What is necessary for Christ to have preeminence in all things in the local church:

Col 2:8 Beware lest any man spoil you through philosophy and vain deceit, after the tradition of men, after the rudiments of the world, and not after Christ.

·       A church becomes spoiled when that which is of Christ is replaced with that which is of the world.

·       If you take a drink of spoiled milk what is you immediate reaction? You want to spit it out as quickly as possible.

·       In Rev 3:16 this is what the Lord Jesus Christ will do to the church in Laodicea. See why Paul mentioned his concern over this church in Col 2:1. A church that is neither cold nor hot is a spoiled church. I believe the church in Colosse was a hot church.  A cold church can be corrected by through God’s word. In a lukewarm church God’s word less important then feelings, tradition and philosophy. Paul wanted to stoke the fire under the church in Colosse and keep them HOT!

John 8:36; Rom 8:2; 1Cor 15:56 Since we are free indeed from the law of sin and death, we are free indeed to worship the Lord God and hold Christ in preeminence in all things.

Col 3:1a If ye then be risen with Christ

·       Col 2:12 Buried with him in baptism, wherein also ye are risen with him through the faith of the operation of God, who hath raised him from the dead.

Eph 2:6 And hath raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus: 

·       We who have accepted Christ as our savior are seated in Christ in Heaven at the right hand of the Father. (Jude 24)

·       This is not a future the operation of God; this has already happened. We are risen and we are now seated in heaven.

Phil 1:8, Heb 12:2, 1Pet 1:11 Jesus willingly endured the shame of the cross knowing the glory that would come and for the joy He would gain. We are part of that joy – Jude 24 - Rom 8:30 We are part of the glory

Col 2:13, Eph 2:1, 5 We have been quickened together with Christ.

Eph 1:17-20 The mighty power of God of our Lord Jesus Christ Which he wrought in Christ, when he raised him from the dead, and set him at his own right hand in the heavenly places,

“If ye then be risen with Christ” is Paul’s way of saying, “If you have been born again”.

There is a future operation of God that we hope for:

Rom 6:5 For if we have been planted together in the likeness of his death, we shall be also in the likeness of his resurrection:

·       This verses speaks of a shall be resurrection that will be after the likeness of His resurrection.

·       Christ did not die spiritually so he did not rise from a spiritual death. He died physically and rose again from a physical death of his body.

·       1Pet 3:18 For Christ also hath once suffered for sins, the just for the unjust, that he might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh, but quickened by the Spirit:

·       We have been spiritually planted and resurrected.

Ro 8:24-25 What is this hope that we have not seen?

• V8:23 And not only they, but ourselves also, which have the firstfruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting for the adoption, to wit, the redemption of our body. 
• We shall be planted physically and shall be resurrected physically as was the Son of God. We will be physically in heavenly places with Christ.
• Philp 3:9-12