The Peacemaker

In the early 80s, a popular board
game was introduced, Trivial Pursuits. Remember that one? And not to be outdone, in order
to capitalize on the immense popularity of that game, a few
years later someone introduced Bible Trivia. And I thought it
was odd at the time because One of the sure realities of Scripture
is that there are no trivial truths. And I’m sure there are facts
associated with the Bible. How many apostles were there?
Who was Israel’s first king? Where did the fool bury his lone
talent, that coin? But for me, it was difficult
to associate the words Bible and trivia in the same sentence. And no, if you have this game
at home, you do not have to rush home and purge your closet. When it comes to things of spiritual
significance, every biblical truth has a substantial implication. This is essentially Paul’s point
in 2 Timothy 3.16 when he says, all scripture is inspired by
God. Every line, every jot and tittle. All scripture is inspired by
God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction,
for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be adequate,
equipped for every good work. All scripture. Every line, every
truth is not only inspired, but it is profitable. It speaks real,
beneficial, practical truth to those who read it. And such is
the case when Paul tells us that God is reconciling all things
to himself. That means something. There are
spiritual realities connected to that truth. And in Colossians
chapter one, Paul intends to lay out those realities. Would
God’s people once again turn in their Bibles to the book of
Colossians and to chapter one? Paul has only just concluded
his really monumental depiction of Jesus Christ. And for these
past six weeks, we’ve had the privilege of hearing Paul as
he articulates the spectacular consideration of Christ our Savior. We’ve been literally beholding
glory, the five glimpses that Paul gave us of our Redeemer’s
nature. We saw, first of all, the beloved
son’s face, that he is the image of the invisible God, so that
when he says, if you’ve seen me, you have seen the Father. We also saw the beloved son’s
position, that he is the firstborn of all creation, and not only
first in order of time, existing eternally before anything was
created, but also that he is first in order of privilege and
position. He is preeminent over all things. We saw also number three, the
beloved son’s preeminence, very clearly outlined in verse 17. He is before all things and in
him all things hold together. Jesus not only created all things,
but he is the sustainer of all things. In him all things hold
together. Fourth, we saw the beloved son’s
place, that he is the head of the body, the church. Jesus Christ
holds a supernatural place of care and sovereign leadership
over his church. And then finally, last Lord’s
Day, we saw the beloved son’s prominence, that Jesus is sovereign
over all creation. We learned four things about
Jesus’ place of providence. We saw the foundation of Christ’s
prominence, that he is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead,
speaking of the resurrection. We saw the scope of Christ’s
prominence, that he himself will come to have first place in everything,
and that one day every knee will bow to Christ’s sovereignty. We saw, thirdly, the qualification
of Christ’s prominence, that in Him, that is, in the Lord
Jesus, all the fullness of God’s attributes dwell. And then fourth,
and finally, last week, we saw the triumph of Christ’s prominence,
that Christ’s prominence serves a purpose It serves the purpose
of reconciling all things to the Father, and that Jesus did
this through the blood of his cross. As I insisted at the outset,
there are no trivial truths in scripture, and when Paul says
here that God’s purpose in Christ was to reconcile all things to
himself, that has a profound significance. especially to us
as believers. If you would, I wanted to go
all the way back to verse 15 of this chapter so that we can
take a running start at verses 21 through 23. Colossians chapter
one will begin in verse 15. He is the image of the invisible
God, the firstborn of all creation, for by him all things were created,
both in the heavens and on earth, visible and invisible, whether
thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities. All things have
been created through him. and for him. He is before all
things, and in him all things hold together. He is also the
head of the body, the church, and he is the beginning, the
firstborn from the dead, so that he himself will come to have
first place in everything. For it was the Father’s good
pleasure for all the fullness to dwell in him, and through
him to reconcile all things to himself, having made peace through
the blood of his cross, through him, I say, whether things on
earth or things in heaven. And Although you were formerly
alienated and hostile in mind, engaged in evil deeds, yet now
he has reconciled you in his fleshly body through death, in
order to present you before him holy and blameless and beyond
reproach. If indeed you continue in the
faith, firmly established and steadfast, not moved away from
the hope of the gospel that you have heard, which was proclaimed
in all creation under heaven, and of which I, Paul, was made
a minister.” Let me show you something fascinating about this
chapter. In the beginning, the opening,
the body of the letter back in verse 3, Paul is speaking very
personally and directly to the Colossian church. It’s a very
intimate address. Look back all the way to verse
three, and we’ll just kind of fly through this briefly. But
try to stay with me because I’m going to go through this very
quickly. I just want to show you the very personal nature
of this letter. Verse three, Paul tells the Colossians,
essentially, I am praying for you. He explains in verse four
that his prayers are because he has heard of your, that is
the Colossians, faith. He speaks of, later on in that
same verse, the love which you, the Colossians, have for all
the saints. And in verse five, he acknowledges
that this is because of the hope laid out for you. Very personal
letter, and I think you get the point. We’re not going to go
through every single one of those because Paul goes on to use that
personal pronoun, you, 10 more times in the subsequent verses. But then in verses 15 through
20, Paul does something very powerful here. Suddenly he refrains
from using the personal pronoun, you, at all. Not once in those
six verses does he say, you. And that’s because his focus
has shifted. He’s completely taken up with
telling these believers about Christ, their Savior. But now,
watch this. Glide down to our passage, verses
21 through 23 this morning, because Paul is going to make this whole
thing of reconciliation very practical, not only for the Colossians,
but for us. Verse 21, you were formerly alienated.
Verse 22, he now has reconciled you. And again in verse 22, in order
to present you before him. Keep looking. Verse 23, if indeed
you continue in the faith, and one more time, not moved away
from the hope of the gospel that you have heard. Very personal. You see what Paul is doing here
is applying the tremendous spiritual truth of reconciliation which
he first introduces in verse 22, but he’s applying that to
the Colossians, making it very practical. He’s showing them how the truth
relates to them personally. Reconciliation is not just a
concept, a theological term, if you will. It has overwhelming
significance and life-changing realities. And so Paul is applying
the idea of reconciliation to his believing readers, including
us. Remember, there are no trivial
truths, especially this glorious doctrine of reconciliation. Reconciliation
is a wonderful concept. As we considered it last Sunday,
It’s one of the most wonderful teachings in all of the Bible,
because reconciliation speaks of a restored peace after a lengthy
season of strife and hostility and even war. In fact, we can’t
even understand the concept of reconciliation apart from conflict,
where mortal enemies are transformed into dear and favored friends. You see, when a gemologist wants
to exhibit the inherent beauty of a diamond, he’ll take that
diamond and lay it down against a black piece of velvet or silk. And that’s what Paul does here
in these verses. He sets forth the biblical truth
of reconciliation against the very bleak backdrop of our sinful
condition. And in the passage before us,
verses 21 through 23, Paul lays out for us three stages of the
believer’s spiritual journey. The first, a life devoid of spiritual
peace, we see in verse 21. Secondly, a life impacted by
spiritual peace, verse 22. And then the third verse, verse
23, a life sustained by spiritual peace. Let’s consider what our
peacemaker, our savior has done in this work of reconciliation
in our lives. Go back, if you would, to verse
21. Now this concept of reconciliation
is first introduced to us in verse 20, but he’s going to apply
this throughout the three verses in front of us. Look first at
this life devoid of spiritual peace. This is the first stage
in a believer’s spiritual journey. This is where we all start. Verse
21, although you were formerly alienated and hostile in mind,
engaged in evil deeds. Remember that black backdrop
I mentioned a moment ago? Here it is. This is the background
for our reconciliation. And it’s a very bleak backdrop. It couldn’t be any worse. Alienated, hostile, evil deeds,
It’s difficult for us to even think about how the idea of reconciliation
could be anywhere near associated with those things. But it is. And that’s what makes God’s reconciliation
so amazing. It’s because of the dark backdrop
against which it’s presented. Let’s consider this backdrop
a little more fully. Our English translations sometimes
obscure some rich details in the original, in the Greek. And such is the case here, at
least with the New American Standard. In order to make the sentence
more readable, the New American Standard says this, and although
you, and off they go. But in the Greek text, it’s much
more direct. And you. That’s how the ESV and most of
the older translations have it. It’s very abrupt. And it’s supposed
to be. In the immediately preceding
section, Paul has been talking about Christ’s accomplishments
as the head of the church. Specifically, that he is reconciling
all things to his heavenly father. And Paul goes so far as to provide
the scope of Christ’s work that he is reconciling things on earth
and things in heaven. And his next word is, and you. Paul abruptly adds these words. One commentator even referred
to it as a violent break. From the previous verses, Paul
quickly moves to discuss the relevance of reconciliation to
his readers, the Colossians, immediately. But as Paul begins
here in verse 21, he does provide a brief glimpse of hope. And this is probably what the
New American Standard translators were thinking when they inserted
that little word, although. That gives us hope. Paul is about to set forth. one
of the gloomiest, most miserable descriptions of the human condition,
and yet he gives hope. Although, and as we press forward
further into the sentence, the light of hope becomes even brighter.
Although you were formerly brighter still. In other words,
the gloom that Paul is about to address has already been remedied. It’s no longer the case. But
for now, let’s ponder this sad description as it unfolds. Paul says first that you were
alienated. That word alienated speaks of
estrangement. We were in a state of estrangement
and that from God. We were estranged from God himself
and everything related to him. Paul utilizes the same word very
graphically in his parallel letter to the Ephesians. He uses it
twice there. In Ephesians 2, Paul contrasts
the former life of these believers. He acknowledges the spiritual
difficulties under which they languished as heathen, Gentiles,
godless. In 212 of that epistle, he says
that at that time, while you were godless heathens, at that
time, you were separated from Christ, excluded from the commonwealth
of Israel. That’s our word, excluded. The
Gentiles were alienated, excluded, estranged from God himself. Listen to this. in Ephesians
4, 17 through 18, where he urges the believers to walk no longer
as the Gentiles walk, don’t participate in their evil deeds, and then
he describes their walk, their conduct. Listen to these three
descriptive statements. Just listen. walk no longer,
just as the Gentiles also walk, in the futility of their mind,
being darkened in their understanding, excluded from the life of God.”
That’s our word. What a miserable experience our
godless friends have. It’s that last word to which
I want to call your attention, excluded. They were excluded
from the life of God. And there in Ephesians 4, it
sounds as if God had excluded them. But here in Colossians
1, Paul is not suggesting that God has cut himself off from
us, but that we have estranged ourselves from him. That’s what
characterizes us in our unsaved condition. We were alienated
from God by our own choosing. We had no affection for him or
even a basic acknowledgement of him in his attributes, in
his good and sovereign care over his creation. He was dead to
us and we to him. But look at the second thing
that Paul says about our former life. We were hostile in mind. Paul’s zeroing in here on the
thought life of the unbeliever. In addition to being estranged
from God, they are openly hostile toward him. It’s hatred that
no longer resides only in the mind. This has bubbled forward. It’s a hatred that’s bubbled
forward and burst forth into outright hostility towards God. In Romans 5.10, Paul says that
we were enemies. Same word when God reconciled
us to himself. We were openly hostile to God when he sent Christ. And it’s
not that God had so much declared war on us, but that we in our
fallen condition had declared war on him. Paul makes it clear
here in a few words that the battlefield is that of the human
mind. We were hostile in mind. Paul
uses this word too in his parallel letter to the Ephesians. In chapter
two, verse three, he says, Paul very similarly tells the Ephesians
that among the sinful people of the world, we too all formerly
lived in the lust of the flesh, indulging in the desires of the
flesh and of the mind. We were just like them. The mind
is the battlefield. Likewise, in chapter four of
that same letter, Paul uses the word again in chapter four, he
laments that the heathen world is darkened in their understanding,
in their mind. The mind is the battlefield. And winning there, if a heathen
wins there in getting his thoughts in line with what he really thinks
about God, winning is losing. Thinking the way they wanted
to think made them hostile towards God. Look last of all at what
it produced. Still there in verse 21, alienated,
hostile in mind, engaged in evil deeds. The translation of this
phrase, engaged in evil deeds, makes it almost sound like a
third element. It’s not. It’s really just the
byproduct of an estranged, hostile mind. The apostle John presents
just the opposite. In 1 John 3, 2, he says, Beloved,
now we are children of God, and it has not appeared as yet what
we will be. We know that when he appears,
we will be like him because we will see him as he is. That’s it. You’ve heard that
old phrase? You are what you eat? Well, in
very like manners, spiritually speaking, we are what we love. When we see Christ as he is,
we will be like him. But in the hostility of our thinking,
our actions naturally follow as wicked. I was talking with
a friend this past week. They were explaining that a friend
of theirs had mocked the idea of total depravity. Total depravity is that devastating
effect left upon humanity by Adam and Eve’s fall into sin.
A classic verse that is used to explain depravity is Genesis
6, 5, just listen. Then the Lord saw, this is just
prior to the flood, remember? Then the Lord saw that the wickedness
of man was great on the earth and that every intent of the
thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. It’s superlative
after superlative after superlative. That is total depravity. And friends, I would just tell
you, there is no clearer description of total depravity than this
verse. Colossians 121, alienated from
God, hostile in mind, engaged in evil deeds. The estrangement from God begins
with the hostility of the mind, but it emerges in open rebellion
in our deeds. As we were estranged from God
and our minds were poisoned and hateful toward him, our deeds
logically followed in actively godless deeds. That’s where we were. Paul says
in the three stages of a believer’s spiritual journey, that’s where
all of us were. A life devoid of spiritual peace. And if there were no subsequent
verses, we’re doomed. But Paul takes us on this journey,
and he takes us to the second stage of the believer’s spiritual
journey. And notice that I said the believer’s
spiritual journey. This isn’t for everyone. Most
will remain in a life devoid of spiritual peace. They don’t
want it. They’re winning. or so they think. The second stage in the believer’s
spiritual journey is a life impacted by spiritual peace. Would you
look at verse 22? We’ll take it in full from verse
21. Although you were formerly alienated
and hostile in mind, engaged in evil deeds, yet now he has
reconciled you in his fleshly body through death in order to
present you before him holy and blameless beyond reproach. You
see here at long last, I mean, verse 21 sounds like an eternity
as we’re considering those things. And there in verse 21, he gave
us a glimmer of hope. Although you were formerly, we
can’t wait to get to verse 22. There’s hope in that phrase.
It suggests that what was once the case is no longer. Although
you were alienated and hostile and engaged in evil deeds, that’s
no longer the case. Something happened. Something
has transpired that changed everything. Paul tells us here that this
something is that God has now reconciled us. And so this reconciliation, you
see, has become exceedingly personal. We feel it. We know it. If we possess it, we know what
reconciliation is. You see, it’s one thing to have
Paul tell us in verse 20 that God is reconciling all things
to himself. It’s quite another to think of
God reconciling us. It’s one thing to think of the
world, all creation, the whole universe, things on earth and
things in heaven being reconciled back to God. That God, through
Christ, had put an end to the war between us and him, that’s
an entirely different thing. And truly, who else could do
this but God? Who else would do this but God? This is the greatest message
in all the world. That God would be willing to
reconcile wayward sinners to himself? But how? How is it that even
God can do this? This is what Paul wants so badly
to tell us. Would you glance down again at
verse 22? Yet he has now reconciled you
in his fleshly body through death. We sang two songs today, back
to back, both. I could have quoted almost every
line from both of those songs. Listen to verse three of that
song, Come Behold the Wondrous Mystery. Come behold the wondrous
mystery, Christ the Lord upon the tree, in the stead, in the
place of ruined sinners, hangs the lamb in victory. See the price of our redemption. See the Father’s plan unfold,
bringing many sons to glory, grace unmeasured, love untold. Without any doubt, the fleshly
body of which Paul speaks there is Christ’s body. God incarnate,
Jesus, who took on human flesh. Back in verse 18, the section
immediately preceding this one, Paul made a point of speaking
about Christ’s spiritual body, remember? The church of which
he is the head. And so here, to mention Christ’s
body once again, Paul makes a special point of telling us that it was
his fleshly body that now he wants us to consider. He’s speaking of Christ’s literal
physical body, his body of flesh and bone. Jesus Christ actually
came to earth. He took on a physical body. He
was actually crucified and actually died. Peter says it plainly. 1 Peter
2.24, speaking of the Lord Jesus Christ, he himself bore our sins
in his body on the cross. so that we might die to sin and
live to righteousness, for by his wounds you are healed. Listen
to Hebrews 2.14. Therefore, since the children
share in flesh and blood, we all have human physical bodies,
he says, he himself likewise also partook of the same. He
had a body of flesh. that through death he might render
powerless him who had the power of death, that is, the devil.
Jesus Christ came as God, taking on human flesh, that he might
reconcile us to God by his bodily sacrifice on our behalf. Just astounding. That’s the great
means of our redemption. That is what enabled the reconciliation
to take place. And Paul echoes this in Romans
5.10, which verse we considered a moment ago, while we were enemies,
we were reconciled to God through the death of his son. Without Christ actually taking
on human flesh, there would have been no death. and therefore
no atonement for sin, and therefore no reconciliation to a holy God. That’s the awesome reality of
the gospel. That as Paul says in Philippians
2.8, being found in appearance as a man, Jesus humbled himself
by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. that Christ took on flesh was
astounding in itself, it’s a miracle, but that he yielded that body
to death is one of, it’s the great means by which our reconciliation
with God was accomplished. It was done in his fleshly body
through death. But I want you to note this,
not only does Paul provide here for us the how of reconciliation,
that it was through Christ’s death on the cross, but he also
tells us why. Why would Jesus do this? Why
would God send his son to die for those who are actively engaged
in evil deeds? Why? Paul tells us, look right
in the middle of verse 22, Paul tells us the reason for reconciliation. It is in order to present you
before him holy and blameless and beyond reproach. God had an intention in mind
in reconciling fallen humanity. It wasn’t just to save us, but
to sanctify us as well. And it’s the same God who does
the work of salvation that also does the work of sanctification
in a believer’s life. Paul says here that our Savior,
the Lord Jesus, purposes to present us before himself fully sanctified,
completed. We should be mindful here that
Paul is not suggesting a presentation for a sacrifice, but it’s a presentation
even before himself of a completed endeavor, that he has perfected
his bride. The idea of presentation before
God is an image that Paul uses elsewhere. 2 Corinthians 4.14
is one of those places. Just listen. He who raised the
Lord Jesus will raise us also with Jesus and will present us
with you. Paul says that there’s going
to come a day where all believers are not only gathered, but they
will be in a state of having been perfected. And then they
will stand, that group of believers, as the church before Christ their
Savior, as a perfect holy bride. Paul says it’s so beautiful in
Ephesians 5. That’s a passage we tend to think of as a wedding
passage, remember? But first and foremost, this
is a passage that provides a beautiful picture of Christ and his bride,
the church. Listen to this. Ephesians 5,
husbands love your wives, just as Christ also loved the church.
and gave himself up for her, so that he might sanctify her,
having cleansed her by the washing of water with the word, that
he might present to himself the church in all her glory, having
no spot or wrinkle or any such thing, but that she would be
holy and blameless. See, God is in the business of
sanctifying, not just saving. It’s the same thing that Paul
is saying here in Colossians chapter one, that one day he
would be able to present his church before himself, holy and
blameless beyond reproach. Those three terms are employed
here in Colossians 1.22 to articulate what Paul is saying there in
Ephesians five in fewer words. What Paul describes there is
the church in all her glory, No spot, no wrinkle, holy and
blameless. Holiness speaks of consecration
to the Lord, dedicated, exclusively dedicated to the Lord. Not only
a declared righteousness, which we have in our faith, justification
by faith, but a practical holiness through the process of sanctification. a process by which we are cleansed
from sin and devoted entirely to his service. And then perhaps
this is why Paul uses a second term here, blameless. This is
a word associated often with animal sacrifice, unblemished. Peter uses the word in 1 Peter
1.19, above reproach. Paul has it in Philippians, rather
Peter uses it as unblemished, Paul has it as above reproach
in Philippians 2.15. And then Paul here adds a third
term, very related, beyond reproach, often used almost interchangeably
with the previous terms, blameless, unindictable, no charges, can
be laid on these. And so having reconciled
his bride, Christ is readying her for presentation. This is
the life impacted by spiritual peace. But there’s a third stage
in the believer’s spiritual journey, not only a life devoid of spiritual
peace, a life impacted by spiritual peace, but a life sustained by
spiritual peace. Verse 23, if indeed you continue in the
faith firmly established and steadfast, not moved away from
the hope of the gospel that you have heard, which was proclaimed
in all creation under heaven and of which I, Paul, was made
a minister. In this third stage of the believer’s
journey, Paul’s words might come off to us as very alarming. As if it’s up to us to hold on
to our salvation. And that if we don’t, we could
lose it all. That’s a big if. Paul is not expressing doubt
here. His expression is purely hypothetical. It’s actually a hopeful statement,
as if to say, I assume that you will continue on in the faith. Listen to the way this two-word
phrase is used elsewhere. And of course, it’s in the letter
of Ephesians, the parallel letter. Ephesians 3, 1 and 2, for this
reason I, Paul, the prisoner of Christ Jesus, for the sake
of you Gentiles, if indeed you’ve heard of the stewardship of God’s
grace, which was given to me for you, he’s not expressing
doubt there. Of course the Ephesians had heard
of Paul’s stewardship. It’s not a doubt, it’s an expectation. And likewise, in chapter four,
here Paul is again urging his church not to walk like the Gentiles. We’ve been in this passage twice
already. He’s urging them not to walk
like the Gentiles when he challenges them by saying, you did not learn
Christ in this way, if indeed, You have heard him and have been
taught in him. Paul is not expressing doubt.
He’s expressing his confidence in their continuance just as
he is here at Colossians chapter one. Paul is, however, here calling
believers to a life of faith, to perseverance in their faith,
The word that Paul uses here is translated as continue. And he uses the word in a casual
sense that he was going to go to a place and stay there or
to remain there or to continue in a certain pattern. But he
also uses it in a more formal sense as he does here. To continue
in sin. Romans 6, 1. To continue in unbelief,
Romans 11, 23. 1 Timothy 4, 16. Persevere, continue
in these things. And so he calls them to continue
or remain or persevere in their faith. Don’t quit. Just as their
walk with Christ was begun by faith, so in faith they are called
to persevere. As biblical Christians, we often
tend to think that just because we believe in justification by
faith, that all we have to do to be saved, place our faith
in Christ’s finished work and just kind of glide into heaven. Paul tells us plainly here, we
have to persevere. Jesus says the same thing in
different words. Jesus says that we must abide. Perseverance in faith is necessary,
but it’s only done by God’s grace. God’s grace is availed. It’s there through the means
of prayer, through reading God’s word, through corporate worship,
through fellowshipping with God’s people, All of those are means
of grace, but perseverance doesn’t happen, doesn’t just happen. Listen to how plainly the Lord’s
brother Jude urges perseverance. Just listen. But you, beloved, building yourselves
up in your most holy faith, praying in the Holy Spirit, keep yourselves
in the love of God, waiting anxiously for the mercy of our Lord Jesus
Christ to eternal life. That doesn’t sound to me like
people who are coasting heavenward. Would you finally observe here
in verse 23 and what they are called to persevere? He urges
them to continue in the faith firmly established and steadfast. These two descriptives, a verb
and an adjective, they belong together. The first word, the
verb, presents the action. The second points to the result. Think of it that way. Stability,
establishing stability. Most commentators worried themselves
trying to craft a good paraphrase for this verse. Founded and firm,
said one. Grounded and founded, said another. And a third said that we are
to remain founded and steadfast. That first word established is
the same word used in Matthew to contrast the two builders,
remember? One who built on the sand and
the other who built his house upon the rock. And you know the
rest of that story. The man whose foundation was
anchored into the rock remained steadfast because his house was
established. The second word we’ve seen before,
Paul uses that word in that incredibly encouraging close of 1 Corinthians
15. be steadfast, immovable, always
abounding in the work of the Lord. It speaks of a firm, unshakable
stability. And so the image here in Colossians
1 is of a building that has been well established on a solid foundation
so that it remains firm and stable. Transferring that image to believers
is straightforward. In the case of believers, God
is the one who has established every believer, and his workmanship
is impeccable. Believers are placed on a solid,
unshakable foundation. The foundation is Christ himself. And if they are established by
God, they will be steadfast. And if they are steadfast, they
will not be moved away from the hope of the gospel. That third
thought says the same thing from a negative standpoint, not moved
away. Not vacillating back and forth
on what it is they believe. The hope of the gospel is the
confidence imparted by the reception of faith in the good news of Christ. These believers will
not be among those sad individuals who don’t know what they believe.
Paul says in Ephesians that they’re tossed here and there, carried
about by every wind of doctrine. No. These are those who have
heard the good news of the gospel and they persevere in it by God’s
grace. Paul is eager to talk about the
Christian ministry and his particular role in it. This is what he’ll
do in the remaining verses of chapter one. But he introduces
that discussion here when he says of the gospel, that it was
proclaimed in all creation under heaven, and of which I, Paul,
was made a minister. The gospel of Christ had at that
point been preached far and wide to the then known world, Paul
says, to the entirety of creation. And Paul cannot restrain himself
from humbly acknowledging his undeserved privilege in it. That’s our peacemaker. That is
our reconciliation. Would you humble yourself before
him?