Christ . . . Reconciles All Things to God

For God was pleased to have all his fullness dwell in him,

and through him to reconcile to himself all things,

whether things on earth or things in heaven,

by making peace through his blood, shed on the cross.

Colossians 1:19-20

Well ladies, it seems Paul was not content to leave the preeminence of Christ alone. He wanted the folks in Colosse, and us, to catch the complete essence of divinity embodied in the man Jesus. The Greek word for fullness, pleroma, portrays the idea that the “full fullness of the Father filled the Son”. The divine nature of God did not exit the body of Jesus when He was born.

And what’s more, it gave God great pleasure to have all His fullness dwell in Christ while He dwelt on the earth: For God was pleased!

I also get the sense that a part of that pleasure carried over into the final words of this beautiful hymn. It pleased God the Father that the time was right for His plan to be put in place to reconcile to himself all things. Only divinity could heal the rift between man and God, only one fully human with all the fullness of God in Him. Only Jesus!

And so God made it happen, but it wasn’t a pretty thing. Blood had to be shed. Death on a cross was an agonizing ordeal. As Jesus prayed in Gethsemane: “Father, if you are willing, take this cup from me; yet not my will, but yours be done” (Luke 22:42). He did sweat blood for you and for me (Luke 22:44); yet, God’s will prevailed. Peace with God was made, for all time, for those who believe.

Think about it ladies: Christ, the exact image of the invisible God, preexistent, creator, supreme, fully divine, “brought (God) glory on earth by completing the work (God) gave (Him) to do” (John 17:4). Tuck Colossians 1:15-20 into the deep recesses of your mind where it will be a constant reminder of the supremacy of Christ. And give glory to God as you were intended to do.

Soli Deo Gloria! Amen.

Nancy P

Share the Gift

…others will praise God for the obedience that accompanies your confession of the gospel of Christ, and for your generosity in sharing with them and with everyone else…Thanks be to God for his indescribable gift.

2 Corinthians 9:13b & 15

I always smile when I think about that Mother’s Day weekend when my husband’s aunt and uncle came to visit. Our kids were still small so we had not really established any of our own Mother’s Day traditions yet.

In honor of that day my husband bought me a corsage. He presented it to me as I got dressed. I tried to get it pinned on, but decided to ask his aunt to help me. As I went in to the guest bedroom to ask for her help she exclaimed, “OH! Is that for ME?!?”

What I could I do? I said yes and proceeded to pin it on her dress instead of my own.

She wore my corsage to church as proudly as ever, Even though it perturbed my husband a bit at first, we got to experience her joy as she wore it. It brought new meaning to the old saying, “some gifts are made to be shared.”

Salvation is one of those gifts. God did not intend for me to keep it to myself. When I tell others about my salvation and if they too come to believe in Jesus as their Savior, I get to experience the joy of new believers. I get to watch them “wear” it so to speak.

Just as I was a little doubtful about sharing my corsage with my husband’s aunt; I can also be timid when it comes to sharing my salvation story with others. I would never want to withhold the eternal joy of salvation from anyone by not sharing it with them.

God’s gift of salvation is “indescribable.” It is the gift which must be shared time and time again. No one should be denied the opportunity to accept His gift because they did not hear about it.

God, thank you for the gift of salvation. Thank you for the privilege of sharing it with others. Help me to do so boldly.

Susan P.

A Timely Word

Preach the word; be prepared in season and out of season; correct, rebuke and encourage with great patience and careful instruction.

2 Timothy 4:2

Has there ever been a time in your life when someone shared with you just the right Bible verse at just the right time? Maybe it was when you were hurting, waiting, discouraged or about to give up. It might have given you strength to carry on or even helped you make a decision. God’s Word is powerful and can make an eternal difference when received by a fertile heart.

How often have you had the privilege of passing along that timely word to someone else?

It may be stating the obvious, but to have a helpful word for somebody we must first regularly interact with the Word of God. We can’t give what we haven’t first received. To recall God’s promises, we’ve first had to plant them in our own hearts.

The more we let God’s Truth “steep” in our minds, the more it will become a part of our thought patterns.

So many times, when I listen to a friend tell me her problems, I offer my words of consolation. While there is certainly nothing wrong with that, my words are fallible and temporal. God’s Word is timeless and has the power to comfort, challenge, direct and bring peace.

Will I offer one of God’s promises in a time of trouble? Do I have any memorized that I could recall? Have I marked verses in my Bible that have helped me in the past?

Lord, Your Word is powerful and perfect. Give me wisdom regarding when and what to share with others at just the right time.

Whitney

Be Ready

Consequently, faith comes from hearing the message, and the message is heard through the word about Christ.

Romans 10:17

Have you ever taken a CPR course? If so, you know that one of the last things the instructor tells you is to practice what you’ve learned. If you don’t regularly refresh yourself on the what and how, it will be unlikely you’ll be able to perform CPR when an emergency arises.

Likewise, we must be ready to explain to someone how they can receive Christ as Savior. If we’ve never thought about it or studied what the Bible says, it will be difficult to explain with clarity.

What are some Scriptures you can put in your toolbelt that will help you?

Romans 3:23-24 and John 3:16 are great ones. Romans 6:23 is also powerful.

There are so many clear verses that outline God’s grand plan for salvation. Take some time today to find the ones that impact you. Write them down and stash them in your Bible. You may even want to put a note in your phone listing out these verses. Better yet, memorize them.

Refresh yourself in these truths periodically. You never know when you’ll have the opportunity to share them with someone in your path.

With CPR, they say you train yourself with the hope that you’ll never use it. In the case of sharing God’s Word, prepare with the goal of taking action. People are desperate to know the way to meaning, purpose and eternal life. Choose to be a lifesaver today.

Lord, thank You that Your Word has power to bring the dead to life. Please help me prepare my mind and heart to share Your Truth with love and boldness.

Whitney

A Journey with Jesus

Blessed are those whose strength is in you, who have set their hearts on pilgrimage. As they pass through the Valley of Baca, they make it a place of springs; the autumn rains also cover it with pools. They go from strength to strength, till each appears before God in Zion.

Psalm 84: 5-7

Nestled in the middle of the Psalms are three verses that describe the blessed life of a believer. If someone asked me to describe a believer’s life, I could ramble on for hours, perhaps days. Yet, in three short sentences this psalmist does a good job of hitting the highlights. He describes the believer’s heart, strength, difficulty, impact, and future.

Today, our focus will be on the psalmist’s description of a believer’s heart. Blessed are those…who have set their hearts on pilgrimage (Psalm 84:5). In other words, blessed are those who have a longing in their souls and a determination in their minds to journey through life with Jesus.

None of us were born with this longing to follow Jesus. Ephesians 2 says all were born with a desire to follow the ways of the world and its ruler. But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ (Ephesians 2:4). God Himself awakens within each of us the desire to seek Jesus and know Him. This act of God’s grace starts the heart of every believer beating for Jesus.

God then sets our hearts on pilgrimage. He awakens the desire to follow Jesus.

Following Jesus is not easy. It requires denying self and taking up a cross daily. (Luke 9:23) But those who follow Jesus discover this truth: No eye has seen, no ear has heard, no mind has conceived what God has prepared for those who love him (I Corinthians 2:9).

Friend, is your heart set on pilgrimage? Draw near to Jesus, and you will discover abiding joy and soul satisfaction that can be found in no other.

Lord, keep our hearts set on journeying through life with You. Amen.

Jan Burkhart

The Good News . . . Begets Hope

We have heard of your faith in Christ Jesus and of the love you have for all the saints—the faith and love that spring from the hope that is stored up for you in heaven and that you have already heard about in the word of truth, the gospel that has come to you.

Colossians 1:4-5

Remember when you learned to swim ladies? I do. How exhilarating, to be able to even dog paddle my way through the waves. Wow! And then to learn to flat out float for longer bits of time, trusting myself to the water. I was in seventh heaven. In the years to come, I would glide serenely on cool, clear lakes, as well as dive deep into murky northern waters.

Faith is just that—being spiritually afloat!

But first, gospel truth begets hope, the hope of a glorified future in heaven because of God’s grace and the cross. When grace is grasped, hope becomes what it is intended to be—wave after wave of positive expectation based on the good news of the gospel, be the circumstances crystal clear or murky.

Hope then begets faith as it dawns on you that the glorious riches of the mystery that was kept hidden for ages and generations is none other than Christ in you, the hope of glory (1:26-27). I began to float spiritually when I abandoned my life to Jesus.

Hope also begets agape love. Once you’ve placed your faith in Jesus, love for others should spring forth from the depths of your being. How can it not, with Christ in you! (Yes I know, some days loving is not the first thing on your mind. But agape love does not depend on you. It is a fruit of the Spirit and will ripen with time if you draw close.)

And so you have that delightful trilogy of hope, faith, and love flowing from God’s grace.

This year my youngest grandson Ty, at age nine, learned to spiritually float. His whole life he’s heard the story of Jesus, but it was up to him to abandon himself to the good news. Sure, there’ll be dips and dives. Just imagine, however, the whole ocean of promises ahead of him. Thank you Jesus!

Nancy P