For it pleased the Father that in Him all the fullness should dwell, 20 and by Him to reconcile all things to Himself, by Him, whether things on earth or things in heaven, having made peace through the blood of His cross. 21 And you, who once were alienated and enemies in your mind by wicked works, yet now He has reconciled 22 in the body of His flesh through death, to present you holy, and blameless, and above reproach in His sight — 23 if indeed you continue in the faith, grounded and steadfast, and are not moved away from the hope of the gospel which you heard, which was preached to every creature under heaven, of which I, Paul, became a minister” (Colossians 1:18-23 NKJV).
FOR IT PLEASED THE FATHER:
The Father is at the center of everything. The relationship between the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit is a mystery yet to be revealed. What has been revealed, is that THE ONE TRUE GOD has chosen to reveal Himself as three in terms of “Divine Family Order.” Ern Baxter, a well-known Bible teacher of the last century put it this way: “the Father thought it, the Son spoke it, and the Holy Spirit performed it.” I don’t know about you, but knowing the relationship between the Godhead is good enough for me! The descending order of the Godhead is centered in Divine Family.
It pleased the Father, that in the Son all fullness should dwell. As we saw last week, the Father gave to the Son the Word to create. The Son spoke, “let there be.” Then the Spirit, who was waiting for the Word, went into action and the chaos came into order and brought forth the heavens and the earth. The Son of God has done the same in the new creation of the Spirit. The Father gave His only begotten Son the Word of heaven for earth. The Son came to earth to do the will of His Father. “For I have come down from heaven, not to do My own will, but the will of Him who sent me” (John 8:36). He came not only to speak the “Word” of the Father but as we saw last week, He came to reveal the Father. Again, this is what He told Phillip in the upper room and of and all the disciples as recorded in John 14:8-11. “Philip said to Him, “Lord, show us the Father, and it is sufficient for us.” 9 Jesus said to him, “Have I been with you so long, and yet you have not known Me, Philip? He who has seen Me has seen the Father; so how can you say, ‘Show us the Father’? 10 Do you not believe that I am in the Father and the Father in Me? The words that I speak to you I do not speak on My own authority, but the Father who dwells in Me does the works. 11 Believe Me that I am in the Father and the Father in Me, or else believe Me for the sake of the works themselves” (John 14:8-11 NKJV).
Colossians 1:20 gives us the purpose and the how “to reconcile all things to Himself, by Him, whether things on earth or things in heaven, having made peace through the blood of His cross.”
Now we have come to the very core of the matter! God’s heart, His plan, and His purpose was to reconcile His fallen creation to Himself. This is why the scriptures say, “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son.” The qualifier is, “that whosoever believes in Him, should not perish, but have everlasting life” (John 3:16).
Verse 21 gives us the why, “And you, who once were alienated and enemies in your mind by wicked works, yet now He has reconciled.” Note, that every human being is “alienated” from God. Some describe the alienation as a “great gulf.” Jesus described that gulf in Sheol between the righteous waiting for Messiah to come and release them and the unrighteous who were awaiting final judgment.
We were not only alienated but enemies in our minds by wicked works. The world is alienated from God by the sin nature. This is a self-centered nature, one that is filled with wickedness, a nature that cannot meet the standards of God’s righteousness, regardless of how hard one tries in their efforts. This is why religion is vain if not directly connected with God’s work of reconciliation. Only in the body and blood of Christ is there any hope.
Verse 22 continues to declare, “in the body of His flesh through death, to present you holy, and blameless, and above reproach in His sight—if you continue in the faith, grounded and steadfast, and are not moved away from the hope of the gospel which you heard, which was preached to every creature under heaven, of which I, Paul, became a minister.
This verse is so very profound! That is, “In the body of His flesh through death,” God, who is “Spirit” and “the Eternal One,” humbles Himself through His great LOVE, and takes on human form, flesh and blood, a human body that is genealogically connected back to Adam (See Luke 3:38), being (as was supposed) the son of Joseph. But also, His mother Mary was in the genealogical line of Jesus.
The holy one of God, came to redeem and present us holy and blameless, and above reproach. Even after we confess our sins, repent of all we can think of, get connected to a good church, read our Bibles regularly, and witness to others, there are still problems that arise in our life that do not match up to Jesus the perfect one. You see beloved, it is not about our performance, but His redeeming life through His sacrifice of the cross. It is all summed up in Christ. Nothing can be added. Daily, we are to take up our cross and follow Him.
Believe it, receive it, and rejoice in what our Lord has done for you! You are holy, you are blameless, and you are above reproach in His sight. Now let the Holy Spirit live the life of Jesus through you as you yield to Him in all you say and do. Allow Him Lordship in your redemption through the daily infilling of the Holy Spirit. Listen to what Paul writes in Ephesians 5:18, “And do not be drunk with wine, in which is dissipation; but be filled with the Spirit, speaking to one another in psalms, and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord, giving thanks always for all things to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.”
If you will grasp this and apply it daily, you will begin to walk in the peace of God that passes all understanding. Beloved, this is our prayer for you, every one of you.
Our last thought is drawn from Verse 23. If indeed you continue in all the faith. Our life in Christ is a continuum, not an event that fades away. Webster defines continuum this way, “a coherent whole characterized as a collection, sequence, or progression of values or elements varying by the minute.” Jesus has made us whole through His Redemptive action and unfathomable love. There is a “coherent whole.” The characterization is what we experience day by day, the collection of experiences with others, the temptations that try to hinder us, the progression of values of His life in us that bring change moment by moment.
Grounded and steadfast, through our consistent devotion to His love and faithfulness. Our feeding upon His word daily through reading and meditation, by application in everyday circumstances, especially with people. Not allowing anything to move you away from the hope of the gospel. To understand that hope is a “blessed hope” of the glorious return of our great God and King. This gospel was being preached then and it still is throughout the whole world. Just as Paul became a minister of God and God’s gospel, may we also be a minister of our Lord’s in living and sharing the goodness of the gospel with those who do not know yet.
In our next lesson, we will begin right here and learn of our security in Christ and how to affirm what Christ Jesus has done for all those who hope in Him.