Paul continues to voice his concern for the Colossian Christians as he does not want them to be led astray by persuasive arguments of those in opposition to Christ. He wants them to know he is with them in spirit and desires they resist and stand firm in their faith. Colossians 2:4-8 “I am telling you this so no one will deceive you with well-crafted arguments. ⁵ For though I am far away from you, my heart is with you. And I rejoice that you are living as you should and that your faith in Christ is strong. ⁶ And now, just as you accepted Christ Jesus as your Lord, you must continue to follow him. ⁷ Let your roots grow down into him, and let your lives be built on him. Then your faith will grow strong in the truth you were taught, and you will overflow with thankfulness.⁸ Don’t let anyone capture you with empty philosophies and high-sounding nonsense that come from human thinking and from the spiritual powers of this world, rather than from Christ.”

I love Paul’s straight forward way of talking about our need to be aware and on guard towards those that would seek to lead us astray into thoughts that are empty and meaningless. He zeros in on what we have in Christ in verse 7. Let your faith grow roots and have them firmly planted in Christ. Build your faith on Him, then it will be on a firm, resolute and unshakable foundation. This foundation is explained in Ephesians 2:19-22 “So now you Gentiles are no longer strangers and foreigners. You are citizens along with all of God’s holy people. You are members of God’s family. ²⁰ Together, we are his house, built on the foundation of the apostles and the prophets. And the cornerstone is Christ Jesus himself. ²¹ We are carefully joined together in him, becoming a holy temple for the Lord. ²² Through him you Gentiles are also being made part of this dwelling where God lives by his Spirit.” 1 Corinthians 3:11 puts it very plainly, “For no one can lay any foundation other than the one we already have—Jesus Christ.”

Paul says the result of building our life on Christ and His truth is that our lives will then overflow with thankfulness. When we grasp the inheritance, love, forgiveness, and freedom that we have in Christ we will be eternally grateful. Paul wrote to young Timothy that coming to faith in Christ did exactly that for him. 1 Timothy 1:12-14 “I thank him who has given me strength, Christ Jesus our Lord, because he judged me faithful, appointing me to his service, ¹³ though formerly I was a blasphemer, persecutor, and insolent opponent. But I received mercy because I had acted ignorantly in unbelief, ¹⁴ and the grace of our Lord overflowed for me with the faith and love that are in Christ Jesus.“

Are you overflowing with grace and love because of your faith in Christ? Are you rooted and grounded in your faith? This is not something you get quickly but it grows over time as you allow the Holy Spirit to work in your life. The sanctification process of becoming more and more like Jesus begins at the moment of belief and continues growing throughout our life. It is truly a life changing process made possible only in Christ. Christ Alone is the reason for our change. Because Christ died on the cross and rose from the dead, I can be rooted and grounded in Christ producing a life that is abundant and filled to overflowing with thanksgiving, hope and love. Choose Christ so you can stand steadfast and resolute as things change all around you and be overflowing with thankfulness.

Linda

Today’s blog is a milestone for me. By God’s grace I have written and posted 1,000 blog entries. It has been a growing process that has increased my faith and clarified my thinking about Christ. I can agree with Paul that standing on a firm foundation which is set in Christ Jesus fills my heart with overflowing gratitude and joy. Thank you Jesus for your love and sacrifice on my behalf!