COLOSSIANS 3 PUT OFF SINS & BE IMAGE BEARERS OF CHRIST

Описание: January 25
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COLOSSIANS 3
If then you have been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. 2 Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth. 3 For you have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God. 4 When Christ who is your life appears, then you also will appear with him in glory.5 Put to death therefore what is earthly in you: sexual immorality, impurity, passion, evil desire, and covetousness, which is idolatry. 6 On account of these the wrath of God is coming. 7 In these you too once walked, when you were living in them. 8 But now you must put them all away: anger, wrath, malice, slander, and obscene talk from your mouth. 9 Do not lie to one another, seeing that you have put off the old self with its practices 10 and have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge after the image of its creator. 11 Here there is not Greek and Jew, circumcised and uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave, free; but Christ is all, and in all.
– Colossians 3:1-11
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COLOSSIANS 3 PUT OFF SINS & BE IMAGE BEARERS OF CHRIST
A poem by ILMA inspired by these verses
To commit to Jesus Christ, one must let the old self go
It means that you no longer allow your sinful nature to rule
You will stop what is earthly and trivial so you can mature
You’ll seek heavenly things so you can become holy and pure
Let go of covetousness, idolatry, sexual immorality and evil desires
Instead, let the Spirit of the Lord permeate your entire being.
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In this letter, Paul writes to the Colossians what could truly help them overcome sin and live their lives serving the Lord Jesus Christ. He says that the proof of their faith lies in the things that they set their minds to dwell on. If they focus on material things, that only means that their old self is still very much alive and that the new nature hasn’t yet been worn. In verses 8-9 he enumerates the manifestations of the old self which are: anger, wrath, malice, slander, obscene talk, covetousness, sexual immorality and lying. Paul described these sins as idolatry. What are the common factors in these sins? Pride. What is the center of pride? Spelling wise, it is the letter “I” which could be attributed to the “self.” Each of these sins stems from the love of self. When one is angry, it is because the self didn’t get its way. The wrath stems from wanting to be so much in control, so that when someone else takes the control, they fume out. Slander focuses on twisting the reality and assassinating someone else’s character. Envy usually plays a role here. The person they are slandering must have something they lack, so they need to vilify them so others will see them better than who they were slandering. Malice is corrupting what is true and real. It stems from mistrust. It is focusing only on the self and is not concerned about the goodness of others. Sexual immorality is clearly pleasuring the self. Covetousness is clearly greed to have as much as what one can have. He reminds the Colossians that a believer of Christ does not indulge in these sins. Instead, they wear the image that God has created them to be: in his own likeness.
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REFLECTION
• Why is it a sin to tarnish the image that God has created in each of us?