Who we were then was entirely our doing. Who we are now is entirely His doing. JESUS CHANGES EVERYTHING! Below is an outline summary of the sermon for your further study and deeper reflection.
SERIES: Colossians - Alive In Christ
TEXT: Colossians 1:21-23
TITLE: Jesus Changes Everything
PREACHER: Tom Wilkins
BIG IDEA: Jesus changes everything!
POINTS:
1. Who We Once Were
2. Who We Are Now
SERMON EXCERPTS:
All quotes are taken from the pastor’s notes.
”In verse 21, we find the 3-fold GRIM REALITY that describes who we were.”
“‘And you who once were…’ Alienated - We were alienated from God. And our alienation is not simply describing the state of the brokenness and separation in our relationship with God. Instead, what is being described here is the active, purposeful persistence in our slavery to sin and willing idolatry. We were not passively floating around in the darkness of space in a thrusterless space capsule, being pulled by various forces here and there as we drifted further and further away from God. Rather, our alienation here is better described as having a white-knuckled grip on the steering wheel of our 1966 Shelby with our foot buried on the throttle, racing hard and fast and further into our alienation from God.”
“‘And you who once were…’ Hostile in mind - Paul does not want us to misunderstand who we were as he now adds to our alienation and describes we were also ‘hostile in mind.’ If our alienation wasn’t bad enough, our hearts had turned on him in hostility, as active His enemy. In our hatred of him (a passive description of our enmity with God), foot still buried on the gas, we yanked on the wheel and headed straight at Him.”
“The GRIM reality is that in our minds, from the very wellspring of our hearts, we were at war with Him! We believe and teach that we ran away from God, but here we find that we ran at Him.”
“‘And you who once were…’ Doing evil deeds - Adding to our alienation from God and to our hostility toward God, we were doing evil deeds. Paul, making sure that we understand what he is saying, adds to our estrangement from God and our hearts and minds fixed full-on hate to now doing evil deeds. We embodied our sin.”
“The GRIM reality is that this IS who we once were! We were alienated from God, hostile toward God, and doing evil deeds against God and others! BUT, THE GOOD NEWS is Jesus changes everything!”
“While still exulting in the majesty and supremacy of Jesus, Paul speaks to our hostile alienation in sin that is aimed at God and others… BUT, HE DOES NOT LEAVE US THERE.”
“Vs 21 should have a profound effect on us as we behold the majesty and supremacy of Christ. This is both terrifying and beautiful! By the cry of His command, Jesus created us and holds us together! We hated him and sought to undermine him, having tried to take His place on the throne, with our backs turned against him pursuing the filthiness of evil deeds. HE HAS NOW RECONCILED US!”
“We are now Reconciled by the blood of His cross! We are now Reconciled by His death! Jesus and His crucifixion change everything! It is here that we see the CROSS of Jesus as the overarching TURNING POINT for us - the CROSS of Jesus changes everything for us. The OLD now passes away, and now the NEW has come through the body of our Savior as He bears our sins on his perfect body and as Jesus pours out his holy blood in that inexplicable sacrifice.”
“Before God, our Judge, the records of who we were have not been lost (though we want them to be)! THE historical RECORDS PROVE WHO WE WERE - no fire could destroy them, and no effort on our part could rid us of our past hatred and transgression against God. But the good news is that at the CROSS OF JESUS CHANGES EVERYTHING. HIS BLOOD COVERS OUR RECORDS, AND HIS DEATH RECONCILES US BEFORE GOD!”
“The reason Jesus has done this is to present you and me before the judgment seat of God - His 2nd Coming - as righteous. Without Jesus, we will not escape the righteous wrath of God. But, with Jesus, we are righteous in God’s eyes and this is who we are now!”
“Who are we now in Christ? Jesus ‘presents you above reproach’, meaning we are presented without the stain of sin. Jesus ‘presents you holy’, separated unto God in righteousness. Jesus ‘presents you blameless’ - without stain, we bear no blame anymore. We are now forgiven and reconciled.”
“We, who were once alienated… separated from God, have now been brought near in Christ! We, who were once hostile in mind… enemies of God, are now loving worshippers of God in Christ! We, who were once doing evil deeds…unrighteous before God, are now made righteous in Christ! JESUS CHANGES EVERYTHING.”
ADDITIONAL SCRIPTURE:
Genesis 6:5
2 Corinthians 5:21
Ephesians 2:13
Luke 7:47
Romans 5:17
APPLICATION:
3-fold Application
Continue in your Gospel faith. Remembering how you got here will be fuel for continuing on in your gospel faith
Be rooted in your Gospel hope. Peter O’Brian - “...continuance is the test of reality. If it is true that the saints will persevere to the end, then it is equally true that the saints must persevere to the end.”
Become what you already are NOW in Christ. We were once embodying sin… now embody holiness and righteousness! Now we are reconciled by the Cross of Jesus, holy, blameless, and above reproach. Live in your innocence - live in your new reality!
SONGS FROM THIS SUNDAY:
Come Behold The Wondrous Mystery
Jesus, There's No One Like You
Glorious
Behold Our God
How Vast The Love
NEXT WEEK’S PASSAGE:
Colossians 1:21-23