The book of Colossians can be divided into four sections. The first section is the introduction (1:1-8), and the last is the conclusion (4:7-18). The second section (1:9—3:11) is focused on Christ as the preeminent and all-inclusive One, the centrality and universality of God. This section is the center of the Epistle to the Colossians and contains its subject. The third section (3:12—4:6) covers the living of the saints in union with Christ. In this book we have a full revelation of Christ. Then we are told of the kind of living we should have in union with Christ. If we truly know Christ and experience Him, we shall live in union with Him.
In 1:9—3:11 we see seven major aspects of Christ: that Christ is the portion of the saints (1:9-14), that He is the first both in creation and in resurrection (1:15-23), that He is the mystery of God’s economy (1:24-29), that He is the mystery of God (2:1-7), that He is the body of all the shadows (2:8-23), that He is the life of the saints (3:1-4), and that He is the constituent of the new man (3:5-11). These aspects of Christ are presented in a marvelous sequence. First we see that Christ is the portion of the saints and last that He is the constituent of the new man. This indicates that the ultimate issue of enjoying Christ as our portion is that we experience Him as the content and constituent of the new man. Whenever we enjoy Christ, there is a definite result, an issue, of this enjoyment. To say that the enjoyment of Christ as the portion of the saints results in the experience of Christ as the constituent of the new man indicates that the enjoyment of Christ results in the church life. However, we should be careful not to reduce the profoundness of the revelation in Colossians. Paul does not tell us in an elementary way that if we enjoy Christ, the church will come into being. This, of course, is true, but such an understanding falls short of the revelation here. Christ is the all-inclusive portion of the saints, typified by the good land. If we enjoy Christ as such a portion, the result will be the new man with Christ as the content. Ultimately, the Christ we enjoy as our portion becomes the constituent of the new man. In this new man Christ is all and in all. Hence, it is crucial for us to learn to live Christ as the constituent of the new man.
If we would live Christ as the constituent of the new man, we need to be ruled by the peace of Christ (3:12-15) and inhabited by the word of Christ (3:16-17). The peace of Christ must arbitrate within our being, and the word of Christ must dwell in us richly. As Christians, we have different backgrounds and different concepts. These differences lead to disagreements among us; therefore, there is the need for an arbitrator. This arbitrator is the peace of Christ. It is crucial that the peace of Christ be allowed to preside in our hearts and to speak the final word regarding any controversy among us.
If we remember the background of the book of Colossians, we shall realize that among the believers in Colosse there were various parties. One party was in favor of Jewish observances, whereas another favored Gnosticism. These different preferences gave rise to conflicting opinions. For this reason, Paul told them to let the peace of Christ arbitrate in their hearts. The arbitrator should not be their opinions, concepts, choices, or preferences; it should be the peace of Christ, to which we are called in one Body.
We have pointed out that the peace of Christ is the very peace to which Paul refers in Ephesians 2:15, where we are told that Christ “abolished in His flesh the law of the commandments in ordinances, that He might create the two in Himself into one new man, making peace.” This peace is the oneness of the new man, the Body. By abolishing the ordinances, Christ has created the different peoples into one new man. Now within us as members of the new man there is something which Paul terms the peace of Christ. Hence, the peace of Christ is the very oneness of the new man composed of different peoples. Apart from the work of Christ on the cross, there can be no oneness among the different peoples. But through His death Christ has made peace; that is, He has produced oneness. This oneness of the new man is now within us. This oneness, the peace of Christ, must now be permitted to arbitrate in our hearts. It should function as a referee to settle the disputes among various parties. We need to set aside our opinion, our concept, and listen to the word of the indwelling referee. There is no need for us to quarrel or to express our opinion. We should simply let the peace of Christ make the final decision.
Suppose several young brothers are living together in a brothers’ house. Whenever they have problems living together, they should not argue. Instead, they should allow the peace of Christ to arbitrate in their hearts. They should let this peace be the referee who makes the final decisions. In this way, they will live Christ as the constituent of the new man.