THE FULLNESS OF CHRIST

For in Him dwells all the FULLNESS of the Godhead bodily – Colossians 2:9

The Fullness of God is revealed to humankind in the FULLNESS of CHRIST! In Christ Jesus dwells “all the fullness of the Godhead bodily” (Col.2:9). This re-echoes Colossians 1:19. Paul the Apostle used a surplus of superlatives in his letter to the Ephesians in a bid to describe the immeasurable wealth of spiritual blessings that are available to us who are in Christ Jesus, both in time and for the rest of eternity. Of all the wonderful expressions that Paul uses in Ephesians, the two that are used interchangeably and really stand out are “the fullness of God” and “the fullness of Christ”! God wants each one of us to be filled with His fullness. He wants us to be partakers of His divine nature; to live lives that are enriched and empowered by His fullness: “as His divine power has given to us ALL things that pertain to life and godliness…that through these you may be partakers of the divine nature…” (2Pet.1:3-4).

The Fullness of Christ is amply displayed in the Person and works of Zion's Prophet, Priest, and King, the Mediator of the everlasting covenant of grace – the Lord Jesus Christ! He is the grand Possessor and Sharer of all spiritual blessings, the bounties and benefits of all grace; all pardon, justification, salvation, and the life that His people will experience in time and through eternity. As the great and glorious Head of His Body and the Personification of Grace, He received from His Father’s hands a multitude of precious souls who, in time, are gathered to be His Body – the Church! It is essentially with reference to His Church that Christ declares His fullness: “And He put all things under His feet, and gave Him to be head over all things to the Church, which is His body, the fullness of Him that fills all in all” (Eph.1:22-23). In His Church therefore, all the fullness of Christ is treasured, available to be released!

The fullness of grace, glory, and sovereignty is demonstrated in the redemption, sanctification, and preservation of all those whom the Lord Jesus Christ has taken to Himself as His special treasure, His crown jewels, His heart's love, and the bride of His bosom. He held Himself responsible for our salvation, to redeem us from sin, to quell our rebelliousness, to succour us in helplessness, to bear with our waywardness, and preserve us to His eternal kingdom and glory. In the fullness of time He came forth born of a woman, made under the law: “But when the fullness of the time had come, God sent forth His Son, born of a woman, born under the law” (Gal. 4:4). In the depths of Gethsemane He sighed: “My soul is exceedingly sorrowful, even to death…” (Mt.26:38). In the heights of isolation on Calvary, amid the fullness of darkness and desertion by His people, He cried, “My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?” (Mt.27:46b). The fullness of wrath was experienced by Christ, that the fullness of the Father’s love might be ours.

Ask and ponder: Want is the Value of my redemption? It is absolutely clear that God went to tremendous lengths to secure the blessings of fullness for us. He sent His Son Jesus to earth in human form to die a cruel death on the Cross. His death paid for the release of all who believe from the stranglehold of sin and death, and enables our entry into a new life of blessings and vitality. God provided this costly redemption, not so that we would be content with a lack lustre, cosmetic Christianity or satisfied with a superficial, stifled spirituality, but so that we would enjoy an intensely deep and vital union with Him for eternity – starting NOW!