Wednesday 15 October 2014
- Bible Book:
- Colossians
“He has now reconciled in his fleshly body through death, so as to present you holy and blameless and irreproachable before him—provided that you continue securely established and steadfast in the faith, without shifting from the hope promised by the gospel.” (vv. 22-23a)
Background
What a wonderful thing it is when someone loves you so much thatthey will forgive you almost anything. But that 'almost' marks thelimit of human love.
What an amazing thing it is to know a God who will forgiveanything, without limits.
So, if we are loved so much that God always wants to forgive usand proved that in the life and sacrifice of Jesus, does that meanwe can live life however we please because God will forgiveanything that we do?
There must have been a hint of this kind of warped thinking inthe Colossian church because there is so much emphasis in thisletter on holiness and always being true to the gospel (the goodnews about Jesus) that Paul is preaching. The death of Jesus willreconcile people to God, but they need to be "holy and blamelessand irreproachable". That puts a very different slant on thepicture. Reconciliation is not just forgiveness, it also demands achange of heart and an effort to live a life that is worthy of thatamazing love. That is not easy. Living up to the standards thatJesus set never is. It means taking the truth of the gospel andstanding firm in the hope that following Christ's example will makea difference, not just on a personal level, but to those around whoare watching the working out of good news in the life of Christiansand of the Church.
It appears that Paul was concerned that this truth of the gospelhad somehow become twisted for the Colossian church. And given thatthere were so many different influences from Gentiles,
To Ponder
- If God is prepared to offer forgiveness to everyone, what doyou understand as being the conditions that may prevent thisreconciliation from happening?
- What does living a holy life mean to you?