COMPLETE IN HIM Colossians 2:9-15
When
you look at yourself in the mirror, what do you see? Do you see your flaws, see
yourself as imperfect and lacking in many areas? That is often how young teenage
girls and boys feel inadequate about themselves when they compare their
appearance to that of others on social media. The truth of the matter is you
are fearfully and wonderfully made.
Do
you sometimes have this self-talk, saying to yourself, 'I am a Mess! No one
loves me. Everybody hates me. Even God doesn't care about me, and He is angry
with me, and so on. Growing up, I struggled with low self-image and the fear of
men, even after becoming a follower of Christ. I often thought that something
was lacking in me, and I could never measure up to God's expectations. But
praise God, over the years, I learned this transforming truth.
It
doesn't matter how I feel, what others think about me, or what they say about
me. All that matters is what God thinks, speaks, and feels about me in His
Word. The world may write you off and consider you worthless, but God sees you
differently. In our "In Him" series, we are exploring who we are and
what we are in Him. Colossians 2:9-15
Last
Sunday, we needed to be Rooted In Him to remain faithful until the end. Even
after following Christ for a long time, we sometimes doubt whether we are saved
and our lives are pleasing to Him or meeting His expectations of us. Those
thoughts could discourage us and make us feel like we are failing. We will
examine how the Apostle Paul addressed these doubts and unbelief among the
Colossian believers. How did he silence the false prophets?
Colossians
2:9-10, "For in Christ all the fullness of the Deity lives in bodily form,
and in Christ you have been brought to fullness. He is the head over every
power and authority." NIV. In NASB, it reads, "For in Him all the fullness of Deity
dwells in bodily form,
and in Him you have been made complete, and He is
the head over every ruler and authority."
These two verses deal with two profound
theological truths. As seasoned Christians, we can take our theology for
granted because we have the whole truth available in the Scriptures. But that
was not the case with the early Church. Scriptures were still being written as
the Church addressed the false teachers and their confusing teachings. Paul takes on the false teachers in
Colossae, who were misleading the believers by undermining the very Divinity of
Christ.
I.
The Fullness of God lives in Christ.
Colossians
2:9, "For in Christ all the fullness of the Deity lives in bodily
form." The false teachers who claimed to have special knowledge sowed seeds
of doubt among the believers, saying that Jesus was only a human and not God.
This was the age-old tactic used by Satan to successfully turn people away from
worshiping the living God, to inanimate objects and animals.
It
would help us recall what Paul said about the divinity of Christ earlier in
Chapter 1:15-20. These verses confirm the profound truth of Christ's
preeminence and participation with God in creation. All visible things and the
things that we can not see, including human beings, have been created by Jesus
for His glory. And also all things are held together in Him. For God in all His
fullness was pleased to live in Christ. Paul reiterated the same truth in Col 2:9,
"For in Christ all the fullness of the deity lives in bodily form."
Not
only in these verses, but throughout the New Testament, Jesus' Deity was
recognized. The Gospel of John begins with a statement
of Jesus' Deity: "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with
God, and the Word was God" (John 1:1).
After Jesus' resurrection, Thomas the doubting disciple finally understood
Jesus' Deity, declaring Him to be "my Lord and my God" (John 20:28).
If Jesus were not Lord and God, He would have corrected Thomas, but He did not;
Thomas spoke the truth. Paul eagerly awaited "the appearing of the glory
of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ" (Titus 2:13)
and encouraged us to do the same.
These
days, many skeptics have a hard time believing that there is a God and that
Jesus Christ is the Messiah and God himself. But the devil knows there is one
God and shudders (James 2:19), yet he deceives and blinds people's minds, so
that they can not see the light of the gospel that displays the glory of
Christ, who is the image of God. (2 Cor 4:4). Now you know the truth that Jesus
Christ is God, don't let the devil or anyone else deceive you. Before we
explore the second truth that we are complete in Him, let's find out what He
has already done for us.
II.
A New Life In Christ
After
learning that Jesus Christ is God, we need to be reminded again of Christ's
redemptive work for humanity. Paul reminded the Colossians that they were once
enemies and alienated from God due to their evil behavior. However, God has
reconciled them through Christ's death on the cross, presenting them as holy in
God's sight.
That
was the state of all of us; once we were the enemies of God and dead in our
sins. Because Christ died for us, we can now have abundant and eternal life.
Not only that, Christ has forgiven all our sins. Paul, writing to the Roman
believers, reminds them how they were saved.
Romans
6:3-4, "Or don't you know
that all of us who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his
death? We were therefore buried with him through Baptism into death in
order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of
the Father, we too may live a new life." In Baptism, we identify with the
death and the resurrection of Christ.
As Christ rose from the dead, we too will rise from our old
sinful lives to a New Life in Christ. In Romans 8:1-2, we read,
"Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ
Jesus, because through Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit who gives life has
set you free from the law of sin and death." We are a New Creation.
Therefore, let us not continue in our sinful lives. Along with this new life,
as Paul said, "we are also made complete in Him."
III.
We Are Complete In Him.
Coming
back to our second theological truth, Colossians 2:10, "For in Christ you
have been brought to fullness. He is the head over every power and
authority." NIV. In NASB, it reads, "For in Him all the fullness of Deity
dwells in bodily form,
and in Him you have been made complete, and He is
the head over every ruler and authority."
What
does it mean that we have been made complete in Him? The fullness of
the Godhead dwells in Christ. Since Christ is the fullness of God and we are in
him, we have all the fullness we can ever possess. In Christ, we have
everything we ever need to live a joy-filled and fulfilled life in this world,
and when we die, we will live with Him forever in Heaven.
How does that work practically in our daily
lives? First, our completeness or fullness does not depend on what we do or don't
do, but
because you believe in the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ. By our
faith in Christ and what He's done on our behalf, God can pronounce us complete
in Him. We may still feel broken, but God sees us as whole persons.
Secondly, being complete in Him means that we experience
Joy even amid challenging situations because He lives in us. Where God lives,
there is fullness of Joy. Thirdly, being made complete in Him means we become
grace-filled and truthful people, because Jesus is full of grace and truth.
(John 1:14). Fourth, we become loving, peaceful, forbearing, kind, good,
gentle, faithful, and self-controlled human beings because the Holy Spirit in
us makes us bear fruit.
Fifthly, being made complete in Him means we have
everything we need to live a godly life. The main takeaway from this sermon is
that when we declare with our mouths, 'Jesus is Lord,' and believe in our
hearts that He was raised from the dead, we are saved. We are made right with
God, Christ, and His Holy Spirit lives in us. Hold on to this precious truth
and don’t let the devil or anyone else take it away from you. In Christ, we are
complete!
