By Clifton Angel
In defense of
Christ, Paul wrote to the church at Colossae:
Giving thanks unto the Father,
which hath made us
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: In whom we have
redemption
through his blood, even the
forgiveness of sins:
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 were 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 first-
born from the dead; that in all
things he might have
the preeminence (Colossians
1:12–18).
Later in the same letter, Paul wrote:
And ye are complete in him, which
is the head of all
principality and power ... Buried
with him in bap-
tism, wherein also ye are risen
with him through the
faith of the operation of God, who
hath raised him
from the dead (2:10, 12).
Christ could not be raised without first being buried.
We cannot be
raised from our sins without first being buried in baptism. But, having been
raised from the waters of baptism, let us continue in Paul's Colossians letter:
If ye then be risen with Christ,
seek those things
which are above, where Christ
sitteth on the right
hand of God. Set your affection on
things above, not
on things on the earth. For ye are
dead, and your life
is hid with Christ in God. When
Christ, who is our
life, shall appear, then shall ye
also appear with him
in glory (3:1–4).
Being risen with
Christ means He is now our life. For this reason, Paul wrote to the churches of
Galatia:
I am crucified with Christ:
nevertheless I live; yet not
I, but Christ liveth in me: and
the life which I now
live in the flesh I live by the
faith of the Son of God,
who loved me, and gave himself for
me (Gal 2:20).
And to the church at Philippi, he penned:
For to me to live is Christ, and to
die is gain (Phil 1:21).
As we think about who we are and what
defines us, do we consistently think of Jesus Christ? Christians, HE is our
identity! Friends, is He your identity?
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