Body Building

…ye have put off the old man with his deeds; And have put on the new man…
(Colossians 3:9-10)

Thinking about this chapter as a whole, it is primarily corporate rather than individual in focus. The “new man” is corporate in nature – the original Greek, unlike English, has a different word for “you” singular than “you” plural. Colossians 3 uses second person plurals (“you” as a group rather than “you” as an individual). It is easy to see that in the verses following verse 11, but indeed, it is all about a community effort, a building up of the new man; the corporate body of believers in Christ. The ideal for individual growth in grace is centered in the reality of a well functioning community of believers growing together.

Thinking about the overall context of Paul’s letter to the Colossians, the gnostic way he was preaching against was an individual focus on secret knowledge; the Christian way is a corporate identity with Christ and knowledge of Him within the community of believers.

To put on the new man is to have been brought into a new community in a totally new realm of existence and to have put on new clothing. This new clothing is the new way of conducting oneself in relationships that are fit for the new community. The new man relates to God in a new and better way, and in so doing, relates to others in a new and better way. The old man is the community still under its old ways, where the image of God is marred, and everyone still enjoys wearing the old clothing of selfish attitudes and sinful deeds. We need to keep putting on the new man by keeping ourselves grounded in a fellowship with others of like precious faith.

The new community is designed to express the image of God in human relationships and structures. The big picture is that for the “new man” Christ is in all. Thus the “new man” in Colossians 3:10 is not something inside an individual, but rather the new community in Christ, the church, and together we reflect the image of God. It is for this reason, since we are the new man corporately, that we are not to live like we once did. The believer, having been removed by God from that old community is not to live as if he still belonged there. Thus the “old man” must be continually put off as well.

We need to see Colossians 3 primarily within the context of the "new man", and I believe that this is speaking in the first instance of a corporate identity, rather than an individual focus. Of course, there is much application to individuals based on that, as we are all "new men" in Christ, but as we are exercising our "new man", it is best done, and truthfully, only done within the context of the "new man" that Paul is representing here, which is corporate in nature.

Focusing on individual spirituality without paying proper attention to the corporate community is like a man weight training only one body part. You may have a terrific set of legs, but your forearms look like buggy whips, your shoulders slump, and your chest looks like buried treasure. You may look good in a waist down picture, but you won’t be very functional in real life. Spiritually, we are called into one Body, and Body-building is a necessary function.

If you are to be part of the new man you must begin to do that within the context of community. In Christ we learn to relate to God rightly and this in turn helps us to relate to others rightly. You are either becoming one with the new man or with no man.