Colossians 3
3
Not Carnality but Christ
1If then you were #Rom. 6:5; Eph. 2:6; Col. 2:12raised with Christ, seek those things which are above, #Ps. 68:18; 110:1; (Rom. 8:34); Eph. 1:20where Christ is, sitting at the right hand of God. 2Set your mind on things above, not on things on the #(Matt. 6:19–21)earth. 3#(Rom. 6:2; 2 Cor. 5:14; Gal. 2:20); Col. 2:20For you died, #(2 Cor. 5:7)and your life is hidden with Christ in God. 4#(1 John 3:2)When Christ who is #John 14:6our life appears, then you also will appear with Him in #1 Cor. 15:43glory.
5#(Rom. 8:13)Therefore put to death #(Rom. 6:13)your members which are on the earth: #Eph. 5:3fornication, uncleanness, passion, evil desire, and covetousness, #Mark 7:21; 1 Cor. 6:9, 18; 2 Cor. 12:21; Gal. 5:19; Eph. 4:19; 5:3, 5which is idolatry. 6#Rom. 1:18; Eph. 5:6; Rev. 22:15Because of these things the wrath of God is coming upon #(Eph. 2:2)the sons of disobedience, 7#1 Cor. 6:11; (Eph. 2:2); Titus 3:3in which you yourselves once walked when you lived in them.
8#Eph. 4:22; 1 Pet. 2:1But now you yourselves are to put off all these: anger, wrath, malice, blasphemy, filthy language out of your mouth. 9Do not lie to one another, since you have put off the old man with his deeds, 10and have put on the new man who #Rom. 12:2; 2 Cor. 4:16is renewed in knowledge #(Rom. 8:29)according to the image of Him who #(Eph. 2:10)created him, 11where there is neither #Rom. 10:12; (1 Cor. 12:13); Gal. 3:27, 28Greek nor Jew, circumcised nor uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave nor free, #Eph. 1:23but Christ is all and in all.
Character of the New Man
12Therefore, #(1 Pet. 1:2)as the elect of God, holy and beloved, #Luke 1:78; Phil. 2:1; 1 John 3:17put on tender mercies, kindness, humility, meekness, longsuffering; 13#(Mark 11:25)bearing with one another, and forgiving one another, if anyone has a complaint against another; even as Christ forgave you, so you also must do. 14#1 Pet. 4:8But above all these things #(1 Cor. 13)put on love, which is the #Eph. 4:3bond of perfection. 15And let #(John 14:27; Phil. 4:7)the peace of God rule in your hearts, #1 Cor. 7:15to which also you were called #Eph. 4:4in one body; and #(1 Thess. 5:18)be thankful. 16Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom, teaching and admonishing one another #Eph. 5:19in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord. 17And #1 Cor. 10:31whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him.
The Christian Home
18#1 Pet. 3:1Wives, submit to your own husbands, #(Col. 3:18—4:1; Eph. 5:22—6:9)as is fitting in the Lord.
19#(Eph. 5:25; 1 Pet. 3:7)Husbands, love your wives and do not be #Eph. 4:31bitter toward them.
20#Eph. 6:1Children, obey your parents #Eph. 5:24in all things, for this is well pleasing to the Lord.
21#Eph. 6:4Fathers, do not provoke your children, lest they become discouraged.
22#Eph. 6:5; (1 Tim. 6:1); Titus 2:9; 1 Pet. 2:18Bondservants, obey in all things your masters according to the flesh, not with eyeservice, as men-pleasers, but in sincerity of heart, fearing God. 23#(Eccl. 9:10)And whatever you do, do it heartily, as to the Lord and not to men, 24#Eph. 6:8knowing that from the Lord you will receive the reward of the inheritance; #1 Cor. 7:22for you serve the Lord Christ. 25But he who does wrong will be repaid for what he has done, and #Rom. 2:11there is no partiality.
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Colossians 3: NKJV
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The Holy Bible, New King James Version, Copyright © 1982 Thomas Nelson. All rights reserved.
Colossians 3
3
He Is Your Life
1-2So if you’re serious about living this new resurrection life with Christ, act like it. Pursue the things over which Christ presides. Don’t shuffle along, eyes to the ground, absorbed with the things right in front of you. Look up, and be alert to what is going on around Christ—that’s where the action is. See things from his perspective.
3-4Your old life is dead. Your new life, which is your real life—even though invisible to spectators—is with Christ in God. He is your life. When Christ (your real life, remember) shows up again on this earth, you’ll show up, too—the real you, the glorious you. Meanwhile, be content with obscurity, like Christ.
5-8And that means killing off everything connected with that way of death: sexual promiscuity, impurity, lust, doing whatever you feel like whenever you feel like it, and grabbing whatever attracts your fancy. That’s a life shaped by things and feelings instead of by God. It’s because of this kind of thing that God is about to explode in anger. It wasn’t long ago that you were doing all that stuff and not knowing any better. But you know better now, so make sure it’s all gone for good: bad temper, irritability, meanness, profanity, dirty talk.
9-11Don’t lie to one another. You’re done with that old life. It’s like a filthy set of ill-fitting clothes you’ve stripped off and put in the fire. Now you’re dressed in a new wardrobe. Every item of your new way of life is custom-made by the Creator, with his label on it. All the old fashions are now obsolete. Words like Jewish and non-Jewish, religious and irreligious, insider and outsider, uncivilized and uncouth, slave and free, mean nothing. From now on everyone is defined by Christ, everyone is included in Christ.
12-14So, chosen by God for this new life of love, dress in the wardrobe God picked out for you: compassion, kindness, humility, quiet strength, discipline. Be even-tempered, content with second place, quick to forgive an offense. Forgive as quickly and completely as the Master forgave you. And regardless of what else you put on, wear love. It’s your basic, all-purpose garment. Never be without it.
15-17Let the peace of Christ keep you in tune with each other, in step with each other. None of this going off and doing your own thing. And cultivate thankfulness. Let the Word of Christ—the Message—have the run of the house. Give it plenty of room in your lives. Instruct and direct one another using good common sense. And sing, sing your hearts out to God! Let every detail in your lives—words, actions, whatever—be done in the name of the Master, Jesus, thanking God the Father every step of the way.
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18Wives, understand and support your husbands by submitting to them in ways that honor the Master.
19Husbands, go all out in love for your wives. Don’t take advantage of them.
20Children, do what your parents tell you. This delights the Master no end.
21Parents, don’t come down too hard on your children or you’ll crush their spirits.
22-25Servants, do what you’re told by your earthly masters. And don’t just do the minimum that will get you by. Do your best. Work from the heart for your real Master, for God, confident that you’ll get paid in full when you come into your inheritance. Keep in mind always that the ultimate Master you’re serving is Christ. The sullen servant who does shoddy work will be held responsible. Being a follower of Jesus doesn’t cover up bad work.
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THE MESSAGE: The Bible in Contemporary Language copyright © 1993, 2002, 2018 by Eugene H. Peterson. All rights reserved. Used by permission of NavPress. Represented by Tyndale House Publishers.