Daily Devotions
Colossians
Thank God For Spiritual Deliverance
Text: Colossians 1:13
The apostle Paul exhibited a tremendous spirit of thanksgiving that marked the way he ministered for the Lord. This is most evident in his writings. The giving of thanks extended to the next couple of verses.
“He has delivered us from the power of darkness
and conveyed us into the kingdom of the Son of His love.”Colossians 1:13
1. “He”
a) This word was essentially a relative pronoun (Greek “hos”).
b) The antecedent noun is “the Father”.
c) Literally translated, it would read, “who has delivered us”.
d) Thus this verse is closely connected with the previous verse.
e) Hence the spirit of thanksgiving in verse 13 must extend to verse 14.
2. “Delivered us from the power of darkness”
a) Paul certainly believed in the realm of the spiritual.
b) It was as real a realm as the physical one.
c) In that realm Satan rules.
d) His kingdom is characterised by the power of darkness.
e) The heart has every reason to rejoice when it has been delivered from the deadly power of darkness.
3. “Conveyed us into the kingdom of the Son of His love”
a) God did not only rescue people from the power of darkness.
b) He took those who are saved and brought them into His kingdom.
4. A tender description
a) The Kingdom of God is described most tenderly.
b) It is the Kingdom of the Lord Jesus Christ.
i) Jesus is described lovingly as “the Son of His love”.
ii) The strong bond of love between the Father and the Son stands out significantly.
5. Appreciating Paul’s spirit of thanksgiving
a) He had deep reasons to be filled with thanksgiving.
b) Our challenge must be to emulate his spirit of thanksgiving.
We can understand the spirit of thanksgiving that Paul sustained as he wrote these words!