October 30, 2017
Steven F. Hotze, M.D.
Publisher, CRTX News
www.crtxnews.com
For those of us who have placed our faith and confidence in Jesus Christ as our Savior, Lord and King, let’s conduct our lives in a manner consistent with our faith in Him.
The following is the message from Colossians 3:1-11.
Colossians 3:1-4 declares the following as truth from Almighty God. Logically, this passage is either true or not true.
“Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things. For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God. When Christ, who is your life, appears, then you also will appear with him in glory.” (Colossians 3:1-4)
The question is this. If the above passage is true and we accept and embrace it, then how should our behavior correspondingly change?
The answer is found in Colossians 3:5-11.
“Therefore, consider the members of your earthly body as dead to immorality, impurity, passion, evil desire, and greed, which amounts to idolatry. For it is because of these things that the wrath of God will come upon the sons of disobedience, and in them you also once walked, when you were living in them. But now you also, put them all aside: anger, wrath, malice, slander, and abusive speech from your mouth. Do not lie to one another, since you laid aside the old self with its evil practices, and have put on the new self who is being renewed to a true knowledge according to the image of the One who created him— a renewal in which there is no distinction between Greek and Jew, circumcised and uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave and freeman, but Christ is all, and in all.”
(Colossians 3:5-11)
This message is underscored in numerous other New Testament passages.
“For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; not as a result of works, so that no one may boast. For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them.”
(Ephesians 2:8-10)
And,
“What shall we say then? Are we to continue in sin so that grace may increase? May it never be! How shall we who died to sin still live in it or do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus have been baptized into His death? Therefore, we have been buried with Him through baptism into death, so that as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, so we too might walk in newness of life. For if we have become united with Him in the likeness of His death, certainly we shall also be in the likeness of His resurrection, knowing this, that our old self was crucified with Him, in order that our body of sin might be done away with, so that we would no longer be slaves to sin; for he who has died is freed from sin.” (Romans 6:1-7)
And,
“I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself up for me.”
(Galatians 2:20)
Having accepted the righteousness which God transferred to us from Jesus Christ, based upon our placing our faith and confidence in His finished work on the cross and His resurrection, let us then conduct ourselves in a manner worthy of the Lord, to please him in every respect.
The following is a prayer from Psalms that every individual should consider praying every day.
“Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me. Do not cast me away from Your presence and do not take Your Holy Spirit from me. Restore to me the joy of Your salvation and sustain me with a willing spirit. Then I will teach transgressors Your ways, and sinners will be converted to You.”
(Psalms 51:10-13)
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