Colossians
Sunday, July 4, 2004
My Prayer Today
Heavenly Father, Thank You for this Lord’s day, when I may gather with brothers and sisters in Jesus to worship You! I pray that You will fill me and all who gather in local bodies of Christians to worship You, with the Holy Spirit, that we may worship You in Spirit and in truth. Glorify Yourself in our worship today and always, that Your kingdom may advance and grow to the ends of the earth, through Your people. This I pray in Jesus’ name. Amen.
God's Word For Me Today
Colossians 2:6-15
6And now, just as you accepted Christ Jesus as your Lord, you must continue to live in obedience to him. 7Let your roots grow down into him and draw up nourishment from him, so you will grow in faith, strong and vigorous in the truth you were taught. Let your lives overflow with thanksgiving for all he has done.
8Don’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. 9For in Christ the fullness of God lives in a human body, 10and you are complete through your union with Christ. He is the Lord over every ruler and authority in the universe.
11When 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. 12For 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.
13You 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. 14He canceled the record that contained the charges against us. He took it and destroyed it by nailing it to Christ’s cross. 15In this way, God disarmed the evil rulers and authorities. He shamed them publicly by his victory over them on the cross of Christ.
Reflecting on God’s Word
Where are you in the process of growth as a follower of Jesus, right now?
A Deeper Exploration of God’s Word
To what does the Apostle Paul compare the process of becoming more like Jesus? (2:6-7)
What actions does Paul tell us to take as followers of Jesus? (2:6-7)
Understanding God’s Word
What is the connection between accepting Jesus and obeying Him?
What is the reasonable response of every Christian for what God has done in our lives?
Applying God’s Word to Our Lives
What one thing will you do differently as a result of having read today’s Scripture?
Thoughts...Let Your Roots Grow Deep...
The Apostle Paul uses an agricultural image to show us what our life in Jesus Christ is supposed to be like. He tells us to let our “…roots grow down deep in Him and draw up nourishment from Him…” This image is quite similar to Jesus’ own analogy of the vine and the branches in which Jesus tells us that He is the vine and we are the branches, and that as long as we abide or stay connected to Him that we will “bear much fruit.” Paul wanted us to be equally as aware that the only way to live a Christian life is to sink our “roots” into Jesus and draw all our nourishment from Him. Jesus IS the source of everything good in our lives starting with our salvation from sin and death, and continuing with every spiritual gift and ability that He give us. As we go about this day, let’s remember that if we want to live victoriously, we must stay vitally connected to Jesus. We must draw our strength, our wisdom, our compassion—every-thing!—from Him. As we do that the world we see the amazing transformation that takes place when a person is willing to accept Jesus as Savior and Lord and then to continue to live in obedience!