Monday – July 11, 2016
How quickly the weeks go by and here we are back to Monday. I trust that you had a good weekend and a very nutritious meal of the Word of God Sunday from the pulpit and perhaps other sources at your home Church. Now, let’s return to our study in Colossians.
Colossians 3:15-16 (KJV)
15 And let the peace of God rule in your hearts, to the which also ye are called in one body; and be ye thankful.
16 Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom; teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord.
The phrase “the word of Christ dwell in you” is preceded by the word ‘let’ giving the idea that we must grant permission and choose for the word of Christ to dwell in us individually and to dwell among us. To dwell among us would be a commonality of thought, beliefs manifesting in conversation concerning the Word of Christ. When we are alone with our thoughts, what are our predominant thoughts? When we are together with other Christians; what is the predominant theme of our conversation? That is not to say it is not okay to talk about fishing or the car and so on. Are our conversations of the bitch and moan variety or are they uplifting in nature to the glory of God? When we are talking with those outside the body of Christ do we allow Christian (God’s) ideas to be part of the conversation or do we revert to the ideas of the world (Satan)? I find that there will be ample opportunity to reference something in the conversation to the Bible.
We choose our thoughts and we choose our conversation. Persons in the world, especially in America, will express ideas in conversation that originated with God and are part of our Judeo-Christian heritage. They are generally unaware of that connection. Let’s take a little rabbit trail for just a moment. Generally speaking when the term ‘unbeliever’ is used the assumption is that an unsaved person is being talked about. That is far from being the case. The Church is full of born again unbelievers. Just think for a moment of the children of Israel when they came out of Egypt. They had seen the ten plagues and how God protected them from all ten. They had seen the waters of the Red Sea part and they had seen water for a nation sprout forth from a rock. Yet when it was time to claim the promises of God and enter God’s rest (provision) they would not believe. Moses sent twelve spies into the Promised Land and ten came back with an evil report and two (Joshua and Caleb) with a righteous report.
Numbers 13:32 (KJV)
32 And they brought up an evil report of the land which they had searched unto the children of Israel, saying, The land, through which we have gone to search it, is a land that eateth up the inhabitants thereof; and all the people that we saw in it are men of a great stature.
They had seen first-hand, not just read reports of amazing miracles, yet they still did not have faith in God (believe God). They would not mix the Word of God with faith (believing the Word of God) and act upon it. We have wonderful promises, provisions of God, available to us today but almost no one has entered into them. Instead we wander in the wilderness of poverty, sickness, broken families and relationships not using the Wisdom of God or the authority and power given us of God, our Heavenly Father. The children of Israel came out of Egypt but due to unbelief wandered and died in the wilderness.
Hebrews 4:1-3 (KJV)
1 Let us therefore fear, lest, a promise being left us of entering into his rest, any of you should seem to come short of it.
2 For unto us was the gospel preached, as well as unto them: but the word preached did not profit them, not being mixed with faith in them that heard it. 3 For we which have believed do enter into rest, as he said, As I have sworn in my wrath, if they shall enter into my rest: although the works were finished from the foundation of the world.
It really ticks God off when we don’t believe Him. Have you ever noticed that we get upset when people do not believe what we say and act upon our word? We are in His image and likeness and this aggravation is a Godly response. We don’t always have the same mercy and kindness with others that we want from God. The children of Israel due to unbelief did not have the option to enter the Promised Land. Yes, they had the bare necessities in the wilderness but that was not even near what God had provided for them. Most of us have today do not have even near to what God wants and has provided for our lives. Let us repent (change our minds) and line up with Him.
By Dr. David Wood, Author, Bible Teacher, and Prophetic Voice
