All of God is in Christ - All of Christ is in us

6 You accepted Christ Jesus as Lord, so continue to live following him.7 You must depend on Christ only, drawing life and strength from him. Just as you were taught the truth, continue to grow stronger in your understanding of it. And never stop giving thanks to God. 8 Be sure you are not led away by the teaching of those who have nothing worth saying and only plan to deceive you. That teaching is not from Christ. It is only human tradition and comes from the powers that influence this world. 9 I say this because all of God lives in Christ fully, even in his life on earth. 10 And because you belong to Christ you are complete, having everything you need. Christ is ruler over every other power and authority. (Colossians 2:6-10 ERV)

I really want to focus on the last two sentences from this passage today, but wanted you to have the context, as well. Paul is concerned that some of the believers at the Colossian church have become duped into believing "good ideas", but ideas that are really "false" in nature. In other words, he is concerned for the development of their faith and their trust in Christ as the only way to restored relationship with God the Father. As he says, human tradition is not going to be what establishes this connection - it might sound good, but I know I have believed many a piece of folklore only to find out it has no basis in truth! We want our lives founded in truth, and that comes not by holding onto tradition, but by allowing all of Christ to get into us - for in so doing, all of God gets into us!

Had you seen that before in this passage? God lives in Christ - therefore, if Christ lives in us, all of God lives in us! Not just bits and pieces, but ALL of his power, wisdom, might, peace, joy, creative ability, and the list goes on. We are complete, not because we "know Christ", but because he indwells us. His Spirit joins with ours, his Word becomes grafted into the fibers of our being, his thoughts begin to overcome the worthless or troubling thoughts of our own minds, and we begin to understand that the fullness of God indwells us. Where such power exists, it is impossible for anything to stand against it! This is why Jesus reminds us that he and the Father are one - just as we are to be one with him.

When I look at my own life, I oftentimes don't think of it as "complete" - it seems there are things that still need a little attention. My attitude can get a little out of sorts at times; my nose can get a little bent out of shape when I don't get my own way; my hopes can get the best of me on occasion, causing me to break off way more than I can chew. I just don't always do the best with what I have been given - because I have been given far more than I deserve! Yet, God's grace indwells my life - his presence fills my soul - and his strength replaces my weakness. In Christ, all things good, solid, and trustworthy exist. If he indwells our lives, then all these same good, solid, and trustworthy things are part of who we are now. It might just be we need to focus not on what we don't get right in this life, but on what "is right" within us! Just sayin!