Kingdom Exchange (Colossians 1:13-14)

This sermon was preached on 31/10/2010

Paul has reminded the Colossian believers that they now share in the inheritance of the saints in light. We noted that this is a description of their current status as Christians rather than their future existence in heaven. And we observed that this shared possession is only one of many ways by which the Bible describes the experience of conversion. In verses 13 and 14, Paul mentions other aspects of what occurs when a person becomes a believer. Yet all these ways of describing salvation have one thing in common – they each stress that salvation involves a great change. Paul continues with his imagery of light, except he uses its opposite (darkness) to describe those outside the inheritance of the saints in light.

Where they were – the domain of darkness

Paul by this description reminds the Colossians that they had been born into a particular domain or realm. They were Colossians by race, but they also belonged to another relationship, that of sinners in a wasteland ruled by the powers of darkness. Of course, they could not see that they were in a world of no hope because sin had blinded them to the reality of their situation.

What is life like in the domain of darkness? Each person has a built-in bias against God and his commandments. They do not want to submit to his requirements, they show no interest in his promises, and they pay no attention to his warnings. They are guided along in this outlook by the ruler of the dark world, the devil himself. He does not have to compel them to do anything, because they are not neutral with regard to things. They prefer his kingdom to God’s kingdom.

We can imagine a person who was born in a dark cavern and who never lived elsewhere. His lifestyle would be very basic and in a sense he would feel secure living there with the others who inhabited the cavern. None of them could imagine what life outside the cavern would be like. Suppose a person from outside one day heard the people in the cavern and discovered their misery. He made a plan to deliver them, but it would require them leaving the cavern and coming into the bright world above them. This is a picture of what we are by nature – we live in the cavern of sin and have a sense of belonging and security. Because we cannot see the bright world above us, it does not interest. We need someone from the bright world to come and deliver us.

Where they were brought – the kingdom of his beloved Son

Those who lived in darkness are taken out of that domain and brought into the kingdom of God’s Son (another name for the inheritance of the saints in light). What is life like in this kingdom and how is it different from existence in the domain of darkness?

Paul inserts a reference to the Father’s affection for Jesus by calling it the ‘kingdom of his beloved Son’. Obviously, the kingdom is the sphere over which Jesus rules, and we will consider some other aspects of it shortly. But what is the connection between Jesus as king and the love of his Father?

First, we know that his inauguration as king was an expression of fatherly love. The Father invited the ascended Saviour to sit at his right hand, and this invitation was marked by heavenly love. Second, the promise of the Father at the inauguration was that he would make all the enemies of his Son into a footstool for his feet – because of his love for his Son, the Father desires that Jesus will be completely exalted. Third, the relationship of love that is expressed between the Father and the Son will be the predominant feature of the kingdom activities of Jesus – he will perform his various roles with love for the objects of his actions, that is his people, whether in bringing each of them to know him initially or working in and through them at different times and in different ways. All will be an expression of divine love.

With such a king, what is his kingdom like? Many things could be said, but I want to mention three. First, the kingdom of Jesus is full of his loving compassion. We can see this aspect of kingdom living in the way Jesus interacted with needy people when he was on earth. He showed compassion to all kinds of people, and he rules in this manner yet. Second, the kingdom of Jesus is full of loving security. The king is determined to keep all of his people safe, and the great motive for his determination is his great love for them. It is impossible for them to be lost as long as Jesus loves them – and he will love them for ever. Third, the kingdom of Jesus is full of loving use of all its limitless resources. The king bestows lovingly on his people every gift he freely gives them, whether it is peace, guidance, insight, answer to prayer, etc.

This kingdom of Jesus exists in two places – some members of it are on earth and other members of it are in heaven. Those in heaven are more capable of appreciating the love of the King. Yet there are expressions of his love that can only be known on earth. For example, it is from earth that we send up prayers for deliverance from temptation – the deliverance he gives from them can only be known on earth. So we should value such experiences while we have them, because in heaven such deliverances do not happen.

Paul is contrasting the two kingdoms that exist spiritually. Perhaps he is reminding the Colossians that there is not an area in which the two can be mixed. There is a kingdom marked by darkness and its ruler hates his own subjects; there is a kingdom marked by light and its Ruler loves his subjects. Reference to the Ruler’s subjects leads on to the question as to how he has obtained them and what actions had to be performed before they could enter his kingdom. What had to be done before they could be transferred from the domain of darkness into the kingdom of light? Paul gives two answers.

The basis of the transfer

Paul highlights two actions that had to take place before a person could move kingdoms. First, there had to be the act of redemption. Redemption means that the subjects of King Jesus were slaves of sin in the dark kingdom. In a sense, the spiritual cavern in which they live is a divinely-imposed prison for rebels against the God of heaven. They are there because they had broken his laws and were facing eternal punishment as a consequence. If they were going to be delivered, a ransom price had to be paid. Jesus paid the penalty when he suffered on the cross and therefore redeemed his people. That activity took place decades before the Colossians heard about it. The story of the redeeming action of Jesus was part of the gospel that they believed when they trusted in him for the first time.

Second, when they trusted in him, they experienced the second action that was necessary before entrance into the kingdom of Jesus would take place. They had to be pardoned all their sins, and this forgiveness was given freely and fully when they trusted in Jesus. The Father pardoned them and then transferred them into the kingdom of Jesus.

This transfer is a paternal action. When the Father put the Colossian believers into the kingdom of Jesus, he placed them into his family – they had become his sons. Instead of being imprisoned slaves, they were now liberated sons. Of course, they are still the subjects of Jesus, but they are royal subjects. In an earthly kingdom, the brothers of a sovereign are still his subjects. We serve the king as redeemed, forgiven sons of the Father.

This transfer is a permanent action, it can never be repealed. There is a crossroads at the cross when a sinner hears about the gospel. He has to choose between the broad way that leads to destruction and the narrow way that leads to life. But while there is a road into the kingdom of Jesus, there is not a road out of it. A subject in the kingdom of grace is as secure as one in the kingdom of glory.

Of course, the question that we must answer is, Have we been transferred by the Father from the dark domain into the kingdom of light? The place of transfer is where the gospel is believed, where Jesus is accepted by as sinner. Those outside the kingdom of Jesus are at the crossroads, ahead of you is a road to heaven and such can leave the road to hell and journey into the kingdom of Jesus.