Colossians 2:6-12

Spiritual Fullness in Christ

6 So then, just as you received Christ Jesus as Lord, continue to live your lives in him, 7 rooted and built up in him, strengthened in the faith as you were taught, and overflowing with thankfulness.

8 See to it that no one takes you captive through hollow and deceptive philosophy, which depends on human tradition and the elemental spiritual forces of this world rather than on Christ.

9 For in Christ all the fullness of the Deity lives in bodily form, 10 and in Christ you have been brought to fullness. He is the head over every power and authority. 11 In him you were also circumcised with a circumcision not performed by human hands. Your sinful nature was put off when you were circumcised by Christ, 12 having been buried with him in baptism, in which you were also raised with him through your faith in the working of God, who raised him from the dead.



Dig Deeper
One aspect of human nature that seems to be a characteristic that almost all of us share is the belief that the grass is greener on the other side of the fence. It almost doesn’t matter what we have or where we’re at, we always have a tendency to look to someone or somewhere else and wish we had that. It doesn’t matter whether it’s a car, a house, the college you attend, the job you have, your friends, your family, or whatever else, people will find at least one thing in their life that they wish they could improve upon. Sometimes we are in an inferior situation or have inferior possessions, but more often than not this phenomenon of human character seems to be attached to a curiosity and envy that someone might have something better than us.

The Colossians had been presented with the gospel and had responded. They had laid down their lives and entered into the life of Christ. Now, though, it appears, false teachers, men with impressive and deceptive words were coming along presenting other ideas. These were ideas that seemed pretty good, maybe even better than the gospel, at least in the minds of a few. Paul wants to make sure that this normal human curiosity to check out what others has, does not sway them to do so in this instance. They already have the absolute best, the supreme life that is in Christ that has no rivals. Why, Paul might ask, would they even consider other ways of life when they already have the only true way of life in the world?

The Bible has never been very fond of those who begin in one direction and then look back (Gen. 19:26; Luke 9:62). In a similar way of thinking, Paul urges them to continue going forward in their life in Christ. It’s similar to riding a bicycle; if you do anything other than go forward you’re going to have a difficult time. They had received Christ Jesus as Lord, they had entered into the life of the Messiah so the only way forward would be to continue to live their lives in him. Sometimes that forward movement might seem slow, but it is still vital. As Martin Luther King Jr. once said, "If you can’t fly, run. If you can’t run, walk. If you can’t walk, crawl. But by all means, keep moving forward."

In order to keep moving forward in living their life in Christ, they need to be rooted like a plant in good soil. Of course that brings forth the image that Christ had used himself, saying that the seed of the word of God needed to find good soil in the hearts of its hearers (Matt. 13:8). Not only did they need a solid and strong root system, they needed to be built up, brick upon brick, like a solid building on a strong foundation. For "rooted," Paul uses the perfect tense, indicating a present state that is the result of some past action. For "built up," Paul uses the present tense, which describes continuous action. As Paul will demonstrate shortly, he is alluding to their baptism, the moment when they laid down their own lives and entered into the Messiah, as the action which rooted them in the faith. This was all part of what they had been originally taught. This is an important reminder because Paul is about to launch into an exposition of the false teachings that are swirling about them and they need to know that their building up and growing in Christ depends upon following the gospel message that was first given to them, not chasing after some man-made traditions that are full of fine-sounding arguments. Of course, this should all lead to the normal Christian response of overflowing with thankfulness to the God who has made all of this possible. A sure sign of a Christian that is growing and being built up in their faith is that they are full of thankfulness for God and His people.

Paul wants the young Christians to be careful that they are not led astray by false teachers, whether pagan or Jewish. He points out, in this passage, three aspects of these false teachings. First, they enslave and take captive rather than the freeing effect of the true gospel. Second, they are hollow, because they do not contain truth, and it is deceptive, because it prevents people from seeing the truth when they encounter it. This stands in stark contrast to the gospel which is truth. Paul, no doubt, has in mind, the many pagan philosophies that are competing for the attention and allegiance of the Colossians, but he might also be including here Judaizers of some sort, similar to those that had attacked the nearby churches in Galatia. The first reason to say this is that the word Paul uses for "captive" is "sylagogon," a word so similar to the Greek word for synagogue that Paul was very likely using it as a play on words to hint at his point. The second reason is that he is about to launch into some thoughts on circumcision that seem to be intended to either refute the false teachings of those that were demanding Gentile Christians to become circumcised or to at least head them off.

Whatever it was, it is clear that these false teachings, whether pagan or Jewish, depended on human tradition and the elemental forces of this world. That they depend on human tradition rather than on Christ, is proof that they are not truth. When Paul says they are also based on the elemental spiritual forces, he is most likely referring to the evil forces and powers that the pagans believed governed the world.

There was no need to grasp after the straws of empty philosophies and false deities when one had already found the true treasure of the life of Christ. Rather than grasping after partial truth or no truth at all, the Colossians had Christ in whom all the fullness of the Deity lives in bodily form. This is perhaps Paul’s clearest statement in all of his writings, of the early Christian understanding that Christ is the incarnate God with all the fullness of the divine being. Paul’s point is that there is no need to look to false teachers for further revelation or authority in their spiritual life when they have access to the only life that can bring them into the presence of the one, true God who created and rules over any other forms of authority.

The next important issue that Paul will discuss is the nature of that union with Christ. Judaizers in Galatia had convinced some that they needed to go beyond their baptism into the life of Christ and be circumcised to fully be the people of God. He does not want the Colossians to fall prey to that same lie, so he reminds them that they have no need for such things as circumcision. They were brought into the life of Christ when they died to themselves and submitted to Christ at their baptism. They needed nothing more and should settle for nothing less. Paul discusses the dying of self and the raising to the resurrected life of Christ that takes place in baptism in a manner similar to Romans 6:1-11; Galatians 3:26-27; and Ephesians 2:1-10, which suggest that this may have been at the heart of pre-baptismal instruction in the early church. Think, though, how freeing this message would have actually been for a group that was being enticed by false teachers who were still enslaved to cosmic evil powers and authorities and seeking to free themselves through worthless rituals and harsh self-denial (which Paul will discuss later in this chapter). None of that nonsense was needed. All they had to do was lay down their own life and enter into the life of Christ.

Of course, very few of us will ever be enticed by the things that enticed our ancient counterparts, but there are still principles of this world and hollow and deceptive philosophies that seduce us, that seem to make so much sense. I’m sure that Paul’s answer to us would be the same as it was to them. It simply does not make sense to seek after other experiences and regulations when we have entered into the life of the only one in whom the fullness of the deity lives.



Devotional Thought

What are the philosophical and religious teachings that attract people in our world today? What are the teachings that can seem attractive to those who are already in Christ? What teachings have lured you during your Christian life? What does this passage teach about standing firm in the life of Christ?