Reading With the People of God #8 PeaceSample

Colossians 3:15

And let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in one body. And be thankful.

Paul loves to compare the past and the present in his letters through his use of “were” and “are”: We were one thing, but now we are another. He does this even as he warns Christians still caught in the doings of the past, to remember who they are and live a new life. Something has happened to the Christian, and it’s serious. A change has happened, which leads to more changes, which are fruit and not root.

In this chapter, Paul writes about the Christian life. It’s the Christian life not just because the Christian lives it but even more because it’s lived in Christ. Christ is our life, and our lives are hidden in him until he reappears.

You were. You were a lot of things. You may still feel like you are those things. You may still sometimes live like you are those things. You, however, are not those things. You are something new in Christ. You are, here and now, a new thing, as new as when you first became it. You are God’s chosen one, holy and beloved, together with all the redeemed.

You are Christ’s. This is what Christmas is all about.

That “were” is a pesky old pest, though. It clings to our ankles, hangs around our necks, lingers in the corners of our minds, whispers in our ears. That “were” doesn’t want to die, even as it’s dead already. That “were” wants its throne back, even though that throne belongs to Christ. And that “were” isn’t confounded by futility. Its whole being is futile, so it never gives up until it has to because Christ will say “Enough!” and all things will be made new, perfectly, forever.

You are God’s own child, together with many others, with whom you are one body. You were something else at one time, and that something else still tries to claim and rule you, but you are not what you were. You are God’s own child. You are the temple of Christ. You are. And that is your peace, the peace of Christ, the forgiveness of sins, which does away with all the “were” and plants you firmly in the “are” of Jesus: in true life, in harmony with your Creator and with his children. Be thankful, because that is what you are.

Lord Jesus, there is much that we once were that still plagues and tempts us. That is not who we are now because we are yours. Rule in our hearts and your church, and make us ever new. Amen.