Colossians 1:15-20
Notes
Transcript
15 He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. 16 For by him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things were created through him and for him. 17 And he is before all things, and in him all things hold together. 18 And he is the head of the body, the church. He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, that in everything he might be preeminent. 19 For in him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell, 20 and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven, making peace by the blood of his cross.
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Intro:
Maybe you grew up in a church that recited creeds.
Maybe, every Sunday, you quoted the Apostles creed, or the Nicene Creed.
And in these creeds, you affirmed a truth about God, Jesus, doctrine, and salvation.
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Creeds were very significant in the early church, simply because… not very many people possessed Bibles. They went to church every week… they picked up some principles on how to live their Xtian life… but many of them lacked the ability or the resource to affirm those principles… or grow in them personally.
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But… they could affirm the most important principles, even without a Bible at home. They could learn a carefully crafted statement, that would help them to remember and affirm… what is most important.
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This is where the creeds come in. Some were written to affirm doctrine, like the Apostles Creed and the Nicene Creed… and some were even written to oppose false doctrine, like the Chalcedonian Creed.
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I believe… even though we as a church don’t practice them… that the concept of a routine credal practice, is very important.
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For instance, we could affirm the truth of the Gospel with a spoken creed every Sunday, and it could be a good thing.... but I believe… Sunday isn’t enough. Especially in the world we live in right now.
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We are bombarded with information… with messages… with narratives… with opinions… - they come at us… NON-STOP. And sometimes, these messages have a way of challenging the most foundational beliefs in our faith.
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They are subtle. And I don’t care how strong you are, or how principled you are… if you are letting the voice of the world speak to you constantly… and only let the voice of God speak to you once a week… YOU WILL BE INFLUENCED.
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For this reason… I believe it’s important… to have the scriptures speaking into your life, on a regular basis. Not scriptures that are twisted to agree with you, or affirm you, or satisfy you. But rather, scriptures that speak on their own authority. Scriptures that challenge you, oppose you, re-direct you, and re-affirm His truth in you.
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There is one specific message… in the scriptures, that I believe… we should affirm on a daily basis. It’s a truth that we need to be familiar with… and a truth that we can quickly go to, in our minds… and think upon daily.
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That truth… is… the GOSPEL. THE GOOD NEWS. THE PUBLIC CRY OF VICTORY.
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We are misled, if we think, the Gospel message is just for people who need to be saved, initially. Yes, it is the message that brings us into salvation… but… it should also be a message, that serves as a daily staple in our lives.
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The messages of the world are challenging us every day. Those messages should instantly crash, in utter defeat, against a firm belief in the Gospel.
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But… this isn’t always the case. Many of us have a knowledge of the Gospel… but somehow, the current of the world still manages to tug us a few steps downstream.
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The problem is… I believe… that many of us don’t know how to be impacted by the Gospel. I have had to learn this personally. I had to learn, how a simple knowledge of the Gospel, was supposed to have an impact upon me… and I had to learn how to make that happen.
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Paul gave the church in Corinth a creed… in I Corinthians 15. They were getting drug downstream by the currents of the world… and Paul made it clear… - they had lost their grip on the knowledge and impact, of the simple Gospel message.
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3 For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received: that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures, 4 that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures, 5 and that he appeared to Cephas, then to the twelve. 6 Then he appeared to more than five hundred brothers at one time, most of whom are still alive, though some have fallen asleep.
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I firmly believe, that we need the Gospel spoken into our lives, every day… but, it doesn’t work, if it’s just information that skips across the surface of understanding.
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We have to learn how… to let it impact us. We do this, by being intentional in our recognition. It is the same with all the creeds. Thousands of people recite them every week… but they have no impact. They are just information.
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When we take time to speak the Gospel into our lives… We need to engage our hearts, and intentionally allow the reality of this truth… impact us.
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I see it, as a discipline.
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The words… “Christ died for our sins… “ have to mean something. They have to be a reminder of the utter devastation that He has saved us from. A reminder, that we don’t deserve forgiveness… and we cannot earn forgiveness. A reminder, that have a hope eternal, and that we have that hope, only because Jesus did all the work to give it to us. -
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The 5 words… - Christ died for our sins… - mean so much. And if we let the message dig in to our consciousness… beyond the surface - It will realign us, every day. It will restore humility, every day. It will put our priorities back in line… every day.
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We need to be reminded of the longstanding authority that led up to the cross. Everything He did, was according to the scriptures. This should remind us, every day… how valuable the scriptures are… for they span 2000 years of writing by 40 different writers… and yet, they communicated a harmonious message that was perfectly fulfilled in Jesus.
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In this, the Gospel impacts us, by reminding us that the Scriptures are a reliable authority in our lives.
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We need to be reminded, that Jesus rose from the dead… and all the implications of this miracle… for it’s a promise to us, that we should not fear death. He is the firstfruits of those who are risen from the dead. We will be the fruits that follow. This instills hope that is eternal… and reminds us of the true nature of our identity… which is spiritual… and the true nature of our citizenship… which is also spiritual.
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Finally… let’s not forget… that hundreds of people witnessed the resurrection of Jesus. What does this mean to us? Why is this part of the Gospel message? Because it reminds us, that the Gospel changed the world in and through those witnesses. They believed so strongly in what they saw and experienced… that they sacrificed everything, even their lives, to see it spread to other people. Paul even reminds the Colossians of this… that the Gospel they benefit from, is working powerfully in the world.
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It has to be the pure message of Jesus.
We cannot combat thoughts which affirm the lust of our flesh, eyes, and pride of life… with a compromised Gospel. In fact, this is the first ‘go to’ for many people. They want to have the world, AND Jesus.
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So that means… Jesus needs to be a little different than He really is. He needs to be more palatable. He needs to line up, with my thoughts. - They will say… He didn’t die a substitutionary death… no, He died as a martyr, fighting the system… standing strong for a cause.
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He was a nice guy… He was affirming across every platform… He only spoke peace, inclusion and acceptance. He wasn’t literally God… but He was an influential human... through which God worked.
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This kind of thinking isn’t new. Excluding the letter to the Ephesians… Paul has addressed this directly to every church he has written to…
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And today… as we look at these five verses in Colossians… Paul is making it loud and clear… who JESUS REALLY IS.
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There were some in Colosse… who needed the Gospel reaffirmed. They needed a creed they could come back to… a precise statement they could learn and recite and think upon… They needed a poem, or a hymn… that was easy to rehearse day in and day out…
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And that is exactly what Paul gave them.
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These 6 verses, are a poem… possibly, they are even a familiar hymn. Some scholars believe that Paul was interjecting a snippet of a familiar hymn that the early church sang, or recited together.
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It is a poem, or a hymn, that has four parts to it… structurally… the first and fourth parts are large, 10 line phrases that open with a common statement, about Jesus being the firstborn… and the second and third parts are smaller statements, each comprised of two lines..
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As we read it in the English, the patterns and the meter aren’t noticeable… but we can recognize.. that there is something poetic going on here. You almost feel like you need to change the tenor of your voice when you get to these verses…
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And this is intentional.
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Paul is giving them a creed to hold onto. It may be something they already know… and if so, he is reminding them of the importance of that chorus they sing every week.
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This information is important. This information will combat the constant flow… the constant message that the world is opposing you with . This message will set things right with you. If you have this message wrong… everything else… is wrong.
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15 He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation.
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In our Genesis study, we have spoken a lot about the idea behind… ‘being an image bearer of God’. - OF HOW we have a responsibility to bear God’s image to the world… -We are created in His image… as are all humans… but we have have a unique responsibility, according to the 10 Commandments… - to not: carry God’s name… or bear God’s image, in vain.
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People should recognize something about God, in our lives… not just in our words… but in our actions.
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But… this passage is saying a bit more. We are created in God’s image. Jesus isn’t. Jesus was never created. Jesus actually IS THE IMAGE OF THE INVISIBLE GOD.
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Hebrews states it more emphatically:
3 He is the radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint of his nature, and he upholds the universe by the word of his power. After making purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high,
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The exact imprint of God’s nature…
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Notice what Paul and the writer of Hebrews is saying… Jesus is, exactly what God is.
As we start our way into this hymn, we have to realize… that these believers are being called to affirm their recognition of Jesus as being one and the same… with Yahweh… God the Father.
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What kinds of threats would this affirmation combat?
Well, in Colosse, along with other cities in this area… they believed in multiple gods. They believed in Gods who ruled the sky… gods who ruled the waters… and if the Christians wanted to present another god… - well, it’s no big deal.
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We have seen this kind of thing while doing ministry in India. They have so many gods already, it’s not a big deal that they would receive another one. They are ok with the idea of Jesus as being a god… but if it is clarified further… and Jesus is defined as being the ultimate god over everything… well, then there is a conflict.
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This poem existed in the early church, not only to affirm what is true, but also, to bring a conflict… to those who believed wrongly about Jesus.
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The second half of this verse says that Jesus is the firstborn of all creation.
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Now, a first glance at the word ‘first born’ would indicate a succession of birth. If we used this word in terms of our family, that’s what it would mean. But that’s not what it meant this time.
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In ancient times, the term ‘firstborn’ was about rank and authority. There are several accounts in the OT, where the rank, or the blessing… went to someone who wasn’t the first born.
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This song, is meant to remind the believers… that not only is Jesus the exact image of God… but He is the one and only one… who hold the authority. No other gods do… only Jesus.
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This was prophesied in Ps. 89...
27 And I will make him the firstborn, the highest of the kings of the earth.
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Let’s read on.
16 For by him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things were created through him and for him.
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There are people in our world who believe in a small Jesus.
They believe in revolutionary Jesus… the guy who stood up against the oppressor, and told them how it is.
Or… they believe in hippy Jesus… a guy who skipped around in the pasture, picking flowers and declaring peace....
Or… they believe in social justice Jesus… a guy who was only concerned with feeding hungry people, lifting up the poor, and healing the sick…
Or… they believe in the prophet Jesus… a man who said profound things to a confused world, in order to inspire them to make a better life for themselves.
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A lot of people believe in a small jesus… An impressive man… but still… just a man.
When the believers in the early church recited this line...
This thinking… about a small Jesus… was confronted and strongly opposed.
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Obviously, this language echoes John 1
1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He was in the beginning with God. 3 All things were made through him, and without him was not any thing made that was made.
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There is no way to involve Jesus so intimately with the creation account, without also equating Him with God. This song just builds upon itself, affirming and re-stating characteristics of Jesus, that remind the believer...
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that He is not a small Jesus. He is not just a revolutionary, or a hippy, or a social justice warrior, or a prophet… - He is the exact image… of who God is… And when creation happened… He was a vital part of the process…
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What was created by Him?
Everything in heaven and on earth..
Visible and invisible. Things we see, and things we don’t see… be they microscopic, or spiritual in essence.
Thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities.. - This would include physical human rulers… and also, powers and principalities of a spiritual sense.
All things were made through Him… and for Him.
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Everything exists to fulfill His purpose.
Everything exists to be a part of His plan.
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17 And he is before all things, and in him all things hold together.
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Remember when Jesus said, ‘Before Abraham was, I am.” - He was literally telling the Jews who opposed him, that He was God and always had been God.
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So this hymn affirmed that.
In this hymn, they would be reminded, that Jesus is eternal… the same, yesterday, today and forever. No beginning… no end.
and then, in the second half of this verse… they declare, that in Jesus, all things hold together.
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The grammar actually says… that all things have been holding together in Him, and continue to do so. Through Him, the world is sustained, prevented from falling into chaos.
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This made me think a bit about the history which has been revealed in the Bible…
We look back to Genesis… and there will be generations of people who don’t have the presence or the teachings of God available to them… and what happens? Genesis 6… their hearts are set on nothing, but doing evil continually.
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After the flood… the same thing… and what happens? They come together, in pride and arrogance and declare that they can ascend to god in their own strength, and in their own might… - And in Genesis 11… they were judged, divided, and dispersed.
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The nations fell into continual chaos, violence, and ruin… but God raised up a new nation. And He created a system by which they could know Him, learn about Him, follow Him, and worship Him.
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This helped some… but Israel still struggled to live right.
God was available to them, through the outward law, and through the physical location of the tabernacle… - but God was not with them, and in them…
So… they struggled to hold things together…
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But, after Pentecost… the world changed. A group of believers began to grow and spread out through the whole world. And these believers, didn’t have an outward law and a God who was bound to a location...
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These believers had Jesus, with them, and in them.… and in the past 2000 years… - there has still been a lot of wickedness in the world… but we haven’t seen a worldwide consensus of every human doing wickedness continually. Nor have we seen a repeat of Babel.
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On a personal level, having God available to you… having God’s word, working in union with the Holy Spirit, and the availability of Jesus… - this really holds things together.
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The outward law, and the presence of God in a temple in one city… was good… but the people who lived under this system, fell into idolatry and rebellion over and over again. They turned their backs and went after their own desires again and again…
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They didn’t have Jesus… and things fell apart.
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Now, I’m sure that this isn’t what Paul was talking about in vs. 17… but I see it as a reality. Historically speaking… when people don’t have God available to them, they become utterly wicked. When people have the outward law, geographically located God available… they do ok from time to time, but repeatedly, things fly apart as they turn to rebellion…
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But when God is accessible to everyone, all the time… the outcome, statistically… is not perfect… but it is different.
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I think Paul might have meant… here in vs. 17… that through Jesus, the world is sustained, and prevented from falling into chaos.
If Jesus is a creator, Jesus can equally be, a sustainer.
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18 And he is the head of the body, the church. He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, that in everything he might be preeminent. 19 For in him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell, 20 and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven, making peace by the blood of his cross.
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When believers sang this song… they affirmed that the church was special. They recognized, and reminded themselves, that they were part of something big, something wonderful. This Jesus, through whom everything was made and everything held together… - was part of them, and they, the church, were part of Him.
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Then, vs. 18 repeats the word, ‘firstborn’… this time, it tells us Jesus’ rank in terms of those who have died. He is the resurrection. He is the life. He is the one who has conquered death and the grave. He is the authority, over death...
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17 For if, because of one man’s trespass, death reigned through that one man, much more will those who receive the abundance of grace and the free gift of righteousness reign in life through the one man Jesus Christ.
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Every time they sang this song… they affirmed the victory over death, that Jesus won for them… that in them, death once reigned… but now, they reign in life through Jesus.
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Now… in the first verse of this song, he was the firstborn of all creation… and now, He is the firstborn from the dead…
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We see in creation and death… a picture, of beginning and end. Jesus is the firstborn… the authority over both… - to what end? So that in everything (vs. 18)… He will be preeminent… He will be… THE FIRST.
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THERE IS NOTHING, FROM BEGINNING TO END… FROM ALPA TO OMEGA… THAT JESUS IS NOT THE AUTHORITY OVER… OR THE PREEMINENT (the first), AMONG.
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In Him, all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell.
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This word ‘fullness’ is how they would describe a fully staffed ship. Every position is covered, every oar is manned, every responsibility is taken care of…
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All that is God… every part of Him… took delight in being… fully a part of Jesus. God was not reserved in His commitment to, or unity with Jesus. As we know, God is Jesus, and Jesus is God. They are different, but at the same time, they are the same… -But Paul is speaking a truth that would combat ideas of separation.
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And so, when the church rehearsed this song… they affirmed… that Jesus is God… and God is Jesus… completely, and fully. When the philosophies and the false doctrines came along… the sought to discount the person of Jesus… they were equipped with a belief.
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John 1 echoes this...
16 For from his fullness we have all received, grace upon grace.
and also in Eph 3
19 and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled with all the fullness of God.
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So many false ideas would come against the church. Philosophies which would one day, grow into a threat against the church, in the form of gnosticism. - But those who know this song… those who spoke this song into their lives on a regular basis..
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They were prepared. Their belief was affirmed. All that is God… is also … all that is Jesus.
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And finally, vs. 20… through Jesus, God will reconcile to Himself, all things… -
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Some look at this, and come to an Universalist conclusion. They say, that this means, all will be saved. Clement of Rome even proposed that the devil himself would be reconciled.
But consider
6 And the angels who did not stay within their own position of authority, but left their proper dwelling, he has kept in eternal chains under gloomy darkness until the judgment of the great day—
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The judgment of the great day is better understood with a reading of Rev. 22… and the succession of those who are judged eternally in the lake of fire.
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So no… this is not a promise, that all humans… and all being… in the physical and the spiritual realm will one day be saved. For this to be true, so much of the Bible, in other parts, would have to be wrong.
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But this does mean, that God is going to make things right. He’s going to bring peace. He’s going to take what is wrong, and make it right.
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he’s going to make peace by the blood of His cross…
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And who finds peace by the blood? - The church does.
Who will live eternally, at peace with God? - the church will.
Who will have bodies and habitations that are transformed and glorified? - The church will.
Who will rule and reign with Christ, in the new heaven, and the new earth?
The church will.
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And what makes it all possible?
The blood of Jesus.
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I don’t think we have any songs that are so densely packed with vital theology.
This song, said so much...
And when the church came together… and they recited it… or they sang it…
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They had to opportunity, to speak these truths back into their lives… again and again..
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Just like the creeds that would one day follow..
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This creed… was sung… to affirm truth… and to combat false doctrine.
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Let me conclude, by simply repeating this principle.
IT IS NOT ENOUGH TO KNOW TRUTH.
IT IS NOT ENOUGH, TO HAVE A MENTAL UNDERSTANDING OF TRUTH.
We also need it, to become a part of us… to be engrained in our minds and in our hearts…
We need it… like we need armor… like we need weapons… - to both affirm what is true, and to defend against that which is false.
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A good place to start, and to continue, till the day you die… is with the Gospel.
Speak it into your life, and with discipline, and determination… learn how to be affected by it. Learn how, to be equipped with it. Learn how, to understand the sacrifice that happened on your behalf, the grace which was given to you, undeservedly, by grace.
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If you do that… every day… - You will not be pulled away, into the currents of this world.