Christ in You, the Hope of Glory

September 27, 2026 · Colossians

Series · Colossians · Week 25 of 26

Scripture referenced 25 passages

The passage this message was preached from, in full, with every other passage it reached for.

Colossians 1:15 Christ as the image of the invisible God, firstborn of all creation

15 who is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation.

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Colossians 1:16

all things created through him and for him, visible and invisible, thrones, dominions, rulers, authorities

16 For by him all things were created, in the heavens and on the earth, things visible and things invisible, whether thrones or dominions or principalities or powers; all things have been created through him, and for him.

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Colossians 1:17

he is before all things and in him all things hold together

17 He is before all things, and in him all things are held together.

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Colossians 1:18

Christ as head of the body, the church, firstborn from the dead, first place in everything

18 He is the head of the body, the assembly, who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead; that in all things he might have the preeminence.

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Colossians 1:19

the Father's good pleasure for all the fullness to dwell in him

19 For all the fullness was pleased to dwell in him;

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Colossians 1:20

reconciling all things through the blood of his cross

20 and through him to reconcile all things to himself, by him, whether things on the earth, or things in the heavens, having made peace through the blood of his cross.

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Colossians 1:21-22

previously alienated and hostile in mind, now reconciled in his body of flesh through death

21 You, being in past times alienated and enemies in your mind in your evil deeds,

22 yet now he has reconciled in the body of his flesh through death, to present you holy and without defect and blameless before him,

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Colossians 1:23

continuing in the faith firmly established and steadfast, not shifting from the hope of the gospel

23 if it is so that you continue in the faith, grounded and steadfast, and not moved away from the hope of the Good News which you heard, which is being proclaimed in all creation under heaven; of which I, Paul, was made a servant.

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Colossians 1:24

Paul rejoicing in sufferings, supplementing what is lacking in Christ's afflictions for the church

24 Now I rejoice in my sufferings for your sake, and fill up on my part that which is lacking of the afflictions of Christ in my flesh for his body’s sake, which is the assembly;

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Colossians 1:25

Paul made a minister according to the commission from God to fully carry out the word of God

25 of which I was made a servant, according to the stewardship of God which was given me toward you, to fulfill the word of God,

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Colossians 1:26

the mystery hidden from past ages and generations now revealed to his saints

26 the mystery which has been hidden for ages and generations. But now it has been revealed to his saints,

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Colossians 1:27

the mystery among the Gentiles is Christ in you, the hope of glory

27 to whom God was pleased to make known what are the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory;

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Colossians 1:28

proclaiming him, admonishing and teaching every person to present every person complete in Christ

28 whom we proclaim, admonishing every man and teaching every man in all wisdom, that we may present every man perfect in Christ Jesus;

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Colossians 1:29

Paul laboring and striving according to Christ's power working mightily within him

29 for which I also labor, striving according to his working, which works in me mightily.

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Colossians 2:1

Paul's great struggle on behalf of those at Colossae, Laodicea, and those who had not seen his face

1 For I desire to have you know how greatly I struggle for you, and for those at Laodicea, and for as many as have not seen my face in the flesh;

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Colossians 2:2

hearts encouraged, knit together in love, attaining full assurance and true knowledge of God's mystery

2 that their hearts may be comforted, they being knit together in love, and gaining all riches of the full assurance of understanding, that they may know the mystery of God, both of the Father and of Christ,

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Colossians 2:3

in Christ are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge

3 in whom are all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge hidden.

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Colossians 2:4

warning that no one deceive them with persuasive arguments

4 Now this I say that no one may delude you with persuasiveness of speech.

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Colossians 2:5

Paul absent in body but with them in spirit, rejoicing in their orderly manner and stability of faith

5 For though I am absent in the flesh, yet am I with you in the spirit, rejoicing and seeing your order, and the steadfastness of your faith in Christ.

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Philippians 2:6-8

Christ not grasping equality with God but taking on the likeness of men, obedient even to death on a cross

6 who, existing in the form of God, didn’t consider equality with God a thing to be grasped,

7 but emptied himself, taking the form of a servant, being made in the likeness of men.

8 And being found in human form, he humbled himself, becoming obedient to death, yes, the death of the cross.

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Philippians 1:6

confidence that he who began a good work in them will complete it by the day of Christ

6 being confident of this very thing, that he who began a good work in you will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ.

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John 1:1

the Word was with God, the Word was God, referenced as the logos becoming flesh

1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.

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John 1:14

the Word became flesh and dwelt among us

14 The Word became flesh, and lived among us. We saw his glory, such glory as of the one and only Son of the Father, full of grace and truth.

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Psalm 19

heaven itself proclaiming the gospel every day

1 The heavens declare the glory of God. The expanse shows his handiwork.

2 Day after day they pour out speech, and night after night they display knowledge.

3 There is no speech nor language, where their voice is not heard.

4 Their voice has gone out through all the earth, their words to the end of the world. In them he has set a tent for the sun,

5 which is as a bridegroom coming out of his room, like a strong man rejoicing to run his course.

6 His going out is from the end of the heavens, his circuit to its ends; There is nothing hidden from its heat.

7 Yahweh’s law is perfect, restoring the soul. Yahweh’s testimony is sure, making wise the simple.

8 Yahweh’s precepts are right, rejoicing the heart. Yahweh’s commandment is pure, enlightening the eyes.

9 The fear of Yahweh is clean, enduring forever. Yahweh’s ordinances are true, and righteous altogether.

10 More to be desired are they than gold, yes, than much fine gold; sweeter also than honey and the extract of the honeycomb.

11 Moreover by them is your servant warned. In keeping them there is great reward.

12 Who can discern his errors? Forgive me from hidden errors.

13 Keep back your servant also from presumptuous sins. Let them not have dominion over me. Then I will be upright. I will be blameless and innocent of great transgression.

14 Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in your sight, Yahweh, my rock, and my redeemer.

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Romans 1

all are responsible even from creation's witness alone

1 Paul, a servant of Jesus Christ, called to be an apostle, set apart for the Good News of God,

2 which he promised before through his prophets in the holy Scriptures,

3 concerning his Son, who was born of the offspring of David according to the flesh,

4 who was declared to be the Son of God with power, according to the Spirit of holiness, by the resurrection from the dead, Jesus Christ our Lord,

5 through whom we received grace and apostleship, for obedience of faith among all the nations, for his name’s sake;

6 among whom you are also called to belong to Jesus Christ;

7 to all who are in Rome, beloved of God, called to be saints: Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

8 First, I thank my God through Jesus Christ for all of you, that your faith is proclaimed throughout the whole world.

9 For God is my witness, whom I serve in my spirit in the Good News of his Son, how unceasingly I make mention of you always in my prayers,

10 requesting, if by any means now at last I may be prospered by the will of God to come to you.

11 For I long to see you, that I may impart to you some spiritual gift, to the end that you may be established;

12 that is, that I with you may be encouraged in you, each of us by the other’s faith, both yours and mine.

13 Now I don’t desire to have you unaware, brothers, that I often planned to come to you, and was hindered so far, that I might have some fruit among you also, even as among the rest of the Gentiles.

14 I am debtor both to Greeks and to foreigners, both to the wise and to the foolish.

15 So, as much as is in me, I am eager to preach the Good News to you also who are in Rome.

16 For I am not ashamed of the Good News of Christ, because it is the power of God for salvation for everyone who believes; for the Jew first, and also for the Greek.

17 For in it is revealed God’s righteousness from faith to faith. As it is written, “But the righteous shall live by faith.”

18 For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who suppress the truth in unrighteousness,

19 because that which is known of God is revealed in them, for God revealed it to them.

20 For the invisible things of him since the creation of the world are clearly seen, being perceived through the things that are made, even his everlasting power and divinity; that they may be without excuse.

21 Because, knowing God, they didn’t glorify him as God, neither gave thanks, but became vain in their reasoning, and their senseless heart was darkened.

22 Professing themselves to be wise, they became fools,

23 and traded the glory of the incorruptible God for the likeness of an image of corruptible man, and of birds, and four-footed animals, and creeping things.

24 Therefore God also gave them up in the lusts of their hearts to uncleanness, that their bodies should be dishonored among themselves;

25 who exchanged the truth of God for a lie, and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever. Amen.

26 For this reason, God gave them up to vile passions. For their women changed the natural function into that which is against nature.

27 Likewise also the men, leaving the natural function of the woman, burned in their lust toward one another, men doing what is inappropriate with men, and receiving in themselves the due penalty of their error.

28 Even as they refused to have God in their knowledge, God gave them up to a reprobate mind, to do those things which are not fitting;

29 being filled with all unrighteousness, sexual immorality, wickedness, covetousness, malice; full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, evil habits, secret slanderers,

30 backbiters, hateful to God, insolent, haughty, boastful, inventors of evil things, disobedient to parents,

31 without understanding, covenant breakers, without natural affection, unforgiving, unmerciful;

32 who, knowing the ordinance of God, that those who practice such things are worthy of death, not only do the same, but also approve of those who practice them.

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Recap

The message in order, in a few minutes of reading.

This message worked through Colossians 1, from the supremacy of Christ over all creation down to the personal reality that the same Christ now lives in every believer. The thread running through it was the distance between what we were, alienated, hostile in mind, engaged in evil deeds, and what God has done about that through the body and blood of Jesus. Pastor Ray kept returning the room to the staggering contrast between the bigness of Christ and the smallness and lostness of the people he came to find.

What was said

The passage opens with language Paul uses to pile up the scope of who Christ is. He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation, the agent through whom everything was made and through whom everything still holds together. Pastor Ray pointed out that Paul uses the word "all" over and over on purpose. This is not modest language. It is meant to overwhelm.

From that height, the passage drops directly to "and y'all." The same Christ who is over everything looked at people who were alienated from God, hostile toward Him in their thinking, and acting out of that hostility, and chose to reconcile them. Pastor Ray walked through several translations of those verses to make the direction of movement plain: the people were not looking for God. God came looking for them.

The reconciliation happened specifically through Christ's body of flesh, hanging on the cross. Pastor Ray said Paul is deliberate about that wording because he has already called the church the body of Christ. He does not want anyone to think that joining the church is what saves them. The transaction was made on the cross, not by joining a group.

The goal of that reconciliation is to present believers before God holy, blameless, and beyond reproach. Pastor Ray stayed with that for a moment, acknowledging how hard it is to receive, and pointing to the string of metaphors Scripture gives: sins thrown as far as the east is from the west, scarlet becoming white as snow. He said there is no theological argument that holds up against a life that has actually been transformed by it.

Paul then says he rejoices in his sufferings and that he is supplementing what is lacking in Christ's afflictions. Pastor Ray was clear that the finished work of Christ lacks nothing when it comes to saving power. What is lacking is that the whole world has not heard it yet. That is what Paul's suffering is filling in, and that is why missions and personal witness exist.

The mystery that had been hidden from past ages and is now revealed is described as "Christ in you, the hope of glory." Pastor Ray said that is the center of everything Paul is building toward in the passage. Not a system, not a religion, but Christ himself dwelling in the people He has reconciled, and through them being proclaimed to every person.

Paul closes the section by describing his struggle on behalf of people he has never met, including the Colossians and the Laodiceans, wanting their hearts encouraged and knit together in love, and wanting them to attain to the full knowledge of God's mystery, which is Christ himself. Pastor Ray noted that in Christ are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge, and that the answer to what you do not yet understand about the faith is still, in the end, Jesus.

Touch points

Things you could actually do this week.

Read through Colossians 1:15-29 slowly this week and let the descriptions of who Christ is sit with you before moving on.
Think of one person in your life who is still in that place of alienation from God and look for a natural moment to tell them what changed for you.
If you have been coming to church out of obligation rather than wanting to, bring that honestly before God and ask Him to make the difference real to you.
Spend some time with Jesus in the Gospels this week, just reading how He answers people, as Pastor Ray suggested.
Pray for Nick and whoever else from this church is carrying the gospel somewhere far from home, and ask God where your own part in that mission is.

Doing a Bible study?

Here is a guide we have prepared for you: the passages in order, questions for the group, and room to write.

Pastor Ray described Jesus as 'countercultural in every culture' and said his answers are so wonderful that you would want to answer like that yourself. What is one situation in your own life where you wish you could respond more like Jesus, and what do you think gets in the way?
Pastor Ray talked about growing up in church his whole life and still being hostile toward God in his mind, feeling like attending was something he just had to do rather than something he wanted to do. Have you ever been in that place, going through the motions without really wanting to? What, if anything, changed that for you?

and 3 more questions in the guide

Open the study guide

Resumen en español

El mensaje resumido, en español.

El sermon recorre Colosenses 1, deteniendose en la grandeza de Cristo como imagen del Dios invisible, agente y sustentador de toda la creacion, y cabeza de la iglesia. Pastor Ray subrayó que todo lo que existe fue creado por El y para El, y que en El habita toda la plenitud de Dios. Esa no es una verdad abstracta: es la base de todo lo que sigue en la carta.

Desde esa altura, Pablo baja a algo muy personal. Antes de conocer a Cristo, todos estabamos alienados de Dios, enemigos en nuestra mente y ocupados en obras contrarias a El. No fue nuestra busqueda lo que cambio las cosas, sino la reconciliacion que Dios hizo posible mediante la muerte de Cristo en su cuerpo de carne. El proposito fue presentarnos santos, sin mancha y sin reproche delante de El. Pastor Ray hablo de como esto aplica tanto al que vivio anos en rebelion abierta como al que creció en la iglesia pero cargaba por dentro una actitud hostil hacia Dios.

La segunda parte del sermon se centró en el misterio que estuvo escondido por generaciones y que ahora ha sido revelado: Cristo en vosotros, la esperanza de gloria. Pablo sufre en la carcel y escribe a gente que nunca ha visto, porque lo que le falta a la obra de Cristo no es poder sino alcance, que todo el mundo la escuche. Por eso trabajamos, por eso hay misiones, por eso cada creyente lleva el mensaje. El objetivo es presentar a toda persona completa en Cristo.

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Pasajes biblicos mencionados

Colosenses 1:15-29
Hebreos (referencia a Cristo como imagen exacta de Dios)
Filipenses 2 (Cristo no considero el ser igual a Dios como algo a que aferrarse)
Filipenses 1 (confiado en que el que comenzó la buena obra la completara)
Romanos (la creacion proclama el evangelio; responsabilidad ante esa revelacion)
Salmos 19 (los cielos proclaman la gloria de Dios)
Juan 1:1 (el Verbo era Dios, el Verbo se hizo carne)

Read the full transcript 5,153 words

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In image of the invisible God. That's the way that starts. Right? He is the exact icon. He is exactly the representation as Hebrews says of the invisible God and throughout the ages past, God was out there and now when he came to Earth.

He's right here among us. He's the image of the invisible God. The firstborn of all creation, preeminent in everything, absolutely everything. And by him, all things were created, the agent of creation, both in heavens and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities. Do you hear how big this is?

It's everything. It's all encompassed. Ponta, all. It's over and over. All.

All things have been created through him and all things are for him. He is before all things and in him all things hold together. That's big. Hallelujah. Amen.

He, Christ, is also the head of the body. This is a part of the body of Christ right here. We're gathered in his name, right? Where two or three are gathered. He's here with us in our midst.

He is here as the head of this body, the church. He is the beginning. He is the firstborn from the dead so that he himself will come to have first place in everything. May it be so in my heart. May it be so in your heart.

May it be so in your family. May it be so in your job. May it be so, Lord. For it was the father's good pleasure for all of the fullest, the pleroma, to dwell in him. To hear that the Holy Spirit dwells in us, but we still have that walking around man.

You know, we still have the flesh that we fight against flesh. We've got spirit. We've got flesh. The indwelling Holy Spirit is more powerful than your flesh. Let it be.

Yeah. Okay? He's all powerful. He really is all. He really is everything.

It's the father's good pleasure for all of the fullness to dwell in him. If you read the pages of the gospels and you see Jesus acting in a way that's just like, man, he's countercultural in every culture. He's so good. He's so good, and his answers are so wonderful. And don't you want to answer like that?

Spend some time with him. Spend some time with him. It was a father's good pleasure for all of the fullness of the godhead to dwell in him and through him to reconcile all things to himself. God is renewing the world. After the fall, he is renewing the world and the agent that is making that happen is Jesus whether it's things on earth or things in heaven, having made peace through the blood of his cross.

And that gets us to and although y'all, plural, were previously alienated. You know what it means to be alienated? Set apart where there's no hope. Right? You're alienated.

You are separated from God. Now, we can argue where that began. It began at the fall but all of us are by nature and by choice, fallen. Right? So, although y'all were previously alienated and you were hostile in attitude, now some of y'all are church folks doing, I don't remember ever really being hostile.

Your mama does. Okay. I've been in church my whole life. I was hostile in attitude. Actually, attitude there can mean attitude.

It means mind. In your minds, you are hostile towards God. You're thinking thoughts that were against him. And that's by, like I said, nature and by choice for all of us. Although you're previously alienated, separated from God, and hostile in your attitude, and engaged in evil deeds.

There's some question as to whether the attitude is what causes the evil deeds or what the evil deeds shows what attitude, it is what it is. If you are alienated and separated from God and incapable of righteous choice, you're going to make wrong choices, right? Bad choices and those show up as evil deeds. Now for me, I grew up in church my whole life and my evil deeds might not be many, many, many years of wayward wandering, but I was still alienated from God. I was still hostile in my attitude.

I remember having the thoughts of, why is it that I have to do that? Why is it that I have to keep on going to this thing? I remember the first time I missed church. Eighth grade. Good grief.

I know we didn't go on vacation, but come on. Yeah. I remember it because I felt like I gotta do this. I gotta do this. I gotta do this.

I gotta do this. If you're doing it out of that, it's like, that's not that's not the whole reason. Come to a door. Oh, come to the altar. Come to worship because you want to but I didn't want to.

So, some of y'all got an amen for this statement and it doesn't have to do with being a little kid that probably stuck some gum up under something at some point. Right? Although you're previously alien, he just went from the grandiosity of the creator of everything being preeminent and first. He is all encompassing. And then it says, and y'all y'all are alienated.

You're hostile. You're engaged in evil deeds, and yet he has now reconciled y'all. He's he did it. It's his work. It's the finished work of Christ on the cross that did the saving.

Now, it's by grace through faith. Yeah, you you had to trust that that's true. You had to receive the gift that was given but he has now reconciled you and then we're going to go into last week I pointed out as he's this, he's that all the green stuff on those first few slides was talking about Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, and now, it gets to this. He's reconciled you. I'm going to go back and share a few more translations of scripture here.

Once you are alienated from God and you were enemies in your minds because of your evil behavior. That's NIV. They made an editorial choice. It was because of your evil behavior that you were enemies with God. Okay.

The New Living Translation, very readable to me. It's super readable. It's really good translation, but it doesn't sound like scripture. So my memorization, it's hard for me to memorize the NLT. This includes all of y'all who were once far away from God.

Y'all were his enemies, separated from him by your evil thoughts and actions. That's an editorial choice to put them both in there. Right? The New King James, that's the one I tended to memorize growing up. And you who were alienated and enemies in your mind by wicked works, yet now he's reconciled you.

The Young's Living translation, this was in the eighteen hundreds. Some guy said, I'm going to do a little translation exactly the same order, exactly how it is. It's going to be absolutely literal. I don't care what it sounds like in English. Young's Literal is a good place to know.

I said, wonder wonder what that really What what is it that it says right there? And you, once being alienated in the past, get that, enemies in the mind, in the evil works too, yet now he did reconcile. So it puts it where it was. You were lost, and he's the one who found you. Okay?

You weren't looking for him. He was looking for you. Okay? And then the Gen Z Bible. And all of y'all, that's the southern version of the Gen Z Bible, actually.

All of y'all who used to be totally disconnected and enemies in your thoughts through doing messed up stuff, but now he's made peace with you. That's actually a really good translation by the way. The Gen Z Bible is a great translation. Yet, he has now reconciled you in his body of flesh through death. I I think that there are couple different reasons why he says, body of flesh.

He wants you to get this. He wants you to understand that. It's not just, he has now reconciled you in his body. He's already called the church, the body of Christ, right? So, if the church is the body of Christ, you might just think, oh, you joined the club.

They went out and they look for you and they brought you in and he's reconciled you into a family kind of like this. No. He makes it very specific. He says, his body of flesh. So, Christ is the image of the invisible God.

Philippians, I've said it over and over and over again that he, though he was God, did not consider equality with God as something to be grasped but he made himself a slave, a bondservant, took on the likeness of men, and he came to earth and he was tempted in all the ways that we're tempted, and yet he was without sin. He did not fail his probation. Adam did. And in Adam, we all fall. But in Christ, we can be saved.

He did not fall because he was willing to give himself even death, even death on a cross because he became that obedient in that way through the body of his flesh hanging on his cross as we've already covered in one twenty. That's how he did it. That's where the transaction was made. Yet, he has now reconciled you in his body. Though he was, everything that Paul says earlier in 15 through 20, he down to just transcend it down to just imminent.

He's right here. He's walking with us. All of the Godhead dwelling in him, and he answers every question perfectly. Have you all ever answered every question perfectly? Maybe on a math test, but not just every question all the time perfectly.

No. We fall. And for that reason, we were alienated from God and yet now, he has reconciled us. I went back to listen after I did my study this week. I went back to listen to an old preacher pastor of mine and I listened.

He had three sermons on that verse, on that much so far. Three different sermons. And he goes for fifty five minutes every time. Yeah. Whoo.

I listened to it on the road. It was good. You can dwell on this forever. The creator of the universe, what is man that you're even mindful of him at all? And not just mankind, but me individually and us collectively.

It's amazing. He does it. Although we were alienated and hostile and engaged in contrary stuff. He's now reconciled you into the body. Now remember, he has not met the Colossians.

Epaphras, who will be going back with this letter, and Onesimus, who will be going back with this letter, know the Colossians and they know him well. They know that the gospel has taken root and Jesus is growing his church. Paul is writing this letter. He's got a purpose by the end of it. We'll see the purpose but he doesn't know him but he wants to get first things first.

First of all, Jesus. Second of all, remember this, y'all were alienated. Yet he's now reconciled you in his body of flesh through death. And why did he do that? In order to present you before him holy.

Oh my. To stand before a holy God. Holy. That's why. Now he keeps on.

He says, holy and blameless. Like, I know I know how we are as humans, and I know I trust the scriptures of how God is. And God, it says, when you agree with him about your sin, he throws it as far as the east is from the West and remembers it no more. He throws it in the sea of forgiveness, remembers it no more. Though they were in front of him, he takes them and places them back behind him.

How does that happen for an omniscient, omnipresent God? I don't know. He has given us metaphor after metaphor. Though your sins be as scarlet, they'll be as white as snow. Though they be as red as crimson, they'll be white as wool.

He's got metaphor after metaphor after metaphor after say, really? No. Really. Really. You're blameless.

When I look at you, I see the righteousness of Christ. Amen. Yay. Did somebody say yay? Holy and blameless and beyond reproach.

There's no theological argument against a transformed life. Yeah. I did do that. I was previously alienated and engaged in hostile attitude and evil deeds. But now, I've been saved.

A saint is a sinner saved by grace. Beyond reproach. Now, for the folks that he knows, he says it this way. He knew the Philippians really well and he had been around him and he saw the gospel take root and he saw it start to get going and he saw the way that they gave and he saw the way that they praised and he saw the way that they worshiped and he saw the way that they loved and he said to about them, I'm confident of this very thing that he who began a good work in you among you will complete it by the day of Christ. There's no doubt for the Philippians in Paul's mind and in Colossians, he knows that this is why Christ has saved them because the gospel is the gospel everywhere it goes.

It's always the gospel and then he follows it up with this. He says, if indeed, you continue in the faith firmly established and steadfast. Now, there are some of y'all who are pretty strong Calvinist and then there are others of y'all who are pretty strong Armenians and I know that and some of y'all think, oh, once saved, always saved. Here we go. Once saved, always saved.

Not and I think that that is true. Once you're in God's hand, you can never be plucked out but Paul didn't know these people yet. He hasn't seen how it took root like he saw how it took root in Philippi and he didn't know them well enough. He gets down to in Romans and in Colossians. It's people he's never seen before.

So, he's back trying to be as specific as he can about the gospel. Romans is much longer. Colossians, he's got a purpose toward the end but he's establishing this. Jesus is all in all and y'all were once hostile but now he's reconciled you. And in Philippi, he'd say, and I trust that he's going to keep on doing that good work.

Here he says, y'all are his if you walk in it. If you continue in the faith firmly established and steadfast, not shifting from the hope of the gospel that you've heard. You recognize that you needed a savior and you accepted him, and you threw off all of that stuff that was keeping you down. You have a clean slate before God. That's the gospel, which was proclaimed in all creation under heaven and of which I, Paul, was made a minister.

He's just saying for them, listen, the gospel will do its work if you let it. If you're just pretending to believe, if you're just pretending the gospel is not gonna help that. Does does that make sense to you? Not here, but in a lot of places, it's a good business move to be a Christian. Not so much here.

I don't know why that is. I just know that that is. In South Carolina, across from the state house, all politicians and all the lawyers and everybody else went to church. The church I was just talking about that pastor that preaching right there because it was a good business move and so when he's presenting the gospel every Sunday, every Sunday he's presenting it and he knows that a lot of folks aren't believing. This is a little bit of what Paul is saying.

He goes, if the gospel has taken root, it will make a difference. And you'll be overjoyed that it has made a difference because you walk in a way that you're lighter in your step. Now there's some hard stuff about being a Christian. Yes. But he's saying, if it takes place, you'll go forward in faith firmly, establish and steadfast.

You won't be shifting from that hope even when there are hard times. It was proclaimed in all creation under heaven. In fact, Psalm 19 says that heaven itself is proclaiming the gospel every day and Romans says, we're responsible just with that. Right? Now, I rejoice, Paul says, in my sufferings.

He said this to the Philippians too. They knew he was in jail. This is probably the first of Colossians I've ever heard from Paul, but he's he's he's mentioning his sufferings. Now I rejoice in my sufferings for your sake. Now I rejoice in suffering sounds wild except that you recognize redemptive suffering.

I recognize that as Paul. I recognize that here I am stuck in prison, and I'd rather be out rolling and tumbling and talking to people about Jesus, but I gotta write it down now. And we've got Colossians, Ephesians, Philippians, and Philemon because he was stuck there. So, he's rejoicing in his sufferings to the Philippians. He said, the whole Praetorian guard has heard the gospel and a bunch of them have already accepted it.

The Caesars, especially those of Caesar's household who are now believers, send greetings to you. Now he says to the Colossians whom he never met, I rejoice in my sufferings for your sake. I recognize that me suffering is going to benefit you. And in my flesh, right now, what I'm going through day to day, everyday life for him stuck in jail, in my flesh, I'm supplementing what is lacking in Christ's afflictions in behalf of his body, the church. Okay?

His body, I think it says, which is the church. Yeah. So, this this is a hard concept because it's the finished work of Christ that saves and there's nothing that can be added to it and Paul says, I'm supplementing it. So, what does that mean? This is a place where sometimes theologies diverge because if you're if you're if you're reading what it says and he's expressing his sufferings and the fact that he's writing this letter and you know Philippians and you know that he's saying, the only thing that the gospel lacks is everybody hearing about it And I'm gonna tell them.

I'm supplementing what lies lacking. The the blood of Christ is sufficient for everyone who believe it, but not everybody has heard it. That's what he's talking about. Now you'll find other people that say, do the best you can, and then Christ will make up the little bit that's left over. What were you?

Hostile in mind, engaged in evil deeds, previously alienated completely, and God came and he did the saving. So, I think that what lies lacking in Christ's afflictions is the whole world knowing about it. For for this reason, we have missions. For this reason, we all personally have our mission, right, to carry the gospel forward. I'm rejoicing in my sufferings for your sake.

I actually am rejoicing in my sufferings. I don't want to be up here. This is the worst. And I've come to enjoy it, so I I know that. Stand in front of people y'all heard this before, but at a funeral, most people would rather be the guy in the box than the guy talking.

I'm rejoicing in that now. I'm glad to be up here now. Boy, when I first got here, was like, why me, Lord? I rejoice in my sufferings for your sake, and I'm trying my best to supplement anything that lies lacking. If you don't get something about the faith, I hope that you'll get it by coming here.

I hope so. That's my my hope. So the church, Cavalcities. Now, what's lacking in Christ's afflictions? Like I said, just everybody hearing about.

That's it. And here he's gonna say this, what is lacking in Christ? He said, I was made a minister of the church. I was called out. Specifically, Jesus told him exactly, you are going to be my apostle for the Gentiles.

So I was made a minister of the body of Christ according to the commission from God that was granted to me. He's not saying my mission is everybody's mission. This is the one that was made for me, and it was for your benefit, Colossi, so that I might fully carry out the preaching of the word of God. Actually, when you see the italics in the New American Standard Version, that was added to make it make sense because we know Paul was a proclaimer of the word we put in through the preaching but I want to take it out for just a second. Look at this.

So that I might fully carry out the word of God. Amen. I want to fully carry out the word of God. Yeah. I heard a kid quoted.

I didn't hear the kid actually say it. The kid was quoted and they said, the logos, the logos of John one one when I meant, I mentioned that last week. The word became flesh and dwelt among us. The word was with God, word was God, all that. Why does Jesus the logos and because Jesus is everything God wanted us to know.

He's the content. He is the word of God. He's everything he wanted us to know about himself and Paul is saying, I want to fully carry out Christ's mission and that's the preaching of course and probably more than that. That is the mystery which had been hidden from the past ages for generations. It's now been revealed to his saints.

And Colossi, y'all are saints. I'm I believe that you are. There are saints in Colossi for sure. And the mystery which has been hidden in the past from ages and generations. The Jews had and Paul was Jewish obviously.

The Jews had the precursor. All of the Torah and the prophets and they had a head start on everybody else and now that the mystery has been made known and fulfilled and it's going out into the nations and it's outrunning its coverage. So, the gospels made it to Colossi and the main apostle to the Gentiles hadn't even been there yet because the gospel makes a difference. It takes root when you know that your burden has been lifted. Man, you wanna tell somebody else how their burden can be lifted.

The mystery which has been hidden from the past ages and generations but now been revealed to its saints to whom God willed to make known what the wealth of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles is. He he wants you to know it. He wants for you to understand it. He wants for you to get a better understanding. It's going to blow your mind but he's wanting you to have more so that when people ask questions, you can give them more.

So to whom? His saints. And what are saints? Saints are people who are previously alienated from God, engaged in evil deeds with their evil mind, And have been reconciled through the blood of Christ and his cross. Those are the ones he's willed to make known the wealth of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles.

The mystery that is Christ in you, the hope of glory. Can I get a amen? Amen. Christ in you, the hope of glory. That's amazing.

The song service this morning kept on and kept on and kept on and kept on pointing to him and his sufficiency and said, just come to him. Just come to him. He's not somebody to be afraid of. Okay? God is not just the cosmic killjoy with his hand cocked back waiting for you to make a mistake so he can smack you down.

He's not. He loves you. Oh, what a savior. Isn't he wonderful? Yeah.

Amen. He wants you to come to the altar. He wants you to come to him. The mystery is Christ in you the hope of glory and we proclaim him. Oh, that's a statement of humility.

Paul's not just saying, I proclaim him. He's saying, I, y'all heard it from somebody else. We, me, and you, us together, we proclaim him. And what are we proclaiming him? We're admonishing every person.

We're teaching every person with all wisdom so that we may present every person complete in Christ. Just one more. Do you all remember the end of Schindler's list? The end of Schindler's List. We said, this ring this ring, I could have had I could have had more.

Right? Every, every, all, every, every the goal is to the ends of the earth with the message. Amen. This is what we're proclaiming and admonish every person and teaching every person with all wisdom so that we may present every person complete in Christ. For this purpose, Paul says, I also labor.

I work hard and this is the reason. I'm striving according to his power. I'm not striving on my own. I'm not trying to do it all on my own. I'm striving according to his power which works mightily within me.

It is amazing to see something happen that you didn't intend, that you didn't even mean to do, but you're walking in the light. You're just walking in the light. You're just walking in light. Everything's fine. You're having a grand old glorious time, and then you recognize that somebody else saw your good deeds and glorified your father who's in heaven.

Oh, to be forgotten so that Jesus may be remembered. That's what Paul is saying. I'm striving according to his power which works mightily within me. I can't even believe it. I know how I am.

Take a breath, Ray. I thought about stopping here, but I ain't gonna. For I want you all to know how great a struggle I have had in your behalf. Oh, poor pitiful meat. That's not what he's saying.

I want you all to know it. Why? Oh, yeah. And it's for those at Laodicea. Why Laodicea?

He hadn't been there yet. He's stuck there, and he's thinking of all the places he could go with the gospel. I wish I had seen y'all. I wish I knew you but I don't yet. All the folks in Laodicea, I can't wait to get to Laodicea and for all of those who have not personally seen my face.

I just want everybody to know. You know, I'm telling everybody as the old joke goes. I'm telling everybody. Yeah. Those I've not personally seen my face that their hearts may be encouraged.

Oh my goodness. This is what Paul wants for everybody. This is what I want for everybody. That their hearts may be encouraged. Having been knit together in love.

What a thing it is to belong to the family of God. What a thing it is. To know that you've got brothers and sisters in Central Asia that know Jesus and had the same issue. They were alienated just like I was alienated. To know that I've got brothers and sisters in Antarctica.

Nick is going to Antarctica in a couple weeks. That's amazing to me. To the literal end of the earth. And I have as I have more in common with them as I do my neighbor across the street that doesn't know Jesus. Right?

But what I have in common with the neighbor across the street that doesn't know Jesus is he and I have experienced alienation from God. Both of us have. I've just been that in that hole before and I got out of it and I'm the one that hopefully can show him how to get out of that hole. Christ is the way. So, their hearts may be encouraged.

Having been knit together in love and that they would attain to all of the wealth that comes from the full assurance of understanding resulting in a true knowledge of God's mystery. Musterion, the mystery of God. We're not going to ever know it all but he's saying, I want it. I want it all. I want foolish.

I want it all. I want to attain to all the wealth that comes from the full assurance of understanding resulting in true knowledge of God's mystery. That is Christ himself and he's already described Christ in this passage. Preeminent everything and Christ in me, the hope of glory. Christ in you, the hope of glory.

That's it. Image of the invisible God, firstborn of all creation. We can go through it and go through it and it's worth remembering. True knowledge of God's mystery is Christ himself. That is Christ himself in whom are hidden all of the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.

If you don't understand it, the the answer to it is going to be my my my best friend's testimony for the first six months he was saved. The answer to the question is, Jesus, man. I don't know how it works out, but Jesus, man. That's the answer. Right?

Jesus, man. In him are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge, and he will show you the way. I say this so that nobody will deceive you with persuasive arguments. There are lots of other competing ideologies. In the marketplace of ideas, Christianity will win if you give it a chance.

In a lot of ways, we push it back and push it back and push it back, and we don't give it a chance. I say this so no one will deceive you with persuasive arguments. For even though I'm absent in the body, I'm nevertheless with you in spirit. We're connected because we're belonging to the same family, and I am rejoicing to see your orderly manner and the stability of your faith in Christ. I can't wait to get there.

Maybe Laodicea will be on the way. Would you stand with us? I'm gonna invite the band back up, and we're going to sing whatever comes up on that screen. This is amazing. This is amazing grace.

This is amazing grace. This is exactly what he's talking about. Yeah, this is cool. Yeah. The altar is always open.

Let's just think of these words as we sing

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Alienated From God Christ In You Once Saved Always Saved Reconciled To God Sharing The Gospel Supremacy Of Jesus

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