Newsletter 008: Colossians and Christian Growth
and nothing more...
Hey,
Welcome to The Musings of Tyler Hurst where I look at issues surrounding church, culture, and technology through Christian theology, Christian philosophy, and Christian ethics. As a pastor and doctoral candidate in ethics and public theology these are important issues to me and their intersection often is missed.
Thanks for reading, hope you enjoy the thoughts,
tdh
In this post I am dropping an extended essay I wrote for my church’s new Immersive Discipleship Guide. Our discipleship guide is a collection of essays, art, lyrics, book reviews and recommendations, and small group study questions. It is immersive in two ways, first it provides material for study and reflection that take our sermon study on Colossians into Monday through Saturday; and second it provides resources and materials that enable reflection in multiple avenues of learning—not just didactic or pure cognition, but artistic and imaginative as well. One of my contributions was thinking about the images that Colossians provides for spiritual growth. But before we get to that…
here are five things that caught my eye…
Donald Trump is President of the United States Again - No particular news story on this, but yesterday—Monday, January 20, 2025—Donald Trump was sworn in as the President of the United States for the second time. It is an interesting ceremony to watch. Now I did not vote for Donald Trump. Nor did I vote for Kamala Harris. I wrote in a candidate. I did this for many reasons, one of which was contained in the ceremony—the oath of office. I will not vote for someone who has no intention of maintaining that oath in honesty. I do not believe Donald Trump, Kamala Harris, nor Joe Biden have intention of remembering and maintaining that oath each day of their presidency. So I wrote in. But today, Donald J. Trump is President and, in honesty, it’ll probably be fine because Jesus reigns.
President Biden Pardons more of his family!?! - Some believe Donald Trump is the worst thing that ever happened to America. My general opinion is that he is not great, but I bet I could make a list of ten really bad things to happen to America without writing Donald Trump. And one reason I could probably do that is Joe Biden seems set on doing as much damage to his political legacy as fast as possible. Point and case, for all the corruption that Trump is accused of (some pearl clutching, but some very real corruption), Biden has pardoned several members of his family for committing crimes against the United States of America. Something, by the way, he said, on national television, that he would not do—but again, oaths.
Mike Johnson (Speaker of the House of Representatives) endorses IVF - I think Bari Weiss is the best interviewer there is. She is so good I am seriously considering a shift in my subscriptions budget in order to get past the paywall on some of the Free Press’s content. In this interview she talks to Speaker of the House of Representatives, Mike Johnson. Rep. Johnson is not just a republican, he is an evangelical Christian and, I believe, attends a Southern Baptist Church. Which is why I found his hearty endorsement of IVF a bit depressing—I, for those who remember, am doing a PhD at The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, my dissertation topic: an ethical case for why evangelicals should not utilize IVF. Great interview though.
Joe Rogan has an apologist on his show - I know this is basically old news now, but many are still hypothesizing what it means and portends. For example, this piece wondering if as fast as the “negative world” began to get attention, it is packing its bags and heading out.
A New Book on Deconstruction - Based on this review it advocates for an approach marked by a hot button phrase these days, non-anxious presence. I have to say I am starting to get tired of the “be non-anxious” point when there is not much provided in terms of instruction as to how to pursue lower anxiety in such situations. However, I am looking forward to diving into this book and adding it to my growing collection of deconstruction, deconversion, and dechurching books as part of a project considering that trend.
Whenever we open the Bible, our desire is to grow spiritually. That is to say, to grow in our relationship with God. This happens in two ways, first, we grow through the obedient act studying God’s Word (Joshua 1:8) and, second, we grow in two-fold knowledge: knowledge of God (his identity, character, and works) and knowledge of self (our identity, character, salvation).[1] In both of these ways we are “transformed by the renewal of [our] mind[s]” (Romans 12:2). However, in regard to the former, we must be astute readers taking careful note of each text’s unique contributions to the whole counsel of God’s Word. We must not passively assume the content of Scripture or gloss over it with cute rhetoric or assumptions of frames of reference. Rather, diligent study is necessary in order to discover what each text contributes to the well-rounded Christian life. In this series of essays, I want to consider the unique contribution of Paul’s letter to the church at Colossae. Put in one sentence, Christian maturity is a root to fruit reality flowing from intimacy with God through Christ and marked by gratitude.
A Back Drop of a Kingdom Salvation
The theology of spiritual growth in Paul’s letter to the church at Colossae is cast against the back drop of their salvation. That is to say, Paul is less concerned with sharing the gospel message as explaining how to grow in light of the gospel. By way of contrast, we might compare the first two chapter of Colossians with the first two chapters of Ephesians. In the latter Paul is far more intent on establishing critical elements of the gospel (i.e. salvation by faith alone and regeneration and sealing of the Holy Spirit). Yet here in Colossians the gospel is explicitly mentioned merely in passing—not in a central clause of the letter, but subordinated in the conclusion of his prayer.
Paul’s articulation of the gospel is contained in 1:13-14 and 1:21-22.
[13] He has delivered us from the domain of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of his beloved Son, [14] in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins. (Colossians 1:13–14)
[21] And you, who once were alienated and hostile in mind, doing evil deeds, [22] he has now reconciled in his body of flesh by his death, in order to present you holy and blameless and above reproach before him, (Colossians 1:21–22)
In these verses we see that prior to salvation the Colossians were under the oppressive authority of “the domain of darkness,” their disposition toward God was one of alienation and hostility, and practically they were “doing evil deeds.” But God saved them by transferring them—through redemption, purchasing them from slavery—from the oppressive domain of darkness to the kingdom of his Son in whom they have forgiveness of sins. Now, with their sins forgiven they are holy and blameless.
A Stable and Steadfast Faith
In 1:23, Paul pivots from describing salvation to describing sanctification (growth in holiness):
[23] if indeed you continue in the faith, stable and steadfast, not shifting from the hope of the gospel that you heard, which has been proclaimed in all creation under heaven, and of which I, Paul, became a minister. (Colossians 1:23)
Here we see that continuing in the faith requires stability and steadfastness that is defined as “not shifting from the hope of the gospel.” These concepts prepare the reader for the thesis of Colossians and Paul’s instruction for their spiritual formation found in 2:6-7:
[6] Therefore, as you received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in him, [7] rooted and built up in him and established in the faith, just as you were taught, abounding in thanksgiving. (Colossians 2:6–7)
Here Paul piles up four images for the spiritual formation of the church at Colossae: walking in Christ, rooted in Christ, built up and established in Christ, and abounding in thanksgiving because of Christ. Understanding and embodying the lessons of these images will produce a stable and steadfast faith. So, what does each communicate?
Walking in Christ
The concept of one’s life as a “walk” has deep biblical roots and for most adolescents and adults the context and usage make it immediately understandable at a basic level. One’s walk concerns how he or she lives his or her life. But we can press further to get a fuller orbed image of walking.
Particularly Paul instructs the Colossians to walk “in Christ,” while we aren’t yet ready to think about the preposition “in” we can understand that walking “in” something and walking “with” something are probably similar; and the language of walking with God goes back to the earliest chapters of the Bible.
Walking With God
Moses is a masterful writer and the hurried reader is likely to miss some of his brilliance. In Genesis 3 we can be tempted to jump straight to the climactic moment of cursing, but let’s not skip too quickly to the phrase that establishes the pre- and post-sin contrast for human experience of God:
3:8 And they heard the sound of the Lord God walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and the man and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the Lord God among the trees of the garden. 9 But the Lord God called to the man and said to him, “Where are you?”
For our purpose we can note immediately that God is “walking” in the Garden. Moreover, we can sense an implied pattern in this text, Adam and Eve recognize the sound of God “walking” in the garden for what it is because it is a common sound to hear. In other words, the every-where-present God regularly makes his presence intensely manifest in the Garden and moves through it with Adam and Eve.
On this particular occasion God does not “find” them, he feigns ignorance so that they reveal themselves. We can conclude that “walking with God” is way of expressing intimacy and relationship with God. This concept is carried forward into Genesis 5:24:
24 Enoch walked with God, and he was not, for God took him.
The text is mysterious as to what exactly happened to Enoch and how it happened. At the same time the text is clear that Enoch had—for his day—a uniquely intimate relationship with God. The author of Hebrews provides insight into the key feature of Enoch’s life:
11:5 By faith Enoch was taken up so that he should not see death, and he was not found, because God had taken him. Now before he was taken he was commended as having pleased God. 6 And without faith it is impossible to please him, for whoever would draw near to God must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who seek him.
We might summarize at this point that “walking with God” signifies a life aimed at pleasing God and informed by faith. This idea is echoed in several New Testament texts:
Romans 6:4
4 We were buried therefore with him by baptism into death, in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life.
2 Corinthians 5:7
7 for we walk by faith, not by sight.
Galatians 5:16
16 But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh.
1 John 1:6–7
6 If we say we have fellowship with him while we walk in darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth. 7 But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin.
Each of this texts clearly indicates that there is a manner of life, a choice as it were, to live in a way that pleases God or to live in a way that does not. This is clearly seen in when Colossians 2:6-7 is placed in the flow of the letter in its entirety, for Paul has already expressed his prayer and desire for the Colossians that “walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing to him” (1:10).
Walking “in” Christ
But what of walking “in Christ”? Why not walking “with” Christ as we walk with God? In short, walking in Christ is how we walk with God. Theologians refer to this concept as union with Christ and it describes the Holy Spirit’s work to apply to the Christian the work of Jesus for the sake of salvation and ongoing sanctification.
In terms of salvation, Jesus, in his earthly life lived each and every moment free from sin. In doing so Jesus fulfilled the law and earned the rewards associated with doing so. However, instead of experiencing those rewards in his earthly life, he laid his life down and accepted the penalty of sin, which is death. As such, he is able to offer to those who place their faith in him the benefits of his obedience. So, when a person becomes a Christian, he or she is united to Christ, and in that union the account of Jesus’s obedience is applied by the Holy Spirit to both pay off the debt of sin (redemption) and to fill the Christian’s account with righteous law keeping (imputation).
Additionally, the person who is united to Christ is free from slavery to sin (again, redemption). He or she now has the ability to obey God. This is difficult at first but gets easier over time because the mutual indwelling of union with Christ. The Holy Spirit unites Christians to Christ by living in us, and as he lives in us, he works to change our desires and patterns of thought so that we begin to want what Jesus wants us to want and to think what Jesus wants us to think. The Holy Spirit’s service to Christ’s cause in us is so complete that Scripture has no hesitation to refer to the Holy Spirit as the Spirit of Christ (Romans 8:9, 1 Peter 1:11). So, it might be said that Jesus through the Spirit dwells in each and every Christian. On the flipside, the Christian desires intimacy with Christ. Jesus teaches that this intimacy is obtained as we live in (or abide in) him by keeping God’s commandments and living pleasing to him (John 15:1-17). So, the Christian strives to resist sin and do pleasing works in Christ’s name, neither of which could be done prior to becoming a Christian for as Paul says elsewhere “Those who are in the flesh cannot please God” (Romans 8:8); but when an individual becomes a Christian and strives to please God Paul says they do so by the power of God within them. For example, In Philippians Paul writes “as you have always obeyed, so now, not only as in my presence but much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God who works in you, both to will and to work for his good pleasure” (Philippians 2:12-13).
A Journey with God in Christ
It must be said, in conclusion, that union with Christ is a reality lived out each and every day. Every day we are alive, we make progress toward Jesus and toward the end of our temporal lives. In this way we may understand the image of walking with God in Christ—it is the image of a journey, travelling on a road that does not deviate to the left or the right, though we may see hardship and suffering as it passes through the valley of the shadow of death. Yet Christians have confidence for God journeys with us as we journey in Christ.
Rooted in Christ
As Paul presses beyond walking—one of the most common images for the spiritual life—he takes hold of three individual but related images, the first of which is rooted. When the Scripture speaks of being rooted, our instinct should be to think of trees. There are many trees named in Scripture and there are interesting analogies and uses of trees mentioned, as well there are several trees with important theological meanings (e.g. the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil, the Tree of Life, and the “tree” of the Cross), but in this particular instance we should note that the readers of the letter are to imagine themselves as trees. They are what is rooted. Accounting for that insight, as well as the proximity to the image of walking we might recall Psalm 1’s use of the tree as an image for the “blessed man:”
Blessed is the man
who walks not in the counsel of the wicked,
nor stands in the way of sinners,
nor sits in the seat of scoffers;
but his delight is in the law of the Lord,
and on his law he meditates day and night.
He is like a tree
planted by streams of water
that yields its fruit in its season,
and its leaf does not wither.
In all that he does, he prospers.
The wicked are not so,
but are like chaff that the wind drives away.
Therefore the wicked will not stand in the judgment,
nor sinners in the congregation of the righteous;
for the Lord knows the way of the righteous,
but the way of the wicked will perish.
Psalm 1 provides three insights to inform Paul’s concept of rootedness: (1) cause of blessedness, (2) the reality of seasonality, and (3) the resulting stability.
The Cause of Blessedness
There is one critical marker of the blessed man, “his delight is in the law of the Lord.” This delight manifests in the reality that “he meditates [on it] day and night.” It is likely that the Psalmist has the leadership of Joshua in mind here. In Joshua 1, there are several parallels to Psalm 1, most notably, Joshua 1:7-8:
7 Only be strong and very courageous, being careful to do according to all the law that Moses my servant commanded you. Do not turn from it to the right hand or to the left, that you may have good success wherever you go. 8 This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success.
Here, again, success or prospering, is tied to meditation on God’s law—which is to say God’s Word in its totality since Joshua did not have any Bible except the Torah (the Law). The word used in Joshua 1 and Psalm 1 for meditation can be understood as chewing with the mind. Given the references to day and night in both texts, we should understand meditation as frequent activity throughout one’s day. Personally speaking, I find it difficult to understand this concept apart from a kind of memorization. Additionally, it is important to see that the
Psalmist goes beyond the literal act of meditation to the goal—that the God’s Word would become his delight.
The Reality of Seasonality
Almost in passing Psalm 1 mentions an ancient reality that much of modern life is designed to mitigate—seasonality. While modern people strive to avoid the hot and the cold, or the wet and the dry, the Psalmist notes that, like a tree, the blessed man experiences seasons. The context fills out the particular meaning, noting that there is a season of fruitfulness and, thus, harvest. As well, there is a season where one would expect a leaf to wither due to Inclement weather conditions. But the blessed man, like a tree constantly nourished by a stream, is not dependent upon seasons of refreshment to remain healthy.
Resulting Stability
The flow of Psalm 1 brings the reader to the contrast of the righteous and the wicked. While the righteous is sustained during dry seasons, the wicked are not they dry up and crumble becoming chaff—insubstantial plant matter—that the wind picks up and carries away. Said differently, the wicked do not “stand” in the day of judgement. They lack a posture of strength and confidence in the presence of God’s justice. The righteous are standing as a congregation in the presence of God.
Rooted in Christ
This reflection brings the reader back to Colossians where Paul is seeking to provide instruction which will help the Colossians “continue in the faith, stable and steadfast.” Roots give a tree its stability. From this reflection we can see that the root system that stabilizes the Christian is a mind that takes hold of the nourishment of God’s word keeps it ever before it in order to bear fruit.
Built Up and Established
Paul’s third image is stated in a couplet, built up and established. In isolation we might think of these images as connoting the Christian life as a construction project, especially given Paul’s usage of in 1 Corinthians
According to the grace of God given to me, like a skilled master builder I laid a foundation, and someone else is building upon it. Let each one take care how he builds upon it. For no one can lay a foundation other than that which is laid, which is Jesus Christ. Now if anyone builds on the foundation with gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, straw— each one’s work will become manifest, for the Day will disclose it, because it will be revealed by fire, and the fire will test what sort of work each one has done. If the work that anyone has built on the foundation survives, he will receive a reward. If anyone’s work is burned up, he will suffer loss, though he himself will be saved, but only as through fire. (1 Corinthians 3:10-15)
However, the following on the image of rooting, we should not miss the connection there. A tree that is well rooted would also be a tree that is being built up and established.
On a surface level reading, being built up and established means that conversion is not the sum total of the Christian faith. Some theological systems understand the Christian life to begin and end with verbal profession and mental assent to a gospel presentation. While we never want to add to the sola fida (faith alone) for salvation, Scripture is replete with instruction that saving faith motivates a life of growth. For example:
Therefore, my beloved, as you have always obeyed, so now, not only as in my presence but much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God who works in you, both to will and to work for his good pleasure. (Philippians 2:12-13)
Therefore let us leave the elementary doctrine of Christ and go on to maturity, not laying again a foundation of repentance from dead works and of faith toward God, 2and of instruction about washings, the laying on of hands, the resurrection of the dead, and eternal judgment. (Hebrews 6:1)
And, famously:
What good is it, my brothers, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? Can that faith save him? If a brother or sister is poorly clothed and lacking in daily food, and one of you says to them, “Go in peace, be warmed and filled,” without giving them the things needed for the body, what good is that? So also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead.
But someone will say, “You have faith and I have works.” Show me your faith apart from your works, and I will show you my faith by my works. You believe that God is one; you do well. Even the demons believe—and shudder! Do you want to be shown, you foolish person, that faith apart from works is useless? Was not Abraham our father justified by works when he offered up his son Isaac on the altar? You see that faith was active along with his works, and faith was completed by his works; and the Scripture was fulfilled that says, “Abraham believed God, and it was counted to him as righteousness”—and he was called a friend of God. (James 2:14-23)
In these texts we see, to maintain the metaphor, that the seed of the gospel is intended to produce root, stock, branch, and fruit. The germination of the seed in faith is all that is required for salvation, but in the seasonality of the Christian life stability and growth are what grant confirmation and confidence.
Abounding in Thanksgiving
I presume Paul’s overarching image is that of a tree, however, the Greek words translated rooted, built up, and established can also be viewed through the lens of ancient construction projects. It is the word abounding that solidifies the tree imagery. Buildings do not usually get referred to as abounding—but fruit trees do. The tree imagery is important because it tells us something critical about the Christian life: it is organic. Properly nourished trees abound with fruit because that is how God made them. Consider what the Bible’s opening chapter tells us about the telos (purpose or goal) of trees:
God called the dry land Earth, and the waters that were gathered together he called Seas. And God saw that it was good. And God said, “Let the earth sprout vegetation, plants yielding seed, and fruit trees bearing fruit in which is their seed, each according to its kind, on the earth.” And it was so. The earth brought forth vegetation, plants yielding seed according to their own kinds, and trees bearing fruit in which is their seed, each according to its kind. And God saw that it was good. (Genesis 1:10–12)
As trees were made to bear fruit, so too is the Christian. This is one of the instructional purposes of Jesus cursing the fig tree (Matthew 21:18-22, Mark 11:12-25). Placed in meaningful proximity of Jesus’s cleansing the Temple, we can understand Jesus to be providing more than a display of the power of faith. Jesus is also displaying his (and, therefore, the Father’s) attitude toward fruitless religious observance.
It is interesting that Paul, in Colossians, highlights thanksgiving as the fruit of intimacy with God. Thinking of other possible fruit (“But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law), we may be surprised that Paul singles out gratitude, but the Bible often highlights gratitude as an essential attitude and posture for the person who walks with God:
The one who offers thanksgiving as his sacrifice glorifies me;
to one who orders his way rightly
I will show the salvation of God!” (Psalm 50:23)
Particularly Paul frequently exhorts his readers to it. (In fact Paul mentions “the subject of thanksgiving in his letters more often, line for line, than any other Hellenistic author, pagan or Christian.”[2]) For example:
And do not get drunk with wine, for that is debauchery, but be filled with the Spirit, addressing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody to the Lord with your heart, giving thanks always and for everything to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, submitting to one another out of reverence for Christ. (Ephesians 5:18–21)
The Lord is at hand; do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. (Philippians 4:5–6)
And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him. (Colossians 3:17)
Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you. (1 Thessalonians 5:16–18)
Consider the associations made with gratitude in these texts: gratitude is connected to being filled with the Spirit and is a similar spiritual exercise to singing, gratitude is contrary to anxiety, gratitude is paired with a dedication of one’s tasks to God, and gratitude is non-circumstantial. As well gratitude is a means of advancing the evangelistic mission of God’s people:
I will give thanks to you, O Lord, among the peoples;
I will sing praises to you among the nations.
For your steadfast love is great to the heavens,
your faithfulness to the clouds.
Be exalted, O God, above the heavens!
Let your glory be over all the earth! (Psalm 57:9–11)
Gratitude, we might say, is the result of our learning from Jesus and the fuel of our loving like and living for Jesus.
In Sum
Having experienced salvation, the Colossians are instructed to pursue maturity. At the heart of the letter Paul explains that Christian maturity is a root to fruit reality flowing from intimacy with God through Christ and marked by gratitude.
[1] See John Calvin, Institutes of the Christian Religion, 1.1-1.2.
[2] Peter T. O’Brien, “Benediction, Blessing, Doxology, Thanksgiving,” ed. Gerald F. Hawthorne, Ralph P. Martin, and Daniel G. Reid, Dictionary of Paul and His Letters (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 1993), 69.
This has already been quite an extensive post. As such I will simply leave it here and apologize for missing Friday and being tardy on Monday, I will endeavor to be back to a normal schedule for tomorrow’s post.
Thanks for reading,
tdh
