What is Earthly, Put to Death

“If then you have been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth. For you have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God. When Christ who is your life appears, then you also will appear with him in glory.

“Put to death therefore what is earthly in you: sexual immorality, impurity, passion, evil desire, and covetousness, which is idolatry. On account of these the wrath of God is coming. In these you too once walked, when you were living in them. But now you must put them all away: anger, wrath, malice, slander, and obscene talk from your mouth. Do not lie to one another, seeing that you have put off the old self with its practices and have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge after the image of its creator. 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 ESV)

When we who proclaim to be Christians believe in Jesus Christ with God-persuaded faith in him, we are crucified with Christ in death to sin and raised with Christ to walk in newness of life in him, no longer to live as slaves to sin but now as slaves to God and to his righteousness. Therefore we are no longer to let sin reign in our mortal bodies to make us obey its desires. For if sin is what we obey, it leads to death. But if obedience to God is what we obey, it leads to righteousness and to sanctification, and its end is eternal life with Christ, our Lord (see Romans 6:1-23; Luke 9:23-26; 1 Peter 2:24).

Thus, if we have died with Christ to sin, and if we have been raised with him to walk in newness of life in him, not like our old lives of living in sin and for self, we are to set our minds and hearts and passions on the things of God and not on the things of this sinful world. For God and his word and obedience to the Lord are to get preference over all that is of this world. And we are never to give preference to the trappings of this sinful world over our commitments to and obedience to our Lord and to what he requires of us in the way of submission, obedience, and dying to sin daily.

So, if we are trying to do a balancing act between seeking the pleasures this sinful world and seeking God, it won’t work. For we can’t live of the flesh and of the Spirit simultaneously. We will love one and hate the other, for we can’t love God and all that is in the world—the desires of the flesh and the desires of the eyes and pride of life, too. And this doesn’t mean that we go and hide ourselves away in a hole someplace. We still have to live in the world, and we still have to work and eat, and we can still play, providing the play is not sinful. But the sinful pleasures of the world are not to overtake us.

So, if you are still holding on to any sinful practices at all, you need to give them up, and you, as a follower of Christ, must follow the Lord Jesus in obedience to his ways. For Jesus died that we might die to sin and live to righteousness, and so that we would now live for him in following him wherever he leads us in doing whatever it is that he commands us to do. He did not die just so we can be forgiven our sins and so we go to heaven when we die. He died to change us and to transform us and to make us more like him in character and in deed so that will glorify him with our lives.

For all these sins listed for us here, and more, are all to be put out of our lives. And if you might notice, there are certain sins which appear to come up at the top of most of these sin lists, and they are sexual immorality, impurity, sensuality, and sinful passion. And in our day and time, sexual immorality of various kinds is high on the list of sinful practices among those professing faith in Jesus Christ. And I think a lot of that stems from easy access to what is sexually immoral and sensual on the internet and via Smartphones and the teaching of a diluted and altered gospel message.

For so many people these days are teaching a faith in Jesus Christ that is of the flesh, and not of God, and which pacifies and makes room for sinful practices to continue in the lives of those who profess faith in Jesus Christ. But this is not saying that we must be absolutely perfect in every way, or else, or that if we sin once that we are now cut off from the Lord. But the Lord does “draw a line in the sand,” so to speak, and on one side are those whose lives are committed to obedience to the Lord and to death to sin while on the other side are those who still make sin their practice.

And the Scriptures teach that if we say that we are in fellowship with God/Christ, but we are still walking (in conduct, in practice) in sin, then we are liars. And if we say we know God, but we are not walking in obedience to his commands (New Covenant), in practice, then we are liars. For if sin is what we practice, and not obedience to our Lord, then we will die in our sins. We will not inherit eternal life with God regardless of what our lips profess. For Jesus said that not everyone who calls him Lord will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one DOING (obeying) the will of God the Father.

[Matt 7:21-23; Lu 9:23-26; John 1:12-13; John 6:44; John 10:27-30; Acts 26:18; Rom 2:6-8; Rom 6:1-23; Rom 8:1-14; Rom 12:1-2; 1 Co 6:9-10,19-20; 1 Co 10:1-22; 2 Co 5:10,15,21; Gal 5:16-24; Gal 6:7-8; Eph 2:8-10; Eph 4:17-32; Eph 5:3-6; Col 1:21-23; Col 3:1-17; Titus 2:11-14; 1 Jn 1:5-10; 1 Jn 2:3-6,24-25; 1 Jn 3:4-10; 1 Peter 1:15; 1 Pet 2:24; Heb 3:1-19; Heb 4:1-13; Heb 10:23-31; Heb 12:1-2; Rev 21:8,27; Rev 22:14-15]

Only in Him  

An Original Work / February 19, 2014

Based off Isaiah 30

Woe to those who look to man’s help;

Who turn away from Jesus Christ;

Forming an alliance not in step with God;

Making their own plans, and praying not.

Willing not to listen to truth,

They close their ears to what is right.

Pleasing words are all that they’ll hear;

Feel good messages that bring cheer.

Trust in your Lord; turn from your sin.

Put your faith now ONLY IN HIM.

Do not turn to idols. They’ll not satisfy.

Jesus will save you. That’s why He died.

Your Lord will be gracious to you.

He cares all about you, ‘tis true.

He forgives you all of your sin

When you give your life up to Him.

Oh, how truly gracious He’ll be

When you bow to Him on your knees;

Turning now from your sin; walking in his ways.

He’ll lead and guide you all of your days.

Now you will sing praises to Him.

He delivered you from your sin.

You’ll tell others now of His grace,

So they may see Christ face-to-face. 

https://vimeo.com/87181019