Read Colossians 2:13-14

Who We Were

Paul says we were “dead in our trespasses and the uncircumcision of our flesh.” This refers to being dead to God through both our sins and our sinful nature.

What are some of the consequences of being dead to God spiritually both in this life and in eternity? (See Ephesians 2:1-3 and Romans 8:6-8 for more on this question.)

Can you recall life before your conversion and explain what your experience of being “dead to God” was like?

What God Did

Paul tells us that God made us alive by forgiving all our sins through “canceling the record of trespasses that stood against us with its legal demands.” What is the “record of our debt” and what are its “legal demands” that are “against us”?

God did this when He “nailed it to the cross.” This is a reference to Jesus Christ taking the punishment for all our sins and paying for them with His blood. Why is it so crucial to recognize that Jesus died for – and paid for – ALL our sins: past, present, and future?

Do you struggle to believe that God has canceled ALL your sins?  If so, when might you struggle? 

What does it say about God and the sufficiency of His Son’s blood when we put our hope in what this passage is telling us? What might it say when we don't put our hope in what God has said in this passage?

Who We Are

If God has canceled our sin-debt and has become our Father, then how does this change the way God views our sins now? (Consider Hebrews 4:14-5:2 and 7:24-26, 1 John 2:1-2, and Romans 6:1-14.)