Qualified
Colossians 1:12 - 14
12 giving thanks to the Father who has qualified us to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in the light.
13 He has delivered us from the power of darkness and conveyed us into the kingdom of the Son of His love,
14 in whom we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins.
Qualified means to have met the conditions or requirement set. It is to have the necessary or desired qualities (Webster’s Dictionary). Father God has qualified us. He has deemed every requirement met and declared us fit for His kingdom. This is an astounding reality. Being qualified however has nothing to do with our performance or qualities. It has everything to do with the atoning work of His Son and the redemption that is available through His blood.
Sadly, there are many who disqualify us, including ourselves. We have been conditioned to believe that we are not worthy and fail to measure up. We can see many reasons why God shouldn’t love and accept us. He sees one reason why He should. He sees the price that was paid.
We have been redeemed by the precious blood of God’s own Son. This is the Son of His love. Jesus, the Only Begotten Son, laid down His life that we might be loved and declared worthy. How could the Father not love us when such a price was paid for our redemption? How could He not accept us when all that separated and offended has been washed away by the blood of His own Son?
There is no greater love than the love revealed at the cross. There is no reason or excuse that can overturn the judgment of God that declares us qualified. The moment we believe, we are deemed worthy. No further questions need to be asked. No performance is required. We have received His redemption and are the recipients of His love.
Furthermore, the moment we receive His love, we are qualified to be partakers of the inheritance. Romans 8:32 states:
He who did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him up for us all, how shall He not with Him also freely give us all things?
Having given the greatest gift there is nothing else that Father God will decline to give. There is no need or blessing that He will withhold. He has freely given us His Son, and with Him all things that are necessary for life and godliness (2 Peter 1:3).
Everything that has been prepared for us is designated as our inheritance because it came through the death of the Son. An inheritance is gained through the will of the one who is deceased. They are the ones who choose the beneficiaries. Now, through Jesus’ death, we are the recipients of all that belongs to the Son.
We are totally loved and abundantly blessed. Moreover, we are delivered from the power of darkness. All the enemy’s claims against us have been removed. In being qualified for God’s kingdom we are disqualified from his. We don’t belong in the devil’s domain. We are no longer subject to his tyranny or victims of His abuse. He has no hold on us or a just claim against us.
We are in the kingdom of the Son of His love. His love removes our sin (Hebrews 10:17). His love casts out fear (1 John 4:18). His love provides us with acceptance and declares our worth. Furthermore, we didn’t walk into this Kingdom; we were conveyed there. Conveyed brings the awareness that we are carried there. We could never enter the Kingdom of God through our own efforts, but the same arms that bore the weight of our sin and shame, carried us to His very own Kingdom.
In Him we have redemption … the forgiveness of sins. Redemption is the purchase of what was lost. It always carries with it the awareness of a price that was paid. Jesus brought us back from the devil’s domain by paying the just penalty for all sin. It is paid in full. That is why He is not only faithful but also just in forgiving us and cleansing us from all unrighteousness (1 John 1:9). Every time we are accused and condemned the devil is trying to undermine our redemption and disqualify us from the love of God. But God Himself has qualified us. No demon in hell can thwart the redemption that comes through the blood.
It is time that we stop disqualifying what Father God has qualified. To live qualified is to stand in the assurance that we are loved, accepted, and forgiven. To live qualified is to partake of the inheritance that has been provided and become the full expression of who we were designed to be.
Consider:
Have you been disqualifying yourself? What issues have you considered greater than the love of God and redemption made available through the blood of the Son?
What lies has the devil been telling you about who you are and his hold over your life?
Are there aspects of your inheritance as a child of God that you have disqualified yourself from?
What would it look like to live fully accepted and qualified as a child of God?
Prayer Prompts:
Father God, how do you feel when I keep disqualifying myself from receiving Your love?
Lord, sometimes I struggle to believe that I am free from the bondage to sin. What do you say?
What aspect of my inheritance are You currently highlighting in my life?
