I have always struggled to understand 1:15/1:18 and any other passage that talks about Jesus being the first-born of all creation, because it gives the impression that He was created. If Jesus was created than He is not fully God. In the Greek Word Study Bible it explained that the word for firstborn is prototokos which means to be the cause of creation. Jesus is not the first one created or the first one born, but the cause of the creation and birth in the first place. Really powerful for me. Jesus is the cause of life which makes Him bigger than this life.
1:23 - "not moved away from the hope of the gospel" - Neat to me because I wonder how often I let myself get moved away from the heart of the gospel and start thinking about and focusing on other things. Sometimes I am moved away to the heart of the NBA Finals or the heart of the Broncos or the heart of a different car or trip or activity. My heart as a follower of Jesus ought to be completely centered on the gospel which says God sent His Son Jesus to save me from my sin so that I could live for His good purposes from now on.
1:24 - "I do my share on behalf of the body" - WOW! What a powerful question to ask yourself. Am I only doing what others are doing or am I doing my share? My share is not dictated at all by others. I can do it whether they do theirs or not. So many times we do our fair share instead of our share. God calls us to do our share whether it is fair or not.
2:5 - "the stability of your faith in Christ." My kids and I watched Wipeout the other night for the first time and they have a challenge where the people are put on a table that spins and spins and then when it stops they have to run through a door and over some other obstacles. When people come of f the turntable they are so dizzy and disoriented that they go all over the place. God is calling us to a faith that can walk a straight line and isn't all over the place. How stable is your faith? I see many people nowadays whose faith looks a lot like a wave of the see tossed back and forth (James 1).
2:17 - "things which are a mere shadow of what is to come; but the substance belongs to Christ." - I can confess that I have spent years trying to fill my life and ministry up with a feast of shadows when the real substance is and always has been Jesus. I need to daily review whether I am receiving substance or just things that have the faded shape and aroma of Jesus, but which do not bring Jesus. Why do we settle for the shadow when God is offering us the real thing? Maybe it is easier, but definitely not better.
2:19 - "grows with a growth which is from God." Those of us who work to help others meet and grow in Jesus need to remember that God is the orginator of growth and we are called to faithful sacrifice and service.
3:2 - "set your mind on things above, not on the things that are on earth." There is just something about the wording that really stands out to me. How much of my thinking is about things that are on the earth? Cars are on earth and so are motorcycles and sports and food and TV and movies. My thinking should be centered on the things that are not found here. That isn't to say we can;t enjoy life, because god gives us everything for our enjoyment, but we need to fix our thoughts on what is in Heaven and let God bring about the joy instead of trying to find our joy ourselves.
3:12 - I love how the NASB says to put on a heart of compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. It is something I have to actively do. I don’t get up in the morning and wait for my clothes to jump on me. I have to actively and willfully get dressed and the same is true here.
Love, Michael
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