Colossians 1:15-23: Jesus saves and sustains. It's all about Jesus!

TVCC Students,
As we continue to dive into the book of Colossians, it is so wonderful to be reminded of our status before God because of the work of Christ. Where we were unqualified, Jesus qualified us. While we were in the kingdom of darkness, Jesus transferred us to the kingdom of light. Jesus is our hope and salvation. Last night we took a closer look into the life and character of Jesus as described in Colossians 1:15-23. Here is a recap...

Colossians 1:15-23
~1:15: Jesus is the image of God's likeness. This word for "image" means "icon." When we want to know what the Father looks like, we need to look to Jesus. What was Jesus like? Who did He hang out with? How did He spend His time? What was important to Him? When we look into Jesus' life through the gospels and answer these questions we know more of the character of God as Jesus is the exact representation of the Father.

Q: When was the last time that you took an in depth look into the character of Christ as seen in the gospels? What things stick out to you about the life of Jesus and the things He values? Are there any changes that you feel called to make in your own life as you look at the life of Christ?

~1:15: Jesus is also the firstborn. All rights of the firstborn son are His and we are co-inheritors with Him through (Romans 8:17) His death and resurrection. In Christ, nothing can separate us from the love of the Father (Romans 8). What a great hope we have in Christ!!

Q: Do you realize your standing before the Father through the death of Christ on your behalf? How is your life different when you are meditating on your standing before the Lord? How is your life different when you are not meditating on your standing before the Lord?

~1:16: Before the world was, Jesus was. He was with the Father before the world began and the Father gave Him permission to create the world. How amazing that the creator of the world would come live amongst His creation and ultimately be killed by His creation in order to save them. Ultimately this act of Him coming to earth was to bring Him glory. Creation was brought about to bring Him glory. Our salvation brings Him glory!

Q: In what ways has your personal salvation story brought Him glory? Spend a little time meditating on the great ways He has shown you mercy and think about how those things have all happened to bring Him glory.

~1:17: All things hold together in Him. Without Jesus, the planets would not orbit correctly around the sun. Without Jesus, even the substance that makes up everything- the atom- would not stay together!

~1:18: Jesus is the head of the church. Animals will die if separated from their head. Without their head, animals will writhe around in a state of crazed confusion and quickly die. We must remember this truth when thinking about the church of God and how crucial it is for us to remain connected to the head, Jesus Christ. We must continually be checking ourselves to make sure that we are connected with the Head and that we are all heading in the same direction- the glory of the Lord!

Q: What does your life look like when you are "connected" with the Head, Jesus? What does your life look like when you aren't walking in "alignment" with Jesus? What encourages you to "stay connected" with Jesus?

~1:18: Jesus is the firstborn. All of the glory is His. It's all about Him and His glory.

Q: Are you living in such a way that Jesus is getting all of the glory that He deserves? Is your life pointing to Him? Are you seeking to know Him more?

~1:20: It was God's design that all things should be reconciled to Him through Jesus. The whole earth is under the condemnation and curse of sin. Christ is the only One that can restore everything to its rightful state before sin. He reconciled us to the Father through His death on the cross and He is coming back to make everything right once again.

~1:21: We were all alienated from the Father because of our sins (Isaiah 59). We are all separated from the Lord and we all from birth love darkness (John 3:19). Our only hope is the Cross and Jesus' death on our behalf. We cannot even come to believe in Jesus on our own. The Father must draw us to Him (John 6:44). Everything we are and have depends on the mercy of God through Jesus.

Q: Do you realize the grace that is yours through Christ? What does it look like for you to be living thankfully to the mercy of Christ on a daily basis?

~1:22: Jesus reconciled us. The perfect Lamb of God washed us clean in order to present us to the Father WITHOUT any blame! Wow! In Jesus, we are without blame and a charge cannot even be brought against us. There is now no condemnation for us that are in Christ (Romans 8). What a great truth to meditate on!

Q: Do you realize that nothing can separate you from the love of God through Jesus? Are you living your life like a child of the Lord most High? What does it look like for your to live as a co-inheritor in Christ?

~1:23: This section can seem a little scary as it says that we are His "if" we continue in the faith. We must look at this sentence in light of other Scriptures. There are many people who profess Christianity who are not truly His (Matthew 7 & 1 John 2:19). These people are either deceived or are trying to deceive others. The truth is that Christ does not know them and they do not know Him. Once a person comes to understand their complete insufficiency before the Lord and they trust that Jesus is their only hope- they are secure in the Lord. Nothing can separate a believer from the Lord. The Lord is the Author of our faith and He is also the Perfecter of our faith. We are secure in Jesus. He saves and He sustains.

Q: Do you realize that Jesus both saves and sustains you? We can do nothing on our own. Our hope is to live a life surrendered to Him knowing that He is the One who continually draws us closer to Him.

Dear Students,
We are always encouraged to be around you all and see that you are growing in your love towards the Lord and others. We pray that this week you will spend time meditating on His Word and on the grace that is yours in Christ. We love you guys! Let us walk in thankfulness this week!!

With hope,
~Sonny and Casi

Colossians 1:9-14: Joyful Obedience and Thankfulness

TVCC Students,
We love getting back in the routine of having Wednesday nights with you guys. It blesses us so much to get to worship with you guys. We are still hanging out in Colossians 1. It was so encouraging to be reminded last night of the joy that comes with obedience. Here is a recap...

Colossians 1:9-12
~1:9: Paul tells the Colossian church that he has been praying continually for them since he heard of the fruit of the gospel in their lives. The gospel was bearing fruit in the people- causing them to abound in love through the power of the Spirit and this encouraged Paul to pray steadfastly for them. Paul heard good things and was still moved to pray for them. We should not only be lifting up the body of Christ in prayer during difficult times but even in seasons that are peaceful and good. These are the seasons where Satan is really ready to attack. We must remember that Satan comes to kill, steal, and destroy (John 10:10). He is especially on the prowl to rob people of their nearness to the Lord.

Q: Are you diligently praying for others? What changes do you need to make in your prayer life this week?

~1:9: Paul also prays that the people would be "filled" with the Spirit. This word for "filled" is a word that implies being "controlled by." Sonny gave the example of children being "filled" or "controlled" sometimes by too much sugar. When you consume too much sugar- it controls you! In the same way, when we are filled with the Spirit and are continually spending time letting His Word flow into us, we will be controlled by the Spirit. This is what the Lord wants for us. Why? Paul tells us- SO THAT... we can walk in a way that pleases the Lord. The goal in life is to glorify Christ and us being controlled by the Spirit brings Him glory as we represent Him well.

Q: What would you say is controlling your life on a daily basis? Are you being controlled by your own selfish desires or are you being controlled by the Spirit? What are you "filling" yourself with on a daily basis... worldly things or heavenly things?

~1:10: Again we see that the gospel bears fruit. Christ did not just save us to prevent us from hell. He saved us so that we could be near to Him and represent Him well to this world. This is what brings us joy. John 15:1-11 describes this truth so well. Jesus wants us to abide with Him through obedience to His word, thus representing Him well. He tells us that as we do this our joy will be made full. Nearness to Jesus brings more joy than anything else in this world. Even when we are walking through the difficult storms of life, we can experience joy as we are near to Him through loving obedience and adoration of Christ.

Q: What does it look like for you to be abiding in Christ? Are you walking in the joy that comes through loving obedience to Christ?

~1:11: Paul encourages the Colossian church to be strengthened by the power of the Spirit in order to grow in steadfastness. Over and over we see that these things that the Lord wants for us are things that He must give us as we seek Him. Steadfastness comes from the Lord... the Author and Perfecter of faith. In order for us to have the fruits of the Spirit, we must be continually renewing our minds through His Word and spending time with the Lord. We must surrender to Him, confessing our weakness and inabilities to please Him on our own and let Him grow us.

Q: Are you consistently confessing your shortcomings to the Lord and asking Him to grow you into someone who is pleasing to Him?

~1:12: Paul reminds them that as we (believers) grow in the Lord we should be growing in our thankfulness to Him. His mercies towards His children are beyond measure and as we continually spend time with Him, we will see more and more of His lavish provisions towards us. How great a God do we serve that He would qualify us to share in His inheritance? We did not deserve to be with the Lord. He left heaven and took our penalty so that we could share in His lavish inheritance. Let us walk in thankfulness for His great mercy!

Q: Has your life been characterized lately by thankfulness or grumbling and complaining? What leads you to thankfulness?

~1:13: Paul ends this little segment reminding them of the redemption that is theirs through Christ. The word "redemption" means to "buy back." We were lost and without hope. Jesus came and "purchased" us with His precious life. This death on our behalf transferred us from the kingdom of darkness to the kingdom of light & life. What a glorious inheritance we now have through Jesus. Let us not let His sacrifice for us become common.

Q: Have you meditated lately on your redemption through the blood of Christ? Is this leading you to a selfless love of others? How does meditating on the gospel change your life on a daily basis?

Dear students,
As always we are so thankful for you all. We pray that this week the gospel would continue to bear fruit in your lives. We pray that you will spend time with the Lord, meditating on Him and that His Spirit would be producing heavenly fruit in your lives for the glory of Christ. We love you guys!

With hope,
~Sonny and Casi


Upcoming events:
*** Guys campout at the church land THIS Saturday (Nov 16-17) starting at 5pm.
***Ross King coming to Terra Verde starting this Sunday morning.

Colossians 1:1-6; The Gospel bears fruit...

TVCC Students,
Wow! It's great to be back! As you all know, we were on Sabbatical for the month of October. We will be sharing very soon some of the precious things the Lord taught us but one thing is for sure... we MISSED you all! We are so humbled to get to minister alongside you guys for the glory of Jesus.

With that said, we will be in the book of Colossians for the next couple if weeks. Last night was our first night to start this book and it was so encouraging to hear Paul's words to a sister church reminding them (and us) of our hope in Jesus and our calling as His gospel-bearers. Here is a recap...

Colossians 1:1-6
Paul was not the original "planter" of the church in Colossae. Colossae was planted because Paul had been obedient to the Lord in reproducing disciples of Christ and they had been obedient to do as they had seen Paul do. We are not called as believers to just be sponges of the truth of God but we are to soak in His truth and then spread it to those that the Lord puts in our lives.

Q: Are you someone who is "reproducing" Christ in you? Are you investing in at least one other person on a continual basis?

~1:1: When Paul is addressing the church at Colossae, he calls the believers their "saints" and "faithful" brethren. These are powerful words to describe people who are just like us and ofter fail to walk in faith. What Paul was doing was addressing them as the Lord sees them in Christ. In Christ we are righteous. When we come to trust in His atoning grace on our behalf, the righteousness of Christ is imputed to us and we are seen under the lens of the righteousness and faithfulness of Christ.

Q: Do you realize that in Christ you are seen as holy and righteous? There is nothing that you can do to separate yourself from the love of God that is in Christ. Though we often need to repent of our sinfulness, it no longer counts against us as Christ has nailed it to the cross. Are you wallowing in any sin this week or are you embracing the righteous standing that you have in Jesus? What does it look like for you to be walking in light of your righteousness in Christ?

~1:2: Paul speaks grace and peace over the Colossian church. As Sonny has been reminding us often- without Jesus grace and peace could not be extended to us. Before Christ, we were dead in our sins and without hope. God's wrath was heading towards us. Then Jesus came and was crucified on our behalf so that we could have peace with God through His gracious mercy.

Q: What does it look like for you to live a thankful life to the Lord on a daily basis for the grace and peace that is your through Christ? How does this affect your relationships and your outlook on daily life?

~1:3-4: Paul thanks God for the believers at Colossae for their faith and love. Notice that Paul does not thank the Colossian church for their faith and love. Paul recognizes that the faith and love of all believers is because God has worked that within them. On our own we do not seek God nor do anything that pleases Him. Christ in us spurs us on to love and good deeds. God is the Author and Perfecter of our faith. All glory and praise goes to Him.

Q: Sonny said last night, "A true understanding of the gospel banishes all pride." What does this mean in light of verses 3-4 of Colossians 1?

~1:4: Paul thanks God for the love that the Colossian church is reported to have. Understanding the gospel and the extravagant love that has been poured out on us in the death of Jesus leads us to love others with a selfless and powerful love. 1 John says that if we claim to love God and cannot love our brothers we are lying and not walking in truth. The gospel transforms us and creates love in us. Love is putting the needs of others before ourselves.

Q: Are you walking in love towards other believers? Do you have any bitterness or unforgiveness that you need to confess so that you can be walking in pure love of the brethren? What does it look like to have the gospel producing love in us?

~1:5: We can only love like Jesus did when we are continually remembering that this is not our eternal home. We must be living in light of the coming Kingdom of Christ. When we focus on this life and our own pleasures, we easy neglect living for things that are eternal. When we are focusing on the Kingdom, we are able to forgive as we have been forgiven and love selflessly knowing that our life has a bigger purpose than just the "here and now."

Q: What does it look like for you to live with an eternal mindset? How does this affect things in your daily life?

~1:6: The gospel is bearing fruit and increasing. It is powerful. The gospel is that Jesus Christ came from heaven to die on our behalf so that we could be reconciled to the Lord. As we grow in Him, we should be reproducing ourselves (really reproducing Christ in us) and thus do our part to expand the gospel. Paul did his part. Epaphras did his part. We are called to do our parts as we live thankful lives for the grace that was poured out on us in Jesus!

Q: What does it look like for you to play your part in spreading the gospel? How is the gospel bearing fruit in your life?

Dear Students,
Again, we are so thankful for you all and for the privilege it is to worship with you guys every Wednesday. We pray that this week you will meditate on the love of Christ that has been poured out on you and that that would motivate you to love others with a selfless and bold love. We encourage you to be in fellowship and community with other believers throughout the week. We love you guys!

With hope,
Sonny and Casi