 "Set your minds on things that are above" Colossians 3:1-17
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. 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. 12 Put on then, as God’s chosen ones, holy and beloved, compassionate hearts, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience, 13 bearing with one another and, if one has a complaint against another, forgiving each other; as the Lord has forgiven you, so you also must forgive. 14 And above all these put on love, which binds everything together in perfect harmony. 15 And let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in one body. And be thankful. 16 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 thankfulness in your hearts to God. 17 And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him. Worship Team ValuesFor us to become the people that God meant for us to be, we have developed a list of Biblical values that guide our ministry. (You can click here to see them.) We find these values in God's Word. This passage below provides us a great example. We are able to go through each value and find evidence for them in this very passages. TruthJesus calls Himself the Truth, if He is the Truth, then His word is Truth. We are exhorted here to let the word of Christ dwell richly within us and to set our minds on the things above. Truth is the core of what we are about. We are to teach and admonish one another in the Truth. We cannot worship effectively, or correctly if it is not based upon the Truth of God's Word.LoveAbove all, we are to put on love. Truth without love is not truth at all. Jesus asks us to love above all. This echoes the greatest commandments to love the Lord and to love one another. Love is the core of who we are. If Truth is what we are about, then Love is how we do it. The passage gives great examples of loving one another, being patient, and bearing with one another. GloryEverything we do in word and deed reflects upon the Father. We do it in the name of Jesus, and in so doing, Jesus is glorified. We set our minds on the things above. We set aside the old self out of love for Jesus, and the result is that we are made clean in the sight of others. Our lives take on a new meaning and purpose. God uses us to change the world around us. When Christ appears we will be glorified. This happens at the end of days, but it also happens as we grow in the Lord. SymphonyWe are no longer our own. Also, there is now no distinction in Christ. As the old self passes away, and the new self grows strong, we find our part. We are called to be one. As we put on the fruits of the Spirit and we join with each other in the work of the Kingdom. We set aside our differences and focus on glorifying the Lord. We Join together and become something much greater than we would ever be apart. CallWe are called to the peace of Christ. We are called to one body. This body then has the privilege of carrying out the Lord's work on earth. We join with other believers and then join God in his purpose of calling out others. We are renewed in minds and hearts and we get to lead other people through the same process. MovementThere is a continual renewal that takes place in the heart and mind of ever believer. We are to be continually growing and being transformed into the likeness of Christ. As we grow, we can encourage other people to be moving toward Christ as well. As long as we draw breath, we must continue growing in the Lord. We never get to a point where good enough is. StoryWhat Christ did for us was miraculous. The early believers had seen first hand the power and wonder of the Holy Spirit. They were wrapped up in the unfolding story of God. They rejoiced and celebrated at what had been done. They admonished and taught each other in stories. They shared the story of what God had done, and what he was doing. |
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