Colossians 1:24-29

For most of the next month I will be traveling and away from home. My meditations from May 25 through July 3, 2015 will be from the books of Colossians and Philippians and which were first published in October and November, 2013.

May 29, 2015

Colossians 1:24-29

In this passage Paul presents the most astonishing truth of our life as a Christian. But before we read Paul’s statement, let us ponder again Paul’s prose about the supremacy of Christ: Christ is the visible image of the invisible God; He is supreme over all creation; through him God created everything; Everything was created through him and for him; He existed before anything else, and he holds all creation together; Christ is also the head of the church; he is first in everything; For God in all his fullness was pleased to live in Christ; through him God reconciled everything to himself by means of Christ’s blood on the cross. (Colossians 1:15-20).

Now hear Paul: “Christ lives in you” (Colossians 1:27). This statement helps us understand how Paul could consider it an honor to suffer for the sake of the Gospel. (Remember he is writing to the Colossians from his jail cell.) Paul accepted a seemly impossible mission from God. As a Jew converted to Christ, who formerly persecuted Jewish Christians, he was commissioned to take the message of Jesus Christ to the Gentiles. If you could ask Paul how he was able to undertake such an impossible assignment from God, he would quickly respond, “(By) depending on Christ’s mighty power that works within me” (Colossians 1:29).

Today is a good day to take the time to consider the assignments you have received from God. You may have received a specific assignment from God in addition to the assignments all followers of Christ have received, such as love our enemies, forgive as we have been forgiven, love our neighbors as we love ourselves, reconcile people to Christ and serve as his ambassador. Can any of these assignments be impossible for you knowing that Christ, the visible image of God, lives in you? Like Paul, you can depend on Christ’s mighty power working within you.

Sē’lah

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(Selah is a word that appears in the Book of Psalms that I often use as the Complimentary Closing in my correspondence. Its meaning, as I use the word, is to pause and think about these things.)

These meditations are written by Alex M. Knight as he seeks the life in Christ as his way of life.  The meditations are published on the BLOG, http://seekingthelifeinchrist.blogspot.com/ and they are also distributed on the Constant Contact email server. You may subscribe to this email service by sending an email to: amkrom812@gmail.com. The BLOG is also available on Amazon Kindle, by subscription.

Publications by Alex M. Knight:

·        Seeking the Life in Christ, Meditations on the New Testament and Psalms is available at Amazon.com in paperback and Kindle.

·        The second edition of First Think – Then Pray is available on Amazon Kindle.

·        Meditations on The Story of My Life as told by Jesus Christ is available as an e-book on Amazon Kindle.

Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2007. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188.

Colossians 1:21-23

For most of the next month I will be traveling and away from home. My meditations from May 25 through July 3, 2015 will be from the books of Colossians and Philippians and which were first published in October and November, 2013.

May 28, 2015

Colossians 1:21-23

It is impossible to comprehend Paul’s beautiful prose about the supremacy of Christ (Colossians 1:15-20) in just one reading. Actually, the more you read it, and explore different translations, the more awe inspiring is the wonder of His Majesty, Christ Jesus our King, our Savior. As we try to digest the wonder of Christ, Paul makes an astonishing statement: “He made peace with everything in heaven and on earth by means of Christ’s blood on the cross. This includes you . . . (Colossians 1:20-21a Emphasis mine).

Paul has drawn a diagram of the supremacy of Christ, from before creation to the present moment, and placed an X right in the middle and said, “You Are Here!” But wait! There’s more! Not only are you on the inside of God’s reign, His Kingdom, Paul says when you come into the presence of God, you are “holy and blameless and irreproachable before him (Colossians1:22 NRSV). All this was accomplished by means of Christ’s blood on the cross. Hallelujah!

Astonishingly, it is possible to taste this awesome grace of God without being established in it, and manifesting the life of Christ in our character, habit and daily life. This is why our mission is to seek the life in Christ as our way of life and not “drift away from the assurance you received when you heard the Good News” (Colossians 1:24).

The new life that is ours in Christ has made us holy and blameless and irreproachable before God. Today take the time to draw a diagram of your own life. In the very center of your paper write: holy and blameless and irreproachable. Next list your character traits, your habits and the routines of your daily life. How does your life, as you are choosing to live it, reflect the truth of what Christ has accomplished by the means of his blood on the cross? Invite the Holy Spirit to so transform your life that the life of Jesus (holy and blameless and irreproachable) may be made visible in your mortal flesh. (See 2 Corinthians 4:11 NRSV)

Sē’lah

<><  <><  <><  <><

(Selah is a word that appears in the Book of Psalms that I often use as the Complimentary Closing in my correspondence. Its meaning, as I use the word, is to pause and think about these things.)

These meditations are written by Alex M. Knight as he seeks the life in Christ as his way of life.  The meditations are published on the BLOG, http://seekingthelifeinchrist.blogspot.com/ and they are also distributed on the Constant Contact email server. You may subscribe to this email service by sending an email to: amkrom812@gmail.com. The BLOG is also available on Amazon Kindle, by subscription.

Publications by Alex M. Knight:

·        Seeking the Life in Christ, Meditations on the New Testament and Psalms is available at Amazon.com in paperback and Kindle.

·        The second edition of First Think – Then Pray is available on Amazon Kindle.

·        Meditations on The Story of My Life as told by Jesus Christ is available as an e-book on Amazon Kindle.

Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2007. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188.

Colossians 1:15-20

For most of the next month I will be traveling and away from home. My meditations from May 25 through July 3, 2015 will be from the books of Colossians and Philippians and which were first published in October and November, 2013.

May 27, 2015

Colossians 1:15-20

Every Christian, consciously or subconsciously, has determined their belief about the role of Jesus in their life. He is the Christian’s savior, and although he is referred to as Lord in songs, prayers and confessions of faith, the extent of his lordship varies from person to person. I believe the variance comes from the perception of Jesus’ activity in our everyday lives. For some, Jesus is seated at the right hand of his Father, and we are pretty much left on our own to work out the meaning of our lives, using Jesus’ life and teaching as a model. The folks in this camp would do well to spend time meditating on today’s passage about the supremacy of Christ. 

I was impressed in reading the passage today with the affirmation of Jesus’ role in creating all that has been created. Jesus, who created all that has been created, is also holding everything together. (v.17) Jesus is actively involved in this world, or as the Affirmation of Faith of the United Church of Canada states, I believe in Jesus “who has created and is creating.” Paul made several references to the role of Jesus in our lives today: Christ is the visible image of the invisible God; he is supreme over all creation; he holds all creation together; Christ is also the head of the church; he is the beginning; and he is first in everything. Jesus is not just passively seated next to his Father; Jesus is, by far and away, the most active force in our lives, yesterday, today and forever!

“Not only that, but all the broken and dislocated pieces of the universe—people and things, animals and atoms—get properly fixed and fit together in vibrant harmonies, all because of his death, his blood that poured down from the cross” (Colossians 1:20 The Message). I don’t know about you, but this makes me want to sing . . .

For ever and ever, forever and ever,

King of kings, and Lord of lords,

King of kings, and Lord of lords,

And Lord of lords,

And He shall reign,

And He shall reign forever and ever,

King of kings, forever and ever,

And Lord of lords,

Hallelujah! Hallelujah!

And He shall reign forever and ever,

King of kings! and Lord of lords!

And He shall reign forever and ever,

King of kings! and Lord of lords!

Hallelujah! Hallelujah! Hallelujah! Hallelujah!

Hallelujah!

Sē’lah

<><  <><  <><  <><

(Selah is a word that appears in the Book of Psalms that I often use as the Complimentary Closing in my correspondence. Its meaning, as I use the word, is to pause and think about these things.)

These meditations are written by Alex M. Knight as he seeks the life in Christ as his way of life.  The meditations are published on the BLOG, http://seekingthelifeinchrist.blogspot.com/ and they are also distributed on the Constant Contact email server. You may subscribe to this email service by sending an email to: amkrom812@gmail.com. The BLOG is also available on Amazon Kindle, by subscription.

Publications by Alex M. Knight:

·        Seeking the Life in Christ, Meditations on the New Testament and Psalms is available at Amazon.com in paperback and Kindle.

·        The second edition of First Think – Then Pray is available on Amazon Kindle.

·        Meditations on The Story of My Life as told by Jesus Christ is available as an e-book on Amazon Kindle.

Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2007. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188.

Colossians 1: 9-14

For most of the next month I will be traveling and away from home. My meditations from May 25 through July 3, 2015 will be from the books of Colossians and Philippians and which were first published in October and November, 2013.

May 26, 2015

Colossians 1: 9-14

The disciples asked Jesus to teach them to pray and he gave them what we know as The Lord’s Prayer. Although Paul never specifically mentions The Lord’s Prayer, it is clear from all of his references to prayer in his epistles, that he understood the Lord’s teaching on prayer: it’s all about God, or as the writer of Hebrews put it, prayer is all about “fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith” (Hebrews 12:2 NIV). When prayer is all about God, when our eyes are fixed on Jesus, our prayers glorify God and seek His guidance in placing our lives in the center of His will. When we shift our prayer focus from God to our own lives, our prayers become self-centered and seek God to change what we consider bad circumstances in our lives.

Paul’s prayers in today’s passage model the difference between God-centered prayers and self-centered prayers. Paul prayed fervently for his friends in Colossae, that God would give them complete knowledge of his will and would give them spiritual wisdom and understanding. He prayed that God would strengthen them with all his glorious power so they would have all the endurance and patience they needed. Paul prayed that his friends would be filled with joy, and would always thank the Father, because God had enabled them to share in the inheritance that belongs to his people who live in the light. Paul prayed that his friends would praise God who had rescued them from the kingdom of darkness and transferred them into the Kingdom of his dear Son, who purchased their freedom and forgave their sins. (Colossians 1:9-14)

Paul’s ambition for his own life, and his prayers for his friends, was to be firmly established in a living and dynamic relationship with God the Father and Christ Jesus His son. I can hear Paul’s words from Philippians 3 ringing in my ears as I read Paul’s prayers for the Colossians: “everything else is worthless when compared with the infinite value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. I want to know Christ!” (Philippians 3:8, 10). This is what shaped Paul’s heart and his prayers. Does it shape yours?

Sē’lah

<><  <><  <><  <><

(Selah is a word that appears in the Book of Psalms that I often use as the Complimentary Closing in my correspondence. Its meaning, as I use the word, is to pause and think about these things.)

These meditations are written by Alex M. Knight as he seeks the life in Christ as his way of life.  The meditations are published on the BLOG, http://seekingthelifeinchrist.blogspot.com/ and they are also distributed on the Constant Contact email server. You may subscribe to this email service by sending an email to: amkrom812@gmail.com. The BLOG is also available on Amazon Kindle, by subscription.

Publications by Alex M. Knight:

·        Seeking the Life in Christ, Meditations on the New Testament and Psalms is available at Amazon.com in paperback and Kindle.

·        The second edition of First Think – Then Pray is available on Amazon Kindle.

·        Meditations on The Story of My Life as told by Jesus Christ is available as an e-book on Amazon Kindle.

Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2007. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188.