The Preeminent Christ Provides Reconciliation

1. Colossians 1:18-20 says, “18 And He [Christ] is the head of the body, the church, who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, that in all things He may have the preeminence.19 For it pleased the Father that in Him all the fullness should dwell, 20 and by Him to reconcile all things to Himself, by Him, whether things on earth or things in heaven, having made peace through the blood of His cross.”

2. When men and women sin, they separate themselves from God and are at spiritual war with God. They need to be reconciled to God. “Reconcile” means to make friends again or being restored to God’s favor after one’s past sins have been forgiven.

1) God has taken the initiative in reconciling men & women to Himself. God does this through Christ when men and women will believe, repent, confess that they believe that Jesus is the Son of God and be baptized.

2) Turn to Romans 5:8-11. Romans 5:8-11 teaches that it was the love of God which motivated God to reconcile men to himself through Jesus. Romans 5:8-11 says, “8 But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. 9 Much more then, having now been justified by His blood, we shall be saved from wrath through Him. 10 For if when we were enemies we were reconciled to God through the death of His Son, much more, having been reconciled, we shall be saved by His life. 11 And not only that, but we also rejoice in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received the reconciliation.”

3. Look back to Colossians 1:20b at the phrase, “to reconcile all things to Himself, by Him.”

1) “Himself” refers to God being the one who took the initiative to bring about the reconciling of man back to Himself.

2) The New Testament never talks of God being reconciled to the world, but always of the world being reconciled to God. Man is the one who walked away and man is the one who has to come back.

4. Looking back at Colossians 1:20c at the phrase, “whether things on earth or things in heaven, having made peace through the blood of His Cross.”

1) Reconciliation and peace between man and God is brought about by the blood which Christ shed on the cross.

2) The blood of Christ possesses sufficient power to reconcile those who died prior to Jesus’ sacrifice. The benefits of Jesus’ blood flowed backward in time to cleanse the obedient of previous ages, including Abraham, David, and multitudes of others that obediently used animal blood.

3) Turn to Hebrews 9:14-18. Hebrews 9:14-18 teaches that the faithful under the Old Testament had never received complete cleansing of their sins in the use of the blood of animals, however when Christ shed his blood on the cross the power of it reached back to bring about a completed cleansing of those who had faithfully used animal blood. Hebrews 9:14-18 says, “14 how much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered Himself without spot to God, cleanse your conscience from dead works to serve the living God? 15 And for this reason He is the Mediator of the new covenant, by means of death, for the redemption of the transgressions under the first covenant, that those who are called may receive the promise of the eternal inheritance. 16 For where there is a testament, there must also of necessity be the death of the testator. 17 For a testament is in force after men are dead, since it has no power at all while the testator lives. 18 Therefore not even the first covenant was dedicated without blood.”

4) When Christ died, Abraham and the other righteous souls, who had passed from this world, were residing in the Hadean realm of Paradise. Luke 23:43 & 16:19-31 teach that Hades is divided into two parts. One part is where the righteous dead go and the second part is where the unrighteous dead go. The souls of each wait there, either in comfort or in torment until the second coming of Christ and the Judgment Day.

a. The eternal future for all the faithful of the O. T. will be a good future, for the blood of Christ was sufficient to cleanse them of their guilt.

b. Those living on this side of the cross have open access to the benefits of Christ’s blood (1 Peter 1:18-25; Rom. 5:8-9; Matt. 26:28; Rev. 1:5; Eph. 1:7).

5) In view of the points that we have been discussing, those in the heavenly realm of Paradise received the benefits of the Lord’s death; and those living since his death are likewise offered those benefits. In other words, Jesus’ blood flowed backward from the cross and it flows forward to all generations that have lived this side of the cross.

a. What we have discussed explains the phrase in Colossians 1:20, “whether things on earth or in heaven”.

b. Jesus’ blood flows this direction from the cross and cleanses those on earth that obey. Jesus’ blood flowed back and did a complete cleansing of those under the O. T. that had been faithful and were going to get to go to heaven.

c. However, wicked angels, and men who have departed this earth without repenting of their sins will not have an opportunity for a second chance for being reconciled to God. Once lost and departed from this earth, always lost!

1. Look back at Colossians 1:21. Colossians 1:21 teaches that before one is reconciled to God one is alienated or separated and enemies with God due to mistaken ideas in their mind and disobedient works that God looks upon as wicked works. Colossians 1:21 says, “”And you, who once were alienated and enemies in your mind by wicked works, yet now He has reconciled.”

2. The majority of the men and women of Colossae were probably religious, but their religion was wrong, and their lives were wrong; this was their condition despite good intentions.

3. Mistaken ideas and disobedient works describe all unbelievers, even those who have never learned of the gospel. Their lives are out of harmony with God’s will; their thinking is wrong; they are separated from God. There are no innocent unbelievers.

4. The reconciliation required the actions of God and the individual. God took the first steps by sending Christ to execute the eternal plan of redemption.

5. But reconciliation requires both parties of the separation to be willing participators in the plan. It was sin on the part of each accountable person that created the estrangement; it is the individual who must return to God, for the Father did not move.

6. In 2 Cor. 5:20 all are commanded: “…Be ye reconciled to God”!

1. Look back at Colossians 1:22. Colossians 1:22 teaches that reconciliation is made possible through Christ’s death so that the reverse of alienation to God will exist and that one will be holy and acceptable to God. Colossians 1:22 says, “in the body of His flesh through death, to present you holy, and blameless, and above reproach in His sight.”

2. The whole being of Christ was involved in the sacrifice he made for lost men and women. Christ’s physical body was cruelly put to death in the most horrible way; Jesus’ spirit was separated from the Father while Jesus was on the cross and bearing the sins of men and women. In Matthew 27:46 Jesus said, “My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?” For a brief time, while all the sins of mankind were on Jesus, Jesus and the Father were separated!

3. The aim of Christ’s sacrifice was to make it possible for men and women to obtain remission of their guilt, and be able to be presented unto God as holy, blameless, and above reproach in His sight.

4. The time of this presentation will be the Judgment Day. There will be no opportunity to make changes then, so our character and life style must be right when we depart this world.

5. Our character and life style will become right as, on a daily basis, we study and obey God’s word and live as God teaches.

1. Look now at Colossians 1:23. Colossians 1:23 teaches that to remain reconciled and friends with God the Christian must be obedient and faithful to God. Colossians 1:23 says, “if indeed you continue in the faith, grounded and steadfast, and are not moved away from the hope of the gospel which you heard, which was preached to every creature under heaven, of which I, Paul, became a minister.”

2. Faithfulness to Christ is so obviously taught here and elsewhere in the bible. We can only wonder at the reason why many deny the demand made in the bible for faithfulness! “Once saved, always saved” is not taught in this passage, nor in any other bible passage!

3. To “continue in the faith” is to continue in study and obedience to the teaching of the New Testament.

4. To be “grounded and steadfast” in the gospel is to become spiritually mature.

1) To be “grounded” is for one’s life to be set on a sure foundation and not shaken by the wind of false doctrines or by the winds of immoral temptations.

2) To be “steadfast” is to be firm and consistently doing what one knows the bible teaches them to do.

5. To “not be moved away from the hope of the gospel which one has heard” is to not take one’s focus off of the hope of going to heaven that we read and learn about in the New Testament.

1) “Hope” is desire with expectation. The desire and expectation to go to heaven!

2) The Christian’s “hope is laid up for you in heaven” (Colossians 1:5).

6. Looking now at Colossians 1:23 the last phrase, “which was preached to every creature under heaven, of which I, Paul, became a minister.”

1) At the time Paul wrote the letter to those of Colossae the church had been in existence about thirty years. Evangelism and mission work had been done so diligently that Paul and other Christians had spread the gospel to where every living person had been exposed to the teaching of the New Testament.

2) Every generation of Christians should make it their goal to try and make the gospel message available to every person throughout the world.

7. In the very last part of the last phrase in Colossians 1:23 Paul makes the statement, “I Paul, became a minister.”

1) The word “minister” means servant. Every Christian is spoken of as a servant throughout the New Testament.

2) Each Christian, like Paul, should do their part in helping teach and spread the gospel message throughout the world during the generation in which they live.