Colossians 2:13-19

June 3, 2015

Colossians 2:13-19

The gems keep on coming! First, Paul affirms the ultimate victory we have in Christ. In ancient times, when an enemy was defeated, the conquering general would take the defeated general prisoner and bind him in chains. When the conquering general returned home, there was a huge parade in his honor. The defeated general, in chains, was made to walk at the end of the parade where, now disarmed, he was shamed publicly. Paul uses this cultural reality as a metaphor for the victory Christ won over sin and death. Rising from the grave, Christ destroyed Satan’s power over sin and death. Satan was publicly shamed when Jesus forgave our sins, when Jesus canceled the record of the charges against us. (Colossians 2:13-15)

Next, Paul encourages us to remain vigilant and not dilute the complete victory over sin that Christ has won. This victory is for all people. No person who has come to faith in Christ is closer to the heart of God than you are at this very instant. No person can ever draw closer to God, than you can today, through your confession of faith in what Christ has done for you. Think of all the saints like Teresa of Avila, Mother Teresa, Madame Guyon, Brother Lawrence, Augustine, Martin Luther, John Wesley, and Billy Graham. None of these are closer to the heart of God than you. Let this sink in. Let your roots grow down into this truth, and let your lives be built on Jesus and his great love for you.

In Chapter 1, we learned that Jesus holds all creation together. Here Paul affirms that Jesus “holds the whole body together” (Colossians 2:19). Did you ever have one of those days when you felt you were coming unglued, that you were coming apart at the seams? You may feel that way at times, but it can’t happen, because the Good Master, Christ Jesus, is holding you together. Go ahead; I know you want to shout,

H A L L E L U J A H!

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.