Colossians 1:20 Commentary and Bible Study

Reconciliation is the heart of the message of the gospel. The Greek word translated ‘reconciliation’ is quite a difficult word to do full justice to. We are called to imagine two parties at war, and there is obviously hostility between them and deep suspicion. There is no trade or travel, but only fighting and war. To effect reconciliation both parties have got to radically changed. In order for an unbeliever, a sinner, to be reconciled with God both parties must change: there must be a change in the lost person, and a change in God. Well, God is unchanging of course, but God will change his attitude and his dealings with that person. From God’s standpoint, he is offended by us. He is filled with righteous indignation at our sin and our unbelief. He therefore withdraws and removes any kind of blessing or help towards us. We are under his judgement and one day must be judged by him. But in reconciliation God will dramatically change his entire posture towards us into one of kindness and benevolence and acceptance. In order to do that, he has to radically change us to make us acceptable, and that is the work of Christ: to come into the world to suffer and to die, to take the punishment due to us for our sin, and to placate the righteous indignation of God. He offered up his perfect righteousness on our behalf so that we can be clothed in his righteousness, and God can look upon his righteousness as if it is ours, and rewards us. Only God can initiate that. That is what is so unique about the Christian gospel. Islam for example has no machinery at all to effect reconciliation, and makes no pretence to have any. Because of that Islam has to completely leave out any concept of reconciliation. There is no Saviour, there is no atoning death, no substitute who will die in our place, no one capable of offering up his perfect righteousness on our behalf. So it is with every world religion with the exception of the Christian faith, which alone has this vital reconciliation. We are unfit for God without it. It requires a Saviour, a substitute, a mediator who can take our place, take our punishment, offer up his own righteousness on our behalf. How much Christ had to do to bring this about! ‘Having made peace through the blood of his cross’ – peace is another term which really speaks of reconciliation. But why does Paul say ‘all things’? Why not just lost people, lost sinners? No, the apostle is going to tell us something very profound. This verse has launched debate for generations. We understand, ‘Whether they be things in earth,’ to be lost human beings who need the shed blood of Christ to atone for them as well as the entire physical creation currently under the curse, but what about ‘things in heaven’? It can only be the angels. Do angels need reconciling? This has perplexed exegetes. One suggestion is that the angels are put on the side of God, and in order for heaven to be a happy place, sinners need not only to be reconciled with God but in some measure, they need to be made fit for the angels too. But a better suggestion and an older one that is that even the angels benefit from the death of Christ. How so, when they have never sinned? Some angels did fall, of course, and became the demons of darkness, but the majority never fell, and remain in heaven, ten thousand times ten thousand of them. How can it be said that they need the atoning death and the righteous offering of Christ? Well in the sense that they were made incapable of ever falling in the future. This certainly, is the status of saved men and women, but here Paul seems to indicate that even the angels enjoy the same blessing of security.