Tag: Colossians

Complete in Christ

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What does it mean when Paul says he aims to present every man complete in Christ?

We proclaim Him, admonishing every man and teaching every man with all (B)wisdom, so that we may present every man complete in Christ. (Colossians 1:28)

Sanctification is not something described as an automatic process. Believers need instruction to promote their growth in godliness. This instruction focuses on Jesus Christ, not some counterfeit theology. The authentic Jesus with the doctrines we call Christology and Soteriology… these are truths about who Jesus is, and what he accomplished in his life, death, resurrection, and ascension.

There are two things we NEED:

  1. Teaching – instruction from others. (positive)
  2. Warning – help in order to avoid wrong behavior and attitudes. (negative)

Think about it… WHICH of these do you prefer to hear?

WHAT should be the ratio in each sermon you’ve heard or Bible study your attended? The KEY is WISDOM, in order to be effective. We need to pray for teachers and preachers, leaders given by God to help mature believers in their faith.

The PURPOSE of all of this Paul writes about is to present every man complete in Christ. This is what Paul mentions in passages like in Colossians 1:22.

Does Paul mean that EVERY person will be presented complete, saved, and transformed? Meaning, does Paul preach Universalism? Here he means everyone (Jew as well as Gentile) rather than everyone, like everybody. The issue of the day meant that Gentiles did not have to become Jews in order to be Christians.

WHAT were Paul’s means of accomplishing his goal?

  1. Proclaiming Christ (Colossians 1:28)
  2. Preaching God’s Word (Colossians 1:25).

Of all the topics that can be taught in a class or from the pulpit, it is worth nothing without the proclamation of the gospel. If someone is not saved, a good “how-to” or encouraging message is like putting a new suit on a corpse (think about Joel Osteen’s messages). The gospel is what transforms a person from death to life, from the kingdom of darkness into his kingdom of light.

And what IS the gospel? Remember 1 Corinthians 15:3-4.

What IS the Gospel Slide

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Lacking in Christ’s Afflications

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Have you ever thought about BIBLICAL ILLITERACY in our day? People just don’t seem to know their Bible, even people who attend church. There are 98% of people who claim to be Christian, but…

  • 80% believe people are basically good and can become good enough to keep the Law on their own
  • 59% believe that faith in Jesus is not necessary for salvation
  • 40% cannot identify what new birth means on a multiple-choice test (half thought it meant reincarnation)
  • 33% did not affirm the trinity or the deity of Christ
  • 23% do not know that Christianity affirms the bodily resurrection of Jesus Christ

Here is why sound doctrine doctrine is important: If you don’t stand for something, you will fall for anything. Check out this passage in Colossians 1:24:

Now I rejoice in my sufferings for your sake, and in my flesh I do my share on behalf of His body, which is the church, in filling up what is lacking in Christ’s afflictions.

What do you think Paul means here? Could it be that the sufferings of Jesus were not sufficient to reconcile believers to God? Is there something lacking in that which Christ has done for us? That is exactly what false teachers today will proclaim, and often the founder of that group/cult has the divine answer, or is the fulfillment of the mission of Christ (basically Jesus failed in his mission and they are here to set the record straight).

Paul was likely pointing out that Jesus’ sufferings on the cross do not accomplish the salvation of sinners UNLESS they hear and believe the gospel (Colossians 1:25). Paul’s faithfulness to his mission, including his willingness to suffer on his missionary journeys, had to be ADDED to the sufferings of Jesus in order to bring salvation to the Gentiles throughout the Roman Empire.

Jesus’ suffering on the cross was all that was necessary for their salvation, but Paul’s sufferings were necessary to proclaim the message of salvation to the lost world.

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