Christ in You, the Hope of Glory (Colossians 1:27)
The Holy Spirit's presence is the down payment of eternal life.
Although we’ve officially finished going verse-by-verse through Colossians 1, I want to double back for one more look at a specific verse that calls for special attention before moving on to Colossians 2.
To them God chose to make known how great among the Gentiles are the riches of the glory of this mystery, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory.
- Colossians 1:27, ESV
Last week, we examined this “mystery” that Paul writes of. This is the mystery, once typified, prophesied, and concealed but now revealed: God’s merciful plan for the Gentiles’ salvation.
But this week I want to zoom in on the phrase “Christ in you, the hope of glory”. While the context of v. 27 clearly points to the meaning of “Christ in you” as “Christ in you Gentiles” I believe the “hope of glory” element is worth extra consideration in a different albeit connected way.
The Hope of Glory
What does Paul mean by the phrase “the hope of glory”? And how does “Christ in you [us]” form this hope?
The hope of glory is the hope of future glory at the Resurrection and the New Heavens and New Earth. This is the glory to which all Christians look and for which we all hope.
When Paul writes to the Romans and declares that our present sufferings will not compare to “the glory that is to be revealed to us” (Rom. 8:18), he goes on to define this glory as the Resurrection:
And not only the creation, but we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for adoption as sons, the redemption of our bodies.
- Romans 8:23, ESV
Similarly, Paul writes to the Corinthian church about the “eternal weight of glory” (2 Cor. 4:17) and speaks of it in this way:
For we know that if the tent that is our earthly home is destroyed, we have a building from God, a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens. For in this tent we groan, longing to put on our heavenly dwelling, if indeed by putting it on we may not be found naked. For while we are still in this tent, we groan, being burdened—not that we would be unclothed, but that we would be further clothed, so that what is mortal may be swallowed up by life. He who has prepared us for this very thing is God, who has given us the Spirit as a guarantee.
- 2 Corinthians 5:1-5, ESV
Here, Paul is using the metaphor of a “dwelling” to refer to our bodies. The “tent that is our earthly home” is our mortal body. When Christ returns we shall trade the perishable for the imperishable:
I tell you this, brothers: flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God, nor does the perishable inherit the imperishable. Behold! I tell you a mystery. We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised imperishable, and we shall be changed. For this perishable body must put on the imperishable, and this mortal body must put on immortality.
- 1 Corinthians 15:50-53, ESV
As we can see from these passages, Paul presents the Resurrection and entrance into the New Heavens and New Earth as the “glory” which Christians are to look forward to.
Christ in You
How then is “Christ in you” the hope of this “glory”?
Let’s revisit some of the passages above and look at a few more:
First, Romans 8:23, quoted above in full, speaks of the “firstfruits of the Spirit”. The firstfruits refers to the initial bringing in of the harvest, before the full harvest was brought in. It was literally the “first fruits” of the harvest. So when Paul writes that we have the “firstfruits of the Spirit” he is saying something about the harvest at the end of the age: the Resurrection. He is saying that the presence of the Holy Spirit in Christians is the “firstfruits” of that harvest. The harvest has already begun! The Resurrection harvest has commenced with a spiritual resurrection in our hearts through the regeneration and indwelling of the Holy Spirit.
Second, 2 Corinthians 5:5 reads as follows: “He who has prepared us for this very thing is God, who has given us the Spirit as a guarantee.” The word Paul uses here for “guarantee” is arrabōn in Greek. This word speaks of a “down payment”.
Let’s say I owed you $1,000. As a guarantee that I would one day complete that payment I give you a “down payment” of $200. Now I still owe $800 but you have some money from me that guarantees that the rest is coming.
In the same way, arrabōn refers to a payment that is a guarantee of future payment, from the original payment. In other words, the Spirit being our arrabōn means that the presence of the Holy Spirit in our hearts is the proof that God gives that He will indeed resurrect us bodily in glory at the end of the age. Furthermore, the presence of the Holy Spirit indwelling believers is glory cut from the same cloth of that Resurrection. It is the inauguration of that same Resurrection glory.
Paul writes similarly to the Ephesian church:
In him you also, when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and believed in him, were sealed with the promised Holy Spirit, who is the guarantee of our inheritance until we acquire possession of it, to the praise of his glory.
- Ephesians 1:13-14, ESV
Here we are said to be “sealed with the promised Holy Spirit” who guarantees for us our inheritance (the Resurrection in the New Heavens and New Earth).
And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption.
- Ephesians 4:30, ESV
Here, Paul says that the Holy Spirit seals Christians for the “day of redemption”, likely referring to the Resurrection.
Finally, we come back to Romans 8:
But if Christ is in you, although the body is dead because of sin, the Spirit is life because of righteousness. If the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, he who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through his Spirit who dwells in you.
- Romans 8:10-11, ESV
Here we have a great cross-reference for Colossians 1:27. Christ in you is associated with the indwelling of the Holy Spirit in believers. And this indwelling is the guarantee, the sure and steadfast hope, of future Resurrection glory. This same Spirit that dwells in you now will give life to your mortal bodies just as He has given life to your spirit.
Resurrection Life, Today
Because we have the indwelling of the Holy Spirit, we have the hope of glory and the inauguration of that glory in the present age.
As we battle sin and temptation, as we battle the darkness of our world, as we struggle to worship, let us rest in this truth: the Spirit indwells us and He is the guarantee of our future glory. He gives us power to overcome sin. He works through us to transform the world around us. And He draws our hearts to worship God in spirit and truth.
We can begin to taste the glory of resurrection life today, right now, as we walk in the Spirit.
En haima autou (By His blood)