Chapter 3

Colossians 3:1–4 ESV

1 If then you have been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. 2 Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth. 3 For you have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God. 4 When Christ who is your life appears, then you also will appear with him in glory.

If these things be so; then You will appear with him!

Set Your Mind: to direct one's mind to a thing, to seek, to strive for.

Develop this spiritual life in practice. "No one longs for eternal, incorruptible, and immortal life, unless he be wearied of this temporal, corruptible, and mortal life" [AUGUSTINE].

One of the most damaging things I see in all of us is this:

I can look back and see that I am no longer the man I once was. It is at this moment that we stunt our growth.

Because we with a religious pride, have arrived at a place where we compare our old selves with our new selves and even worse we compare ourselves with one another.

We get comfortable looking back not looking forward.

Colossians 3:5–11 ESV

5 Put to death therefore what is earthly in you: sexual immorality, impurity, passion, evil desire, and covetousness, which is idolatry. 6 On account of these the wrath of God is coming. 7 In these you too once walked, when you were living in them. 8 But now you must put them all away: anger, wrath, malice, slander, and obscene talk from your mouth. 9 Do not lie to one another, seeing that you have put off the old self with its practices 10 and have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge after the image of its creator. 11 Here there is not Greek and Jew, circumcised and uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave, free; but Christ is all, and in all.

Put to death: Mortify—Greek, "make a corpse of"; to deprive of power, destroy the strength of whatever is early in you.

Renewed: to be changed into a new kind of life as opposed to the former corrupt state.

Knowledge: precise and correct knowledge, used in the NT of the knowledge of things ethical and divine.

So if we merge these two in thought we get-

**Your new self should allow your life to be changed into a newness that is OPPOSED to it’s former corrupt state and which allows

When we allow ourselves to meditate you would be amased at what the Word will speak into you!

Romans 6:12–14 ESV

12 Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body, to make you obey its passions. 13 Do not present your members to sin as instruments for unrighteousness, but present yourselves to God as those who have been brought from death to life, and your members to God as instruments for righteousness. 14 For sin will have no dominion over you, since you are not under law but under grace.

We have a tendency to focus on the defeated version of us and not the new creation in Christ Jesus.

Thus the call to be renewed in knowledge!!

**A precise and correct knowledge about ethical and divine things! **

Acts 20:22–24 ESV

22 And now, behold, I am going to Jerusalem, constrained by the Spirit, not knowing what will happen to me there, 23 except that the Holy Spirit testifies to me in every city that imprisonment and afflictions await me. 24 But I do not account my life of any value nor as precious to myself, if only I may finish my course and the ministry that I received from the Lord Jesus, to testify to the gospel of the grace of God.

This is a man who has died to himself and who has learned to focus on what lies ahead not behind.

To many of us are consumed with the elements of this earthly life and not the pone to come !

2 Timothy 4:6–8 AMP

6 For I am already about to be sacrificed [my life is about to be poured out as a drink offering]; the time of my [spirit’s] release [from the body] is at hand and I will soon go free. 7 I have fought the good (worthy, honorable, and noble) fight, I have finished the race, I have kept (firmly held) the faith. 8 [As to what remains] henceforth there is laid up for me the [victor’s] crown of righteousness [for being right with God and doing right], which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me and recompense me on that [great] day—and not to me only, but also to all those who have loved and yearned for and welcomed His appearing (His return).