It was written, according to the text, by paul the apostle and timothy to the church in colossae, a small phrygian city near laodicea and approximately 100 miles 160 km from ephesus in asia minor. If such is truly the case, then paul wrote colossians around 6163 a. Paul explains and demonstrates the preeminence of christ in creation, redemption, and the relationships of life in this letter to the colossians. If philemon and his family were hosts of the church at colosse, then mark a. Colossians was written from rome during pauls first imprisonment, about 6162 ad. He penned this letter, along with ephesians, philippians, and philemon during his first imprisonment in rome. Take your bible and turn with me to colossians, and i want us to, at least, begin to look at what god might have for us here. The apostle paul was the primary writer of the book of colossians colossians 1. Introduction to the book of colossians pulpit pages. Colossians 4 chapter 3 the colossians exhorted to be heavenlyminded. The book of colossians was likely written between a.
There is some overlap between the two, but today, the primary focus is the literary context, while tomorrow we will look at the historical situation. Tychicus was a coworker of paul who would have been able to help the colossian believers understand and apply the apostles teachings in the letter. Tonight were going to begin a study thats going to take us probably for a couple of months, through. Baloo and mowgli in the jungle book photo courtesy walt disney pictures. The book of colossians the holy bible chapters 1 4 audio narration duration. And that is the reason for the colossians gratitude. The general consensus is that these epistles were written during pauls imprisonment at rome cf.
Pauls purpose in writing this letter is to show that christ is supreme and that the christians life should manifest hisher union with the one who is above all things. It would be inconsistent for a christian to live a life apart from christ. Paul missed colosse on both of his missionary trips, acts 16. Epaphras had come to rome in part to serve paul during his imprisonment philemon 1. The creator, the one from whom all things consist, the all powerful one, the master of time and space, the head of the church. Christ, and in colossians the emphasis is on the christ as the head of the body. This infinite eternal powerful being is shown in this epistle to be personal, he is shown to be the one who becomes our life. All three letters were sent with tychicus and onesimus. It was written, according to the text, by paul the apostle and timothy to the church in colossae, a small phrygian city near laodicea and approximately 100 miles 160 km from ephesus in asia minor scholars have increasingly questioned pauls authorship and attributed. In him dwells all the fullness of the godhead bodily.
The area was about 120 miles east of ephesus located on an important trade route. Date of the book of colossians there is evidence that the books of colossians, philemon, and ephesians were all carried to their destinations by tychicus and onesimus cf. Introduction to the book of colossians tonight i want to begin a study of the book of colossians. The doctrine of christ in colossians 181 christ in creation col. The letter of paul to the colossians work by saint paul britannica. The book of philippians was written by paul and delivered by epaphroditus around this time too cf. May 02, 2020 timothy is also given some credit colossians 1. The epistle of paul to the colossians, or simply colossians, is the twelfth book of the new. The book of colossians is about the supremacy of the person of christ. God worked in creation, making humans workers in his image colossians 1. The way these chiasms have been cut out are by no means a statement of finality as to doctrine and intent of the author, but, rather, an. But colossae s importance as a business center diminished significantly around 100 bc, when the neighboring city of laodicea was founded as an active and commercially aggressive competitor.
Colossians 3 commentary matthew henry commentary on the. Now, in an age like this with no absolutes, somebody needs to really define who jesus is. The two major themes in this book are the supremacy of christ in chapters one and two and the submission to christ in chapters three and four. Some question pauline authorship on the basis of vocabulary. Christ is lord over all of creation, including the. This summary of the book of colossians provides information about the title, author s, date of writing, chronology, theme, theology, outline, a brief overview, and the chapters of the book of colossians. Meredith dve773 the living church of god bases its beliefs on the holy bible, the inspired word of god. As a new starstudded jungle book hits movie screens today, heres a look at the original classic and. Colossians, ephesians and philemon, paul bound, the. Colossae had once been an important roman military outpost and had also been the center of economic activity.
The mood of colossians is argumentative and controversial, that of ephesians clam and peaceful. History and literature of early christianity, introduction to the new testament vol 2. As a guide for women in particular, it is designed to assist you as a christian woman in your discipleship to jesus. Colossians chiasm x in original order the chiasms of paul introduction in this book, you will find many very clear parallelisms and chiasms or chiasmus.
Colossians is named for the city of colosse, where the church it was addressed to was located. Verses 14 as christians are freed from the ceremonial law, they must walk the more closely with god in gospel obedience. While the book of ephesians focuses on the body the church, colossians focuses on the head christ. Key verses and themes in colossians and philemon bible. The key personalities include paul, timothy, tychicus, onesimus, aristarchus, mark, and epaphras. The epistles of paul to the colossians and philemon. Before paul wrote this letter to the christians in colossae, he had never been to their city colossians 2. Abbott, a critical and exegetical commentary on the epistles to the ephesians and to the colossians, icc, pp. Heres a look at the inspiration behind the jungle book. Kjv bible verses from colossians offer free, online access, for those of the christian faith, to study scriptural passages for biblical studies, contained. Jon favreaus the jungle book is a remake of the 1967 classic disney. By comparing the epistle to the colossians with that written to philemon, it is reasonable to suppose that the church at colosse met in their home cf. The first principle is to note the historical setting in which a biblical book was written and the particular historical occasion for its authorship.
It is the unknown god that science is struggling with today. Grace be unto you, and peace, from god our father and the lord jesus christ 3 we give thanks to god and the father of our lord jesus christ, praying always for you. The first half of the book of colossians is a theological treatise that includes one of the most profound presentations of. At the time of the colossians letter, paul had not visited colosse the colossian letter was sent from rome to colosse by tychicus and the converted slave, onesimus. So paul sent this letter, along with the letters to philemon and to the ephesians, with tychicus, accompanied by onesimus colossians 4. Colossians, ephesians and philemon, paul bound, the gospel.
In introducing a book like this, it is critically important for us to have some overall understanding and background. The first half of the book of colossians is a theological treatise that includes one of the most profound presentations of christology anywhere in the new testament. Popular colossians books meet your next favorite book. It was written to counter and respond to heretical teachings and encourage believers to serve with fervor and passion. The text cannot mean something to us that it never meant to the original, ancient, inspired author. What paul is up against in this epistle is the bastions of human culture.
Colossians 1 background information with maps and images. Please contact the publisher to obtain copies of this resource. There the colossians manufactured a beautiful dark red wool cloth colossinum for which the city became famous. The book of colossians is a series of expository preachingnotes that will give the listener an account of what happens in the book of colossians with commentary on each scripture within the text. A study guide for women, is to offer assistance in the task of applying the bible to daily life. We hope that you find the colossians summary from the kjv bible chapters and verses helpful to your bible studies and for references as a guide to further reference to the book of colossians. We devour some sweet and bittersweet facts behind the origins of roald dahls most famous work. The colossians were living in the lyscus valley in lower asia minor. The epistle to the colossians was written by paul the apostle and included with his prison epistles. The inside story of rudyard kipling and the jungle book biography.
By him are all things held together, and all power in the natural world comes from him. The historical context a daily devotion for june 26, 2014 as we looked at the literary context yesterday, today the goal is to look at the historical context of colossians. Intro to colossians biblica the international bible. Jesus christ exalted chapter 1 christianity exalted chapters 2 union with christ exalted chapter 34. Book summary colossians shows jesus christs divine characteristics. While there is not much that is needed to be known here, there are some things to know. As you begin a study and devotion of the book of colossians, it is important to understand both the literary and historical context. This was a letter, written by paul, under the inspiration of the holy ghost, to the church at colossae. Previous index next the epistle to the colossians chapter one objectives in studying this chapter 1 to see the relationship between understanding the grace of god and bearing fruit 2 to examine pauls prayer for the colossians for the keys to successful christian living 3 to appreciate the preeminence of christ in creation and our redemption summary paul begins with his customary. Introduction to colossians bible exposition commentary. Otherwise, many of the words, phrases and allusions paul uses will be meaningless. Bruce, paul, the apostle of the heart set free, pp. Background of the book of colossians 1 who is considered.
Previous index next the epistle to the colossians chapter one objectives in studying this chapter 1 to see the relationship between understanding the grace of god and bearing fruit 2 to examine pauls prayer for the colossians for the keys to successful christian living 3 to appreciate the preeminence of christ in creation and our redemption. Colossians focuses on jesus as the head of the church and the church living in submission to that head. The power of the bleeding love of god is stronger than the power of caesar, of the law, of mars, mammon, aphrodite and the rest. In the early church, all who speak on the subject of. Book of colossians overview insight for living ministries. Background of the book of colossians 1 who is considered the. In the early church, all who speak on the subject of authorship ascribe it to paul. The jungle book 1894 is a collection of stories by the english author rudyard kipling. This was about the same time he wrote ephesians and philemon. As a guide to bible study, it shares tyndales motive to know more of the scripture. Colosse was located about one hundred miles east of ephesus in the region of the seven asian churches of revelation chapters. Jesus, it says, is the image of the invisible god, the preeminent one of all creation.
However, the downside of this fecundity is that the wide selection is so bewildering that one needs a guide to navigate through the dense jungle of commentaries. This semester im involved in an intensive bible study on the book of colossians. The doctrine of christ in colossians gordon college. Interpreting colossians in order to correctly interpret this book it is especially important to understand the historical and cultural background of colossians. The biblical historical background to colossians can be seen in acts 19. He has no equal among the religious leaders of the world religions because he and he alone is gods son and the way, the truth, and the life john 14. This article is also available and sold as a booklet. Paul evangelized the churches of the lychus valley where. Since pauls letter to the colossians is considered a warning and corrective against a heresy. Background on colossae and the colossians bible commentary. In wilsons view, the popularity of the mowgli stories is thus not literary but moral. In the 19th century, however, some thought that the heresy refuted in ch. Sermons in this series call his name jesus matthew 1.
In colossians all stops are out on the majestic hymn of praise sung to him who is the fullness of the godhead bodily col. The epistle of paul to the colossians, or simply colossians, is the twelfth book of the new testament. Thus, colossians is a book that speaks to our cosmic age and to this new. The apostle paul wrote this letter to christians living in the small city of colossae. The book of colossians is a prison epistle letter written while in prison. Religion, tradition, and philosophy including mysticism and asceticism had swept through the church life there. The mood of colossians is argumentative and controversial, that of. It was also to be read in the neighboring church at laodicea 4. Also known as the epistle to the colossians, the book of colossians was written by the apostle paul from 58 to 62 a. The original author had a purpose, a message to communicate. Sep 03, 2011 this semester im involved in an intensive bible study on the book of colossians. Indeed, he is the image of the invisible god, the sovereign and preeminent one among all creation col.
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