Rooted and Raised in Christ… Praise to God!
Pastor Glenn Newton
February 28th, 2010
COL 2:6 So then, just as you received Christ Jesus as Lord, continue to live in him, 7 rooted and built up in him, strengthened in the faith as you were taught, and overflowing with thankfulness.
COL 2:8 See to it that no one takes you captive through hollow and deceptive philosophy, which depends on human tradition and the basic principles of this world rather than on Christ.
COL 2:9 For in Christ all the fullness of the Deity lives in bodily form, 10 and you have been given fullness in Christ, who is the head over every power and authority. 11 In him you were also circumcised, in the putting off of the sinful nature, not with a circumcision done by the hands of men but with the circumcision done by Christ, 12 having been buried with him in baptism and raised with him through your faith in the power of God, who raised him from the dead.
COL 2:13 When you were dead in your sins and in the uncircumcision of your sinful nature, God made you alive with Christ. He forgave us all our sins, 14 having canceled the written code, with its regulations, that was against us and that stood opposed to us; he took it away, nailing it to the cross. 15 And having disarmed the powers and authorities, he made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them by the cross.
My wife is the tree planting queen. She gets this honest from her Dad, Jim. Wherever we have lived, we have planted trees and lots of them. I’m sure we have planted around 100 trees on our 3 acres in the four years we have lived there, maybe more. I know we planted over 50 in one day. I enjoy planting trees, watching them grow, we feel like we are leaving something valuable for those who will follow us.
Do you know what I really don’t like? Transplanting trees from one place to another, do you know the reason? Roots. If the tree has any age to it at all, it’s root system has began to take hold, to grow, to reach deeper into the soil, making it very difficult to pull it up, dig it up, without lots of effort. Roots are good for the tree, roots are bad for those who would like to uproot that tree.
A couple points I want to make sure we understand this morning, the Scripture is clear, it is pointed right at us, there is no way to misunderstand what God is saying to us this morning…isn’t that the way you like it?
1. If you are going to make it as a Christian, you must be “rooted” in Christ. V. 6,7
COL 2:6 So then, just as you received Christ Jesus as Lord, continue to live in him, 7 rooted and built up in him, strengthened in the faith as you were taught, and overflowing with thankfulness.
Paul is writing this letter to the church in Colosse, don’t forget….. He’s in a fight for their souls, there are those around these young Christians who are trying to steer them off course, there are those maybe even in the church if you read the context of this letter, who are teaching falsely about who Christ is and what He did. So Paul is direct and to the point, he feels like this group of believers are being threatened, and they need to be reminded of the truth.
Make no mistake today, in 2010, Satan has not given up on the tactic of trying to bring division to the church through heresy or false teaching. So this is for all of us, be on alert…why? 1 Peter 5:8,9 says, 1PE 5:8 “Be self-controlled and alert. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. 9 Resist him, standing firm in the faith, because you know that your brothers throughout the world are undergoing the same kind of sufferings.”
So how are we “rooted” in Christ? Good question. Your going to like the answer.
When we come to that place in our lives where we understand that we are a sinner and we need a savior, do you remember that time in your life? When we come to that place where we recognize that my life is out of control and I need God more than I need anything else….When we repent of our sin, put our faith in God, believing that Jesus Christ is the Son of God, when we willfully put our faith in God….Something dramatic happens in our life.
God, in His mercy and grace, in an instant of time, He cleanses us, He removes that heart that is diseased by sin and selfishness and He puts into us a New Heart, a heart that beats for Him. He roots within us, Jesus Christ, through the Holy Spirit. So when we are saved from our sins, we are like that tree, God plants within us His Spirit, the very Spirit of Jesus Christ, and as this new relationship begins to grow, those roots begin to take hold of our hearts…and as we continue to grow, those roots continue to find new areas to take hold of.
The action of being “rooted” in Christ happens in an instant when we give our lives to God. The continuing action of those roots growing deeper and deeper happens in a continuous action, as we continue to listen and obey the Holy Spirit in our lives.
Nothing, nothing can uproot what God has planted in our hearts from the outside. The only thing that can remove what God has planted in us, is our own decision, our own will to live in sin. Living in sin is like pouring poison on what God has begun in us, poison will kill any plant is you pour enough of it onto it.
What a miracle that God brings into our life when we become Christians and Christ is literally rooted in our hearts. Have you accepted Jesus Christ as your personal savior? Are you ready to allow God to cleanse you from all your sin, cleanse you from the past? Listen to what the Word says about being forgiven…1 John 1:9 “ 9 If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.”
This morning you are going to have the opportunity of a lifetime. You can literally change your life, your destination forever. The Holy Spirit, even now before you make that choice is speaking to your heart, we call that prevenient grace, grace that goes before… you see God knows you and has been drawing you for this very moment. Listen to His voice.
You have got to see what God has done for you…..
2. Because you are “rooted in Christ”, you were buried and raised with Christ. V 9-12
COL 2:9 “For in Christ all the fullness of the Deity lives in bodily form, 10 and you have been given fullness in Christ, who is the head over every power and authority. 11 In him you were also circumcised, in the putting off of the sinful nature, not with a circumcision done by the hands of men but with the circumcision done by Christ, 12 having been buried with him in baptism and raised with him through your faith in the power of God, who raised him from the dead.”
If you don’t know who you are as a Christian, you need to pay attention to what this passage says about who you are in Christ. In verse 10, Paul tells us that “you”, we have been given fullness in Christ…” And Christ is the head over every power and authority.
What does that mean? It means that no matter what you have done in your past, no matter how bad you think you messed things up…..God has given you “fullness” or you have been made “complete” in Christ. Literally in the Greek, this means, “you have been filled”, you are filled up to the top, there is nothing missing, you have everything you need, you have been made new, regenerated, reborn.
Christian….know who you are.
If you have allowed society to tell you that somehow you are not complete… read the Word.
If you have allowed some person to put you down and tell you that your not important… then read the Word.
If someone has convinced you that being a Christian is not that exciting or important.. Then read the Word.
Friends you have all you need in Christ. Repeat after me… “I have all I need in Christ”
My friends, as a Christian, Christ completes you, when someone tries to tell you different, they are lying to you, they are deceived, they don’t know what the Word teaches. You hold onto Christ, let God teach you through His Word… about who you are in Christ.. It really is pretty amazing.
3. God wins, no contest, don’t ever forget that! V.13-15
COL 2:13 “When you were dead in your sins and in the uncircumcision of your sinful nature, God made you alive with Christ. He forgave us all our sins, 14 having canceled the written code, with its regulations, that was against us and that stood opposed to us; he took it away, nailing it to the cross. 15 And having disarmed the powers and authorities, he made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them by the cross.”
Christians should not live in fear. As Christians we should not be intimidated by false teaching, by hallow reasoning. As Christians we not only know the Truth, we know the Ending to the story!
We should be confident, we should have a resolve, a passion to share what we know to be the truth with those around us, why? We know God is going to win this battle, God is going to have the last say.
Christians, I’m calling you to focus on what really matters. “God has made you alive with Christ, He forgave us all our sins…” v. 13 We need to be sharing that good news with those who are lost around us, no matter if you think they will listen or not. Lost people don’t know where they are, they may not recognize it until we share it with them. Our job is to share Christ boldly, and because we know we win in the end, that should help us, regardless of their response.
The Boys Basketball team that I’m coaching, they are playing with a confidence that is helping them play great as a team, they are not afraid of losing, they are convinced that if they play hard, play together, and do what they know they are supposed to do, they will win.
How much more confident should we be as Christians? V. 15 says, “and having disarmed the powers and authorities, he made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them by the cross.”
God has done the work, He has paid the price, He has won the war. I have a clip this morning that will help us realize how important it is that we share this good news, the power is not in us, God will use your obedience to move those we are sharing with, towards Him.
Video Penn V. Atheist well known comedian shares about the impact of one man who offered him a Gideon NT. (Youtube) (I downloaded it off my facebook page, someone had sent it to me.)
Are you ready to make the decision of a lifetime? Today you can begin all over again.
Christian, remember who you are in Christ. Are you listening and obeying His voice?
When we love people, we won’t allow them to go to Hell without an invitation, will we?
