By Lisa Wilmore
Dear Hearts,
The grace that God extends to us is far beyond what our finite minds can comprehend, and for this we should be deeply grateful. Grateful, because there are times when we follow the world’s rules, expectations, and patterns rather than the truths revealed to us through God’s Holy Word. When we drift toward worldly thinking or behavior, it becomes clear that we desperately need God’s grace and mercy continually extended to us.
An interesting read found in Colossians 2:20–23 captured my heart for a moment. According to the Good News Translation (GNT), Paul declared, “You have died with Christ and are set free from the ruling spirits of the universe. Why, then, do you live as though you belonged to this world?” (Col. 2:20). In context, Paul addressed the challenges the believers in Colossae faced in their Christian living and asked this profound question. In short, he explained that when Christians accepted Christ, we were united with Him in His death. Spiritually, the old life ruled by sin, fear, and the world’s expectations was put to death, and through His resurrection, we were raised into a new life with new desires and a new citizenship in the kingdom of God.
However, Paul recognized that even though we have died with Christ, many believers continued to live as if the world still defined them and still had authority over them. The GNT emphasizes this tension by asking why those who have been set free still act like they belong to the world’s system.
Particularly, Paul warns us that human rules, religious laws, and worldly systems, “Do not handle this, do not taste that, do not touch the other” (Col. 2:21 GNT), may look spiritual, but they do not have the power to change the heart. These practices come from people, not from God, and they deal with things that perish with use (v. 22). In fact, they give the appearance of wisdom through traditions, but they cannot stop the desires of the flesh (v. 23). In other words, external behavior changes cannot produce internal changes. But an internal union with Christ, empowered by the Holy Spirit, can produce an external behavior change.
In a practical sense, this means the Christian life is not about following man-made rules but about living out the reality of what Christ has already done within us. Although temptations still come and the flesh still whispers, we do not respond as citizens of this world. Instead, we rely on the Spirit to guide our thoughts, discipline our desires, and strengthen our determination.
Because we have died with Christ, we no longer belong to the world’s system. Yes, temptations may enter our minds, but we do not let them rule our lives. We live as those who have died and raised with Christ but not citizens of this world.
Jesus Saves!
