Colossians 3:16 — The Word of Christ

16 Let the word of Christ be making its home in you richly, in all wisdom, teaching and admonishing yourselves; in psalms, in hymns, in spiritual songs, singing, with grace in your hearts to God.

What does Paul mean by “the word of Christ”? It is commonly understood as referring to the words Jesus spoke while He walked on earth. Here, however, it concerns the word of the risen and exalted Christ. Paul had not received his message from men, nor had he learned it through tradition. He writes: “For neither did I accept it from a man, nor was I taught it, but it came through a revelation of Jesus Christ” (Galatians 1:12).

The word Paul made known was the word of Christ Himself. The exalted Lord had personally called him and made known to him what had remained concealed until then. Paul was the chosen spokesman through whom Christ made His word known among the nations. That is why Paul writes that he had been given the administration “to complete the word of God”: the secret that was now being made known among the nations (Colossians 1:25–27).

Against that background, the exhortation in the text above takes on particular force. That word was not to remain on the margins but was to make its home among them richly: it was to be given ample room, fill their thinking, and shape their interactions with one another. The word that the exalted Christ made known through Paul would find a permanent and abundant dwelling place among the saints.

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