1. Christ Complete Becoming in Colossians 1:4-5 4 since we heard of your faith in Christ Jesus and of the love that you have for all the saints, 5 because of the hope laid up for you in heaven. Of this you have heard before in the word of the truth, the gospel. The gospel of Jesus Christ enables us to walk by faith, act in love, and live in hope. We must consciously, proactively chose to do so.

2. Christ Complete Becoming in Becoming Christ in Complete 2014 OIF Spring Sermon Series ”The Gospel of Grace” Colossians 1:5-8

3. Christ Complete Becoming in 1. The Gospel is the truth about God’s grace Colossians 1:5-8 Of this you have heard before in the word of the truth, the gospel, 6 which has come to you, as indeed in the whole world it is bearing fruit and growing—as it also does among you, since the day you heard it and understood the grace of God in truth, 7 just as you learned it from Epaphras our beloved fellow servant. He is a faithful minister of Christ on your behalf 8 and has made known to us your love in the Spirit. The Gospel is truth and grace for us from Jesus Christ!

4. Christ Complete Becoming in Bono: You see, at the center of all religions is the idea of Karma. You know, what you put out comes back to you: an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth, or in physics—in physical laws—every action is met by an equal or an opposite one. It's clear to me that Karma is at the very heart of the universe. I'm absolutely sure of it. And yet, along comes this idea called Grace to upend all that "as you reap, so you will sow" stuff. Grace defies reason and logic. Love interrupts, if you like, the consequences of your actions, which in my case is very good news indeed, because I've done a lot of stupid stuff.

5. Christ Complete Becoming in Assayas: I'd be interested to hear that. Bono: That's between me and God. But I'd be in big trouble if Karma was going to finally be my judge. I'd be in deep s---. It doesn't excuse my mistakes, but I'm holding out for Grace. I'm holding out that Jesus took my sins onto the Cross, because I know who I am, and I hope I don't have to depend on my own religiosity. Assayas: The Son of God who takes away the sins of the world. I wish I could believe in that. Bono: But I love the idea of the Sacrificial Lamb. I love the

6. Christ Complete Becoming in idea that God says: Look, you cretins, there are certain results to the way we are, to selfishness, and there's a mortality as part of your very sinful nature, and, let's face it, you're not living a very good life, are you? There are consequences to actions. The point of the death of Christ is that Christ took on the sins of the world, so that what we put out did not come back to us, and that our sinful nature does not reap the obvious death. That's the point. It should keep us humbled…. It's not our own good works that get us through the gates of heaven.

7. Christ Complete Becoming in 2. The Gospel will grow and bear fruit Colossians 1:5-6 Of this you have heard before in the word of the truth, the gospel, 6 which has come to you, as indeed in the whole world it is bearing fruit and growing—as it also does among you, since the day you heard it and understood the grace of God in truth. The Gospel’s nature is to advance, grow, and bear fruit!

8. Christ Complete Becoming in 2. The Gospel will grow and bear fruit From 600 million in 1910 to 2.18 billion in 2010!

9. Christ Complete Becoming in 2. The Gospel will grow and bear fruit Colossians 1:5-6 Of this you have heard before in the word of the truth, the gospel, 6 which has come to you, as indeed in the whole world it is bearing fruit and growing—as it also does among you, since the day you heard it and understood the grace of God in truth. The Gospel’s nature is to advance, grow, and bear fruit! The Gospel grows and bears fruit geographically, numerically, and also spiritually in and through us!

10. Christ Complete Becoming in 3. The Gospel grows through human agents Colossians 1:7-8 7 just as you learned it from Epaphras our beloved fellow servant. He is a faithful minister of Christ on your behalf 8 and has made known to us your love in the Spirit. Here at OIF, God has calls us to reach the nations that He has brought to us with the grace and truth of the gospel!