Tom Leonard - November 7, 2010
A Faith That Continues
A Faith That Continues Colossians 1:21-23 Main Point: We have been reconciled to God through Jesus Christ, the Supreme One’s death, who presents us holy and blameless, therefore, we must continue in our faith, not moved from the hope of the Gospel. Do you know this Supreme One? 1.We were alienated from God because of our sinful thinking and behavior, and were His enemies. (verse 21) Alienated = estranged, not together, not participating Enemies = adversaries, against one another Exodus 32:30-35 2. He reconciled us, not only to be forgiven, but to become like Jesus! (verse 22) Reconcile = bring back to former state of harmony Romans 8:28-30 3. We must continue in our faith, unmoved from the Gospel of Jesus Christ! (verse 23) http://lifes-purpose.info/index.html Jesus’ Prehuman Existence Jesus was truly a human being while he was here. But what position had he held among the angels in heaven during his life there? The Bible reveals that he was the mightiest angel in heaven, that he sat directly beside God. As we pointed out in the previous chapter, he was not equal to God. The correct view is clear from Jesus’ own words in prayer to his Father at John 17:1-5: “Jesus spoke these things, and, raising his eyes to heaven, he said: ‘Father, the hour has come; glorify your son, that your son may glorify you, according as you have given him authority over all flesh... This means everlasting life, their taking in knowledge of you, the only true God, and of the one whom you sent forth, Jesus Christ. I have glorified you on the earth, having finished the work you have given me to do. So now you, Father, glorify me alongside yourself with the glory that I had alongside you before the world was.’†The second thing to note at John 1.1 is the fact that most Bibles read "...and the Word was God." Careful research into Greek grammar has proven that it is more accurate to translate that as "the Word was divine" or "like God" or "a god", and a few Bibles read accordingly. Those who insist that Jesus is part of a Trinity (despite the many other scriptures that prove otherwise) prefer the defective translation. We prefer accuracy over false tradition. How about you? The third thing to note is in verse 18. There John says that the Son is "in the bosom" of the Father. What does that mean? Once again, this was a familiar term in John’s day. It survives today in the expression "bosom companion" or "bosom buddy", a dearest friend. This tells us something about the emotional ties that bind Jehovah with his first Son. The Bible holds out to us the hope of having a similar closeness to God Philippians 3:12-14 Press on!
Scripture References: Colossians 1:21-23, Exodus 32:30-35, Romans 8:28-30, Philippians 3:12-14
