Power of the Gospel: Colossians 1

Intro

I want to begin with a thought provoking question. A serial killer hears about God and believes. Over the next several years, he continues to rape and murder. The police finally catch him, and he dies in a shoot out. Where does he end up?

Ultimately, that’s up to God, but I think what we are seeing here is a difference between faith and belief.

The dictionary defines belief as an acceptance that a statement is true or that something exists. On the other hand, the Greek word for faith is “Pistos”, which means trust.

Have you ever done a trust fall? You have to have faith that your teammates will catch you. That faith requires that you take the action of falling backwards. If it was a belief fall, it could basically just be a yes, no question as to wether you believe they would catch you.

Faith requires action. James 2:19-20 says

'You say you have faith, for you believe that there is one God. Good for you! Even the demons believe this, and they tremble in terror. How foolish! Can’t you see that faith without good deeds is useless?'

So mere intellectual assent isn’t the same as saving faith.

Freedom

Colossians 1:9-14

'So we have not stopped praying for you since we first heard about you. We ask God to give you complete knowledge of his will and to give you spiritual wisdom and understanding. Then the way you live will always honor and please the Lord, and your lives will produce every kind of good fruit. All the while, you will grow as you learn to know God better and better. We also pray that you will be strengthened with all his glorious power so you will have all the endurance and patience you need. May you be filled with joy, always thanking the Father. He has enabled you to share in the inheritance that belongs to his people, who live in the light. For he has rescued us from the kingdom of darkness and transferred us into the Kingdom of his dear Son, who purchased our freedom and forgave our sins.'

Where does verse 9 infer wisdom and understanding come from?

The Holy Spirit.

Paul goes on to say that with this they “will” always honor and please the Lord, and produce good fruit.

He says that they will grow as they come to know God better. This is talking about spiritual maturity. Philippians 1:6 says

'And I am certain that God, who began the good work within you, will continue his work until it is finally finished on the day when Christ Jesus returns.'

There’s no expectation that salvation brings about perfection. Nobody will reach perfection until Christ’s return.

Romans 8:9 says

'But you are not controlled by your sinful nature. You are controlled by the Spirit if you have the Spirit of God living in you. (And remember that those who do not have the Spirit of Christ living in them do not belong to him at all.) '

That verse doesn’t say that the sin nature goes away, only that we are no longer controlled by it. We will continue to sin, but we will no longer live in sin. True salvation is life changing. You can’t live the same kind of life if you have received God’s gift of salvation.

But even as we continue to sin, Jesus has already paid the price of our redemption. That’s the power of the gospel. It’s the good news that God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us (Romans 5:8).

What’s the difference between sin and living in sin?

What does walking worthy of the Lord look like?

Christ’s Supremacy

These next verses show why Jesus was the only one who could pay for our sins, and bring us back to a right relationship with God.

Colossians1:15-20

'Christ is the visible image of the invisible God. He existed before anything was created and is supreme over all creation, for through him God created everything in the heavenly realms and on earth. He made the things we can see and the things we can’t see— such as thrones, kingdoms, rulers, and authorities in the unseen world. 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, which is his body. He is the beginning, supreme over all who rise from the dead. So he is first in everything. For God in all his fullness was pleased to live in Christ, and through him God reconciled everything to himself. He made peace with everything in heaven and on earth by means of Christ’s blood on the cross.'

True saving faith in Jesus, and acceptance of all he has done for us reconciles us to God. To be reconciled to God is to have a relationship with Him. We are no longer his enemies.

What’s the root word of relationship? Relate. God, through Jesus, came down to live as one of us. He experienced temptation just as we do. He experienced hunger, thirst, pain, and discomfort. This makes him relatable, and makes our relationship with God even stronger.

Colossians 1:21-23

' 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. '

In the ESV translation, vs 23 says “if indeed you continue in the faith,”

What do you make of that statement? Can salvation be lost?

True saving faith endures.

Conclusion

Think about how you felt before coming to Christ. Think about what your life would be like without Jesus. Do you feel God’s changing power in your life. How has God changed you for the better?

Now take those thoughts, and share that story with others. That’s your story for the power of the gospel.