Colossians 1:21-23 Imagine there had never been a church in your town. In fact, the story of Jesus had only recently been heard by you and your neighbors. Then word spread around that if you had believed on this Jesus, you were supposed to meet with everyone else on Sunday morning at a friend’s house. Many people gather, and there is excitement in the air. This is all so new, and you want to learn more. One Sunday, the man up front, the one you had heard the message of Jesus from originally, is reading a letter from Paul, Jesus’ own spokesman. This scenario is similar to what happened in Colossae. With all the people gathered there, certainly some people had truly believed the gospel and some were still weighing the message, but all had much to learn about who Jesus was and what it meant to be a Christian. Sitting there in the meeting, you can’t tell the believer from the spectator. But the message is clear: Jesus died to save those who believe on Him, and those who believe on Him will continue to believe. Paul does not say “if you continue then God will reconcile you,” making final salvation dependent on works. Rather, he says, “God reconciled you if you continue.”
