This week we will be studying Colossians 3:1-14 under the theme “The Clothing of Jesus.” A major part of Christianity is a new identity in Christ. When someone becomes a Christian, they don’t stop being their gender, race, age, political affiliation, or personality. All of those things are demoted below a more important identification factor – REDEEMED by the blood of Jesus. This child of God, recognizing they’ve now been redeemed by the love of God, commits themselves to a life of love toward others.

The Church in Colossae was a product of Paul’s 3-year ministry in Ephesus. The Apostle Paul wrote the letter to combat a specific type of heresy—a combination of Eastern and Greek philosophy and Jewish legalism with elements of Gnosticism. The danger was not in denying Christianity altogether but in altering genuine Christianity with mysticism, legalism, Eastern religions, asceticism, and man-made philosophy—making it quite relevant to our contemporary pluralistic culture.

This week we’ll be studying Colossians 2:16-23 under the theme “The Freedom of Jesus.” A major component to the Colossian heresy, and much false religion today (including in Christian churches) is the unnecessary burdening of manmade laws. The Apostle Paul refused to allow the Colossians’ sincere faith to be squeezed out by the self-righteousness of false teachers who presumed to be close to God.

The Church in Colossae was a product of Paul’s 3-year ministry in Ephesus. The Apostle Paul wrote the letter to combat a specific type of heresy—a combination of Eastern and Greek philosophy and Jewish legalism with elements of Gnosticism. The danger was not in denying Christianity altogether but in altering genuine Christianity with mysticism, legalism, Eastern religions, asceticism, and man-made philosophy—making it quite relevant to our contemporary pluralistic culture.

This week we’ll be studying Colossians 2:6-15 under the theme “The Fullness of Jesus.” Here we receive one of Scripture’s clearest statements that Jesus is fully God and that his work on earth was to remove our sins by nailing them to his cross. We are working together to remove any deceptive philosophy, human tradition, or spirituality that would deter us from these truths.

The Church in Colossae was a product of Paul’s 3-year ministry in Ephesus. The Apostle Paul wrote the letter to combat a specific type of heresy—a combination of Eastern and Greek philosophy and Jewish legalism with elements of Gnosticism. The danger was not in denying Christianity altogether but in altering genuine Christianity with mysticism, legalism, Eastern religions, asceticism, and man-made philosophy—making it quite relevant to our contemporary pluralistic culture.