“The Early Church and Today,” by Everett Ferguson, Part 8 (Col 3:15-17, Part 2)

We continue to consider Ferguson’s arguments in chapter 22 of his The Early Church and Today, vol. 1 and vol. 2, edited by Leonard Allen and Robyn Burwell. This chapter is titled “Church Music in Ephesians and Colossians.”

Let’s take another look at Col 3:16 to see what Paul’s point really is.

Paul had never been to the church at Colossae, but it came to his attention that the congregation was caught up in a distressing heresy. The exact nature of the heresy is unknown to us, but it clearly involved the worship of angels and a kind of asceticism.

Paul combats this error by writing an epistle focused on the all-sufficiency of Jesus. As a result, Colossians has a high Christology, that is, it focuses powerfully on the supremacy of Jesus and the sufficiency of the gospel.

(Col 2:6-10 ESV) 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.  ⁸ See to it that no one takes you captive by philosophy and empty deceit, according to human tradition, according to the elemental spirits of the world, and not according to Christ.  ⁹ For in him the whole fullness of deity dwells bodily,  ¹⁰ and you have been filled in him, who is the head of all rule and authority.

We began with faith in Jesus, and so we should walk in Jesus. Jesus is enough! Be thankful for what Jesus has done for you. Jesus has the “whole fullness of deity” and we “have been filled in him.” And Jesus is over all other spiritual beings of all kinds.

(Col 2:20-23 ESV)  ²⁰ If with Christ you died to the elemental spirits of the world, why, as if you were still alive in the world, do you submit to regulations — ²¹ “Do not handle, Do not taste, Do not touch”  ²² (referring to things that all perish as they are used) — according to human precepts and teachings?  ²³ These have indeed an appearance of wisdom in promoting self-made religion and asceticism and severity to the body, but they are of no value in stopping the indulgence of the flesh.

What are the “world’s regulations”? Well, ascetic commands against handling, tasting, and touching created things.

Why are these commands wrong? Because they have only “an appearance of wisdom” and constitute “self-made religion” (or “will worship” KJV or “self-imposed religion” NIV and NET Bible). That is, God has made no such command, and we have no business adding commands to the commands of God.

Of course, when church leaders teach against the use of physical or tangible objects in worship, they risk running afoul of exactly this teaching. Asceticism can creep into our teachings and practices all sorts of ways.

(Col 3:1-4 ESV) If then you have been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God.  ² Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth.  ³ For you have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God.  ⁴ When Christ who is your life appears, then you also will appear with him in glory.

At first, this seems contradictory. Paul wants us to think about “things that are above,” not “things that are on earth.” But Paul is not drawing a distinction between the physical and the spiritual, or human instrument playing and human singing. He is drawing a distinction between this existence and the existence that is to come. And the existence that is to come will be characterized  by the same virtues that should fill the church today!

(Col 3:5-9a ESV) ⁵ Put to death therefore what is earthly in you: sexual immorality, impurity, passion, evil desire, and covetousness, which is idolatry.  ⁶ On account of these the wrath of God is coming.  ⁷ In these you too once walked, when you were living in them.  ⁸ But now you must put them all away: anger, wrath, malice, slander, and obscene talk from your mouth.  ⁹ Do not lie to one another, seeing that you have put off the old self with its practices …

Paul’s objection, therefore, is not to the tangible or physical but to the truly sinful, and he offers an extensive list of sins to make his point clear.

Rather, we should —

(Col 3:10-15 ESV) ¹⁰ and have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge after the image of its creator.  ¹¹ Here there is not Greek and Jew, circumcised and uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave, free; but Christ is all, and in all.  ¹² Put on then, as God’s chosen ones, holy and beloved, compassionate hearts, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience,  ¹³ bearing with one another and, if one has a complaint against another, forgiving each other; as the Lord has forgiven you, so you also must forgive.  ¹⁴ And above all these put on love, which binds everything together in perfect harmony.  ¹⁵ And let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in one body. And be thankful.

Paul contrasts sin to the unity that God insists on. To be united, we must love each other and forgive each other. The result will be that we honor our call “in one body.” And this should lead to gratitude.

Thus, Paul defines what is important for the Christian life gospel terms, not physical vs. spiritual or the like.

(Col 3:16 ESV) ¹⁶ Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, with thankfulness in your hearts to God.

Thus, we should let the gospel — the message of the sufficiency of Jesus, in particular — dwell in us richly. We started with the gospel — and the gospel will carry us through to the end. Stay away from earthly philosophy. Focus on the gospel.

If we soak up the gospel, then we’ll be able to teach and admonish with “all wisdom.” Wisdom  (sophia, in the Greek) appears to have been an obsession of the Colossians. It’s no surprise. Greek philosophy was, by definition, a seeking after wisdom (philo + sophia = love of wisdom).

Paul mentions “wisdom” six times in the brief book, beginning with —

(Col 2:2b-3 ESV) Christ, ³ in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.

We want to emphasize the participles (“teaching,” “admonishing,” “singing”), but in context, Paul’s point is really about how to achieve true wisdom. He is not commanding us to teach (although, of course, we should — but that’s not his point here). Rather, his point is that real wisdom is found in Christ. Therefore, if  you’ll let the “word of Christ” dwell richly in you, you’ll be able to teach and admonish with wisdom!

singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, with thankfulness in your hearts to God.

Six other times Paul speaks of being thankful in Colossians, e.g.,

(Col 2:6-7 ESV) 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.

(Col 3:15 ESV) ¹⁵ And let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in one body. And be thankful.

(Col 3:17 ESV) ¹⁷ 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.

(Col 4:2 ESV) ² Continue steadfastly in prayer, being watchful in it with thanksgiving.

You can’t help but notice that Col 3:16 is in between 3:15 and 3:17. It’s the second of three references to thankfulness in a row. Thankfulness is plainly a key thought.

Why is being thankful such a big deal to Paul? Well, because in his mind, it’s the opposite of asceticism. Rather than turning our noses up at God’s created blessings, we should be thankful! Asceticism is a refusal to properly appreciate the gifts of God!

Therefore, since Col 3:15 and :17 both speak of thanksgiving, surely the point of “singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, with thankfulness in your hearts to God” is that we should do our singing with thanksgiving.

Paul is not saying that we should escape asceticism by honoring the command from on high to sing a cappella. His point is that by letting the word work within us by dwelling richly in us, what we do for God we’ll do with true wisdom and a necessary thanksgiving.

No longer will we teach a false philosophy of asceticism and the worship of lesser beings. Rather, our gospel-taught wisdom will be true wisdom, and our gospel-prompted singing will be with true thanksgiving, a thanksgiving that rejects asceticism as having nothing to do with the gospel.

(Col 3:17 ESV) ¹⁷ 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.

Thus, if we can stay away from the sins of the flesh, and live lives of love and unity in faith, we can do whatever we do in honor of Jesus (not lesser beings, such as angels!), giving thanks to God for his gifts (rather than being ascetics).

It’s not terribly complicated. And it has nothing whatsoever to do with instrumental music or other Reformation-era fights. Rather, Paul is countering a peculiar blend of Greek and Judaic religions by insisting on true wisdom and a godly thanksgiving, as opposed to ascetic practices.

Indeed, because Jesus rules over all, and Jesus has the fullness of divinity, then what is right and wrong, good and bad, must be defined in gospel terms. It all begins with the gospel and ends with gospel — which speaks in terms of faith in Jesus, the unity of the body, love for one another — and not what to handle or touch or such like.

One last point. Under the Regulative Principle, we’re supposed to do nothing not “authorized” by command, example, or necessary inference. Obviously, Paul is not speaking in terms of what is or isn’t authorized. He is speaking in terms of what is or isn’t built on the gospel.

Moreover, if we were to consider Col 3:16 in any other context, it would be obvious that Paul’s references to teaching, admonishing, and singing are non-exclusive. That is, if we let the word of Christ dwell in us richly, there are many other good things that will happen other than those mentioned by Paul. His list of participles is not intended to limit what the gospel might prompt within us — and we should not limit the gospel’s promptings either.