Week 3:
Colossians 2:6-7 6So then, just as you received Christ Jesus as Lord, continue to live in him, 7rooted and built up in him, strengthened in the faith as you were taught, and overflowing with thankfulness.
It is not enough to just accept Christ. We have to live in Him. What does that look like? How do we live in Him? One of the things I love about the bible is how it explains to some degree what it means from the passage.
To live in him is to be rooted and built up in him. One of the ways to do that is to remain faithful to the word. To know Jesus, we must study his life and teachings. This will give water and nourishment to our “root system”. Being built up in him requires not only studying him but also participating in a community that is committed to him. We must surround ourselves with those who study and live rooted in Jesus in order to be built up in him.
Next, we are to be strengthened in the faith as we were taught. As we became Christians, we were taught many things. Faith is one of those things we are taught that we must have. Paul tells us in Romans that faith comes by hearing (Rom. 10:17). We hear about faith in many ways. We also must experience life in order to strengthen our faith. This could mean enduring and persevering through trials. Listen to those who you believe have great faith and they will give you hints into the experiences that strengthened their faith. Faith is essential since we follow an unseen God.
Finally, we are to live thankful lives. I love a simple exercise that James Bryan Smith advocates in his book The Good and Beautiful God. In this exercise, he challenges his readers to take time each day, for several days, to write down blessings we have been given. These can be shallow and/or deep. The point of the exercise is looking at how deeply we are blessed. I believe this is one of the main ways we can prompt thankfulness.
So, to live in Jesus, we must be rooted and built up in him, strengthened in our faith, and be thankful. “So then, just as you received Christ Jesus as Lord, continue to live in him, rooted and built up in him, strengthened in the faith as you were taught, and overflowing with thankfulness.”
Questions/challenges:
- What does it mean for you to live in Jesus?
- What is a favorite passage that has rooted and built you up?
- In what ways has your faith been strengthened?
- What are some ways for you to tap into your thankfulness?
- Ask God to show you this week some areas to live in Christ and then pay attention.
Don't forget to visit my Amazon links. General purchases: Click on the Banner at the top of the blog. For a list of my favorites go to:
http://astore.amazon.com/weekldevottho-20
No comments:
Post a Comment