One of my favorite verses, and I have a ton of them, is found in Colossians 1:27. Paul wrote it, and it goes, “To them God has chosen to make known among the Gentiles the glorious riches of this mystery, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory.”
It’s all good but I like the last part the best, “Christ in you, the hope of glory.”
If you are a Christian, Paul was speaking to you.
That’s what the “you” means. So, it would be accurate for me to now say, “Christ in you, the hope of glory.”
I’m not sure which word means the most to me, Christ in you, hope or glory.
I googled “What does "Christ in you the hope of glory" mean?
It took me to gotquestions.org.
Firstly, it said what I already knew, it is a powerful verse. Then it went on to tell us that Paul was “writing to believers in Jesus Christ.”
In the preceding verse, Colossians 1:26 we’re told Paul was writing to “the Lord’s people.” Once again, if we are Christians, Paul was writing to us. Thus, the mystery is explained, “Christ in us is the hope of future glory.”
The Holy Spirit came upon certain people, we’re told in the Old Testament, “to empower them for service.” But when that service was provided the Holy Spirit would leave them again.
It’s different in the New Testament.
We’re told we will receive a “permanent indwelling of the Holy Spirit". Jesus tells us this in John 14:16-17 and John 16:7.
I find it interesting that of the three Christian virtues, faith, hope and love, in the end all that will remain is love.
We’re told in Colossians 1:27 that we will have Christ in us, the hope of glory. But eventually, won’t it just mean that we have Christ, no more hope, just glory?
But gotquestions.org explains it more fully. It said, “The Holy Spirit seals us for the day of redemption (see Ephesians 4:30). In other words, the Spirit’s presence in our hearts guarantees our ultimate salvation. Though we are in this world, we are not of it (see John 17:16). God will continue to work in us until He is finished perfecting us (see Philippians 1:6). This forward-looking guarantee of perfection is what is meant by ‘Christ in you, the hope of glory.’ The J. B. Phillips translation of Colossians 1:27 puts it this way: "The secret is simply this: Christ in you! Yes, Christ in you bringing with him the hope of all glorious things to come.’”
It goes on to say that “the hope of glory is the fulfillment of God’s promise to restore us and all creation".This hope is not a wishful thought, but the confident, expectant, joyful knowledge that we are being changed by God and will one day see Christ face to face, having been conformed to His image.
Included in this hope of glory is our resurrection. They quote Romans 8:11, “If the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead is living in you, he who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies because of his Spirit who lives in you.”
It also includes our heavenly inheritance. They quote what Peter wrote in 1 Peter 1:3-4, “In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, and into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade. This inheritance is kept in heaven for you.”
It ends by saying that Christ’s presence in us is the hope of glory.
Gotquestions.org closes by saying, “Christ is in our hearts, and we know that there is life beyond this earthly existence — a life that will be glorious beyond all imagination.”
To me, it’s almost too wonderful to imagine, Christ in me, the hope of glory.
Rick Reed is a columnist who lives in Mount Dora. To reach him call (352) 383-1458 or email him at RICOH007@aol.com. If you can’t get enough of Rick Reed see his blog at rickreed.co.
