STUDIES
IN
COLOSSIANS
By
DR. D. PAUL TUCK SR.
A BAPTIST PULPIT PUBLICATION
FORWARD
The messages of this study were originally preached by
the author in
In all of our studies we ever seek to make a practical
application as we believe the Bible to be as relevant today as it was when the
words were first penned, as inspired by the Holy Spirit.
In our studies
we are amazed at the positive clarity with which the apostle Paul addressed his
letter against the false doctrines of his day and how applicable they are to
our day and time. False doctrine like an ugly pimple never ceases to raise its
ugly head in one way or another. There, as Paul stood guard and contended for
the faith once delivered unto the saints, likewise we today must do the same.
Perhaps the word “preaching” is not the right word,
and we should use the word “Teaching” instead. In an age of lack for Biblical
expository preaching and also when we are told not to preach doctrine because
it causes division, we must be reminded that “doctrine” means simply “teaching”
and the words of Paul to Timothy are still in need of hearing and practice –
“Study to show thyself approved unto God, a workman ….”
So we will preach our studies and study our preaching
and pray that the Holy Spirit will use these lines to convict and convince the
Lord’s sheep in following the Lord and savior Jesus Christ.
Dr. D. Paul Tuck Sr.
June 20 2000
DEDICATION
To all who love the truth and want to study
the deeper things of God, I dedicate this book, especially to all who would
become preachers of the BOOK!
D. Paul Tuck Sr.
Copyright 2000
By the author and publishers
Dewey Decimal Number 227.7
All rights to copy or reprint these notes are reserved
By the author and copy permission will be granted to
Missionaries and churches by writing to the publishers.
Published by
BAPTIST PULPIT MINISTRIES
E-mail bpulpit@rogers.com
TABLE OF
CONTENTS
Lesson One - - Saints in Love
Lesson Two -- Steps
to Growth and Maturity
Lesson Three -
The Exalted Christ
Lesson Four - -
Christ’s Plan for His Church
Lesson Five - -
Exalted Christianity
Lesson Six
-- Exalted Christianity Over
Legalism
Lesson Seven -
Exalted Christianity Over Mystical Teaching
Lesson Eight
- Exalted Christianity Over
Asceticism
Lesson Nine
-
Lesson Ten
- The Christian Dress Code
(What
we are not to wear)
Lesson Eleven -
The Christian dress Code
(What
we are to wear)
Lesson Twelve -
Three pillars of Christianity
Lesson Thirteen -
Glory to God in the Home
Lesson Fourteen – Performing Christians
Lesson Fifteen -
The Arms of the Cross
Lesson Sixteen -
Characteristics of Christian Service
PREACHING THRU COLOSSIANS
LESSON
1
SAINTS IN LOVE
Colossians
1:1-9
"The
Church at Colosse":
Colosse was located about 100 miles east of
Some false teaching had crept into the
The theme of Colossians is the supremacy and all-sufficiency of Jesus
Christ.
1.
TO THE SAINTS:
A.
Saints:
The Biblical meaning of the
word "saints" is sanctified or separated ones.
Paul's direction by the use
of the word "saints" is first of all plural, and secondly it is
directed to the Church in Colosse.
The Biblical use of this
word is far different from that of Catholicism which takes a special decree by
the Pope.
Acts
9:32
"And it came to pass,
as Peter passed throughout all quarters, he came down also to the saints which
dwelt at Lydda."
2
Corinthians 1:1
"Paul, an apostle of
Jesus Christ by the will of God, and Timothy our brother, unto the
When one receives Jesus
Christ as Lord and Savior, having their sins forgiven, they are justified
freely, and sanctified in Christ.
Ephesians
2:19
"Now therefore ye are
no more strangers and foreigners, but fellow citizens with the saints, and of
the household of God."
1
Corinthians 1:2
"Unto the
All believers are saints,
but they are called to live like saints.
B.
Faithful:
The meaning of faithful is
"full of faith." One who is
faithful is one who can be depended upon as to continuing in the faith, which
is in Jesus Christ.
The outcome of faith is
faithfulness, or to be faithful. Faithful are those who are continually
trusting in Jesus Christ
The word faithful is
attributed to God, and to His Son, Jesus Christ.
1
Corinthians 1:9
"God is faithful, by
whom ye were called unto the fellowship of his Son Jesus Christ our Lord."
1
Corinthians 4:2
"Moreover it is
required in stewards, that a man be found faithful."
2
Timothy 2:2
"And the things that
thou hast heard of me among many witnesses, the same commit thou to faithful
men, who shall be able to teach others also."
C.
Brethren in Christ:
Those who become followers
of Jesus Christ, having been saved by the sovereign Grace of God are called
brethren. They are brethren who have their faith in Jesus Christ. The word
brethren is used to speak of the brothers and sisters in Christ. (We cannot
leave out the sister'n.)
This then is the direction
or to whom Paul is addressing his letter.
These are saints who are
faith brothers and sisters in Christ. The term "in Christ" is used of
the local New Testament Church.
1
Corinthians 4:17
“For this cause have I sent
unto you Timotheus, who is my beloved son, and faithful in the Lord, who shall
bring you into remembrance of my ways which be in Christ, as I teach every
where in every church."
The reference here is to the
brethren of Christ, which meet in local bodies or Churches.
In the New Testament
churches when one was saved or converted to Christ, they would almost
immediately be baptized and received into the fellowship of the local church.
D. The Fellowship of Prayer: Vs
3
1.
When one is thankful for another, they become the
center of prayer.
2.
Paul's thankfulness for them caused Paul to remember
them at the throne of grace.
3.
The reason of this is seen in the next verse (4)
"Since we heard of your faith."
There is and ever should be
a fellowship of prayer among those that are faithful.
4.
Prayer for one another is the glue that helps to
cement our relationships within the Church and Christian community.
The apostle Paul put much
emphasis upon prayer. We spend far too little time in prayer.
1
Thessalonians 5:17
" Pray without
ceasing."
Ephesians
6:18
"Praying always with
all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and watching thereunto with all perseverance
and supplication for all saints."
Philippians
4:6
"Be careful for
nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let
your requests be made known unto God."
Let us ever be mindful to be
in an attitude of prayer and to pray for one another.
2.
OF THE
SAINTS: (since we heard.) Vs 4
A.
Faith in Jesus Christ:
The faith of these saints is
not in themselves. They are not spiritually ego centered. Their faith is
steadfast and sure in the person of the Lord Jesus Christ.
What does it mean by the
words "faith in Jesus Christ?"
1.
It means they trust in Christ personally as their
Lord and Savior.
2.
It means they trust in what He has accomplished for
them at the cross of
3.
It means they trust in the resurrected Christ and
look for His coming again.
4.
It means that the cross has done its work in their
lives and that is why they trust in Christ.
5.
It means they stand with Jesus Christ, and for all
that he stands for and they endorse the Christian faith.
Galatians 3:26
"For ye are
all the children of God by faith in Christ Jesus."
6.
Faith in Jesus Christ is only the beginning, but
opens up a whole new life for the one trusting his/her life to Christ.
Ephesians 1:15ff
"Wherefore I also,
after I heard of your faith in the Lord Jesus, and love unto all the
saints….."
B.
Love to All the Saints: vs4
Faith produces the love of
Christ for others. One of the evidences, which John gave of one who is a
Christian, is that "they love the brethren."
1
John 3:14
"We know that we have
passed from death unto life, because we love the brethren. He that loveth not
his brother abideth in death."
Hebrews
6:10
"For God is not
unrighteous to forget your work and labor of love, which ye have shewed toward
his name, in that ye have ministered to the saints, and do minister."
To be a Christian is to be
Christ-like. To be Christ-like is to love, not our own lives, but the lives of
others.
We cannot help but note the
concern of Christ, even as he hung dying upon the cross he showed concern for
his mother and for the thief who hung beside him.
Ephesians
5:25
"Husbands, love
your wives, even as Christ also loved the church, and gave himself for it."
The whole concept of salvation,
the New Covenant, and the New Testament Church is built upon the premise of
LOVE.
C.
Hope in Heaven:
(stored up)
The meaning of the word hope
is often one of guarantee. Christian hope is not a guessing game. It is not a
string of maybes', or might-be.
1
Peter 1:3-5
"3 ¶ Blessed be the God
and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, which according to his abundant mercy hath
begotten us again unto a lively hope by the resurrection of Jesus Christ from
the dead,
4 To an inheritance incorruptible, and
undefiled, and that fadeth not away, reserved in heaven for you,
5 Who are kept by the power of God through
faith unto salvation ready to be revealed in the last time."
Romans
5:1-2
"1 ¶ Therefore
being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ:
2 By whom also we have access by faith into
this grace wherein we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God."
So we see that the faith of
verse 4 gives us the hope of verse five and love of verse 8.
Notice that the Christians
hope is already laid up in store in heaven, because it is based upon God's
sovereign grace. It nevertheless comes to us through the word of the truth of
the gospel.
This then is God's channel
of love to the world: from heaven, through the word of truth of the gospel of
Jesus Christ.
So we can sing:
"My hope is built on
nothing less,
Than Jesus blood and
righteousness.
I dare not trust the
sweetest frame,
But wholly lean on Jesus
name.
On Christ the solid Rock I
stand,
All other ground is sinking
sand."
3.
FROM THE
SAINTS: Vs 5-8
What do we possess but that
we did not receive? The blessings of God are not to be an end in themselves.
The Christian is to be a channel of God's Person to others.
A. Truth of the Gospel:
(to all the world)
Jesus Christ is the Truth
incarnate and one must come to that truth through the Gospel, the good news of
Jesus Christ.
The gospel is to be preached
to all of the world, even though we know that they will not all receive it. The
preacher does not know where the sheep are, but the Holy Spirit does, and will
use the preaching of the gospel to reach them.
B.
Fruit of the Gospel:
The gospel when preached in
its fullness will bring forth fruit.
The Colossians had sown the
seed of faith, and declared the gospel of Jesus Christ.
The farmer plants the seed,
but God gives the increase.
1
Corinthians 3:6-8
"I have planted,
Apollos watered; but God gave the increase.
7 So then neither is he that planteth any
thing, neither he that watereth; but God that giveth the increase.
8 Now he that planteth and he that watereth are
one: and every man shall receive his own reward according to his own
labor."
Matthew
3:10
"And now also the axe
is laid unto the root of the trees: therefore every tree which bringeth not
forth good fruit is hewn down, and cast into the fire."
Matthew
13:23
"But he that received
seed into the good ground is he that heareth the word, and understandeth it;
which also beareth fruit, and bringeth forth, some an hundredfold, some sixty,
some thirty."
It is never wrong to expect
fruit of those who claim to be children of God.
C.
Love in the Spirit:
The love in the Spirit was a
possession of the
This was not something that
they bragged about themselves. It was told to Paul by Epaphras, a fellow
servant of Paul (Vs 7).
Romans
15:30-32
"Now I beseech you,
brethren, for the Lord Jesus Christ's sake, and for the love of the Spirit,
that ye strive together with me in your prayers to God for me;
31 That I may be delivered from them that do not
believe in Judaea; and that my service which I have for
32 That I may come unto you with joy by the will
of God, and may with you be refreshed."
The term "love in the
Spirit: (Geneva Bible footnote)
"For the mutual union,
with which the Holy Spirit has united our hearts and minds together."
Dr. John Gill says
(Expositor)
"meaning either the
love of the Father, and of the Son, which was shed abroad in their hearts by
the Spirit, which he had directed them into, and they had a comfortable
sensation of; or that love to God, to Christ, and one another, which the Spirit
of God had wrought in them in regeneration; or that love with which the Spirit
of God equally loved them, as the Father, and the Son; and which he had shown in
their conversion and sanctification, in applying all grace unto them, and
indwelling in them as the Spirit of adoption, and as the earnest and pledge of
the heavenly inheritance."
2
Corinthians 4:5
"For we preach not
ourselves, but Christ Jesus the Lord; and ourselves your servants for Jesus'
sake."
2
Corinthians 4:11
"For we which live are alway delivered
unto death for Jesus' sake, that the life also of Jesus might be made manifest
in our mortal flesh."
2
Corinthians 12:10
"Therefore I take
pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in necessities, in persecutions, in
distresses for Christ's sake: for when I am weak, then am I strong."
This love which they
possessed was a Spirit directed love. It brought true spiritual unity both
within the faith, and within the body of Christ.
We then see the importance
of Holy Spirit leadership. The Holy Spirit. On the Day of Pentecost became the
administrator of the New Testament Churches.
4.
FOR THE SAINTS
Vs 9
A.
Prayer:
Here in verse nine, Paul
comes back to the subject of prayer.
Notice the connection
between "pray for you" and "love in the Spirit."
True prayer is a direct line
of communication in the Spirit realm between the believer and God.
In computer language, before
one can send an e-mail, he must be on-line. We cannot pray as we should and not
be on-line, or in the Spirit.
The model prayer which
Christ gave to His disciples, begins, "Our Father which art in
heaven." It begins with God and ends with God.
B.
Desire:
Paul's desire ought to be
our desire, for ourselves and for others.
"That you might be
filed with the knowledge of His will, in all wisdom and spiritual
understanding.
C.
Filled:
Before we can be filled with
God, we must be empty of self. If we are filled with the things of the world,
we have no room for the things of the Spirit.
1.
Knowledge of His will:
It is important that we know
the will of God, not only for our lives, but also for each day.
Too often, we make our own
plans and then bring them to God for His blessing.
This was ever the prayer of
the apostle Paul:
Ephesians
1:16-23
"Cease not to give
thanks for you, making mention of you in my prayers;
17 That the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the
Father of glory, may give unto you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the
knowledge of him:
18 The eyes of your understanding being
enlightened; that ye may know what is the hope of his calling, and what the
riches of the glory of his inheritance in the saints,
19 And what is the exceeding greatness of his
power to us-ward who believe, according to the working of his mighty power,
20 Which he wrought in Christ, when he raised
him from the dead, and set him at his own right hand in the heavenly places,
21 Far above all principality, and power, and
might, and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this world, but
also in that which is to come:
22 And hath put all things under his feet, and
gave him to be the head over all things to the church,
23 Which is his body, the fullness of him that
filleth all in all."
2.
Wisdom and Spiritual understanding.
Ephesians
1:8-10ff
"Wherein
he hath abounded toward us in all wisdom and prudence;
9 Having made known unto us the mystery of his
will, according to his good pleasure which he hath purposed in himself:
10 That in the dispensation of the fullness of
times he might gather together in one all things in Christ, both which are in
heaven, and which are on earth; even in him."
This is what Paul reveals is
available for the saints. The question remains, do we avail ourselves of this
blessing or are we too filled with ourselves or other things?
CONCLUSION:
Love cannot abide with hatred. Light cannot abide with darkness. Christ
cannot abide in fullness where the heart is filled with other things.
The essence of true love is God, and He wants to fill our hearts and
lives with Himself.
Salvation is not keeping a bunch of rules and regulations. Salvation is
a Person, Jesus Christ. God Himself is our Savior.
Sermon preached by Dr. D. Paul Tuck Sr. in 1988
Preached to
Sunday morning, March 5th 2000.
PREACHING THRU COLOSSIANS
Lesson
#2
STEPS TO GROWTH AND MATURITY
Colossians
1:9-14
INTRODUCTION:
Paul had spoken of the love and faith found in the Church in Colosse.
This love and faith had been wrought in them through the gospel of Jesus
Christ. He now goes on to express his prayer for their continued growth in
Christ. Every Christian should grow and mature spiritually unto full usage of
the gifts or talents given them by God.
How then can we grow and mature in Christ? -
1. THROUGH KNOWING GOD'S WILL: vs9b
A.