VERSE 12:
“Giving thanks unto the Fatherer, which hath made us meet to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in light;”
“Giving thanks unto the Father,”
Literally: “giving thanks to the Fath”–Knowing that you have nothing but what you have received from His mercy, and that in point of merit you can never claim anything from Him. The heretics (gnostics) had said that there is no direct contact between God and man, but Paul here claims that the believer can give thanks personally and directly to his heavenly Father.
This is another way by which we may “walk worthy of the Lord unto all pleasing,” (v. 10); that is, by rendering appropriate thanks to God for His mercy. The particular point which Paul here says demanded thanksgiving was that they had been called from the kingdom of darkness to the kingdom of light. This had been done by the special mercy of the Father,
Who had devised the plan of salvation, and had sent His Son to redeem them.
Giving thanks unto the Father. In the midst of the trials which call for patience and long-suffering, still joyful and thankful to the Father that He hath made us fit to be partakers.
FATHER: (Grk.–Patēra)–This is referring not just to God as the Father of His creatures, but to the Father as distinguished from the Son.
It is the “Father” Who has translated us into the kingdom of the “Son.” Our especial thanks are due to the “Father” in this, as He is represented as the great Author of the whole Plan of Salvation as He who sent His Son to redeem us. Paul gives three reasons why the Father is worthy of thanks.
1. Because He Made Us Meet (v. 12b)
2. Because he has Delivered Us (v. 13a)
3. Because He has Translated Us (v. 13b)
REASON #1 WHY THE FATHER IS WORTHY OF THANKS
Because He Has Made Us “Meet” (Acceptable)
“which hath made us meet”
Literally: “Who has made us fit”— Past perfect tense: meaning a past action never to be repeated.
Not “is making us meet” by progressive growth in holiness; but once for all has made us meet. It is not primarily the Spirit's work that is meant here, but the Father's work in putting us by adoption, once for all, in a new standing, namely, that of children. The believers meant here were in different stages of progressive sanctification; but in respect to the meetness specified here, they all alike had it from the Father, in Christ His Son, being “complete in Him” (2:10).
Compare John 17:17; Jude 1:1, “sanctified by God the Father;” (I Cor. 1:30). Still, secondarily, this once-for-all fitness contains in it the germ of sanctification, afterwards developed progressively in the life by the Father's Spirit in the believer. The Christian life of heavenliness is the first stage of heaven itself. There must, and will be, a personal fitness for heaven, where there is a judicial fitness.
HAVING MADE US MEET: (Grk.–hikanōsanti)–Literally: “having made fit.”
Who has qualified us to be partakers, The Greek word used here (hikanoō), means, literally, “to make sufficient,” from (hikanos), whiich means, “sufficient, abundant, much.”
The word conveys the idea of having sufficient or enough to accomplish anything, (II Cor. 3:6). The verb is used nowhere elsewhere in the N.T. In its use here, there seems to be implied the idea of conferring the privilege or the ability to be thus made the partakers of the kingdom, and the idea also of rendering us fit for it. The sense is, He has conferred on us grace sufficient to make it proper that we should partake of the blessings of His kingdom. In regard to this “meetness” we may remark,
1. That it does not mean that we are rendered fit by our own merits, or by anything which we have done; for it is expressly said that it is God Himself who has thus rendered us “meet.” No one, by his own merits, ever made himself fit for heaven. His good works cannot be an equivalent for the eternal rewards of heaven, Yet…
2. There is a fitness which Christians possess for heaven. It consists in two things.
a. In their having complied with the conditions on which God promises heaven; so that, although they have no merit in themselves, and no fitness by their own works, they have that meetness which results from having complied with the terms of favor
b. There is, in fact, a fitness in the Christian for the participation of the inheritance of the saints in light.
He has a state of feeling that is adapted to that.
There is a congruity between his feelings and heaven; a state of mind that can be satisfied with nothing but heaven.
“to be partakers of the inheritance”
Literally: “for the share of the inheritance”–The privileges of our faith are often represented as an heirship, or an inheritance—“And if children, then heirs; heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Christ…” (Romans 8:17). This is probably an allusion to the division of the Promised Land by lot among the different families of the twelve Israelite tribes.
PARTAKERS: (Grk.–merida)–Literally: “sharers.” The merida was the portion in that lot which belonged to each family of that tribe.
INHERITANCE: (Grk.–kleros)-–The kleros was the lot, or inheritance, belonging to the tribes of Israel. This was a type of the kingdom of God, in which portions of eternal blessedness are dispensed to the genuine Israelites; to them who have the circumcision of the heart by the Spirit, whose praise is of God, and not of man.
This is clearly an allusion to the land of Canaan, which was divided by lot to the children of Israel, according to the will and purpose of God; and because it is not acquired by the works of men, but is a pure free grace gift of God, and which He, as the Father of His people, has bequeathed unto them. The Spirit is the Earnest of the believer’s inheritance portion. It is none other than that inheritance which is incorruptible and undefiled, and which fades not away. This includes all things they shall inherit, and even God Himself, Who is their portion, their inheritance, their exceeding great reward, and of Whom they are said to be heirs. This is the inheritance “of the saints:”
1. Who are sanctified or set apart by God the Father in eternal election;
2. Who are sanctified by the blood of Christ, or whose sins are expiated by His atoning sacrifice;
3. Who are sanctified in Christ, or to whom He is made sanctification; and,
4. Who are sanctified by the Spirit of Christ, or have the work of sanctification begun upon their souls by Him
“of the saints in light”
Literally: “of the saints in light”–Light here it points out the state of glory at the right hand of God.
Called, “the kingdom of his dear Son” (v. 13), this is a Kingdom of Light, as opposed to the kingdom of darkness in which they formerly were. In the East, and particularly in Persia, there prevailed early the belief that there were two great kingdoms in the universe-that of light, and that of darkness. We find traces of this opinion in the Scriptures, where the kingdom of God is called “light,” and that of Satan is called “darkness.” These are, of course, figurative expressions; but they convey important truth.
Light, in the Scriptures, is the emblem of holiness, knowledge, happiness; and all these are found in the kingdom over which God presides, and of which Christians are the heirs. Accordingly, we find the word light often used to describe this kingdom. We know that it is said of God, Who presides over it,
1. That He “is light,”and “in Him is no darkness at all,” (I John 1:5); of Christ,
2. That He is “the light of man,” (John 1:4);
3. That He is the “true light,” (John 1:9);
4. That He is “the light of the world,” (John 8:12). Comp. John 12:35; Luke 2:32.
The angels of that kingdom are “angels of light,” (II Cor. 11:14). Those who compose that kingdom on earth are “the children of light,” (Luke 16:8, I Thess. 5:5). And all the descriptions of that kingdom in heaven represent it as filled with light and glory, (Isaiah 60:19, Rev. 21:23; 22:5).
VERSE 13:
“Who hath delivered us from the power of darkness, and hath translated {us} into the kingdom of His dear Son:”
REASON #2 WHY THE FATHER IS WORTHY OF THANKS:
Because He Has Delivered Us
“Who delivered us from the power of darkness”
Literally: “Who delivered us out of the authority of darkness”–Believers have been rescued from “the power of darkness;” that is, the dark kingdom of Satan.
The characteristic of this empire is darkness-the emblem of sin, error, misery and death. Over us; by nature, these things had uncontrollable power; but now we are delivered from them, and brought to the enjoyment of the privileges of those who are connected with the kingdom of light. Darkness is often used to represent the state in which men are by nature. Comp. Luke 1:79; Acts 26:18; Romans 13:12; 1 Peter 2:9; I John 2:8.
DELIVERED: (Grk.–errusato)–Literally: “to rescue; to save; to deliver from or out of.” God rescued us out from (ek) the power (exousias) of the kingdom of darkness (skotous) in which we were held as slaves.
POWER: (Grk.–exousia)-–Literally: authority, and sway. All people, Jews and Gentiles alike, which had not embraced the Gospel,are here seen as being under this authority and power.
Paul intimates here that nothing less than the power of God can redeem a man from this darkness, or the prince of darkness, who, by means of sin and unbelief, keeps men in ignorance, vice, and misery.
DARKNESS: (Grk.–skotus)–This concept of darkness includes opposition to the light as well as an absence of it. The unbeliever is not only without God in the world, but he is also against God. This is a realm of moral rebellion, insubordination and creaturely independence from God and all that is holy.
The phrase, “the power of darkness,” also appears in Luke’s account of Jesus’ arrest in Gethsemane, where He says to the men who have come to apprehend Him:
“…Be ye come out, as against a thief with swords and staves?
“When I was daily with you in the temple ye stretched forth no hands against Me; but this is your hour, and the power of darkness.” (Luke 22:52-53).
These last words of Jesus’ refer to the supernatural forces of Satan that were marshaled against Him. The dark power did indeed have its brief hour of opportunity against the Son of man, but it was only a brief hour, and it ended in the utter defeat of the power of darkness. And now, by virtue of His conquest there on the cross, Christ now has the authority to raid the domain of darkness and rescue those who had hither to been bound under its control.
No doubt, Paul has the Colossian heresy in view, for those very guardians of the world of darkness, the “rulers of the darkness of this world,” as he calls them in Eph. 6:12, were the very ones of whom Paul was giving fair warning to these Colossian believers.
REASON #3 WHY THE FATHER IS WORTHY OF THANKS:
Because He Has Translated Us
“and hath translated (us) into the kingdom of His dear Son:”
Literally: “and translated us into the kingdom of the Son of His love”–God has thoroughly changed our state, brought us out of the dark region of vice and impiety, and placed us in the kingdom under the government of His dear Son; the Person Whom, in His infinite love, He has given to make an atonement for the sin of the world.
TRANSLATED: (Grk.–metestesen)–This Greek word here rendered “translated,” often used in the sense of removing a people from one country to another. See Josephus, Ant. ix. 11.1. Here it means that they who are Christians have been transferred from one kingdom to another, as if a people were thus removed.
This Greek word metestesen is used five times in the N.T.: of putting out of the stewardship (Luke 16:4); of the removal of Saul from the kingdom (Acts 13:22); of Paul turning away much people (Acts 19:26); and of removing mountains (I Cor. 13:2); as well as here in this verse.
Believers become subjects of a new kingdom, are under different laws, and belong to a different community. This change is made in regeneration, by which we pass from the kingdom of darkness to the kingdom of light; from the empire of sin, ignorance, and misery, to one of holiness, knowledge, and happiness. No change, therefore, in a man's life is so important as this; and no words can suitably express the gratitude which they should feel who are thus transferred from the empire of darkness to that of light.
“into the kingdom of His dear Son:”
Literally: “of the Son of His love.”–The Son Who is the object of His love, and to Whom the kingdom is given.
Not into the Kingdom of Glory; for though the saints are heirs of it, and rejoice in hope of it, they have not yet an entrance into it; which they will have abundantly when Christ shall introduce them into it, not only as His Father's, but as His own kingdom and glory. The Kingdom of Grace is meant here, or that state of grace, light, and life, which such are brought into, when rescued out of Satan's grasp, and recovered out of their former state of ignorance and infidelity.
VERSES 14-18: EXALTATION OF CHRIST
Paul now begins to get to the Christological “meat” of his subject; that is, the preeminence of Christ. In v. 14 he shows Christ’s preeminence in relationship to sin; that He is preeminent because He is the Redeemer.
IN REDEMPTION
In the following passage the Person of Christ is defined as related to God and to creation; and absolute supremacy is claimed for Him.
VERSE 14:
“In Whom we have redemption through His blood {even} the forgiveness of sins.”
The primary error of the Judaistic Gnostic heresy centered in its concept of the Person and redemptive work of Jesus Christ. These false teachers denied the real deity and humanity of the incarnate Son of God (2:18-19). Through their emphasis on legalism and intellectualism, they denied the efficacy of Christ’s subsitutionary atonement and physical resurrection (2:13-17). In effect, what they had done is to reduce Christ to a creature, howbeit, the most powerful and intelligent being within the universe, but nonetheless still a creature. They taught that he was like God, but not the same as God.
“In Whom we have redemption”–Who has paid down the redemption price, even His own blood, that our sins might be cancelled, and we made fit to be partakers of the inheritance among the saints in light.
Sphere of the Redemption: “in Whom”
REDEMPTION: There are three Greek words in the New Testament which are translated by the one English word redemption.
1. (agorazō)–meaning, “to buy at the marketplace.” (see I Cor. 6:20)
It means to go shopping in the market place and purchase an item.
2. (exagorazō)–meaning, “to buy out of the market.”
a. It has the thought of buying something for one’s own use.
b. It means to take goods out of the market place and never to sell them again, but rather to keep them for one’s own us
(see Gal. 3:13).
3. (apolutrōsis)-–meaning, “to liberate by the payment of a ransom in order to set a person free.”
a. It means not only to go into the marketplace and put cash on the barrel head;
b. It means not only to take it out of the market for your own private us, never to sell it to anyone else, but.
c. It also means to set free or to liberate after paying the purchase price. This is the one that Paul is using here.
This bears with it the application of buying a slave out of slavery in order to set him free, and this is the word for redemption that we have here in this verse and in Eph. 1:7.
1. Man has been sold under sin and is in bondage to sin.
All you need to do is to look around to see that this is true.
2. Man is a rotten, corrupt sinner and he cannot do anything else but sin.
He is a slave to sin. Christ came to pay the price of man’s freedom.
This is what the Lord Jesus means when he said, “If the Son therefore shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed” (John 8:36). The redemption price is, “through His blood.” That was the price which He paid, (I Peter 1:18-19). The passage here proves that we obtain forgiveness of sins through the blood of Christ; but it does not prove that this is all that we obtain through that blood.
Possession of the Redemption:
“we have” (Grk.–echomen)
This indicates that our redemption is a present possession. No doubt is indicated through any wishful expression such as, “We think we have.” Its enjoyment is not projected into the future: such as, “We will have someday;” rather, this is a bold statement of a fact for NOW.
Means of the Redemption: “through His blood”–
“through His blood”–While He was here, Christ redeemed us, and that redemption is through His blood. This is something that is not popular today. Most people want a beautiful religion, one that appeals to their esthetic nature.
Men are not saved by the birth of Christ, nor by His perfect example. In order to secure our salvation He had to die a predetermined type of death–the death of the cross. From the death of the innocent animal in the Garden of Eden to Christ’s death on the cross, one can trace a continuity of blood sacrifices.
The passage here proves that we obtain forgiveness of sins through the blood of Christ; but it does not prove that this is all that we obtain through that blood. The cross of Christ does not appeal to the esthetic part of man; it doesn’t appeal to the pride of man. It is repulsive to man, but it is through the blood of Christ that we have redemption.
Result of the Redemption: “forgiveness of sin”
“the forgiveness of sins”
Literally: “the remission of sins”–The taking away of sins; all the power, guilt, and infection of sin. All sin of every kind, with all its influence and consequences. This phrase is omitted in the oldest manuscripts; probably inserted from Eph. 1:7
REMISSION: (Grk.–aphesian)-–Literally: Forgiveness, which defines remission. This Greek word seems to be an allusion to the perversion of the term apolutrōsis by the Gnostics. The Gnostics used it to signify the result of initiation into certain of the mystery religions.
The idea of a redemption of the world, and (in a perverted form) of the person and work of Christ as having a part in it, distinctively marked the teaching of the Gnostics.