Focus Scripture: Colossians 1:18-23

¹⁸Christ is the head of the church, which is his body. He is the first of all who will rise from the dead, so he is first in everything. ¹⁹For God in all his fullness was pleased to live in Christ, ²⁰and by him God reconciled everything to himself. He made peace with everything in heaven and on earth by means of his blood on the cross. ²¹This includes you who were once so far away from God. You were his enemies, separated from him by your evil thoughts and actions, ²²yet now he has brought you back as his friends. He has done this through his death on the cross in his own human body. As a result, he has brought you into the very presence of God, and you are holy and blameless as you stand before him without a single fault. ²³But you must continue to believe this truth and stand in it firmly. Don’t drift away from the assurance you received when you heard the Good News. The Good News has been preached all over the world, and I, Paul, have been appointed by God to proclaim it.     Colossians 1:18-23

JESUS ____________________GOD!

¹⁸Christ is the head of the church, which is his body. He is the first of all who will rise from the dead, so he is first in everything. ¹⁹For God in all his fullness was pleased to live in Christ …  Colossians 1:18-19

GOD RECONCILES ____________________ TO HIMSELF BY THE BLOOD OF JESUS!

²⁰and by him God reconciled everything to himself. He made peace with everything in heaven and on earth by means of his blood on the cross.  Colossians 1:20

²²In fact, we can say that according to the law of Moses, nearly everything was purified by sprinkling with blood. Without the shedding of blood, there is no forgiveness of sins.   Hebrews 9:22

GOD RECONCILES ____________________TO HIMSELF BY THE BLOOD OF JESUS!

²¹This includes you who were once so far away from God. You were his enemies, separated from him by your evil thoughts and actions, ²²yet now he has brought you back as his friends. He has done this through his death on the cross in his own human body. As a result, he has brought you into the very presence of God, and you are holy and blameless as you stand before him without a single fault.  Colossians 1:21-22

TO EXPERIENCE THE POWER OF THE BLOOD IN OUR LIVES WE MUST ____________________ AND ____________________ ____________________!

²³But you must continue to believe this truth and stand in it firmly. Don’t drift away from the assurance you received when you heard the Good News. The Good News has been preached all over the world, and I, Paul, have been appointed by God to proclaim it.  Colossians 7:28

Answers:    Is, Everything, You, Believe, Stand Firm

Consumer Reports published a booklet with the intriguing title How to Clean Practically Anything. Did you know that glycerin will remove stains made by a ball-point pen? Boiling water can remove berry stains. Parents of small children should keep a gallon of vinegar handy to get rid of crayon marks. Bleach works well for mildew. Lemon juice performs minor miracles on rust stains.

What you won’t find in the booklet is how to deal with the most serious stain of all – the stain made on your life by sin. Deep, ugly stains made by hostile words and shame-filled actions. Tears won't touch them. Zeal can't erase them. At times we are convinced that we have gotten on with our lives and the sins are gone, but in an unguarded moment we notice the stain seeping through.

The Bible tells us just what we need: "The blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin" (1 John 1:7). That's the only remedy that works.

We may whitewash sin, but only Jesus' blood can truly wash it white.