Study 6- Colossians 3:11-15: What a Church Should Actually Look Like

This post by kathylarkman was originally published at GRACE PLACE

READ Colossians 3:11-15 What a Church Should Actually Look Like

“11 In this new life, it doesn’t matter if you are a Jew or a Gentile,[a] circumcised or uncircumcised, barbaric, uncivilized,[b] slave, or free. Christ is all that matters, and he lives in all of us.
12 Since God chose you to be the holy people he loves, you must clothe yourselves with tenderhearted mercy, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience. 13 Make allowance for each other’s faults, and forgive anyone who offends you. Remember, the Lord forgave you, so you must forgive others. 14 Above all, clothe yourselves with love, which binds us all together in perfect harmony. 15 And let the peace that comes from Christ rule in your hearts. For as members of one body you are called to live in peace. And always be thankful.”
“As member of God’s people, we must treat one another as Christ has treated us. This means that a church that is seeking to follow the Lord we will be people growing in Christ-likeness, filled with truth and love. And with absolutely no partiality along racial or social lines-because in His choosing of people, God shows no such distinction. Such a community is truly evangelistic! It is difficult to set our minds on things above, isn’t it? The heavenly worlds seems unreal because it is invisible. So a Christian needs constant reminders to see beyond the material and visible- reality is much bigger than what we see or feel! We need the Bible’s reminders, but we also need the challenges of fellow-believers who live lives that demonstrate a different set of values to others around us. Seeing someone resisting worldly ambitions or influences for the sake of Christ can make a profound impact. Solving problems of disunity must start with ourselves-are there people we need to forgive or treat gently and kindly? We must avoid being quick to assume that divisions are other people’s fault! Thinking like that could actually be part of the problem! We need to first change our own lives, rather than push the blame elsewhere.” Mark Meynell

Reflection: Are there any relationships where you know you need to put on forgiveness or patience at the moment? Who in our church needs your proactive and practical love?

Sisters, I hope this gives you a bit more insight into our study 6 for this month. We encourage you to keep setting aside time to ponder this beautiful letter.

Next week, we will go on to Study 7: Living, Acting and Praying the Good News of Jesus. Victoria Kelly is our contributor for the next three weeks. I urge you to get with your study buddy on Facetime, WhatsApp, or whichever online technology you are comfortable with. Study together the passage of scripture in Colossians 3:16-28 and 4:1-4. This will be done in three parts.

So watch this space! May we all grow to know Jesus better and love Him more!