Yep, I've gotten a bit behind in these sermon recap blog posts so hopefully I can play a bit of catchup this week. This blog post sums up what we considered during the sermon at Roosevelt back on December 7th.
You'll remember that we began our time talking about the power of fear. We fear because we do not have control over many aspects of life. To deal with our fear we search for ways to get control. We look to religion or drugs and alcohol or sex or technology to get control over life and gain a measure of fulfillment and validation for ourselves.
When we turn to God however we gain a confidence like no other, one that will push back even our worst fears coming from the worst conditions spurred on by the worst enemies of humanity. This is because God has achieved a great triumph in Jesus Christ. When we believe in Jesus, God's triumph becomes our triumph. This means we don't need to be ruled by fear. We don't need fulfillment or validation from anything or anyone. In Christ, the Christian believer has everything!
This truth would have had particular resonance for the Colossian church. The Colossian Christians were being lured by a new teaching that suggested that Jesus was not enough if they really wanted security and control over their lives. They needed to get involved with the things this teaching was advocating (see Col 2:16-23 for more details) if they really wanted to save themselves.
Paul makes clear however that this new teaching was really "empty deceit" and ultimately demonic in origin (Col 2:8). To counteract the claims of this teaching Paul elaborates on what it means for someone to be in Christ (Col 2:9-12) and then draws out the full implications of God's "powerful working" for those in Christ (Col 2:13-15).
So what does it mean to be "in Christ"? When you believe in Jesus as your Lord and Savior, you become "in Christ." And being "in Christ" means being in God, since the whole fullness of God dwells bodily in Christ (Col 1:9). In Christ you gain all of God's power over every hostile spiritual power that would play to your fears and uncertainties. You gain this power because of the spiritual circumcision that happens when you believe in Jesus. Sin and its power to enslave is "put off" (Col 1:11) and the believer then gets raised by God with Jesus into a new life that is free from the enslaving power of sin.
What are the full implications of this work of God in the Christian's life? All our sins are forgiven (Col 1:13). The debt we owe to God, because of our sins against him (which are in effect treasonous acts against our rightful King) has been fully canceled (Col 1:14). Indeed, our full debt was effectively paid and wiped out at the cross of Christ. At first glance the cross looks like a total defeat. Instead, the cross is God's signal to all the cosmos that there is life and victory to be had in Jesus Christ.
Satan and his demons seek to constantly remind people of their failures and to encourage them to live in fear and guilt and shame. These are all abject lies. The real story is that Satan and his demons have been fully disarmed (Col 1:15). They have been stripped of all their power and accusations and claims. They are in effect prisoners shuffling behind in chains behind the victorious general Jesus Christ. The cross allows each Christian believer to look past the lies and deception and realize that all the demonic enemies of human existence have been exposed as frauds. They have been disarmed, humiliated, and defeated. That means there is now no power in the cosmos that can rule you by fear and doubt, that can enslave you under sin, that can accuse you before God, or that can prevent you from experiencing all of God in every area of life. The Christian is a person who has been empowered by God in Christ Jesus. This truth is the battle cry that every Christian should use to reclaim any part of their life that has been ceded over to defeated enemies.
Take some time to look over Colossians 2:8-15, and in particular v.15. What will it look out for us to more fully lay hold of the "disarming power" of God in the cross of Christ within our community and within our own lives?
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