To whom God would make known what is the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles; which is Christ in you, the hope of glory. Colossians 1:27
One of the verses that we all learned in Sunday School is Romans 3:23: For all have sinned and come short of the glory of God. For some of us, it was a favourite verse, because it is so short and easy to learn. It doesn’t even have any hard words in it. But while we learned to recite it with our lips, did we get its all-condemning message into our hearts? Before we could be saved we had to acknowledge the truth that we are all sinners and therefore devoid of the ability to achieve the glory of God. That is why our verse today is precious to us, reminding us that our hope of attaining the glory of God comes from having Christ in us.
As the apostle Paul writes his letter to the Assembly in Colosse, he is languishing in a Roman prison. He is a man who has known a great deal of suffering and persecution for his ministry and his testimony. And yet, in verse 24 of our chapter, he tells his audience that he rejoices in his sufferings for them. It is not a natural thing for anyone to rejoice in suffering. But Paul could. He reminds us of Jesus, the Author and Finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God (Hebrews 12:2). To the Lord Jesus, the torment and same of the cross was joyful in its accomplishing the purposes of God and the salvation of mankind. That was Paul’s attitude, as he could see beyond the suffering to the fulfilling of God’s will for him, which were the preaching of the Gospel and the ministering to the Lord’s people. Because of that, Paul could speak of the hope – the absolute certainty – of glory. He was speaking of the hope of displaying the character and nature of God. We can know that glory too, if we will submit to the will of God in our lives, regardless of the cost.
The hope of glory refers not only to our entering into God’s purposes here in this life, but also to the entering into God’s presence for eternity. Paul knew, and often referred to, the limitations imposed on himself by the fact that he was dwelling in sinful flesh. We know exactly what he was speaking about. The extent to which we can live up to the glory of God is limited now. But the limitations are removed when we are ushered into the presence of God. Whether by way of the Rapture or the grave, we will be forever delivered from all that ever caused us to come short of the glory of God. Although we deserve eternal punishment, we are assured of eternal life. That assurance comes from the depths of the meaning of the term ‘Christ in you’. Yes, this is our hope of glory. This is the reason why our eternal abode is with God. When the Holy Spirit entered us at our conversion, He did not come to dwell with us for a short time, or even for a long time; He came to dwell with us forever. Our eager anticipation of the joys and bliss of Heaven is possible only because of Christ in us.
The lovely expression ‘Christ in you, the hope of glory’, presents us with a challenge today. And it presents us with every reason to rejoice. -Jim MacIntosh