Held Together In Jesus
In Jesus, the center holds and we are kept together in love
Devotional Credit: In Christ, E. Stanley Jones
Photo Credit: Unsplash
Paul says that in Him all things hold together. E. Stanley Jones lingers here and shows us something simple and steady. When Jesus is the center, life coheres. Outside of Him, things fly apart. Inside of Him, love binds everything in harmony.
Jones thanks Colossians for giving us the grammar of our lives. Jesus is before all things. In Him, what would scatter is gathered. What would fracture is mended. What feels random finds purpose. Love is not a soft glaze poured over chaos. Love is the strong bond of the new creation that keeps hearts, homes, and churches from pulling apart.
Jones also names what we see in real life. Conversations can unravel. Groups can splinter over lesser labels. But say the name of Jesus, center on His Spirit, and people who would drift find themselves drawn together around the One who makes us one. This is not theory. It is how the family of God actually holds.
Thank You, Dr. Jones, for pointing us again to the Center. Our peace is not in managing outcomes, it is in belonging to Jesus together. In Him we find the harmony our hearts were made for.
Journal Entry – Voice of the Holy Spirit Through Scripture
I have placed you in My Son, and I have placed His peace within you. In Jesus all things hold together. He is before all things. By Him all things were created. I uphold all things by the word of My power. You are chosen in Him, blessed in Him, redeemed in Him, and sealed with Me who is the guarantee of your inheritance.
You are members of one body. I knit you together in love. I make you eager to maintain the unity I have already given, one body, one Spirit, one hope, one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all. I cause the whole body to grow as each part does its work in love. Let the peace of the Messiah rule in your hearts, to which you were called in one body, and be thankful.
When lesser identities try to claim you, remember your center. In Jesus you are a new creation. Set your mind on things above where He is. Let the word of the Messiah dwell in you richly. Put on compassionate hearts, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience. Bear with one another and forgive, as God in Christ forgave you. Above all these, put on love, which binds everything together in perfect harmony.
You will meet voices that scatter. Do not gather around them. Gather to My Son. Abide in Him. Apart from Him you can do nothing. In Him you bear fruit that remains. Stand firm in My armor. Pray at all times in the Spirit. Encourage one another, build one another up, and stir one another to love and good works. I am faithful. I will complete what I began in you, and I will keep you in perfect peace as your mind stays on Me.
Real-Life Analogy
Think of pulling up the zipper on a jacket. With the zipper open, the two sides flap in the wind, cold air gets in, and everything feels loose. Slide the zipper up, the sides come together, and warmth returns. The zipper does the holding. The fabric does not hold itself.
Life with Jesus works like that. He is the One who draws heart to heart and thought to thought so things do not flap in the winds of the day. When a tense meeting is on your calendar, you might step into the room and quietly say, Lord, I entrust this conversation to You. Be my center and bring my words, my tone, and my reactions under Your peace. Then watch the Spirit of Jesus do the holding as you listen well, speak truth with gentleness, and let His love keep the sides together.
Prayer of Confidence
Father, thank You that in Jesus all things hold together. You have placed me in Your Son, and You have poured out Your Spirit within me. I have every spiritual blessing in Christ. I affirm that His peace rules my heart. His love binds my relationships. His word dwells richly in me.
Today I gladly walk in what You have already provided. I put on compassion, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience. I forgive as I have been forgiven. I rest in the unity of the Spirit and in the bond of peace. I rejoice that Your power upholds all things and that my life coheres in Your Son. In His name I give thanks. Amen.
Scripture References for the Voice of the Holy Spirit Through Scripture Section
Genesis 1:1; Psalm 29:4; Psalm 133:1; Isaiah 26:3; Isaiah 42:1-4; Matthew 12:30; John 1:1-3; John 13:34-35; John 14:27; John 15:1-8; John 17:20-23; Acts 2:42-47; Romans 5:5; Romans 8:1-11; Romans 12:1-21; 1 Corinthians 1:30; 1 Corinthians 12:12-27; 2 Corinthians 5:17; Galatians 2:20; Galatians 5:22-23; Ephesians 1:3-14; Ephesians 2:4-10; Ephesians 2:13-22; Ephesians 3:14-21; Ephesians 4:1-6; Ephesians 4:11-16; Ephesians 6:10-18; Philippians 1:6; Philippians 2:1-4; Colossians 1:15-20; Colossians 2:9-10; Colossians 3:1-17; 1 Thessalonians 5:11; Hebrews 1:3; Hebrews 10:23-25; 1 Peter 4:8-10; Jude 24-25