonAudio with the following details: Title: The Father of Our Lord Jesus Christ (Col. 1:3) Subtitle: Expository Devotionals Speaker: Jeremy Preece Broadcaster: Truth Matters Church Event: Devotional Date: 6/13/2024 Bible: Colossians 1:3 Length: 6 min.

Send us a Text Message.Let's study one the most powerful texts disproving the theology of Torahism. Colossians 2:16–17 says, “Do not let anyone judge you by what you eat or drink, or with regard to a religious festival, a New Moon celebration or a Sabbath day. These are a shadow of the things that were to come; the reality, however, is found in Christ.” That seems pretty straightforward, right? Paul tells believers not to let anyone judge them based on what they eat or drink, or which religious festivals or days that they observe. And ironically, that's exactly what many of our Hebrew Roots friends do. They judge Christians based on these very things. Our Torah-keeping friends like will object, “Come on Solberg, you're taking those verses out of context and you know it.” Well, that's exactly what we study in this episode. Is there good reason to think that the plain meaning of these verses isn't what Paul actually meant? Let's see! We're even going to hear and test the perspective of Torah-keeping teacher David Wilber.Watch Part 2 herehttps://youtu.be/MIUp_bfQ_nYDefending the Biblical Roots of ChristianityOur websiteOur YouTube ChannelProf. Solberg's BlogSupport our Ministry (Thank you!)CHAPTERS00:00 Intro04:27 The context of Colossians14:26 Colossians 2:16–1728:45 Wrap it up, Professor.

This is Christian Meditation for A Bigger Life – a time for you to relax, refocus, and re-narrate your life. I'm Dave Cover. I want to help you with Christian meditation where you can break through all the distractions and experience God's presence through biblically guided imagination.  If your podcast app is set to skip the silent sections, disable that in your podcast app for this podcast. Ephesians 6:11, 14-17 says: “Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil's schemes. …Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God” (NIV).   One way to “put on the full armor of God” is through prayer. Here's an example of how to “take your stand against the devil's schemes” in your life and family through prayer. Today we will meditatively pray to put on “the breastplate of righteousness.”   Father in Heaven, your word tells me to submit to you and resist the devil, and he will flee from me (James 4:7), and so I want to do that now in this prayer. I submit my whole self to you, my whole life to you, (my family to you), all my cares to you, and my entire future to you. And I take my stand right now against all the devil's schemes in my life (and family).  I put on your “breastplate of righteousness” — Jesus's righteousness given to me as a breastplate to guard my heart against all the devil's deceptive shame and false bondage to sin. I know that the blood of the Lord Jesus Christ has already cleansed me of all my shame (Rm 5:9). I put off right now my old self, which is being corrupted by deceitful desires, and I put on my new, true self in Christ, created to be like Jesus in true righteousness and holiness (Eph 4:22-24). I hunger and thirst for righteousness, only by which I will be truly satisfied (Mt 5:6). I affirm that I have been washed, I have been sanctified (made holy), I have been justified (made and declared to be righteous) in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of my God (1 Cor 6:11). All the ways that I am not enough have been filled with the fullness of Christ (Col 2:10). The Holy Spirit of God is in my body right now as your holy temple (1 Cor 6:19). And I affirm that this is who I truly am in Jesus Christ. Amen. Who can you share this podcast with? If you found this episode helpful, consider sharing it on social media or texting it to a friend you think might benefit from it. Follow Dave Cover on X (Twitter) @davecover Follow A Bigger Life on X @ABiggerLifePod Our audio engineer is Matthew Matlack. This podcast is a ministry of The Crossing, a church in Columbia, Missouri, a college town where the flagship campus of the University of Missouri is located. 

This is Christian Meditation for A Bigger Life – a time for you to relax, refocus, and re-narrate your life. I'm Dave Cover. I want to help you with Christian meditation where you can break through all the distractions and experience God's presence through biblically guided imagination.  If your podcast app is set to skip the silent sections, disable that in your podcast app for this podcast. Ephesians 6:11, 14-17 says: “Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil's schemes. …Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God” (NIV).   One way to “put on the full armor of God” is through prayer. Here's an example of how to “take your stand against the devil's schemes” in your life and family through prayer. Today we will meditatively pray to put on “the breastplate of righteousness.”   Father in Heaven, your word tells me to submit to you and resist the devil, and he will flee from me (James 4:7), and so I want to do that now in this prayer. I submit my whole self to you, my whole life to you, (my family to you), all my cares to you, and my entire future to you. And I take my stand right now against all the devil's schemes in my life (and family).  I put on your “breastplate of righteousness” — Jesus's righteousness given to me as a breastplate to guard my heart against all the devil's deceptive shame and false bondage to sin. I know that the blood of the Lord Jesus Christ has already cleansed me of all my shame (Rm 5:9). I put off right now my old self, which is being corrupted by deceitful desires, and I put on my new, true self in Christ, created to be like Jesus in true righteousness and holiness (Eph 4:22-24). I hunger and thirst for righteousness, only by which I will be truly satisfied (Mt 5:6). I affirm that I have been washed, I have been sanctified (made holy), I have been justified (made and declared to be righteous) in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of my God (1 Cor 6:11). All the ways that I am not enough have been filled with the fullness of Christ (Col 2:10). The Holy Spirit of God is in my body right now as your holy temple (1 Cor 6:19). And I affirm that this is who I truly am in Jesus Christ. Amen. Who can you share this podcast with? If you found this episode helpful, consider sharing it on social media or texting it to a friend you think might benefit from it. Follow Dave Cover on X (Twitter) @davecover Follow A Bigger Life on X @ABiggerLifePod Our audio engineer is Matthew Matlack. This podcast is a ministry of The Crossing, a church in Columbia, Missouri, a college town where the flagship campus of the University of Missouri is located.