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Colossians 1:13  (International Standard Version)
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<< Colossians 1:12   Colossians 1:14 >>


Colossians 1:12-13

The word “conveyed” gives a good sense of the Greek word methistÄ“mi (Strong's #3179). Other translations, like the English Standard Version, use “transferred,” while the King James Version renders it as “translated,” which is a bit archaic in today's English. It means “to cause a change of position,” “to transfer,” “to cause to change sides,” or literally, “to cause a change in standing.” A handful of translations use “brought” or even “put.”

This verse says something that many of us read over without realizing what it implies. God the Father has transferred, brought, or put us in the Kingdom of God, in His Family! If God is calling us sons and daughters right now (see Romans 8:14-17; II Corinthians 6:17-18; Galatians 4:6-7; Philippians 2:15; etc.)—and we are calling Him Father and even more intimately, “Abba”—we are right now part of the God Family. Certainly, we are not spirit beings yet (that will not happen until the resurrection), but we are already His children. He has changed our position or standing from spiritually dead human beings to active members of His Son's Kingdom.

So, in considering how many members are in the God Family right now, we may not have realized that there are more than just two. Only the Father and the Son know the true count, but it is likely a number in the many thousands from the time of Abel. Perhaps several thousand people alive today are already considered sons and daughters of the Father!

It is easy to see ourselves as citizens of an earthly nation because that is where we have been born and lived our lives. But God's calling and the knowledge of our new loyalties should point us away from identifying ourselves with this world's citizens, events, and organizations. Paul starkly reminds us in Colossians 1:13 that this world, which many of us still keep one foot in, is part of “the power of darkness” from which the Father has removed us. We simply cannot afford to lean back into it.

We have God's DNA, as it were, in us now via His Holy Spirit. Jesus says in John 14:23, “If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word; and My Father will love him, and We will come to him and make Our home with him.” We are part of Them, and They, of us.

Is this how we see ourselves? Is this how we think of ourselves on a daily basis while living in this world? We may remember this fact occasionally, but all too often, not often enough. Sometimes, we find ourselves identifying with an aspect of what this world promotes. Doing so usually involves us in party spirit; we take sides in the world's concerns.

Austin Del Castillo
Our Heavenly Citizenship



Colossians 1:13

Everyone of us knows that we are in the church. Are we aware that we are already in the Kingdom of God? We are! It is not here in fullness, nor as a physical reality. This verse says very clearly that we are already in the Kingdom of His dear Son. This is a spiritual reality that we must consider in relation to the church to grasp the importance of the church. The church is a portion of the Kingdom of God. It is not its fullness but a part.

John W. Ritenbaugh
Unity (Part 8): Ephesians 4 (E)



Colossians 1:13

In terms of our responsibilities to God, the implications of this verse are tremendous. It dogmatically informs us that we have already been conveyed, translated, or transferred into His beloved Son's Kingdom. How can some say we are not already in God's Kingdom? We absolutely do not have to wait for the resurrection at Christ's return to be considered by God as part of His Kingdom. Are we who call Him "Abba, Father" not already His children? Is not His Family His Kingdom?

John W. Ritenbaugh
Born Again or Begotten? (Part One)



Colossians 1:13-17

Jesus Christ is not only our Savior but also our Creator. He is the subject of the powerful description in Isaiah 40:9-18, and it is into His Kingdom we have been translated, meaning conveyed or transferred. Paul must mean that this translation is spiritual because God's Kingdom has not yet literally been established on earth. God "calls those things which do not exist as though they did" (Romans 4:17). We are to conduct our lives and represent God before the world as though we were literally a part of it even now.

Philippians 3:20 reinforces this: "For our citizenship is in heaven, from which we also eagerly wait for the Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ." The Kingdom of God is still in heaven and will be established on earth at Christ's return. However, we are already considered its citizens. Thus, our loyalties and submission go to it before everything else.

John W. Ritenbaugh
The Sixth Commandment (Part 2): War! (1997)



Colossians 1:13

When Jesus Christ lived a perfect life and died for the sins of men, He qualified to dethrone Satan. The "ruler of this world" has been defeated! However, he remains active among us until the King of kings returns and sets up His government on earth.

Richard T. Ritenbaugh
Basic Doctrines: Satan's Origin and Destiny


 
<< Colossians 1:12   Colossians 1:14 >>



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