Angela,
My week is crazy!! Ruby has been out of school due to asthma, I am trying to get her into the doctor for tomorrow. (I had to get a sub for work) Mark was sick and time is speeding up. I won't be able to work on our study until at least next Monday, just wanted you to know that I am thinking of you and to let some of the pressure off of you also.
Love,
Tina
Thursday, February 10, 2011
Tuesday, February 8, 2011
Colassians 3:6-11 Tina
Have nothing to do with sexual sin, impurity, lust, and shameful desires. Don’t be greedy for the good things of this life, for that is idolatry.
3:6 God’s terrible anger will come upon who do such things.
So we keep our focus on the things of heaven, not the things on earth. Those things mentioned in the previous verse are temporary “feel” good ideas. When our hearts and minds are on things of God we will not feel tempted for the temporary fixes of this life. We live for heaven, we live for heavenly ideas. Sin destroys people’s lives. Sin separates people from God. Christ had to die on the cross because of sin. That is why God is angry about sin. Romans 2:1-16 explains about how God will judge sin in the future. What does this mean to us, who are saved through our love of Jesus? If we honestly try to turn away from our sin, we still fall prey to these human things. We all lust for things, desire comfort? I think it is our heart that matters most. I pray that when we stand before God the Father we are indeed covered by Jesus. Does God take in account our faithfulness in pursuing him? This is when I get confused and unsure of everything that we have been talking about!
3:7 You used to do them when your life was still part of this world.
Yes when I was separated from God and unsaved my appetite for those wicked things was more prevalent but now I am still guilty of some of those things. I wish it were not so but I fear that it is. I have a new nature, I have put on Christ but I still find myself wanting things, desiring comfort, security.
3:8 But now is the time to get rid of anger, rage, malicious behavior, slander, and dirty language.
I do feel like I have a handle on these things. The taming of the tongue was a long process but I feel like through Christ I am able to control my tongue. I know that out of the mouth comes what is inside the heart.
3:9 Don’t lie to each other, for you have stripped off your old evil nature and all its wicked deeds.
Yes we have stripped off the old nature and with it the old habits. No lying ever! Hard one to keep, how many times has someone asked you for your opinion and you didn’t give it, you simply said what they wanted to hear or something to build them up. Thank God for the Holy Spirit who gives us strength to do these hard things. We live in a world that is so full of lies, so full of untruth, so blurry that the world can not even see the truth when it is said.
3:10 In its place you have clothed yourselves with a brand-new nature that is continually being renewed as you learn more and more about Christ, who created this new nature within you.
Praise Jesus there is hope, we are continually being renewed as we learn and grow in Christ!!! I am so thankful for this verse after the others. What I am getting from these 5 verses is it is a process! We mature as we grow in Christ, with each new gift that the Holy Spirit gives us it purifies us even more, we will never be perfected until we are with are Brother Jesus in heaven. The process is what God wants from us, for us to draw close to him, to care about the things he cares about, to mature, and to put our sin to death through maturity not through self discipline but through love and faith.
3:11 In this new life, it doesn’t matter if you are a Jew or Gentile, circumcised or uncircumcised, barbaric, uncivilized, slave or fee. Christ is all that matters, and he lives in all of us.
Paul ends this point on a good note, so glad about that!! Christ is all that matters, and he lives in all of us. Love covers a multitude of sins, Christ covers us. This verse is also telling those people of the day that the law does not matter; Christ came for all of us!
Dear Father,
Thank you for your word and for your loving faithful spirit among us. I ask that you infuse within us your power, your wisdom, and give us a heart like Christ. A heart that would do anything for you, a heart that loves like your Son Jesus. Amen
Monday, February 7, 2011
Colossians 3:1-5 Angela
Jesus, I thank you for freedom; freedom from judgment, freedom from lies, freedom from past hurts, freedom from addictions, freedom from a joyless existence. I thank you that everything that you did, you did so that we could experience full and energetic life. I pray that even when we are feeling low, you would remind us of these truths which will give us wings to fly. I pray that as your word washes our minds, we will begin to see the precious fruit of righteousness and your Spirit flowing out of us into the lives of others. I pray that we would be filled with an infectious vigor and zest for life that would get on all of those around us. ~Amen.
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. Set your mind on things above, not on earthly things."
I love this verse. The reason I love it really stems from the next verse, but I love this one because it lays the foundation for the next one. It is the great benefit of all that has gone before it. SINCE...since we know that Jesus is Lord. Since we know that He died to give us freedom from human traditions. Since we have let go of all the trappings of the world, we need these next verses to fill that void...without Him to fill the void of freedom, we will just be vulnerable to the next wave of enemy fire and find ourselves back in the enemy's camp. But Paul doesn't leave us like that...he tells us what to do instead...what we need to remember and focus on to remain alert.
I have been raised with Christ. The power that raised Him from the dead lives within me. I have full access to that power, and I am alive to God. Being alive to God means really LIVING! I was dead before, and the truth is that wherever I don't believe the truth of what Paul is saying, I am still asleep/dead. Anywhere that strongholds and lies are governing my thinking, I'm still dead. It is my desire (heart) to come fully alive. I want no stone unturned in my heart. I want all the places where the enemy has had a foothold in my life to be fully gone. This transition has been hard for me, but it has been worth every moment of struggle, temptation, temper tantrum (like I had this morning), and beating (not literal, but more like the feeling of learning to ride a bike and falling over and over again). I am so glad that I am more alive now than I have ever been. My mind is quieter than it has ever been, and it will only get better. I had breakthrough on a huge issue tonight, and I can see hope in sight. It is the issue of my weight and body image...God is healing me, and I will stand firm til the end, because my prize is waiting for me! I know that He is going to free me of the accusing voices inside my head, just as he has healed me from the voices of fear. Wahoo!!! I'm going to be free, and I can't wait!
And that is what it means to me to set my heart AND mind on things above. I used to get so distracted by my behavior, by the outward appearances of myself and others. My heart was set on things down here. Now, I know my behavior is just a symptom and that the only One who has the answer for my behavior is Him. So I turn my eyes away from my bad behavior. I don't get sucked so easily into the shame and guilt cycle. I step outside of that and look at Him, naked and unashamed. My bad behavior just hangs out there in the open between us, and I ask Him how He sees it. I'm always amazed at how differently He sees it than I see it when left to my own earthly thinking! And there is my Savior, seated next to my Daddy in heaven...above all the principalities and powers that would take me out. And He says, "You can do it. I believe in You. I paid the price for you because I believe in you. I'll show you how to keep walking."
3:3 "For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God."
I died, but in the verses prior he says I was also raised. And now he says my life is hidden with Christ in God. Where is Christ? In heaven with God (seated next to Him) and in God (Jesus and the Father are one). My life is hidden in Christ. My life is protected, preserved, held in security in heaven with Jesus. Jesus says that He came that we might have life to the full. When? Anytime we're ready to grasp the truth of these words. I am in Christ RIGHT NOW! I am seated in heaven RIGHT NOW! I have access to the full life anytime I'm ready to exchange the empty life I've been living, believing the lies of the enemy, for the real full life He has been holding for me in heaven. Like a safe deposit box. I'm starting to call on Him to help me access that full life, and I'm seeing it come in full force. As I trade in the lies and take on the truth, I'm seeing my life lived to the full each and every day. Today was a hard day until I talked with my friend and realized how many amazing things God showed me all day long. There was no shame and guilt. She washed me clean of that and showed me how well I did today at learning the lessons. Not only that, we had the most amazing, glorious time talking about it all. We laughed so hard, and it was amazing. I confessed my sins, the real reasons behind the bad behaviors and accusing voices in my head today. It was awesome. I called her feeling glum and gloomy, ready to just throw in the towel and go to bed. I hung up and played with my children and now I'm doing this Bible study. I'll be going to bed when I'm done, and I will sleep in peace. I will wake up knowing that tomorrow holds more of the same...revelation, communion, excitement, understanding, wisdom, work, kids, errands, and joy...great and wonderful joy waiting around every corner. Even if it's a struggle to find it, I will find it! And it's all because I'm hidden in Christ.
3:4 "When Christ, who is your life, appears, then you also will appear with him in glory."
I have always read this as a later thing...as in when He returns to the earth. As if He is not here. I have really been seriously talking with Him about the end times and the rapture and all that stuff. I used to be a pre-trib out of sheer fear and terror. Who in their right minds would choose to live through the end times. Now, I'm just not sure. I read this and I think...Christ appears now...He appears when a newborn baby comes out of the womb and takes its first breath. He appears when a man or woman lays their life down in baptism and rises up out of the water a new creation. He appears when I apologize to my son and tell him that I am an imperfect representation of God, and my son hugs me tight and loves on me and lavishes me with deeds of forgiveness and love and affection. Whenever He appears, I am there with Him in His glory.
It's like the people who go on missions and say to the people who support them, "Supporting us is as important as being there with us. You are sharing in the harvest of our work." I know Jesus said He is coming back for His bride, and I know He will come back with us in the clouds. I just don't know about timing and order. I think there is something of a "both" issue that I'm still asking Him to help me understand.
3:5 "Put to death, therefore, whatever belongs to your earthly nature: sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desires and greed, which is idolatry."
PUT TO DEATH...This implies a few things to me that I haven't actually been taught from many pulpits.
1. He's talking to believers, which means that the one-time conversion event doesn't take care of the whole struggle.
2. He's telling me to put it to death. I have a part to play in my sanctification. He did the work. He paid the price, but I have to pick up the item. It's like someone saying, I paid for you to go to college. I still have to do the homework and pass the classes and get my diploma and then go and get a job. Jesus did more than pay for college. He's guiding us, counseling us, teaching us, leading us into all truth. But we still have a part to play.
3. My earthly nature and my spiritual nature are at war until I PUT ONE OF THEM TO DEATH. If I feed my earthly nature, I will be killing my spiritual nature. If I feed my spiritual nature, I will be killing my earthly nature. It reminds me of the verse where Jesus says we can't serve two masters.
4. He's telling me that I'm going to see these things at work in my life until I finish the process of sanctification and transformation. I am not transformed by my conversion, I'm just saying yes to Him to begin the process. Yes, He does the work of transformation and sanctification too, but I have to keep saying yes. I can slow the process down or even bring it to a complete halt. I have done that in my life, and He is always patient and waits for me to be ready to begin again.
4. Greed...that one is singled out as idolatry. I was looking it up earlier in different passages, but I still don't have a complete perspective on how greed is idolatry and the others are not.
Greed: The King James says "covetousness."
pleonexia (from pleonektes): avarice, i.e. (by implication) fraudulency, extortion:--covetous (-ness) practices, greediness.
pleonektes (from pleion and echo): holding (desiring) more, i.e. eager for gain (avaricious, hence a defrauder):--covetous
pleion: more in quantity, number, or quality; also (in plural) the major portion:--above, exceed, more excellent, further, (very) great (-er), long (-er), (very) many, greater (more) part, + yet but.
AND
echo: to hold (used in very various applications, literally or figuratively, direct or remote; such as possession, ability, contiguity, relation or condition):--be able, behold, be possessed with, accompany, begin to amend, can, reign, uncircumcised.
I always like to go back as far as I can to the roots with Greek and Hebrew words. It helps add depth and richness to the words for me. In this case, I can see what I was beginning to see when I read all the verses I looked up about greed this morning. To me, it means that I'm trying to one up. That I will do anything to look better than someone else, even lie or cheat or take advantage of them. It is the opposite of God's love...sometimes it can appear that people are acting out of love when they are really acting out of their own gain. I've done this in small ways and in big ways...I will take someone out to coffee or lunch because I want to eat out or have a cup of coffee, and I can justify it better if I am "magnanimously" treating someone else! This is a small example, but not any less or more insidious than other examples of fraudulently following God's commands to love when we're just living for ourselves...living for ourselves is idolatry.
That being said, I still don't allow myself to get caught up in the guilt and shame cycle even when I recognize these. Because I'm beginning to see that guilt and shame only perpetuate that self-focus that my ego likes so much. If I can bypass that cycle and turn my attention to God, I realize that we're all human! We all love humanly. We all struggle against the earthly nature. We are all in the same boat, baling out water until we reach up our chubby baby arms for our Daddy who loves us and will pick us right up and set us on dry ground, on a Rock in fact, and teach us how to walk again! I am so glad we picked this book. Awesome! Awesome! Awesome!
Thank you, Papa. Thank you that you have taken care of it all. Thank you that you redeem even our bad days and our bad moments. Thank you that our misbehavior amounts to nothing more than teachable moments in your book. Thank you that we are your children and you are our abba, our daddy. The One who loves us so perfectly that as we absorb it in and learn from it, we can begin to love just as you love...not for our own gain, not out of greed or selfish ambition, but out of true, unconditional, divine love. It is possible for us to be like you, and I'm so grateful that you're showing me that more and more.
Father, I pray for Ioni and Echo. I ask that you would continue to seal their purity and innocence. I pray that your truth will sink deeply into their hearts, that they will learn to trust you in all Your ways. I pray for Kiah and Ruby, that they will know deep in their hearts that they are loved exactly as they are; that you delight over them with singing and that you cherish each moment you get to spend with them. I pray for Mark, that you would affirm him and confirm him. I thank you that these dark days are not dark to you. I pray that you would reveal to him that he is not any more broken or damaged than the rest of us. I pray that you would surround him with people who love him for who he is and not for what he can or can't do for them. I pray that you would break the lies and bondage of conditional love. I pray that you would unravel and loose him from the chains of judgment and condemnation. I pray that you would loose him into a new level of freedom that he has not even allowed himself to imagine. And I pray for Tina, that you would loose her from the chains of burden and lack and physical restriction. I pray that you would loose her from all the judgments that have weighed on her and weighed her down. I pray that you would release in her supernatural joy and strength, as she marvels at the wonder of the power that lives inside of her; as she marvels at the freedom you bought for her on the cross; as she marvels that the maker of the universe is her husband, friend, lover, and companion. Thank you for all these truths. May they sink deeply into the roots of their souls and begin to oust out the branches that do not bear fruit in keeping with repentance and freedom. ~Amen.
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. Set your mind on things above, not on earthly things."
I love this verse. The reason I love it really stems from the next verse, but I love this one because it lays the foundation for the next one. It is the great benefit of all that has gone before it. SINCE...since we know that Jesus is Lord. Since we know that He died to give us freedom from human traditions. Since we have let go of all the trappings of the world, we need these next verses to fill that void...without Him to fill the void of freedom, we will just be vulnerable to the next wave of enemy fire and find ourselves back in the enemy's camp. But Paul doesn't leave us like that...he tells us what to do instead...what we need to remember and focus on to remain alert.
I have been raised with Christ. The power that raised Him from the dead lives within me. I have full access to that power, and I am alive to God. Being alive to God means really LIVING! I was dead before, and the truth is that wherever I don't believe the truth of what Paul is saying, I am still asleep/dead. Anywhere that strongholds and lies are governing my thinking, I'm still dead. It is my desire (heart) to come fully alive. I want no stone unturned in my heart. I want all the places where the enemy has had a foothold in my life to be fully gone. This transition has been hard for me, but it has been worth every moment of struggle, temptation, temper tantrum (like I had this morning), and beating (not literal, but more like the feeling of learning to ride a bike and falling over and over again). I am so glad that I am more alive now than I have ever been. My mind is quieter than it has ever been, and it will only get better. I had breakthrough on a huge issue tonight, and I can see hope in sight. It is the issue of my weight and body image...God is healing me, and I will stand firm til the end, because my prize is waiting for me! I know that He is going to free me of the accusing voices inside my head, just as he has healed me from the voices of fear. Wahoo!!! I'm going to be free, and I can't wait!
And that is what it means to me to set my heart AND mind on things above. I used to get so distracted by my behavior, by the outward appearances of myself and others. My heart was set on things down here. Now, I know my behavior is just a symptom and that the only One who has the answer for my behavior is Him. So I turn my eyes away from my bad behavior. I don't get sucked so easily into the shame and guilt cycle. I step outside of that and look at Him, naked and unashamed. My bad behavior just hangs out there in the open between us, and I ask Him how He sees it. I'm always amazed at how differently He sees it than I see it when left to my own earthly thinking! And there is my Savior, seated next to my Daddy in heaven...above all the principalities and powers that would take me out. And He says, "You can do it. I believe in You. I paid the price for you because I believe in you. I'll show you how to keep walking."
3:3 "For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God."
I died, but in the verses prior he says I was also raised. And now he says my life is hidden with Christ in God. Where is Christ? In heaven with God (seated next to Him) and in God (Jesus and the Father are one). My life is hidden in Christ. My life is protected, preserved, held in security in heaven with Jesus. Jesus says that He came that we might have life to the full. When? Anytime we're ready to grasp the truth of these words. I am in Christ RIGHT NOW! I am seated in heaven RIGHT NOW! I have access to the full life anytime I'm ready to exchange the empty life I've been living, believing the lies of the enemy, for the real full life He has been holding for me in heaven. Like a safe deposit box. I'm starting to call on Him to help me access that full life, and I'm seeing it come in full force. As I trade in the lies and take on the truth, I'm seeing my life lived to the full each and every day. Today was a hard day until I talked with my friend and realized how many amazing things God showed me all day long. There was no shame and guilt. She washed me clean of that and showed me how well I did today at learning the lessons. Not only that, we had the most amazing, glorious time talking about it all. We laughed so hard, and it was amazing. I confessed my sins, the real reasons behind the bad behaviors and accusing voices in my head today. It was awesome. I called her feeling glum and gloomy, ready to just throw in the towel and go to bed. I hung up and played with my children and now I'm doing this Bible study. I'll be going to bed when I'm done, and I will sleep in peace. I will wake up knowing that tomorrow holds more of the same...revelation, communion, excitement, understanding, wisdom, work, kids, errands, and joy...great and wonderful joy waiting around every corner. Even if it's a struggle to find it, I will find it! And it's all because I'm hidden in Christ.
3:4 "When Christ, who is your life, appears, then you also will appear with him in glory."
I have always read this as a later thing...as in when He returns to the earth. As if He is not here. I have really been seriously talking with Him about the end times and the rapture and all that stuff. I used to be a pre-trib out of sheer fear and terror. Who in their right minds would choose to live through the end times. Now, I'm just not sure. I read this and I think...Christ appears now...He appears when a newborn baby comes out of the womb and takes its first breath. He appears when a man or woman lays their life down in baptism and rises up out of the water a new creation. He appears when I apologize to my son and tell him that I am an imperfect representation of God, and my son hugs me tight and loves on me and lavishes me with deeds of forgiveness and love and affection. Whenever He appears, I am there with Him in His glory.
It's like the people who go on missions and say to the people who support them, "Supporting us is as important as being there with us. You are sharing in the harvest of our work." I know Jesus said He is coming back for His bride, and I know He will come back with us in the clouds. I just don't know about timing and order. I think there is something of a "both" issue that I'm still asking Him to help me understand.
3:5 "Put to death, therefore, whatever belongs to your earthly nature: sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desires and greed, which is idolatry."
PUT TO DEATH...This implies a few things to me that I haven't actually been taught from many pulpits.
1. He's talking to believers, which means that the one-time conversion event doesn't take care of the whole struggle.
2. He's telling me to put it to death. I have a part to play in my sanctification. He did the work. He paid the price, but I have to pick up the item. It's like someone saying, I paid for you to go to college. I still have to do the homework and pass the classes and get my diploma and then go and get a job. Jesus did more than pay for college. He's guiding us, counseling us, teaching us, leading us into all truth. But we still have a part to play.
3. My earthly nature and my spiritual nature are at war until I PUT ONE OF THEM TO DEATH. If I feed my earthly nature, I will be killing my spiritual nature. If I feed my spiritual nature, I will be killing my earthly nature. It reminds me of the verse where Jesus says we can't serve two masters.
4. He's telling me that I'm going to see these things at work in my life until I finish the process of sanctification and transformation. I am not transformed by my conversion, I'm just saying yes to Him to begin the process. Yes, He does the work of transformation and sanctification too, but I have to keep saying yes. I can slow the process down or even bring it to a complete halt. I have done that in my life, and He is always patient and waits for me to be ready to begin again.
4. Greed...that one is singled out as idolatry. I was looking it up earlier in different passages, but I still don't have a complete perspective on how greed is idolatry and the others are not.
Greed: The King James says "covetousness."
pleonexia (from pleonektes): avarice, i.e. (by implication) fraudulency, extortion:--covetous (-ness) practices, greediness.
pleonektes (from pleion and echo): holding (desiring) more, i.e. eager for gain (avaricious, hence a defrauder):--covetous
pleion: more in quantity, number, or quality; also (in plural) the major portion:--above, exceed, more excellent, further, (very) great (-er), long (-er), (very) many, greater (more) part, + yet but.
AND
echo: to hold (used in very various applications, literally or figuratively, direct or remote; such as possession, ability, contiguity, relation or condition):--be able, behold, be possessed with, accompany, begin to amend, can, reign, uncircumcised.
I always like to go back as far as I can to the roots with Greek and Hebrew words. It helps add depth and richness to the words for me. In this case, I can see what I was beginning to see when I read all the verses I looked up about greed this morning. To me, it means that I'm trying to one up. That I will do anything to look better than someone else, even lie or cheat or take advantage of them. It is the opposite of God's love...sometimes it can appear that people are acting out of love when they are really acting out of their own gain. I've done this in small ways and in big ways...I will take someone out to coffee or lunch because I want to eat out or have a cup of coffee, and I can justify it better if I am "magnanimously" treating someone else! This is a small example, but not any less or more insidious than other examples of fraudulently following God's commands to love when we're just living for ourselves...living for ourselves is idolatry.
That being said, I still don't allow myself to get caught up in the guilt and shame cycle even when I recognize these. Because I'm beginning to see that guilt and shame only perpetuate that self-focus that my ego likes so much. If I can bypass that cycle and turn my attention to God, I realize that we're all human! We all love humanly. We all struggle against the earthly nature. We are all in the same boat, baling out water until we reach up our chubby baby arms for our Daddy who loves us and will pick us right up and set us on dry ground, on a Rock in fact, and teach us how to walk again! I am so glad we picked this book. Awesome! Awesome! Awesome!
Thank you, Papa. Thank you that you have taken care of it all. Thank you that you redeem even our bad days and our bad moments. Thank you that our misbehavior amounts to nothing more than teachable moments in your book. Thank you that we are your children and you are our abba, our daddy. The One who loves us so perfectly that as we absorb it in and learn from it, we can begin to love just as you love...not for our own gain, not out of greed or selfish ambition, but out of true, unconditional, divine love. It is possible for us to be like you, and I'm so grateful that you're showing me that more and more.
Father, I pray for Ioni and Echo. I ask that you would continue to seal their purity and innocence. I pray that your truth will sink deeply into their hearts, that they will learn to trust you in all Your ways. I pray for Kiah and Ruby, that they will know deep in their hearts that they are loved exactly as they are; that you delight over them with singing and that you cherish each moment you get to spend with them. I pray for Mark, that you would affirm him and confirm him. I thank you that these dark days are not dark to you. I pray that you would reveal to him that he is not any more broken or damaged than the rest of us. I pray that you would surround him with people who love him for who he is and not for what he can or can't do for them. I pray that you would break the lies and bondage of conditional love. I pray that you would unravel and loose him from the chains of judgment and condemnation. I pray that you would loose him into a new level of freedom that he has not even allowed himself to imagine. And I pray for Tina, that you would loose her from the chains of burden and lack and physical restriction. I pray that you would loose her from all the judgments that have weighed on her and weighed her down. I pray that you would release in her supernatural joy and strength, as she marvels at the wonder of the power that lives inside of her; as she marvels at the freedom you bought for her on the cross; as she marvels that the maker of the universe is her husband, friend, lover, and companion. Thank you for all these truths. May they sink deeply into the roots of their souls and begin to oust out the branches that do not bear fruit in keeping with repentance and freedom. ~Amen.
Colossians 3:1-5 Tina
Dear God,
I ask that you just be with Angela and her family as they prepare to embark on an adventure. Lord there is so much unanswered for them and I ask that you simply clear the road for them and go ahead of them to prepare a new life in California. Send your gentle spirit upon Angela and comfort her, give her patience, energy and peace of mind. I ask that the Andrews family be placed in your loving hands, the same hands that created this world can now keep them safe and protected. Draw Eric and Angela closer to you through this.
I pray Lord for my health and energy, I am feeling drained and exhausted please give me the energy to not only get through the day but to be your ambassador here on this earth. Help me to teach today and parent my kids, help me to keep moving when all I want to do is get in my bed and rest.
Amen
3:1 Since you have been raised to new life with Christ, set your sights on the realities of heaven, where Christ sits at God’s right hand in the place of honor and power.
The false teachers were concentrating their teaching on the now, on the worldly things humans try to control. To live fully in Christ means we have to keep our vision and our path on what is heavenly. When our focus is heaven and Christ we will grow in faith here on earth, we will experience the stuff we talked about earlier, the knowledge, wisdom of God. This verse also expresses where Christ is, seated next to Father God in heaven a place reserved for a heavenly son.
3:2 Let heaven fill your thoughts. Do not think only about things down here on earth.
Sounds so simple and yet we both know that the things down here are so distracting to us! I am thinking that keeping our thoughts on heavenly things might inspire within us a passion to do Godly things here on earth. If our minds and dreams are made up of pure heavenly thoughts then our actions would differ from the norm.
3:3 For you died when Christ died, and your real life is hidden with Christ in God.
This world is a shadow of what is to come. Pure life, abundantly life, eternal life those are things that we will have in heaven.
3:4 And when Christ, who is your real life, is revealed to the whole world, you will share in all his glory.
Now we are back to the earlier text, we are connected to Christ through his blood, we are adopted, accepted, forgiven, holy, and when Christ is revealed as the King of the universe we will get to share in his kingdom and in his glory as Christ’s’ sisters and brothers.
3:5 So put to death the sinful, earthly things lurking within you. Have nothing to do with sexual sin, impurity, lust, and shameful desires. Don’t be greedy for the good things of this life, for that is idolatry.
When we accept Christ we are given a new life, a life hidden within him. Human desires are strong but if we are intertwined with Jesus then we have the power to rise about humanist ideas. Again I think it comes back to keeping our minds on heaven and heavenly ideas. If we live like we are going to heaven tomorrow what would we do differently today? Have you read 30 days to live? Awesome book! Basically if we knew that we were going to die in 30 days how would you change the next 30 days? Most people would spend time loving on those around them, going to see grandma in the nursing home, spending time loving and playing with our kids. Forget about bills, dishes, laundry and work, those things are worldly things. The ideas of the heart are what is important.
Friday, February 4, 2011
Colossians 2:16-23 Angela
Father God, I am feeling tattered and worn. I want to feel joyful and excited. I am feeling overwhelmed and burdened. I want to feel confident and free. I feel sad and lonely. I want to feel happy and surrounded by your love and the love of those who love me. I feel disconnected today. I want to feel connected. Thank you for Tina's words of encouragement. My heart aches to feel the truth of her words spoken over me. I keep thinking this dark cloud is coming from somewhere outside of myself, but I don't think so anymore. I think this dark cloud is of my own issues. I release all these burdens and fears to you. Thank you that you are bigger than my circumstances, and thank you that somewhere in the depths of my cold and scared heart I know that you are planning something so big and so amazing for my little family. Please, please renew the strength of my song today. ~Amen.
2:16-17 "Therefore do not let anyone judge you by what you eat or drink, or with regard to a religious festival, a New Moon celebration or a Sabbath day. These are a shadow of things that were to come; the reality, however, is found in Christ."
"Don't let anyone judge you." Some of those voices are me letting other people judge me. I was feeling so defensive yesterday. I thought it was because several of my friends are struggling and I was in intercession for them, but now I realize it was mine...I am feeling so uneasy about all these things and so many of the people I talk to have been sowing into that uneasiness. Eric's family is concerned about the low pay we're going to Redding for. Apparently, I'm allowing their concerns to fortify my concerns, rather than leaning on Christ for the reality that He is going before us. We have done our very best to surrender this whole thing to Him at every turn. This is where the rubber meets the road for my faith. I know what I know, but deep inside I still believe He is setting us up to show us where our motives are wrong. All that talk I talk about how good He is, and on some deep level I still don't believe it!!! I am so desperate to feel the healing balm of His love wash all that yuck away, and yet He is asking me to trust, to wait, and to be patient. I cannot speed my healing process. Truly, I really don't want to. I don't want to do anything ahead of him. And here I am, partnering with that enemy voice in my head telling me I'm not as far along as I think I am.
Okay, I guess I'm a mess today. I am so glad we are doing this. I am so glad that this is the time that "we" chose to study this particular book of the Bible. What I like about these verses is that it says that religious rites and festivals are a shadow of the intimacy and celebration we're going to have with Jesus. After over 400 years of silence from God, Jesus comes into the world and brings with Him a revival of the religious festivals. I imagine that many of these festivals were done by rote and without much remembrance of what the point was. The people had given up hope and joy. Even after Jesus came, Paul was speaking to folks who were still under that black cloud of ritualism without life (sounds a little like myself right now). Paul was offering them freedom from that dark cloud of empty religion. He was giving them a taste of the freedom that belonged to them in Christ already!! I want this to become so real to me.
2:18-19 "Do not let anyone who delights in false humility and the worship of angels disqualify you for the prize. Such a person goes into great detail about what he has seen, and his unspiritual mind puffs him up with idle notions. He has lost connection with the Head, from whom the whole body, supported and held together by its ligaments and sinews, grows as God causes it to grow."
These verses have weight significance to me. I've been one of these people in the last year. I got so distracted by the signs and wonders that I lost focus on the love of God. It is a long story that I don't want to relate here, but I know exactly what Paul is talking about here. I am so grateful that He gently showed me the error of my ways and put me back in line with Him and my husband.
2:20-21 "Since you died with Christ to the basic principles of this world, why, as though you still belonged to it, do you submit to its rules: 'Do not handle! Do not taste! Do not touch!"
Again, I think of diets. Probably because this was a verse quoted often in The Weigh Down Workshop, which was my diet of choice for many years. The first thing is that I died to the basic principles of this world! I want to examine that for a minute. I died to the principle that there isn't enough for everyone on this planet. I came alive in Christ to the truth that God rains his goodness on the righteous and the unrighteous. I came alive in Christ to the truth that God owns the cattle on a thousand hills and that he is the most generous beings in the Universe, and He is IN the universe. Yeah! God with us! Immanuel. I died to the principle that God is angry with me, and I came alive in Christ to the truth that He sees me as His dear, sweet, delightful daughter. I died to the principle that the Universe is working against me (curse of Adam), and I came alive in Christ to the truth that there are riches untold and resources always coming my way to encourage me and draw me into the purposes and plans God has for me. I have all that I need to do what He has called me to do.
I know I am still embroiled in this struggle to come out of the darkness of the world's principles into the glorious truth of God's principles. Father, I pray that you help the four of us really get this, really draw your principles deep into our beings so that we can walk out of your principles and no longer fall under the weight of the rules of this world and religion. I pray that as we four begin to really walk upright in your kingdom principles, our children will learn and follow after us. Thank you that we can see your goodness in the land of the living!
2:22-23 "These are all destined to perish with use, because they are based on human commands and teachings. Such regulations indeed have an appearance of wisdom, with their self-imposed worship, their false humility and their harsh treatment of the body, but they lack any value in restraining sensual indulgence."
Harsh treatment of the body...His Body! The Church! Human commands and teachings. There is so much human wisdom and teaching going on in the church today, and it's killing the church. I know it is fear, and I do not judge harshly. I know God is at work, breathing His fresh life and the truth of freedom into the church. I'm seeing it in many bodies and in some subgroups of bodies around here in the Skagit Valley. When I hear the phrase "harsh treatment of the body," I think of all the people coming into the church and being turned away because they don't "tow the line" of mainstream Christian rules. In some ways, it seems that many of the Christian churches are beginning to look a lot like the Pharisees. And it's NOT working to curb sexual indulgence. Marriages are suffering, pastors are stumbling, and secrets are being kept all in an effort to maintain the false humility. I am so hungry to see things turn around for the church as a whole.
I am so glad that God has shown me how similar we all are in our woundedness and in our struggles against sin and strongholds in our lives. I am so grateful to begin seeing that one person can make a difference if they start walking against the grain with Jesus. And that His freedom is really free...free from the regulations that don't deliver the power and truth of the Spirit of Jesus. Father, I pray that where we are still under these regulations that don't have anything to do with your love and your power, we would begin to see the truth. I pray for a quieting of those rules and regulations floating around in our minds. I pray that you would show us how to walk free of the world's principles with finality. Help us make the full transition to your Kingdom principles. ~Amen.
2:16-17 "Therefore do not let anyone judge you by what you eat or drink, or with regard to a religious festival, a New Moon celebration or a Sabbath day. These are a shadow of things that were to come; the reality, however, is found in Christ."
"Don't let anyone judge you." Some of those voices are me letting other people judge me. I was feeling so defensive yesterday. I thought it was because several of my friends are struggling and I was in intercession for them, but now I realize it was mine...I am feeling so uneasy about all these things and so many of the people I talk to have been sowing into that uneasiness. Eric's family is concerned about the low pay we're going to Redding for. Apparently, I'm allowing their concerns to fortify my concerns, rather than leaning on Christ for the reality that He is going before us. We have done our very best to surrender this whole thing to Him at every turn. This is where the rubber meets the road for my faith. I know what I know, but deep inside I still believe He is setting us up to show us where our motives are wrong. All that talk I talk about how good He is, and on some deep level I still don't believe it!!! I am so desperate to feel the healing balm of His love wash all that yuck away, and yet He is asking me to trust, to wait, and to be patient. I cannot speed my healing process. Truly, I really don't want to. I don't want to do anything ahead of him. And here I am, partnering with that enemy voice in my head telling me I'm not as far along as I think I am.
Okay, I guess I'm a mess today. I am so glad we are doing this. I am so glad that this is the time that "we" chose to study this particular book of the Bible. What I like about these verses is that it says that religious rites and festivals are a shadow of the intimacy and celebration we're going to have with Jesus. After over 400 years of silence from God, Jesus comes into the world and brings with Him a revival of the religious festivals. I imagine that many of these festivals were done by rote and without much remembrance of what the point was. The people had given up hope and joy. Even after Jesus came, Paul was speaking to folks who were still under that black cloud of ritualism without life (sounds a little like myself right now). Paul was offering them freedom from that dark cloud of empty religion. He was giving them a taste of the freedom that belonged to them in Christ already!! I want this to become so real to me.
2:18-19 "Do not let anyone who delights in false humility and the worship of angels disqualify you for the prize. Such a person goes into great detail about what he has seen, and his unspiritual mind puffs him up with idle notions. He has lost connection with the Head, from whom the whole body, supported and held together by its ligaments and sinews, grows as God causes it to grow."
These verses have weight significance to me. I've been one of these people in the last year. I got so distracted by the signs and wonders that I lost focus on the love of God. It is a long story that I don't want to relate here, but I know exactly what Paul is talking about here. I am so grateful that He gently showed me the error of my ways and put me back in line with Him and my husband.
2:20-21 "Since you died with Christ to the basic principles of this world, why, as though you still belonged to it, do you submit to its rules: 'Do not handle! Do not taste! Do not touch!"
Again, I think of diets. Probably because this was a verse quoted often in The Weigh Down Workshop, which was my diet of choice for many years. The first thing is that I died to the basic principles of this world! I want to examine that for a minute. I died to the principle that there isn't enough for everyone on this planet. I came alive in Christ to the truth that God rains his goodness on the righteous and the unrighteous. I came alive in Christ to the truth that God owns the cattle on a thousand hills and that he is the most generous beings in the Universe, and He is IN the universe. Yeah! God with us! Immanuel. I died to the principle that God is angry with me, and I came alive in Christ to the truth that He sees me as His dear, sweet, delightful daughter. I died to the principle that the Universe is working against me (curse of Adam), and I came alive in Christ to the truth that there are riches untold and resources always coming my way to encourage me and draw me into the purposes and plans God has for me. I have all that I need to do what He has called me to do.
I know I am still embroiled in this struggle to come out of the darkness of the world's principles into the glorious truth of God's principles. Father, I pray that you help the four of us really get this, really draw your principles deep into our beings so that we can walk out of your principles and no longer fall under the weight of the rules of this world and religion. I pray that as we four begin to really walk upright in your kingdom principles, our children will learn and follow after us. Thank you that we can see your goodness in the land of the living!
2:22-23 "These are all destined to perish with use, because they are based on human commands and teachings. Such regulations indeed have an appearance of wisdom, with their self-imposed worship, their false humility and their harsh treatment of the body, but they lack any value in restraining sensual indulgence."
Harsh treatment of the body...His Body! The Church! Human commands and teachings. There is so much human wisdom and teaching going on in the church today, and it's killing the church. I know it is fear, and I do not judge harshly. I know God is at work, breathing His fresh life and the truth of freedom into the church. I'm seeing it in many bodies and in some subgroups of bodies around here in the Skagit Valley. When I hear the phrase "harsh treatment of the body," I think of all the people coming into the church and being turned away because they don't "tow the line" of mainstream Christian rules. In some ways, it seems that many of the Christian churches are beginning to look a lot like the Pharisees. And it's NOT working to curb sexual indulgence. Marriages are suffering, pastors are stumbling, and secrets are being kept all in an effort to maintain the false humility. I am so hungry to see things turn around for the church as a whole.
I am so glad that God has shown me how similar we all are in our woundedness and in our struggles against sin and strongholds in our lives. I am so grateful to begin seeing that one person can make a difference if they start walking against the grain with Jesus. And that His freedom is really free...free from the regulations that don't deliver the power and truth of the Spirit of Jesus. Father, I pray that where we are still under these regulations that don't have anything to do with your love and your power, we would begin to see the truth. I pray for a quieting of those rules and regulations floating around in our minds. I pray that you would show us how to walk free of the world's principles with finality. Help us make the full transition to your Kingdom principles. ~Amen.
Thursday, February 3, 2011
Colossians 2:16-23 Tina
Dear God I think you so much for what you are doing within me, I feel you presence with me and I am just filled with your spirit, thank you Lord for your comfort. Lord I pray a special prayer today for our brothers and sisters in Egypt, I pray Lord that you would bring about real change there and that you would end the violence and unrest. Lord you are the creator of all things and the bible tells us that the kings and rulers of our lands are under your control. I pray that your will be done in Egypt, I know that your plan is always best. I pray for Angela, be with her today and bless her with your spirit and comfort.
Amen
I went all the way to the end of Chapter 2, I just couldn't stop!!
2:16 So don’t let anyone condemn you for what you eat or drink, or for not celebrating certain holy days or new-moon ceremonies or Sabbaths.
So once again the “laws” do not pertain to us in Christ. We are free to eat and drink what we want and celebrate what we want. I am sure this new found freedom was hard for the people of the day to swallow with all the traditions and laws that were being followed by the jews. The Pharisees added hundreds of extra laws to God’s laws. The false teachers were like judges. They told the Christians to obey these laws too. They said that this would make them into better Christians. But Paul said that the false teachers were wrong. In Mark 7:19, Jesus said that the laws about food had ended. Christians may eat any foods. Paul wrote to the Galatians because they had started to obey the Old Testament laws too. Today there are some who would like to add on different laws to us, we must hold firm in our foundation in Jesus, and we really are free. Free to pray quietly, free to pray loudly or in tongues, free to dance, free to assemble together, free to eat, free to stay quiet. I think a lot of different denominations put us back under the law, I know I felt this way in Texas. The law there was No drinking, at all, never. While I understand that public intoxication is not a good testimony to unbelievers and might lead other weaker Christians to drink, the law it self is unwarranted. A glass of champagne on my anniversary is hardly a reason to question my salvation. Other laws were not so obvious, you must live up to a certain standard, to have a nice house, vote a certain way, have well behaved “quiet” children, you must never complain or be in turmoil even if it is your health in question; sad that some people believe in these laws of today.
2:17 For these rules were only shadows of the real thing, Christ himself.
My friend Sarah Ristow described this to me a long time ago. The law was like a baby sitter. The baby sitter watches carefully, corrects and tries to keep you safe while your parents are away. The babysitter sets us rules in order to have control over the child and do her job well. God is our Father, he loves us unconditionally, he does the same job as a babysitter but he does it out of complete and utter love. The rules are still there but they are established out of relationship, out of love. The child obeys because they love the Father. The Laws were giving us a picture of what Christ was like, holy and pure.
n the past, the Old Testament laws reminded the Jews that God is holy. The laws showed them how to live in the right way. But these laws did not give the Jews the power to live a holy life. However, every Christian in the world can live a holy life. This is because of Christ. The laws were good. But Christ is superior to the laws. The laws only showed people how to live in God’s way. But Christ actually lived in God’s way. And Christ gives his power to everyone who trusts him. Christians do not need the laws; they only need Christ.
2:18 Don’t let anyone condemn you by insisting on self-denial. And don’t let anyone say you must worship angels, even though they say they have had visions about this. These people claim to be so humble, but their sinful minds have made them proud.
Our God is a jealous God; he does not want us to worship anything above him. Not angels, food, people, job, nothing. Oh sad that we are so easily lead astray. Again the false teachers are piling on the duties for this church; follow the law, worship angels, circumcision, and self denial. These things are worldly in nature and not of God. God simply wants all of us; he wants us completely immersed in him. Only when we are soaked in Christ can we see what is of him and what is not.
2:19 But they are not connected to Christ, the head of the body. For we are joined together in his body by his strong sinews, and we grow only as we get our nourishment and strength from God.
Sinews: noun
1. A tendon.
2. Vigorous strength; muscular power.
3. The source or mainstay of vitality and strength. Often used in the plural: "Good company and good discourse are the very sinews of virtue.”
I love the vision this verse and definition are bringing to my mind. God is the head of the body, he gives us direction, helps us to see things, hear things, interpret ideas, we are the body of Christ (church) we do the work, we are the hands, the feet, the legs that moves through the earth. Not only that but we all make up the body and we are connected through strong tendons, we are nourished from the mouth of God which of coarse is in the head. We get our strength to do the work through our connection to the head, from God!! These being said a few verses ago when we talked about having access to the wisdom and knowledge of God, this verse confirms it. We have access to knowledge of the universe, from the creator of all things. This is amazing.
2:20-21 You have died with Christ, and he has set you free from the evil powers of this world. So why do you keep on following rules of the world, such as “Don’t handle, don’t eat, don’t touch.”
Paul is really trying to combat those false teachers by telling the church, “Jesus did it all for you, you do not owe him anything else but your love. You are connected to God through Jesus. Jesus erased the law, you are free. It is finished.” After reading through these last verses I think we all need to be reminded of this stuff. Being human we are fallible to pride, we think we can do everything on our own. We do these things to ourselves; we put ourselves back under the law so quick. We think we have to measure up in order to make it. Jesus says to abide in him.
John 15:4
Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in me. I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing.
Abide:
1. To put up with; tolerate: can't abide such incompetence.
2. To wait patiently for: "I will abide the coming of my lord" (Tennyson).
3. To withstand: a thermoplastic that will abide rough use and great heat.
v.intr.
1. To remain in a place.
2. To continue to be sure or firm; endure.
3. To dwell or sojourn.
The world would like to place us under the laws which we can never live up to, Satan would love nothing more than to have us feel like we do not measure up. Jesus says dwell in him and he will dwell in us, we will produce much fruit.
2:23 These rules seem wise because they require strong devotion, humility, and severe bodily discipline. But they have no effect when it comes to conquering a person’s evil thoughts and desires.
Again human understanding, these rules seem wise and require a lot of work but in the scheme of your heart and evil desires it does nothing. These rules and discipline leave us feeling like we can’t measure up. God would never want us to feel like that. I am beginning to think that the discipline that God is asking of us is simply to be with him as much as we can. The world is so distracting and it draws our vision away from him, our human desires are strong. Could it be that true discipline is just soaking with God, to abide in him? It seems so simple and yet it that is what my heart is telling me about what we are reading.
Colossians 2:11-15 Angela
aFather God, thank you for your joy and for your perspective and for your help in all things. This week I need help with the packing and finding work. I know you are with me, and I don't have to run in fear or give in to the overwhelming feelings that make me want to run and hide in my bed. Thank you that you are giving me strength for each moment and that I can take one task at a time. Right now, I am spending my time in Your word and in spirit with my dear friend, Tina. I pray that you will fill us both with joy, pressed down and running over. ~Amen.
2:11 "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..."
circumcision: peritome (from peritemno): circumcision
peritemno (from peri & the base of tomoteros): to cut around, i.e. to circumcise
peri: around, circuit, excess (beyond), or completeness (through). AND tomoteros: to cut as if by a single stroke; more keen; sharper.
He is saying that our sinful nature was completely cut off in one stroke...Jesus' death on the cross. I have been hearing this more and more over the past year. It is hard to reconcile this with the teaching that I will always sin and never be perfect like Jesus is perfect. I am still wrestling with this concept, asking the Holy Spirit to enlighten me. I am beginning to understand some things about it, but not enough to really write about it.
2:12 "...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."
Paul just keeps repeating the gospel over and over again in different ways for different ears. I love this book! I was buried with Christ...dead to my sinful nature, and I have been raised by my faith alone...my belief that Jesus is the Son of God and died for my sins and is now seated at beside Him on the throne interceding on my behalf. And I have been raised in power, God's power. God, who raised Jesus from the dead and seated Him in heavenly places, also raised me from the dead and has seated me with Christ in heavenly places. (Ephesians 1:20 & Ephesians 2:6)
The power of God, which is at work in Paul, is also at work in each of us, wooing us, calling us, cleansing us, healing us, and preparing us for the good works that He has prepared in advance for each of us to do!
2:13-14 "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, 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."
While I was dead, God forgave me of all my sins. He did this by canceling the debt I owed to the written code of the Law. It doesn't mean that I won't break the law, but it means that He has canceled the opposition against me. He has taken the foothold away from the accuser. Satan accused Job, and God allowed Satan to take advantage of that situation because Job was still beholden to the law. It is different now. Satan still accuses us. I hear his voice every day in my head accusing me of stuff...bad motives, wicked intentions, bad moods, yelling at my kids. He is constantly telling me I'm a loser. The difference is that he doesn't have anything to stand on. He doesn't have anything to take to God against me anymore. I'm not even sure God entertains him in the courts of heaven any longer. It says he was confined to roam on the earth. He tries to pit us against ourselves and against each other, but he no longer has any basis to stand on to accuse us in heaven!
It says here that the law was opposed to us! NOT GOD!! For so long I believed God was out to punish me, just waiting to let the hammer fall. Makes sense, since that's what I was taught by my parents. Mistakes are intolerable and speaking my mind was punishable by the law in my house! Please Father, help me really get this. Help me really see that you are a loving Father, not waiting to punish us with words, deeds, or withholding of your love for us. You are a Daddy who gets excited when we step out and try new things. You are a Daddy who loves us and wants us to explore this world you created for us without fear. You are a Daddy who looks us in the eye and tells us we are wonderful, special, delightful, talented, and gifted! You are the greatest encourager of all! The Gift of Encouragement comes from you. You are the source of all encouragement. Show us your encouraging nature today!
2:15 "And having disarmed the powers and authorities, he made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them by the cross."
This is so amazing! Again, I got ahead of myself in the last paragraph about the last verse. He has defeated every power and authority...it's like the wars where the treaties were signed, but the final battles were still being fought out to seal the deal. Our mission here on earth isn't to defeat Satan; it's to allow God to mop up the messes of the final battles and set us on our feet aright. He wants us fighting in the Promised Land and not in the wilderness. This last year has been the transfer of that for me. What I have realized for my own self is that the fights in the wilderness are fights against myself...my bad behaviors, my negative thinking patterns, the roots of my problems concealed and hidden so that it seems as though I am my enemy. I am beginning to take these words Paul has spoken to heart, thanks to good teaching and some good friends who have learned about authority and the lack of power the enemy has over us. Now, I can see more clearly the generational nature of my "sins." I can see that they are rooted in a faulty foundation of lies and wounds, and I'm beginning to see the lies and wounds unraveling. The enemy is falling quickly, and now I am not fighting myself any longer, but I'm standing against him. It's such an amazing and different feeling not to hate myself anymore.
Father, I thank you that I am beginning to learn to love myself and not feel betrayed by myself all the time. I pray that you would continue to strip away the lies and show me the truth of the victory that I have in You. I pray this for Eric, too. That you would open the eyes of his understanding, that he might see the truth and begin to shout triumphantly for joy. I pray this also for Mark and Tina, as well. I pray for a completion of the mop-up and the beginning of an organized fight against the enemy and his lies! ~Amen.
2:11 "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..."
circumcision: peritome (from peritemno): circumcision
peritemno (from peri & the base of tomoteros): to cut around, i.e. to circumcise
peri: around, circuit, excess (beyond), or completeness (through). AND tomoteros: to cut as if by a single stroke; more keen; sharper.
He is saying that our sinful nature was completely cut off in one stroke...Jesus' death on the cross. I have been hearing this more and more over the past year. It is hard to reconcile this with the teaching that I will always sin and never be perfect like Jesus is perfect. I am still wrestling with this concept, asking the Holy Spirit to enlighten me. I am beginning to understand some things about it, but not enough to really write about it.
2:12 "...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."
Paul just keeps repeating the gospel over and over again in different ways for different ears. I love this book! I was buried with Christ...dead to my sinful nature, and I have been raised by my faith alone...my belief that Jesus is the Son of God and died for my sins and is now seated at beside Him on the throne interceding on my behalf. And I have been raised in power, God's power. God, who raised Jesus from the dead and seated Him in heavenly places, also raised me from the dead and has seated me with Christ in heavenly places. (Ephesians 1:20 & Ephesians 2:6)
The power of God, which is at work in Paul, is also at work in each of us, wooing us, calling us, cleansing us, healing us, and preparing us for the good works that He has prepared in advance for each of us to do!
2:13-14 "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, 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."
While I was dead, God forgave me of all my sins. He did this by canceling the debt I owed to the written code of the Law. It doesn't mean that I won't break the law, but it means that He has canceled the opposition against me. He has taken the foothold away from the accuser. Satan accused Job, and God allowed Satan to take advantage of that situation because Job was still beholden to the law. It is different now. Satan still accuses us. I hear his voice every day in my head accusing me of stuff...bad motives, wicked intentions, bad moods, yelling at my kids. He is constantly telling me I'm a loser. The difference is that he doesn't have anything to stand on. He doesn't have anything to take to God against me anymore. I'm not even sure God entertains him in the courts of heaven any longer. It says he was confined to roam on the earth. He tries to pit us against ourselves and against each other, but he no longer has any basis to stand on to accuse us in heaven!
It says here that the law was opposed to us! NOT GOD!! For so long I believed God was out to punish me, just waiting to let the hammer fall. Makes sense, since that's what I was taught by my parents. Mistakes are intolerable and speaking my mind was punishable by the law in my house! Please Father, help me really get this. Help me really see that you are a loving Father, not waiting to punish us with words, deeds, or withholding of your love for us. You are a Daddy who gets excited when we step out and try new things. You are a Daddy who loves us and wants us to explore this world you created for us without fear. You are a Daddy who looks us in the eye and tells us we are wonderful, special, delightful, talented, and gifted! You are the greatest encourager of all! The Gift of Encouragement comes from you. You are the source of all encouragement. Show us your encouraging nature today!
2:15 "And having disarmed the powers and authorities, he made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them by the cross."
This is so amazing! Again, I got ahead of myself in the last paragraph about the last verse. He has defeated every power and authority...it's like the wars where the treaties were signed, but the final battles were still being fought out to seal the deal. Our mission here on earth isn't to defeat Satan; it's to allow God to mop up the messes of the final battles and set us on our feet aright. He wants us fighting in the Promised Land and not in the wilderness. This last year has been the transfer of that for me. What I have realized for my own self is that the fights in the wilderness are fights against myself...my bad behaviors, my negative thinking patterns, the roots of my problems concealed and hidden so that it seems as though I am my enemy. I am beginning to take these words Paul has spoken to heart, thanks to good teaching and some good friends who have learned about authority and the lack of power the enemy has over us. Now, I can see more clearly the generational nature of my "sins." I can see that they are rooted in a faulty foundation of lies and wounds, and I'm beginning to see the lies and wounds unraveling. The enemy is falling quickly, and now I am not fighting myself any longer, but I'm standing against him. It's such an amazing and different feeling not to hate myself anymore.
Father, I thank you that I am beginning to learn to love myself and not feel betrayed by myself all the time. I pray that you would continue to strip away the lies and show me the truth of the victory that I have in You. I pray this for Eric, too. That you would open the eyes of his understanding, that he might see the truth and begin to shout triumphantly for joy. I pray this also for Mark and Tina, as well. I pray for a completion of the mop-up and the beginning of an organized fight against the enemy and his lies! ~Amen.
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