By Tony Roberts
“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.
When studying this verse and exploring its meaning, it is helpful to look at the preceding verse: “Even the mystery which hath been hid from ages and from generations, but now is made manifest to his saints:” Colossians 1:26.
The false teachers in the Colossian church believed that spiritual perfection was a secret, something hidden from the majority of the people. Only a certain few could even comprehend and understand the meaning of this mystery. The were likely influenced by the many ‘mystery religions’ that existed at that time.
The reason they wanted to keep this plan a secret and a mystery was to make sure it remained exclusive to them. In this way they could be empowered as distributors of God’s salvation. But Paul intervened and informed them he was going to reveal this plan and expose the mystery.
Verse 26 explains the mystery had been hidden for generations. This was not in the sense that only a few could understand it. This simply meant that it was hidden until Christ came. It was not to be revealed until Jesus Christ came; God robed in flesh came to earth that he might reveal the plan. Through Christ this mystery was revealed and became known to everyone who would receive
it.
This secret plan from God, “Christ in you, the hope of glory,” was revealed on the Day of Pentecost when Jesus Christ came to live in the hearts of men. However he did not come to only a select few, but to everyone who desired to believe in Him and receive the Holy Spirit. This is accomplished by participating in the “Gospel” or the “Good News.” This is typified by the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus Christ. In order to receive His Spirit, one must repent of sins, be baptized in water in the Name of Jesus Christ and receive the infilling of the Holy Spirit.
Paul explained that the hope of glory was for everyone, even the Gentiles. This hope is not based on things temporal, but things eternal. Paul emphasizes the importance of participating in the mystery in 1 Corinthians 15:19, “If in this life only we have hope in Christ, we are of all men most miserable.”
Before Jesus Christ, mankind had no hope. Before the infilling of the Holy Spirit, natural lives simply seem a dead end. The things of the natural can never satisfy the longing for things that outlast natural lives. If one only looks forward to living about 70 years and just going to sleep we have no hope. But our hope is based on the understanding that once we pass from this life, we have the promise of eternal life with Jesus Christ in heaven. His Spirit living within us grants us this transition from the natural to the supernatural.
This hope might be hard for others to understand or comprehend. But to those who have received the revelation of this mystery, it is something we hold dear to our hearts and place our hope in.
The above article, “Christ in You,” is written by Tony Roberts. The article was excerpted from Focus on Alabama, March-April 2014.
The material is most likely copyrighted and should not be reprinted under any other name or author. However, this material may be freely used for personal study or research purposes.
