Colossians 1:3-8 Amplified Bible
3 We give thanks to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, as we pray always for you, 4 for we have heard of your faith in Christ Jesus [how you lean on Him with absolute confidence in His power, wisdom, and goodness], and of the [unselfish] [a]love which you have for all the saints (God’s people); 5 because of the [confident] hope [of experiencing that] which is reserved and waiting for you in heaven. You previously heard of this hope in the message of truth, the gospel [regarding salvation] 6 which has come to you. Indeed, just as in the whole world the gospel is constantly bearing fruit and spreading [by God’s power], just as it has been doing among you ever since the day you first heard of it and understood the grace of God in truth [becoming thoroughly and deeply acquainted with it]. 7 You learned it from [our representative] Epaphras, our beloved fellow bond-servant, who is a faithful minister of Christ on our behalf 8 and he also has told us of your love [well-grounded and nurtured] in the [Holy] Spirit.
The Word of God for the Children of God.
Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost;
as it was in the beginning,
is now, and ever shall be,
world without end. Amen, amen.
It is so cliché to say life is uncertain, yet Jesus offers us a steadfast promise—eternal life. His words are as reliable as the sunrise, as sure as a parent’s love.
On that miraculous night Jesus’ miraculous birth brought to all of us heaven’s promise to earth, “a heavenly light has been revealed, shined in the dark and the darkness could not do anything about it” and through His teachings and sacrificial death, He paid sin’s death penalty with eternal life. His resurrection affirms exactly what He promised. This, my friends, is as certain as the sunrise.
This promise of eternal life begins with the miraculous birth of our Savior, a child called Immanuel, “God with Us,” an event both prophesied and fulfilled.
1. Christmas Reminds Each One of Us to Trust God’s Promises
Every day, we trust the sun to rise; we never doubt its appearance because it has always been faithful. In the same way, we anchor our confidence in eternal life in God’s faithfulness and the consistency of His promises. Just as we rely on the sunrise, sunset, we can trust that God will fulfill His word regarding eternal life.
Hundreds of years before Jesus’ birth, the prophet Isaiah foretold,
“For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given… and His name shall be called Mighty God…” (Isaiah 9:6).
Jesus’ miraculous birth, born of a virgin (Luke 1:27), and the fulfillment of countless prophecies are miracles that only God could accomplish.
With this same divine authority, Jesus declared it was time to get our lives in line with God through repentance, forgiveness of sins and promised eternal life—a promise validated by His resurrection, as steadfast, certain as a rising sun.
Jesus’ humble arrival in a manger was the only One who could ensure salvation and life everlasting as 2 Corinthians 5:21 explains:
“He made Him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.”
The Savior’s life, His wise teachings, His miracle of feeding the thousands, His healings, stilling the storm, giving life to the dead, His inclusion of all classes of people (Mat. 11:28-30) unveiling before the veiled eyes of humanity, the forever expanding-length, depth, height, breadth, widest possible expanses of God’s own coming Kingdom, providing ample instruction in faith, hope, trust, love.
2. Jesus Unveils God’s Kingdom and Secures Our Faith
The sovereign authority of God upholds, and the law guarantees a legally binding contract—whether for a job, a home, or a covenant commitment.
Similarly, God, the ultimate Lawgiver, “seals” His unbreakable word: “When you believed, you were marked in Him with a seal” (Ephesians 1:13-14), the guarantee of inheritance in eternal life. God’s word, unlike earthly contracts, is more enduring, engaging, because they’re backed by His unchanging nature.
Jesus revealed the way to eternity, declaring, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me” (John 14:6). His sinless life exemplified His teachings as a model of righteousness and eternal values.
His words, like a covenant, indestructibly rooted in God’s authority, are impossible to void. Unlike human agreements, God’s word is absolute and faithful: “God is not human, that he should lie, not a human being, that he should change his mind…Does he promise and not fulfill?” (Numbers 23:19).
Through Jesus, we can safely place our faith in a covenant as unbreakable as the most binding contract—yet far more enduring, secured by God Himself. Jesus secured this covenant by accomplishing redemption for our sins on the cross.
3. Jesus’ Victory Over Death Confirms Our Hope in Eternity
When a close friend promises to help in a challenging time, we believe them based on a long history trust built through shared history and proven loyalty.
We don’t have to question whether or when, they will show up because they have repeatedly revealed that they are 100% dependable. In the same way, God demonstrated His faithfulness in sending Jesus, and we can trust His promise of eternal life as surely as we would trust a BFF friend who has never let us down.
Martin Luther echoed this trust, saying, “When I look at myself, I don’t see how I can be saved. When I look at Christ, I don’t see how I can be lost.”
Through His birth, His teachings, and the ultimate sacrifice on the cross, Jesus proved He speaks the truth as a loving friend and Savior, exchanging our sin for His righteousness. Reverend Dr. A. W. Tozer says, “The only sin Jesus ever had was ours. And the only righteousness we can ever has is His.”
The blood of Jesus “cleanses us from all sin” (1 John 1:7-9). His resurrection and ascension provides the final heavenly assurance that Jesus has paid the ransom, met sin’s penalty and was accepted by God the Father as an atonement.
Jesus’ resurrection captured sin’s death penalty, replaced it with eternal life.
4. Jesus’ Resurrection Proves Our Victory Over Death Is Certain
The resurrection proves that Jesus has power over sin and death, validating His identity as the Son of God and affirming every promise He’s made.
It’s the ultimate assurance that believers, too, will share in victory over death and receive the gift of eternal life. By rising from the dead, Jesus confirmed His role as Savior and Lord, providing us a secure foundation for our trust in God.
Peter declares in Acts 2:24,
“God raised Him from the dead, freeing Him from the agony of death, because it was impossible for death to keep its hold on Him.”
Jesus is the resurrection and the life. “The one who believes in me will live, even though they die; whoever lives by believing in me will never die” (John 11:25-26).
Resurrection is the cornerstone and certainty of our own resurrection.
1 Corinthians 15:20-22 states, “But Christ has indeed been raised from the dead, the first fruits of those who have fallen asleep.”
Just as basic mathematical truths—2 + 2 always equaling 4—are unchanging, so is the iron clad reliability of God’s word and assurance of victory over death.
Mathematical principles remain constant, and likewise, so do God’s promises.
Author Lee Strobel captures this assurance: “Jesus Christ did not come into this world to make bad people good; he came into this world to make dead people live.”
Believing in Jesus, “that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life,” (John 3:16), we live by faith— the very basis of eternal life.
5. Faith in Christ Secures Our Eternal Life
Most of us experience the unwavering love of a parent or close family member. Likewise, God’s love and our security in Him are even more assured. Just as a parent’s love for a child endures, God’s love is even deeper and unending.
The apostle John, known as Jesus’ “beloved disciple,” writes of this confidence in 1 John 5:13: “I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God so that you may know that you have eternal life.”
John’s message of assurance is powerful;
he walked with Jesus, ate with Jesus, witnessed His crucifixion, and saw His resurrected body. His words remind believers faith in Jesus is eternal, forever.
Salvation is God’s gift of grace—not earned but received by faith (Ephesians 2:8-9).
Faith isn’t “hoping so” or wishful thinking—it’s a confident trust rooted in Jesus! Faith fully trusts God’s promises, not because we cross our fingers or “hope for the best,” but because He has proven Himself faithful time and again.
This is the faith that gives justification from sin and peace with God (Romans 5:1).
It is certain, like relying on the sunrise or the unchanging nature of God’s Word, rather than the fleeting assurances the world offers.
The great British preacher Charles Spurgeon helps us understand:
“Saving faith is an immediate relation to Christ, accepting, receiving, resting upon Him alone, for justification, sanctification, eternal life by virtue of God’s grace.”
Fully assured of what God promises through faith in Jesus, we can live into, we can live out from that faith, shining out into darkness, the truth of eternal life.
By our spiritual discipline, prioritizing time in God’s presence through prayer and studying His Word deepens holiness and shapes us to be more like Jesus.
As 1 John 2:5 says, ‘If anyone obeys His word, love for God is truly made complete in them.’
With confidence in the unshakable promise of eternal life, Christmas becomes a sacred invitation to share with others the true message of the season—a Gospel message of redemption, hope, and eternal assurance in Christ that the world so desperately needs.
Finally, as blessed, as miraculous, as certain as the sunrise, as the sunset, as unbreakable as a trusted promise, as enduring as a parent’s love, and presence, as unchanging as mathematical laws, God’s declarations stand steadfast, firm.
The birth, life, teachings, sacrificial death, and glorious resurrection of Jesus all confirm His promise of eternal life. Yes, you can be certain of heaven! Let’s read this verse again: “I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, so that you may know that you have eternal life (1 John 5:13).
In the name of God, the Father and God the Son and God the Holy Spirit,
Let us Pray,
Psalm 121 Authorized (King James) Version
Psalm 121
A Song of degrees.
1 I will lift up mine eyes unto the hills,
from whence cometh my help.
2 My help cometh from the Lord,
which made heaven and earth.
3 He will not suffer thy foot to be moved:
he that keepeth thee will not slumber.
4 Behold, he that keepeth Israel
shall neither slumber nor sleep.
5 The Lord is thy keeper:
the Lord is thy shade upon thy right hand.
6 The sun shall not smite thee by day,
nor the moon by night.
7 The Lord shall preserve thee from all evil:
he shall preserve thy soul.
8 The Lord shall preserve thy going out and thy coming in
from this time forth, and even for evermore.
Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost;
as it was in the beginning,
is now, and ever shall be,
world without end. Amen, amen.
Loving God, Living God, Loving Hope, Living Hope, Loving Living Life His Way! "Many things are possible for the person who has hope. Even more is possible for the person who has faith. And still more is possible for the person who knows how to love. But everything is possible for the person who practices all three virtues." - Brother Lawrence (1605-1691), Practicing the Presence of God (1692). 