Review
Last week we were talking about how it is God’s will to be filled with the Holy Spirit. When we accept Christ into our lives we are then filled with the Holy Spirit. We know that according to Romans 8:9 that we are to be controlled by the Spirit of God. That we no longer live our lives according to the flesh. It also says that if you are not controlled by the Spirit then you have no part in Christ.Spirit Filled Life
Continuing into living a Spirit Filled life we can see how it is we are to live. There is only one way that we are able to be Spirit Filled Christians, and that is God’s way. Colossians 3 gives us a list on how to live a Spirit Filled life.Colossians 3:1-17
“1Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is seated at the right hand of God. 2Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things. 3For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God. 4When Christ, who is your[a] life, appears, then you also will appear with him in glory.
5Put to death, therefore, whatever belongs to your earthly nature: sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desires and greed, which is idolatry. 6Because of these, the wrath of God is coming.[b] 7You used to walk in these ways, in the life you once lived. 8But now you must rid yourselves of all such things as these: anger, rage, malice, slander, and filthy language from your lips. 9Do not lie to each other, since you have taken off your old self with its practices 10and have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge in the image of its Creator. 11Here there is no Greek or Jew, circumcised or uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave or free, but Christ is all, and is in all.
12Therefore, as God's chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. 13Bear with each other and forgive whatever grievances you may have against one another. Forgive as the Lord forgave you. 14And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity.
15Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace. And be thankful. 16Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom, and as you sing psalms, hymns and spiritual songs with gratitude in your hearts to God. 17And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.” - NIV
Set Your Mind on Things Above
In reading the book of Colossians we need to understand what is going on at the time. Who the audience was that Paul was writing to. Colosse’s inhabitants worshiped many gods, including Artemis, Athena, and Demeter. There were all types of heresies being spread around at this time. Now we can compare this to today. There a plenty of heresies or lies about God that are being spread around the world today…even in some churches this is happening.2nd Timothy 4:3-4
“3For the time will come when men will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear. 4They will turn their ears away from the truth and turn aside to myths.” - NIV
That time is here and now. People do not want to hear the truth about God. They want to shape and mold the Word of God instead of letting the Word of God shape and mold them. How does this happen? It is because they are not being led by the Spirit. The focus is not on the things above.
Colossians 3:2
“2Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things.” – NIV
When you allow your mind to detour away from the things above, meaning God – His way of living, His standard of living – you are no longer being led by the Spirit. It is impossible to be led by God if you’re not focused on Him. It is impossible to follow Him if you are not even looking at Him. It is impossible to follow Him if you are leading the way.
Many times Jesus said, “follow me”:
· Peter
John 21:19
“Follow me” – NIV
· Teacher of the Law
Matthew 8:22
“Follow me…” – NIV
· Simon called Peter and Andrew
Matthew 4:19
“Come, follow me” – NIV
· Everyone
Matthew 16:24
“…follow me.” – NIV
If you are not following Jesus, then who are you following? Who is doing the leading? If it is yourself you are not living a Spirit Filled life, if it is person you are not living a Spirit Filled life, if it is no one else but God you are not living a Spirit Filled life. If you are not living a Spirit Filled life then you are not Spirit led, and if you are not Spirit led then you do not belong to Christ (Romans 8:9)!
Get your mind on the things above. Sometimes we get our minds so wrapped up on the things of this world that we forget that this is not our home. We try to build a permanent home here rather than trying to build the Kingdom of God. How can we be Spirit Filled and allow the Spirit to direct us in where to go, and what to do, and how we are to live our lives if we do not have our minds focused on the things above?
Put to Death Your Old Nature
Colossians 3:5-7“5Put to death, therefore, whatever belongs to your earthly nature: sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desires and greed, which is idolatry. 6Because of these, the wrath of God is coming.[b] 7You used to walk in these ways, in the life you once lived.” – NIV
If you are setting your mind on the things above and you are allowing the Spirit to lead your life then you are able to put to death your old nature. Paul gives us a list of what our old nature is:
· Sexual Immorality
· Impurity
· Lust
· Evil Desires
· Greed
· Verse 8 – Anger
· Rage
· Malice
· Slander
· Filthy Language
We are to die to our flesh every single day. We are to be walking dead men/women. We no longer live for the things of this world. We are now living for the Kingdom of God. If you look at kingdoms throughout history and including today, the people of the land had to abide by the law that is set forth by the king. We do not have a king per say here in America, but we do have laws that are set in place by our government. Whether we agree with the laws or not we have to abide by them. If we do not we will end up with huge fines or in jail or worse be executed. Those laws were put into place in order to protect the people and also to protect the government. Now I am not going political here I am just making a point so please do not turn me off.
Listen, when we accept Christ into our lives we have been accepted into the Kingdom of God. Since it is a Kingdom there is a King and this King has put into affect certain laws that we as the people of the Kingdom are to abide by. There is a certain standard of living that God expects from His people. They are put there to protect us. Protect us from what? From an eternity of pain and torment – hell.
Who better to tell us how to live our lives than the one who created us? Just as with the laws of this land, some we may not agree with, but none the less we have to abide by them. If we do not there is a consequence. Same thing with God, He has put into place a specific way of living, if we do not abide by that living then there is a consequence. When we live our lives according to our own ways and how we want to live it is called sin.
Romans 6:23
“23For the wages of sin is death…” - NIV
All these things that Paul listed her in Colossians 3 are sin. It is the direct opposite of God. He wants us to stay away from these things because it will kill your relationship with God. Our sin separates us from the very person that gives us life. Without that relationship with God you are as good as dead.
Romans 6:1-2
“1What shall we say, then? Shall we go on sinning so that grace may increase? 2By no means! We died to sin; how can we live in it any longer?” – NIV
We are to be dead to sin. Dead to the world and alive in Christ. You cannot follow Christ if you are not dead to sin. Jesus said it best,
Mark 8:34-38
“ 34If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. 35For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me and for the gospel will save it. 36What good is it for a man to gain the whole world, yet forfeit his soul? 37Or what can a man give in exchange for his soul? 38If anyone is ashamed of me and my words in this adulterous and sinful generation, the Son of Man will be ashamed of him when he comes in his Father's glory with the holy angels.” – NIV
We are to be a new creature, a new man/woman. It is no longer I who live but Christ who now lives in me.
Colossians 3:7-10
“7You used to walk in these ways, in the life you once lived. 8But now you must rid yourselves of all such things as these: anger, rage, malice, slander, and filthy language from your lips. 9Do not lie to each other, since you have taken off your old self with its practices 10and have put on the new self…” – NIV
If you have not done a 180 from what you were before you got saved then there are some issues in your life. If you are the exact same way that you were before Christ then you have to ask yourself…am I living a Spirit Filled life? We come to Christ as we are…sins and all…but Christ does not want us to stay the same.
Peter Changed
John 21:1-3“1Afterward Jesus appeared again to his disciples, by the Sea of Tiberias. It happened this way: 2Simon Peter, Thomas (called Didymus), Nathanael from Cana in Galilee, the sons of Zebedee, and two other disciples were together. 3"I'm going out to fish," Simon Peter told them, and they said, "We'll go with you." So they went out and got into the boat, but that night they caught nothing.” – NIV
We see here that after the death and resurrection of Christ he is going fishing. So he and other disciples got into a boat and went fishing. This is a perfect example of what we as Disciples of Christ are not supposed to do. This is a perfect example of how when we have an encounter with Christ that our lives are supposed to be changed, we are not to be the same.
Who knows what Peter did before Christ called him to be a Disciple? Fisherman.
Matthew 4:18-22
“18As Jesus was walking beside the Sea of Galilee, he saw two brothers, Simon called Peter and his brother Andrew. They were casting a net into the lake, for they were fishermen. 19"Come, follow me," Jesus said, "and I will make you fishers of men." 20At once they left their nets and followed him.
21Going on from there, he saw two other brothers, James son of Zebedee and his brother John. They were in a boat with their father Zebedee, preparing their nets. Jesus called them, 22and immediately they left the boat and their father and followed him.” – NIV
Peter used to fish for fish, but Christ has called him to change the way he lived and fish for men. He went back to the way things were before he met Christ. Went back to his old lifestyle and the way he did things. Why did he do it? I believe it is because he did not have his mind set on the things above.
When you get your mind off of the things above, if you get your mind off of the reason why God has called you, you will go back to the earthly things that you used to do. It may not be fishing, but an attitude, an addiction, a relationship you shouldn’t have, anger, hatred, malice, lusts, and evil desires and so on.
So many times we have an encounter with Christ like the Disciples did. We see Jesus working in our lives and in the lives of others, but the moment we do not see anything being done, the moment we think God has left us, we just give up and go back to how things used to be and that is not living a Spirit Filled life.
We also can learn from this that our actions affect those around us. Who else went back to fishing along with Peter? Who was affected?
· Peter – Leader
· Thomas (Didymus)
· Nathaneal
· Sons of Zebedee – James & John
· 2 other Disciples
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