In preparation for an upcoming sermon series in Colossians, I’ve been reading through the first chapter. I came across a simple phrase in verse 17 that has made a big impression upon me, “in Him [Jesus] all things hold together.” Have you ever experienced a season in life when you felt as if everything was falling apart? Professionally, relationally, financially everything that could go wrong did go wrong. Maybe you are in the midst of one of those seasons right now. You can hardly catch your breath before something else comes along and drags you back down under the water again. How do you hold yourself together when everything seems to be falling apart?
A few months ago we finished packing up all the Christmas decorations preparing them for another year of storage. Perhaps the most meaningful decoration of them all is the ceramic nativity scene we have. We’re trying to preserve it, so that it stays with us every Christmas and provides that nostalgia every time the kids pull it out of the box. This has proved challenging as we have four kids in the house. My son Judah thinks the Holy family is an action figure set. Needless to say, every year, before putting the nativity scene away, we need to perform super glue surgery. After twelve years of intense action, virtually every head, limb, and accessory is held together with super glue.
Our little nativity scene is a great allegory for life. Let’s face it, stuff happens. Life can often leave us broken and bruised and whether we’ve been the cause of our own pain, or someone else is responsible, we could really use some super glue surgery from time to time. It’s during those times that you want to crack open your Bible to Colossians 1 and speak these six words over your life – “In Him all things hold together!”
In Colossians 1:16, the previous verse, Paul says, “all things have been created through him [Jesus] and for him.” Have you ever thought of yourself as being created for Jesus? You are of inestimable worth to Jesus Christ. He paid the ultimate price by dying a bloody death on the cross in order to redeem your life. The next time you catch yourself thinking that your life is beyond repair, your marriage is impossible, or your future hopeless, remember that you are a treasure to Jesus Christ. It’s his desire to present you as pure, spotless, and unblemished before God the Father. And so, there’s my metaphor for the day “Super-glue Jesus.” It’s in his best interests to present you before God in one piece. I hope this inspires you!