Growing in Christ: Colossians 3 (4)

Opening Prayer: Psalm 31.23, 24
Oh, love the LORD, all you His saints!
For the LORD preserves the faithful,
And fully repays the proud person.
Be of good courage,
And He shall strengthen your heart,
All you who hope in the LORD.

Sing Psalm 31.23, 24
(Brother James’ Air: The Lord’s My Shepherd, I’ll not Want)
O love the Lord, all you, His saints!  He keeps us faithfully.
But all who act in sinful pride His wrath shall surely see.
Be strong and let your heart not fret; wait on Him constantly!

Read Colossians 3.16, 17

Preparation
1. What did Paul instruct us to do with the Word of Christ?

2. To what would that lead in our lives?

Meditation
Foundational to growing in and walking with the Lord is time in His Word – seeking and meeting Him there, so that you may be made more like Him (Jn. 5.39; 2 Cor. 3.12-18). Paul instructs us to internalize the Word, to let it sink into our soul – heart, mind, and conscience – and to do so richly. When the Word of Christ dwells in us richly, it engenders wisdom – like Christ, the Wisdom of God (Prov. 8, Col. 2.3).

As we increase in wisdom, the fruit of the Word will be more evident in our lives, and we will teach and admonish one another, praise the Lord with singing, and increase in His grace in our hearts (v. 16). That being established as the essence of our existence, whatever we do – whether in word or deed – will honor and exalt and proclaim the Lord Jesus Christ with thanksgiving (v. 17).

Faithful saints, like those in Colossae, will take Paul’s words to heart and give themselves to the kind of reading, meditating, study, and waiting on the Lord that help us to set our minds on Christ and the things that are above. When we are thus anchored above in our soul, we will live from above in our daily lives.

Treasure Old and New: Matthew 13.52; Psalm 119.162
When something dwells richly that precludes it from dwelling poorly.
The Word of Christ, and Christ Himself through His Holy Spirit, will richly dwell in us when we read, study and meditate on the Scriptures. How else will we know what Christ is like if we don’t read about Him there? How will we know what pleases Him and displeases Him? How will we have guidance to live our lives if we are just guessing how to do it? How will we grow from poorly to richly without the Bread of Life? Richly denotes abundance and perfection. Poorly renders thoughts of the scraggly and inept. When we live in the power from above, we blossom into fullness.

“And of His fullness we have all received, and grace for grace” (John 1.16).
“…that He would grant you, according to the riches of His glory, to be strengthened with might through His
Spirit in the inner man, that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith; that you, being rooted and grounded in love, may be able to comprehend with all the saints what is the width and length and depth and height—to know the love of Christ which passes knowledge; that you may be filled with all the fullness of God” (Eph. 3.16-19).
“For in Him dwells all the fullness of the Godhead bodily; and you are complete in Him, who is the head of all principality and power” (Col.2.9,10).
Let us feast on the Word and become full of Him! Richly.

Reflection
1. What does it take to have the Word of God dwell in us richly?

2. How can believers encourage and support one another in this effort?

3. What’s one thing you can do to begin realizing more of the fullness of God in your life?

Many have the word, but it dwells in them poorly; it has no power over them. The soul prospers, when we are full of the Scriptures and of the grace of Christ..Matthew Henry (1662-1714), Commentary on Colossians 3.16

Fill me with Your Word today, O Lord, and let it overflow from me as I…

Closing Prayer: Psalm 31.14-22
Rejoice in the Lord’s salvation. Pray that you may know more of His salvation today, and that He will give you an opportunity to share with and encourage a fellow believer.

Psalm 31.14-22
(Brother James’ Air: The Lord’s My Shepherd, I’ll not Want)
But I will trust in You, O Lord; You are my God and King!
My times are in Your hand; from those who hate me rescue me!
Shine down Your face on me with grace; let Your love on me be!

Let me not come to shame, O Lord, for on Your Name I call.
Let wicked men to hell be cast, let shame upon them fall.
Their lies and plots shall come to naught; to silence send them all!

How great the goodness You reserve for those who fear You, Lord,
who rest in You and boldly stand before men in Your Word.
You cover them from plots of men; You shelter them, O Lord!

Blessed be the Lord, for He has shown His steadfast love to me!
In my alarm I cried to Him; He heard my fervent plea!
In fear and dread with You I pled; You heard and rescued me!

T. M. and Susie Moore

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Delighting in the Word
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Except as indicated, all Scripture are taken from the New King James Version. © Copyright 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved. For sources of all quotations, see the weekly PDF of this study. All psalms for singing are from The Ailbe Psalter (Williston: Waxed Tablet Publications, 2006), available by clicking here.