Colossians 1:20, 22

As we work to process the beautiful depth of meaning that comes with God’s desire to reconcile us to Himself, let us consider exactly how He accomplished this for all of us.

…and through Him to reconcile to Himself all things, whether things on earth or things in heaven, by making peace through His blood, shed on the cross….But now He has reconciled you by Christ’s physical body through death to present you holy in His sight, without blemish and free from accusation— Colossians 1:20, 22 NIV

We discovered yesterday that God’s plan to reconcile us to Himself was to send Jesus through the incarnation to intercede on our behalf. The Gospels record the birth, life, death, and resurrection of Jesus, but it was specifically His death on the cruel Roman cross that was the direct means of reconciliation.

The phrases “making peace through His blood, shed on a cross” and “He has reconciled you by Christ’s physical body through death” show us how we are reconciled. We are reconciled to God through the violent death of Jesus on the cross. This death was a sacrifice that calls to mind the Old Testament sacrificial system in the temple of Israel where animals were violently slaughtered as a sacrifice for the forgiveness of sins on a continual basis. Jesus came to earth to end the sacrificial system by willingly offering Himself as a sacrificial lamb for all. The words of Jesus make this clear…

The reason my Father loves Me is that I lay down my life—only to take it up again. No one takes it from Me, but I lay it down of My own accord. I have authority to lay it down and authority to take it up again. This command I received from My Father.” John 10:17-18 NIV

In a beautiful twist of phrase, Paul states that Jesus did this so that we could be presented to God “holy”, “without blemish”, and “free from accusation.” These were the requirements for the sacrificial lambs that were brought to the temple to be used as a ritual sacrifice. Jesus, the Lamb of God, becomes the final sacrifice so that we can be presented to God as righteous and holy. But this is not of ourselves…reconciliation is a work of God. So, when we are presented before God in this way, it is because we are covered by the righteousness of Christ not because of any righteousness we have on our own.

Most worship centers and sanctuaries around the world have beautiful ornate crosses on display to remind us of the price God was willing to pay to reconcile us to Himself. However, I always appreciate when I see an old rugged wooden cross set up as the center piece of worship as a reminder of the price God was willing to pay and the suffering that Jesus was willing to endure to make us a friend of God.

Questions to consider…
Take a few minutes and meditate on this question: have I been reconciled to God? In other words, am I a friend of God or an enemy of God?
If you were presented before God today, what would He see?
Ask God today to speak to your heart concerning your relationship with Him.