Colossians 1:10-14

Colossians 1:10-14    And we pray this in order that you may live a life worthy of the Lord and may please him in every way: bearing fruit in every good work, growing in the knowledge of God, being strengthened with all power according to his glorious might so that you may have great endurance and patience, and joyfully giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of the saints in the kingdom of light.  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 (NIV).

   Paul occasionally has a practice of writing or speaking in reverse chronological order.  At the beginning of these five verses, Paul is talking about good works, then at the conclusion he talks about the redemption from Christ.  By going from the subject of sanctification to justification, he gives an exclamation mark to justification.  Christ’s work on the cross made the forgiveness of sins possible and is the reason a believer in Jesus, who is baptized with the Holy Spirit, can do good works which bear fruit.  And good works are exactly what Paul is exhorting all followers of Jesus to carry out.  He is not addressing non-believers here, for they would not be empowered to bear fruit for God.
   All people who believe in Jesus, the Redeemer, have been rescued by the Father from the dominion of darkness and brought into His kingdom, authorized as citizens of heaven from the moment a person receives Christ.  Because of the transformation which takes place in the heart of a follower of Jesus, we citizens of heaven can now do good works in whatever country we are in here in this world until we are brought into heaven.
   I watched more of the Olympics this past summer than ever, and I enjoyed the competition as well as the personal stories.  How wonderful people from all countries have the opportunity to compete against one another.  Yet each individual athlete is a human being with dreams, hurts, and needs just like every other athlete from every other country.  All of those athletes have sinned just like the rest of us, and all need the love of Jesus for goodness.  Here in this fallen world where there has been a separation of people from God, Satan has much authority and influence in every country; the dominion of darkness is vast.  Yet thanks to Jesus, every person from every country has the opportunity to be rescued, and to have everlasting life in the dominion of light, which is the dominion of Jesus Christ.
Hunter Irvine