Saturday, September 3, 2011
Colossians 2:6-7 As you therefore have received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in Him, rooted and built up in Him and established in the faith, as you have been taught, abounding in it with thanksgiving.
STAY WITH JESUS
It's evident that these words were meant for people who believed that Jesus was their Savior, because it's said of them that they had "received Christ Jesus the Lord." The word "received" is key, because they had not chosen to believe in Christ. Faith was a gift given to them by God. Likewise God's Word says of every Believer in Christ: "For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast" (Ephesians 2:8-9).
Notice that they were urged to continue to walk in Him, that is, to continue to live united to Him and His Word. God wanted them to put down deeper roots and grow up in their faith in Christ.
They were like a new plant. Their roots had been started, but their faith needed to be more deeply planted in Christ. They still needed to grow. They needed to be built up, their faith established, reaching stability so that when the winds and tribulations of life arrived, they could remain upright and not be uprooted. If we are to gain strength to stand in trouble's hurricane, then we need to daily water and fertilize our faith by reading and studying our source of strength, God's Word.
They were just beginning to bear fruit to God's glory. Their lives had become an ongoing song of praise that said: "Thank you, Jesus."
Thus the Holy Spirit's message to them was simple: "Stay with Jesus. He's all that you need." They needed to make sure that their relationship with Jesus was not severed.
Well, duh ... That's a no-brainer, right? But there was a danger and they needed to be warned lest they be deceived and carried off as captives by the enemy. We need to be on guard and soberly remember that we face serious spiritual dangers. Our enemy is hard at work and his goal is to turn us from Christ.
Our enemy wants to draw us away from the safety and security we have in Christ. He wants us to check out what's going on in his camp. He wants us to think that people in his employ are only having fun. They are so wise and intelligent. They say they have discovered truths that God doesn't want you to know (Why change? that lie worked with Adam and Eve).
Watch out! This is propaganda designed to draw you away from Christ. Be on guard, lest you be captured and carried off by the enemy. Stay close to Jesus!
