HAVE YOU BEEN “PUT OUT OF YOUR MISERY”?

BIBLE PASSAGE:
Put to death, therefore, whatever belongs to your earthly nature:
sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desires and greed, which is
idolatry. Because of these, the wrath of God is coming. You used to
walk in these ways, in the life you once lived. But now you must also
rid yourselves of all such things as these: anger, rage, malice, slander,
and filthy language from your lips. Do not lie to each other, since you
have taken off your old self with its practices and have put on the new
self, which is being renewed in knowledge in the image of its Creator.
(Colossians 3:5-10)

MEDITATION:
Have you ever heard someone say that they killed an animal that was
suffering to ‘put it out of its misery’? The animal had an injury that
would eventually lead to its death, but the person didn’t want to see
it suffer, so they hastened the process of an inevitable death.

We are born with an ‘earthly nature’ which arouses the ‘wrath of God’,
and leads to our death. This nature is slowly killing us and will manifest
itself when we pass from this earthly life into eternity.

However, when compared to an animal, we are given a different solution
for being ‘put out of our misery’. It doesn’t mean we have to kill ourselves,
but death is involved according to God’s Word.

Paul explains that there are components of our earthly nature that should
be ‘put to death’. Why would he instruct us to do that? Because they are
slowly killing us and we need to make room for a new spiritual nature to
replace our earthly nature.

In case we are unsure of the components of an earthly nature,
Paul gives us a list. He tells us that our earthly nature consists of:
    – Sexual immorality
      (adultery; fornication; sexual acts that are
       outside the boundaries established by God)
    – Impurity
      (impure thoughts; fantasizing about things
       that are not within the Will of God)
    – Lust
      (strong desires for sex with others,
       or any other personal pleasures; desires for
       things that feed our egotism, arrogant pride, etc.)
    – Evil desires
      (ungodly thoughts such as gossip, stealing,
       dishonest acts, cheating others, lying, etc.)
    – Greed
      (strong desires to have what other people have;
       dissatisfaction with God’s blessings)

Paul tells us that these things dominated our lives before we were
saved, but as part of the process of ‘putting on our new self’, we
need to rid ourselves of them.

We may not feel that all of these on Paul’s list are a part of our own
earthly nature, and we may not believe that the ones we do have, are
dominating our lives. However, Paul says that no matter how we try
to rationalize the depth of their involvement in our lives, they should
be eliminated.

He also tells us that all five of these are a form of idolatry. “Idolatry”
means we are replacing our worship of God with something else. It
could be something different for each individual, but we know what
we are doing that steals from our time and fellowship with the Lord.

We can understand why it arouses the wrath of God. God is a jealous
God and His desire is for us to have what is best for our lives. He knows
that in order for us to enjoy His best for us, we need to give Him first
place in our lives.

God is not jealous in the way we think of jealousy. He is NOT
‘jealous OF us’, but He is ‘jealous FOR us’. He does not want
us suffering from the things that will harm us, and lead to our
death.

So, it is only natural that He would want us to ‘put to death’ the
things that hurt us; the things that cause us to miss out on His
best for us. One of the things that hurts us the most is replacing
God with other idols.

Paul gives us some additional components of our earthly nature:
    – Anger
    – Rage
    – Malice
    – Slander
    – Filthy language from your lips
    – Lying
He tells us that in order for us to become new and reduce our misery,
we need to eliminate these things as well. They remind us that there
are still areas of our lives that need cleansing.

The first list he gave us includes things that others may not detect in
our lives. They can be hidden from others, but not from God. The
second list includes things that others can often see; each of these
can affect our relationships with others.

Paul has included things that affect our relationship with God, and
things that affect our relationships with others. We may think that
we aren’t guilty of all these, but most of us can honestly see that some
of these are active in our lives.

It just makes sense, doesn’t it? If we are to become a new person,
then we need to make a conscious effort to improve our vertical
(God), and horizontal (others) relationships.

Lastly, Paul tells us that part of our renewal process includes
increasing our knowledge of God When we do this, we gain a
better understanding of His nature, and the things He likes
and dislikes. We develop a warning system which alerts us
(when we stray from His Will), and a guidance system (which
creates a desire to do the things that are pleasing to Him).

There was a girl in college who was making good grades
but they began to slip. She said,
    “Life had become one long case of the blahs.
     I wasn’t walking around with a steady load
     of blues, but I wasn’t enjoying life. Small
     things made me blow up. I met some other
     students who seemed to know something I
     didn’t know, but I couldn’t get in on it. We
     went to several meetings, and one night the
     speaker said that we don’t earn God’s love;
     He takes us as we are.
 
     It was then I realized it wasn’t a matter of clocking 
     up a certain number of hours doing good deeds.
     Instead, I had to make myself available. Through 
     faith, I had to let Him take over. It came together 
     all at once, when I accepted Christ as my personal 
     Savior. I know that God is in me in everything I do.
     My life has taken on a new dimension.”

This is a good example of someone who has put on a new self.
She is now experiencing a personal fulfillment, a new meaning
of life, and a joy that replaced her ‘blahs’.

ACTION:
Are you living a life driven by your earthly desires, or have you
‘put to death’ the things Paul has outlined? Have you begun the
process of ‘putting on a new self’, or are you holding on to the
things that contribute to your misery?

Why did Paul give us these guidelines for becoming a new person?
Because he wants us to understand just how much God loves us,
and how He wants to ‘put us out of our misery’ by eliminating the
things that harm us and keep us on a pathway toward death. God’s
desire is for everyone to be on the pathway to life (both now, and
eternally with Him).

Pray,
“Heavenly Father, by faith I ask you to take over every part
of my life. Draw me closer to Your Son and my Savior, Jesus
Christ. Help me to put to death the things that are damaging
me, and replace them with the things that make my days brighter.
You know the struggles I have and the areas where I am weak.
I need Your help to overcome the evil one, because I cannot be
successful in my own strength. I want to put on my new self. I
want to discard my old earthly nature to make room for my new
Godly nature. Thank You for being there for me, for blessing me
in many ways, for your love, and for Your concern for my well-being.”

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