Rooted
Rooted
Colossians 2:6-7
Main Idea: The deeper we are rooted in Christ, the more we will bear fruit and abound in thanksgiving together.
I. Rooted in Christ
Paul exhorts us that the way forward in the Christian life is not to leave behind or move past the gospel, but instead to press further up and further in to the good news of Jesus (cf. Gal. 3:2-3). Just as the Christian life begins by receiving grace and mercy through faith and repentance, we must continue down the same path holding fast to “Christ Jesus the Lord.”
“In our Christian life we never ‘get beyond the gospel’ to something more advanced. The gospel is not the first step in a stairway of truths; rather, it is more like the hub in a wheel of truth. The gospel is not just the ABCs but the A to Z of Christianity. The gospel is not the minimum required doctrine necessary to enter the kingdom but the way we make all progress in the kingdom. We are not justified by the gospel and then sanctified by obedience; rather the gospel is the way we grow (Gal. 3:1–3) and are renewed (Col. 1:6). It is the solution to each problem, the key to each closed door, the power to take us through every barrier (Rom. 1:16–17).”
~ Tim Keller, “The Centrality of the Gospel”
Paul gives three pictures of how we “walk” or "continue living” in Christ:
Rooted in him, like a tree that is nourished, vibrant, and healthy (cf. Ps. 1; Jer. 17:5-8; Jn. 15:4-5)
Built up in him, like a structure laid on the solid foundation of Christ (Eph. 2:20-22)
Established in the faith, steadfast and immovable in the gospel we have been taught
II. Rooted Together
All of the “you’s” in this passage and throughout this letter are in the second-person plural. The Christian life is not a “solo” project; in order to grow up into maturity we must be rooted deeply together as brothers and sisters in Christ in the household of faith.
Colossians 2:1–3: For I want you to know how great a struggle I have for you and for those at Laodicea and for all who have not seen me face to face, that their hearts may be encouraged, being knit together in love, to reach all the riches of full assurance of understanding and the knowledge of God’s mystery, which is Christ, in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.
“The way to get assured understanding about the mystery of God, namely, Jesus Christ the treasure chest of wisdom, is to have your heart knit together in love with other believers. The deepest and most certain insights into the character of God and the wisdom of God come into heads that are attached to loving hearts.”
~ John Piper, “Guard Yourself with Gratitude”
“One cannot explain the explosive dynamite of the early church apart from the fact that they practiced two things simultaneously: orthodoxy of doctrine and orthodoxy of community in the midst of the visible church, a community which the world could see. By the grace of God the church must be known simultaneously for its purity of doctrine and the reality of its community. Our churches have so often been only preaching points with very little emphasis on community, but the exhibition of the love of God in practice is beautiful and must be there.”
~ Francis Schaeffer, The Church Before the Watching World
III. Rooted to Bear Lasting Fruit
Our “abounding in thanksgiving” should extend to every area of our lives and our faith, including:
Growing Knowledge
Colossians 1:9-10, 12: ... we have not ceased to pray for you, asking that you may be filled with the knowledge of his will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding, so as to walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing to him: bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God… giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of the saints in light.
Wholehearted Worship
Colossians 3:16: Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, with thankfulness in your hearts to God.
Persistent Prayer
Colossians 4:2: Continue steadfastly in prayer, being watchful in it with thanksgiving.
Joyful Witness (cf. 1 Pet. 3:15)
Colossians 4:5–6: Walk in wisdom toward outsiders, making the best use of the time. Let your speech always be gracious, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how you ought to answer each person.
Cheerful Generosity
2 Corinthians 9:6–8, 11, 15: The point is this: whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows bountifully will also reap bountifully. Each one must give as he has decided in his heart, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver. And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that having all sufficiency in all things at all times, you may abound in every good work… You will be enriched in every way to be generous in every way, which through us will produce thanksgiving to God… Thanks be to God for his inexpressible gift!
“In the Christian way, giving is never a matter of a tit-for-tat relationship with the Almighty. You can never out-give God. He has given his own dear Son. There’s a profound sense in which the last thing God wants you to do is give money, even generously, if you withhold your heart ... All of our response to him is first and foremost out of the overflow of recognizing his indescribable gift. We give out of gratitude. We serve out of gratitude. We pray out of gratitude. We walk by faith out of gratitude. Thanks be to God for his indescribable gift!” ~ D.A. Carson, “Laughing All the Way from the Bank”