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Colossians 1:27 - Christ In You, The Hope Of Glory.

Colossians 1:27 (NKJV) To them God willed 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.

Colossians 1:27 (NIV) To them God has chosen to make known among the Gentiles the glorious riches of this mystery, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory.

Colossians 1:27 (NLT) For God wanted them to know that the riches and glory of Christ are for you Gentiles, too. And this is the secret: Christ lives in you. This gives you assurance of sharing his glory.

INTRODUCTION

The false teachers in the Colossian church believed that spiritual perfection was a secret and hidden plan that only a few privileged people could discover. This secret plan was meant to be exclusive for an elite group. Paul said that he was proclaiming the entire message of God, not just a part of the plan. He also called God's plan a "message ... kept secret for centuries and generations past," not in the sense that only a few would understand it, but because it had been hidden until Christ came. Through Christ it was made open to all. God's Secret Plan Is That "Christ Lives In You"; God Planned To Have His Son, Jesus Christ, Live In The Hearts Of All Who Believe In Him - Even Gentiles Like The Colossians. Do You Know Christ? He Is Not Hidden If You Will Come To Him. Have You Experienced His Liberating Love? Don't Keep It A Secret - Share It With Others. [Life Application SB 2019]

COMMENTARY PEARL

   As we contemplate the great things of God's word, we look into a fountain that broadens and deepens beneath our gaze. Its breadth and depth pass our knowledge. As we gaze, the vision widens; stretched out before us we behold a boundless, shoreless sea.
   Such study has vivifying power. The mind and heart acquire new strength, new life.
   This experience is the highest evidence of the divine authorship of the Bible. We receive God's word as food for the soul, through the same evidence by which we receive bread as food for the body. Bread supplies the need of our nature; we know by experience that it produces blood and bone and brain. Apply the same test to the Bible; when its principles have actually become the elements of character, what has been the result? what changes have been made in the life? "Old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new." 2 Corinthians 5:17. In its power, men and women have broken the chains of sinful habit. They have renounced selfishness. The profane have become reverent, the drunken sober, the profligate pure. Souls that have borne the likeness of Satan have been transformed into the image of God. This change is itself the miracle of miracles. A change wrought by the word, it is one of the deepest mysteries of the word. We cannot understand it; we can only believe, as declared by the Scriptures, it is "Christ in you, the hope of glory." Colossians 1:27. ED171-172

COMMENTARY

   Ruthie and I have a friend who is a nurse. Not a bed-side nurse, you understand. She's the kind of nurse who gives physicals, blood tests, and other procedures when people are seeking specific jobs where health issues are important. She meets some very interesting folks.
   She (Arlene) herself grew up in a Christian church, but a church she describes as "very toxic." She was taught from an early age that God was hard to please and was probably pretty angry with her no matter how hard she tried to "be good." She describes how the main exposure she got to God was what she called, "hellfire and damnation."
   When she became a young adult she tired of the whole environment and walked away. Away from the church, away from God, away from the whole Christianity scene. Now at least she could sleep nights.
   Recently, though, she met a delightful Christian man and fell in love. He began to share with her about the God he knew. A God who loved her so much He didn't even want to spend eternity without her (DA417). She fell in love, not only with Vernon, but also with Vernon's God.
   He taught her about praying...how she could pray about everything, any time, any where. She told us, "I didn't know you could do that. I walk around now praying about everybody I meet." And her new love for God exponentially widened her ability to love everyone she met.
   Early last week she sent us this text: "I just wanted to share a special moment I had today. I had a 49-year old male come in for a drug screening and a physical for a new job. As we visited, he shared at length that he has 30-year-old twin boys who are both developmentally delayed with all the disadvantages that go with that condition. It was heart-rending. I listened attentively and offered some suggestions. Then I offered to pray for him.
   "When I finished he was quiet for a few moments, then he said, 'Ma'am, I have not been a believer but I feel like Jesus hugged me today.'"
   "I feel like Jesus hugged me today." What a delicious response to meeting a Christian who genuinely cared about him and his boys. One of our prayer partners said recently to a friend, "God looks good in you."
   We decided we could say the same about Arlene. [By Don Jacobsen; NAD Prayer Ministries]

CLOSING THOUGHT

   "She is the epitome of grace." "He oozes kindness." "As a couple, they are the picture of generosity." "My grandfather embodied quiet strength." I do it all the time: I observe a trait so clearly demonstrated in another person that it's difficult to separate the human from the admirable trait.
   I watched my hostess for the weekend, her eyes and ears always attentive to the needs of her guests, including me. Her thoughtfulness and ability to anticipate what might bless or encourage or - yes - feed us wrote these words on my heart: she is what hospitality has always meant to be.
   As I considered how this hostess personified hospitality, I was reminded of the way Jesus personified everything God the Father is and everything we could ever need - Provider, Protector, Defender, Comfort, Rescuer, Love, even Mystery.
   "Christ in you, the hope of glory." Jesus is both Clarity and Mystery. He does not merely provide hope. He is Hope in the flesh and now in the Spirit.
   In times of struggle or hopelessness, I don't need a lesser hope that is based on a wish or longing. I need more Jesus - Hope with a capital H. In Darkness, I Can Either Scramble To Find Scraps Of Hope Or I Can Lean In To The One Who Is Hope.
   Today, I intend to rearrange the way I word things about what Jesus personifies and represents, including Him as my hope of glory. Cynthia Richti
   Faith Step: If you've been accustomed to praying, "Thank You, Jesus, for providing hope," consider rewording your prayer today to, "Thank You, Jesus, that You ARE my hope." [Mornings With Jesus 2024 Devotional by Guideposts and Zondervan]

LINK FOR FURTHER STUDY

Colossians 1:27 - Christ in You, The Hope of Glory.
http://www.abible.com/devotions/2020/20201202-1031.html

LINKS WORTH CHECKING OUT

https://abible.com/links/