What does God want from us? What does God want from his creation? What is God’s message that we are called to take into all the world?
These questions continue to burn in my heart. We have made our little lists. We have focused on an institutional concept of the kingdom and missed the bigger picture. We have been more interested in being affiliated with the kingdom than in becoming genuine kingdom people, fulfilling God’s purpose as “image of God” people in a fallen world. Mere affiliation with the kingdom (membership, church roles, even church attendance) will never substitute for being a kingdom person with total allegiance and loyalty to the King.
God has rescued us and moved us out of the kingdom of darkness into the kingdom of his dear Son. The text continues by (1) reminding us of how powerful Jesus is because of who he is and what he has done that makes him worthy of praise and adoration, (2) calling us to participate in the redemption and reconciliation he provides, (3) challenging us to find genuine hope through his presence within us, and (4) communicating God’s ultimate purpose in Christ that we become mature and genuine. No wonder Paul wrote: We Proclaim Him!
You can read the entire story in Colossians 1:13-29. Praise Him, Proclaim Him!