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COLOSSIANS - Christ in you, the hope of glory!
Studies in the Letter of Paul to the Colossians

Part 1 - The Foundations of Christian Faith (Colossians 1:1-29)

7. The Suffering of Paul for his Churches and the Mystery of the Gospel (Colossians 1:23c-29)


Colossians 1:25-27
25 of which I was made a servant, according to the stewardship of God which was given me toward you, to fulfill the word of God, 26 the mystery which has been hidden for ages and generations. But now it has been revealed to his saints, 27 to whom God was pleased to make known what are the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory;

The Revealed Mystery of the Church of Jesus

Paul did not just describe himself as a minister of Christ (Col. 1:23), but as a minister of the newly arisen churches in Asia Minor and Greece. He did not write to them as an exalted patriarch or as an apostle to the unclean Gentile nations, but described himself as Jesus did Himself - as one who had come to serve (Matt. 20:28). The revolution of Christ´s humility continues on in His churches, wherever His Spirit rules in them. The bending low before the small and insignificant, the needy and deficient is indispensable for the follower of Christ. Our pride needs to be broken, even while the love of the Saviour triumphs.

The risen Christ had communicated to Paul his call to service and commission through a simple believer, Hananias, while in Damascus (Acts 9:6, 15, 16). He was to proclaim the name of Jesus to the Gentile nations, to kings, and to the children of Jacob, even when this witness was going to cause him much suffering. Paul accepted his calling from the triune God to be a spiritual-housekeeper and gave much effort toward obeying this command. He richly proclaimed the word of God and the gospel of the Messiah Jesus in a time when none of the gospels had yet been translated into Greek. Paul wrote to the Corinthians: “For if I preach the gospel, I have nothing to boast of, for necessity is laid upon me; yes, woe is me if I do not preach the gospel!” (1 Cor. 9:16). He dared to write to the Colossians that he had completely communicated the word of God to them, although he had never visited them. To that end Epaphras had proclaimed the message of Paul in detail to them while in Ephesus. The power of God had been passed on, even that which is concealed in these words of the apostle to the nations.

The Event of a True Gospel Proclamation

Paul testified that there was a mystery concealed in the gospel, one that not every person could grasp (Matt. 11:25-26; 1 Cor. 1:26-29). This mystery has been kept hidden from generations of God-fearing men, angels in eternity, and even obedient prophets. They suspected that something of grand magnitude would happen, yet it remained veiled to them. Paul, however, experienced this mystery being silently fulfilled in the followers of Christ, whom he called “saints”. Holy is the one who selflessly and without sin serves mankind with no expectation of reward, just as Jesus loved all people and sacrificed Himself for them. No man can accomplish this in himself, for this requires a special work of grace and the intervention of God.

True saints recognize their unholiness and uncompromisingly confess it to their Lord. They believe on the cleansing of their sin through the blood of Christ, and are enlightened and quickened by the Spirit of the Lamb of God. This Spirit further compels them to deny self, while giving them the power to follow Jesus. The majority of sanctified saints will never be recognized by other people, for they do not speak about themselves. Instead, they make their Lord and Saviour known through word and deed. The process of their renewal is closely tied together to the mystery of which Paul wrote to the Colossians. There he confessed to the riches of the glory of this mystery, which was being realized even among godless heathen, which is - the indwelling of Christ in their hearts and minds!

Paul had previously declared to the Colossians that they, in their church assembly, were actually dwelling in the spiritual body of Christ. They were active members under the leadership of Jesus, their Head. His blood had cleansed them and was pulsating in them. His Spirit was flowing in and working through them. They were no longer independent, but lived and loved “in Christ”, as members of His spiritual body. They were hooked to the power supply of God and had become “embodied” in the life of His Son.

But now the apostle went even further. He testified to the Colossians and to all churches in the world that Jesus loved them so much that He wanted to indwell them. He had previously revealed this breathtaking mystery: “If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word; and My Father will love Him, and We will come to Him and make Our home with him” (John 14:23). Jesus further said: “I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing (John 15:5-7).

On his knees in prison, Paul prayed to God, his Father : “that He would grant you, according to the riches of His glory, to be strengthened with might through His Spirit in the inner man, that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith; that you, being rooted and grounded in love…” (Eph. 3:16-17). The indwelling of the Holy Spirit in God-fearing, praying saints signifies, at the same time, the indwelling of Christ in those who seek Him.

Christ is not just a historical person who lived 2,000 years ago; much more, He is the living Son of God, the almighty Creator of the universe, the merciful Physician of all the sick, the Reconciler to God, the Forgiver of our sins, the Baptizer with the Holy Spirit, the ruling Lord and returning King of kings! Who doesn´t tremble when he considers the truth that the Lamb of God desires to take up residence in us, for we are unworthy for Him even to look upon us?! Yet He stoops down to us, cleanses us through His blood, indwells us, and gives us His good Spirit. He doesn´t just come for a visit, but remains in us for all eternity. This amounts to a sensation, an unfathomable compassion, a crossing of death´s border, for the One who is life in Himself makes us alive. He lifts us up to His level and makes us children of His heavenly Father! Who thanks Him for His faithfulness and worships Him, who is the Beginning and the End, who has taken us into His divine fullness through His indwelling us, and who loves us with an everlasting love? As followers of Christ, we not only have the privilege to be “in Him”, but more than that, “He in us”, as the down payment of our future! The key phrase of the gospel, “we in Him”, stands more than one hundred times in the New Testament, while the phrase “He in us” is found approximately thirty times in the writings of the New Covenant (Rom. 8:10; 2 Cor. 13:2, 5; Gal. 4:19; Col. 1:27; 1 Peter 3:15 etc.).

Paul was not satisfied just to assure the Colossians that the Son of Mary, begotten of the Holy Spirit, through His Spirit takes up dwelling in the one who trusts in Him. He drew the conclusion that the Lord of Glory, who today indwells born-again believers, endows them with His glory and prepares them for life in eternity. The hope of Christians is not vague and is not limited to a material paradise. Much more, we are called to a “glorious hope”! Paul wrote the Romans: “For whom He foreknew, He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son, that He might be the firstborn among many brethren. Moreover whom He predestined, these He also called: whom He called, these He also justified: and whom He justified, these He also glorified” (Rom. 8:29-30).

God´s glory is understood by Jewish scholars to be the summation of all His attributes. Since in Jesus the fullness of deity dwells, that means that He, through His indwelling us, also brings the rays of His glory into His followers, even while transforming them into His likeness. The indwelling of Christ in His followers gives them the privilege to be able to return home to their heavenly Father (Eph. 1:13-14; Col. 1:5).

In a missions trip to Baku, in Azerbaijan, we met Schascha, a Russian opera singer, who has become an active Christian. When he recognized us as Germans, he began singing, with his strong, melodic voice, the stanza of a children´s song:

“Come in my Heart,
Lord Jesus!”

Perhaps he didn´t know any more words to the song in the German language, and so he enthusiastically repeated, in baritone voice, this short prayer, one which we would never forget! These words are an echo to a children´s prayer that all people need to speak:

I am small,
Make my heart pure,
No one should indwell it,
Save the lovely Saviour alone.

Critics of the gospel think it necessary to claim the impossibility of the glorified Jesus dwelling both in heaven and in the hearts of men here on earth. Yet Jesus said: “God is Spirit, and those who worship Him must worship Him in spirit and truth” (John 4:24). The Bible testifies the same to Jesus, the One born of the Holy Spirit, who, following His resurrection, silently passed through walls and closed doors (John 20:19-23). Paul described this fact in his own way: “Now the Lord is the Spirit; … But we all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as from the Lord, the Spirit” (2 Cor. 3:17-18). Since the triune God is Spirit, He is able to be everywhere at the same time, and especially there where He is loved and honoured. Whoever has been born-again by His Spirit knows Him and feels His presence.

Prayer: We worship You, o Lamb of God, that You did not shun coming to die for mankind, and that You have also chosen to dwell in us. Help all of those who will read this book to, in childlike manner pray: “Come in my heart, Lord Jesus!” Amen.

Question 28: How does the almighty Son of God take up eternal residence in mortal children of men?

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