(I decided to end my offline time early)
Colossians 1:13-14: “For he has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.”
God rescued us. It can’t get any plainer than that. God rescued us; we didn’t rescue ourselves. It was His idea, His plan, and His Son that carried it out on Calvary. If we ever get the feeling that God is lucky to have us, those three little words … God rescued us … should put all back in perspective. We were dead; God gave us life through His Son. God rescued us from . . .
. . .the dominion of darkness. I love that! The Greek word for darkness is used throughout the New Testament as the equivalent of physical darkness, intellectual darkness, blindness, the place of punishment, moral and spiritual darkness, evil works, evil powers that dominate the world. That’s the ugly stuff that held us in its powers. But God rescued us, from the power of darkness and He . . .
. . . brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves. He didn’t rescue us from the power of darkness and drop us just anywhere. He brought us into the kingdom, into the kingdom of the Son He loves, the Son who gave His life for our rescue. And it is in God’s very own Son that we find we have . . .
. . . redemption. “Redeemed! How I love to proclaim it. Redeemed by the blood of the Lamb. Redeemed through His infinite mercy. His child and forever I am!” We have been delivered and ransomed. We are no longer captives, slaves to darkness’ power. We have been redeemed and set free by the very blood of God’s own Son. And even more, we have . . .
. . . the forgiveness of sins. Forgiveness. “’Come now, let us reason together,’ says the LORD. ‘Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red as crimson, they shall be like wool.’” [Isaiah 1:18]
Forgiven. God has forgiven my sins. They will never be thrown up in my face, they will never be put on display, they will never be whispered about in heaven, they are forever covered by the Precious Blood of God’s Lamb.
Two short verses, a couple of lines in my Bible, a few words. And held within those few words are our lives, past and present as well as the hope for a glorious eternal future. Glory to God.
