Word@Work Col30 - Colossians 3:7-8
Published: Mon, 07/04/11
Word@Work from BeaconLight
CHANGING THE HABITS OF A LIFETIME
Colossians 3:7-8 You used to walk in these ways, in the life you once lived. But now you must rid yourselves of all such things as these: anger, rage, malice, slander and filthy language from your lips. (NIV)
The Christian life is sometimes described as a walk. Each believer in Christ travels through life with Him, learning to turn away from sin and embrace holiness. We all have a track record of wrong behaviour, with bad habits of thinking, speaking and acting. But when we start to walk with Christ we realise those things must change. When we see how much He hates our old self-serving attitude, the sin for which He died, we start to want to please Him.
Some think that whatever we think, say or do is acceptable to God, because He loves us. That is not true: although He loves us, He does not expect us to go back to the old ways which took Him to the cross. That would abuse His loving grace. One of the first evidences of real faith is in the way we react to difficulty. Anger and rage show our rebellious nature, frustrated that we cannot get our own way; they are signs that we do not believe that He holds the key to every locked door. Malice wants bad things to happen to others, and slander is one of our ways to achieve our goal. Filthy language shows that we cannot control ourselves.
Changing these reactions is not automatic. Habits are hard to break. They are formed over time and become part of the comfortable furniture of our lives, especially those habits we rely on to feel safe. However, they have to go. The Holy Spirit first convicts us of sin, and then helps us to change our attitude. But it is our responsibility to stop the bad habits. First, we must place our confidence in the Lord to protect us and provide for us (Psalm 37:4). Then we can commit ourselves to walk with Him (Psalm 37:5-9). The Lord motivates us ... we decide to change ... He helps us ... and we take action. The verse says, "Rid yourselves ...". A practical way to start is to repent every time you fall back into the old reactions; be honestly accountable to a good Christian friend; delight yourself in the Lord and be still before Him. Then trust in Him and replace those old reactions with love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control - the evidence of the Holy Spirit's work in your life (Galatians 5:22-23).
Prayer: Righteous God. Thank You for walking with me. But I am sorry that I often react to problems and difficulties in an ungodly way, not trusting that You are in command of everything. Help me to trust in Your ability to keep me safe and provide for me, despite people and circumstances which oppose me. Please fill me again with Your Holy Spirit so that I may be confident in Your love and bold to break bad habitual reactions. And please minister Your healing to those who have been injured by my wrong reactions in the past, so that they too may enjoy Your love. In Jesus' Name. Amen.
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You can read the verses around this Bible passage from the Internet Bible: - in English, and many other languages
The Christian life is sometimes described as a walk. Each believer in Christ travels through life with Him, learning to turn away from sin and embrace holiness. We all have a track record of wrong behaviour, with bad habits of thinking, speaking and acting. But when we start to walk with Christ we realise those things must change. When we see how much He hates our old self-serving attitude, the sin for which He died, we start to want to please Him.
Some think that whatever we think, say or do is acceptable to God, because He loves us. That is not true: although He loves us, He does not expect us to go back to the old ways which took Him to the cross. That would abuse His loving grace. One of the first evidences of real faith is in the way we react to difficulty. Anger and rage show our rebellious nature, frustrated that we cannot get our own way; they are signs that we do not believe that He holds the key to every locked door. Malice wants bad things to happen to others, and slander is one of our ways to achieve our goal. Filthy language shows that we cannot control ourselves.
Changing these reactions is not automatic. Habits are hard to break. They are formed over time and become part of the comfortable furniture of our lives, especially those habits we rely on to feel safe. However, they have to go. The Holy Spirit first convicts us of sin, and then helps us to change our attitude. But it is our responsibility to stop the bad habits. First, we must place our confidence in the Lord to protect us and provide for us (Psalm 37:4). Then we can commit ourselves to walk with Him (Psalm 37:5-9). The Lord motivates us ... we decide to change ... He helps us ... and we take action. The verse says, "Rid yourselves ...". A practical way to start is to repent every time you fall back into the old reactions; be honestly accountable to a good Christian friend; delight yourself in the Lord and be still before Him. Then trust in Him and replace those old reactions with love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control - the evidence of the Holy Spirit's work in your life (Galatians 5:22-23).
Prayer: Righteous God. Thank You for walking with me. But I am sorry that I often react to problems and difficulties in an ungodly way, not trusting that You are in command of everything. Help me to trust in Your ability to keep me safe and provide for me, despite people and circumstances which oppose me. Please fill me again with Your Holy Spirit so that I may be confident in Your love and bold to break bad habitual reactions. And please minister Your healing to those who have been injured by my wrong reactions in the past, so that they too may enjoy Your love. In Jesus' Name. Amen.
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