Who are You Living For (Colossians 3:1-4)

In this lesson we are going to look at 4 verses that will show a saved person who they should be living their life for. It is easy to see why a lost person would live his life for himself or maybe his family, it is because he is lost and that is all that he has to live for. The sad thing is that many saved people who actually have a savior to live for, still live their lives for themselves.

Now I realize that it is hard to let go of worldly things and give Jesus Christ the preeminence in our lives that he deserves, but in this passage we will see the reasons why we can. Then it will be up to us to do those things.

Our Spiritual Position : (Verses 1 & 3)

In verse 1 it says if we then be risen with Christ then seek those things which are above. What exactly does it mean when it say if we then be risen with Christ? It is talking about our spiritual position.

As a result of being saved we are now spiritually alive (Ephesians 2:1). Also as a result of salvation we are baptized by the Holy Ghost into the Body of Christ (1 Corinthians 12:12-13).

If we are spiritually in the body of Christ that means we are in heavenly places right now. This is what Ephesians 2:6 and Ephesians 1:3 are talking about.

What about the flesh?

As a result of Salvation our flesh is considered by God to be dead (Romans 6:1-13). This is a great passage on what to do with the flesh after salvation. Our flesh after salvation is still the same as it was before salvation. It is corrupt and sinful. It still desires to sin and to do the things it did before salvation. So how can we overcome the flesh? The answer is in the passage.

1)  Know the old man is dead (verse 6)

• When you about your flesh we don’t think about it as being dead. But we have to realize that it is dead.

2)  Reckon the old man to be dead (verse 11)

• To reckon means to count the old man as dead.
• Have you ever been to a graveyard and see the dead people up walking around doing stuff, of course not they are dead.

3)  Do not yield to the flesh (verse 13)

• When the old man (the flesh) raises its ugly head and desires to sin you have to tell it that it is dead and that dead men do nothing.
• This is how you can get victory over the flesh, but this will have to be aided by much prayer and study of God’s word.

Our Spiritual Purpose : (Verses 1-2)

In verses 1 & 2 we see that our purpose is to seek those things that are above and this is accomplished by setting our affections on the things above. According to our position this should be easy if we are above then it should be easy to set our affection on the things above. The problem is that we only think in terms of the flesh and there for our affection are on the things of the earth.

A good way to define affections is by saying affections are things that affect us. If we love hunting or fishing then those things are going to affect us. They will affect our thinking our actions and the way we live. For some it could even affect the job they take and where they live. For instances, living near water because of the desire to fish. Is fishing or hunting wrong? No but when we put them ahead of the Lord Jesus Christ and serving him they are idols.

To fulfill our purpose we have to crucify the affection and lust of the flesh (Galatians 5:24). Does this mean as a saved person that you can’t hunt or fish? No God may allow you to do a lot of things your flesh enjoys as long as it is not sinful or does not come between you and him or your service for him. The goal is to be able to set aside whatever you have to if that is what is needed for you to serve God.

I know that it is hard to give up worldly things sometimes but if we think of what the word of God says about the world it makes it a little easier.

1 Corinthians 7:31 “And they that use this world, as not abusing it: for the fashion of this world                                              passeth away.”

1 John 2:17 “And the world passeth away, and the lust thereof: but he that doeth the will of God                                  abideth for ever.”

In both of these passages it says that the world or the things of the world are going to pass away. If we would realize that all the worldly things we accomplish are just going to burn up one day and not matter at all in eternity it would be a lot easier to not be so affected by worldly things. It does not matter how many games or trophies you win. It doesn’t matter how successful you were or what kind of house you lived in. What will matter at the Judgment seat of Christ is what you did for God. All the rest just burns up.

Our Spiritual Passion : (Verse 4)

This is a great verse because it says that Christ is our life. Jesus Christ ought to be the very center of our life and the most important thing in our life. Everything thing should revolve around him instead of our wants and wishes. Let him make all your decisions for you. It will turn out better in the end you can count on it.

How do we get to this point where we live for Jesus above all else? Seek those things that are above and set your affections on things above and not on the things of the earth!

Who are You Living For : (Colossians 3:1-4)

Handout

1)  What is our spiritual condition as a result of Salvation? Give references.

2)  What does this mean in regards to our flesh? Give references.

3)  What should be our spiritual purpose according to this passage?

4)  How do we accomplish this purpose?

5)  What is a good way to define affections and what should we do with the affections of the flesh according to Galatians 5:24?

6)  What are some good verses for showing us why our affections should not be on the earth?

7)  What do we see from verse 4 in our passage tells us why we should live for the Lord Jesus Christ and put him first in all we do?