This chapter is full of encouragement for the Christian and especially because it sets our eyes, directs our attention to the fullness that there is in Jesus Christ. And that fullness is brought out for us in the words, the little expression that is used and repeated very many times, little word all. You see it in verse 6 about the reach of the gospel. the word of the truth of the gospel he says is common to you as it is in all the world and then later on he prays that the church in verse 9 will be filled with the knowledge of his will in all wisdom and spiritual understanding and then he talks about all night in verse 11 all patience which blessings we get of course from Jesus Christ And then later on he reminds us of the fullness of Christ in respect to creation, in respect to redemption, in respect to his own person as the God-man, in respect to the church. And in verse 16 Paul says, for by him were all things created. Verse 16 again, all things were created by him and for him. And then verse 17 says, He is before all things. Then verse 17 again. By Him all things consist. Everything exists by Christ. Everything is held together by Christ. Everything was made by His power. Everything was made for His glory. By Him all things were created and for Him. He is before all things. By Him all things consist. Then in verse 18 He says He is the head of the body, the church. who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, that in all things he might have the preeminence. And in those glorious words of the person of Jesus, for it pleased the Father that in him should all fullness dwell. And Joseph Irons, was it, that was trying to describe the babe in Bethlehem, wrote the words of that, lines of that hymn, Are God contracted to a span incomprehensibly made man. Concentrated in baby form in Bethlehem was the fullness of the baby. It pleased the Father that in him should all fullness dwell. Later on it says in him dwelleth all the fullness of the Godhead bodily. When Christ died he who died was the one in whom dwelt all the fullness of the Godhead he who shed his precious life's blood it was the life's blood on him who dwelt all the fullness of the Godhead that makes the death of Christ so precious and so valuable so very very very sacred this is not a dead routine or a dead formality that we are here at the Lord's table today remembering Him and look at verse 20 it says and having made peace through the blood of his cross by him to reconcile all things unto himself to reconcile all things unto himself that's the last of the O's there and it finishes with reconciliation and it finishes with the blood of his cross praise God today for his broken body praise God today for the blood of his cross Praise God for the effect and the power of it. Because it's not dead, it's living. Living blood brings living realities. And it reconciles us to himself. An old hymn writer said, once I was dead in sin and hope within me died but now by Jesus precious blood to God I am reconciled. And we sit here this morning not enemies of God, we're the friends of God. And we don't describe ourselves like that, that's how God describes us. He says you are my friends. Imagine being a friend of God. Some people would do their nut to be the friends of some highfalutin man or woman in society. We don't do that because we are God's friends and he calls us his friends and he calls us as his friends to remember him. So may we do that and may the Lord help us to do it for Jesus sake. We are going to bow together in prayer and just as the Lord leads some brother will Thank you.