Canceled

“When [we] were dead in [our] sins and in the uncircumcision of [our] sinful nature, God made [us] alive with Christ. He forgave us all our sins, having canceled the written code, with its regulations, that was against us and that stood opposed to us; he took it away, nailing it to the cross.” (Colossians 2:13–14, NIV 1984).

My Musings –As God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. Bear with each other and forgive whatever grievances you may have against one another. Forgive as the Lord forgave you. And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity. (Colossians 3:12–14, NIV 1984). If this does not sound like us, we should question our maturity in Christ.

Rather, we should “put to death, therefore, whatever belongs to [our] earthly nature: sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desires and greed, which is idolatry. Because of these, the wrath of God is coming. [We] used to walk in these ways, in the life [we] once lived. But now [we] must rid [ourselves] of all such things as these: anger, rage, malice, slander, and filthy language from [our] lips. [We should] not lie to each other, since [we] have taken off [our] old self with its practices and have put on the new self, which [should be] being renewed in knowledge in the image of its Creator.” (Colossians 3:5–10, NIV 1984). If these things habitually sound like us, we should question whether we ever were made “alive with Christ” in the first place.

My Advice – We must keep working to clothe ourselves as “God’s chosen people” should be clothed. If we find that we unable to “put to death” our earthly nature we must allow Christ to take it away by “nailing it to the cross.” “Sin is [always] crouching at [our] door; it desires to have [us], but [we] must master it.” (Genesis 4:7, NIV 1984). If we have truly been made “alive with Christ,” it can be mastered.