The Foundation of Jesus Christ - Part 2

.... In our previous posting we introduced the Foundation of Jesus Christ, which is utterly exclusive in its nature and limitless in its scope, just as Jesus Himself is all and in all (Colossians 3:11). But in this lesson we'll go deeper into the same understanding, to offer a fuller glimpse of this relationship in its more practical terms.

.... "For it pleased the Father that in Him all the fullness should dwell."

(Colossians 1:19)

.... Please think about the scope of this statement for just a moment. If you believe that in Christ all the fullness dwells, you’re saying there is no fullness anywhere else. There is nothing in this world, or in the things of this world, that can bring any sort of fullness to your life. Because ‘all’ means everything; and if all the fullness dwells in Christ, then any other pursuit in the entire world would prove futile in the end.

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.... Let's bring this application closer to home. If you believe that all of the fullness dwells in Jesus, then there is not a fullness your church can give you apart from Him. You could teach Bible studies, go to church every day, sing in the choir – but it could never give you a sense of fullness in itself. For even the church can only receive of His fullness, as ‘the fullness of Him who fills all in all’ (Ephesians 1:23).

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.... What about your families? Can your spouse give you a fullness, if all the fullness dwells in Christ? Or how about your parents, siblings, kids or friends? This is not to say that you don’t love each other, but in that sense you’re powerless to help each other. For it is the love of Jesus Himself that brings a true fullness to all:.

.... "to know the love of Christ which passes knowledge; that you may be filled with all the fullness of God."

(Ephesians 3:19)

.... Now let's bring this right down to home. Is there power in your hand to save your own soul? Is there any sort of fullness you can have, in and of yourself, if all the fullness dwells in Christ? For if the fullness truly dwells in Him, then He utterly has it all, and we have utterly nothing in ourselves. It's no wonder we can do nothing apart from Him! (John 15:5).

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.... Let's examine one further point from this same passage, and please think about this earnestly. It pleased the Father that in Him all the fullness should dwell. The fullness is not simply ‘at His disposal in heaven’, as something He would dispense to the earth; it’s not something ‘with Him’ or ‘through Him’ or ‘by Him’. But rather, all the fullness is in Christ Himself, the person of Jesus Christ. The fullness describes is in His very essence, His very being:

.... "And of His fullness we have all received, and grace for grace."

(John 1:16)

.... Therefore all the fullness dwells in Christ Himself, and of His fullness we have all received. (‘Grace for grace’ means that everything you have ever received, grace for grace, came to you from the fullness of Jesus Christ -- 1 Corinthians 1:4). Therefore, Jesus is the only spiritual source we have! For even the Holy Spirit takes the things that belong to Him, and He reveals them to us (John 16:15).

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.... And in the same verse we find another thought, for we saw that the fullness dwells in Jesus. In other words, the fullness remains in Him. So how would we receive of His fullness, if it always remains in Him? Of course, it’s through receiving Him. This is a very important concept, an understanding that will transform everything. We’re not simply talking about a religion here, we’re talking about a very deep, very intimate relationship with a heavenely dimension. The fullness of Christ is within Himself, and He reaches out to include those of us who will believe in Him, as we abide in Him (Ephesians 1:23).

.... "and you are complete in Him, who is the head of all principality and power."

(Colossians 2:10)

.... If all the fullness is in Jesus, and you receive of His fullness by receiving Him, then of course you are complete in Him. It's the natural conclusion, but even so let's make sure we get it right:

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.... Paul doesn’t say you are made complete by Jesus. He doesn’t say you are made complete like Jesus. He says you are complete in Him, because of the unity you've found with Him -- for in Him all the fullness dwells. Behind everything we've discussed in this posting is a highly relational concept, and in our next posting we’ll talk about the essence of how we are joined with Jesus.

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Daily Bible Reading: Luke 24