Harsh Reality

And now, just as you accepted Christ Jesus as your Lord, you must continue to follow him. 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. [Colossians 2.6-7]

Oh man, the book of Colossians is screaming at me today! There is so much about being "in Christ" in this letter from Paul.

The verse about tells some important information - something we may 'reverse engineer' (if you will) to test ourselves by.

Whenever the word "then" is used, most of the time there is a condition that is described - much of the time done so by the word "if," but in this case it is qualified by the word "as." So, "just as you accepted Christ" can be the condition and "then your faith will grow strong..." is the result of that condition.

Okay, then, here is the harsh reality (Church, we need to wake up to this reality!): "if" our faith is not strong (with accompanying overflow of thankfulness), "then" we should question whether or not there has been genuine acceptance and ongoing pursuit of Christ Jesus as Lord.

Paul is clearly saying that any and every person who genuinely accepts Jesus as Lord and follows Him with intensity, will have strong faith and thankfulness.

I am not making this stuff up - it is what the Word of God reveals if we will just stop reading it with religious (self-pandering) eyes and start getting real with what it says!

Paul's entire letter to the Colossians is about being in Christ and it is powerful. However, it also provides a standard by which we can compare ourselves to determine if we are genuinely what we think we are!

Father, help me to quit 'making allowances' for myself that Your Word simply does not make. Help me to get real with my walk with and devotion to You in Christ.