062523...“If Indeed”...Colossians 1:23

Revelation 7:9-10...“After this I looked & there was a vast multitude from every nation, tribe, people & language, which no one could number, standing before the throne and before the Lamb. They were robed in white with palm branches in their hands. And they cried out in a loud voice: Salvation belongs to our God, who is seated on the throne, and to the Lamb!”

Sermon In A Sentence:Our security in our salvation is not based on our ability to continue in the faith; but on God’s faithfulness to finish what He started in us.

2 Corinthians 5:17...“Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away, and look, new things have come.”

Colossians 1:21-23...“Once you were alienated and hostile in your minds because of your evil actions. But now He has reconciled you by His physical body through His death, to present you holy, faultless, and blameless before Him— if indeed you remain grounded and steadfast in the faith and are not shifted away from the hope of the gospel that you heard. This gospel has been proclaimed in all creation under heaven, and I, Paul, have become a servant of it”

To Define “Reconcile”:
-Typically means— to resolve conflict
-Transliterated “apokatallássō” from the original Greek:
     -To reconcile completely
     -To reconcile back again
     -To bring back to a former state of harmony

The Evidence That We Have Been Reconciled To God:
-We have a before & after testimony
-We remain grounded & steadfast in the faith
-We do not shift away from the hope of the Gospel

Colossians 1:21-23...“Once you were alienated and hostile in your minds because of your evil actions. But now He has reconciled you by His physical body through His death, to present you holy, faultless, and blameless before Him— if indeed you remain grounded and steadfast in the faith and are not shifted away from the hope of the gospel that you heard. This gospel has been proclaimed in all creation under heaven, and I, Paul, have become a servant of it”

“The Faith”:
-Paul doesn’t say “your faith”; rather “the faith”
-The definite article in the Greek identifies a “specific” faith
-It points to what is believed; not to the act of believing
-“The Faith” is a body of Christian truth or doctrine; specifically “the Gospel”

Jude 1:3...“Dear friends, although I was eager to write you about the salvation we share, I found it necessary to write and exhort you to contend for the faith that was delivered to the saints once for all.”

“Hope”:
-The word “Hope” in today’s English language has a different meaning than it’s typical usage in Scripture
-When we “Hope” for something it’s like a fingers-crossed “Hope” something good will happen
-In Scripture, “Hope” means absolute confident assurance; something that cannot fail

“The Gospel”:
-Literally means “good news”
-Paul says “…the Gospel that you hear…”
-For the Gospel to be heard, it must be communicated with words
-The Gospel exposes our sin and points us to Jesus to remedy our sinful condition
-God uses the Gospel to change your life; to move you from death to life; from justification to sanctification

Sermon In A Sentence:Our security in our salvation is not based on our ability to continue in the faith; but on God’s faithfulness to finish what He started in us.