Intro: Robert Blake trial—verdict—not guilty—announcer’s next statement gave me the thought for today’s sermon—they said, “ in just a few minutes, Robert Blake will walk out of this courtroom into a brand new life.
A BRAND NEW LIFE IN CHRIST
COLOSSIANS 3:1-10
Background: Paul didn’t see the resurrection of Jesus Christ as one man’s victory, but he saw it as victory for all men. Jesus didn’t just get a new life, he gave new life. So today, we all have the opportunity for a brand new life in Jesus Christ.
I. Seeking Things Above—v.1
When we walk into this brand new life our compass points north. We no longer seek the same things, we look above. We seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these other things are added to us.
1. We seek God’s will for our lives—the new life has new goals—we no longer seek after the same things. We want God’s best for our lives and our family. Paul said, ‘do we seek to persuade men or God.’ Our focus and attention is above.
2. We look for a city whose builder and maker is God. Our destiny changes in Jesus Christ. We look for invisible things, not the visible. We look up for our redemption draweth nigh.
3. Spiritual Goals—I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling in Christ Jesus. He is a rewarder of them that diligently seek after him. We don’t run the race for a crown that tarnishes, but for the crown of life that lasts forever.
Ill) the other day I heard about this man who is a multi-millionaire who has recently given his life to Jesus Christ. He walks into churches and writes checks for great amounts to bless the church. He is riding around the country giving money to people in need. He said, I have spent my whole life trying to get, I will spend the rest of my life trying to give away.
II. Setting Your Affections—v.2 Setting is a fishing term—setting your hook. To paraphrase this: letting the things of God sink in deep. Not just having a shallow or superficial relationship with Jesus Christ, but letting the things of God go deep into your spiritual man.
a. desiring spiritual things—with even a greater intensity the brand new man goes after the things of God. Jesus said, ‘with great desire have I desired to have this meal with you.’ Jesus said, ‘my meat is to do the will of God.’
b. Passionate—Wednesday night—Bride and Bridegroom. When you give your life to Jesus Christ, it isn’t a dating relationship. You don’t just see each other now and then. It is a marriage relationship; it is covenant with each other; it is sealed in the Holy Spirit.
c. Zeal—see my zeal for the Lord. The zeal of thine house has eaten me up. When Jesus purged the temple he fulfilled the scripture about that the Messiah would have a zeal for the house of God.
Ill) a real sun tan—not just tanning cream. One can wash off, the other is permanently fixed.
III. Putting Off The Old Life—v.8
a. dying to self—the first step in the new life is to die to the old one. One fountain can’t pour out sweet and bitter water, light and darkness can’t be found in the same place—for the new life to take place, the old life must be buried with Christ.
b. Crucifying the flesh—our flesh has desires, and appetites. We must die so that He might live.
c. Leaving things behind—Paul could never have been the great apostle of God if he was always letting his old life hinder him.
Ill) possum—if he finds a hole that he might stay in, he checks to make sure there are two sets of tracks. If there is only one going in, he leaves that place, someone is still there, but if there are two sets of tracks, he knows the occupant has moved on. As Christians we have two sets of tracks, the tracks of the old life, and the tracks of the new one.
IV. Putting On The New Man-v.10
a. Put on Christ—we are clothed in a new garment. We don’t operate in our own self, but we operate in Christ, through the power of the Holy Spirit. We actually put on a brand new man.
b. Put on Love—without Christ in our lives pure, agape, perfect love is impossible. So this brand new man puts on supernatural love, supernatural gifts, from above. Every good and perfect gift comes from above.
c. put on immortality—the new man puts on immortality—death loses it’s sting, the grave loses it’s victory. That is the message of Easter, he is not here, he is risen, just like he said.
Ill) Winston Churchill put together his own funeral. When he died, his funeral was at Saint Paul’s Cathedral. At the end of the service, taps was played, the military sign that the day is over. But after a long pause, the trumpeter play reveille, the military sign for it’s a brand new day.
Close: when we have a brand new life, we seek things above, we set our affections on things above, we put off the old life and put on a new one.
When I lived in Maine, there was an early morning exercise show with Jack Lalane—year after year, everyone got older, but he seemingly never aged. As a young boy, I was almost convinced, that if you ate the food that Jack Lalane ate, did all the excercises he did, could swim in ice cold water, you would never grow old. But the other day, a Jack Lalane commercial came on for his juicer, and he has finally aged.
So today, if you want a brand new life—you won’t find it in a juicer, you won’t find it in an exercise program, you won’t even get it swimming in an ice cold river—but if you accept the Christ of Easter, that He’s alive forevermore, you can have a brand new life.
