Summary: Today's passage begins the heart of the apostle Paul's argument in his letter to the Colossians, and it's a passage that begs an obvious and inescapable question. Not - "Why are there so few praise songs about circumcision?" That's not the question. It's this one: "If you're already forgiven, they why bother following?" If you're already forgiven by Christ of every sin you've done, every sin you're sinning this very instant in your little head, every sin you will commit next week or next year - if you're already and for always forgiven by Christ, then why would you bother following him? If you've no reason to fear fire and brimstone, then what reason do you have to follow? Because you don't, you know, have any reason to fear. Fear God or fear for your salvation. That's the lie, the empty deceit, the false teaching, Paul admonishes the Colossians against in verse 8 where Paul warns them against any practices or philosophy that lure them into forgetting that Christ is Lord and in Christ God has defeated the power of Sin - with a capital S - and cancelled out the stain of all your "little s" sins. You are forgiven. You have no reason to fear. Because the whole reality of God (without remainder) dwells in Christ Jesus and, by your baptism, you've been incorporated into Christ fully and so you are fully restored to God. You have fullness with God through Christ in whom God fully dwells.
