Editorial introduction: Colossians

The last time Review & Expositor focused on the letter to the Colossians was in 1973. It has been forty-six years since our readers had a sustained volume on this intriguing New Testament letter— too long. The 1973 issue was organized by Dale Moody, who was Theology Professor at the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary (1948–1984). As one of the students in the last class he taught at Southern Seminary, I am humbled and honored to have shepherded this volume on Colossians from inception to completion. The 1973 issue under Moody’s guidance had stellar scholars who were at the height of their productivity and creativity with their engagement of biblical interpretation. The names were well known in the middle to late twentieth century: G. E. Ladd, E. Glenn Hinson, C. F. D. Moule, George Beasley-Murray, Eduard Schweizer, and Bo Reicke. This issue includes work from another generation of stellar scholars and authors. We believe their insights and work on Colossians will provide sustaining substance over the coming decades for all those who, in the words of St. Augustine, “take up and read” this issue. Much has changed in the world in the last forty-six years. Whereas the writers in 1973 were all white males, this issue represents a more diverse world of scholars and scholarship on Colossians. The methods and emphases of 2019 are quite different than in 1973. Especially evident as a trajectory throughout this volume is the focus upon the ethical implications within Colossians. As the writers of this issue illustrate, Colossians can be dissected with keen insights and methods, but any study of Colossians must also intersect with the quotidian existence of believers, the Church, and the world—precisely as it did in the first century for the original readers and listeners. This issue begins with “A word about . . . ” by Ircel Harrison, Coaching Coordinator for Pinnacle Leadership Associates and Supplemental Associate Professor of Missional Theology for Central Baptist Theological Seminary. He focuses upon the imperative of equipping leaders for a new era of ministry. As Harrison ably notes, the world, the Church, and ministry leadership are changing. How individuals respond to changes will determine the missio Dei for the coming decades.