Colossians 1:21-23 –

²¹And you, who once were alienated and hostile in mind, doing evil deeds, ²²he has now reconciled in his body of flesh by his death, in order to present you holy and blameless and above reproach before him, ²³if indeed you continue in the faith, stable and steadfast, not shifting from the hope of the gospel that you heard, which has been proclaimed in all creation under heaven, and of which I, Paul, became a minister.

Real Letter, Real People, Real Author

We are continuing our journey with the Colossian believers through Paul’s letter to them. I say it this way because this was a real letter to real people written by a real man. This is not simply a theological—let alone philosophical—exercise in analyzing abstract concepts. The Colossians are our brothers and sisters, we will see them in glory someday soon. There is a gospel history to our faith today – enduring faithful saints long before us. Praise God for the great cloud of witnesses that have endured before us! The real words to real people is true for the Bible as a whole, it is not just some book. These are the words of the Living God written in a real time and preserved for us, so that as the author of Hebrews says: “all these, though commended through their faith, did not receive what was promised, since God had provided something better for us, that apart from us they should not be made perfect.”

My aim this morning: Remind you of the great hope we have in Christ who has reconciled us to God the Father and will present us holy and blameless. Therefore, we joyfully persevere in Him, through Him, and for Him for our utmost joy and His utmost glory today into infinity.

The reality of this letter is that it is not just written for those who are navigating hardships. Yes, the Colossian church was facing hardship in unique ways, but I imagine that some believers were coasting, not wanting to draw attention to their lives, or they were seeking comfort, maybe a justified holy comfort. This letter, friends, is for anyone who claims Christ is their treasure, to stir their faith daily in the sufficiency and joy in Christ. Often it is not just hardship that draws us away from Jesus, but the comfort, the ease, the ordinary days of this life, especially in the West. We drift if we are not careful. In fact, there are many warnings throughout the Bible of wandering away from God, we are to be diligent in our faith. To simplify all of this: whether hardship or ease is your current posture, this letter is meant for you to proclaim to your soul that Jesus is awesome so that you press on to the end.

With that in front of us, let’s walk through Paul’s words starting with how vs 21 & 22 are connected and vital to understanding vs 23.

1. Your Condition and Calling: From Alienated to Reconciled Delight in God (vv. 21–22)

“And you, who once were alienated and hostile in mind, doing evil deeds, ²²he has now reconciled in his body of flesh by his death, in order to present you holy and blameless and above reproach before him.”

Once alienated, cut off from the joy in God (v. 21). Alienated (apellotriomenous) meaning “transferred to another owner”. We belonged to sin, self, and Satan before Christ saved us since we were in Adam as all mankind is. In Adam, we are born alienated from God. Our very nature opposes Him. As individuals, we willingly embrace that alienation through sin (thought, word, and action), some of us more subtle than others, but until the light of Christ shone in our hearts, we loved being separated from God. Paul tells us this alienation affected our mind: “hostile in mind” meaning we were an enemy of God in our minds, and it affected our behavior, thus “doing evil deeds” meaning out of the heart the body acts. Not just guilt, but misdirected desires. Choosing broken cisterns over the fountain of living waters (Jeremiah 2:13), this phrase points us to the core problem of sin which is seeking joy in everything else other than where is can be found which is Jesus. We are alienated not only from God’s presence, but from God as our delight, treasure, and joy…alienated from life. Therefore, we are joyless, lifeless, hostile people in our sin. Can you just notice the ‘once’ for a moment. We can see there is something else coming…once you were like that…BUT GOD….transferred us from this alienation.

This same term was used by Paul earlier in verse 13 “He has delivered us from the domain of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of his beloved Son…”

So, now we are reconciled, restored to God as our treasure through Jesus to present you holy into the joy of your Master. For those who have been adopted or adopted someone, you understand this in a unique way.

Verse 22: “Now He has reconciled…” God’s answer to your alienation is reconciliation, accomplished at the cross. Friends, this is the initiative of God. He did not meet us halfway in our separation, but He came all the way to meet us down in the pit of our own sin and guilt. He does this “in his body of flesh by his death.” This emphasis by Paul reminds us of a real Savior, real body, real blood, real cross for a real redemption. Christ didn’t just make salvation possible, He secured your salvation and your reconciliation. Not just peace with God, but access to God as your supreme joy. The result of this reconciliation is “to present you holy, blameless, and above reproach before him…”, presented as acceptable before God, clothed in Christ’s perfection. This salvation includes transformation. It is not just escaping from righteous judgment, but becoming holy like Christ. The Apostle Peter tells us Christ died to bring you to God fulfilling the goal of salvation which is seeing and savoring God forever (1 Peter 3:18). This is key before we move onto the striking word we find in vs 23.

2. Your Response: Continuing Because You Treasure Christ (vs. 23a)

^“if indeed you continue in the faith, stable and steadfast…”

The Bible does not contradict itself. Since Christ purchased your salvation, He will keep those He shed His blood for…not a drop is wasted. We believe that we are saved by grace alone through faith alone – we do not do anything to earn or keep our salvation. The ‘If’ is a warning, friends. Throughout the Scriptures, the Lord warns His people as a loving act. The “If” statements of God bring clarity to our responsibility in hearing the gospel and treasuring Christ as He also does a work in our hearts and minds at the same time. Here are a few instances:

Genesis 2: “You may surely eat of every tree of the garden, ¹⁷but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die.”

Deuteronomy 28: ““And if you faithfully obey the voice of the Lord your God, being careful to do all his commandments that I command you today, the Lord your God will set you high above all the nations of the earth…“But if you will not obey the voice of the Lord your God or be careful to do all his commandments and his statutes that I command you today, then all these curses shall come upon you and overtake you.”

2 Chronicles 7: “When I shut up the heavens so that there is no rain, or command the locust to devour the land, or send pestilence among my people, ¹⁴if my people who are called by my name humble themselves, and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and heal their land.” Then in Ch 15: “The Lord is with you while you are with him. If you seek him, he will be found by you, but if you forsake him, he will forsake you.”

Isaiah 1: “If you are willing and obedient, you shall eat the good of the land; ²⁰but if you refuse and rebel, you shall be eaten by the sword; for the mouth of the Lord has spoken.”

In the NT, this pattern continues way before Colossians.

Jesus in John 14: ““If you love me, you will keep my commandments.” Jesus, then follows this with the hope of the Helper coming…so that we would work to keep His commands out of love and duty, not to earn the free gift of salvation.

John 15: “If anyone does not abide in me, he is thrown away like a branch and withers; and the branches are gathered, thrown into the fire, and burned. ⁷If you abide in me, and my words abide in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. “

Paul in Romans: “For if you live according to the flesh you will die, but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live.” (ch 8)

Lastly, the author of Hebrews: “Take care, brothers, lest there be in any of you an evil, unbelieving heart, leading you to fall away from the living God. ¹³But exhort one another every day, as long as it is called “today,” that none of you may be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin. ¹⁴For we have come ...