I. The Deity Of Christ The Reconciler V. 19a
A. The Heresy At Colossae
1. Remember that Paul was not writing random thoughts to these Christians
2. Some degree of wrong teaching was in the church; Paul was correcting it.
3. The Colossians heresy seems to have been as follows:
a. The opponents of Paul, & later the Greek Gnostics, seem to have used the word fullness as a technical term for the sphere between heaven & earth where a hierarchy of angels lived. (Many steps to God via sp. beings)
b. The Gnostics viewed Christ as one of many spirits existing in this hierarchy between God and all people. (A diminishing of Jesus)
c. Paul used the term fullness (a word they used) to refer to the complete embodiment of God. Jesus wasn’t part of the embodiment of what is God. He wasn’t one component in an array of many things that make up God.
4. The fullness denotes the sum-total of the divine powers and attributes. Totality.
a. In Christ dwelt all the fullness of God as deity. Paul piles on superlatives.
b. John 14:9 He who has seen Me has seen the Father. (Words of Jesus)
c. Jesus deity was veiled in flesh, but He was fully God.
d. Like the story of the king who wanted to know what his subjects thought of him, so he dressed as a peasant, and spent many days among them. He was fully king but restrained himself from the kingly glory that was his.
e. This truth is repeated in 2:9. It was a definite problem at Colossae.
5. Dwell– to be at home permanently, as opposed to temporary dwelling.
a. The deity of Christ was not a temporary thing.
b. He wasn’t endued with deity for the task of reconciliation, and then when the task was completed, was stripped of that deity.
B. What That Means For Us
1. God put on flesh and died for us. He didn’t send someone else to suffer for us.
2. It wasn’t Jesus plus someone or something else that reconciled us to God.
3. He didn’t ask us to suffer for ourselves. He suffered and died for us.
4. We don’t have to find someone else, do something else, discover “more” truth.
5. God the Son, the 2nd person of the triune Godhead, stepped out of glory, put on flesh, was mistreated, misunderstood, brutalized, & suffered & died to pay for our sins, that we might be reconciled back to God. That is Divine Love.
II. The Scope Of Jesus’ Reconciliation Vs. 20a,b
A. Reconciliation (used here and in verse 21)
1. Reconcile– bring back to a former state of harmony, restore to right relationship
2. Reconciled back to Him. God didn’t need to come back to us, but us to Him.
3. Literally…”By Jesus, to reconcile all things back to God, by (through) Jesus…”
B. Jesus Reconciled All Things (Not All Fully Realized/Experienced Yet)
1. All things- This does not teach universalism, which says all people will be saved from God’s judgment. Many verses that contradict that idea. (Matthew 25:46)
2. Does not include Satan, fallen angels, or those who reject Christ.
3. Nelson’s New Illustrated Bible Commentary– The work of Christ will overthrow the damage effected by the Fall and change all of creation from a position of enmity to a relationship of peace and friendship.
4. Turn to Romans 8:18-23 (Read NLT) (Compare also w/2 Corinthians 5:18-21)
5. Turn to Isaiah 11:12. The future when things are fully reconciled back to God.
III. How Reconciliation Was Accomplished V. 20c, 21, 22a
A. Jesus Made Peace Which Brought Reconciliation
1. Peace-to bind together, establish harmony. Not just to calm hostilities.
a. Man is brought back into a binding, harmonious relationship with God.
2. Through the blood of His cross…22in the body of His flesh through death…
a. Peace was gained through Christ paying for the sins of man.
b. If you get a traffic ticket, the harmonious relationship between you and Napa County is interrupted. You must pay the fine to regain harmony. Until then, there is enmity between you and the County.
c. You can’t pay the County of Napa w/Monopoly money, pesos, or poker chips. Those things are worth something somewhere, but not in this case.
d. The same w/the court of heaven. God set the standard of what would pay for our sins. Only a sinless sacrifice was acceptable.
B. The Quality Of People Jesus Reconciled To God V. 21
1. If I had to pay the price to reconcile to me people that hated me, I would have lowered the standard of what needed to be paid, or I would have been more selective about whom I paid the price for. Jesus did neither. He paid the highest price for sinners.
IV. What Reconciliation Will Accomplish V. 22 b, c
A. Holy-A Most Holy Thing, A Saint, Set Apart, Not Common
B. Blameless-Without Moral Blemish
1. We think we look good in low light. Changes w/bright lighting & a clean mirror
2. We can look good morally under human lighting. Jesus makes us w/o blemish
C. Above Reproach-Free From Even Being Blamed Of Moral Blemish
V. What Is Our Part? V. 23
A. Continue In The Faith
1. To persist in, adhere to, stay at or with, abide by: speaking of their faith in Jesus
2. A choice of belief, not a degree of performance. Keep setting your hope on Jesus.
B. Grounded & Steadfast
1. Built on a foundation and so firm.
2. Grounded on the foundation of Jesus; settled in that place as a secure building
3. Foundation (Jesus) was unshakeable. They needed to settle on that foundation.
C. Not Moved Away
1. Implies continual shifting. Don’t’ be shifting away from Jesus.
D. From The Hope Of The Gospel
1. The hope of the Gospel includes all that has been described here.
2. We don’t depend on ourselves, or someone else, or some other system.