For he has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.

--Parallel verses:
‭‭Hebrews‬ ‭1‬:‭3‬
The Son is the radiance of God’s glory and the exact representation of his being, sustaining all things by his powerful word. After he had provided purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty in heaven.

‭‭John‬ ‭8‬:‭12‬
When Jesus spoke again to the people, he said, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.”

When Jesus was approached by the rich young ruler, in Luke 18:18, the man asked Jesus, “What must I do to inherit eternal life?”

This is a great question because it possibly tells us a few things about this man: 1) He possibly had tried on his own to attain fulfillment in life, and nothing satisfied him or filled the void in his heart. 2) Maybe he had worked harder than anyone else and built up his prosperity from poverty, but now the life he dreamed about, not having to worry about food or clothes, was empty. 3) Along the way, he had might have tried to use his influence and power to position himself to hang out with all of the most important people in life. Yet after a while, he realized that none of these pursuits seemed to lead to a “sparklingly clean” life, or massive fulfillment in life. This is the type of mind frame I imagine this man coming to Jesus with and asking this question from.

And Jesus answered him so succinctly: “‘You still lack one thing. Sell everything you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.’ When he heard this, he became very sad, because he was very wealthy. Jesus looked at him and said, ‘How hard it is for the rich to enter the kingdom of God! Indeed, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of God.’” (‭‭Luke‬ ‭18‬:‭22‬-‭25‬). This young rich man did not humbly understand the depth of sin he was trapped in. And so he could not let go of his sin and reach out for a Savior.

Here in Colossians, Paul reminds them of the fact that they were rescued from darkness. This is a critical mind frame to start from for two reasons: 1) We understand the utter depth of our depravity in sin, and 2) We see the massive amount of love and grace God had for us to send his Son, Jesus. We also see the incredible spiritual power and might of Jesus.

From a place of need we can be humble. And “humble” is the only way we can receive God’s mercy and grace through Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross. We are then brought into the Kingdom of Light! We know this by inference in this passage and by our cross references.

Jesus is the radiance of God, the Light of the World. He exactly replicates God, or stated another way, he is God. And he was also, for a time, human. And he can be, if we ask him to be so, the Light of our lives!

When we accept Jesus as the Light, Lord, and Savior of lives, we live life from a new position, a new vantage point. We are children of God, brothers and sisters of Jesus Christ. And we were bought with a dear price, which means we are highly valued! When we sin, we can be truly and completely forgiven.

Lord, the weight of your complete forgiveness is crippling to my pride. I am humbled and in awe of you! Thank you for redeeming such a wretched sinner as I! And now I identify with you. I am yours through and through. You take me, heal and restore me, and each day make my heart clean and pure. Help me to rest and remain in your Spirit today. May I live life with a keen knowledge of my Savior’s presence and my redeemed status. Light up my life today, I pray!