Col 2:9-15

All Fullness is in Christ.

Good morning my friends!

I hope you are well, we are a week from Easter and I cannot wait for us to gather and celebrate the Lord Jesus, His death, burial and resurrection.

I want to ask you to please invite and bring someone with you to church next Sunday morning.

Easter is a special time, and it is still a proven fact that 80% of people will attend when invited by others.

So please invite, encourage and offer people a seat right next to you.

Why is it so important? Lostness is growing, more and more people it seems are not churched, have never been or are away from church.

I know communities in the Bible belt who doing studies have found themselves to be 70% unchurched. It reminds us that we have, every church as work to do for the kingdom of God.

I think already someone is come to mind that you can invite. Do it, pray for them and love them to Jesus.

Today we come back to Colossians chapter 2 and we are going to look at verses 9-15.

We have been walking through the text and we have seen Paul, express his desire to see and work alongside the believers there. He called for them to walk in unity and remain strong in the faith.

Today, we will look at the theme that all fullness is in Christ. Just as Jesus Christ and the father are one, so everything we need in this walk with God, it is found in Jesus.

So lets begin my friends, the first of three thoughts.

1. All Fullness is In Christ....

The world has asked for centuries, who is Jesus? And frankly their answers have been good and bad, some right and some wrong.

Yet friends, we know; Jesus is the Son of God, He is God himself…

So lets see why we know that… Lets being with what Paul tells us in verse 9.

Colossians 2:9 ESV

9 For in him the whole fullness of deity dwells bodily,

Now the subject of this verse is Jesus. We know this from what Paul is addressing in this passage as a whole.

If you look back to verse 8, Paul tells us that we are not to be “...taken captive by philosophy and empty deceit, according to human tradition, according to the elemental spirits of the world and not according to Christ.”

So there we see the subject is Christ… and in Him the whole fullness of deity dwells bodily…v9

Jesus is the visible representation of God in flesh so that humanity can see and know Him...

So when Paul tells us that the whole fullness of deity dwells bodily… What does he mean?

Well lets start with the word Paul uses here… The word for deity is “theotes” which is a word that speaks to the divine, that which is God uniquely… not just something that is heavenly or divine as in good.

The World’s philosophy is not godly in nature, it is not Christ like, not God like in nature. But instead Paul says “For in Christ all the fulness of deity there is that word "theotes” deity dwells…in bodily form.

God caused all the fullness of who He is, everything that is special, unique, God the Father to dwell in, reside in Christ. Listen to what Jesus says in John 14...

Jesus says in John 14:10

John 14:10 ESV

10 Do you not believe that I am in the Father and the Father is in me? The words that I say to you I do not speak on my own authority, but the Father who dwells in me does his works.

God the Father resides in the Son.... Why is it important for Paul to communicate this truth to those at Colossae? To diffuse the worldly philosophy, ie..gnosticism.. they did not believe that God could reside in another person, and namely they didn’t believe God could become flesh as we see in John 1:1

John 1:1 ESV

1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.

John 1:14 ESV

14 And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth.

Paul is proving to them, God can and God did send the Son into the world, and the Son was the visible representative of God in bodily form.

Jesus is every bit God and God is every bit Jesus. Listen to Phillip and Jesus in John 14…verses 8-9

John 14:8–9 ESV

8 Philip said to him, “Lord, show us the Father, and it is enough for us.” 9 Jesus said to him, “Have I been with you so long, and you still do not know me, Philip? Whoever has seen me has seen the Father. How can you say, ‘Show us the Father’?

Christ is the fullness of God, fully man and yet fully God that he might be found able to give His life as an atonement, a sacrifice for sin...

How wonderful that we can see God in great detail as we look at Jesus in the New Testament… it is there to teach us, encourage us and help us as we live for God.

All fulness dwells in Him, Jesus.

But then we come to a second thought that builds on top of this… So not only is all the fullness in Christ.

2. You are in Christ...

One truth of Scripture I think about here is the truth that the Scriptures teach that each born again believer are known to be in Christ… Their life has been radically changed. Paul is teaching this here as well.

Lets look at verse 10 Col 2:10

Colossians 2:10 ESV

10 and you have been filled in him, who is the head of all rule and authority.

Anticipating the thoughts to follow, Paul states that you, me every born again believer have been given fullness in Christ as well.

Now what does this mean? Well, Paul doesn't mean the Colossian Christians are elevated to the same stature as Christ.. No! Christians do not become like God, deity.

What Paul does mean is this, Jesus is fully God and He has been placed as the head of the church. Eph 1:22-23

Ephesians 1:22–23 ESV

22 And he put all things under his feet and gave him as head over all things to the church, 23 which is his body, the fullness of him who fills all in all.

Christ has been made Lord over all things, the Father having placed all things under His feet. Also made Him to be head of the church, the body.

And since He is the head, Christians are fully complete in Christ… Nothing is lacking, we are saved and are His, nothing else is required or needed.

Listen, as a born again believer, we can grow in Christ, we can know Him deeper, more fully - but the simple truth remains we have all we need in Jesus, our salvation is full and complete.

The Christians in Colossae needed no other deities, no allegiance to some other so called gods. They were complete in Christ.

Again consider what Paul has already told them in Col 1:18

Colossians 1:18 ESV

18 And he is the head of the body, the church. He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, that in everything he might be preeminent.

So then if Christ is the ruling agent over all creation, over all authorities, and if He sustains all as well. Then Jesus is able to take care of our mortal lives as we live and dwell in Him.

Now look at verses 10-12 Col 2:10-12

Colossians 2:10–12 ESV

10 and you have been filled in him, who is the head of all rule and authority. 11 In him also you were circumcised with a circumcision made without hands, by putting off the body of the flesh, by the circumcision of Christ, 12 having been buried with him in baptism, in which you were also raised with him through faith in the powerful working of God, who raised him from the dead.

So here, we see Paul is using the analogy of circumcision to speak to our life in Christ.

Circumcision is the Jewish practice that was a symbol of their identity in God. God made this “act” as a mark of covenant with Abraham and his descendants. It was an outward sign of their life with God the Father.

As for us, spiritually - we were uncircumcised, our hearts were afar off from God, we were dead in our trespasses and sins.

But at the moment we chose Christ, we were changed, we were filled in Him, made complete in Christ. And now we have been circumcised in Christ, a act not of hands but of the heart.

This is seen how? Paul says through our baptism. Buried with Christ in baptism, the old life buried under the water, our lives having been washed in the blood =, cleansed by Christ and thus being buried in Christ we are raised out of the water to a new life in Christ.

Paul says all this happens by faith. And God the Father who raised Jesus from the dead will one day raise us as well.

If anyone is in Christ, they are a new creation 2 Cor 5:17

2 Corinthians 5:17 ESV

17 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.

We have been made new in Christ, placed in Him. Paul tells the church at Galatia in Gal 3 that to be in Christ is to be the Sons of God.

We are in Christ, we are the sons and daughters of God, heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ Jesus..

But my friends, we are not only in Christ, lets carry this toward my last thought for today..

3. You are Made Alive in Christ...

What does Paul mean when he tells us that we are made alive in Christ Jesus?

Lets look at verses 13-15 Col 2:13-15

Colossians 2:13–15 ESV

13 And you, who were dead in your trespasses and the uncircumcision of your flesh, God made alive together with him, having forgiven us all our trespasses, 14 by canceling the record of debt that stood against us with its legal demands. This he set aside, nailing it to the cross. 15 He disarmed the rulers and authorities and put them to open shame, by triumphing over them in him.

So Paul is communicating some thoughts that we have already talked about… so we will build upon what He is saying.. Look at those first two words...

And you… speaking to the believers at Colossae and to all Christians universal as well..

In our flesh we, all of humanity were dead in your trespasses, sins. While we were separated from God, literally dead spiritually.

God reached out and made us alive in Christ. He took us just as we were and made us alive, saved us. It was not our works or efforts… He did this for us uniquely based in His love.

Paul, says God did this for us. Just how did God do this, how was His love revealed?

Well, Paul says at the end of verse 13 to 14...

“...having forgiven us all our trespasses, 14 by canceling the record of debt that stood against us with its legal demands. This he set aside, nailing it to the cross.”

When we think about the work of God , the means by which he has redeemed us, we remember what we are preparing to celebrate, Easter.

The legal demands of the law said that sin brings death, those who are guilty of sin, deserved death, that is the natural outcome of sin.

But God, God in his love sent His Son into the world, that the world might be redeemed through him.

One of our favorite passages as the church is Isaiah 53:5

Isaiah 53:5 ESV

5 But he was pierced for our transgressions; he was crushed for our iniquities; upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace, and with his wounds we are healed.

Why does this matter, The Scriptures declare that in Christ is life and that life is the light of men John 1:4

John 1:4 ESV

4 In him was life, and the life was the light of men.

The life Christ offered was a free gift to all mankind. He willing took our cross our death upon his life so that He could bear our punishment, our death our shame upon His life.

He bore the death we deserved, taking our sin upon His life. Taking our place upon the cross. Literally being nailed to the cross, there he gave up his life by being our atoning sacrifice for sin.

He died that we might have life.. so that when we die, when this life ends, we do not, why? Because we have been made alive in Christ.

This is the grace of God, he took us while we were yet sinner, condemned and made us righteous, right and acceptable in front of the Father.

Now then, we are justified in front of God. And remember what this means, to be justified means to be no longer considered guilty in front of God.

So that all that God sees is Jesus and his righteousness, and not our sin… we are safe in front of God. The law which demanded death is satisfied.

Praise the Lord.

When God says that our debt has been cancelled, think of it like this.. in the days of Jesus it was written on papyrus sheets, the only way to remove that which was written on those sheets was to scrape it off.

It is removed so that it no longer exists, the debt was not there and not known any longer.

But it gets better… lets look at the last part of verse 15 Col 2:15

Colossians 2:15 ESV

15 He disarmed the rulers and authorities and put them to open shame, by triumphing over them in him.

Here I want you to think about Jesus, hanging and nailed to the cross, from the ordinary person they would assume that Jesus is disgraced..

But not so...

A paradox occurs… it was there has both sacrifice for sin and the one who triumphs over death that Jesus took the spiritual rulers and authorities, those evil spirits who thought Jesus was defeated…No, he took them to the woodshed… Jesus defeated them, removed their place and powere and where they once ruled, Christ ruled. He is King Jesus!

Oh my friends, this is why we cannot stop praying, we cannot stop witnessing, we cannot stop inviting and we cannot stop serving..

So that those in darkness still might be brought into a glorious light, that they might be brought to Jesus and instead of the evil spirits, Jesus rules in their heart and lives.

I want more to know King Jesus, dont you!

Then we cannot stop or be faint hearted and give up.. We want more to be found in Him.

So this morning let me ask you a question...

* Are you walking in a way that is pleasing to Jesus?

* Are you praying for people around you.... Your family, friends and others

* Are you sharing your faith where the Lord leads?

* Jesus did so much for us, we have so much left to do for him before we leave this world.

Lets pray...