"Family Approval"

We are approved by the Father, IN CHRIST. You have been "filled in Him"

Colossians 2:8-10

Bible Passage

Colossians 2:8-10 (ESV - English Standard Version)

8See to it that no one takes you captive by philosophy and empty deceit, according to human tradition, according to the elemental spirits of the world, and not according to Christ.

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

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

1

HOOK (Grab Attention)

Illustration

Think back in your life. All the way back to even childhood.

Have you ever wanted to "impress" someone??

On the playground:

Boys would see who could jump off the highest point of the playground equipment

They would see who could run the fastest

Who could kick the ball the furthest.

Who could hit the most people in dodgeball...

SN:  What did the girls do to impress at that age??

From a very young age, we look to find things to "complete us"

We want to feel "approved"

We want to be "official" to someone

Lecrae Moore says this:  "If you live for people's approval, you will die by their rejection."

How many of you have experienced this truth?

When everything that you do is to be approved by someone else...

when they don't give you that "pat on the back", you feel as though you could die.

WE WANT TO BE APPROVED OF...

I want to come back around to this thought before we are through...

Let's get into this passage, to see what the Spirit is saying through Paul.

2

BOOK

Bible Passage

Colossians 2:9 (ESV - English Standard Version)

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

Explanation

LAST WEEK:

Verse 8

Don't be taken captive by philosophy and empty deceit

Greek Philosophy of the day:

Matter is evil

Spirit is good

Some even believe this today...even in some churches.

that Heaven is spiritual and not physical

that anything we do in our bodies are not of God

Some charismatic circles go this far

"The body is evil"

No matter what is done

Paul says this by HOLY SPIRIT

"For in Him the whole fullness of deity dwells, BODILY"

This mindset is being addressed while TRUTH is being stated

Jesus was the FULLNESS of the GODHEAD

He was here BODILY, and yet He is the VERY ESSENCE of GOD, because He IS GOD

God, made into flesh.

Since He is made into flesh, things done just because they are physical, do not automatically mean they are EVIL

Jesus was here in BODILY FORM

He resurrected BODILY

Illustration

I have a friend...He had no idea that Jesus resurrected BODILY

He just assumed that it was a spiritual thing, like us dying now.

It has been SO FUN teaching him things, because he genuinely has no clue

He is a clean slate.

He isn't saved yet, but he has been wide open to learning what actually happened

He has been soaking up Scripture chapters at a time

Don't take these things for granted.

Jesus is ALIVE PHYSICALLY

He is seated on a PHYSICAL THRONE

in a PHYSICAL LOCATION.

Bible Passage

Colossians 2:10 (ESV - English Standard Version)

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

Explanation

Jesus IS THE FULLNESS of deity bodily, so that IN HIM, we are FILLED.

Jesus is the FULLNESS of DEITY, because HE IS THE ESSENCE of deity

Since Jesus is the very ESSENCE of God, He cannot be depleted of being FULLY GOD

WE ARE NOTGOD

BUT IN HIM, we have been "crammed" to OVERFLOW with God in us

We lose "fillings" of the spirit, but we don't lose any of His nature in us.

We are crammed/filled/completed with his nature.

LISTEN CAREFULLY

Jesus is a part of the Trinity Family

because of JESUS, if we are IN HIM, we are a part of the Trinitarian family...

NOT because we have or ARE "BECOMING GOD", but that we are IN CHRIST, and HE IS IN THE TRINITY

Since JESUS is in the Trinity, we are as well, NOT as the essence of God, but because His ESSENCE is in US

Let that marinate for a second.

How can we get any closer to God?

we cannot.

This is why later on Paul, in the Spirit, begins speaking on being baptized

"You have been BURIED WITH HIM, in BAPTISM...

"RAISED WITH HIM through faith"  (Verse 12)

Since Christ has brought us into the family, there is NOTHING LEFT TO DO TO BE CLOSER to Him...

In Christ, we have been ACCEPTED by GOD.

We have been made family.

It is not HALFWAY

HE became our sin.  ALL OF IT.

HE gave us HIS RIGHTEOUSNESS.  ALL OF IT.

HE made us His brothers and sisters.

HE did none of this HALFWAY.

We need to live and walk in this truth.

This should give us great confidence in our ability to follow Him.

"...who is the head of all rule and authority."

As the head is, so the body goes.

Since the head has done this, who can say anything otherwise??

Romans 8:38-39

"For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord."

There is not ONE ENTITY that can pull us from being HIDDEN away in Christ.

If we are IN CHRIST, we are IN GOD

If we are in GOD, no one can ultimately touch us.

Joh 10:24  So the Jews gathered around him and said to him, “How long will you keep us in suspense? If you are the Christ, tell us plainly.”

Joh 10:25  Jesus answered them, “I told you, and you do not believe. The works that I do in my Father's name bear witness about me,

Joh 10:26  but you do not believe because you are not among my sheep.

Joh 10:27  My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me.

Joh 10:28  I give them eternal life, and they will never perish, and no one will snatch them out of my hand.

Joh 10:29  My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all, and no one is able to snatch them out of the Father's hand.

Joh 10:30  I and the Father are one.”

What a gift...

3

LOOK

Bible Passage

Colossians 2:9-10 (ESV - English Standard Version)

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

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

Application

Letting this TRUTH sink into our lives should change our POSTURE towards GOD and this LIFE.

Because He is the FULLNESS of deity in body, IN CHRIST, deity has taken up residence in us.

Christ IN YOU, the hope of glory...

Our old selves have died in baptism and our NEW lives are raised in HIM.

What does this mean for us??

We have the power of God over SIN.

Romans says, "LET NOT sin reign in your mortal bodies"

We have the power of God over SELF

We can and DO beat down the flesh

We keep the OLD PERSON crucified on the cross with Christ

Don't give them room to BREATHE

We have power over SATAN

When we settle in our hearts where Christ has PLACED us positionally, we will walk in HIS POWER over the OPPOSITION...

The Dragon can do nothing with a child of the King.

He can only take those things that have potential to distract us from the Face of our Father.

He CANNOT take the Father's gaze from us.

This is why KNOWING HIM is superior to KNOWING what He does.

ILL:  JOB

Had Job not believed YAHWEH's CHARACTER, He would've lost his faith

And rightfully so, because his FAITH wouldn't have been IN GOD...It would've been in God's ACTIONS.

Bible Passage

Job 1:12 (ESV - English Standard Version)

12And the Lord said to Satan, "Behold, all that he has is in your hand. Only against him do not stretch out your hand." So Satan went out from the presence of the Lord.

Application

Notice that it was YAHWEH who put Job to the test by the adversary...

"All that HE HAS is in your hand"

Job HAS a lot of things, BUT here's the thing...GOD HAS JOB!!!

IF you are in Christ, God has you too.

IF God has you, you will always be alright.

...and then we see Him...

4

TOOK

Challenge Application

What will our lives begin to look like when we settle into the fact that we are genuinely the FAMILY of God?

NOT theoretically.  REALITY.

What will our lives look like when we settle our hearts around the fact that the FULLNESS of God has FILLED us, IN CHRIST?

His presence lives inside of these earth suits.

Jesus is God made into flesh

God has made us sons and daughters by filling us/baptizing us/saturating us with His family nature.

We have Holy Spirit.

We can walk in newness of Life, by the Spirit.

His nature is RIGHTEOUSNESS

Holiness

BELIEVING GOD.

Walking in repentance.

This doesn't mean ONLY AFTER a sin.

This means you are actively turning away from rebellious actions and mindsets, even BEFOREHAND.

CLOSING:

At the beginning we said that we are always looking for approval...

We want to be approved of.

Jesus is always approved of by the Father.

If we are IN JESUS, and are "filled by him", we ALSO are approved of...

Since the Father APPROVES of us, IN CHRIST, who's left to impress??

There is no one greater and HE is our Father.  We are Family.

That SHOULD HUMBLE us...

That SHOULD also give us so much CONFIDENCE to live this life.

We know that we have done NOTHING to merit such a thing...

WE NEED TO WALK IN THIS...

Bible Passage

2 Peter 1:3-4 (ESV - English Standard Version)

3His divine power has granted to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of him who called us to his own glory and excellence,

4by which he has granted to us his precious and very great promises, so that through them you may become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped from the corruption that is in the world because of sinful desire.