Colossians 1:13-14 ESV
“He has delivered us from the domain of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of his beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.”
The “us” being referred to here are the saints of God, called
of God to be holy, who are faithful in Christ Jesus. The truth of the gospel is
bearing fruit in our lives and increasing. Our Lord has delivered us from the
domain of darkness (sin, wickedness) and he has transferred us to the kingdom
of his beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.
And to be redeemed means that Jesus, in his death on that cross,
bought us back for God from our lives of slavery to sin and he won us over to
his righteousness and holiness. He rescued us from what enslaved us so that we
can now live for our Lord and honor him with our lives (1 Corinthians 6:19-20; Romans
6:1-23). Thus, redemption is about deliverance from our old lives of living in
sin so that we can now live holy lives, pleasing to God.
Colossians 1:21-23 ESV
“And you, who once were alienated and hostile in mind, doing evil deeds, he has now reconciled in his body of flesh by his death, in order to present you holy and blameless and above reproach before him, if indeed you continue in the faith, stable and steadfast, not shifting from the hope of the gospel that you heard, which has been proclaimed in all creation under heaven, and of which I, Paul, became a minister.”
“Reconcile” is a very similar word to “redemption,” for it
means, I change. I exchange my old life for my new life in Christ Jesus, my
Lord. I change from enmity with God to friendship, fellowship, and partnership
with God. And all this is the working of God and his Spirit in our lives, and
it is not generated in our own selves. But it involves us agreeing with God and
cooperating with him and with his work of changing us from our old lives to the
new.
And please notice with me here that the description of the
one having been reconciled to God is one who once was (as in past tense) alienated
and hostile in mind, doing evil deeds. This is not to be the description of one
who has been redeemed and who has been reconciled to God. It doesn’t mean we
will never sin again (1 John 2:1-2), but that sin should no longer be what we
practice. It should not be our habit, our lifestyle (1 John 3:4-10).
So, if we are believing in Jesus Christ (present active)
with God-given faith, then we are now God’s holy people. And we are to be holy
in all our conduct. And to be holy is to be separate (unlike, different) from
the world because we are being conformed to the likeness of Jesus Christ. Then
the truth of the gospel is bearing spiritual fruit in our lives for God’s
eternal kingdom, and it is increasing. And we have been delivered from the
control of sin over our lives so that we can now live for the Lord and honor
him with our lives.
And blameless means to be free from blame. And the only way
that can happen is first of all because of what Jesus Christ did for us on that
cross in putting our sins to death with him so that by God-given faith in him
we can die with Christ to sin and now live to him and to his righteousness. But
then we must die with him to sin, not just once, but daily, and we must walk in
obedience to his commands in walks of holiness and in righteousness.
But.. we must also continue in that faith, stable and steadfast,
not shifting from the hope of the gospel that we should have heard. And the
truth of the gospel that we should have been taught in Christ Jesus is this:
We should no longer walk as we did when we lived in sin
and/or as the ungodly do who have hardened their hearts against God. We should
not give ourselves up to sensuality, greedy to practice every kind of impurity.
But we are to put off our old self, which belongs to our former manner of life
and is corrupt through deceitful desires, and to be renewed in the spirit of our
minds, and to put on the new self, created after the likeness of God in true
righteousness and holiness (see Ephesians 4:17-24).
But please pay close attention to these words: “if indeed
you continue in the faith, stable and steadfast, not shifting from the hope of
the gospel..”
In other words, we are not saved (done deal) via a one-time
profession of faith in Jesus Christ. We have to die with Christ to sin, not
just once, but as a matter of life course. And we have to walk in obedience to
our Lord’s commands (New Covenant), in practice, in walks of righteousness and
holiness, in the power of God, to the glory and praise of God. And we have to
continue in these walks of faith, stable and steadfast, not shifting from the
hope of the true (biblical) gospel until the very end.
For if we do not, and we continue in or we return to living
in sin and for self in walks of disobedience and rebellion against our Lord,
making sin our practice, and not making righteousness, holiness and obedience
to our Lord our practice, then we will not inherit eternal life with God. And we
will not enter into his eternal kingdom, regardless of what faith in Jesus we
have professed with our lips (Please read the following Scriptures).
Full
Release
An
Original Work / April 15, 2012
Walking daily with my Savior
brings me joy.
Loving Father; precious Jesus;
He’s my Savior and my Lord.
Gently leads me; follow Him.
I’ve invited Him within.
Now abiding in His presence,
oh, what peace.
From my self-life
He has brought me,
By His mercy, full release.
Hope and comfort,
peace and safety Jesus brings
When I daily bow before Him;
Obey freely; do His will.
Follow Him where’er He leads.
Listen to Him; His words heed.
Now obeying his words fully,
oh, what love
That He gives me
through salvation,
By His Spirit, from above.
Loving Father; precious Jesus,
He’s my friend.
With my Savior, by His Spirit,
I will endure to the end.
Share the gospel, tell what’s true.
Witness daily; His will do.
Tell the world of how their Savior
bled and died.
On a cruel cross He suffered
So that we might be alive.
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