Well, hello and welcome to Walking With Christ. I'm Jeremy, and I really appreciate you downloading this devotional today. As a reminder, this expository-style devotional is just a few minutes we set aside to reflect on a portion of Scripture contextually, thoughtfully, and humbly. Our goal is not only to understand God's Word just a little bit more, but to apply it and to let it shape how we live, think, and walk with Christ each and every day. Today in our study of Colossians, we're looking at chapter 1, verses 11 to 14, and we're going to see the importance of giving thanks to God the Father, a theme that carries throughout this entire epistle. We'll be reading from the ESV, and again, that is Colossians 1, verses 11 to 14. Paul writes there, being strengthened with all power, according to His glorious might, for all endurance and patience with joy, giving thanks to the Father who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of the saints in light. He has delivered us from the domain of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of His beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins. These verses close out a beautiful passage where Paul told the Colossians that he prayed for them to be filled with the knowledge of God's will, he instructed them to walk in a manner worthy of the Lord Jesus, he told them to bear good fruit, and to endure suffering for Christ with patience. Interestingly here, the transition between verses 11 and 12 can also be rendered with a comma instead of a semicolon, and that would read more like, for all endurance and patience, with joy giving thanks to the Father. I tend to prefer this rendering because it points to being thankful to the Father for something greater than our trials. We can and should be thankful for trials as they help grow our faith, as we see in James 1 verses 2-4, but Paul may have been talking about being joyful and thankful for something bigger. That would be being qualified to share in the inheritance of the saints in light. Once again, we get a glimpse into how little we have to do with our salvation. God the Father qualified us. In the Greek, this means to make sufficient or to render fit. Fits quite nicely, doesn't it? And this happened long before we were born, as we learned in Ephesians 1 verse 4. And it isn't something that we can do ourselves. Remember, we were dead in our trespasses and sins. The Father orchestrated our salvation, and Jesus Christ completed it, and He perfects it. For references, look at Galatians 4 verses 4-7 and Hebrews 12 verse 2. This is truly an amazing gift worthy of being thankful for every waking moment. But wait, there's even more. The Father has delivered us from the domain or the power of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of His beloved Son. Not only have we been qualified by grace to share in this great inheritance, but God has moved us out from under the power and authority of darkness, and He has transferred us into the eternal kingdom of Jesus Christ His Son. What's so beautiful about all of this is that it's in the past tense. As believers, God has already delivered and transferred us to Christ's possessions. Our souls are already His, and they're united with Him through the Holy Spirit. Paul told the Thessalonians, For you are all children of light, children of the day. We are not of the night or of the darkness. That's 1 Thessalonians 5 verse 5. And as this truth soaks in, it should result in a deep sense of humble gratitude to our great and awesome Father God. And let's not forget that we must also praise and thank our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, because through Him we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins. God's plan of salvation involved offering up His one and only begotten Son, perfect, holy, sinless, and obedient, and He was offered as a living and eternal sacrifice for our sins. Formerly slaves of sin, we have now been redeemed, which is defined as being released by payment of ransom. The ransom for our souls was far greater than we could possibly pay. It's kind of like being asked to come up with a trillion dollars to be released on bail. It's absolutely impossible. But to his praise and glory, Jesus Christ came up with the payment, and he satisfied our debt once and for all. For Bible references, look up Romans 6 verse 10 and Hebrews 9 verse 12. So, wrapping up, whatever is happening today, take some time to give thanks with joy to God the Father and our Lord Jesus Christ. In all situations and in all seasons, we have so much to be thankful for, as we consider that we are already citizens of Christ's kingdom, and that He has paid a very expensive price to purchase and free us from the dark dungeon of sin. With that in mind, let your heart be light and thankful as you ponder the magnificent and incomprehensible gift that God the Father and Jesus Christ the Son have given you in salvation. Thank you so much for spending these few minutes with me in God's Word. As you go about the rest of your day, remember the words of Colossians 2 verse 6. Therefore, as you received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in Him. I pray the Lord strengthen you to follow Him faithfully step by step as you keep walking in Christ. Have a blessed day.
