WISDOM WEDNESDAY

Vol. 1 Issue 15 - 7-20-22

"But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ."

- II Peter 3:18

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Greetings Church,

As we begin to consider the text of Colossians 3:1-4 we need first to understand Paul's shift in focus. He has been speaking against the false teachers in Colosse and giving wise counsel to the faithful to be aware and careful. In chapter three he moves toward the need for the believers to live a life that is pleasing to the Lord. It is important that we understand this shift as it gives us insight in how to interpret and to apply the text to our hearts and lives.

Let us remind ourselves of the passage we are considering over the next few weeks, "If then you have been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth. For you have died, and your life is 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). I would encourage you to read this over and over. To pray over the words that you might see their glory. To let theme impact your thinking and daily life in such a way that your approach to life and your values would be shaped into godliness.

Our focus in this issue of Wisdom Wednesday will be the first phrase of verse one, "If then you have been raised with Christ."  Here we find the motivation for what Paul calls the Colossian believers to. This portion lays the foundation for all that follows as Paul calls them to a life that is pleasing to the Lord.

Here in the ESV it is presented as a conditional phrase, "if then". Often when we see conditional phrases we shift our attention to ourselves as the point of the condition as if we had something to do. But here the condition is focused upon a truth revealed. As such we need to consider where this truth was revealed. We begin with the book in which the condition is presented. This process is that of letting scripture interpret scripture. When we consider what Paul has written in the book we find the answer to the condition of truth revealed in Colossians 2:11-15, "In him also you were circumcised with a circumcision made without hands, by putting off the body of the flesh, by the circumcision of Christ, having been buried with him in baptism, in which you were also raised with him through faith in the powerful working of God, who raised him from the dead. And you, who were dead in your trespasses and the uncircumcision of your flesh, God made alive together with him, having forgiven us all our trespasses, by canceling the record of debt that stood against us with its legal demands. This he set aside, nailing it to the cross. He disarmed the rulers and authorities and put them to open shame, by triumphing over them in him."

There is much to consider in the passage as it demonstrates our unity with Christ and the victory that is secured by His work on the cross. We need only at this point to focus our attention upon verses 11,12. Paul takes the act of circumcision and makes it one in which it is more spiritual than physical. Ours is not a circumcision made by hands, in other words, just a physical act. Our circumcision is one of unity with Christ as it is His circumcision of our hearts that puts off the body of flesh. He continues to build upon this reality by bringing us to our baptism in Christ. Having been buried with him in baptism moves us to see our full identification with Christ's death, burial and resurrection. We identify with His death when we enter the water, identify with His burial as we go under the water and identify with His resurrection when we come up out of the water. Baptism then becomes the sign of our full identification with Christ. Paul speaks to this when he says, "in which you were also raised with him through faith in the powerful working of God, who raised him from the dead." This being raised from the dead is the same raised that Colossians 3:1 speaks about, "If then you have been raised with Christ". Christ's resurrection and our faith in its reality becomes an appropriation of faith as we demonstrate our full allegiance with Him in baptism.

The motivation is then set as we consider the condition. If you have been raised with Christ, if you share in the new life He has given and are fully aligned with Him, then you will long to live a life pleasing to Him. When we grasp the reality of what Christ has done for us, we long to give Him the fullness of our lives. We long to live in such a way that His Word is our priority, that His will is our will, that His glory is what we long to bring in our daily worship of Him.

The foundation is set in the work of Christ. We must remind ourselves constantly that it is His work not ours. This thought goes against all that we have been trained in concerning our living in this world. The curse of sin is hard work and at times we elevate the curse to be a mandate for picking ourselves up by our own boot straps, when in reality we work the work and give God the glory and the thanks for the strength to do the work. Scripture faithfully calls us to find our meaning, hope and perspective of life to be of the Father and not of this world. This calling is to prepare us for the joy of being eternally in His presence. So, Paul lays the foundation as a reminder of what Christ has done so that we would pursue that which is of Christ in a world that is destined for decay so that in it all Christ would be glorified.

Blessings,

PBS

 

WISDOM WEDNESDAY

Vol. 1 Issue 14 - 7-13-22

"But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ."

- II Peter 3:18

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Greetings Church,

In the last issue I referenced a habit of mine that I recite Scripture when I go to bed. My predominant passage is Colossians 3:1-4, "If then you have been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth. For you have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God. When Christ who is your life appears, then you also will appear with him in glory." This along with all of Ephesians 2 are my favorite passages of Scripture.

I share this with you as an encouragement to memorize Scripture and secondly to begin a small exposition of the Colossians passage. In this issue we will focus upon the need for memorization and its vital importance to our walk with the Lord. Then in subsequent issues we will expound the passage and draw some significant points of application to our lives in Christ.

The value of Bible memorization is multifaceted. In Colossians 3:16, Paul states, "Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, with thanksgiving in your hearts to God." Here we find the foundation being set for our lives together in the church, the called out ones. We cannot effectively teach, admonish, sing or give thanks if the Word is not dwelling in us. Not only are we to pursue its indwelling but it is qualified that we do so in the richness of the Word. Without letting the word of Christ dwelling in us richly we will become impoverished and weak in our walk with the Lord. We will find our hearts developing spiritual heart disease as we strive to accomplish heavenly things with earthly works. It is a very real and present danger for us to forget the Word in the dailiness of our lives.

The Psalmist in Psalm 119 approaches Scripture memory by posing a question first. In Psalm 119:9 we read, "How can a young man keep his way pure? By guarding it according to your word." Here again we see the necessary of Scripture memory and knowledge so that we can guard our hearts against sin and impurity. I am reminded of a quote on my Face Book page from Martyn Lloyd-Jones, "The great concern of the New Testament Epistles is not about the size of the church. It is about the purity of the church." What fitting reminder for us to contemplate when most Bible churches are just as biblically illiterate as the world. Guarding one's heart and keeping pure is the outcome of the Word that is living and active in our lives.

Just two verses later the Psalmist writes, "I have stored up your word in my heart, that I might not sin against you." (Ps. 119:11 ESV) In the NIV it says, "I have hidden your word in my heart, that I might not sin against you." (Ps. 119:11) In the NASB it says, "Your word I have treasured in my heart, that I may not sin against You." (Ps. 119:11) Let's draw so insights from each of these translations of the same verse. We see the words stored, hidden, and treasured in reference to the act of memorization. Each of these words help us understand the great value of Bible memorization. To store suggests that we are keeping the word at the ready to be used. To be ready in season and out of season. To hide suggests that we long to protect it in our hearts in such a way that its protection is constantly at work in our lives. To treasure suggests that we place great value upon the Word and thus want to have it in our hearts because of its work upon our hearts. Each of these words help us to see that Bible memorization is not just a discipline to be pursued but a practice that will bring about change.

In the second half of these passages we find the outcome or result of storing, hiding, and treasuring. That result is that I might not sin against God in the ESV and the NIV. In the NASB, it says may not. The expectation is that as we memorize Scripture we will see its impact upon our daily lives in Christ and our bent toward sin will be growing smaller and smaller. The practice is not to be just to be about our brain but our heart or soul, the fullness of our being. We are to let the Word of God so touch and transform us that we will see the wonder of Christ in it and long to have it be in the very fabric of our lives.

As we consider the memorization of Scripture the natural excuse is to say, "I can't memorize anything." I would beg to differ. Do you remember the names of your children, grandchildren, aunts, uncles, grandparents, neighbors, and classmates? How did you come to know these names, but through repetition and more repetition. Thus the practice of Bible memorization is two fold. First, taking a particular passage and reading it over and over again until you have it seared into your memory. The second is the reading of God's Word daily, multiple times a day. This habit will give you the broader experience of first remembering where in general you have read something and then over time you will be able to remember the specifics. So, we find our hearts longing for the Word and thus find ourselves without much effort memorizing the Word and bringing daily application to our lives. As I have said many times, "We are to have a read Bible."

May the Lord richly bless and expand your efforts in memorization by being daily in the Word.

Blessings,

PBS

WISDOM WEDNESDAY 

 Vol. 1 Issue 13 - 7-6-22

"But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ." 

- II Peter 3:18

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Greetings Church,

It has been a while since I have written to you. Many excuses have come across my mind and most have focused upon the issue of inspiration rather than motivation. As I have contemplated these thoughts the end result is that I have realized that these reflections are speaking more to me, just as much as to you.

The other night while reciting Scripture before going to sleep, I was prompted to think about the issue of inspiration and was convicted that I do not need inspiration to write as I already have it in Christ, through the Spirit and the power of the Word. If I relegate my writing to my own inspiration I put God in a box, negate the power of the cross, ignore the prompting of the Spirit and the Word that is living and active becomes stale and powerless.

All those things grow from a dependence upon the flesh rather than the Lord. Daily in our lives we need to not only live with repentant hearts but hearts that keep our focus upon the Lord in such a way that we realize the more we know Him the more we will see our intimate need of Him. His glory, wonder, grace, wisdom, peace and comfort, etc., are already ours in Christ. We need only to appropriate their reality and live them out as He empowers us by the Spirit and the Word.

Two Scriptures come to mind to help in remembering these truths. The first is Philippians 4:19, "And my God will supply every need of yours according to his riches in glory in Christ Jesus." Here the Apostle Paul makes it plain that every need of ours will be supplied. Regardless of what those needs are, God will supply them perfectly. Please note that the needs have a catch. They are not needs that find their foundation in the flesh but in the glorious riches in Christ Jesus. How many times have we reasoned ourselves into a decision concerning something we thought we needed only to realize that it had no value at all? When we realize that God supplies the true needs of our heart namely Christ in all His glory our value system shifts dramatically. As Jesus taught in Matthew 6:33, "But seek first the kingdom of God and all his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you." What a glorious reminder of God's provision.

The second Scripture comes from II Peter 1:3,4 "His divine power has granted to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of him who called us to his own glory and excellence, by which he has granted to us his precious and very great promises, so that through them you may become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped from the corruption that is in the world because of sinful desire." Several reminders leap off the page in this passage. We see that the provision finds its source in God not us. His power has granted, His revelation has granted, His rescue is exercised in the fulfillment of His promises to us. This passage of promise is not to be used as a lucky charm or expression but a reminder that God is the one who provides the power through His promises so that all things that pertain to life and godliness are ours in Him. As such the end result is not a blessed life in the world but a glorious life free from sinful desire. I find it interesting that we can easily commingle worldly wisdom with Biblical wisdom. We sprinkle wisdom of the flesh in a way to justify it with a little bit of truth from the Word. If we have escaped the corruption of the flesh why do we purposely seek it out?

The wonder of the Lord's motivation, inspiration and power is part and parcel of our relationship with Him through Christ. We need not find the source in our fallen heart but in the heart that is fully redeemed in Christ. Our redemption and repentance is to be upon our hearts every moment of our day. That reflection will give us all we need because He has promised it.

"May the God of peace himself sanctify you completely, and may your whole spirit and soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ." (I Thessalonians 5:23)

Blessings,

PBS