When Paul was a prisoner at Rome
for preaching the gospel of Christ, there was in prison with him
for a period of time a far lesser known servant of our Lord by
the name of Epaphras. Epaphras was the pastor of the
Church of God at Colossae. And while they were in prison
together, Epaphras told Paul of his fears, his concerns, for
the church at Colossae that was so very dear to him. And he also
spoke to Paul in glowing terms about these men and women at
Colossae whom Paul had never met. He told him how the word
of God came to those at Colossae, bringing forth fruit unto God
in their lives, showing that it came to them in power, in
demonstration of the Holy Spirit. He told Paul about their faith
in Christ and their love to all God's saints, about their blessed
hope of eternal glory and their faithfulness to Christ. And Paul
was so overwhelmed by Epaphra's report concerning these saints
of Colossae that he fell in love with them, though he'd never
seen them. He prayed for them. And he sat down, being inspired
by God the Holy Spirit, and wrote this blessed brief epistle called
the Epistle to the Colossians. He writes this epistle to them,
and it is in my opinion one of the most blessed, most instructive
letters in the New Testament. I want to call your attention
tonight to what I consider one of the most rapturous glorious,
awesome descriptions of our Lord Jesus to be found in all the
Bible. I remember years ago, Brother
Bob Pontzer read this portion of scripture back in the office. And when he got done reading,
Brother Merle Hart said, as Merle can only in his quiet, firm,
delightful voice, what a Savior. What a Savior. Colossians chapter
1, verses 9 through 19. Here is Paul's prayer for God's
people at Colossae as he tells them how he turned to God in
prayer for them. Verse 9, for this cause, since
we've heard this great report from your pastor about you, Since
the day we heard it, we do not cease to pray for you and to
desire that you might be filled with the knowledge of his will
in all wisdom and spiritual understanding, that you might walk worthy of
the Lord unto all pleasing, being fruitful in every good work and
increasing in the knowledge of God. Oh, what a prayer. Would you pray for me like that?
That you might be filled with the knowledge of God's will,
in all wisdom and in all spiritual understanding, so that your knowledge
of God's will is not only doctrinally, theologically, biblically accurate
and orthodox, but that your knowledge of God's will has an effect on
your life so that you're filled with spiritual understanding
about our Lord's redemptive purpose, about our Lord's revelation of
Himself in Holy Scripture. With regard to the Lord's will
for you personally, I pray for you that you may know God's will
and walk in it. that you may know God's purpose
for you. I ask for my own grandchildren
and ask for you young people that God will direct you according
to his will in his path. Don't just seek a career. Don't
just seek a place. Don't just seek something to
do by which to make money and get comfort. Seek God's will
for you. to serve the Redeemer in the
short little space of time you have on this earth, that you
may be filled with the knowledge of God's will. Well, Todd Nibert
and I were talking the other day. It seems that God is raising
up few preachers. Not many young men seem to have
an interest in preaching the gospel. And Todd made an observation. He said, Don, somehow that's
our fault. And I fully agree. I fully agree. We haven't spoken as we ought
concerning the blessed work of the ministry. Oh, how I pray
that God might be pleased to save you. For you young men,
I'd be delighted if God called every one of you to preach the
gospel of his regrace. It took me to death. God raise
up my grandson and send him to the farthest corner of the earth
and me never see him again. to preach the gospel of God's
grace. The highest, noblest, richest, most blessed work in
this world, that you may be filled with the knowledge of his will,
with all spiritual understanding, that you might walk worthy of
the Lord unto all pleasing. What does that mean? Act like
one who believes God. Behave in a manner that is worthy
of your profession Live on this earth as one who fears God And
then Paul speaks of the characteristics of true saving faith in verses
10 through 13 He gives us seven characteristics of faith in Christ
This is true of all who believe on the Son of God be what it
says. I that you might walk worthy of the Lord unto all pleasing,
being fruitful in every good work. Good works necessary for
the glory of God and for the testimony of the gospel and increasing
in the knowledge of God. Faith walks in good works and
faith in Christ has an ever increasing knowledge of God. Strength, strengthened
with all might according to his glorious power unto all patients. Faith in Christ causes one to
walk with strength in this world, strength that gives patience,
patience according to the glory, his glorious power. I'm sorry,
strengthened according to his glorious power and patience and
long suffering, long suffering. ease, calmness of character,
long suffering with those who oppose you and those who behave
contrary to what they ought with joyfulness. Believers are a joyful
people. We walk in the joy of faith,
rejoicing in the Lord, giving thanks. Brother Bob read just
a little bit ago and everything give thanks. In everything give
thanks for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning
you. Give thanks to God. It's real
hard to murmur when you give thanks. It's real hard to gripe
when you praise. In everything give thanks unto
the Father which hath made us, watch this now, meet to be partakers
of the inheritance of the saints in light. who hath delivered
us from the power of darkness and hath translated us into the
kingdom of his dear son. And then verses 12, 13, and 14,
Paul breaks out into this thanksgiving and praise as he's writing to
the Colossians. about giving thanks to God, his
heart just bubbles up with praise and thanksgiving to God. He speaks
of us being made meat to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints,
being saved by God's grace, delivered from the power of darkness, translated
into the kingdom of God's dear son. Now watch this, verse 14. In whom we have redemption through
his blood, even the forgiveness of sins. Pastor, hear yourself. Now, would
you tell me what reason I have not to give thanks? Would you explain to me some
basis upon which I have right to grumble and complain about
my lot in this world of time? Why I should whine and gripe
about anything? God, forgive my murmuring. Give thanks. The Lord God has
made us meet to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints
in light. That word is fit, worthy. We are right now fitted for glory,
made worthy of heavenly glory by virtue of our union with Christ.
Jesus Christ has given us perfect righteousness, full redemption,
complete forgiveness, not only in the accomplishment of redemption
for us, but also in the performance of his grace in us, putting righteousness
in us, giving us that holy nature that is holiness without which
no man shall see the Lord Christ formed in you. That's what happens
in the new birth, made new creatures in Christ. For God has saved
us by his sovereign, free, almighty grace, delivering us from the
power of darkness that held us in captivity, and having translated
us into the kingdom of his dear Son, into the Son of his love.
And then he did this on the basis of effectual blood redemption
by Christ, in whom we have Redemption. Redemption. We generally, when
we think about redemption, we think only about blood atonement.
Redemption is deliverance by blood. Deliverance by the satisfaction
of justice. So really, when you think about
salvation, we're thinking about redemption. We're talking about
the ultimate final deliverance of our souls into heavenly glory,
we have obtained redemption by his blood. It's already ours. Not something to be anticipated
as though it were not our possession already, but anticipated as a
rightful claim of ours through the blood of Christ. He, with
his own blood, entered in once into the holy place, having obtained
eternal redemption for us. And wherever redemption is, there
is the forgiveness of sins. Even the forgiveness of sins. It is blasphemy and foolhardy
to talk about Christ redeeming people who are not forgiven.
Wherever there is redemption through His blood, there is the
forgiveness of sins because justice demands that we be forgiven whose
sins have been put away. Look at verse 15. Paul next expresses his gratitude
and thanksgiving, turning it to praise to God. We have this
redemption through his blood, this forgiveness of sins in Christ
Jesus, who is the image of the invisible God. The firstborn
of every creature, for by him were all things created that
are in heaven and that are in earth, visible and invisible. Whether they be thrones or dominions
or principalities or powers, all things created by him and
for him. And he is before all things.
And by him, all things consist. And he is the head of the body,
the church, who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead,
that in all things he might have the preeminence. When Paul spoke
about the grace and redemption that Christ has performed for
us and gives to us, he couldn't resist the opportunity to extol
the Savior and magnify his name, who is the image of the invisible
God. Christ is how we see God. He's
the image of the invisible God, the only revelation of God. and the full revelation of God.
When Lord God in the Trinity of His sacred person said, let
us make man in our image and after our likeness, He was not
talking about what most of the theologians say, talking about
His moral image, though certainly that's included. He was talking
about Christ, the Redeemer. The first man, Adam, was made
in the image of the last Adam, Christ Jesus the Lord, who was
really the first Adam. He is that one who is the Adam
representing his race from eternity, and Adam, our father of physical
birth, was made in the image of Christ, the last Adam, in
whose image we are made by God's grace. He is the image of the
invisible God. Whenever you read in the scriptures
about God coming and speaking to men, revealing himself to
men throughout the Old Testament. Throughout the Old Testament,
the angel of the Lord who comes and reveals himself to men is
Christ our God. You remember those angels that
came to Abraham and brought him news about the destruction of
Sodom and Gomorrah? Abraham fell down and worshipped
one of those angels. And that angel received his worship
because that angel is Christ, the angel of the covenant. Christ
is the firstborn of every creature. That doesn't mean that he is
the first creature. It means he's the means, the
beginning of the creation of God, as we're told in Revelation
3. Christ is the creator of all
things, the beginning of all things, and the ruler of all
things, verse 16. He is eternal, and he is God. Verse 17 tells us that He is
eternal, and He who is eternal is God. He's before all things,
and by Him all things consist. He's the glue that holds everything
together. Scientists talk about the forces of nature and the
laws of gravity and all those things. Christ is what holds
everything together. The laws of nature are the decree
of our Redeemer and the power of our God. He's the head of
his body, the church, verse 18. He's the beginning of the resurrection,
the firstborn from the dead. In essence, Paul is telling us
that God Almighty has put all things into the hands of his
son as our mediator, in verse 18, that in all things he might
have the preeminence. It is the intent, the purpose
of the triune God that Christ, our mediator, have all preeminence
in all things. And he will seek to it that he
does. Now, the reason for all this is stated in verse 19. For it pleased the Father that
in him, that is in Christ Jesus, our mediator, should all fullness
dwell. I want to camp right here and
make one more stab at trying to declare something of the majesty
of what is here declared concerning the fullness of Christ, all fullness
in Christ. Oh, God, help us to adore and
worship our Savior. giving him all preeminence in
our hearts, all preeminence in our lives, all preeminence in
all things in this place. Help us to honor him whom you
delight to honor. If I knew that this were my last
sermon to you, my very last word to you as your pastor, I think
I couldn't have a better text or a better subject. Oh, spirit
of God, come upon us. and give us grace to worship
our blessed Redeemer. In this text of scripture, Paul
teaches us that it is the purpose and pleasure of the triune God
that all the fullness of grace and glory dwell in the Lord Jesus
Christ, our God-man mediator. Whatever we get from God, we
receive from Christ fullness. Hold your hands here and turn
back to John. John chapter 1. John chapter 1, verse 14. And the Word was made flesh and
dwelt among us. And we beheld His glory, the
glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace
and truth. John bear witness of him and
cried saying this is he of whom I speak. He that cometh after
me is preferred before me for he was before me. Now watch this.
These are the words of John the Baptist concerning him. John
the Baptist, that that last prophet of the Old Testament, that only
prophet of the New Testament and of his fullness have all
we received. and grace for grace. All who believe, believe because
we have received of Christ's fullness out of his infinite
fullness, we have received grace right on top of grace, on top
of grace, on top of grace. Of his fullness, we receive all
the benefits and blessings of grace and glory. Now, this great
instructive chapter here in Colossians 1 is all about our great savior,
the Lord Jesus, and God's great salvation in him. Paul seems
to be at a loss for words when he describes what a great God
and savior our Lord Jesus is. Did you notice that over and
over again in this chapter, he uses the word all. Now, that's
a very, very small word. A-L-L. He uses that small three-letter,
one-syllable word to describe our Lord Jesus over and over
again. Because this little word has
big things to say. Very big things to say. All things
were created by Him. All things were created for Him. He is before all things. By Him,
all things consist. God the Father has given him
preeminence in all things. In all things. In all things
spiritual and in all things natural. In all things in the new creation
as in all things in the old creation. He's given him preeminence in
all things. All things in time and all things in eternity. All
things in covenant grace and all things in salvation. All
things shall at last be reconciled to God in and by Christ Jesus. That day comes called the restitution
of all things when our Lord Jesus will gather together all things
in heaven, earth, and hell. Everything. Everything that is,
has been, or shall be. He'll gather it all together.
All creatures, All men, all women, all the acts of men, all the
events of time, all the angels of glory, all the demons of hell,
and Satan himself. He'll gather together all things
and all things shall be reconciled to God. Rex, that's just light years
beyond my imagination. But the great anticipation in
my heart is that day when our Redeemer lifts His hands to heaven
and says, time shall be no more and makes known clearly all things
redound to the glory of God by Him. Everything. Everything. No exception. No
exception. Now, let's look at verse 19.
I want us to camp right here and I'm going to milk this for
all I can. For it pleased the father that in him should all
fullness dwell. When Paul writes it pleased the
father that in him should all fullness dwell, you'll notice
the translators added the word father. It pleased the father
that in him all fullness should dwell. He means for us to understand
that it is the superlative, infinite, immeasurable pleasure of the
triune God, that all fullness dwell in Jesus Christ our Lord.
First, let me deal with this matter of all fullness in Christ.
And then briefly, I'll show you two or three other things. All
fullness dwells in Him exclusively. All fullness dwells in Him because
it's God's pleasure that it should and all fullness dwells in him
always. First, all fullness dwells in Christ. Two mighty words,
fullness. What a substantial word. That's
comprehensive, expressive beyond what any words to be used to
speak of what Paul's speaking of here. And then he uses that
little word again, all fullness. So that he's telling us that
there is in Christ a superlative, infinite wealth of fullness.
What a word of comfort for us poor bankrupt sinners. By nature,
we're emptiness and vanity. Christ is fullness. In us, there's
an utter lack of merit before God. a total absence of power
to gain merit with God, and no will to obey God if we have the
ability to do so. Merit and man cannot coexist,
and no such thing. And yet in Christ there is a
fullness, an unceasing fullness of merit for all God's elect. In Christ is all fullness. Oh, rejoice, my heart. Dance
before the ark of God. Everywhere else in this universe
is nothing but barrenness and emptiness. Vanity of vanities,
all is vanity, saith the preacher. And the preacher said, right.
Bless me, God, forever. He's provided all fullness in
Christ. As I said, There is a lack of
all merit and an absence of all power to procure any merit, or
even the absence of will to procure that merit if we could. Our nature
is a desert. It's empty, void, waste, and
vain, inhabited only by sin and darkness and death. We are all
emptiness, but in Christ is all fullness. I'm death, he's life. I'm sin, he's righteousness.
I'm naked, he's clothing. I'm hungry, he's bread. I'm thirsty,
he's water. I'm dirty, he's cleansing. I'm
darkness, he's light. All fullness is in him. Let me
see if I can ring this bell again. Christ is the substance, not
the shadow of all fullness. Fullness, not just the foretaste
of it. The reality, not just the picture. In the Old Testament, we had
types and pictures of this fullness. In the types and pictures and
ceremonies of the law, in the very commandments of the law,
we had pictures given of this fullness, but they were only
shadows. Those sacrifices were only shadows. They had no fullness, they were
just shadows. Christ is all the fullness of
all the Old Testament types and pictures. Turn to Hebrews chapter
10. Hebrews 10. Now I want you to see this for yourself. Everything in the law, everything
in the Old Testament Every commandment, every ordinance, every ceremony,
every Sabbath day, every holy convocation, every event in the
deliverance of Israel out of their various captivities. All
those things were designed and brought to pass by God to show
us a shadow of Christ, a picture of Christ. And when Christ has
come, the shadow is gone. The substance is here. Hebrews
chapter 1, verse, chapter 10, verse 1. For the law, having
a shadow of good things to come, and not the very image of those
things, can never with those sacrifices, which they offered
year by year continually, make the comings thereunto perfect.
Abraham would go in every year and offer the Paschal Lamb. But
that Lamb's blood didn't take away anybody's sin. That Lamb's
blood didn't appease God. That Lamb's blood did not reconcile
the people. That Lamb's blood did not ease
the conscience. That Lamb's blood did nothing
except picture Him. in whom God is pleased, by whom
God and sinners are reconciled to one another, in whom is redemption
and forgiveness, by whose blood our consciences are purged from
all sin and from dead works. We don't. Our Lord Jesus, when
he coming into the world, verse five, wherefore, when he cometh
into the world, he say a sacrifice and offering thou wouldest not,
but a body has thou prepared me. In burnt offerings and sacrifices
for sin, thou hast had no pleasure. These things don't please God?
Legal ceremonies and cardinal ordinances don't please God? What ignorance men have to imagine
that the holy Lord God who dwells in temples not made with hands
Eternal in the heavens would be pleased with carnal ordinances.
Oh, no, you had no pleasure in those things. The Savior says
so. Then said I, lo, I come in the volume of the book it is
written of me to do thy will, O God. Above, when it said sacrifice
and offering and burnt offerings and offering for sin, thou wouldest
not. Neither has pleasure therein which are offered by the law.
Then said I, lo, I come to do thy will, O God. Now watch this.
Watch this. He taketh away the first, that
he may establish the second. Bobby, he couldn't establish
the second unless he took away the first. Is that difficult
to comprehend? The only way you can establish
the second is to take away the first. Some may say, well, the
Lord Jesus didn't abrogate the law. Oh, yes, he did. By fulfilling
it. Well, he didn't put an end to
the law. I believe that's what the book says, isn't it? Christ
is the end of the law. Is that what it says? I think
I'll go with that. That's what it says. He takes
away the first, that he may establish the second. Well, what does that
mean? Well, just read on, you'll find out. Read on, verse 10.
By the which will, he said, I come to do thy will, O God. By the
which will, we are sanctified. By the which will we are made
holy. Through the offering of the body
of Jesus Christ once for all. And every priest standeth daily
ministering and offering oftentimes the same sacrifices which can
never take away sins. But this man, after he offered
one sacrifice for sins forever, sat down. In the temple, in the Holy of
Holies, tell you what wasn't in there. There was no seat in
there except the mercy seat. No place for the high priest
to sit down because his sacrifices could never put away sin, never
satisfy justice, never give the conscience ease and clearness
before God. But here's a priest who entered
it once into the holy place, having obtained eternal redemption
for us. And Brother Bill, he sat down and he never gets up. He sat down because his work
is finished. It's ended with his sacrifice.
Verse 13, from henceforth expecting till his enemies be made his
footstool, for by one offering, this is the reason he sat down,
for by one offering he hath perfected forever them that are sanctified. Not all the blood of beast on
Jewish altar slain. to give the guilty conscience
peace or wash away one's stain. But Christ, the Lamb of God,
takes all our sins away, a sacrifice of nobler name and richer blood
than they. You can be sure of this. If those
sacrifices and rituals ordained by God could not take away sin,
could not atone for sin, could not satisfy justice, could not
please God. You can be sure if those sacrifices
written in the book and required in the law by God himself could
do none of those things. Then whatever you do, can't take
away sin. And whatever you do, can't pacify
God. And whatever you do, can't give
God you acceptance with God. Christ is all fullness. We read in John chapter one. Not only the fullness of all
grace, but he is the full revelation of the father. No man has seen
God at any time. The only begotten son, which
is in the bosom of the father, he hath declared him. And Christ
is the fullness of the law. The Jews, the Jews, because they're
ignorant of God's righteousness, not ignorant of the fact, Alan,
that God is righteous in his character. Everybody knows that. Read the first chapter of Romans.
God stamped it on your conscience. You can't escape that. Everybody
knows that God's righteous. They're ignorant of God's righteousness
in that they're ignorant of the person and work of Christ. They
don't know what Christ did. And because men don't know what
Christ did. I chose my words on purpose.
Because men and women don't know who Christ is and what he did,
they keep trying to save themselves. They keep trying to establish
righteousness of their own. You mean to say, Brother Don,
that everybody who tries to merit God's favor, who tries to improve
their standing in God's favor, Everyone who tries to keep God's
favor, who tries to find assurance that they are in favor with God
by what they do, is stumbling over the stumbling stone. That's
what it says in Romans 9. They stumble over Christ, the
foundation stone, who is in their way as a stumbling stone, who
believe not, and trip up and go to hell trying to do good.
Trip up and go to hell, depending on their baptism. Trip up and
go to hell, trusting their church membership. Trip up and go to
hell, trusting their good works. Brethren, Paul says, my heart's
desire in prayer to God for Israel is that they might be saved.
I bear them record. They have a zeal of God, but
not according to knowledge. For they, being ignorant of God's
righteousness, and going about to establish their own righteousness
have not submitted themselves unto the righteousness of God.
Now here's the proof of what I've just been saying. For Christ
is the end of the law for righteousness to everyone that believeth. He's the period. He's the stopping
point. The law comes up to the schoolmaster,
Christ Jesus, and it stops with the schoolmaster. I had a call
last night from my very dear friend, Bob Spencer. Some of
you will remember he was my sixth grade school teacher. And, you
know, I used to be terrified of that fellow. Do you know,
on more than one occasion, he blistered my behind? And I didn't
go home and tell Mom and Daddy because I knew I'd get it again.
I mean, he worked me over. And I wanted to be careful that
he didn't catch me doing everything I did. It didn't change anything,
but I didn't want him to catch me because I knew it was going
to hurt. And if I should see him walking down the aisle here
this evening with his rubber hose in his hand, I wouldn't
flinch at all. I wouldn't think anything at
all about it. He might just bring it up here and show it to me
and say, remember this? Yeah, I remember it. I remember it. But he wouldn't
dare lift it up to hit me with it. He wouldn't dare. He doesn't
have the right. He doesn't have the authority.
That ceased when I graduated from school. He doesn't have
any more power over me. and the law has no power over
you. None to curse, none to condemn,
none to coerce because Christ is our schoolmaster and we follow
him. Does that make sense? We walk
at liberty in Christ Jesus the Lord. Christ is all the fullness
of all God's law and of all God's eternal purpose, everything God's
purposed in eternity. He purposed that he might have
bring many sons to glory, that Christ might be the firstborn
among many brethren, the preeminent chief one holding possession
of all in the family among many brethren. Let us give praise
to our God. There is in our Lord Jesus Christ
all the fullness of the triune God. Turn over a page, just a
page, or look over the page to chapter two. Now I'm in waters way too deep
for me, but I like to swim in deep water. For in him, in him, in Christ,
there's this word again, Skip, all. In him dwelleth all. all the fullness of the Godhead
bodily. God's incomprehensible. Father,
Son, and Holy Spirit. God can't be contained in anything.
God can't be said to live or to die. He is life. God's eternal. Immutable, infinite, incomprehensible. But God stepped into humanity
in the person of Jesus of Nazareth. And that man, Jesus of Nazareth,
is himself God, in whom resides all the fullness of the triune
God He is God over all blessed forever
So that God reveals himself in and comes to and is approached
by Sinners like you and me in the person of his son, but that's
not all it says read on the next line here in Colossians 2 is
almost as good as verse 9 and you are complete in Him. Does God completely dwell in
Christ? Does God completely dwell in
Christ? That's what it says. And you
who believe are completely full in Him, which is the head of
all principality and power. Our Lord Jesus Christ is that
one who is the fullness of the triune God and all the fullness
of the infinite triune God, father, son, and Holy Spirit residing
in the body of that man who died at Calvary and now reigns over
all things as our mediator ought to fill our souls with joy as
well as comfort and all the fullness of grace is in him. all the fullness
of grace, so that all fullness from God toward us is in Him. And all the fullness we need
to approach to and be accepted of God is in Him. For of Him
are ye in Christ Jesus, who of God has made unto us wisdom,
and righteousness, and sanctification, and redemption, that according
as it is written, he that glorieth, let him glory in the Lord. What do you want? What do you
need? What is your soul's cry before
God? What is it you must have before
God? I've got to have a new heart.
I've got to have a broken heart. I've got to have faith. I've
got to have repentance. I've got to have life. Get it
in Christ. But I must persevere. Christ
is our perseverance. But I must hold on. Christ holds
on to us. All fullness of grace is in him. What mortal tongue can begin
to express the infinite bounty of God's grace in Christ? The
Lord is the portion of your soul. and the portion of your inheritance,
the portion of your cup. If you're in Christ, all things
are yours. First Corinthians chapter 3 verse
21. Did you hear that? All things are yours. For you're
Christ and Christ is God's. All things. Now, I can't do anything except
state the next three things. All things are in Christ exclusively. All fullness is in Christ exclusively. That means it's only in him.
There's no fullness in this church or any other church. There's
no fullness in any creed. There's no fullness in any doctrine. There's no fullness in any experience. There's no fullness in any knowledge. All fullness is in Christ. But we stand on the righteousness
of Christ. No, I stand on Christ. We stand
on the blood, the book, and the blessed oath. No, our fullness
is in Him. It's Christ that gives merit
to His righteousness. It's Christ that gives merit
to His blood. It's Christ that gives merit
to His obedience. All fullness is in Him. A person. Not a creed. Not a confession.
Not a doctrine. Not a point of orthodoxy. Not
knowledge. Not experience. Him. All fullness
is in Christ exclusively. All fullness is in Christ because
it pleased the Father that in Him should all fullness dwell. It pleased the Father from old
eternity to put all things in the hands of his Son as our covenant
mediator and surety, because the Father loveth the Son. John
3.35. Our Lord Jesus says, therefore
doth my Father love me, because I laid down my life for the sheep.
so that the father gives him the reward of his obedience all
this fullness of grace and glory in his hands and in his hands
alone as the result of his obedience because he's merited this fullness
this fullness of grace and glory to be the sole possessor of it
and the sole dispenser of it so that all fullness is dispensed
by him to whom he will all the fullness of his grace and the
glory that he has. He said, Father, restore to me
the glory that I had with thee before the world was. John 17,
4. The glory he had before the world was. Bobby gave it to him
as the lamb slain from the foundation of the world when the covenant
was settled back in eternity. And now he gives it to him publicly
in his resurrection from the dead when he's declared to be
the son of God with power. And the Savior says, the glory
which thou gavest me, I've given to them. So that all the fullness of heavenly
glory is Christ. He's the foundation of the city,
the gate to the city, the light of the city, the temple of the
city, the God of the city, the glory of the city. Christ is
what we want, and Christ we shall have. All fullness dwelleth in
him. I remember after Brother Cavanaugh
down at Madisonville was converted, Larry, if I remember correctly,
you can correct me later if I'm mistaken, his brother was one
of them big B Baptists who talked about rewards and stuff, wasn't
he? And his brother said to him one day, Brother Kavanaugh was
about 70 years old, about that when God saved him. And his brother
said, well, I believe you're saved, but you're in the wrong
church, and you're going to not have the rewards you could have
if you was in the right church. Brother Kavanaugh said, you think
I'm saved, do you? He said, you think I'll have
Christ? He said, well, yeah, you'll have Christ. He said,
that's all I want. That's all I want. Let other
folks have their yo-yos and their stars. Christ is the fullness
of glory. Now one more thing. All fullness
dwells in Him for us always. Let us therefore come boldly
to the throne of grace that we may obtain mercy and find grace
to help in time of need. Amen.