The Past, Present and Future of Reconciliation

October 28, 2001 Preacher: Randy Smith Series: Colossians

Scripture: Colossians 1:21–23

Transcript

The Past, Present and Future of Reconciliation

Colossians 1:21-23
Sunday, October 28, 2001
Pastor Randy Smith



Maker of the Universe

The Maker of the Universe
As Man, for man was made a curse.
The claims of Law which He had made
Unto the uttermost He paid.
His holy fingers made the bough
Which grew the thorns that crowned His brow
The nails that pierced His hands were mined
In Secret places He designed.
He made the forest whence there sprung
The tree on which His body hung.
He died upon a cross of wood
Yet made the hill on which it stood.
The sky that darkened over His head.
By him above the earth was spread.
The sun that hid from Him its face
By His decree was poised in space.
The spear which spilled His precious blood
Was tempered in the fires of God.
The grave in which His form was laid.
Was hewn in rocks His hands had made.
The throne on which He now appears
Was His from everlasting years.
But a new glory crowns His brow,
And every knee to Him shall bow.
The Maker of the universe.

Possibly the most profound truth from last week's sermon was that Jesus Christ, the Cosmic Creator and Sustainer of the universe, would submit Himself to a Roman cross to bleed and die. Verse 20 says He did it to " reconcile all things to Himself." Now, in anticipating much misunderstanding, Paul provides three verses to clarify the process of reconciliation. Verse 21 answers the question: Why do I need to be reconciled? Verse 22 answers the questions: How was I reconciled, and what are the effects of my reconciliation? Verse 23 answers the question: How do I know that I have been reconciled?

Reconciliation must be studied in three spans of time, past (verse 21), present (verse 22) and future (verse 23). The objective this morning is to understand the significance of each time span, clarify any misunderstanding, and personally see how the glorious doctrine of reconciliation applies to each of us this morning.

1. THE PAST - The Need for Reconciliation (1:21)

Watergate conspirator, George Gordon Liddy, said, "I have found within myself all I need and all I ever shall need. I am a man of great faith, but my faith is in George Gordon Liddy. I have never failed me." Timothy McVeigh, just before his execution left these final words, "I am the master of my fate, I am the captain of my soul." Though these comments are to an extreme, they are no less guilty than the more subtle remarks that are bred from the humanist movement. Oscar Wilde said, "To love oneself is the beginning of a lifelong romance." Doris Mortman said, "Until you make peace with who you are, you'll never be content with what you have."

In brainwashing the 21st century mind, psychologists have purported a theology contrary to the teachings in Scripture. They say , believe in yourself; the Bible says , "For unless you believe that I am He, you shall die in your sins" (Jn. 8:24). They say , find yourself; the Bible says , "He who has found his life shall lose it, and he who has lost his life for My sake shall find it" (Mt. 10:39). They say , look to yourself; the Bible says , "If anyone wishes to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow Me" (Lk. 9:23). They say , humans are basically good; the Bible says , "The heart is more deceitful than all else And is desperately sick." (Jer. 17:9).

And even those who claim to be teaching from the Bible distort these essential teachings of Scriptures. Pastors lead their congregations to believe that man was created for God's benefit. Man can tell God when he wants to be saved, how rich he'd like to become and even his own version of theology. Erwin Lutzer, Pastor of Moody Church in Chicago, said, "A spirit of accommodation permeates the evangelical pulpits of our land. Sometimes obvious, sometimes subtle, but always dangerous, much preaching today is shaped by the culture of our times. The Bible is bent to accommodate culture rather than change it."

Take for example, Robert Schuller. Schuller, in his book, Self-Esteem-The New Reformation , says the times have changed. "What we need is a theology of salvation that begins and ends with a recognition of every person's hunger for glory." Sin as he defined it is, "any act or thought that robs myself or another human being of his or her self-esteem."

Self-esteem? Self-worth? Self-confidence? Self-image? Do the psychological terms of this age, which elevate self, truly please the living God? Was it not Nebuchadnezzar who said, "Is this not Babylon the great, which I myself have built as a royal residence by the might of my power and for the glory of my majesty" (Dan. 4:30)? Did God accept that spirit? No, God humbled him! Daniel 4 recalls that he was driven away from mankind to eat grass in the field like cattle until he should realize the distorted view of himself and give glory to God.

The modern secular notion of "self" is permeating the church. But unfortunately, when man is lifted up, God is dethroned in the process. Jay Adams, in his book, Preaching With a Purpose said, "Today, one of the greatest threats to evangelical preaching comes from the invasion of self-image, self-worth dogmas. Passage after passage in the Bible has been distorted in order to confirm to these teachings, with the result that you end up preaching man and his supposed worth rather than Christ. Sometimes that 'worth' has been seen as intrinsic, sometimes it is considered the result of salvation."

Why have I taken you on this excursion? Why have I attacked the supposed "goodness" and "glorification" of man? Because until we see what we actually are, we will not see what we actually need. If I believe I'm basically a good person, what need do I have for a Savior ? If I chose my own personal definition for sin, what need do I have for repentance ? Apart from understanding the sinfulness of my heart and the offense that my life has been to a holy Creator, what need do I have for reconciliation ? This is Paul's exact point in verse 21.

Verse 21, "And although you were formerly (deserving God's love?) alienated and (positive in thought?) hostile in mind , engaged in (good works?) evil deeds " (Col. 1:21). Don't buy the lie of secular humanism or modern psychology! This verse describes the past of every individual before they receive salvation in Christ. The theologians call it "Total Depravity", meaning that humans are not basically good, but rather the core of their life is permeated by sin, which affects all aspects of their existence. Sure, compared to Charles Manson or Adolph Hitler, we appear pretty good; but compared rightly to the God of the Scriptures, the Bible says all fall short of His glory. On God's standard (comparison to Jesus Christ), human beings are radically corrupt. "As it is written, 'There is none righteous, not even one; There is none who understands, There is none who seeks for God; All have turned aside, together they have become useless; There is none who does good, There is not even one. Their throat is an open grave, With their tongues they keep deceiving, The poison of asps is under their lips; Whose mouth is full of cursing and bitterness; Their feet are swift to shed blood, Destruction and misery are in their paths, And the path of peace have they not known. There is no fear of God before their eyes" (Rom. 3:10-18). In describing the depravity of humans, John Calvin said, "No one knows the one-hundredth part of the sin that clings to his soul." Possibly even more realistic is what Blaise Pascal said nearly 400 years ago, "Truly it is evil to be full of faults, but it is a still greater evil to be full of them, and to be unwilling to recognize them."

Let's allow verse 21 to speak for itself. The text describes mankind first as alienatedfrom God. The word implies isolation, loneliness and a deep sense of not belonging. Before Christ comes into a believer's life, individuals are estranged from God, separated in slavery to sin. They are as close to God as green Martians on Mars with antennas. Humans were aliens in God's sight, and in God's terminology. By the emphatic use of "and you" in verse 21, Paul wanted to be sure that his Colossian readers clearly remembered their awful predicament.

In addition to alienation, all humans apart from Christ are hostile in mind. This hostility is a result of their depravity and fuels an ongoing and continued alienation from God. It is a hardening of one's heart that separates man and God further and further from each other. In other words, their hostility (or hatred) separates them from God and continues to keep both them and God at enmity with each other. Their hostility is not only blatant antagonism toward their Creator, but it is also self-satisfying to their ego. Though they often refuse to admit it, they take pleasure in resisting His holy standards. Though they often fail to understand it, their hostility has created an impassible separation between them and God.

Before Christ, humans are alienated, hostile in mind and finally, engaged in evil deeds , literally, "wicked deeds." Don't tell me that someone can close the gap between them and God by their good deeds. The text says their deeds are "wicked"; the gap only enlarges. Obviously a hostile mind will be manifested in hostile behavior, all of which is fruit of a hostile heart.

Why do you think two of America's greatest preachers, Jonathan Edwards and George Whitfield, had such a tremendous influence during the Great Awakening? It was because they insisted that the human heart was in a total state of corruption apart from the divine intervention of God. They didn't preach a feel-good message. They preached about every human's greatest need, a deliverance from the wickedness of their hearts. History recalls that countless souls during that time ran to the Savior; however, as today many were put-off by such an offensive truth. It was the Duchess of Buckingham, in commenting to her friend Lady Huntingdon, who said this of Whitfield, "It is monstrous to be told, that you have a heart as sinful as the common wretches that crawl on the earth. This is highly offensive and insulting; and I cannot but wonder that your ladyship should relish any sentiments so much at variance with high rank and good breeding."

Are human hearts basically good? We cannot believe that to be true and still affirm the words of Jesus Christ, "For from within , out of the heart of men , proceed the evil thoughts , fornications, thefts, murders, adulteries, deeds of coveting and wickedness , as well as deceit, sensuality, envy, slander, pride and foolishness. All these evil things proceed from within and defile the man " (Mk. 7:21-23). Elsewhere Jesus said, "And this is the judgment, that the light is come into the world, and men loved the darkness rather than the light; for their deeds were evil. For everyone who does evil hates the light, and does not come to the light, lest his deeds should be exposed" (John 3:19-20). Human hearts are sinful, engaged in evil deeds and enjoying every moment of it. For human beings apart from Christ, our attention, our entertainment, and our thoughts are all dominated by sin.

This past Monday a Christian brother and I went to the Giants/Eagles game. Before the game we were cooking some hot dogs in the parking lot, when a loud ruckus engulfed the entire scene. Looking over my right shoulder, I noticed a woman standing on the top of a van to the cheers and encouragement of her on-lookers. Refusing to see what would happen next, I can only imagine by the exaggerated applause of the crowd. But possibly most fascinating, in surveying the scene, sadly not a single eye in the entire parking lot was focused elsewhere-women included! In reading their reactions, it was a joy that seemed to highlight their evening, a pleasure in wickedness. The human's heart has an irresistible desire, an insatiable thirst and unsatisfied curiosity for sin.

I asked the brother if I should follow her act by preaching righteousness, self-control and the judgment to come (Ac. 24:25). I probably would have watched the game from my bed in the hospital! The human heart would prefer to give first-place to sin rather than Jesus Christ, to darkness rather than the Light of the world. As a matter of fact, our deeds are so evil that God had to create a government and conscience just to keep us from killing ourselves!

Why does Paul begin this snapshot of reconciliation in verses 21-23 on such a negative note? Why does he recall the past and remind the readers of their life before Christ? Because just as a diamond is more glorified against a backdrop of black felt, God's reconciling purposes are more glorified against the backdrop of our sin.

The holiness of God and the depravity of man are two key doctrines in this discussion. If your attitude at this point is, "How can anybody be saved?" then you're beginning to think biblically! The point is God will not accept sin. His eyes are too pure to look upon sin, and He must punish it. The wages of sin is death. Because of our sin, the Bible says He is angry. Therefore the only hope for humanity lies at the mercy and grace of God, to forgive our sins, bridge the enmity and establish reconciliation. But how? Verse 22...

2. THE PRESENT - The Means and Effects of Reconciliation (1:22)

"Yet He has now reconciled you in His fleshly body through death, in order to present you before Him holy and blameless and beyond reproach" (Col. 1:22). There can be no doubt that our sin has separated us from God. We needed to be brought back to our Creator; we needed to be reconciled to God, "because the mind set on the flesh is hostile toward God; for it does not subject itself to the law of God, for it is not even able to do so; and those who are in the flesh cannot please God" (Rom. 8:7-8). We needed God to bring us back to Himself. "Now all these things are from God, who reconciled us to Himself through Christ, and gave us the ministry of reconciliation, namely, that God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and He has committed to us the word of reconciliation" (2 Cor. 5:18-19).

Our sin did separate us from God, but in a greater way our sin separated God from us! In other words, yes we needed to be reconciled to God, but ultimately God needed to be reconciled to us! "A jealous and avenging God is the Lord; The Lord is avenging and wrathful. The Lord takes vengeance on His adversaries, And He reserves wrath for His enemies" (Nahum 1:2). "Much more then, having now been justified by His blood, we shall be saved from the wrath of God through Him" (Rom. 5:9). "Let no one deceive you with empty words, for because of these things the wrath of God comes upon the sons of disobedience" (Eph. 5:6).

Again, how could these two parties at enmity with each other be brought together and reconciled? Look again at verse 22, "Yet He (God's initiative) has now (moment of divine reversal) reconciled you in His fleshly body through death." Those words, "fleshly body" and "death" obviously refer to the incarnation and sacrifice of Jesus Christ. The means of our reconciliation was for God Himself in the person of Jesus Christ to come to the earth in flesh, contrary to the Colossian heretics, and to die on a cross for our sins. Unfortunately, many will look to an immoral woman lifted up on a van for their wicked pleasures. However, reconciliation will only be accomplished by looking to Jesus Christ, who was lifted up on the cross for their righteousness (Jn. 12:32-34). "He made Him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him" (2 Cor. 5:21). In Christ and only in Christ, one can have all his sins forgiven, because His righteousness is given to those who truly believe by faith. A person can then stand before God clothed in the righteousness of Christ, being reconciled to a holy God. Christ is God's gracious plan for reconciliation; Christ is God's only plan for reconciliation!

In his classic work, The Existence and Attributes of God , Stephen Charnock wrote:

"God, apart from Christ, is an angry, offended Sovereign. Unless we behold Him in and through Christ, the Mediator, the terrors of His Majesty would overwhelm us. We dare not approach the Father except in Christ because of our sins. We first fasten our eyes upon Christ, then upon the Father. If Christ does not bear our guilt and reconcile us unto God, we perish! Before any man can think to stand before the face of God's justice or be admitted to the secret chamber of God's mercy or partake of the riches of His grace, he must look to the Mediator, Christ Jesus."

Verse 22 concludes by clearly outlining the purpose of Christ's death. It's not just to save us from hell and offer a wonderful plan for our lives. The goal is to present us before God " holy and blameless and beyond reproach." What a contrast from the alienation and wicked hearts that we learned of in verse 21. So reconciliation has a past , our former alienation. Reconciliation has a present , our faith in Christ which cleanses us. And believe it or not, reconciliation even has a future.

How has the modern evangelical church misunderstood these three aspects of reconciliation? Think about it for a moment. For the past they buy the humanistic lie of man. Sin is rarely mentioned, and if it is, it is distorted in their gospel presentations due to ignorance or fear of offense. For the present , the gospel has been nothing more than a prayer spoken, an aisle walked or a hand raised. Biblical faith and repentance are likewise omitted. For the future , modern evangelicals counsel their converts to never doubt their salvation regardless of their present lifestyle.

The Scriptures in Colossians have hopefully set the record straight on the past and present aspects of reconciliation. Let's turn our attention now to the future aspect.

3. THE FUTURE - The Condition of Reconciliation (1:23)

Verse 23, "If indeed you continue in the faith firmly established and steadfast, and not moved away from the hope of the gospel that you have heard, which was proclaimed in all creation under heaven, and of which I, Paul, was made a minister." Allow me to make two clear points from the get-go; please don't misunderstand me on these issues. One, the sentence begins with the word "if." That means that this is a conditional clause. That means that our reconciliation and salvation is conditional. That means that "easy-believism" is wrong! "Easy-believism" means to make a decision for Christ and then live any way I choose. Two, though salvation is conditional, I am not saying that once a person is saved, they can lose their salvation. Allow me to clarify these crucial issues.

What this verse is NOT teaching: salvation is based on my decision, regardless of what I actually believe and how I continue to live my life. What this verse IS teaching: salvation is provided through Christ's sacrifice, proven by an understanding of biblical doctrine and evidenced by a changed life.

There is no doubt that salvation happens the second we trust Christ for salvation. There is no doubt that Christ receives all who truly believe and receive Him for salvation. There is no doubt that salvation is only through faith. There is no doubt that the elect will persevere until the end.

But there is also no doubt that humans who profess Christ have a responsibility. There is no doubt that God requires a response on their part. There is no doubt that they are commanded to avoid a false sense of security. "Test yourselves to see if you are in the faith; examine yourselves! Or do you not recognize this about yourselves, that Jesus Christ is in you-- unless indeed you fail the test" (2 Cor. 13:5)?

Why the warning? Why the need for self-examination? Because people have been lured into a false sense of security throughout the ages. "Many will say to Me on that day, 'Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in Your name, and in Your name cast out demons, and in Your name perform many miracles?' And then I will declare to them, 'I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness" (Mt. 7:22-23). Satan's most deceptive plan is to allure individuals to believe they are saved, when no true relationship with the Lord exists.

In this verse Paul is reminding the readers that they must " continue in the faith " and be " not moved away from the hope of the gospel ". He uses words like " firmly established " and " steadfast ", to show that the believer must remain true to the gospel in belief and practice. They must continue to believe and continue to produce fruit that is worthy of the gospel throughout their entire life. Yes, it matters how you start, but it also matters how you end.

"Behold then the kindness and severity of God; to those who fell, severity, but to you, God's kindness, if you continue in His kindness; otherwise you also will be cut off" (Rom. 11:22). "Now I make known to you, brethren, the gospel which I preached to you, which also you received, in which also you stand, by which also you are saved, if you hold fast the word which I preached to you, unless you believed in vain" (1 Cor. 15:1-2). "But Christ was faithful as a Son over His house whose house we are, if we hold fast our confidence and the boast of our hope firm until the end" (Heb. 3:6). "For we have become partakers of Christ, if we hold fast the beginning of our assurance firm until the end" (Heb. 3:14).

Perseverance to the end is the greatest hallmark of any believer. But for every verse that teaches of our responsibility to persevere, I could share with you a verse that teaches of the Spirit's power that enables us to persevere and ensures that we will persevere. So perseverance to the end is a human responsibility, but is only possible through the assistance of the Holy Spirit. All true saints must persevere to the end, and all true saints will persevere to the end. Therefore this verse is not teaching that we can lose our salvation, nor is it saying we must work for our salvation. Colossians 1:23 is simply making it clear that perseverance to the end reveals the reality of our salvation. If we don't persevere it does not mean that we lost our salvation, it simply means that we were never saved. "They went out from us, but they were not really of us; for if they had been of us, they would have remained with us; but they went out, in order that it might be shown that they all are not of us" (1 Jn. 2:19).

God forbid it, but what if Randy Smith falls away from the faith at the end of his life-complete apostasy. After forty years of ministry and fifty years of salvation he cools off; he becomes disinterested in the things of God; he pulls back from ministry for the sake of worldly hobbies; he buys the lie about having a new wife; he believes the church is a bunch of hypocrites and quits attending; he fails to reconcile and fellowship with other Christians; he fails to be in the Word and prayer. What would you make of my Christian life? Simple, for fifty years my faith has been a charade. I didn't lose my salvation, I never had it! Fidelity to my wife- compliance to social pressure; fatherhood- instinct; preaching- love of crowds and study; prayer- worst delusion of all, thought that I could manipulate God to supply the resources for my own vanity.

From the illustration to the reality. We are called in 2 Peter 1:10 to make our calling and election certain. We don't make our calling certain by recalling our prayer to accept Jesus or our water baptism. We do it by recalling fruit in our life which is evidence that God is at work. If there is no fruit, there is no God. If we say we have no fruit, but do have God in your life, we make Him out to be a liar.

It's a frightening thing when people begin to pull away from ministry and church attendance. It's a frightening thing when excuses and ignorance and indifference replace godly repentance. It's a frightening thing when an apparent fervent walk begins to cool off, a whole-hearted devotion begins to drift away, and a passionate love for God grows cold. It's a frightening thing when you have backslidden and you don't care, and the God who disciplines His wayward children is not disciplining you.

Possibly some of you are there; possibly some of you are heading in that direction. Maybe you have made a game of your Christian life and a mockery of the grace of God. You know who you are, and God is calling you to repent before it is too late. Remember, it's a frightening thing to fall into the hands of the Living God.