10/15/17 Colossians 3:1-17
We have been warned! In Colossians chapter 2, Paul has given us no less than 5 warnings: 1. Don’t be deluded (v 4) 2. Don’t be taken captive (v 8) 3. Judge for yourself (v 16) 4. Don’t be defrauded (v 18,19) 5. Do not submit (v 20,21) What does this look like in real life? If the substance and meaning of ALL things belongs to Christ, why then, are we so willing to cede power and control to other sources? While asking WWJD?, may be overly simplistic, asking, ‘’How does Jesus see this situation?’, or ‘What is a biblical world view of this circumstance?’, may help guard our thinking and the sourcing of power for our lives. Think of it as seeing everything through the Jesus filter.
With this in mind, quickly review what these warnings can look like in our lives: How are we Deluded? How are we Taken captive? When do we not Not Judge rightly? How are we Defrauded? When do we Improperly submit? …rather than first seeing everything through the Jesus filter.
And so we see Paul transition into chapter 3 like this: THEREFORE, (based on chapters 1&2) considering who this Jesus really is and the place He holds in this universe, along with the clear warnings I’ve given, stop acting like idolaters!(v5)
He’s saying this old behavior (vv 5,8,9), amounts to idolatry or a heart offered to false gods.
While and this new behavior (vv 12-17) amounts to pleasing God or a heart offered to the one true God. Verse 17 is a clear new call to a life submitted to Christ. How does verse 17 fulfill living a life through the lens of a biblical world view? How can it help others do so as well? Make it a point to memorize Colossians 3:17 this week.
Extra credit: how would you say verses 15 and 16 empower you to accomplish this new vision of verse 17?
Lastly, Pastor Ryan mentioned how the area of sex quickly becomes an outworking of our theology. In other words, how we view sex and our sexual behavior reflects our understanding of this teaching. What if we would use the analogy of sex and its “use” compared to a tool and its use – and their being offered to God in their use?
Any tool in the shed, offered to be used in its proper context (where it belongs), serves the purpose it was designed for beautifully and therefore produces good results. Likewise, any tool in the shed, offered to be used in a wrong context (where it does not belong), contrary to its designed purpose, produces bad results.
Sex offered in its proper context is good and beautiful. Sex offered in the wrong context is bad and sin. Sex or a tool itself is neither good nor bad, but the context in which it is done, and between whom is everything. Sex in the context of a woman and a man in their marriage is a wonderful thing. Sex outside of that context and that relationship can be very harmful (especially in the long run, even though it may seem very appealing and pleasurable in the short run).
Based on this analogy, how can we better understand the use or misuse of sex? i.e. How can it be true that sex can be used to… Create or Destroy. Cultivate or Damage. Construct or Debilitate.