Colossians 2:9-10 "The Fullness"

Read Colossians 2:9-10.

"For in Christ all the fullness of the Deity lives...." NIV

Wow, I don't think I've ever realized the richness of Colossians before. I can't move forward more than a couple of verses at a time. I keep getting stopped dead in my tracks.

Here, Paul is very clearly declaring the divinity of Christ. The fullness of the Deity would be all power and authority that God holds, Christ equally holds. There is no separation of duties, no hierarchy of position. Equal beings with equal powers. One and the same.

Paul is obviously addressing the heresy of the Gnostics that was so rampant at the time. But his "proclamations" (See May 2nd post.) of Christ as Deity is relevant to the foundations of the beliefs of all Christians. If we are going to be Christ-followers, rooted in Him and His power, we must know that we are following the one true God. God incarnate -- full and complete though in human form. And that is exactly what Paul is declaring here.

I love the word, fullness. Christ was not just part God. He didn't just get the spectacular miracle-worker part. He didn't just embody the great orator portion of God. He was completely God in all aspects. He was the all-knowing, all-seeing God. Nothing was hidden from Christ in knowledge or power. He was all He could be as God.

Now here's the kicker -- because Christ was all He could be as God (fullness of the Deity), we are all we can be in Christ (been given fullness in Christ.) I am absolutely as complete in Him as I can be on this earth. What all that completeness includes will be discussed in the rest of Chapter 2, but for right now, I just bask in the great mystery and wonder that I have been given fullness in Christ. And in that fullness, I am truly free!

Further Thoughts:

1. Search for other passages that address the Deity of Christ.
2. We will continue to grow while on this earth, but do you live as one that is complete in Christ? If no, what needs to change?
3. How would your life change if you truly lived the fullness of Christ?

Matthew 9:1-8 "A Healing Now and Forever"

Read Matthew 9:1-8 and Mark 2:1-12.

“When Jesus saw their faith….” NIV

This passage was a little confusing to me until I read it in the other gospels and the study notes. That’s why I referenced Mark above. The question here, is Jesus equating the healing of the paralytic to the forgiveness of sins. If so, doesn’t that mean that the man was paralyzed because of his sin? So are all illnesses due to sin?

The answer is no. Jesus does not teach that illness is due to sin in his life. Illness may result from sin, but it is not brought on by sin. Sin is a matter of the heart, where illness is possible because of the fall, but a by-product of our frail bodies.

So what is Jesus’ purpose here? Again it seems He is proving His deity to the Pharisees. First of all, the paralytic and his friends demonstrate a faith in Jesus by going to such lengths to get to Him. Christ knew their hearts, so he met the man’s most important, basic need first – the forgiveness of His sins. By doing so, He enraged the religious teachers because they didn’t believe even the Messiah could forgive sins. Only deity had that power. When Jesus asks, “Which is easier?” He is basically saying to the Pharisees, “See, I have the power to forgive and to heal. Both are equally difficult and can only be done through the divine. I am deity.”

Further Thoughts:

1. Although He is capable of both healing your body and healing your heart, the healing of your heart is always more important to God. The body is temporal; the soul eternal. Read Matthew 10:28, 1 Corinthians 15:50, and Ephesians 6:12. A major example of this is Job. If you haven’t read his story lately, take some time to read it now.
2. Spend some quiet time today asking God to speak to your heart and reveal if there is any sin in your life that needs forgiving.