A Bible-centred People (Col. 3:16)

This sermon was preached on 28/4/2011

Paul has been describing the priorities of the new man, that is, the new humanity or the people of God redeemed by Jesus Christ. They should be identified by their spiritual attire of love (vv. 12-14), by their experience of peace as they submit to the rule of Jesus (v. 15), and by an ongoing focus on the word of Christ (v. 16). We have already considered the attire and the experience of peace, and we will now think about the apostle’s instructions about the church as a word-centred community.

The initial comment that I would make is that the order of Paul’s instructions is important. It is not possible to be a word-centred people if we are not marked by the spiritual qualities specified for us to wear, such as compassionate hearts, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience, bearing with one another and forgiving each other – all of which are expressed through love. The existence of such attitudes enables the believers to experience peace as they acknowledge the lordship of Jesus, and this in turn leads them to function as a word-centred church.

Paul’s requirement in our text is divided into four clauses. First, the Colossians are to let the word of Christ dwell in them richly; second, they are to teach and admonish one another in all wisdom; third, they are to sing psalms, hymns and spiritual songs; and fourth, they are to do so with thankfulness in their hearts to God. Does this mean Paul is describing a sequence of four stages? That is possible. I would suggest, however, a three-part division: in division one he is describing preparation for interaction (letting the word of Christ dwell in them richly); in division two he describes practising interaction (teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom), and gives an example of such interaction (with psalms, hymns and spiritual songs); division 3 is then his description of the spirit of interaction (with thankfulness in your hearts to God).

Preparation for interaction

What does Paul have in mind when he says, ‘Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly’? The first detail concerns the term ‘let’, and it suggests that the believers can hinder this indwelling from taking place. Clearly it is sins of one kind or another that will prevent this from occurring. And I suppose all the Colossians would need to do was to think about the various sins Paul has mentioned already in this chapter, the various attitudes and practices that marked the old humanity and which should not be found in the people of God. It is obvious that Paul is reminding the Colossians of their responsibility to ensure that personal sin does not prevent the word of Christ dwelling in them richly.

Then we need to work out what Paul means by the phrase ‘the word of Christ’. There are two common suggestions regarding it. Some say it is the message about Christ (the gospel) and others say it is the Old Testament (most of the New Testament was not available when Paul wrote Colossians). It is difficult to know how a message or several messages could dwell in them richly unless these messages were very detailed about Christ. But it is possible, so we cannot discount. However, it is more likely that Paul has in mind the Old Testament, the Word of God, and in saying that it should dwell in God’s people he is saying what several Old Testament writers also say about it (for example, Psalms 1 and 19). Of course, we should extend the word of Christ to include the New Testament as well.

The word of Christ is to ‘dwell’ in us, that is, we are to make our inner lives its home. Home is where family members love one another, where they are welcome, where they are relaxed, whether there is mutual delight. Paul is saying that the living word of Christ should reside easily, comfortably, enjoyably within us. The word of Christ is not to be like a lodger, a person who is tolerated; nor is it like a guest, a person who comes and goes. Instead the inner hearts of God’s people should be its home. Going back to the illustration of a lodger or a guest – such a person is only allowed into certain rooms. The Bible is not like that when it indwells us. Instead it has access to every space within our lives.

Paul also says that the word of Christ should dwell in us richly. By the term richly, he is indicating the copiousness of what God’s Word contains. Imagine if a millionaire came to live in our house and said to us that everything he has is now ours. Our homes would change for the better – the furniture would be of higher quality, the food we eat would be from the best stores. That is a very poor illustration of the effects of the improvements that God’s Word will bring about in our hearts when it is in residence.

All this means that the word of Christ must be in our minds – often when we read it, it goes in one ear, but instead of dwelling, it goes out the other. Instead we are to be like the psalmist who meditated on God’s word day and night (Ps. 1), who hid in his heart that he would not sin against God (Ps. 119:11), and who discovered that God’s word was a lamp to his feet and a light to his path (Ps. 119:105).

An obvious matter that should come to mind is how the Colossians could do this when they did not possess individual Bibles. Before the invention of the printing press, it was not possible for believers to have personal copies of the Scriptures, and in any case most of them would not have been able to read one. The answer to this situation was that the Scriptures were read publicly in church gatherings (a blessing is made on the person reading and those listening in Revelation 1:2: ‘Blessed is the one who reads aloud the words of this prophecy, and blessed are those who hear, and who keep what is written in it’), the contents were remembered (memorised), and they were repeated again and again by the believers.

Paul, as we noted, calls the Old Testament by the title ‘the word of Christ’. This can mean that it belongs to Christ or it is about Christ, and both aspects are true. Because it belongs to him, obeying it is an aspect of acknowledging his Lordship; because it is about him, it means that he is found on very page. So, in a sense, having the word of Christ in our hearts is the same as having Jesus in our hearts. He shows himself in the Bible, he speaks to us in the Bible, and we have a living relationship with him through the Bible.

We should not be surprised at Paul’s teaching here because he is saying what Jesus himself said about the Old Testament when he spoke to the two disciples on the way to Emmaus on the day he arose from the dead (Luke 24:27) and what he taught the apostles when he met with them later that day (Luke 24:44). He made the same teaching to his opponents when he rebuked them for searching the scriptures and failing to see that they were about him (John 5:39).

Right away, we face an important challenge – how much of the Bible do we know?

Practising interaction

So the first step in being a Bible-centred community is to know what the Bible says about Jesus. This does not mean that we should not pay attention to other details in the Bible. But having discovered that the Bible belongs to Jesus and is mainly about him, what are we then to do? Paul answers this question in his next two clauses.

The apostle states that believers are responsible for teaching and admonishing one another. Often we assume that teaching and admonishing should be left to ministers and elders, but here Paul makes it very clear that it is an activity that all Christians must take part in on a regular basis. His requirement makes us see why we should have the word of Christ dwelling in us in order to have something to say.

In what manner are we to teach one another? Paul says here we are to teach appropriately, in all wisdom. For example, we have to apply the Bible accurately to a situation. Further, such teaching should be automatic in the sense of being ready to say truth in a spontaneous and suitable manner – we will always know what to say to one another if the word is dwelling within us richly. Mutual teaching will also be done affectionately because it is an expression of brotherly love and not a mere display of knowledge. And it will be done ardently because we want to help one another.

Paul is aware that there will be occasions when admonishment is necessary. Obviously there are degrees of rebuke and sometimes it is necessary for the elders as rulers of the church to give a reprimand. But the usual method of correction is described by Paul here, it happens through mutual admonishing of one another. In what ways should it be done? It should be done humbly, it should be done immediately, it should be done sensitively, and it should be done prayerfully. If such admonishing took place when needed, it would prevent many troubles from breaking out in churches.

Paul then gives an example when such teaching and admonishing takes place – singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs (I take these terms as describing inspired songs, and that Paul uses them because they are found as headings of psalms in the Greek Old Testament, the Septuagint, and it is in the Book of Psalms that such are mainly found, with other songs recorded elsewhere in the Old Testament). What use are we to make of the Psalms?

The first observation is that we should sing them. This may seem a trite comment, but it is a reminder that Christians are called to sing. A second observation is that we don’t only sing them to the Lord, we also sing them to one another. Third, we sing them in order to teach one another and admonish one another. Fourth, I don’t think Paul here is limiting his comments to a church service – indeed he may not even be describing a church service because I don’t think a church service is an occasion when individuals have the time to teach and admonish one another.

How can we share with one another the teaching of Jesus from the psalms? Think about his person and work – we can sing together about his birth (Ps. 40), his life (Ps. 24), his death (Ps. 22), his resurrection (Ps. 16), his ascension (Ps. 110), and his kingdom (Ps. 72). Or we can teach each other about the worldwide spread of the gospel from Psalm 67 or the members of the church from Psalm 87. We can teach each other about the importance of God’s Word from Psalm 19 and Psalm 1. There are many other examples.

With regard to admonishing, we can go and sing Psalm 122 with a believer whose church attendance is erratic or we can sing Psalm 51 with a believer who may be getting into a wrong relationship. We can sing verses from Psalm 107 about the problems that come into our lives when we depart from God. There is a vast range of situations that can be approached from the psalms. And our response should be that of the psalmist in Psalm 141:5: ‘Let a righteous man strike me – it is a kindness; let him rebuke me—it is oil for my head; let my head not refuse it.’

Why should we sing them? Because singing has a way of conveying emotions that mere speech will not do, and our emotions have to be involved in interactions with God and with one another. When should we sing them? Whenever we can – Paul’s words indicate that singing in order to teach and admonish one another is a normal Christian activity. What is the great benefit of such a method? The teaching and the admonishing are done in biblical words that speak to all the singers.

So, says Paul, we are to know the Bible richly and we are to share the Bible frequently, in church and elsewhere. But with what frame of mind are we to do so?

The required spirit

Paul informs us that the frame of mind we should have is hearts that are full of thankfulness to God. We are to be thankful to God that he gave us the Bible, and we have more than the Colossians did. The response of our hearts to the possession of the Bible must be heartfelt gratitude to God. It is the evidence of his amazing grace to us.

And we are to be thankful to God that we can share the contents of his Word with one another. Teaching and admonishing is evidence of brotherly love. Such occasions are providential opportunities to serve one another. R. S. Candlish summed it up in this quotation: ‘Then, let there go forth from you, not stiffly and artificially, but spontaneously and gladly and lovingly, streams of overflowing benignity and benevolence; rich and gracious influences of holy zeal and love and joy; to the glory of God, celebrated in songs of praise; and the edifying of the church, in wise teaching and admonition.’