Colossians 3:16-17

 

Living the New Life

16 Let the words of Christ, in all their richness, live in your hearts and make you wise. Use his words to teach and counsel each other. Sing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs to God with thankful hearts. 17 And whatever you do or say, let it be as a representative of the Lord Jesus, all the while giving thanks through him to God the Father. (NLT)

 

Let the words of Christ live in your heart. To do this you must be in the Word every day. You need to be in prayer so that the Holy Spirit can teach and explain God’s Word to you. As you learn to allow the words of Christ to fill your life you will begin to be watchful of what you say realizing that you are a representative of the Lord Jesus. In all you do, in all you say and in all you learn from Christ do all with a thankful heart to God the Father.

 

Our Mission is to Lead People into a Growing Relationship with Jesus Christ

Colossians 3:14-15

 

Living the New Life

14 And the most important piece of clothing you must wear is love. Love is what binds us all together in perfect harmony. 15 And let the peace that comes from Christ rule in your hearts. For as members of one body you are all called to live in peace. And always be thankful. (NLT)

 

Love, love is the number one thing God wants us to do. God loved us first, Christ died for us because He loved us and we are to love one another and others as God loves us unconditionally. Love binds us together, strengthens us and empowers us. Let the love and peace of Christ rule your heart and your life. Let everything you do be done in love, not by selfish motives but by God’s love.  Remember we are members of one body called to live in peace and love. We are God’s children, part of His family, we are all brothers and sisters and we need to act like God’s children, a reflection of our Heavenly Father.

 

Our Mission is to Lead People into a Growing Relationship with Jesus Christ

Colossians 3:12-13

 

Living the New Life

12 Since God chose you to be the holy people whom he loves, you must clothe yourselves with tenderhearted mercy, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience. 13 You must make allowance for each other's faults and forgive the person who offends you. Remember, the Lord forgave you, so you must forgive others. (NLT)

 

Isn’t it wonderful how God continually reminds you that He loves you, that He chose you and that you are one of His holy people. All you need to do is read His Word daily and you will be encouraged that He cares. Therefore because of all the things God has done for you, you need to clothe yourself with tenderhearted mercy, kindness, humility, gentleness, forgiveness, patience and make allowance for other’s faults. Remember, the Lord forgave you, so you must forgive others because God loves you.

 

Our Mission is to Lead People into a Growing Relationship with Jesus Christ

Colossians 3:5-11

 

Living the New Life

5 So put to death the sinful, earthly things lurking within you. Have nothing to do with sexual sin, impurity, lust, and shameful desires. Don't be greedy for the good things of this life, for that is idolatry. 6 God's terrible anger will come upon those who do such things. 7 You used to do them when your life was still part of this world. 8 But now is the time to get rid of anger, rage, malicious behavior, slander, and dirty language. 9 Don't lie to each other, for you have stripped off your old evil nature and all its wicked deeds. 10 In its place you have clothed yourselves with a brand-new nature that is continually being renewed as you learn more and more about Christ, who created this new nature within you. 11 In this new life, it doesn't matter if you are a Jew or a Gentile, circumcised or uncircumcised, barbaric, uncivilized, slave, or free. Christ is all that matters, and he lives in all of us. (NLT)

 

Christ is all that matters.

Put off the old life and live in the new life that Christ has given you. Christ now lives within you and your life is to be lived for Him.

Christ is all that matters.

 

Our Mission is to Lead People into a Growing Relationship with Jesus Christ

Colossians 3:1-4

Living the New Life

Since you have been raised to new life with Christ, set your sights on the realities of heaven, where Christ sits at God's right hand in the place of honor and power. 2 Let heaven fill your thoughts. Do not think only about things down here on earth. 3 For you died when Christ died, and your real life is hidden with Christ in God. 4 And when Christ, who is your real life, is revealed to the whole world, you will share in all his glory. (NLT)

We need to be reminded that our new life is with Christ. He is our real life and it is Him we are to be living for. Let your thoughts be heavenly minded and not earthly minded for we have died with Christ and we have been raised up with Christ. Set your sights and your heart to the higher calling that you have in Christ. Keep your eyes on Christ who sits at the right hand of God in the place of honor and power. Remember Christ is your real life, this earthly life is only secondary and when Christ is revealed you will share in all His glory.

Our Mission is to Lead People into a Growing Relationship with Jesus Christ

Colossians 2:20-23

 

Freedom from Rules and New Life in Christ

You have died with Christ, and he has set you free from the evil powers of this world. So why do you keep on following rules of the world, such as, 21 "Don't handle, don't eat, don't touch." 22 Such rules are mere human teaching about things that are gone as soon as we use them. 23 These rules may seem wise because they require strong devotion, humility, and severe bodily discipline. But they have no effect when it comes to conquering a person's evil thoughts and desires. (NLT)

 

When you accept Christ’s death on the cross for your sins at that moment He sets you free. Free from your sin and from the evil powers of this world. No longer do you need to follow the way of the world for you now have a better way and you are free from the Old Testament law because Jesus is the fulfillment the law and of the promise. Jesus has set you free. Do not be bogged down with severe bodily discipline but devote yourself to the spiritual life and the spiritual battle we are in. Through Christ you can now conquer the evil thoughts and desires of the flesh and live for Him.

Jesus has set you free. You are now free to move about in Christ.

 

Our Mission is to Lead People into a Growing Relationship with Jesus Christ

Colossians 2:18-19

 

Freedom from Rules and New Life in Christ

18 Don't let anyone condemn you by insisting on self-denial. And don't let anyone say you must worship angels, even though they say they have had visions about this. These people claim to be so humble, but their sinful minds have made them proud. 19 But they are not connected to Christ, the head of the body. For we are joined together in his body by his strong sinews, and we grow only as we get our nourishment and strength from God.  (NLT)

 

Don't let anyone condemn you by insisting on self-denial. Your walk with Christ is not about food or drink or anything else - it is about having a relationship with Jesus. I know the verse that says “deny yourself and pick up your cross and follow me,” the point is to follow Christ and to turn from your sins. People who tell you that you must abstain from certain foods, or that you must worship angels or you have to follow some particular leader have become proud in their sinful minds. We have been freed from the law and we are no longer under that system. We are under grace. We draw our nourishment and strength from God, not the law. God finished that law through Christ dying on the cross. We are now free to live in Christ.

 (Sinews: power, strength, vigor)

 

Our Mission is to Lead People into a Growing Relationship with Jesus Christ

Colossians 2:16-17

 

Freedom from Rules and New Life in Christ

16 So don't let anyone condemn you for what you eat or drink, or for not celebrating certain holy days or new-moon ceremonies or Sabbaths. 17 For these rules were only shadows of the real thing, Christ himself. (NLT)

 

Your walk with Christ is more than food or drink or Sabbaths or ceremonies or celebrations -- it is about walking with Jesus. So don’t let others condemn you and don’t condemn yourself but realize that it is all about Jesus. Notice in verse 17 that it says “were” past tense, not present tense. The real thing is Jesus Christ Himself. Jesus is the real deal. Follow Jesus’ way, Jesus’ truth and Jesus’ way of life.

 

Our Mission is to Lead People into a Growing Relationship with Jesus Christ

Colossians 2:13-15

 

Freedom from Rules and New Life in Christ

13 You were dead because of your sins and because your sinful nature was not yet cut away. Then God made you alive with Christ. He forgave all our sins. 14 He canceled the record that contained the charges against us. He took it and destroyed it by nailing it to Christ's cross. 15 In this way, God disarmed the evil rulers and authorities. He shamed them publicly by his victory over them on the cross of Christ. (NLT)

 

You just can’t say it any better than that.  Forgiven, charges against you nailed to the cross of Christ, evil disarmed and victory claimed at the cross of Christ. You were once dead but now you are made alive by the cross of Jesus Christ. You now stand victorious with Christ. Amen and Amen.

 

Our Mission is to Lead People into a Growing Relationship with Jesus Christ

Colossians 2:11-12

 

Freedom from Rules and New Life in Christ

11 When you came to Christ, you were "circumcised," but not by a physical procedure. It was a spiritual procedure — the cutting away of your sinful nature. 12 For you were buried with Christ when you were baptized. And with him you were raised to a new life because you trusted the mighty power of God, who raised Christ from the dead. (NLT)

 

Every so often we need to remind ourselves that in our life with Christ that Christ is cutting away at our old sinful nature and renewing us with our true spiritual nature. Baptism is the perfect picture of this process, as you are laid down into the water you show the dying to self and dying with Christ. Then coming out of the water you show the newness with Christ and being raised with Christ from your dead life. All this is done by the power of God. Remember that you are in a process of changing from what you once were to what God intended you to be in Christ.

 

Our Mission is to Lead People into a Growing Relationship with Jesus Christ

                                                                

Colossians 2:8-10

 

Freedom from Rules and New Life in Christ

8 Don't let anyone lead you astray with empty philosophy and high-sounding nonsense that come from human thinking and from the evil powers of this world, and not from Christ. 9 For in Christ the fullness of God lives in a human body,   10 and you are complete through your union with Christ. He is the Lord over every ruler and authority in the universe. (NLT)

 

The world wants you to believe their philosophy and that their science is true, but as the scripture says here, it is empty. They try to make it sound good, but it is just nonsense or human thinking, not God’s thinking.

You are complete through your union with Christ and He is the Lord over every ruler and authority in the universe. The world we live in and the universe is in total submission to Christ. It was made by Him and it was made for Him. God said He created the world and the universe, not a big bang. Of course you could say that God spoke it and bang it happened (just a thought). He rules and only His words are true. It is only Jesus Christ who makes us whole, who heals our brokenness and fulfills our life with love and purpose.

 

Our Mission is to Lead People into a Growing Relationship with Jesus Christ