-Oh, what a wretched state, this. The way. We. Were. Enemies of God. Separated from Him in just about every way, but most importantly in our mind and in our deeds. Our deeds were evil - they were dangerous, destructive, and the exact opposite of what God wanted us to do. And we were born that way, completely unable to save ourselves or rectify the situation, unable to not do evil, unable to secure peace with God in any way, and doomed to pay the penalty of eternal destruction away from the Lord.
-This is the life lived apart from God. He is out of mind completely, or He is rebelled against directly, or at best we try to mollify Him with filthy rags. Man's instinct is to do his best on his own to make his way through life apart from God and achieve whatever peace he might feel is needed with his Maker on his own terms in his own strength. At his best in this fallen state he tries to pursue altruism and kindness as virtues. At his worst he is capable of the utmost selfishness and horrific cruelty. But even at his best he is separated from God, his best efforts being inconsistent and falling terribly short of the perfection of God. This state continues for every person until such a time as we come to the end of ourselves, the end of our rebellion and our efforts to live apart from God. For these Colossian believers, this is who they once were. But God...
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