WHAT IS A TRUE CHRISTIAN?
Colossians 3:1
I. What a Christian is – John 1:12
a. Man’s Action
i. Receive the gospel
ii. Believe in Jesus Christ
b. God’s Action
i. “T1`1ower to become the sons of God.”
ii. Word power means “the right or authority”
iii. To them gave he the right to become the sons of God
II. Christians seek the things of God – Colossians 1:1-2
a. As Christians we forget our past and strive for our futures – Philippians 3:13
i. Paul had a lot in his past, but he had to forget in order to move forward.
ii. Steven Curtis Chapman – “Burn the Ships”
1. Chorus – once our sin is behind us (our ship is burned) there is no way we can go back
iii. The word forget means “to be hidden” or “with out knowing”
b. Keep your thoughts on God and heaven, not on secular things
i. Affections are transliterated into thought or mind
III. Kill your old Nature – (vs. 3:5-9)
a. Mortify means to “make dead” or “put to death”
b. Identification of the sin nature
i. Fornication – sex before marriage
ii. Uncleanness - Physically and morally
iii. Inordinate Affection – love of evil
iv. Evil Concupiscence – desire to do evil
v. Covetousness Idolatry
vi. Anger
vii. Wrath
viii. Malice
ix. Blasphemy
x. Filthy Communication
xi. Lying
IV. Put on your New nature – (vs. 3:10-23)
a. Christianity is for all people – (v. 3:11)
b. Identification of a Christian
i. Bowels of mercies – tender mercies – the bowels were the seat of emotions in the Old Testament
ii. Kindness
iii. Humbleness of mind
iv. Meekness
v. Longsuffering
vi. Forbearing one another – lifting one another up
vii. Forgiving one another
viii. Love
c. Allows God’s peace to rule your life – (v. 3:15)
i. God’s peace is not always understood – Philippians 4:7
ii. Rule means “to be an umpire”
d. Study your Bible – (v. 3:16)
i. Teach and admonish others through your study
ii. Praise God through your study
e. Do everything to the glory of God and give Him the praise for it – (v. 3:17)
f. Husbands and wives need to love one another I the way Christ loved us – (vs. 3:18-19)
g. Children obey your parents – (v. 3:20)
h. Fathers shouldn’t upset their children
i. They shouldn’t put them down
ii. Children are easily discouraged
i. Obey those in authority (vs. 3:22-25)
i. Eye service – with the master looking on
ii. Do your work with a sincere heart
iii. Fear God because everything you do should be to His glory
iv. You will be rewarded eternally for a good job
v. If you do wrong, you will be judged accordingly
vi. No matter who you are
