Brethren, let's turn in our Bibles
to Colossians chapter 3. Paul says in verse 1, If ye then
be risen with Christ, seek those things which are above, where
Christ sitteth on the right hand of God. Set your affection on
things above, not on things on the earth. Let's go to our Lord
before we begin. Our gracious Heavenly Father,
holy, sovereign, ever-present with your people,
we come to you in Christ Jesus our righteousness, our holiness,
We ask You, Lord, that You bless Your Word now and make us hear
and turn our affection to Christ above. Forgive us our sins, Lord. Make us look only always to Christ. In His name we ask it. Amen. The Apostle Paul had never met
the Colossians face-to-face. He never met the Laodiceans face-to-face. But he had a fear for them, which is the fear that all God-sent
messengers have for those to whom they are sent to minister.
It's the fear I have for you. It was the fear that the devil
and his false teachers would beguile them. would beguile them,
deceive them. Let's go back up to Colossians
2. I'm going to just give sort of an exposition here back down
to chapter 3, not every verse, but I want you to see the context
here. Colossians 2.1, Paul said, I
would that you knew what great conflict I have for you and for
them at Laodicea, and for as many as have not seen my face
in the flesh, that their hearts might be comforted." That's what
he wanted, that their hearts might be comforted. Being knit
together in love and unto all riches of the full assurance
of understanding through the acknowledgement of the mystery
of God and of the Father and of Christ. in whom are hid all
the treasures of wisdom and knowledge." If you want wisdom and knowledge,
go to Christ. That's in whom are hid all the
treasures of wisdom and knowledge. And this I say, lest any man
should beguile you with enticing words. Now, the beguiling, deceiving,
enticing words are words that turn us from Christ to things
below, from Christ above to things below, to you. God in His Scripture
never, ever tells a believer to look within himself, never. But he repeatedly teaches us
to look out of ourselves to Christ alone. The deceiving message
tells you to turn from Christ above to things below. Puts something
between the believer and Christ. Something between the believer
and Christ. Something required of your hand
to make you accepted of God. Paul knew they had received the
Lord Jesus by God-given faith. That's the only way you'll receive
Christ. He gives you a new heart and He gives you faith. And you
receive in the sense that Christ is given to you. Christ is formed
in your heart. And He knew that it happened
by faith. And so He writes in verse 6, As you have therefore
received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk ye in Him. You receive Christ by grace,
you receive Christ by faith, so walk by the grace of God,
by faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. Look what he says there, rooted
and built up in Him, and established in the faith, established in
Christ, as you've been taught, abounding therein with thanksgiving. Now the devil and his false teachers
deceive by telling you Christ is not all. Christ is not all. They tell you walking by faith
in Christ is not enough. But listen to what the Spirit
of God moved Paul to write right here. He said in verse 8, Beware
lest any spoil you, lest any man lead you away from Christ
and rob you of Christ. That's what he means. by spoiling
you, through philosophy and vain deceit, after the tradition of
men, after the rudiments of the world, and not after Christ.
Philosophy is natural reason that turns you to natural things.
Vain deceit is anything that exalts the sinner. That's vain
deceit. The tradition of men are things
that men add as a must to salvation. after the rudiments of the world.
The old covenant law are called the rudiments of the world, the
first principles, the ABCs. The ABCs. Deceivers turn you
again to the law. They turn you again to your law
obedience. And we're going to see what that
means, the rudiments of the world. We'll see that in a moment. But
for now, it's turning you back to the first principles of the
law. The best way to recognize these
things, the best way for you and me to recognize if the message
we're hearing is true or if it's false is this. He said that at
the end of verse 8, these teachings are not after Christ. If the message you're hearing
is not declaring Christ is all, that Christ is all and the believer
is complete in Christ, and not declaring His glory as the head
of the church working all in the midst of His people. If it's
turning you from Christ to you, it is not after Christ. It is not after Christ, and that
is a lie. Now, God's true preacher is going
to turn you from you and turn you from the things below to
Christ, because that's what the Spirit of God does in our hearts. That's what He does through the
Word as He's turning us from us to Christ above. who is our
salvation. He's teaching us to walk by faith
in Christ. Not by carnal sight. Not by what
you see. Not by what you feel. Christ
alone. Christ alone. Verse 9. He says,
For in Christ dwelleth all the fullness of the Godhead bodily,
and you are complete in Him, which is the head of all principality
and power. When He tells us here that the
Lord Jesus, the man Christ Jesus, is the fullness of the triune
God, God the Father, God the Son, God the Holy Spirit, dwelt
in His body and dwells in His body now at God's right hand.
He's the fullness of the Godhead bodily and He is the head of
all principality and power. That means the man Christ Jesus
has all power in heaven, earth, and hell, working His will, working
in His church, working in His people, and is able to bring
His purpose to pass. All powers His. And believer,
for you that God has sanctified and given faith in Christ, this
is the good news. This is what the Spirit of God
keeps teaching us. You are complete in Christ. Complete means there is nothing
left to add. You are complete in Christ. When
it says there, in Him dwelleth all the fullness, that is the
same word as complete. And it's saying to you, as fully
as all fullness of the Godhead dwells in Christ, that's how
fully complete you are in Christ. As perfectly as the triune God
dwells in Christ's body, so that He is completely God and completely
man, so you are complete in Christ. That's how fully complete you
are in Christ. That is the good news of God.
Nothing to add. You're complete in Christ. Now on the cross, this is how
this came to be. When our Lord Jesus came down
on the cross, verse 11, in Christ also you're circumcised with
a circumcision made without hands and putting off the body of the
sins of the flesh by the circumcision of Christ. He uses circumcision
here to declare what Christ did on the cross because that was
the first thing that lawbongers required. to be circumcised and
be brought under the old covenant law. And so he says that earthly
circumcision that God gave was a sign and a token of what God
in Christ had done for Abraham. And he's talking here first about
the cross. On the cross, the Lord Jesus
Christ circumcised his people with a circumcision made without
our hands or with anybody else's hands. Our Lord Jesus Christ
on the cross took all the sin of his people and the body of
our sins, our filthy, corrupt sins, the body of our sin was
put off, was circumcised, was cut away by Christ on the cross. That's what he accomplished on
the cross. Verse 12 says, buried with him in baptism. We're still
talking about the cross here. Baptism means immersion. And
on the cross we were immersed in the justice of God and the
judgment of God when Christ was immersed in that judgment. That's
the baptism. Christ said, I have a baptism
to be baptized with and how am I straight until it be accomplished?
On Calvary we were immersed in the justice of God and then we
were buried with Him. Buried with Him in baptism. Wherein
also you're risen with Him through the faith of the operation of
God who raised Him from the dead. When He arose, all His people
arose in Him. Our body of sin died and was
buried and our new man arose in Christ. And then He sent the
Gospel of Christ to us, and He circumcised us in the heart. Verse 13, and you, being dead
in your sins and the uncircumcision of your flesh, hath He quickened
together with Him, having forgiven you all trespasses. He came and
quickened us and regenerated us and gave us faith in Christ
and made us to know, the Spirit bearing witness with our new
spirit, that we're forgiven all our trespasses. He imputed the
righteousness of Christ to us, made us know we're justified
from all our sins by Christ's finished work, that we are forgiven
of all our trespasses. And what else did he do? He took
the law, he redeemed us from the law. He says, verse 14, he
blotted out the handwriting of ordinances that was against us,
which was contrary to us, and took the law out of the way,
nailing it to his cross. Let me give you this from Romans
chapter 7. Paul said, you know, brethren,
that the law has dominion over a man as long as he lives. But
if he's dead, the law has nothing else to say to it. Well, Paul's
declaring in Colossians, we died when Christ died. And here's
the result. He said, wherefore, my brethren,
you also become dead to the law by the body of Christ, that you
should be married to another, even a Christ who's raised from
the dead, that we should bring forth fruit unto God. For when
you were in your flesh, The motions of sins which were by the law
did work in our members to bring forth fruit unto death. But now
we're delivered from the law, that being dead wherein we were
held. We're dead to a law, and a law's
dead to us. That being dead wherein we were
held, that we should serve in newness of spirit, not in the
oldness of the letter, not in the oldness of that legal covenant,
but now we're serving God in newness of spirit. and newness
of spirit. And so by Christ doing this,
back in Colossians 2, our Lord Jesus conquered the devil and
He conquered all our enemies by His work on the cross and
His work in our heart. Verse 15, and having spoiled
principalities and powers, He made a show of them openly, triumphing
over them in it. Now He said all that to say this,
let no man therefore judge you. Your judgment was settled at
Calvary. Let no man judge you for what you eat or drink or
because you do not go back and observe those old covenant days
and months and ceremonies. Verse 16, let no man therefore
judge you in meat or in drink or in respect of a holy day or
of the new moon or of the Sabbath days, which are a shadow of things
to come, but the body is of Christ. That's how they were the rudiments
of the world. That's how they were the first
principles. Those things were just shadows. They were figures
and types. But Christ is the one they all
pictured. He's the body. He's the body. For instance, the dietary laws.
God gave the dietary laws. And by those dietary laws, he
kept the Jews separated from the Gentiles. And the purpose
of it was to teach his people that it's God who separates his
people and sanctifies his people and makes his people pure. That's
what Peter was taught. The Lord was going to send Peter
to the Gentile Cornelius and he let down that sheep. had all
these unclean beasts in it forbidden by the law. And he said, Peter,
arise, kill and eat. Peter said, not so, Lord, I've
never eaten anything unclean. And the Lord spoke to Peter and
he said, what God hath cleansed, that's sanctification, what God
hath cleansed, that call not thou common. That was the picture
in the dietary laws But Christ is the one who does the sanctifying
and makes us pure. And then he sent him to Cornelius
and he preached the gospel to him and God saved that Gentile. God said, before the Sabbath
day, I'll provide you with everything you need to eat and rest. And
so when the Sabbath day comes, you just rest on that day, let
your beasts rest, let your servants rest, everybody gets to rest
on that day. And all those Sabbath days are
a picture of the Lord Jesus Christ who is the Sabbath rest of His
people in whom we rest from all our works because all has been
provided by God in Christ. Now, if any man puts anything
between the believer and Christ, or requires anything in addition
to Christ, that's a deceiver, brethren. Look here now in verse
18. Let no man beguile you, deceive
you of your reward. What's your reward? Christ Jesus
is our reward. He's called our inheritance,
our portion, our reward. Let no man rob you of Christ
your reward, your inheritance, your all. And how will they do
it? In a voluntary humility. That means they exalt man's will,
claiming it to be free, and claiming that it's by your will that you
accept or reject Christ, it's by your will that you make his
work effectual, and it's by your will that you mortify your flesh,
it's by your will, it's your will, your will, your will. That's
the devil's sin. I will, I will, I will. The pride
of Lucifer. and also worshiping of angels,
intruding into those things which he hath not seen. In those days,
deceivers taught believers that they couldn't just come to Christ,
they had to come to angels. They put angels between them
and Christ. That's why the Hebrew writers
spent so much time at the beginning of the Hebrew letter exalting
Christ above the angels. And in our day, men put the Pope,
they put preachers, they put a thousand different things in
between the believer and Christ, saying these things are necessary.
Let no man put anything between you and the Savior. Here's the problem when that
is the case, vainly puffed up by his fleshly mind. and not
holding the head from which all the body by joints and bands
have nourishment ministered and are knit together and increased
with the increase of God. Any man who does not declare
Christ is all, He's all the wisdom, righteousness, sanctification,
and redemption of His people. Paul said down there in Colossians
3, he said that in Christ there's neither Greek nor Jew, circumcision
nor uncircumcision, barbarian, Scythian, bond nor free, but
Christ is all and in all. If you're ever going to learn
the gospel, this is what we're going to have to learn. Christ
is all. In Christ there is no distinction
based on these things that we once put so much weight upon. There's no Jew and Greek. The
races of people don't make a difference. It's not circumcision or uncircumcision. It's not whether you've kept
the law or not kept the law in your flesh that makes the difference.
It is not barbarian or Scythian. Those were educated and uneducated,
civilized and heathen, uncultured. That doesn't make a difference.
It's not whether you're born bond or free. Christ is all. Christ is all. Christ is all. And the man that doesn't declare
Christ is all and that the believers complete in Christ exalts the
sinner, exalts the sinner's will and the sinner's work, and it's
because they are vainly puffed up by their fleshly mind. Vainly
puffed up, proud, and not beholding Christ the head. That's God's
word on it, brethren. That's God's word on it right
there. God the Father made Christ the head over all things to the
church. And he says clearly right here,
it's Christ who calls his people through the gospel and he knits
us together with bands, he knits us together by the same Holy
Spirit by which we're born, giving us one faith, one hope, one Lord,
one salvation. He makes us one in Christ Jesus. Christ does that. He does it
through the preaching of the Word from His throne in glory.
That's His glory to do it. And then through the same gospel,
Christ our Head ministers all nourishment to His people. We
saw Thursday night, Christ is the bread and His people will
never be found begging bread. He is the bread and He is ministering
to His people through the preaching of the gospel and He is giving
us nourishment. Through the Spirit, He's building
you up in Christ. He's rooting you in Christ. He's
making us to know more and more Christ is all. That's what He's
doing. And it's Christ our Head that's
making each believer increase with the increase of God. He's God, and He's making us
increase with the increase of God. Read it again there again.
They're not holding the head, verse 19, they're not holding
Christ the head, from which all the body, by joints and bands,
having nourishment ministered, and knit together, increaseth
with the increase of God. Wherefore, now if this is your
case, and you've been circumcised for that circumcision made without
hands, and you've been given faith to trust Christ, and you've
been redeemed from the law, this is what he says in Colossians
2.20. Wherefore, if you be dead with Christ from the rudiments
of the world, if you're dead with Christ from the law, why,
as though living in the world, Are you subject to ordinances,
touch not, taste not, handle not, which all are to perish
with the using after the commandments and doctrines of men? The rudiments
of the world, they're the ABCs, they're the tutors and governors
that taught the Jews all through that Mosaic age until Christ
came. The Hebrew writer talked about
going from milk to meat. from milk to meat. And unreligious
men think that means you get beyond Christ and you grow in
the law and they take you to the law and you go further and
further into the law. The Hebrew writer said the rudiments
of the world are the shadows of that old covenant law. The
washings, the baptisms he's talking about are those washings in that
old covenant. The laying on of hands was when
they laid their hands on a lamb and the picture of the sins being
imputed to the lamb. That was the milk in that day. And the meat is Christ, and going
from milk to meat is learning more and more of Christ, more
and more of His person, more and more of how complete you
are in Him, what He's accomplished, what He's doing now, is to learn
more of Christ. In Him are hid all the treasures
of wisdom and knowledge. Let me show you that. Go into
Galatians chapter 4, just to your left a few pages, Galatians
4. This is what Paul declared to the Galatians. This was what
they were being beguiled to do. He says there in verse 1, and
the heir, as long as he's a child, differs nothing from a servant,
though he's Lord of all. He's under tutors and governors,
teachers, until the time of one another father. Even so we, and
he's speaking there about the Jews. Gentiles, you and me, were
never under that old covenant law. Period. He's talking here
about the Jews. He said, even so we, when we
were children, were in bondage under the elements of the world,
under those rudiments. But when the fullness of time
was come, God set forth his Son, made of a woman, made under the
law, to redeem them that were under the law, that we might
receive the adoption of sons. And because you're sons, God
sent forth the Spirit of His Son into your hearts, crying,
Abba, Father. Now you're no more a servant
but a son." Now look at verse 8. Howbeit then, when you knew
not God, you did service unto them which by nature know God.
You were serving those ceremonies and those old covenant laws. But now, after you've known God,
or rather are known of God, how turn you again to the weak and
beggarly elements, whereunto you desire again to be in bondage? You observe days and months and
times and years, I'm afraid of you lest I bestowed upon you
labor in vain. He said, you've been delivered
now and you could plead in Christ, why do you want to go back to
the rudiments, to the ABCs, back to the milk and be entangled
in that again? Go back with me to Colossians
2 and read this down to verse 22 without the parentheses. Wherefore,
if you be dead with Christ from the rudiments of the world, why,
as though living in the world, are you subject to ordinances
after the commandments and doctrines of men? See, it's men that are
teaching that. They're adding that. It's their
doctrine. If God's given you faith in Christ,
then you die to the law in Christ, and you're risen in Christ, and
you're living unto God now in newness of spirit, walking by
faith. Why then would you act as though
your life's in this world? Why would you act as though your
life's in this world by subjecting yourself to touch not, taste
not, and handle not to those kinds of ordinances, acting as
if that's your life and that's how you're going to be made righteous
and accepted. Look there, touch not, taste
not, handle not, are all to perish with the using. If our righteousness
is in what we do and don't do, what we eat and don't eat, if
it's in our observance of the law, then when you die, all your
so-called righteousness is going to die too. Why do those works appeal to
natural man? They appeal to natural man because
natural man teaches this is how you mortify your flesh. This
is how you mortify your flesh. But that's not what these things
do. These things actually feed your sinful flesh, your sinful
nature, and just puff up the sinful nature more in self-righteousness. Look here in verse 23. Which,
Colossians 2.23, which things have indeed a show, it's a vain
show, of wisdom in will worship. It's the worship of a man's will.
And false humility, not the true humility God makes, false humility,
neglecting of the body. That's why they call the circumcision,
they cut the flesh, cut out things. and think that is making them
righteous. But he says that's not in any
honor to God, and it satisfies the flesh. That's a little complicated
to understand the way it's worded, but it only satisfies the flesh. That's all it does. It makes
the flesh be inflamed. The flesh loves that kind of
stuff, because that's putting the work in your hand. And you
know that's what he's saying because read on now, he says,
if ye then be risen with Christ. He said, now if you're dead with
Christ, don't submit to those things. But if you're risen with
Christ, seek those things which are above. where Christ sits
on the right hand of God. Set your affection on things
above, not on things on the earth, for you are dead, and your life
is hid with Christ in God. And when Christ who is our life
shall appear, then shall you appear with Him in glory. Now,
that was my introduction. Here's my first point. Here's
my first point. Are you risen with Christ? Are
you risen with Christ? How do we know if we're risen
with Christ? There's only one way you know.
The answer is faith. Do you believe that Christ is
all and that you are complete in Christ? That's how you know. Do you believe
that you are complete in Christ? Faith believes that God our Father
in Christ Jesus the Lord has made us meet, fit right now to
be partakers in heaven with all those that are already there.
Look back at Colossians 1.12. We give thanks unto the Father
which hath passed in. He hath made us meet, fit to
be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in light. That's
another way of saying He's made us fit to enter into heaven with
the Holy God. who hath delivered us past tense,
he hath delivered us from the power of darkness, and hath translated
us into the kingdom of his dear Son, in whom we have redemption
through his blood, even the forgiveness of sins." If you've been made
meat, it's because you're justified by Christ's righteousness. It's
because you've been born of the Spirit, Christ has been formed
in you, so that that new man in you is a holy new man. And your old man of sin has died
and been crucified in Christ before the law of God. You see,
I said this the other day too, when a Hebrew writer talked about
the spirits of just men made perfect, that's not just the
saints that are already in glory. That's you who are born of the
Spirit of God. You have a new spirit that's holy. You've been
justified by Christ and His righteousness has been imputed to you through
faith. And in Christ you're complete, you're perfect. That describes
every believer in this earth and in heaven. Whosoever is born
of God does not commit sin. That's talking about the new
man. For Christ's seed remaineth in him, and he cannot sin because
he's born of God. There is a new man in us that
does not sin. Every believer has that holiness
without which no man will see the Lord. Now here's the truth
of the matter. That what's made us meet to inherit
heaven and to inherit Christ and to inherit that eternal inheritance
is Christ alone. Now, either we believe Christ
is all our fitness and that He's made us fit right now to enter
into glory. If we died right now, we're fit
to enter into His presence. Either we believe He's made us
meet or we do not believe it. We believe there's something
yet to be added by us. And if we believe there's something
yet to be added by us, we do not believe the gospel. We do not believe the gospel.
Either Christ is all, or He's nothing. Either Christ is all
to you, or He's nothing to you. But the child of God, if you
believe Christ is all your righteousness, you believe He is all your sanctification,
you believe you're complete in Him and He's your fitness for
heaven, then you're risen with Christ. Because the only way
you can believe that is by the Spirit of God revealing Christ
into you. And this is His command to us. Seek those things which
are above where Christ sits on the right hand of God. Set your
affection on things above, not on things on the earth. Why? Because, verse 3, you're dead
and your life is hid with Christ in God, and when Christ, who
is our life, shall appear, then shall you also appear with Him
in glory. That's what true God-given faith
believes. Christ is my life. And my life,
you know, I said to you Thursday, life is righteousness. Righteousness
is life. Romans 8 tells us that. If you
have life, Christ is in you. The Spirit's life because of
righteousness. The body's dead because of sin,
but your spirit's alive because of righteousness. And brethren,
it's because, here's what Paul said, I am crucified with Christ,
nevertheless I live, yet not I, but Christ liveth in me. And the life I now live, I live
by the faith of the Son of God who loved me and gave Himself
for me. I do not frustrate the grace of God, because if righteousness
come by the law, if I have to add one thing of my hand, then
I'm saying Christ died in vain. See, He is all to the believer. Now, I want you to see this last
thing, and this is the whole point Paul's been making. The
whole point. Paul said, by setting our affection
on things below, touch not, taste not, handle not, what men think
is really mortifying your flesh. He said that's inflaming our
flesh, but on a vain show, and it's not mortifying our flesh
whatsoever. And then he says, but when the
Spirit of God sets our affection on Christ, that's how your flesh
is mortified. Look here in verse five. Mortify
therefore, and the word could as easily been translated, mortify
thereby your members which are on the earth. You've been sitting
here hearing the gospel priest, and when you hear Christ exalted,
and the Spirit speaking into your heart, and you're looking
to Christ, and your affection is set on Christ above, you're
not regarding your flesh. You're not regarding yourself.
You're treating your flesh like it's dead. And that's what mortifying
the flesh is. Treat it like it's dead. Don't
look to it. as having done anything negative
to change your life with God, your righteousness with God,
and don't look at it as having done anything positive to add
to your righteousness with God. The flesh has been crucified
before God under the law, and He's dead and buried, and now
the only thing that exists in the eye of God is His people
in Christ Jesus, and your life is right there at God's right
hand. Now, all these things he says here, these sins he says
put off, if we're trying to mortify our flesh, by our flesh, we may
not commit any of these things outwardly, but thinking that
we have, by not committing these things outwardly, by touching
not, tasting not, not doing these things, we've really mortified
our flesh, we have committed all these sins spiritually. It's
fornication, verse 5, it's uncleanness, it's inordinate affection, it's
evil concupiscence, it's covetousness, which is idolatry. And all of
that is idolatry. Which things sake the wrath of
God comes on the children of disobedience, into which you
also walked in some time when you lived in them. But now you're
dead, and your life's at God's right hand. If we touch not,
taste not, handle not, and ask our righteousness before God,
then when the brother falls, all these other sins are what
we'll commit in our heart, if not in our words and deeds. Verse
8, put off these also, anger, wrath, malice, blasphemy, filthy
communication out of your mouth, lie not one to another. That's
exactly what Paul said when I was Saul of Tarsus and I was trying
to mortify my flesh by the law. He said, sin, taking occasion
by the commandment. You know Paul said in Philippians
3, I was a Pharisee a Pharisee, as touching the law blameless.
And by all of that, thinking he had really mortified his flesh,
sin was taken occasion by the commandment, he said, and it
wrought in me all manner of concupiscence, all manner of wickedness. For
without the law, sin was dead. When he couldn't hear what the
law said, sin was dead. For I was alive without the law
once, but when the commandment came, when Christ spoke and set
his affection on Christ, That's when sin revived and all his
self-righteous soul died. And he had never mortified his
flesh. And that's the first time his
flesh was mortified, when he saw Christ. When a spirit turns
our affection to Christ above and a spirit makes us regard
our flesh as dead, that's how he enables you to put off the
old man and put on the new man. Verse 9, seeing that you put
off the old man with his deeds and have put on the new man,
here's how it's done, which is renewed in knowledge after the
image of Christ that created him. Whether it's neither Greek
nor Jew, circumcision nor uncircumcision, barbarian, Scythian, bond or
free, but Christ is all and in all. And he makes you, seeing
his mercy continually, he makes you merciful. Verse 12, put on
therefore as the elect of God, holy, beloved, vows of mercies,
kindness, humbleness of mind, meekness, long-suffering, forbearing
one another, forgiving one another, if any have a quarrel against
any, even as Christ forgave you, so also do you. And above all
these, put on charity, which is the bond of perfectness. Let
the peace of God rule in your heart, to the which also you're
called, in one body, and be ye thankful. Let the word of Christ
dwell in you richly, in all wisdom, teaching, and admonishing one
another, in psalms, and hymns, and spiritual song, singing with
grace in your hearts to the Lord. And whatsoever you do in word
or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks
to God and the Father by Him. You see, what I'm trying to show
you is, it's not by turning back to touch not, taste not, handle
not, that's going to mortify your flesh. It is having your
affection set on Christ above. That's why whenever Paul wrote
to the Corinthians, and he had heard about what was going on
in their strife and division, that's why Paul said, I was determined
to know nothing among you. I didn't want to know about it.
I didn't want to know about your trouble. I didn't want to know
the second causes. I was determined to preach Christ
and Him crucified to you. Because that's the only cure.
When the Lord turns you to Christ and makes you behold Him. So
this is the Word of our Lord, brethren. This is our head speaking.
And if you're His, and He's ministering nourishment to you, this is what
He'll make you do through this Word. If you're risen with Christ,
seek those things which are above. Where Christ sits on the right
hand of God, set your affection on things above, not on things
on the earth. For you are dead, and your life
is hid with Christ in God. When Christ who is our life shall
appear, then shall you also appear with him in glory. Mortify thereby
your members which are on this earth, and put on a new man.
That's how it's done, brethren. Keep your hearts set on Christ.
That's how you'll put off the old man and put on the new, by
the Spirit of God. All right. Father, we thank you
for this Word. Lord, we pray that you would
truly minister to us now, speak into our hearts, truly make us
set our heart, one affection, single-hearted on Christ. Look
away from ourselves and our sin nature. Look away from any good
we've done. Look away from any sin. And behold,
that's not our life. Christ is our life at God's right
hand. Lord, teach us this. We pray
you help us never be deceived and beguiled. Make us continually
know Christ is all and we're complete in Him. In Christ's
name we ask it. Amen.