We always thank God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, when we pray for you, since we heard of your faith in Christ Jesus and of the love that you have for all the saints, because of the hope laid up for you in heaven. Of this you have heard before in the word of the truth, the gospel, which has come to you, as indeed in the whole world it is bearing fruit and increasing—as it also does among you, since the day you heard it and understood the grace of God in truth, just as you learned it from Epaphras our beloved fellow servant. He is a faithful minister of Christ on your behalf and has made known to us your love in the Spirit.
And so, from the day we heard, we have not ceased to pray for you, asking that you may be filled with the knowledge of his will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding, so as to walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing to him: bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God; being strengthened with all power, according to his glorious might, for all endurance and patience with joy; giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of the saints in light. He has delivered us from the domain of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of his beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.
Comment: I think that we could be using this passage daily for a couple of weeks and still be able to talk about the ‘gems’ which are hidden in it! such things as ‘thankfulness’, ‘prayer’, ‘faith’, ‘love’, ‘Jesus Christ’, ‘saints’, ‘hope’, ‘heaven’, and we are just at the end of sentence one! But today I want us to think about what the ‘gospel’, which Paul mentions, is about. I here commit myself to writing no more than 300 words although many books have been written on the subject.
The Gospel: When God created man, He breathed into man of His own character the Bible says His breath, including the ability to choose. He knew no sin. He was not creating a robot! Because of His Omniscience, He knew that man would rebel and sin! His answer to man’s rebellion and sin was put in place before He created the Universe. Adam’s rebellion against God’s simple command was made on behalf of all mankind. Every person following Adam has sinned, by God’s definition, willingly. Thus all have a broken relationship with God!
God’s character cannot be summed up in one word. He is love, but He is just, and most certainly He is holy. His love devised a plan, His justice demanded payment, His Holiness found a way. He revealed His plan little by little through people and visions etc as recorded in the Old Testament. It was enacted by sending One of the three members of the Triune God as a man, untainted by Adam’s rebellion, to live as planned a perfect life as was offered to Adam. He was to go through all the periods of life from babyhood to an unnecessary death and all the temptations which befall mankind. He did that perfectly! It was for Jesus an unnecessary death personally as He was perfect. But necessary as the perfect sacrifice for restoring relationships between sinful men and a Holy God. Jesus on the Cross suffered the full punishment of sin. In the Resurrection He overcame death, the consequence of sin, and in the Ascension now sits in place in the Triune Godhead as our High Priest and Advocate!
God now offers a restored relationship to people on their turning in sincere repentance from their sinful ways and thankfully, believing that He has done what He says that He has done and accepting Jesus as their Saviour. On the basis of this God forgives the rebellion and accepts the ‘believer’ back into the relationship which God had with Adam – sinless, because of Jesus’ purity. He or she is now expected to live as God’s child. Part of the gospel is that God the Holy Spirit comes into the life of the believer to strengthen them and encourage them to be true children faithful to their Heavenly Father and Saviour! Perfection is the aim and is promised in the future but change is required and obedience!
I don’t think that I quite kept to the 300 word limit! Please forgive me. The gospel is both profound and simple!
John 3: 16 – “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.
Prayer: Thank You that it is so complicated but so simple. Help us as believers to live out our relationship with You.
As I read it! 