Sermons on Colossians 1:12
The various sermons below converge on a core reading of Colossians 1:12: thanksgiving is not a decorative piety but the believer’s defining response to God’s prior action in Christ, who alone “qualifies” us to share the inheritance. They consistently root grateful praise in God as the source of every good gift and treat the inheritance as something already secured and experientially present to the believer—whether described as a settled disposition of contentment, an ordinary means of encountering the kingdom, or the liturgical/eschatological reality enacted in the Lord’s table. Nuances emerge in tone and imagery: one preacher uses everyday metaphors (a comic disappointment, a watch that always reads “now,” and a parody) to make thanksgiving palpably present-tense; another frames “giving thanks” in explicitly Eucharistic language, connecting qualification to the broken body and shed blood and to covenantal, juridical categories; and Lloyd-Jones-style readings press thanksgiving as the necessary test or evidence of sola gratia in the life of faith.
They diverge sharply, however, on how “qualification” functions theologically and pastorally. Some treat thanksgiving as a stable, inward posture of contentment and sanctification that opens believers into God’s present courts; others portray it as a combative, pneumatological weapon or doorway that actively summons God’s presence and blessing. A liturgical-theological reading makes the Eucharist the ontological/legal instrument by which participation is secured—explicitly countering Gnostic denials of Christ’s humanity—while a more forensic or pastoral account insists that the incarnate, cross-and-resurrection work of God alone sovereignly makes sinners “meet,” and that thankful praise is simply the inevitable outflow and verifying sign of that gift. There are also different extensions of “inheritance”: one sermon expands covenantal benefits to include healing, deliverance, even prosperity as covenantal goods, whereas another keeps the emphasis narrowly on salvation and sanctification as the ethical benchmark of true faith—
Colossians 1:12 Interpretation:
Gratitude: Embracing Eternal Blessings Over Material Possessions(Mauldin Methodist Church) reads Colossians 1:12 as a practical, pastorally framed three-part recipe for genuine Thanksgiving—(1) an appropriate attitude of contentment (distinguishing "joy" from fleeting "happiness"), (2) explicit acknowledgement that God is the source of every good thing, and (3) an active acceptance of the guaranteed inheritance Christ secures; the sermon moves from exegesis into applied metaphors (Snoopy’s Thanksgiving disappointment, a watch that always reads “now,” and the Publishers Clearing House parody) to show how believers live "now" in grateful trust because God has already "qualified" them to partake of the kingdom, and it emphasizes that Paul’s "joyfully giving thanks" is a settled, spiritual posture grounded in God's prior action rather than mere feeling.
Embracing Our Comprehensive Inheritance in Christ(FaithChurchCC & Frank Santora Ministries) treats Colossians 1:12 through a liturgical-theological lens, insisting Paul’s phrase “giving thanks” uses the same Greek root as Eucharist and that the reference to being “made fit to be partakers” points to the finished work of Christ—his real, embodied death and shed blood (the broken body and the cup), which both qualifies believers for the inheritance and directly rebuts Colossian-era Gnostic denials of Christ’s humanity; the sermon therefore interprets verse 12 not merely as an ethic of gratitude but as doctrinal testimony: the Eucharist (body and blood), the New Covenant, and the cross are the very grounds that "qualify" us to partake of the kingdom.
Thanksgiving Isn't a day..It's a Doorway!(North Pointe Church) reads Colossians 1:12 as an access statement: thanksgiving functions as the spiritual "doorway" or password into God's presence and into the blessings he has already qualified us to receive; the preacher links "qualified to share in the inheritance" to ongoing sanctification and presence ministry (thanksgiving opening the courts of God), and uses the verse to urge an applied theology of thankful praise as the ordinary means by which believers enter and experience the kingdom's life here and now.
Gratitude for God's Gift of Salvation(MLJ Trust) gives an extended exegetical reading of Colossians 1:12 that treats it as a hinge-verse: Lloyd-Jones argues Paul shifts from a general gospel description to a particular theological claim that genuine Christian identity is marked first by thankful praise because salvation is entirely God’s action; "made us meet" (fit/qualified) is pressed to mean God’s sovereign work—incarnation, cross, resurrection, justification, sanctification—that alone makes sinful human beings suitable to "partake of the inheritance of the saints in light," and thus thanksgiving is not peripheral piety but the necessary mark and test of true faith.
Colossians 1:12 Theological Themes:
Gratitude: Embracing Eternal Blessings Over Material Possessions(Mauldin Methodist Church) develops the theological theme that thankful joy is distinct from mere happiness and is a stable spiritual disposition rooted in being "qualified" by God—the sermon emphasizes a theology of contentment (living in the "now" God gives) so that thanksgiving becomes the believer’s habitual stance toward God’s guarantees rather than a reaction to circumstances.
Embracing Our Comprehensive Inheritance in Christ(FaithChurchCC & Frank Santora Ministries) presents the distinctive theological claim that the Eucharist (the broken body and shed blood) is not only memorial but ontologically and legally the instrument that "qualifies" believers to partake of the inheritance—linking the language of qualification/partaking to covenantal, juridical categories (covenant vs. contract) and broadening "inheritance" to include spiritual benefits beyond forensic forgiveness (healing, deliverance, prosperity as covenantal gifts).
Thanksgiving Isn't a day..It's a Doorway!(North Pointe Church) proposes a combat-theology of gratitude: thanksgiving is portrayed as a spiritual weapon and a doorway into God’s presence that sanctifies, multiplies, and restores; the verse thus supports an applied pneumatology where gratitude/praise is the ordinary means by which God’s kingdom-life is present and operative among believers.
Gratitude for God's Gift of Salvation(MLJ Trust) emphasizes the theological theme that gratitude is the primary test of authentic Christianity because salvation is wholly of God; Lloyd-Jones stresses sola gratia in ethical effect—true thanksgiving demonstrates the believer’s grasp of the gospel’s divine origin and is therefore the criterial mark of being “fit” to share the heavenly inheritance.
Colossians 1:12 Historical and Contextual Insights:
Embracing Our Comprehensive Inheritance in Christ(FaithChurchCC & Frank Santora Ministries) situates Colossians 1:12 within the explicit first-century context of Colossae’s proto-Gnostic and syncretistic teachings, explaining how some teachers denied Christ’s true humanity and promoted secret knowledge; the sermon uses that historical background to explain why Paul highlights the real, embodied “Eucharist” (body and blood) and the legal language of qualification and inheritance—showing Paul’s counterargument to Gnostic dualism and his appeal to the New Covenant as normative Christian praxis.
Gratitude for God's Gift of Salvation(MLJ Trust) gives extended contextual exposition of the Colossian letter: Lloyd-Jones notes Paul’s pastoral situation (he had not founded the Colossian church; Epaphras had brought the gospel), the emergence of false teachers who added rituals and philosophy to the gospel, and the way Paul’s rhetorical method (general outline followed by detailed exposition) addresses those local controversies; he then situates the verse within the sweep of biblical redemptive history (Eden, Abraham, David, prophetic promises) showing the inheritance language is rooted in ancient legal and covenantal practices and expectations.
Colossians 1:12 Cross-References in the Bible:
Gratitude: Embracing Eternal Blessings Over Material Possessions(Mauldin Methodist Church) ties Colossians 1:12 into the immediate Colossians context (Paul’s prayer in 1:3–14 read in full) and refers to Romans 1’s diagnosis that people refuse to acknowledge God—using Romans to underscore why acknowledgement of God (Paul’s second ingredient) is necessary for genuine thanksgiving; the sermon thus reads verse 12 as the capstone of Paul’s prayer, connecting the thanksgiving motif to Paul’s broader theological point that gratitude flows from recognizing God as source (Rom.1) and from the change the gospel effects (Col.1:3–14).
Embracing Our Comprehensive Inheritance in Christ(FaithChurchCC & Frank Santora Ministries) threads a wide network of biblical cross-references through Colossians 1:12 to build a comprehensive theology: Matthew 26:26–28 and 1 Corinthians 11:23–29 are used to identify the Eucharist and New Covenant language as the locus for "giving thanks," Isaiah 53:4–5 and Matthew 8:16–17 are read to link the cross to physical healing as part of the inheritance, Colossians 2:14 is cited to show the cross "nails" the handwriting of requirements (legal basis for forgiveness), Galatians 3 (curse of the law and blessings of Abraham) and Psalm 103:1–5 are appealed to expand "inheritance" to include healing, provision, and spiritual blessing, and Acts 3–4 and Acts 10:38 are used to demonstrate how salvation and healing operate together in the apostolic witness; all these references are marshaled to show verse 12’s "qualified to be partakers" language means more than forensic pardon—it points to a wide, covenantal inheritance purchased by Christ and to biblical principles for receiving it.
Thanksgiving Isn't a day..It's a Doorway!(North Pointe Church) repeatedly cross-references Colossians 1:12 with Psalms 100 and 34 (thanksgiving and continual praise as entry into God’s courts), Luke 4:18–19 and the Year of Jubilee imagery (restoration and release as part of the kingdom inheritance), Luke 17:11–19 (the ten lepers—one returns to give thanks—and the thankful one is made whole) to argue that thanksgiving opens access to wholeness and healing, Hebrews 13:5 and 1 Thessalonians 5:18 to insist thanksgiving is God’s will for believers, 2 Chronicles 20 and Acts 16 (Paul & Silas in prison) to illustrate praise and thanksgiving as corporate spiritual warfare that yields deliverance, Proverbs 17:22 for the idea of a "cheerful heart" as healing/medicine, and 1 Corinthians 11 (the Lord’s Supper) to connect thankful remembrance to Christ’s redemptive act; the preacher uses each passage to show Colossians 1:12 imports both present access to kingdom life and practical, present-tense results (healing, deliverance, provision) when thanksgiving is practiced.
Gratitude for God's Gift of Salvation(MLJ Trust) interweaves Colossians 1:12 with a broad biblical theology: he points to Genesis 3:15 (proto-evangelium) and the unfolding Old Testament promises to show the inheritance language is rooted in God’s historical plan; John 3:16 and Romans passages (e.g., reconciliation language) are used to stress the divine initiative in salvation; Acts 16 (Lydia) is cited for the theological point that conversion comes only when "the Lord opened the heart," and Revelation 5, 7, 21 are repeatedly invoked to portray the eschatological reality of “the inheritance of the saints in light” (the worshipful, praise-filled life before God and the eschatological city whose light is God and the Lamb); Lloyd-Jones uses these cross-references to demonstrate that Colossians 1:12 is centrally about God’s sovereign action from Eden through the prophets to Christ and finally to consummation, and that thanksgiving is the fitting human response to a salvation achieved entirely by God.
Colossians 1:12 Illustrations from Secular Sources:
Gratitude: Embracing Eternal Blessings Over Material Possessions(Mauldin Methodist Church) peppers his exposition of Colossians 1:12 with multiple secular cultural and humorous illustrations—he begins the sermon with a contemporary short story "A Change of Plans" by Barbara Tyler (a magazine anecdote about imperfect Thanksgiving preparations), invokes Charles Schulz’s Peanuts (Snoopy’s Thanksgiving comic) to illustrate attitude and perspective, quotes Jimmy Buffett’s "watch that reads 'now'" anecdote to press living in the present spiritual "now," uses the Publisher’s Clearing House/Ed McMahon motif (the "you’re already a winner" envelope) as a contrast to God’s actual, guaranteed inheritance (no number to match), and the TV/personality reference (Martha Stewart parody) to show cultural dependencies; each secular example is explicitly tied to a point about thanksgiving, contentment, and the believer’s assurance that God has "qualified" us—Mauldin uses these accessible secular stories to make the Pauline theology of verse 12 concrete and emotionally memorable.
Thanksgiving Isn't a day..It's a Doorway!(North Pointe Church) uses a string of vivid secular and family anecdotes while applying Colossians 1:12: a family Thanksgiving trip to San Antonio and a restaurant experience (a Brazilian steakhouse) to make the "table prepared in the presence of your enemies" image tangible; a playful account of shopping for a child’s toy (a Paw Patrol airplane from a dollar store) and the uncle’s delight to illustrate how gratitude elicits generous response; a personal hunting story (taking a deer with the relocation program) to model rejoicing and immediate praise when God’s provision is seen; light-hearted, pun-based jokes and the congregation’s bracelet giveaways to teach laughter-as-medicine and gratitude-as-discipline; and a practical, even physical distribution of frozen meats from the pastor’s freezers as a real-world enactment of "partaking"—each secular or family vignette is used to show how thanksgiving functions as an opening into God’s provision and presence described in Colossians 1:12.