How many of you like a good wrestling game? Maybe with your family, playing around, trying to win over your sibling. Growing up in the 80’s, I remember a a famous televised wrestling drama called the WWE, World Wrestling Entertainment, which is still aired today. It had wrestling stars like Hollywood Hulk Hogan, John Cena, Nature Boy Ric Flair, The Rock, “Macho Man” Randy Savage, and so many more. It portrays men and women who came head to head in the ring to outwit their opponent with fancy moves and brute strength. Just like any type of game, once the championship was won, fans are screaming, lights glaring the spotlight on the hero as they walked off the platform as the new champion!
After watching it, we kids at the local school would talk about how great the event was, what we liked, and even play out the scenes to be mesmerized by its glamour during recess. We, as children, learned what a champion was from worldly point of view. Although, growing older we learn that all the splendor of success and being a hero is not what the world teaches. Even though the news and media seem to spotlight areas of concern, the true genuine meaning behind being successful and a hero is obligatory from the standards of what God says. And even when we are successful conqueors, we still wrestle with God in spiritual matters don’t we? There are times where we just want to throw in the towel. And I would go even as far to say that some people love hold a title of Christian, but not fully do the work God has asked us to do. When it gets hard, we want to separate ourselves, not be in the middle and even sit on the sidelines. You heard me always say this, there is no such thing as a costless Christian. Even though we all wrestle with the flesh, we have something to very thankful for in knowing that when we choose to live for Christ with Christ in us. Only then can we conqueor anything.
In the Old Testament in the book of Genesis, that was a wrestling match that took place, did you know that? It lasted all night. Scripture tells us Jacob wreslted with God, where it says, “Then Jacob was left alone, and a man wrestled with him until daybreak.” Scripture does not give us a clear picture of whom Jacob wrestled with, but whether an angel or God himself, but in the end God blesses Jacob. From this, we find a very profound event in the history of Israel; “Then he said, “Let me go, for the dawn is breaking.” But he said, “I will not let you go unless you bless me.” So he said to him, “What is your name?” And he said, “Jacob.” Then he said, “Your name shall no longer be Jacob, but Israel; for you have contended with God and with men, and have prevailed.”
Like Jacob, we today tend to wrestle with God in our lives in one form or another, in the end hoping for a great blessing. We wrestle with our decision, thoughts, feelings, and actions—while trying to live a Christian life, we are always on the warpath. And it is like Jacob, we pray for success and as it stated, “Jacob prevailed.” Paul reminds us in his letter to the Ephesians, “For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.”
In today's reading from the Epistle of Colossians, Paul is describing to the people of Collosia like us today, that even though we wrestle not with flesh and blood, but we are to not be carnally minded. “Therefore, if you have been raised with Christ, keep seeking the things that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on the things that are above, not on the things that are on earth.”
We see here that Paul is describing just in these few words that the real issue is less about how to master the methods of dealing with the evil powers in the world and more about becoming Christians in character and learning how to live the life of a believer. Christian faith should be inseparable from Christian behavior. Have you heard the quote that we are what we eat? This also applies to what we think about and feed on; we do become that! We cannot be Godly people by day, and a thief by night. The whole character of God should indwell us in every area both day and night. In Colossians Chapter 2, Paul tells us that all wisdom must be found in Christ. Everything we need comes only from God, not what the world gives us. We must seek Him out!
The Greek word seek conveys the idea of setting our hearts on something long-term and then looking forward to it with growing emotion. “Learn how to pursue the things of heaven.” This is how we as Christians are to live. Our eternal priorities should be our moral compass.
This also applies to setting our minds on things above. You put your focus, your attention, your energy on the spiritual reality of heaven found in Christ and letting that control your motivations rather than getting caught up in earthly concerns. 2 Corinthians tells us “But we have this treasure in earthen containers, so that the extraordinary greatness of the power will be of God and not from ourselves.”
Isaac Edwardson quotes this statement on seeking eternal things I find very fitting. “Part of our work in life is to learn values and to estimate the worth of doubtful things. We walk by faith, and faith may be mistaken. But to the eyes of faith, each new experience sooner or later reveals its inward worth and nature. We acquire, discard and cherish, and the things that we retain are those which can endure the light of the presence of God. And these are the things which are eternal.” I couldn’t say it any better!
I want you to think about this. When we accepted Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior, when we made an inward decision with an outward expression called baptism, we did something very significant. “For you have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God. When Christ, who is our life, is revealed, then you also will be revealed with Him in glory.”
Here the word hidden is referred to as those who accept Him as their personal savior, and have a seal amongst them, that no one outside of Christ can or will understand. If you are a true follower of God, you will not understand or see it. We are His as He is in us. We are set apart from the world. We are conquerors in Christ. We are designed to be different. We are designed to be labeled as followers of Christ, even when its not popular to believe in what God says!
As much as we want to say, “we are more than conquerors in Christ,” we still struggle daily, don’t we? It is struggling that we will always have at our doorsteps; as Paul continues to tell us, “Therefore, treat the parts of your earthly body as dead to sexual immorality, impurity, passion, evil desire, and greed, which amounts to idolatry. For it is because of these things that the wrath of God is coming upon the sons of disobedience, and in them you also once walked, when you were living in them.”
Paul is NOT limiting certain sinful desires in just a few words, he is describing these particular sins to the people of Collosia as being what they are particularly bad at. In short, we are to be dead to sin, which has no strong hold on us as followers of Christ. Another thought to ponder is, like the old saying goes, if you don’t use it, you lose it! When we shorten our practicing of Godly living, our quality diminishes. When we fail to read and study our bible, pray regularly, meditate on God and so forth, God cannot declare himself to us in the lives of un-dedicated people. When God wants to channel his Love, Strength and Power into our lives, and we become unavailable or unwilling to his purpose for our lives, it becomes evident that we are far from God. We are not helpful to God's purpose by our choice and not by His design.
So, just as Paul describes to us to Put to Death the things that separate us from God, we are to seek Him in every area of our lives vigilantly; its ongoing and never-ending. It is the Love of God, friends, that we hold onto. For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.
In closing, let me challenge you to remember to put on the newness of God, the new man or woman. It is the newness that saves us, keeps us in Christ and Christ in us; as Pauls letter to the Romans states, “But now we have been released from the Law, having died to that by which we were bound, so that we serve in newness of the Spirit and not in oldness of the letter.”
We have Strength, Power, and a forever Savior that is always with us. And if you ask yourselves, how can I become a new creation, how can I be strong in Christ when so much is against me! How can I not be carnally minded! Let me share with you a story, based upon a real event that is a very inspiring tale of a life of a believer to become a courageous Christian.
An ancient Church Father named Chrysostom stood before a Roman Emporer where he was threatened with banishment if he remained a Christian. Chrysostom replied to the Emporer, “You cannot banish me, for this is my Father’s house.” The Emporer then threatened to kill him, but he said “No, you cannot! For my life is hid with Christ in God.”
The Emporer threatened once more to take away all his treasures and earthly possessions. Chrysostom said, “No you cannot! I have nothing of value on earth as my treasures are in heaven.”
The Emporer one final time threatened to drive him away from the city and from man. Then He said, “No, you cannot! For I have a friend in heaven from whom you shall not separate me. I defy you; there is nothing you can do to hurt me.”
We cannot become new without Christ! We cannot conquer what we are wrestling with without Christ! We cannot take up our cross daily and follow Christ without Him in us and us in Him. All earthly distinction begins to fade when we start to focus on Christ and not our problems or people we deal with. “…and have put on the new self, which is being renewed to a true knowledge according to the image of the One who created it— a renewal in which there is no distinction between Greek and Jew, circumcised and uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave, and free, but Christ is all, and in all.”
If you have doubts about your abilities, service, and strength, let me ask you to repeat these words of wisdom and Love with me:
I am a child of God.
I have been justified and redeemed.
I will not be condemned by God.
I have been accepted by Christ.
I have been called to be a saint.
In Christ Jesus, I have wisdom, sanctification, and forgiveness.
I am a new creature in Christ.
I am no longer a slave, but a child and an heir.
I have been blessed with every spiritual blessing.
I have been sealed with the Holy Spirit.
I was formerly darkness, but now I am light in the Lord.
Are you starting to get the picture? Who are we in Christ and Christ in us? We must learn to live the life of Christ not in the carnal sense but the Spiritual. Remember, friends, those controlled by the flesh, cannot please or follow God. We worship and serve God in Spirit, and it is this Spirit in which we learn to live moral and complete lives found only in Jesus Christ. Amen.