Our lives today are filled with technology, from the phone in our pocket to our web interfaces for work and media. Undoubtably, each one of us knows the value of the refresh button. A refresh loads the new information, showing us the most updated version. If we let something sit too long, it needs a refresh to bring it back to current.
Similarly, our spiritual lives need a refresh from time to time. A reminder of who we are in Christ, bringing back the information to the forefront of our thinking. This is the focus of our theme Refresh, that we would have the minds focused on Christ.
In looking at scripture we see Paul’s letter to the church at Colossae as a prime reminder of who Christ is, and who we are as his followers. Paul and Timothy write:
Colossians 1:12-14
and giving joyful thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of his holy people 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.
We see here, and throughout the rest of chapter one, identifiers of who Christ is.
Who Christ is
- Qualifier – (1:12)
- Deliverer – (1:13)
- Redeemer (1:14)
- The Image of God (1:15)
- Creator (1:16)
- Unity (1:17)
- Head of the Church (1:18)
- The Beginning (1:17-18)
- The Fullness of God (1:19)
- Peacemaker (1:20)
- Reconciler (1:20-21)
- Blameless Sacrifice (1:22)
The list is astounding when we sit back and truly consider each role. As a result of who Christ is and his sacrifice for us, it is revealed that God views us differently:
Who we are as a result
- Reconciled to God (1:21) Connected to God personally
- Holy and Blameless (1:22) Sin/mistakes washed away.
- Part of the Body of Christ, the Church (1:24) Given family
- Understanding Mystery (1:26) – the realization of the savior
- Christ in Us (1:27) Trusted with the most valuable prize
We asked the question: How can I be these things?
The answer is simple and profound:
My strength is not in who I am, but who Christ is in me
Our challenge: Let’s live refreshed in who Christ is, and who we are in Him.