July 19, 2019
For full passage click: Colossians 1:21-23 …And you who were once estranged and hostile in mind, doing evil deeds, he has now reconciled in his fleshly body through death, so as to present you holy and blameless and irreproachable before him—” vss. 21-22
The Church has done a good job of proclaiming the death of Jesus as the means of our reconciliation to God. We’ve heard that story year after year in our worship. It’s the core message of the Lenten Season. Jesus died on the cross so that all might live, and we’ve understood that as a once-for-all event. What we haven’t always understood is that the Christ, who is in us from the beginning, continues to suffer, die, and rise again in our lives. Sin is the culprit, and when its forces assail us, the Christ within suffers and sometimes dies. We see that regularly in our lives and the lives of others. Sometimes it’s as though the light of goodness has gone out in our hearts. Some people spend their entire lifetimes in selfish maneuvering and chasing the desires of the flesh. But because the Christ never leaves us there is always the hope of resurrection! All of us have had that experience; we know all about the ebb and flow of life, the dying and rising that is connected to the Christ within. Sometimes, indeed many times, it happens on a daily basis. It’s a familiar ongoing cycle for those who live by faith. Sin continues to plague us, but in Christ there is resurrection, and we can be the light of the world.
Thought for the Day: What are the signs of Christ’s death in me?
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