It’s easy to make a case for right actions. Jesus never got hung up on doctrinal orthodoxy, after all. It’s instinctive—or it ought to be—that “they’ll know we are Christians by our love.”

But do right beliefs not matter at all? What if we entertained the possibility that, at least sometimes, we act the way we do precisely because we believe the way we do? What if we acknowledged that some people devote their lives to help- ing others because it’s what their mindset, values, and convictions compel them to do—in other words, because of things they believe? What if we dared admit that others sometimes commit unspeakable acts because of things they believe?

In Colossians, Paul challenges his readers to love the Lord with their minds: their worldview and their patterns of thought. He guides them away from unhealthy beliefs and attitudes into a fuller appreciation of Jesus Christ as the central, defining feature of the Christian life. Against a religious philosophy that urged the Colossian believers to “graduate” from Jesus to embrace deeper realms of the spirit, Paul lifts up Christ and Christ alone. In these four chapters, he explores the meaning of Christ’s coming, his reconciling work on the cross, and the new life he brings through his resurrection. This, Paul says, is the true key to a deeper spiritual life.

Get Jesus right, and everything else tends to fall into place.

The Study Guide for the Smyth & Helwys Annual Bible Study on Colossians serves three purposes: to educate the learner on major issues of appropriate interpretation, to offer an overview of theological themes, and to build the learner’s Bible study skills by reviewing significant interpretations.