Sat 7.6 – King Peace

Today’s Readings: Colossians 1.20, 3.10-16; Romans 5.1,10, 14.17; 2 Corinthians 5.18-21; Philippians 4.6-7; I Thessalonians 5.23

We come to a huge statement in our study through Colossians today. Scripture says to “let the peace of God rule in your hearts”[v.15]. Now, what kind of person rules? A King, right? The King get’s his way, the King calls the shots, the King determines the direction of the people of the land.

Now with that in mind, check out the scriptures above. Where does that PEACE come from? I mean that true peace that is to rule our hearts. It comes from God. 1 Corinthians 14.33 actually says God is the AUTHOR of PEACE. He is where it starts, where it originates, where it comes out from. Wow.

So, if God is telling us that the PEACE which only He gives is to RULE in our hearts, how do we get there?

Do you ever feel like your life is RULED by everything EXCEPT PEACE?!?! I do sometimes. It is easy to feel like STRESS, or PROBLEMS, or TENSION, or DEPRESSION, or CONFUSION rules in our hearts. We would be lying if we said anything otherwise. That’s is just the reality of the believer living in this wicked world all around us. When we talk about the HEART we talk about all kinds of EMOTIONS.

Sometimes the EMOTIONS we FEEL are what we base the TRUTH on. If your parents have done something that makes you FEEL forsaken, you can easily talk yourself into believing the FALSE TRUTH that they do not love you anymore. However, that is not the truth but because of your EMOTIONS, your PERCEPTION of the truth can be ALTERED. And if we are going to have a RIGHT PERCEPTION of the TRUTH, we are going to have to put our DECEITFUL HEARTS (Jeremiah 17.9) UNDERNEATH the rule of the true PEACE of God, who sits on the throne over our HEART.

Well, God would not tell us to do something that is impossible would He? Of course not… so then, again, how do we get there? How do we get self, stress, tension, and all those other things off the throne so that PEACE HIMSELF (see I Thess 5.23) can sit down and rule in our hearts? God explains that in the next verse.

We must LET THE WORD OF CHRIST DWELL IN US RICHLY AND IN ALL WISDOM! [v.16]

In this verse we see the KEY that will open the door to all of the things we have learned to be true of the NEW MAN. Guys, we could talk about 100 reasons that we need to let the WORD OF CHRIST come into our lives and TAKE OVER THE PLACE! It is the key to everything in the Christian life. We talked Wednesday night about the fact that our failures before God are always DIRECTLY RELATED to our failures in STAYING IN THE WORD. God clearly illustrates the WORD OF GOD AS BREAD(Matt 4.4, John 6, Amos 8.11), and just like our PHYSICAL BODIES WOULD DIE if we did not eat food, our SPIRITUAL BODIES WILL DIE if we do not eat spiritual food – the Word of God!

We cannot go everywhere that verse deserves in this short devotion today, but I want to leave you with one thought… YOU ARE LIKE THE PEOPLE YOU HANG OUT WITH (Prov 13.30)!

So, would it not make sense that when we HANG OUT WITH GOD IN HIS WORD, and let that WORD remain (dwell) in us, and we’re constantly thinking on it/Him, and constantly fellowshipping with what parts of it/Him are hidden in our hearts (Ps 119.11), that we would have peace? Forgiveness? Charity? Equality? That we would bare that Image? That we would be RENEWED in our MINDS? And everything that the NEW MAN is!!! I think so!

May the WORD DWELL IN YOU RICHLY AND IN ALL WISDOM today! Amen.

Fri 7.5 - the bond of perfectness

Today’s Readings: Colossians 3.10-16; 2.1-4; 1 Peter 4.8; 1 John 4.21; John 13.35

As we go through these descriptions of the new man this week, reviewing back to Wednesday night, I want to take the opportunity to talk with you all about where he speaks of the ELECT of God. We addressed this a little bit on Wednesday night, but I feel as though there is more to be said. However, I also do not know how many of you reading this actually have any concern about the subject. It seems to be something that high-minded people get all frizzled up about, and WASTE much of their time arguing over while the work of God goes undone. So, maybe in the future we will discuss this concept further, but for now, just know that we have been ELECTED to be CONFORMED into the IMAGE of God’s Son (Romans 8.29-33).

Today, let’s talk about the concept of being BOUND together by love!

After using the purpose of their election to reason with these believers to PUT ON THE NEW MAN, Paul moves on to explain their unity. He does this through two steps.

1 – FORGIVE. Check out his words in Col 3.13. If there was ever a person who should be able to forgive another person, it should be the believer. Having been forgiven of so much, it would only seem natural that we would desire to show that same forgiveness to others as well. The problem tends to be, that in AMERICAN CHRISTIANITY we have this broken reasoning that tells us we have EARNED something, or DESERVE something. Let me just remind you of how our pastor explains this truth from scripture often…we all DESERVE to be FEDEX’D straight to HELL. That’s what we DESERVE. Anyone who has come to Christ and asked for forgiveness for salvation through faith and repentance should know this. But the longer we LIVE in this world, and the more we LISTEN to this world, the more we will LEAVE the things of Christ behind.

So, understanding how much we have been forgiven of, and therefore being more prone to forgive others…what are his next words???

2 – LOVE. Notice that in Col 3.14 he says that “charity”, or love, should be the priority among our priorities! It is the BOND OF PERFECTNESS!!! Wow, now that’s a big statement. Let me shed a little light on that for us …

There is this stuff that we all use around our houses, it will fix just about anything that is broken instantly. SUPERGLUE. Do you know what superglue is? (besides that stuff that makes you accidently glue your fingers together because it dries so stinking fast!) SuperGlue is a type of BONDING! It makes two things stick together.

Now, if CHARITY is our BOND of perfectness…what does God mean by that? Well, in explaining the body of Christ, God says that we are all BOUND together as one BODY in Him. His ultimate goal for us is to grow into the “measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ” and the way He describes it is to be a “PERFECT MAN”(Eph 4.13). Hugh? Isn’t that interesting? So, God wants us to be like the SECOND ADAM, THE NEW MAN, THE LORD JESUS CHRIST, THE PERFECT MAN, and here in Colossians 3.14, He explains that the BONDING that will hold it all together for us as His body (having many members but being still one body) is LOVE!!!! Wow.

How is that? Well maybe because of the truth of these verses…

1 Pet 4.8 – When we LOVE someone, that love will cover a MULTITUDE of sins!!! (that means we can get over the junk that crowds our minds and hearts when we gather together to worship and serve our LORD!!!)

John 13.35 – When we LOVE ONEANOTHER, it is as if we are taking on the personification of our Savior here on this earth. We show him through our lives when we do that. We are little-Christs (Christians) at that point.

I John 4.19-21 – When we LOVE our brothers, we are proving our love for God. That is the common denominator among believers, that is our point of unity!

May God help us to realize how much love we have received, and may that cause us to love others the way He would, and does! Amen.

Thur 7.4 – A level playing field

Today’s Readings: Colossians 3.10-16; Romans 9.24-26,30; I Corinthians 12.13; Gal 3.28

What is a social class? Political power? Celebrity influence? I could keep going, but the point is that no matter who the HUMAN is, they have no power over other human beings unless those other human beings allow them to have that power. A person in a celebrity because a bunch of other people said they are and are interested in their lives. A person has political power because the people choose him, or because the yield to his tyranny. A person has social status because of our embedded biases and other’s deciding to follow their example.

Very simply, the only One who can command power and authority is a way that demands us obey is the Lord God. All humans beings are sinful according to Romans 3.23! Let’s take a second to examine the thought of this verse:

“ALL” – how many people is that…exactly.

“have sinned” – what is sin? It is our failure to live perfectly according to God’s will for us. And according to scripture, we’ve all stumbled head-over-heels on this one.

“come short” – no matter how close we were, we are short. If you and I run and jump off a cliff in northern California and try to make it to Asia, we will both FALL SHORT of that goal. You may jump further than I, but neither of us has come near to Asia.

“glory of God” – you see that glory is the standard we cannot meet! No mere mortal will come to the standard of God’s holy, righteous, beautiful glory! Some may get a little further here and there, but nobody is even in sight of the goal!

HOWEVER, in you (the believer) is that NEW MAN! That NEW MAN is our way of being conformed back into the image of GOD that was lost when Adam sinned. That same spiritual part of us is where we are going to find the means to live up to God’s will. While nobody is perfect, and we all make mistakes, when we stand before God, all are equal!

When they stand before God there is no difference between the rich man, Lazarus, Peter, Paul, you or me! There is an old saying, “the ground is level at the foot of the cross” and I would have to simply say AMEN to that! Maybe you feel like a social reject, an outcast, unloved and unwanted? That is not so with our God. All can come, and all must come the same way. There is no favoritism with God (I Pet 1.17)

May you find your purpose, meaning, acceptance, righteousness, and life in Him today! Amen.

Wed 7.3 – Renewed in Image

Today’s Readings: Colossians 3.10-16; I Corinthians 12.13; Galatians 3.28; 2 Corinthians 4.16;

We talked yesterday about the “newness” of life. If you were not able to be a part of that study, please return to 7.2 and check it out so that you will have a better reference for today’s study.

I want to take yesterday a step further today. The fact that we have been raised to NEWNESS of life is very true! Please do not hear me saying anything different than that today. However, that is not the full extent of the truth of our LIFE IN CHRIST (Col 3.4).

Notice how God describes that new man in Colossians 3.10, he is RENEWED in knowledge after the IMAGE of him that created him. Now let’s look into that for a moment today.

Did you realize that when you were saved, it was not simply that you transitioned from a child of darkness to a child of light? Our salvation is more than a COMING to God, our salvation is a RETURNING to God. Here’s a little summary breakdown of the GOSPEL truth:

• GOD made man perfect and sinless to fellowship with Him and worship Him as the sons of God.
• SIN enters the picture with man’s seeking of self rather than seeking God and causes a separation between God and man.
• CHRIST, the gospel, comes to bridge the gap between man and God to bring sons of God back to Himself.
• FAITH is the agent by which men partake of Christ and receive their salvation unto life everlasting in Him.

Now, as we read the book of Genesis, we see that man was ORIGINALLY created in a perfect way with God. The Scriptures said that man was made in the IMAGE of God (Genesis 1.27), but notice a MAJOR CHANGE when sin enters the picture, now men are no longer in the image of God, but in the image of Adam (Genesis 5.1-3). Man LOST the image of God which allowed the fellowship with God and the reproduction of other sons of God. Adam was a son of God (Luke 3.38)but since sin, all men are the sons of Adam (I Corinthians 15.45-49 – with special emphasis on verse 49!)

So, when we are RAISED to walk in NEWNESS of life, we are actually being raised to walk in ORIGINAL life, the way God intended it before sin entered the picture and brought death. God says in Colossians 3 that we are “RENEWED” and that our renewal is after the “IMAGE” of the One who “CREATED” the new man…(Colossians 1.16-17)

Folks, remember today, we are not simply walking in a new way. It is just new to us, in God’s eyes it is ORIGINAL! God is in the RESTORING business. He wants sons of Adam to become the sons of God (John 1.12-14) and thus be renewed and alive-again to the original walk He wanted for us.

This truth leaves us needing to evaluate how we approach our walk with Him…is it simply to keep the list of things the NEW MAN should do and to avoid the list of things the OLD MAN would? Or is it in passionate thanksgiving for our restoration to His family as sons of God? And also, how are we doing at helping others find the RENEWAL their souls so desperately need?

May God awaken us to the reality of who we are in Him as sons of God! Amen.

Tue 7.2 – “Raised to walk in newness of life”

Today’s Readings: Colossians 3.10-16; 2 Corinthians 5.17; I John 3.9; I Corinthians 6.17, 15.45-49

Yesterday, we looked at some of the characteristics of the NEW MAN that we are to PUT ON. I want to point out a couple simple things today as we compare the verses from today’s reading with each other to cover these truths from Colossians 3.10-16

1 – please notice that we ALREADY HAVE the NEW MAN if we are born again. 2 Corinthians tell us that if any man is in Christ, he IS a new creature. That means they already has the newness in him/her. What we are talking about here is not HOW TO GET THE NEW MAN. That is a question of salvation. What we are talking about is PUTTING ON THE NEW MAN, or in other words how to live in the full reality of our new life in Christ.

2 – I want to make sure and point out another vital truth this morning. The new man is not simply a better version of ourselves. Some will read these words and think that we are talking about how to adjust our lives to be BETTER lives than what we currently have. That is NOT it. What we are talking about here is a COMPLETELY NEW PERSON living in us after salvation. This is not simply a reformation, it is a replacement. It is not just a remedy, it is a rebirth.

And, just in case all of that goodness was not enough, that NEW MAN inside of us is not even us! Sure, we are united with it; Peter said we are PARTAKERS OF THE DEVINE NATURE (2 Pet 1.4), but the amazing truth is that in being united with HIS NATURE we are no longer simply ourselves. Check out how Paul describes it in Romans 13.14, “PUT YE ON THE LORD JESUS CHRIST” wow!

THE NEW MAN IS JESUS CHRIST IN US! Remember what we read back at the end of chapter 1? Paul describes the golry of God in the Mystery of CHRIST IN US! It’s just like our God…He will never call us to do something that He hasn’t first already equipped us to do! (1 Thes 5.24)

When we yield our lives to the new man, allowing the life of the new man to reign, and we PUT OFF the old man, we are actually seeking to distance ourselves from … well … OURSELVES, and place ourselves more fully in the One who is IN us! Check out 1 Corinthians 15.45-49 as you conclude your time with the Lord today and notice all the differences between the two men in that passage. One is earthly, carnal, sinful, and mortal. The other is heavenly, spiritual, sinless, and immortal. ADAM was that first man – the old man that we are to PUT OFF! And Christ was that second man – the new man that we are to PUT ON!

What are you wearing today? Rags, filthy stains, temporary things? Or are you wearing gold, silver, eternal works, blessings and praise, divine nature??? Now that we are RISEN WITH CHRIST (3.1) let’s walk in the newness of THAT life! Amen.