Redeemed From What? Series

On 23 May 1939, the brand new submarine USS Squalas was undergoing sea trials just off the coast of New Hampshire. When it went to make a routine dive that fateful morning, her main engine air induction valve failed, allowing water to gush into the aft compartments, drowning 26 men. Within moments, the submarine sank and had come to rest on the ocean floor, 240 feet beneath the waves. Up until that time, there had been not successful rescue of a sunken submarine beyond 20 feet. The remaining crew, 33 men, crew lay helpless, crowed in the forward torpedo room of the Squalas at the bottom of the Atlantic Ocean. The crew sent up smoke flares, hoping that their location would become known. Her sister submarine, the USS Sculpin did locate them. Time was of the essence as the oxygen supply in that small compartment dwindled. The next day the USS Falcon arrived on scene with the brand new and untested ten-ton McCann Rescue Chamber. The Rescue Chamber was lowered numerous times, bringing to safety the 33 surviving crew members.

Here is the interesting thing: Not one of the thirty-three men said to their rescuers,

“I will think it over,” nor “I will wait for a more convenient season,” nor “I am in good condition as I am,” nor “Leave me alone, there is too much to give up,” nor “I don’t understand this rescue thing, I think I’ll wait until I do.” nor “Go away, I will save myself.”

All of those rescued instantly and gratefully accepted the means of escape from death.[1]

Interesting thing: We live in perilous times. But people often turns down being rescued because they are too comfortable being right where they are. There are even those that stare at death in the face, and fail to see the means of salvation. But the fact is, we live in a fallen broken world, a world marred by evil and death. Here is the problem, men love the darkness rather than the light:

John 3:19 (NKJV) And this is the condemnation, that the light has come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil.

People love the evil. They do not see that the darkness, the evil of the world has control over them. We wrestle with the evil powers, every day. Anyone here not tempted in some way every day?

Ephesians 6:12 (NKJV) For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places.

But we who are saved and we can begin to see the evil from which were rescued from. Evil that we would have never noticed except that the light of the gospel of Jesus Christ illuminated the evil. When we come into the light, we can clearly see the evil, that is why evil is done in the dark.

John 3:20–21 (NKJV) For everyone practicing evil hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his deeds should be exposed. 21 But he who does the truth comes to the light, that his deeds may be clearly seen, that they have been done in God.

That brings us to our focal passage today. To put our passage into context, Paul is expounding on the preeminence of Jesus Christ. The verses that follow today’s passage talks about how the universe came into being, that everything was created by Him and through Him and for Him. He is before all things and in Him all thing have their existence.

Considering all that, you have to wonder, why did Jesus save me? Why would Jesus take my sin upon himself and go to the cross for me? To answer that, we have to look, not into who we are, but look at who He is. Little wonder Paul writes about giving thanks:

Colossians 1:12 (NKJV) giving thanks to the Father who has qualified us to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in the light.

Giving thanks to God. The focus of these verses is the giving of thanks to God. We ought to be giving thanks for our salvation continually. Not only do we have salvation, but look at the little word, “qualified” other translation have “enabled.” God had qualified or enabled us to partake in the inheritance we have with Jesus. We talked about that inheritance last week. We were redeemed to inherit all things, to understand the mysteries of God. We, as the descendants of Adam, we have Adam’s sin nature, but God transforms us into the likeness of Christ so that we will be fit for heaven. John tells us that when we see Him, that is Jesus, we shall be like Him.