Beware lest any man spoil you through philosophy and vain deceit, after the tradition of men, after the rudiments of the world, and not after Christ. For in him dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead bodily. And ye are complete in him, which is the head of all principality and power.
Colossians 2:8-10 (KJV)
Walking in a relationship with God does not have to be complicated, we just need to have faith in Jesus Christ. Our spiritual lives are not a secret life revealed only to a select few. It is not an abstract theory to be danced around as an academic exercise. It is not an intellectual sport where we compete against one another to see who is more spiritual. Neither is it a system of laws to abide by that have nothing to do with the human heart. Paul tells us that living a spiritual life in relationship with God is much more subtle and guaranteed. God extended a spiritual pathway through His Son and said that we don’t need to worry about all the other complexities. We just need to have faith in Jesus.
In order to walk in faith, we need to live out of the substance of His presence. We should believe in His reality, live confidently in His complete work in us, imitate His example, and reflect Him with our interactions. To live in His presence, we must kick our faith into a higher gear. We can no longer be satisfied with anything less than a relationship with Christ. Paul said we need to stop merely studying the subject and start living it.
Everything about our lives is to develop our roots in Christ, which allows us to be built up and established in Him. Whatever we may be experiencing is deepening our relationships with Christ, broadening our understanding of His work, and challenging our assertions about Him so that we may become convicted disciples. Because of His root work, we are maturing progressively and being built up into a powerful expression of His presence. It is important for us to continually submit to God and His work in us so that we may continue to grow. With deepening roots and growing maturity, we can understand our establishment in Him. God has a covenant with us that cannot be broken, not even by our insignificant contribution on our side of the covenant. God tells us that He won’t cast us aside, He won’t forsake us, He won’t leave us, He won’t stop loving us. We will never be lacking God's perfect love.
Once we are established, our faith is kicked into a higher gear. God says to watch out for others who try to dazzle us with big words and intellectual double talk, as they want to drag us to emptiness. The universe is empty without Christ, but with Him, we are able to maturely respond to others. Because we are rooted, built up, and established in Jesus Christ, we have the capability of hearing and seeing Him clearly. We no longer need to live in insecurity, doubt our future, question our faith, or live as a prisoner to others’ opinions. God wants us to know that we are established and complete in Him.
