You are actually designed by God to produce things that cannot be contained by your imagination because they are to be born from your spirit. Eph 3 speaks of how we are designed by God to be filled with all the fullness of God. This is mind-blowing and that’s probably why the very next verse speaks of how God is able to do exceedingly abundantly all we can ask or imagine, beyond our wildest imagination! This is why it is so important to develop your spirit man and to be healthy and strong! We must learn to give energy and attention to the spiritual atmosphere of your life!
Imagine with me the (Matt 27), the scene of the cross. Jesus crucified, hanging on the cross right next to where the Roman soldiers are casting lots for his garment. They were in the presence of the greatest treasure the world had ever known yet were completely distracted by the pursuit of insignificant earthly treasure. Think of this as the full weight of this statement rests upon us
What we are distracted by will never be as important as what we are distracted from.
Our New Year’s Revelation for 2022 is, “Everyone is created for Abundant Life.” It is God’s plan for us to grow in a greater understanding of this life as a result of a deeper revelation of Christ.
Many people today consider Jesus important kind of like Buddha, Moses, Socrates, Muhammad, along with other personal favorites they may select. For these people, Jesus is important, but not central. This is heresy and is the very issue Paul addresses in the book of Colossians.
Your view of Jesus Christ will impact every area of your life. Paul writes to these believers after receiving a report that teachers were teaching Jesus was just one of many important people in history questioning his deity.
Jesus is The Way. He’s not one way among many ways. He is the way! Christianity is not about being good. Christianity is about knowing God and this is why Jesus is so important! When you accepted Jesus you didn’t get an improved version of you, you became a new creation and got an entirely new you in Christ!
Colossians is Paul’s address to believers who needed to be reminded that Jesus, the Messiah, was not merely a contributor to their morality. Jesus must be the very center of their existence. The deity of Jesus is a non-negotiable! He is the son of God and he is the son of man.
Colossians 3:1-2 Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. 2 Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things. NIV
Vs 1-2 Raised with Christ setting our hearts on things above – in fallen world we must purpose a risen disposition. Fix your eyes on Jesus and the things that matter to him!
Colossians 3:3-4 For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God. 4 When Christ, who is your life, appears, then you also will appear with him in glory. NIV
Vs 3-4 You died and your life is now hidden with Christ in God. Notice you didn’t die losing your life, you died gaining Christ who is now your life. In God’s Kingdom the key to life is death and that’s why the cross of Christ is at the center of it all. Prayer, devotions, fasting, gathering, worship, giving, serving, loving. These are all patterns that speak of eternal priorities in Christ.
Colossians 3:5-7 Put to death, therefore, whatever belongs to your earthly nature: sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desires and greed, which is idolatry. 6 Because of these, the wrath of God is coming. 7 You used to walk in these ways, in the life you once lived… NIV
Vs 5-7 A gluttonous, indulgent, entertainment-addicted, social media age filled with illicit desire has produced bored and boring people who lack the purpose for which we were created! Repentance/Refreshing
Colossians 3:12-16 Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. 13 Bear with each other and forgive one another if any of you has a grievance against someone. Forgive as the Lord forgave you. 14 And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity. 15 Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace. And be thankful. 16 Let the message of Christ dwell among you richly... NIV
Vs 12-16 Clothe yourself with Christ by surrendering completely to him. In dying to yourself you will learn to lessen your reaction and deepen your response. Regardless of what may be going on around you, you can learn to pay attention to God’s perspective in it all. No matter the storm you can still have peace. No matter the Goliath you can still have courage. But all of it requires your death to experience life.
Richard Wurmbrand from Romania wrote The beauty of nothing. Prison from 1948-1962 experiencing 14 years solitary confinement under the communist regime: He described years of great suffering with extremely heavy chains on his wrists and ankles, watery soup daily, moldy bread once a week. From 5am-10pm, 17 hours a day he was subject to brainwashing. He was required to sit up paying attention to recordings repeating how communism is good, God is not real, Christianity is dead, etc. If he didn’t sit up with his head up as if he were paying attention he would be beaten. He said, "Alone in my cell, cold, hungry and in rags. I danced for joy. Sometimes I was so full of joy I felt I would burst if I didn’t give it expression.”
It is absolutely staggering that a man going through that kind of suffering was experiencing that kind of joy. He explains it was so difficult to be separated from family never knowing if he would see them again, etc yet the bitter cup of suffering produces something so alive in God’s Kingdom.
Suffering produces treasure in God’s Kingdom. This is why Matt 19 says difficult for rich to enter God’s Kingdom. This can be discovered so easily in our lives if we are willing to press into inconvenience in the way we pursue the Lord.
Gathering sacrificially, leading our family even when it’s not convenient to love, serve and give. We must refuse to make excuses.
It will cost you something to focus on Christ rather than earthly treasure. It will cost you more not to.
Purposing a sacrificial pursuit of the things of God that require you to die to your own desires and ambitions in order to more clearly discover and embrace the very desires of God. W
When your life gets too loud and your schedule gets too busy it’s easy to forget that God is God. “Be still” and know that he is God.
We Bring GP2RL Action Point:
Give yourself sacrificially to these first 40 days of focus as the first fruit of the year.
CREATED FOR CONVERSATION: KINGDOM PRIORITIES
DISCUSSION GUIDE
Click here for a downloadable pdf file of this guide.
UNDERSTANDING THE SEASON: Words are powerful! God created everything and sustains it all by his word. God sent his WORD to redeem us and awaken life-giving conversation that transforms us and everyone around us. In this season will grow in more effective conversation with God and with others.
God’s plan is for us to hear his voice together as a family. This is why we start each group with the first question:
DISCUSSION QUESTION:
1. Where are you reading in your Bible and what are you sensing from God? Share your New Year’s Revelation for 2022 if you have one.
Ask each person in your group to answer the discussion questions below after reading the verses. Don’t move on to the next question until everybody who is willing to share has had the opportunity to give their perspective.
COLOSSIANS 3:1-16 Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. 2 Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things. 3 For you died, and your life is now 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, whatever belongs to your earthly nature: sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desires and greed, which is idolatry. 6 Because of these, the wrath of God is coming. 7 You used to walk in these ways, in the life you once lived. 8 But now you must also rid yourselves of all such things as these: anger, rage, malice, slander, and filthy language from your lips. 9 Do not lie to each other, since you have taken off your old self with its practices 10 and have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge in the image of its Creator. 11 Here there is no Gentile or Jew, circumcised or uncircumcised, barbari- an, Scythian, slave or free, but Christ is all, and is in all. 12 Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. 13 Bear with each other and forgive one another if any of you has a grievance against someone. Forgive as the Lord forgave you. 14 And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity. 15 Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace. And be thankful. 16 Let the message of Christ dwell among you richly... NIV
DISCUSSION QUESTIONS:
Have each person give a 60 second summary of what these verses are saying, in their own words.
What do these verses teach us about God?
What do these verses teach us about people?
What should you do this week in response to what we are reading and what God is revealing?
Who comes to mind when considering a person you might share this with this week?
We Bring GP2RL Action Point:
Give yourself sacrificially to these first 40 days of focus as the first fruit of the year.