Growth In Christ
GROWTH IN CHRIST
COLOSSIANS 2:4-7
There is an immense difference between a passive faith and an active rest in Christ.
The apostle had just pointed to the infinite treasures of the truth of God available to the believer in Christ (2:3). His purpose in doing so was to prevent anyone from deceiving the Colossians into thinking that something beyond their life in Christ was necessary to complete their salvation. For the first time in the letter Paul makes a direct allusion to the false teaching. He labels it a delusion couched in plausible, fine-sounding arguments (2:4). The new doctrine was supported by appeals to its plausibility; the apostle exposes it as false. They would be led astray from the truth by false reasoning.
What prompts Paul to warn the believers of deception is his own feeling for them. He is with them “in spirit” and rejoices in the steadfastness of their faith in Christ (2:5). If the military terminology may be pressed, the apostle envisages the Christians as soldiers arranged in orderly formation prepared to support an unbroken front of faith. They had received Christ Jesus as Lord through the apostolic teaching which Epaphras had faithfully proclaimed. Now Paul pleads for them to live their lives as those who were united with Christ through faith and who derive their own life from his (2:6). This thought is expanded by means of the mixed metaphors of a living organism sending its roots into the subsoil, and a building nearing completion as it rises from an indestructible foundation (2:7). The first metaphor suggests that faith must be living, sustained by the life of Christ himself; the second, that faith must experience growth toward perfection. Faith is thought of as an active principle which establishes the Christian in his relationship to Christ. Paul’s response to the plausible, fine-sounding arguments is an appeal for continued growth in the Christian life experienced through the word of truth conveyed in the apostolic tradition (see 1:5f.), and abundant thanksgiving.