And although you were at one time estranged and alienated and hostile-minded [toward Him], participating in evil things, yet Christ has now reconciled you [to God] in His physical body through death, in order to present you before the Father holy and blameless and beyond reproach— [and He will do this] if you continue in the faith, well-grounded and steadfast, and not shifting away from the [confident] hope [that is a result] of the gospel that you have heard, which was proclaimed in all creation under heaven, and of which [gospel] I, Paul, was made a minister.

In workplace safety, I have consulted with a number of companies over my career. Some of these companies were in very tough situations, prior to our work together. Some were paying 50% more in workers comp insurance, others had compliance fines from OSHA, and still others were in such bad shape they had to be insured in the assigned risk pool (I call it the high risk pool). But in each case, through a dedicated effort of identifying the claims problems, looking for the employee behaviors or equipment issues behind those problems, and treating them or improving them, my clients came out in the end much healthier. I had one client move from an experience multiplier on premium of 1.47 to 0.51. So, before they were paying 147% of the industry average premium and after they paid 51% of the industry average.

And at times, I reminded them of their past, when they might have been tempted to become complacent on safety. Why? Because unless they realize the depths of the problems they came out of, they will not stay vigilant in practicing the healthy behaviors necessary to remain one of the safest companies in their industry.

And in the same way, Paul is reminding the Colossians that they were once cut-off, outsiders, and hostile towards God, because their minds and their actions were bent on evil things. He reminds them of this because the temptation to return to evil behavior is all around us and it is real. And when attacked, it is easier to give into the attack and reject the challenging road of faith in Jesus. But this is a destructive choice because we will end up back in the same place — cut off from God, with a hostile mind bent on evil.

And so he reminds them of the great sacrifice made to redeem them from their sin by Jesus Christ, and that this sacrifice placed them in a right relationship with God, holy and blameless in his sight. This gift is only received by us if we are faithful to follow him. It is a gift given daily in the trenches of life, not one time only.

We must be well-grounded, solid in the truth and full of the Word of God, or we will not be able to hold ground against the enemy. And we must not lose hope, but cling to the hope we have for an eternity with God, through the power of Christ’s death and resurrection. A power that can carry us through the
most challenging times.

In the Beatitudes, Jesus says: “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled.” (‭‭Matthew‬ ‭5‬:‭6‬). This means we are to seek after right living, we are to aggressively pursue it like the very food we need to survive physically. We cannot give up (or take our foot off the gas) when times get challenging. Instead, we must go to the source of life – Jesus Christ – all the more. This is the way we obey God’s call on our lives and shine a light in the darkness.

Lord, thank you for your truth that sustains me and motivates me towards right living. I may feel down, worn out, tired, or even angry, but if I give these emotions over to you, you can transform my mind to operate outside of my feelings and in obedience to you. Over time, my feelings will line up with Jesus as I obey. Thank you!