“So we continue to preach Christ to each person, using all wisdom to warn and to teach everyone, in order to bring each one into God’s presence as a mature person in Christ. To do this, I work and struggle, using Christ’s great strength that works so powerfully in me,” Colossians 1:28-29.
Compare the King James Version of the Holy Bible.
“Whom we preach, warning every man or mankind, and teaching every man in all wisdom; that we may present every man perfect in Christ Jesus.”
The word ‘perfect’ in the text means to be presented mature or reaching the place of maturity. This is not to say that you are flawless, perfect, pure, error-free, tip-top, or without blemish. You are maturing spirituality as a believer in Christ Jesus. As a child of God, you are becoming more and more like Christ as you go through the process that is unending. All believers go through the development process as a new person with a new life in Christ. Again, you are becoming more like Christ. When we take on the attributes of Christ, we are more humble for we show humility, obedience to the will of God, patience, and faithfulness. Becoming more like Christ, we have self-control and know how to control our emotions and respond appropriately to life’s situations. Becoming more like Christ, we honor others and are not seeking selfish gains, We live in truth, not finding pleasure in evil but delighting in truth. We are peacemakers not troublemakers. Let’s look at the difference between ‘need’ and ‘want.’ When you become more like Christ, you see the need to be kind and not ‘I want to be mean.’ I need to be loving, instead I wanting to hate. I need to be forgiving. I do not want to be indifferent or uncaring. I need to be open minded. I don’t want to be closed minded. There is a difference between the two. One is ‘in’ Christ; the other is ‘in’ self, you, me, us.
Paul’s desire is for the believers in Christ to have the mindset of Christ and mature spiritually as Christians. The apostle informs the church to work and strive to be like Christ, ‘not in your own strength, but in the power and strength of Jesus Christ, because it is God’s spirit that is at work in you. This is why we preach the message of Christ to you, because this is for your salvation through faith in Him who is your hope of glory. As Christ works in you, you will know the riches of glory. The mysteries show among you who are Gentiles (who were at one point the enemies of God with a mindset of wicked works), but now you have been reconciled to the fullness of God’s pleasures through the blood of Christ that was shed on the cross to give you life. You now have access to all things and all things are effective towards you in Him. What can we do to better our relationship with the Savior? We are to show the world that we are in Him who is our hope of glory.
