our last study.  The next theme before us is the manifestation of the riches

of the glory of this Mystery among the Gentiles:

`But now is made manifest to His saints: to whom God would make known

what is the riches of the glory of this Mystery among the Gentiles;

which is Christ among you, the hope of glory' (Col. 1:26,27).

Being an Israelite by birth, the apostle of the Gentiles would realize

better than would the Gentiles themselves the riches of grace that were the

source of the preaching of the Mystery among them.  Apart from the Epistle to

the Romans, it is to the epistles of the Mystery that we turn in order to

learn about the riches of grace, and riches of glory, yea, the exceeding

riches of His grace; and the apostle connects the manifestation of the

Mystery with the making known what is the riches of the glory of this Mystery

among the Gentiles.

Left to ourselves, what would be our answer to the question, `What is

the riches of the glory of this Mystery among the Gentiles?'  We should be

wise if we turned at once to what is written.  We could say without fear of

contradiction, that `redemption through His Blood, even the forgiveness of

sins' must be included, for that is `according to the riches of His grace,

wherein He hath abounded toward us' (Eph. 1:7,8).  We should certainly

include the `inheritance in the saints', though we could not speak in detail

of what constitutes `the riches of the glory' of this inheritance (Eph.

1:18).  Looking forward to `that day' when the inheritance shall be enjoyed,

to our amazement we learn that whereas redemption is spoken of as `the riches

of His grace', the kindness that He will show to us in the days to come is of

such transcendence that the apostle speaks of it as `the exceeding riches of

His grace in His kindness toward us in Christ Jesus' (Eph. 2:7).

With all this the apostle would naturally be in hearty agreement.  In

Colossians 1:27 he focuses attention upon one important aspect of present

truth that reveals the ground upon which we may entertain such a hope: `Which

is Christ in (among) you, the hope of glory'.  The margin draws attention to

the fact that the word `in' should be translated `among', as it is in the

earlier phrase of the verse, `among the Gentiles'.  The apostle is not here

speaking of the blessed realization of the indwelling Christ, but of the

dispensational change that had followed the setting aside of the children of

Israel, `the salvation of God is sent unto the Gentiles, and they will hear

it' (Acts 28:28).  Up till then salvation had been `of the Jews' (John 4:22).

The gospel had been intimately associated with the promise made to Abraham

(Gal. 3:8).  What the Gentiles had heard through Peter had been, `the Word

which God sent unto the children of Israel' (Acts 10:36).  Even the gospel

preached by Paul in Romans was `to the Jew first' (Rom. 1:16), and the

Gentile believer was warned not to vaunt himself against Israel, seeing that

he was but a `wild olive' grafted in among the natural branches (Rom. 11).

But when we commence the epistle to the Colossians we are conscious of

a great change.  The hope that was laid up for these believers and which was

made known in the truth of the gospel, had been preached to `all the world'

(Col. 1:5,6), and `to every creature which is under heaven' (Col. 1:23), and

it is in immediate association with this last quotation that Paul goes on to

speak of his special ministry and the manifestation of the Mystery.

Consequently we come back to Colossians 1:27, and learn that the very fact

that Christ is now `among the Gentiles' is proved by the preaching of the

gospel to them, irrespective of Israel, the once -appointed channel, now set

aside.  That, of itself, bespeaks a change of dispensation.