From "if" to "since": The Gap Between Grace and Performance
"And you, who once were alienated and hostile in mind, doing evil deeds, he has now reconciled in his body of flesh by his death, in order to present you holy and blameless and above reproach before him, if indeed you continue in the faith, stable and steadfast, not shifting from the hope of the gospel that you heard." — Colossians 1:21–23 (ESV)
Read that passage again and notice the word "if." At first glance, it sounds conditional — as if Paul is saying your standing before God depends on whether you keep your end of the bargain. If you stay faithful, you'll be presented holy and blameless. If you don't, all bets are off.
But consider the logic of the sentence. Paul has just declared what God has already done: reconciled you and presented you holy, blameless, and above reproach. That's accomplished work — past tense, finished. So when he writes "if indeed you continue in the faith," he's not introducing doubt about what he just established. Let's go deeper. The Greek word here for "if" is eige — "if indeed" — and it's paired with a verb form that assumes the condition is true. Therefore, Paul isn't questioning whether they'll continue in the faith. He's assuming they will. He's saying: since you continue in the faith, stable and steadfast, your perseverance doesn't earn your standing before God — it confirms it.
That distinction matters — because most of us affirm grace in our theology but live by performance in our practice. We'd check the "salvation by grace" box on a statement of faith, then spend the week acting as though a missed quiet time or a repeated sin put us back at square one. That's "if" living.
"If" living says: I need to earn my way back. It treats every spiritual failure as a threat to your standing rather than as a normal part of sanctification. It turns the Christian life into maintenance — keeping God close through effort rather than resting in the closeness He has already secured.
"Since" living says something different. I'm already reconciled — and my faith, even on its weakest days, proves that God's work in me is real. It doesn't produce passivity. It produces freedom — to run to God after failure instead of running from Him, to obey out of gratitude rather than fear, and to see your steadfastness not as the price of admission but as the fruit of a God who holds you.
Jesus said it plainly: "I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing" (John 15:5, ESV). The fruit doesn't come from the branch straining to produce. It comes from staying connected.
Most of us know this theologically. The question is whether we live it.
Big Idea
The "if" in Colossians 1:23 isn't a condition to meet — it's a confidence to rest in. Most Christians affirm grace in their theology but live performatively in practice. "Since" closes that gap.
Questions to Ponder
Before today, how would you have read the "if" in Colossians 1:23 — as a condition you might fail, or as a confidence Paul is expressing on your behalf? Can you identify an area where you've been living on "if" terms — striving, doubting, performing — even though you'd affirm grace theologically? What would shift if you saw your faith not as something you maintain for God, but as evidence of what God is already doing in you?
Application
Pay attention to how you approach God — in prayer, in obedience, and in the moments when you fall short. Are you coming on "if" terms or "since" terms? Identify one area where you've been living on the "if" side — striving, performing, and doubting your standing — and bring it before the Lord with the truth of Colossians 1:23. The God who reconciled you is the same God who keeps you. Let "since" reshape how you walk with Him today.
Before the Lord — a daily devotional by Blake S. Crawford. Read more and subscribe free at blakescrawford.com/before-the-lord.