Saturday, October 6, 2012

7 Days in Colossians: Day 6

16 Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom, teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord. 17 And whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him.
18 Wives, submit to your own husbands, as is fitting in the Lord.
19 Husbands, love your wives and do not be bitter toward them.
20 Children, obey your parents in all things, for this is well pleasing to the Lord.
21 Fathers, do not provoke your children, lest they become discouraged.
22 Bondservants, obey in all things your masters according to the flesh, not with eyeservice, as men-pleasers, but in sincerity of heart, fearing God. 23 And whatever you do, do it heartily, as to the Lord and not to men, 24 knowing that from the Lord you will receive the reward of the inheritance; for[a] you serve the Lord Christ. 25 But he who does wrong will be repaid for what he has done, and there is no partiality.

I'd like to tackle this in two parts.  

The first I'd like to call..... can you guess???? Yep, that's right.... EDIFICATION.

I feel like this is pretty self explanatory. God wants us to lift each other up and encourage one another. He even gives us examples how to do this through Paul's writing here... Through psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs.  

Do I think these are the only means of teaching and admonishing one another? Nah, definitely not, but they are certainly a good place to start.

I also love how verse 17 challenges us to do everything as unto the Lord, giving thanks through Him. So not only are we called to lift each other up, but we're also called to work in everything as if we were doing it for God, which we are, seeing as how He gave us our time, so everything we do is His. 

So put on a good attitude and forget what the circumstances are. Work for God in every moment of your life and give thanks to Him. 

  The second part of this passage gives us an example of the Christian home. 

Wives, submit to your husbands, and husbands love your wives. 

If it were only that easy, huh?  This is such a hot topic for most people so it's common to see this passage brought up. I just wish more people could grasp the concept. 

Being submissive isn't about being trampled on. And loving your wife isn't either. Just sayin. If you have a healthy balance of love and respect, the rest falls into place perfectly.

He goes on to admonish those who are children, and bondservants, and then reminds us that we should do everything we do for God and not for man. Our reward is not in earthly gain or fame, but in the Lord. 

So get out there today and live for no one but God. Lift up your friends and work hard at what you do!  

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