Studying the Word
Khen Lim
Image source: messianicpublications.com
Through the first seventeen
verses of Paul’s letter to the Colossians, we may identify many key questions
in which the answers can prove enriching.
Here are some of them:
Paul means to say that we should
be more constantly thoughtful of our eternal life with God. The things of this
world are but temporary. On the other hand, all things eternal promised by God
are forever lasting. We should therefore be mindful that we live godly lives
and do good on earth while we keep His promise of eternity within our sights.
Failure to control and direct our thoughts will result when we are consumed by
worldly distractions, meaning we lose focus on why God has us here in this
world.
Why do people – particularly males – find it a struggle to contain
sexual lust? While it’s undeniable that we are, by nature, sexual, is it
possible to prevent us from becoming sexual miscreants leading to sin? (v.5)
Sexual lust may vary from one
person to another for different reasons but all the same, it is God who gave us
sexual drive and by design, it is fairly strong especially in men who, for most
parts, are visually oriented enough to have the potential to act on what they
‘see’ even if it is outside of marriage. For women who don’t feel loved or
cared for, they too can act out ‘perceived’ love in sexual misconduct just to
satisfy a whim or a curiosity. This is how sexual additions can emerge.
Part of
what contributes to a sexual problem is because many of us underestimates its
latency. It can be a confusion between love and sex or making unhealthy
misinformed decisions about pornography or even watching ‘harmless’ movies with
gratuitous sex scenes. One thing leads to another and with society bombarding
us with amorality and mind-numbing sex everywhere, it is often difficult to
turn away.
Finding a way to Christ opens up a
compelling option for us to walk away from sexual addiction because in Him is
the kind of love we have always longed for but cannot find in our world. While
others may leave us in times of trouble, He doesn’t. When we struggle to cope,
His hand lifts us up and fuels us with courage to keep going no matter how
tough.
In Him we find a purpose in ourselves and that we are worth more than
what the world tells us. With Him, even the toughest and longest journeys are
no longer impossible and once we learn more about Him from our life-long
companion, the Bible, we learn ways to overcome, to block and to divest
ourselves of. Even when temptations loom and lure, we learn to sink to our
knees and pray, knowing that God is faithful. When we choose to believe in Him,
to follow and live His life, we can then finally move away from sexual
miscreances.
Why are we so vulnerable to committing tongue-lashing sins? In what ways
do our profanities damage us as well as others? Can we break away from the sins
of our tongue and if so, how? (v.8)
As they say, ‘slip of the tongue’
betrays the true self of our heart. When we profane, we reveal the genuine
condition of how we feel. We have two
choices – either we go on as usual or we act on it by praying and seeking the
courage to change. Many of us fall prey to justifying our foul language and
therefore find it more convenient not to change and stay in sin.
When we see nothing wrong with
what we say, we give sin the ideal excuses not to be expunged. This alone
damages our individual selves as well as others because we give courage to
ourselves to remain deceived through our own misinformed actions. Damage comes
when we inflict hurt upon others unknowingly by using language to break trust,
slander or behave libellously. We can badmouth others to ruin reputations,
spread harmful and destructive rumours and care little about the ill-effects.
Prayer remains our best answer to
thwarting our poisonous mouth. By praying, we can ask God to reveal the state
of our heart to us so we may be able to understand our own destructiveness and
seek healing and correction. In all of this, we need to seek God’s wisdom to
learn to live more like Him and less like ourselves and then set ourselves up
to do good and reject bad whether it is foul thoughts or gossips.
Why do Christ consider Christian virtues so important? Why are they
important to the church as well? Or even to non-Christians? Why are they the
same to our own homes? (vv.12-14)
To Christ, Christian virtues not
only mirror who He is to the world but they also exemplify what best represents
Him. Therefore when people experience these virtues that emanate from within
us, they discover Christ and are drawn to Him.
To the church, these virtues are
like glue. They hold up the church cohesively as a functioning Body of Christ
in which we extend our love to one another. Although these same virtues may not
initially be understood by non-Christians, by us living them out, they see and
feel our love and acceptance and through them, our kindness will be evident
enough for them to discern the difference between the way we live our lives and
the values we live them by compared to what they are used to.
In our own
households, Christian virtues from one family generation can inspire others to
follow by example through forgiveness, patience and perseverance and kindness
to one another. In this way, Christ can be perpetuated throughout the entire
genealogy of any given family that is centred in Him.
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