Pleasing God

In the first of a new series, the Very Rev Dr Martin Fair considers the message of the letter to the Colossians.

THE Letter to the Colossians is a New Testament classic!

And as with others of the epistles, it offers us both:

• theological insight – look no further than 1:15-20 for THE most momentous description of the Universal Christ

• practical guidance – for the living of the Christian life.

Of course the two belong together.

The practice flows out of the belief. Nevertheless, in this series we’re going to focus on the practical and in particular on what we find in Colossians chapter 3. As we go through it, our foundational principle will be that we are to ‘live lives worthy of the Lord and pleasing to Him in every way.’ (1:10)

How do you start your day? Is it straight into the shower or down to the kitchen for your first coffee shot? Maybe you’re right on to your phone, scrolling through news feeds and social media platforms? Or perhaps like me you get things going with a walk with the dog?

Regardless of your particular routine, what might it look like and how might your day be different if you started it by praying, ‘Lord, today I want to live in a way that pleases you in every way…’

Maybe that would be the best possible starting point for fulfilling the challenge contained in 3:1-2, that we are to ‘set our minds on things above, not on earthly things.’ We’re to do that because first and foremost we are people who have been ‘raised with Christ.’

But let’s pause for a moment. We need to be careful here. This is not an invitation to indulge in some kind of other-worldly fantasy. If our eyes are only ever turned upwards, wouldn’t we miss seeing the person in need right in front of us? There’s an old Johnny Cash song from 1977 which has the line: ‘You’re so heavenly minded, you’re no earthly good.’ We’d want to avoid that!

So our calling as disciples involves us being thoroughly ‘in the world.’ And, we might add that Christians are not immune from the bumps and scrapes that come from being in the world, or from having to deal with the daily challenges and choices that everyone faces.

But perhaps starting our day with the stated desire and intention to ‘please the Lord in every way’ would result in us facing everything from a changed perspective?

‘Setting our minds on the things above’ doesn’t require that we ‘take our eyes off the ball’ in terms of day to day living but it does mean that we see everything through an entirely different lens – that we see and face everything ‘in the light of Christ.’ To reiterate, this is nothing to do with escapism and yet watch how those worries and anxieties, causes and concerns that are part of the daily landscape begin to look different when our eyes are first and foremost set on things above. Nothing changes and yet everything changes. Beginning each day by reflecting on who we are in Christ sets us up beautifully to then get on with the day. The ‘earthly things’ are better tackled when we’ve started with the ‘the things above.’

Next month, we’ll start drilling down into the practical detail of what Colossians offers us for living lives pleasing to the Lord in every way.