Colossians 1:13-14

 (Colossians 1:13-14)

『Who hath delivered us from the power of darkness, and hath translated us into the kingdom of his dear Son: In whom we have redemption through his blood, even the forgiveness of sins:』

Salvation is the favor to come from dark power. The Hebrew people were slaves of Pharaoh in Egypt. They lived as slaves. We are also slaves to the world before we are saved. If we are in darkness, we cannot escape from the world. If we are in darkness, we are slaves to the world to live. That are bound by the power of darkness. Those who are in darkness come to church and worship hard, but nothing has changed.

Many church members today are bound by the power of darkness, but they think they are in bright light. Rather, they pray for God to help them live well in the world. God told Moses to let my people worship. The reason God created man was not to work, but to worship. Today, however, attention is focused on the things of this world rather than worship. All attention is focused on the successes and failures of the world. This is a life of faith that the Red Sea never broke up. If self does not die, you are in dark power. God will say, "I do not know you. I have already said."

We must fear God. God is great and fearful. We tremble when we go out to the wide, dark sea. The more we look at the universe, the more trembling it will be. He is the creator of all this. But people feel God delivers those who repent from the power of darkness.

Most church people think as God of love and want to think so. If you feel like love, do not feel big and fearful. This is a deceived mind. The Hebrews cried out to the Lord under the oppression of Pharaoh depend on the Lord alone. They believed that God could rescue them. This is the reason to find God. There must be a reason for us to find God. The reason is to be delivered from dark power. Only a great and fearful God can free you from darkness.

No one can be saved unless he finds you. We must find only God. When the kids lose their mother in the park, they cry with all their strength to find their mother. You must cry out, "It is great. I have lost the Lord who made me."

God said: Do not worship in Egypt, but go after the three days in the wilderness. This is the distinction. King Pharaoh said, Worship in Egypt, but Moses refused it. Three days in the wilderness means death. And three days is the period when Jesus died on the cross and was in the tomb. Three days means disconnection from the world. Pharaoh said, “leave the sheep."He knew the meaning of sheep. Moses refused. The sheep were essential to the sacrifice. Worship today is a ritual representing the death of self. It is a ritual to give up the love of the world. It is difficult to give up the love of the world. We must go back to the kingdom of God. We cannot return to the kingdom of God with the things of this world. For everything in this world is gone. You can't take it to heaven. Think of Solomon's vanity.

God saves those who find Him wholeheartedly in darkness. For the eyes of the LORD run to and fro throughout the whole earth, to shew himself strong in the behalf of them whose heart is perfect toward him. (2 Chronicles 16: 9) Today everyone in the world looks at mobile phones a day, but not many will find God. We must wake up from darkness. Not finding God who made us shall be the reason for our failure.

God saves the repentant from the power of darkness and moves us into the kingdom of his loving son. The beginning of salvation comes from darkness. In whom we have redemption through his blood, even the forgiveness of sins: (Colossians 1:14) “redemption through his blood” This means:God pays Satan the cost of his Son's blood to buy the repentant. Then we become the Lord's possession. It is the same as buying and selling slaves. When in darkness, all belonged to Satan. Knowing this, that our old man is crucified with him, that the body of sin might be destroyed, that henceforth we should not serve sin. (Romans 6: 6)

When the Hebrews were Pharaoh's slaves, they could not come out of. The people could come out of Egypt after the doorposts were painted with the blood of the Lamb. The blood of Jesus does not remove sin, but serves to escape from darkness. God washes away the sins of those who repent and escape from darkness with Jesus' blood. The blood of Jesus has two meanings. The first is redemption and the second is forgiveness. But most churches today speak only of the second. If the church does not speak redemption, it is not saved.

『And they shall take of the blood, and strike it on the two side posts and on the upper door post of the houses, wherein they shall eat it.』(Exodus 12:7) Redemption precedes forgiveness of sins. Redemption is buying a repentant sinner from Satan. Those who do not know this believe that they have been forgiven of their sins by the blood of Jesus, but are still in darkness.『And ye shall keep it up until the fourteenth day of the same month: and the whole assembly of the congregation of Israel shall kill it in the evening.』 (Exodus 12:6) The death of a sheep is like the death of a sinner. The dead sheep and the sinner are the same. Jesus' death is my death. This is the union with Jesus who died on the cross. Just as Jesus suffered the wrath of God, so are those who are united with Jesus on the cross. Jesus was crucified around nine o'clock in the morning, and he died in pain at four o'clock in the afternoon. The same sufferer in Jesus Christ. By noon, it was dark all over the land. God's wrath was upon Jesus Christ. When a repentant sinner becomes one with the death of Jesus Christ, God's wrath is upon him. This is redemption. So never live in sin again.

Although many Christians believe that Jesus is the Son of God, and all my sins are washed away by the blood of Jesus, they cannot be saved unless they are redeemed. Just as the Lamb's death is associated with the sinner's death, salvation cannot be received unless Jesus' death is associated with the sinner's death. What is it that unites with the death of Jesus? If you do not realize that you are a sinner to die to God, can you be united to the death of Jesus? Are you bothered by the sins of the past and willing to be free from the pain?

He who suffers from past sins finds greed in his heart. So we learn that the cause of sin is greed. We must kill greed on the cross. The victory in the battle with oneself is God's grace. Although believing in Jesus is not saved, the victor in the battle with himself is one who is united with Jesus. Those who overcome temptation are born again. The one who wins the battle with himself becomes the one who is born again. To win the battle with yourself, to strip of greed and dress in Christ. This is resurrection and regeneration.