Colossians 2

"Dear Father, Thank you for redeeming us. You took us out of deadness and gave us life. You made us alive together with Christ. You cancelled the..."

"Dear Father, my rock, Help me to think clearly with discernment. Keep me from being taken in by the beguiling speech of deceivers. Give me great joy...."

"For you were buried with Christ when you were baptized. And with him you were raised to new life because you trusted the mighty power of God, who..."

"Dear Father, Thank you, Father, that we have been joined with Christ in his life, death, and resurrection. Make us realize that we put off the body....."

"Dear Father, encourager, Encourage our hearts and knit them together in love with the heart of Jesus and the hearts of every other child of yours!..."

"Dear Disciple, I appointed My apostles as My emissaries to the world. I commissioned them to take My message everywhere to everyone. The original..."

"Just as you received Christ Jesus as Lord, continue to live in him, rooted and built up in him, strengthened in the faith as you were taught, and overflowing..."

"So then, just as you received Christ Jesus as Lord, continue to live in him, rooted and built up in him, strengthened in the faith as you were taught, and..."

"In Christ, all the fullness of the Deity lives in bodily form, and you have been given fullness in Christ, who is the head over every power and authority."

"Dear Father, May I never be impressed with the philosophy and empty deceit that comes out of human traditions which do not agree with Christ. Keep me..."

"All the attributes of Christ, as God and man, are at our disposal. All the fulness of the Godhead, whatever that marvellous term may comprehend, is..."

"I am telling you this so no one will deceive you with well-crafted arguments. For though I am far away from you, my heart is with you. And I rejoice....."

Inspirational illustration of Colossians 2:9-10 -- In Christ, all the fullness of the Deity lives in bodily form, and you have been given fullness in Christ, who is the head over every power and authority.

Inspirational illustration of Colossians 2:6-7 --Just as you received Christ Jesus as Lord, continue to live in him, rooted and built up in him, strengthened in the faith as you were taught, and overflowing with thankfulness.

Maybe you're like me and have imagined these kinds of things as you've read the story of Jesus. Phil Ware continues his series on Resurrection 2.0 and focuses this week on a way we can share with Jesus in his saving work even if we were not present when it happened years ago.

So how do we know our mountains of greatest importance? Phil Ware continues his series on knowing the mountains on which we are willing to die -- both doctrinal and missional mountains of significance.

Have you heard God calling? Ron Rose talks about hearing God's call to go to Mongolia in three poofs.

"All must be circumcised. Your bodies will bear the mark of my everlasting covenant. In [Christ] you were circumcised. It was not a circumcision..."

A genuine disciple, and especially an apostle, follows the path of Jesus who gave up his life to seek, serve, and save the lost. James Nored in video, and Phil Ware using the Scriptures, remind us of the beauty and the cost to God of saving us and forgiving us, and giving us a new life.

Why do we run after other things to add to Jesus? Phil Ware continues his messages out of Colossians; this one focuses on Jesus being enough and anything added to Him is less.

"And having disarmed the powers and authorities, [Jesus] made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them by the cross. "

"These [religious rules about what you eat and drink, keeping festivals and special Sabbath days] are a shadow of the things that were to come; the reality,..."

"So then, just as you received Christ Jesus as Lord, continue to live in him, rooted and built up in him, strengthened in the faith as you were taught, and..."

"Don't let anyone capture you with empty philosophies and high-sounding nonsense that come from human thinking and from the spiritual powers of this..."

"The life of faith is represented as receiving-an act which implies the very opposite of anything like merit. It is simply the acceptance of a gift. As..."

"If we have received Christ himself in our inmost hearts, our new life will manifest its intimate acquaintance with him by a walk of faith in him...."

Inspirational illustration of Colossians 2:15 -- And having disarmed the powers and authorities, he made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them by the cross.

Inspirational illustration of Colossians 2:17 -- These are a shadow of the things that were to come; the reality, however, is found in Christ.

What should we expect of our leaders to help us reach maturity? Phil Ware addresses the issue of church leadership, hypocrisy, and consumerism by pointing leaders to Paul's example in Colossians of pointing people to Jesus, praying for their maturity, and trusting in Him to supply the power as Paul worked strenuously

Don't you want more than something new? Katha Winther shares insights on the New Year, fresh starts, and God's work of salvation in us!

"Dear Disciple, You are probably aware that I had many disagreements with the Pharisees, scribes, and scholars during My time on earth and that I..."

How can we move away from this demeaning habit? Russ Lawson reminds us that we need to give up our check off the boxes mentality when it comes to thanking God and just respond to his grace genuinely from the heart.

Are you playing religious games or are you really delivered? Phil Ware shares another insight from Colossians about deliverance from the dead-end alleys, the dark dungeons, and the pits that keep us trapped and reminds us how Jesus brings deliverance.

Will you draw near? Will we draw near to the cross and have our lives changed?

The mystery, the wonder, the bewilderment, the delight, the fear, and the struggle as a new mom to God's Son were secreted in this hiding place of Mary's heart. Phil Ware reminds us that Mary treasured all the things about Jesus' birth in her heart and we can find our treasure with Jesus as he comes to us in the manger at Advent.

My response is to recognize God’s greatness and grace in using me as an instrument and with confidence move into this pure, unspotted new chapter. Jackie Halstead challenges us to take advantage of the New Year to begin writing a new chapter in our lives that brings grace to a world struggling with evil.

When is the last time you stared into the face of God? Ron Rose talks about Amy who went to Mother Teresa's Dying Destitutes and found that by touching the broken and dying you looked into the face of God, and we can do the same if we take the time to draw close

"Dear Believer, When Paul wrote to the Colossians, he was imprisoned and facing hardship because of his work for the gospel (Colossians 1:24-29;..."

How do we deal with our fear of evil, the devil, and temptation. Max Lucado talks about the defeat of Satan, the devil, by Jesus on the cross.

Is there any hope, any light, for our darkness? Phil Ware talks about the triumphal entry of Jesus and the darkness that Jesus faced for all of us to defeat the darkness and bring us to light.

Does the Christian life have to be boring? Though Swinburne's characterization of Jesus as the pale Galilean is famous, it's also very wrong. Jesus brought a colorful, joy-filled life to this world.

"Dear Child of Grace, You have been blessed with grace because of the Father's love (John 3:16-18; Colossians 1:12-14). That grace was embodied by My...."

Jesus invites us into a time of rest and quiet with him! Phil Ware shares part 2 in his four part series on learning to rest in Jesus and trust in the Lord's power to bless us and give us grace.

Do you really believe this is a stress reduction strategy? We can find many reasons to give thanks even in difficult times.

"Dear Disciple, Don't fall in love with what cannot ultimately satisfy or eternally sustain you. Many around you chase after things that do not last....."

"Dear Friend, My earthly ministry began with My baptism by My cousin, John the Baptist, in the Jordan River (Luke 3:21-23). The heavens were ripped..."

"Dear Child of God, After the apostle Paul spent years opposing My followers and My message, I revealed Myself to him on the road to Damascus (Acts..."

Will you believe that giving thanks is an effective stress reduction strategy even during the stress of Thanksgiving during a pandemic? Muriel Larson, an experienced online coach and counselor, shares this clear strategy to help us deal with the stress and pressure of the holidays found throughout the Scriptures: Give thanks!

Those of us who have followed Jesus for any significant length of time know that keeping our sinful flesh in check is a challenge. Phil Ware and Demetrius Collins invite us to worship God and keep our sinful nature, our flesh, in the past and nailed to the cross and lead us in worship through this practical home worship guide.

What happens the other 51 weeks of the year? Phil Ware begins a 4 part November series on giving thanks just in time for the Thanksgiving season.

What in the world is a dandelion Christian? Muriel Larson uses the dandelion to show us how we ought to live as Christians!

How much do you like to hear the words, "Thank you!" Thank you is one of the sweetest phrases in our language and God deserves more thank you's than anyone!

For us to be 'cruciformed' means that we offer our hearts to be reshaped to be like Jesus' heart. It means we offer ourselves to be used by God to bless and serve others. Phil Ware begins a series on the central section of the Gospel of Mark that focuses on being "cruciformed" as the first step of being a disciple of Jesus.

Jesus came to earth, lived as one of us, and died a horrible death of shame and humiliation on the cross so we could be in his family. Demetrius Collins and Phil Ware lead us in an online, worship through words and music using YouTube videos to celebrate and focus upon what it means to be a child of God who can approach Jesus as an older brother and God as Abba Father.

Why do we hide the simple message of Jesus behind all our complex rules? Phil Ware shares a principle from Colossians and asks us to think about how Jesus would respond to this desperate housewife.

Jesus is not only our Savior and Lord, but he is also the model on whom we are to build our lives! James Nored and Phil Ware share in video and word how we can share in the life of Jesus in our lives today.

Jesus wasn't just raised from the dead; he is also now alive in us through the Holy Spirit! James Nored and Phil Ware emphasize the importance of the Holy Spirit in our resurrection from the dead.

What have you been thinking about lately? More than needing to think, we need to think about the right things!

Jesus had many opportunities to walk away from the shame and pain of the cross, but he chose the Father's will and our need over his comfort. James Nored and Phil Ware remind us of the dark night that began the long, painful, and lonely journey of Jesus through his Passion to bring us to God and helped define the way of Jesus through the cross to the empty tomb.

God has given us a way to experience the saving work Jesus' death, burial, and resurrection. Phil Ware continues his series on "What is CORE" by talking about baptism and why it is important.