Colossians 2:13-15 – And you, who were dead in your trespasses and the uncircumcision of your flesh, God made alive together with him, having forgiven us all our trespasses, 14 by canceling the record of debt that stood against us with its legal demands. This he set aside, nailing it to the cross. 15 He disarmed the rulers and authorities and put them to open shame, by triumphing over them in him.
1. Who You Were
Paul says “you, who were dead”
The word for dead is nekros - it means dead
We see it in the NT 145 times.
Most of those are referring to physical death. But about 20 times, it’s used to refer to spiritual death.
• What does a dead person do?
Breathe? Think? Make Decisions?
Dead means dead. No life. No activity. Nothing.
We can understand spiritually dead because we understand physically dead.
What would it take to become alive? A miracle.
What about Lazarus?
You know the story, right? Lazarus - friend of Jesus
In John 11:43 – [Jesus] cried out with a loud voice, “Lazarus, come out.”
If you were at a Funeral and someone shouted at the coffin, “HEY! Get up!” what would you think?
John 11:44 – The man who had died came out, his hands and feet bound with linen strips, and his face wrapped with a cloth. Jesus said to them, “Unbind him, and let him go.”
Wow! THAT was a miracle.
So was your own salvation.
You were dead. Dead means dead. Just as physical death means you can’t respond. Spiritual death means means the same thing.
Ephesians 2:1, Psalm 14:2-3 – Why? Because they’re dead....
• BUT GOD – one of the greatest phrases in the Bible.
Ephesians 2:4-5 – but God, being rich in mercy... when we were dead... made us alive.
Colossians 2:13 – you, who were dead i... God made alive.
BUT GOD!
Titus 3:4-5 – But when the goodness and loving kindness of God our saviour appeared, 5 he saved us
This is the bridge between points 1 and 2
2. What God Did
You were Dead BUT GOD made you alive!
together with him. Again, we see an emphasis on our union with Christ - we are with Him. Together with Him.
What better place is there to be than right there with Christ?
Not only did he make us alive
• He forgave us.
That should bring great joy to every other aspect of your life.
• Memorize and meditate on the Gospel
Think about it every day - what deeper joy could there be?
Why would you not want to think about that every day?
Everything else pales in comparison.
• Forgiveness is the most important truth of Scripture
Psalm 130:3-5 Psalm 32:1-2 Micah 7:18 Matthew 26:28 Acts 10:43 Acts 13:38-39 Ephesians 1:7 Hebrews 8:12 Psalm 86:5
having forgiven - charizomai - root: charis - grace - gift
Forgiveness and being made alive go together
• There should be nothing that brings you more deep, abounding joy than knowing that you have been forgiven.
Record of debt - the idea is a handwritten certificate. It’s like a contract you sign.
This is the evidence brought forth against us - and we wrote it with our own hands.
• It’s a signed confession.
We owe God a debt because we have broken His law.
You have violated God’s law at pretty much every point.
The list of charges against you is quite long.
And it you wrote it yourself and signed the confession.
But when God forgave you - He erased it.
• That list has been wiped clean.
Like a dry erase board that shows no residue. It’s totally clean.
What happened on the cross?
2 Corinthians 5:21 – God punished Jesus for all of the sins you have and will commit.
Then He looks at you as if you had never sinned.
• He looks at you as if you had lived the perfect life of Jesus
How can this not fill you with almost unexplainable joy?
How can you not go through every day with a huge smile on your face no matter how your day is going.
3. How He Did It
• The evidence is gone. There is no evidence
We can sit down to trial - but it’s okay - there’s no evidence against us.
The judge Himself took care of it by taking off His robe, stepping around, into the box, and taking the punishment for the crimes on the list. Now - he looks at us and says “not guilty” because there are no sins to accuse us of. They’ve been taken care of. Jesus took the punishment. So I stand justified. Not guilty. Free.
The judge Himself took care of it by taking off His robe, stepping around, into the box, and taking the punishment for the crimes on the list. Now - he looks at us and says “not guilty” because there are no sins to accuse us of. They’ve been taken care of. Jesus took the punishment. So I stand justified. Not guilty. Free.
When Christ was on the Cross, He said - It is Finished! (meaning, it is “accomplished”)
That was quite a bold statement.
But what was finished or accomplished?
But what was finished or accomplished?
Our forgiveness!
...by canceling the record of debt that stood against us with its legal demands. This he set aside, nailing it to the cross. 15 He disarmed the rulers and authorities and put them to open shame, by triumphing over them in him.
4. What Happened?
Keep points 1, 2, & 3 in mind and look at these passages:
Ephesians 2:1-10
Romans 3:10-24; 5:6-9; 6:1-4; 8:1-6
Titus 3:3-7
Colossians 1:13-14; 1:21-22; 2:13-15
Reflection Questions
These are goals I would have for you.
Remember - the pastor’s role is to encourage and catalyze the spiritual growth of the congregation.
The goal is to present you mature in Christ
So what will you do to grow toward these ends:
• You were dead. More fully understand your need for Him and the miracle that He accomplished in saving you.
You sin because you’re a sinner. Not the other way around.
• How will you know increasing joy as you grow in your understanding that He forgave you
These two actually work together, answering each other.
The better you understand how dead you were, the more joy you will experience in knowing that He erased the [long] list of your sins
• Know the gospel more and more each day.
Knowing the gospel better will drive you to deeper depths of understanding and greater heights of joy.
• How will/should you live, knowing that the enemy has already been defeated?
• Will you strive to know the Gospel deeper and proclaim it as often as possible?
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