The Supremacy of Christ
(1:15-29)
Continued
Application
of the Preeminent Work of Christ (1:21-23)
3. Continuation (1:23)
The third key word is continuation. If indeed you continue in the faith firmly
established and steadfast, and not moved away from the hope of the gospel that
you have heard, which was proclaimed in all creation under heaven, and of which
I Paul was made a minister” (Col. 1:23). Some see this verse as teaching the
loss of salvation if he one does not continue in the faith. However, the
statement is positive, not negative. The word “if indeed” is a first class condition. Wallace says that it “indicates the assumption of
truth for the sake of argument.”[1] He also
argues that the first class condition should not be translated since, which many do. “This is saying too much
about the first class condition.”[2] There
are several words for since that
could have been used instead of the first class condition. Support of this is
seen in:
·
There are places
where the first class condition does not correspondence to reality. In fact
there are places where there is opposition and cannot be translated since.
Example: Matthew 12:27-28. Both conditional statements can be true. “If I cast out demons by Beelzebul…. But if
I cast out demons by the Spirit of God.” Clearly these conditions are
opposed to the other, both cannot be actually true. Wallace writes: “Obviously it is illogical
to translate both sentences as since I cast out, because the arguments are
opposed to each other. And it would be inconsistent to translate the first
participle if and the second since.”[3] While
the first class condition assumes both are true for the sake of argument, it
does not mean it is actually true. Another example of a first class condition
not being actually true is 1 Cor. 15:13. “It is self-evident that the apostle Paul could not
mean by the first class condition “since there is no resurrection,”[4] says Wallace. It is clear
that one cannot automatically assume that because a first class condition is
used that it means the statement is actual, true, or a reality. The writer is
making an assumption of truth for argument; it may not be true at all. In
essence he is saying, let’s say it is true. Bing is correct: “In
view of the flexible use of this conditional construction, it is not the best
key to unlocking the meaning of this warning.”[5]
·
To tell if the
statement is true, it is to be found in the context; not the first class
condition itself.
In
this case, Paul is making an assumption of truth for argument sake to advance
their faithfulness in the gospel. He has already declared that the result of
reconciliation is being presented before God as blameless (1:22). It declares
the fact that they have been reconciled. It is an aorist indicative indicating that
the reconciliation is a past finished action. Therefore, as Baker notes:
This verse is not an
argument against the eternal security of the believer…. The fact that the “if”
(eige) is followed by the
indicative and not the subjunctive mood shows that Paul is not doubting the
Colossian’s continuance in the faith. Trench says that this grammatical
construction ‘converts a hypothesis into a hope.’[6]
They
are to continue “in the faith firmly
established and steadfast” (1:23). Their continuance or steadfastness is to
be in the faith. The faith here is
not referring to personal faith, but rather the faith, the body of truth given
to them by the Apostle Paul. The faith refers to what is believed, not the act
of believing. Calvin calls it “an exhortation to perseverance.”[7]
Perseverance is normal for true believers (cf. 2 Cor. 5:17; Phil. 1:6; 1 John
2:19). The object of this warning is to prevent them from being fooled by the
false teachers as to their legalistic doctrine (cf. Col. 2:16-23). The subject
has to do with their sanctification, not their salvation (cf. 2:6-7). This is
seen in the fact that this clause refers back to the word presentation, not reconcile.[8] Paul’s
concern is that believers not be defrauded by these false teachers (Col. 2:18).
Thus, this warning should not be taken lightly. The conditional clause is real.
It is a warning about the human responsibility of believers not to be deceived
by false doctrine. It has a real effect—being robbed of our rewards at the
presentation to God at the judgment seat.
The
point of the clause is to carry out our responsibility by three means:
·
Being “firmly established” in the faith. The
Greek word is
tethemeliomenoi, meaning to lay the
foundation, grounded, firm, unwavering. It is here a perfect participle in the
nominative case and has the idea of “those who have been and continue to be grounded.”[9] It
speaks of being firm in the knowledge of our faith and the Word and thereby
continuing in that knowledge. The consequence of being well founded is
stability in the faith amid the storms that hammer against the truth.
·
Being “steadfast” in the faith. The Greek word
is edraioi meaning settled, steady, steadfast, established, or
firmly fixed. This speaks of endurance in the faith.
·
Not being “moved away from the hope of the gospel.” They are not to be shaken away form their
hope—the gospel of grace. This phrase enhances the idea of endurance not only
in the faith, but the hope of the gospel (cf.
1:5). The life of faith is one of hope.
This
gospel of hope has been hinted at and expressed to the Colossians. We have
already in this epistle seen that it involves: (1) that which is reserved in
heaven for all believers (1:5). (2) Is a key part of the gospel of truth. This
gospel of hope has been proclaimed in the world. They “heard” it and it took
root in their lives. It also “was
proclaimed in all creation under heaven” (1:23). Some see this phrase as a
fulfillment of the great commission (Matt. 24:14; Mark 13:10). That is reading
into the passage that which is not there. First, this gospel which is preached
to the whole word is the kingdom gospel, which deals with the specific gospel
to Israel
There is grace in the
gospel which relates especially to Israel ,
but God’s dealings with Israel
are based upon covenant promises with Israel Israel Israel
Second,
the phrase does not teach the universal preaching to everyone in the world. The
word preached (KJV) or proclaimed (NASB) is found in the aorist passive tense
implying that it had already been preached to the world. The Greek text reads
literally reads “in all the creation
which [is] under heaven,”[11] not “to every creature” (KJV). The clear
intent of Paul is not saying that it was preached to every creature (or
person), but among every creature or in all creation. Here the Greek
preposition en is that of sphere or
location. “It
has regard to place and space, or sphere of action.”[12] A
literal translation of the phrase should be “preached in (or among, throughout) all creation under heaven,” The
gospel was preached in all creation under heaven, not to every creature under
heaven. It does not support the idea of the fulfillment of the great
commission, nor historical fact; even today the gospel has not been preached to
all the nations and peoples of the world. This will not be fulfilled until the
Tribulation period when man and especial the angel “will preach to those who live on the earth, and to every nation and
tribe and tongue and people” (Revelation 14:6).
This
gospel of which Paul speaks is further defined. It is the preaching of the hope
of the Gospel of Grace through Paul. This is clear from the phrase: “and of which I, Paul, was made a minister
(1:23). The phrase “of which” refers
back to “the hope of the gospel.” He
was a participate of preaching the gospel to the world. Paul makes clear in
Corinthians that he was a minister of reconciliation with the message of
reconciliation (2 Cor. 5:16-20 cf. Col. 1:22).
“I, Paul, was made a minister.”
Paul not so by His own will, but the will of God who made him a minister of the
Gospel (cf. Acts 9:13-16; Gal. 1:1, 15-16, Eph. 3:1-5). This is a transition
phrase. It ties what Paul has written about the gospel to what follows—that he
was a minister with a message (1:24-29).
[1] Wallace,
GRAMMAR Beyond the Basic, 690.
[2] Ibid, 690.
[3] Ibid, 691.
[4] Ibid, 691.
[5] Charles Bing,
“The Warning in Colossians 1: 21-23,” 83
[6] Baker,
UNDERSTANDING THE BODY OF CHRIST, 125.
[7] Calvin, John,
CALVIN’S NEW TESTAMENT COMMENTARIES: GALATIANS, EPHESIANS, PHILIPPIANS AND
COLOSSIANS, [Grand Rapids
[8] Eadie,
COLOSSIANS, 84; Bing, “The Warning in Colossians 1: 21-23,” 85. Bing argues
that the conditional clause has to do with the presentation of believers before
the judgment seat.
[9] Campbell,
COLOSSIANS AND PHILMEN, 64.
[10] Charles F.
Baker, A DISPENSATIONAL THEOLOGY, [Grand Rapids, Grace Bible
College
[11] This is the
literal reading of the Textus Receptus, Stephens text of 1550. (George Ricker
Berry, THE INTERLINEAR LITERAL TRANSLATION OF THE GREEK NEW TESTAMENT, Grand
Rapids, Zondervan, 1969). 522. It is translated that way in the early English
Bibles: Geneva Bible; Cloverdale Bible (among all creatures); Tyndale (among
all creatures), Wycliffe (in all creature).
[12] THE COMPANION
BIBLE, 149.
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