Colossians 3:1-17
It’s a given that anytime we go to eat with my sister that her children will want to play hide and go seek with me. Now friends, I don’t mean to brag but I may be the best hide and seeker Brantley County has ever produced. I can hide so well it takes them 20 minutes to find me (of course the three kids are younger than 7 so I don’t think I can brag too much). And when they eventually find me I in return have to find them. And like a good uncle I must take 20 minutes to find them and ignore the fact that I can hear the cabinet door close as they peek to see where I am. And ignore that I can see their feet from underneath the blanket. It really doesn’t take too much effort to find them.
But as a Christian there is something that we should be seeking very diligently in our lives. We should be seeking things that bring honor and glory to God and further His kingdom here on earth. Well how do we do this? We are by nature sinners and are prone to seek after things that please us.
When we are born again/saved most of us that are able are baptized. This baptism is symbolic of us putting to death the natural, carnal mind and being born again into a new creature. This is what Paul is telling us to do here. We must put anger, wrath, malice, blasphemy, and filthy communication away from us. We must put off the old man (sinful nature) and put on the new man (Christ).
Well what does this new man look like? He is clothed with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience. He forgives those who have done him wrong. But in my mind the most important thing is that he is clothed in charity. Charity by definition is brotherly love, affection, good will, love, and benevolence.
By putting on this new man we are now able to devote ourselves to seeking things that are above. Well how does that work? By letting God rule (direct or control) our heart we are able to look and think on things that honor Him. It allows us to teach and correct fellow believers (new believers and old alike) with the words of Christ that were left with us here on earth.
Seeking things that are above. So does that mean we walk around looking up at the sky all the time, waiting for God to hit us with a sucker punch of holiness and love? To quote a friend of mine, God forbid. I think that to seek things that are above we have to look down and around us to see how we can help our fellow man in their troubles. We show them the same love that Christ showed us when He died for our sins.
Paul gives us a good way to do this towards the end of these verses.
“And whatsoever ye do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God and the Father by him.”
Everything that we do in this life should be done for Christ. And it should be done with a thankful heart. Sounds good on paper but how do we make this work in the real world? For me it looks like this; I pray before I meet with a family that they will be comforted during this time of loss and whatever we do at the funeral home will be used to honor God and be a comfort to the family. While meeting with them (if the opportunity presents itself) I talk about Jesus and the comfort we have in Him, and the promise of being with Him forever one day. I tell them about the Good Shepherd and how he is with us through the valley of the shadow of death. How He loves and cares for us. I give a hug or handshake. Sometimes I just listen patiently while a family talks about their loved one. And God lets me know He’s there and working in the family’s life when the family comes to us later and says how thankful they are and how much it means for us to be there to help them.
That is just what I can do at work. What can you do at your job, school, or just out shopping? Can you hold the door for someone? Can you share the gospel with someone? Can you just take a moment and pray for someone when you see and know there is a need?
God has put us all in positions that we may serve Him in this life. We have to diligently search for and serve Him while living in this world.
Riley Lee