Colossians 1:21-22
“And you, that were sometime alienated and enemies in your mind by wicked works, yet now hath he reconciled In the body of his flesh through death, to present you holy and unblameable and unreproveable in his sight:”
“And You”
There is a huge shift that takes place in verse 21, not a shift in subject. These verses are still talking about the reconciliation that is in Christ. The shift that takes place is the beneficiaries of this reconciliation. In Verses 19 and 20 God is painting with a broad brush and speaks of the reconciliation of the earth, heaven, and “all things” these things were the recipients of reconciliation, I mean they received reconciliation. Verse 21 shows us the beneficiaries of reconciliation, I mean who the reconciliation was for, “And You.” What a thrill! His eye is on the sparrow! God’s heart in the matter of reconciliation was not the earth and the heavens and all things, God’s heart in this matter of reconciliation was you. Yes “all things” are reconciled, yes, the heavens have been set in order and the whole creation awaits the day of his return, but Christ’s work of reconciliation was not for the heavens or the earth, but for you. His prayer in John 17 was for his people, not this earth [Joh 17:9 I pray for them: I pray not for the world, but for them which thou hast given me; for they are thine.] All things were made right by him, but they were made right on our behalf. The work of reconciliation was for you and me. It rings with the tune of Colossians 2:10 “ye are complete in Him.” His work of reconciliation fixed all things, righted all wrongs, and all things have been fulfilled but verse 21 tells us whom all of this was done for “And you.”
It was not always so with us, we were “sometime alienated and enemies in your minds by wicked works.” This statement must be true of every truly born-again person. Not one of his people was not at some point an enemy of Christ. Yes, the Colossian church is being addressed by Paul but, far greater, you and I are being addressed by the Holy Ghost who authored this letter to all believers. Dear reader, if there has never been a time in your life that you knew yourself to be a sinner far from God(Alienated) and in desperate need of The Reconciler, Jesus Christ, to fix you, redeem you, bring you near, graft you in and be reconciled to God, then it impossible that you could be saved. I was no drunkard or criminal when I was reconciled to God, but I was alienated from God by my sin and hallelujah I turned to him in repentance and faith and was reconciled to God. No longer am I far away, no longer am I an enemy, I have been “Made nigh by the blood of Christ” [Eph 2:13]. That is the work of reconciliation, not only were we the beneficiaries of it, but also the recipients. “All things” are reconciled in Christ on our behalf, but we also received this reconciliation unto God. We are doubly blessed in that He reconciled us and reconciled all things for us.
He goes on to tell us by what means this reconciliation we have received was gained. “In the body of his flesh through death.” Jesus was the sacrifice for sin, his body was prepared for the once and for all atonement of sin. Hebrews chapter 10 explains the above statement so well that I won’t contaminate its explanation with my comments. I will simply underline the phrases that I believe best explain how we are reconciled “In the body of his flesh through death”
Hebrews 10:1-14
1 For the law having a shadow of good things to come, and not the very image of the things, can never with those sacrifices which they offered year by year continually make the comers thereunto perfect. 2 For then would they not have ceased to be offered? because that the worshippers once purged should have had no more conscience of sins. 3 But in those sacrifices there is a remembrance again made of sins every year. 4 For it is not possible that the blood of bulls and of goats should take away sins. 5 Wherefore when he cometh into the world, he saith, Sacrifice and offering thou wouldest not, but a body hast thou prepared me: 6 In burnt offerings and sacrifices for sin thou hast had no pleasure. 7 Then said I, Lo, I come (in the volume of the book it is written of me,) to do thy will, O God. 8 Above when he said, Sacrifice and offering and burnt offerings and offering for sin thou wouldest not, neither hadst pleasure therein; which are offered by the law; 9 Then said he, Lo, I come to do thy will, O God. He taketh away the first, that he may establish the second. 10 By the which will we are sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all. 11 And every priest standeth daily ministering and offering oftentimes the same sacrifices, which can never take away sins: 12 But this man, after he had offered one sacrifice for sins for ever, sat down on the right hand of God; 13 From henceforth expecting till his enemies be made his footstool. 14 For by one offering he hath perfected forever them that are sanctified.
The sacrifice of Jesus Christ has perfected us forever! It is through his sacrifice that we are reconciled unto God, it is through his sacrifice that all things are reconciled. Calvary fixed it all!! His body did not remain in the tomb mind you, he died, was buried, and rose again! He ever liveth to make intercession for us!
Finally, the end work of reconciliation is “to present you holy and unblameable and unreprovable in his sight.” Notice who is doing the presenting, He is. We are not presenting ourselves to God, He is, that is Jesus Christ presents us to his Father and neither He, nor the Father, nor the Holy Ghost can find one spot or one blemish. In his sight, we are holy, unblameable, and unreprovable. This is in the same line as what is said in Ephesians 5:25-27
25 Husbands, love your wives, even as Christ also loved the church, and gave himself for it; 26 That he might sanctify and cleanse it with the washing of water by the word, 27 That he might present it to himself a glorious church, not having spot, or wrinkle, or any such thing; but that it should be holy and without blemish.
This is the work of reconciliation, Jesus cleaning us making us acceptable to God through his death burial, and resurrection and then presenting us as a bride that is acceptable and unreprovable. This is no trick, Jesus is not just putting lipstick on a pig, although that is how we feel at times. Our hearts and minds remind us of how unholy we have been, how much blame is ours, and how often we have needed reproving, but the sacrifice of Jesus Christ literally fixed all things. Romans 7 explains this well:
Romans 7:2-6 2 For the woman which hath an husband is bound by the law to her husband so long as he liveth; but if the husband be dead, she is loosed from the law of her husband. 3 So then if, while her husband liveth, she be married to another man, she shall be called an adulteress: but if her husband be dead, she is free from that law; so that she is no adulteress, though she be married to another man. 4 Wherefore, my brethren, ye also are become dead to the law by the body of Christ; that ye should be married to another, even to him who is raised from the dead, that we should bring forth fruit unto God. 5 For when we were in the flesh, the motions of sins, which were by the law, did work in our members to bring forth fruit unto death. 6 But now we are delivered from the law, that being dead wherein we were held; that we should serve in newness of spirit, and not in the oldness of the letter.” Through the death of Jesus Christ my old man died with him, that man is dead, he was judged on the cross and buried in the tomb and is never to return, I rose with Christ and that new man was “created in righteousness and true holiness” [Eph 4:24]. The old man is dead by the death of Christ, the new man is alive by the resurrection of Christ and is a “new creature” “created in righteousness and true holiness.” With that being accomplished now Jesus presents his work, me and you, his bride, me and you, and we truly are holy, unreprovable, unblameable! This is the work of reconciliation; “And you, that were sometime alienated and enemies in your mind by wicked works, yet now hath he reconciled In the body of his flesh through death, to present you holy and unblameable and unreproveable in his sight: