COLOSSIANS 1:18-23 THE SON'S SELF-SACRIFICE RECONCILES BELIEVERS TO THE FATHER

COLOSSIANS 1:18-23

THE SON’S SELF-SACRIFICE

RECONCILES BELIEVERS

TO THE FATHER

Colossians 1:18 And he is the head of the body, the church: who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead; that in all things he might have the preeminence.

In addition to being the Creator and Sustainer of the universe, Jesus is the head of the church, the body of believers, the Messianic Community. He is Lord and Master of each individual believer and of the collective group of believers known as the church, the Bride of Christ. Jesus was the first fruit of the resurrection, the first person to die and be raised permanently to eternal life. Jesus had raised Lazarus from the dead, but Lazarus eventually died again. Jesus, on the other hand, has been permanently restored to life as we will be eventually. Jesus is pre-eminent in all things, even resurrection.

Webster’s 1828 American Dictionary of the English Language

PRE-EM'INENCE, noun

1. Superiority in excellence; distinction in something commendable; as pre-eminence in honor or virtue; pre-eminence in eloquence, in legal attainments or in medical skill.

The preeminence of Christianity to any other religious scheme—

2. Precedence; priority of place; superiority in rank or dignity.

That in all things he might have the preeminence. Colossians 1:1.

Colossians 1:19 For it pleased the Father that in him should all fulness dwell;

Colossians 1:19 (CJB) For it pleased God to have his full being live in his Son

This is a bold statement of the deity of Jesus, that He was fully man and fully God when He walked upon this earth. One day it will be our pleasure to be completely one with the Father even as Jesus is one with the Father. It is our reward for total trust and surrender to Jesus. This is the “good” that the Father works through all things, that we be made to be like Jesus.

Romans 8:28-29 (NIV) And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose. For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers and sisters.

Colossians 1:20 And, having made peace through the blood of his cross, by him to reconcile all things unto himself; by him, I say, whether they be things in earth, or things in heaven.

Jesus’ work on the cross was the final peace offering, the final sacrifice, to reconcile humanity to God. As our High Priest, Jesus sacrificed Himself to Himself, in order to redeem us from sin. A bit of a mind-bender, but true.

Hebrews 7:27 (VOICE) Unlike other high priests, He does not first need to make atonement every day for His own sins, and only then for His people’s, because He already made atonement, reconciling us with God once and forever when He offered Himself as a sacrifice.

We receive what Jesus has accomplished on the cross for us when we surrender our lives to Him, trusting Him alone for salvation.

Colossians 1:21 And you, that were sometime alienated and enemies in your mind by wicked works, yet now hath he reconciled 22 In the body of his flesh through death, to present you holy and unblameable and unreproveable in his sight:

Before a person trusts Jesus, he/she is the enemy of the Lord.

Matthew 12:30 (NIV) “Whoever is not with me is against me, and whoever does not gather with me scatters.

However, Jesus died for those who would eventually believe even while they were still His enemies.

Romans 5:6-8 (CJB) For while we were still helpless, at the right time, the Messiah died on behalf of ungodly people. 7 Now it is a rare event when someone gives up his life even for the sake of somebody righteous, although possibly for a truly good person one might have the courage to die. 8 But God demonstrates his own love for us in that the Messiah died on our behalf while we were still sinners.

When we trust Jesus, when we become Christians, He transforms us into brand new people. This is the bedrock of Christianity, that Jesus does in and for us what we could never do for ourselves. His part was His sacrifice on the cross. All we had to do was to receive this gift, to trust Him for eternal life, the privilege to live with Him forever. His Holy Spirit is daily in the process of making us more and more like our Master. Paul is making the same point to the Colossians as he did in his letter to the Ephesians.

Ephesians 5:27 (CJB) in order to present the Messianic Community to himself as a bride to be proud of, without a spot, wrinkle or any such thing, but holy and without defect.

We do not first have to clean ourselves up to be His bride. He takes us where we are and does the cleaning Himself!

Colossians 1:23 If ye continue in the faith grounded and settled, and be not moved away from the hope of the gospel, which ye have heard, and which was preached to every creature which is under heaven; whereof I Paul am made a minister;

“If” should be translated “for as much as” or “since”. There is no doubt that the true believer will continue in the faith because God will make sure that he/she does. Someone who completely leaves walking with the Lord, who denies or rejects Him, who walks away and never returns, most likely had never truly come to know the saving grace of our Lord.

The Lord takes those who trust in Jesus and changes them completely. He places His desires in them because the Holy Spirit lives in them. They are made into entirely new creations.

2 Corinthians 5:17 (AMP) Therefore if anyone is in Christ [that is, grafted in, joined to Him by faith in Him as Savior], he is a new creature [reborn and renewed by the Holy Spirit]; the old things [the previous moral and spiritual condition] have passed away. Behold, new things have come [because spiritual awakening brings a new life].

God Himself is the enablement to continue growing in faith, but we must stay plugged in to Him. He has saved us, and that cannot be revoked; but it is also by His power that we continue growing in Christlikeness.

Philippians 1:6 (AMP) I am convinced and confident of this very thing, that He who has begun a good work in you will [continue to] perfect and complete it until the day of Christ Jesus [the time of His return].

The true believer WILL continue in the faith. This is referred to as “the perseverance of the saints.” We will NOT be moved away from the Gospel because the Lord will keep us there.

Jude 24-25 (NASB) Now to Him who is able to keep you from stumbling, and to make you stand in the presence of His glory blameless with great joy, 25 to the only God our Savior, through Jesus Christ our Lord, be glory, majesty, dominion and authority, before all time and now and forever. Amen.

We should not take a detour from following the Lord; but if we as true believers do try to take the wrong path, the Lord will rein us in and redirect us like a shepherd uses his staff to grab a stray sheep.

John 10:27-28 (NASB)  My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me; 28 and I give eternal life to them, and they will never perish; and no one will snatch them out of My hand.

No one, not even ourselves, can separate us from the love of God once we have surrendered ourselves to Jesus.

Romans 8:38-39 (NIV) For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, 39 neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Ponder This: Jesus DIED to reconcile you to Himself – to enable you to come into relationship with Him. He did not NEED us, but we NEED Him. Have you received this priceless yet free gift of salvation? Do you believe that Jesus Christ was God incarnate – fully man but fully God? Do you believe that He came to earth for the purpose of redeeming, paying the price to buy His people back from sin’s slavery? Have you placed your total trust in Jesus to change your life and make it brand new? If not, what are you waiting for?