This Tuesday we are looking at Colossians 1:21-2:7. As you read through this section, pay special attention to Paul’s use of the great three theological virtues (faith, hope, and love) and the role they play in the life of a mature Christian community. In 2:3, Paul says that all “wisdom and knowledge” is in Christ. The Colossians would have been educated in the “wisdom and knowledge” of Greek philosophy, much of which is reflected in Scripture. As we discussed last week, it appears that Paul wrote this letter because some in the church in Colossae are returning to these philosophies. Attached for your review is a brief excerpt from Augustine’s (354-430) Confessions, wherein Augustine compares the Platonist understanding of the Logos (or Word) with that disclosed in Jesus Christ. Bk. 6, ch. 9. As you read through the attached, try to see how the primary difference between the Logos described by the Platonist and the Logos revealed in Jesus Christ relate to the great theological virtues and thereby to the very foundation of the church.
Dinner on Tuesday is pasta e fagioli. And please remember to bring back your Tupperware containers.
Continue in the faith, stable and steadfast, not shifting from the hope of the gospel which you heard, which has been preached to every creature under heaven, and of which I, Paul, became a minister.
Colossians 1:23