The deer in our neighborhood and I have two different opinions about sunflowers. When I plant sunflowers each spring, I’m looking forward to the beauty of their blooms. My deer friends, however, don’t care about the finished product. They simply want to chew the stems and leaves until there’s nothing left. It’s an annual summertime battle as I try to see the sunflowers to maturity before my four-hoofed neighbors devour them. Sometimes I win; sometimes they win.
When we think about our lives as believers in Jesus, it’s easy to see a similar battle being waged between us and our enemy—Satan. Our goal is continual growth leading to spiritual maturity that helps our lives stand out for God’s honor. The devil wants to devour our faith and keep us from growing. But Jesus has dominion over “every power” and can bring us “to fullness” (Colossians 2:10), which means He makes us “complete.” Christ’s victory on the cross allows us to stand out in the world like those beautiful sunflowers.
When Jesus nailed the “record of the charges against us” (the penalty for our sins) to the cross (v. 14 nlt), He destroyed the powers that controlled us. We became “rooted and built up” (v. 7) and made “alive with Christ” (v. 13). In Him we have the power (v. 10) to resist the enemy’s spiritual attacks and to flourish in Jesus—displaying a life of true beauty.
By Dave Branon
REFLECT & PRAY
In what areas does the enemy try to nibble away at your growing spiritual maturity? Why is it vital for you to call out to God when you experience spiritual attacks?
Loving God, make my life beautiful for You. Help me to resist the enemy through Your power because I can’t do it on my own. Thank You for Jesus’ death and resurrection—my source of hope, power, and courage.
SCRIPTURE INSIGHT
In Colossians 2:6–13, Paul highlights the idea of fullness. In verse 9, he uses the word plērōma, which refers to filling to capacity, to describe the extent to which Christ exemplifies and demonstrates deity. There’s no part of Jesus in which God doesn’t dwell; He’s fully God (see Colossians 1:15–20; Hebrews 1:3).
Conversely, in Colossians 2:10, Paul uses the verb plēroō to describe our being brought to fullness in Christ. Rather than fullness being something we have, it’s something that’s done to us and in us; we’re completed in Jesus. This word is often used to describe the fulfillment of prophecies about Christ—they were fulfilled—giving the word the sense of completion or accomplishment.
J.R. Hudberg
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