Our New Nature, Once Given, Always Renewed

And have put on the new nature, which is being renewed after the image of its creator. (Colossians 3:10)

Col. 3:1-10; II Cor. 5:17; Eph. 4:24

What Is God Saying?

The focus in Colossians is all on Jesus. Dissension broke out in Colosse like a virus, and the attack weakened the believers' bodies. New in the faith, believers were being told that angels should be worshiped, that traditional rituals should be added to the Gospel, and that Jesus the man died but that Christ the divine did not. They needed a word to show that Christ is all and in all. He is the head of the church and the reason we labor for the church (Col. 1:24). He gives us freedom from human philosophies, social hierarchies, and traditions (Col. 2:8). He is the reason for and the power behind all holy living (Col. 3). He is the reason for praying, for preaching, and for godly conduct (Col. 4:2-5).

In the tenth verse, Paul reminds us that the new nature is given to us in the miracle of the new birth. This new nature is not static. It is growing in knowledge after the pattern of its creator. And, everyone is included. All who have the new nature are being renewed.

How Does This Apply To Us?

When we come to prayer, we must remember that God, who created, is the God who re-creates. God's gift of salvation is an act and a process, making prayer essential. Prayer is based on listening to God and continues as we respond to what God has said. In prayer, our lives are renewed daily through God's word and in His image: Christ, Giver, Pattern, and Architect of the new life.

Pray With Me

God, almighty, and all-loving, you created and you are creating. I thank you for the awareness through your word and the fact that the new nature I have put on is still being renewed. ‘Create in me a clean heart, O God, and put a new and right spirit within me.’ Time and again it comes home to me, each time with the joy of discovery—the God who creates is the God who renews. The gift of God is an act and a process, a goal attained and the ground still being gained.

Knowing this, the Lord keeps me from discouragement and pride. This assurance keeps me from discouragement when the accuser points to persistent faults and taunts me with unkept promises. When I rest on my achievements and victories won instead of anticipating the fuller life You have promised, this assurance keeps me from pride. It is wonderful to know that my walk with Christ began in the past but continues now. It is dynamic, not static. It grows while being grounded.

The son, who is my Lord and my savior, reflects the glory of God and bears the very stamp of his nature. Please help me, at least in some measure, to become a reflection of his perfection. Help me to exemplify his patient love. Then, the new nature that was given shall develop until that glorious day when, having finished the race, I shall enter rest. Until then, I will rest in your will. I will serve in your strength. I will conquer in your name. I will keep on trusting that God, who has begun a good work, will complete it on the day of Jesus Christ.

In whose name I pray. Amen.

Moving On In The Life of Prayer

If our lives seem to be at a standstill, or as it is called in sailing, becalmed, we can experience spiritual renewal. Our sails can be filled with the winds of the spirit. The first meaning of the word spirit was wind. In prayer, we lift our sails by faith to the wind even when no whisper of a breeze is stirring. We are moving for God. The new life grounded in Christ is the new life growing in Christ. Faith is the key to salvation. Prayer is the key to growth.