The Hope of Glory Part 2


Read The Hope of Glory Part 1 here

In Part 1 of this two part blog post series, titled "The Hope of Glory" I wrote about the "mystery" of the Gospel which Paul discusses in this verse:

"To them God chose to make known how great among the Gentiles are the riches of the glory of this mystery, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory." (Colossians 1:27 ESV)

The "mystery" of the Gospel we found out that God's plan for salvation through Jesus Christ is for all people who put their hope in Jesus through hearing the word of truth - the gospel of salvation.

We also learn that in believing the gospel, we receive the Holy Spirit. When we trust Christ, we become heirs of God, we enter into the cosmic body of Christ, which is the church, and we become partakers of God's promises through the gospel.

These are the riches of the glory of the mystery of the gospel. So, let's dig into the rest of Colossians 1:27 and figure out what these riches are: "Christ in you, the hope of glory."

What does it mean to have "Christ in you?"

First, let's examine who Christ is. Paul gives us insight in his letter:

"He [Jesus] is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. For by him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things were created through him and for him. And he is before all things, and in him all things hold together. 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. For in him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell, and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven, making peace by the blood of his cross." (Colossians 1:15-20 ESV)
  • Jesus is the image of the invisible God. 
  • Jesus is the firstborn of all creation because by him all things were created. All things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, thrones, dominions, rulers, authorities - all things were created through Jesus and for Jesus. 
  • Jesus has preeminence over all things and holds all things together. 
  • Jesus is the cosmic head of his body which is the church. 
  • Jesus is also the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, resurrected from the dead so that in everything he might be preeminent. 
  • In Jesus Christ the fleshly man, all of the fullness of God was pleased to dwell. 
  • Jesus Christ reconciles all things on earth and in heaven to God, through the peace he has made by the blood he shed on the cross. 
This majestic, magnificent Jesus stepped out of eternal glory and became in order to redeem his creation. Jesus lived out the ultimate riches to rags story! (Hint: He ends up back in riches)

Paul goes on to explain how Jesus reconciles sinners to God:
"He has delivered us from the domain of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of his beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins. (Colossians 1:13-14 ESV)

"And you, who once were alienated and hostile in mind, doing evil deeds, he has now reconciled in his body of flesh by his death, in order to present you holy and blameless and above reproach before him" (Colossians 1:21-22 ESV)

Jesus became a man to die for us. We were alienated from God and hostile, doing evil deeds. But Jesus the man died for our sake, so that he could present us holy and blameless before God.
The forgiveness of our sins is made possible by the peace Jesus made on the cross. As the nails drove into Jesus' body and he breathed his last he absorbed the wrath of God for sin. Jesus made peace for sinners. "He himself is our peace." (Eph. 2) By going to the cross despite having lived a perfect life, Jesus was able to absorb God's wrath for sinners who put their faith in him for the forgiveness of their sins. 

Jesus has made peace for us with his blood, and we have the joyful and confident expectation of eternal salvation. Jesus is our hope. 

Do you believe this today? Has Jesus become your peace?

People need to have hope, it is absolutely essential to life. I remember experiencing deep depression because I had was hopeless. The deepest anguish of my life was when I saw my circumstances as dire and without a solution. I was absolutely despairing! My hope had been crushed because I was the end source of all my hope. 

Hope is only as good as the object the hope is placed in. For example, at one time my hope was that I would be a successful writer - but the fact of the matter was, I stunk! However, that hope defined me. I had to be a successful writer because that was what my entire hope hinged on. My ego forced me to believe that I was a great writer, a genius! I had to constantly defend that to myself. I couldn't face the realities about myself! But ultimately, those realities sunk in, and I became severely depressed. This is only one example of the rocky footing my life was on before Jesus. I've had all different kinds of hopes, but they ultimately rested on me proving how awesome and worthy of admiration I truly was. However, eventually I had to accept the fact that maybe I wasn't so great, and ironically, that is when I started going to Hope Community Church. It was there that I found out about "Christ in me."

As followers of Christ, we place our hope in the object and outcome of our faith. Jesus Christ and his glory. We have the hope of glory because of Christ in us. Jesus Christ in all his majesty will dwell in us, be with us, and be our life. 

Jesus gives us his Spirit, the "promised Holy Spirit - the guarantee of our salvation!" (Eph. 1:13-14) The Holy Spirit is the evidence and empowerment of our hope. 
"If the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, he who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through his Spirit who dwells in you." (Romans 8:11 ESV) 
"May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope." (Romans 15:13 ESV) By the power of the Spirit of Christ, the Holy Spirit in us, we about in hope!

Jesus is with us, "And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.” (Matthew 28:20b ESV) Jesus with us gives us the hope of glory. 

Jesus is our life and that gives us the hope of glory! "For you have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God. When Christ who is your life appears, then you also will appear with him in glory. (Colossians 3:3-4 ESV) 

The hope of the gospel of glory resides in Jesus. Jesus has made peace with God for us. Jesus has given us empowerment with his Spirit. Jesus will be with us, and Jesus himself will be our life. When Jesus returns we will appear with him in glory. We will enter into the joy of our master. 

Is Jesus the object of your hope?



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