3/22/25 The Divine Enclosure

As we continue the study of Ch. 2 of Colossians, last week we took a turn and Paul suddenly in V9 & 10 went into a legal playing field being tied to the deceptive philosophies that were attacking the church and moving it away from the truth in Christ. He set the foundation of this letter in identifying the proper understanding as to who Jesus is and began to raise the pillars from that foundation with the truth of the spiritual warfare, we engage in through giving the proper understanding as to who we are in Christ as our dwelling place as he continually mentions being in Christ. In V13 he explains in greater detail.

¹³ When you were dead in your sins and in the uncircumcision of your flesh, God made you alive with Christ. He forgave us all our sins,

Paul gives the church of Colossae the truth of us all. We were dead. Walking zombies thinking that existing is alive. That pursuing as culture tells us to pursue, like corporate success, financial success, being accepted by the masses, having everything go our way, that most people like us this is not success and not what life is about. He said they were dead. The same is true for us. Dead. Preacher you may ask how can you say I was dead? I can feel, think, speak, hear, see, taste, sense I have always been alive since my birth. Paul spells it out right here, dead in your sins. All the success I mentioned can lead to sin. Obsessing over them is a sin.

Let me ask you to ask yourself what masters you? Seriously what is the one thing you know that the Word of God says is sin that you cannot get away from? Are you self-obsessed? Are you lusting after someone or something? Is there someone you will never forgive? That thing that you identify is why you are dead. Your sin has mastered you. Some of us think we cannot escape. No matter what you do how much you pray it does not go away. Paul gives the reason for that. The uncircumcision of your flesh. It is your sin nature working against you.

Do you want the solution Paul give us that as well. God made you alive with Christ. See we believe death is only physical no it is more than that. You are dead if you are away from the Father. You are dead when you walk in defiance to him. But when you are with Christ you are with life. You are with Jesus and by no other name are you saved. Notice the tense this is spoken to the church of Colossae -were dead- forgave us—that is past tense. Yesterday’s news. Never to return unless we wade into that filth again. But the charge is clear, He forgave, but here is the mystery that is hardly ever spelled out anymore. How can he forgive?

If our sin is so bad it brings real death, not physical death but real death separation from the presence of God. Here is your answer in V14

¹⁴ having canceled the charge of our legal indebtedness, which stood against us and condemned us; he has taken it away, nailing it to the cross.

The debt of our sin was canceled. Notice it says legal, so the law is tied to the issue of V9 &10 ⁹ For in Christ all the fullness of the Deity lives in bodily form, ¹⁰ and in Christ you have been brought to fullness. He is the head over every power and authority.

The fullness of the Deity lives in Christ, that is life not death. Death is the penalty of sin according to the law. The law condemned us but Pontius Pilate nailed it to the cross. The sign posted above Messiah’s body were the charges against Messiah. To us for us He who knew no sin became sin, our sin each and everyone of us. But it goes further and this is where we conclude for this week the masterpiece of V15.

¹⁵ And having disarmed the powers and authorities, he made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them by the cross

First go back to V10 we taught the proper understanding of these terms powers and authorities. Let me repeat Power here is the same word as ruler. This is the GR word arche’ meaning beginning origin ruler authority principality & is the word that is used when listing the hierarchical levels of dealing with the spiritual warfare enemies we face that play themselves out in the physical in Ephesians 6:12 the first place, principality, rule, magistracy. Further it may sound redundant to have two words say authority, the 2^nd word is exousia and while it means the same thing essentially, this ties into the authorities portion of Ephesians 6:12 the leading and more powerful among created beings superior to man, spiritual potentates.

These are the parties involved. He disarmed them. Remember Isa 54:17: no weapon forged against you will prevail, and you will refute every tongue that accuses you. This is the heritage of the servants of the LORD, and this is their vindication from me,” declares the LORD.

In the court room of the heavenlies all they have is accusation, this verse ties in every tongue that accuses you is refuted. Loved ones It says the charges against you are canceled. It even says they were made a public spectacle of; how did he do that? by disarming them. How did he disarm them? Go back to V9-10

He is the head over every power and authority, he did more than telling them to disarm, he made an example So this means that the weapons won’t prosper, the words the accusations in court fall to the ground, the penalty of true death is not going to happen because when you are in Christ, you walk in the divine enclosure and you are in life, you are in righteousness, you are in holiness, and the enemy is conquered!