Word of Salvation – Vol. 45 No. 01 – January 2000

Living a New Life in Christ

Sermon by Rev. P. Smit on Colossians 3:1-14

Scripture Readings: 1 Corinthians 6:12-20

Suggested Hymns: BoW 421, 391, 424, 404, 525; Rej 355; 306; 341

Beloved in the Lord...

Do you sometimes ask yourself, "What really is the difference between a Christian and a person that doesn't believe in Jesus Christ?"  Why is it that some non-Christians are actually better people than Christians?  They may seem more patient, or more loving, and they may express more compassion.  You may have seen Christians behave in ways that do not show the love and grace of their Saviour, Jesus Christ.  In reality, what is the difference between a non-Christian and a true believer in Jesus?

In our passage today God is teaching us about the change that takes place in someone who believes in Jesus Christ, and he contrasts that with who we were before we became Christians.

Before we jump into this passage we need to understand two important facts.  Paul refers to them in different ways in this passage.

Firstly, we all have an earthly nature (see vs 5).

"Put to death, therefore, whatever belongs to your earthly nature."  That earthly nature we can call the "old man".  In verse 9 Paul speaks about the "old self".  The Bible tells us that everyone has this "earthly nature" – Christians and non-Christians alike.  The Bible says that when we are controlled by the earthly nature, God isn't King of our lives.  We want to be king of our lives.  It's not God who rules us – but rather our desires rule us.  So we say, "I don't care what God says, I want this, I'll have it.  I want that, so I'll have it."  What rules us is our wants, our desires, our needs, what is best for us.  We become number one.

Now I know that it may not seem like that on the surface when you look at yourself and when I look at myself, but deep down, your earthly nature and mine – the 'old man' – wants control.  Our earthly nature wants to satisfy our desires.  Now the Bible says that when you are controlled by the 'old man', you're a slave to sinful things.  In chapter 2, God's Word tells us that when we were in that condition, we were DEAD, dead.  Have a look at it, chapter 2 verse 13, dead in our sin.

Any person who doesn't know Jesus, any person who has not asked for Christ's forgiveness, and cleansing, is dead in their sin, under God's holy judgment.  But when we recognise that we have sinned before God, when we sincerely ask God to forgive us, when we turn and follow Jesus Christ as Lord and King, then something incredible happens: we are resurrected by faith in Christ.

In chapter 2 verse 6, Paul says that these Colossians "received Christ Jesus as Lord."  They had faith in Christ.  You can see that in chapter 1 verse 4, where Paul thanked God for their faith.  Because they had faith in Jesus, they had undergone a resurrection experience.

In chapter 3 verse 1, Paul said, "You have been raised with Christ."  Just as Jesus was raised from the dead, you have been raised from the dead.  Your dead life, ruled by your earthly nature, is over.  You are now alive in Jesus Christ.  You are alive to his truth.  Alive to his Word.  Made alive to God by the Holy Spirit in your life.  Because of that Paul says confidently in chapter 3 verses 3 and 4, "For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God.  When Christ, who is your life, appears, then you also will appear with him in glory."

The resurrected person is a 'new man'.  Paul says in verse 10 that Christians put on a "new self." God makes us new people, with a new heart.  The Old man was ruled by our sinful heart, with its desires.  The New man or our new self is ruled by Christ, and his Spirit gives us a new heart.

So those are the two important facts in this passage.  All of us have an 'old man', an earthly nature.  If we believe in Christ, God has raised us to a new life.  We have a new heart.  We are a new man, or woman.

"Ok," you say, "that sounds simple enough, but how come I still struggle with sin?  How come I still get tempted to do wrong things?  How come I sometimes fail God terribly?  And I do this even though I have trusted in Jesus Christ as Lord."

The answer is, you still have an earthly nature.  This side of heaven, you will always have an earthly nature.  The old man with his old ways, will always be lurking in the background of your life.  The old man will always be whispering, "Let me get back on the throne, I want to rule you, let your desires guide you rather than Jesus."

Now with that in mind, let's hear what God is telling us through his apostle.  The first thing God calls us to do is to put to death the earthly nature.

Have a look at verse 5: "Put to death whatever belongs to your earthly nature: sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desires and greed."  I don't have to tell you what those things are; you've no doubt faced temptations in one or more of those areas.  The desire to follow those temptations comes from your old self.

God says, put those things to death.  This is war.  There is a battle going on in your and my life that we must acknowledge.  It is the battle against sin.  We need to realise that.  Whatever is not of Christ in your and my life must die.  The reason we're serious about going to war on these things is because, as chapter 3 verse 1, says, "God has raised us with Jesus, and even now we have a place with Christ in heaven."

In verse 6 God says his wrath is coming on people who live like this.  You used to live this way, but now toss out the old ways, kill off the earthly nature.  Get rid of anger that spins into uncontrollable rage.  Get rid of a malicious and spiteful tongue that delights in slandering others.  Get rid of filthy language that so easily flows from your lips.  How easy it is for us to fall back into old ways.  We get hot and angry and let the choice words fly.  We put others down who don't agree with the way we see things.  We do that so easily.  That's the old man.  God says, "Put that to death!"

The other thing that must never be on our lips is a lie.  Kids, have you ever done something bad at home?  Something breaks, or one of your brothers or sisters is crying because of what you did or said.  As you're standing there, mum or dad comes in and says, "What happened, did you do anything wrong?"  And you say, "No, I didn't do anything.  They did it.  It wasn't me."

When you lie to make sure you don't get into trouble, God says that that is a sin.  If you love Jesus, you must never lie, but always tell the truth.  Even if sometimes it might mean you get into trouble.  God wants you to tell the truth.

So, we are to put to death the earthly nature.  But also we are to put on the new self (see verse 10).

How does Christ want us to live as a new man or woman?  Just like we put clothing on in the morning, God wants us to put on these qualities in our hearts:

 - Compassion, giving sincere love and empathy to those in need, just as he had compassion on us.

 - Kindness, being willing to speak kindly of someone we don't agree with, to speak kindly rather than harshly.

 - Humility, being willing to let go of your pride, your stubbornness, your inflexible attitudes, being the first to say: I'm sorry, please forgive me.

 - Gentleness, to put off your harsh abrupt words, to rid yourself of tempers, and put on gentleness, changing dagger words into words of encouragement and love.

You cannot have these qualities without patience.  You can't pray, "Lord I want patience and I want it now."  You need to work at it.  You need to put it on every day again.  And you need to forgive.  You may have many past grievances with people.  God says, put on the new self, forgive it all, forgive them.  Will you do it?  Will you put on the new self, or will you cling to the old self?  God says, "Forgive as I have forgiven you."

Only one thing can hold all these things together in perfect unity: "Love." This is the highest calling you have.  It's the highest calling I have.  And you can only express love as you understand how much love God has for you.  The Bible says, "How great is the love that the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God" (1John 3:1).  And that is what we are.  When you know that, then you can learn to love as God has loved you.

The question still remains: How can I live in the new self?  How can I live my life as a resurrected man or woman or child?  How can I rid my life of the old man, of the earthly nature?  How on earth do I do that?  The answer is right there in verses 1 and 2 of chapter 3.  You do it by setting your heart on Christ.  You do it by setting your mind on him.  See verses 1b and 2: "Set your hearts on things above, where Christ is seated at the right hand of God.  Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things.”

The difference between a life controlled by the earthly nature and a life controlled by Christ is simple.  When our earthly nature rules us, it is our earthly desires that drive us.  Desires are the driving force.

When Christ rules us, we have our mind and heart set on him.  His Word instructs our minds.  His truth guides our lives.  And his Spirit will enable us to live for him, as we ask for his strength.

We will live as a new man and a new woman when our minds and hearts are set on Christ.  Is yours?  People who call themselves "Christians" can be just as imprisoned to the old man as those who don't confess Christ.  The only way to continue to rid ourselves of that old man is to set our hearts and minds on Christ and his Word.  Then we can be clothed with the fruit of His Spirit and life.

Remember, that the battle between the old man and the new man will continue.  But remember, too, that Christ has won the victory, he is risen, our home in heaven is secure by faith in Christ.

Let us now love him with all our heart, and mind – now and always.

Amen.