Embrace the New!

Colossians 3:12-17

ETS: Paul wrote instructing the Colossian believers to embrace the power and presence of Christ.

ESS: We should take active steps to embrace Christ.

OSS: [MO: Devotional] {SO: I want the hearers to embrace the newness of Christ through practical steps in their lives.} Cognitive: I want the hearers to be informed about the qualities of the newness of life in Christ; Affective: I want the hearers to feel the relief and freedom of living in the newness of Christ and letting go of the bondage of sin and strongholds in their lives; Psycho-Motor: I want the hearers to make the appropriate changes in their lives to embrace the newness of life in Christ, both in their vertical relationship with God and their horizontal relationship with others.

PQ: What changes should we make to embrace the newness in Christ?

UW: changes

Intro.: [AGS]: Reminder of the trash can from last week. [TS]: Today, we read that Paul instructs the Colossian believers to make necessary changes in order to embrace the newness of life in Christ. [RS]: We each have changes that need to be made in our lives in order to fully embrace the newness of life in Jesus.

TS: Let us study together a few changes we can make to embrace the newness of life in Christ.

We must embrace new relational qualities. (vv. 12-14)

Horizontal impact

We must embrace the following new relational qualities (meaning new qualities that define our relationships with others): compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, patience, forgiveness, and love (noting that each of these are truly motivated by love)

This is completely new for some of us because by nature, some of us are calloused, rude, prideful, harsh, quick-tempered, grudge-holders, and hateful.

APPLICATION: The natural tendencies and qualities are the trash, sinful things, that we must let go of in order to embrace the new. Our relationships, now, being motivated by love, should have new qualities: compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, patience, forgiveness, and love.

We must embrace new foundational qualities. (vv. 15-16)

Vertical and horizontal impact

We must embrace the following new foundational qualities (meaning new qualities that define who we are in terms of our understanding of God and who He created us to be): peace, thankfulness, and spiritually maturing believers (growth)

This, too, is different for us. Naturally, some of us are people of anger, turmoil, and misery; some of us feel so deeply entitled; some of us simply enjoy existing.

The peace discussed here is peace between us and others born out of a relationship with God and an understanding of the body of Christ as one.

The thankfulness discussed here is for one another flowing from the peace we have; rather than being combative and opposing others, we seek peace with them being thankful that God has placed them in our lives.

Flowing from the peace and thankfulness is the desire to grow in Christ, letting the Word of Christ so richly, abundantly dwell that it produces teaching, admonishing, and singing in your hearts.

APPLICATION: The natural tendencies or qualities of man that are the trash, or sin, in our lives that must be let go of are not limited to but at least anger, turmoil, misery, entitlement, lack of desire to grow; Yet the opposite is what we must embrace as our new foundational qualities that define us: peace, thankfulness, and spiritual maturity or growth.

We must embrace the name of Christ. (v. 17)

Vertical impact

No matter what we say or do, we must do it all in the name of Jesus, giving thanks to God the father through Him.

APPLICATION: Perhaps, it is our natural tendency to do all in the name of ourselves- for our sakes, not His. Yet, the first thing Jesus said to His disciples is that they must deny themselves (Lk. 9:23). To embrace the newness of life in Christ, we must let go of ourselves.

CONCLUSION:

[1] Each of us has trash we have to let go of in order to embrace the newness of life in Christ. In order to fully embrace it, we must understand that in the process of taking out the trash, changes take place. There are changes that have to happen before we can fully embrace the newness of life in Christ.

[2] What specific changes need to take place in your life for you to embrace the presence, power, and provision of Jesus?

[3] What hinders your from making those changes today?

Take off the filthy, stained, cut-up shirt from the trash can, dump the trash again, and put on the fresh, new, clean shirt in order to demonstrate what has to take place in our lives. We have to take off the masks, take off the filth, empty our lives of the trash, make changes, and put on Christ in order that we might truly embrace His power and presence in our lives.