LET THE WORD OF CHRIST DWELL IN YOU RICHLY

Colossians 3:1-17

Key Verse 16

“Let the message of Christ dwell among you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom through psalms, hymns, and songs from the Spirit, singing to God with gratitude in your hearts”

1. Read verses 1-9. Since we have been raised with Christ, what should we do (1, 2)? Why should we do so? (3, 4) What should we do about whatever belongs to our earthly nature? (5-9)

2. Read verses 10-14. What is God’s purpose for us when we have put on the new self? (10-11) As God’s chosen people, what virtues should we put on? (12-13) What can bind all these together? (14)

3. Read verses 15-17. How should we live with the new self? (15-17) What is the secret to living this kind of life? (16) How can we let the word of Christ dwell in us richly?

LET THE WORD OF CHRIST DWELL IN YOU RICHLY

Colossians 3:1-17

Key Verse 3:16

“Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom, and as you sing psalms, hymns and spiritual songs with gratitude in your hearts to God.” (ESV)

Introduction

After studying the book of Peter, we would like to hear of the general director of UBF, Moses Yoon’s new year message based on Colossians 3:1-17. In Colossian chapters 1 and 2, apostle Paul has talked about Jesus Christ in whom were hidden all wisdom and knowledge and encouraged us to continue to live our lives in Him. In chapters 3 & 4 Paul talks more about the practical life of believers, concentrating on the new person we have become and the new life we have been called to live. As God's children, we must put to death the old self and put on the new, and then God will continue to work in us to mold us into Jesus' image. Above all when we let the word of God dwell richly in us, we may have strength and wisdom to grow in Jesus’ image and fulfill all our holy desire to be like Him. May the Lord bless us richly with your words of promises in the challenging year 2021. Amen.

1. Read verses 1-9. Since we have been raised with Christ, what should we do (1, 2)? Why should we do so? (3, 4) What should we do about whatever belongs to our earthly nature? (5-9)

1-1, Read verses 1-9.

Since then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. 2 Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things. 3 For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God. 4 When Christ, who is your life, appears, then you also will appear with him in glory. 5 Put to death, therefore, whatever belongs to your earthly nature: sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desires and greed, which is idolatry. 6 Because of these, the wrath of God is coming. 7 You used to walk in these ways, in the life you once lived. 8 But now you must also rid yourselves of all such things as these: anger, rage, malice, slander, and filthy language from your lips. 9 Do not lie to each other, since you have taken off your old self with its practices

1-2, Since we have been raised with Christ, what should we do (1, 2)?

Since then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. 2 Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things.

• Chapter 2:20a reads, “Since you died with Christ…” But they had not only died with Christ! Paul here tells them that they had also been raised with Christ.

• Since they had been made a new person. They had been given a new and changed heart and they had also been given a new and a changed life.

• Our ministry is to focus on serving young people. So it may not be easy for them to accept verse 1b and 2 about ‘setting your hearts on things above’.

• But nothing is difficult in the Lord and the Holy Spirit. We simply trust the Holy Spirit to teach and to convict their hearts.

• “Raised with Christ” simply means that we have been united with Christ in his death and in his resurrection.

• Our old self has died and in Christ we have risen to become a new person, not superficially, but through and through.

• Our lives are hidden with Christ in God. Our hope is in him, for he will surely return to reign in glory, and we will rise to be with him forever.

• To “set” implies that we don’t just think about it, but seek it with our whole body and mind.

• In fact, the heart and mind encompass the whole man or woman. The entire being must be diverted from the earthly things and set on the heavenly things.

• The mind, the intellect, the thought world, the imagination. And the heart, the emotion, the feelings, the passion and much more...

• All these things must be set on the heavenly things because that being had died with Christ and had been raised with Christ. And because that being had been changed in his or her inner man to become a child of God.

• And when we have been changed and given a new life, then that new life can no longer live as it did in its old self, but must now live in its new self .

• When it comes to spiritual things and the kingdom of God, we must never be passive, but take hold of the things of God with our whole hearts. (Matthew 11:12)

1-3, Why should we do so? (3, 4)

3 For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God. 4 When Christ, who is your life, appears, then you also will appear with him in glory.

• It is because the new life we now have is hidden with Christ. It is sheltered and protected for a while. To be certain, we will appear in heavenly glory with Jesus.

• So one thing is clear that we can live in Christ with perfect security and peace. So many students have no hope and assurance in this world for it is not certain.

• To them nothing seems certain, except death and taxes. They despair and live in fear under curse. They need to enter into new life in Jesus and be found in Christ.

• When Christ who is your life, appears, then you also will appear with him in glory.

When we fix our eyes on Jesus who is our life and will appear in glory, we have the right perspective despite uncertain time.

1-4, What should we do about whatever belongs to our earthly nature? (5-9)

5 Put to death, therefore, whatever belongs to your earthly nature: sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desires and greed, which is idolatry. 6 Because of these, the wrath of God is coming.

• Apostle Paul encouraged us to put to death our earthly nature. In other words, it is not automatic to live a new life. It is our responsibility to put to death our sinful nature.

• Some of the elements of the sinful nature are found in verse 5b, "….sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desires and greed, which is idolatry.” (Gal 5:17-21)

• In Matthew 5:28, Jesus points out that even looking at someone lustfully is adultery. Impurity implies that something is not holy.

• Evil desires are desires that are not for the glory of God, for whatever we do, whether we eat or drink, we must do it all for the glory of God. (1 Cor 10:31)

• When we are greedy, it means that we have let something capture our hearts. It makes us want to serve created things.

• Greed is like a fire, always desiring more and more. Anything that captures our hearts is idolatry. There are many reasons that a Christian must not live like this.

• Verse 6 clearly says, “Because of these, the wrath of God is coming.” Paul cut to the chase. It displeases God. It damages us and damages others.

• These things rob the Holy Spirit of its rightful dwelling place, our hearts and minds.

• The wrath of God is surely coming. We must take them under control with the gospel of Jesus. This is the heart of the matter.

• Again “Put to death” are extreme words. It means literally to kill something so that it may not rise again.

Hebrews 12:4 reads,

“In your struggle against sin, you have not yet resisted to the point of shedding your blood.”

7 You used to walk in these ways, in the life you once lived. 8 But now you must also rid yourselves of all such things as these: anger, rage, malice, slander, and filthy language from your lips. 9 Do not lie to each other, since you have taken off your old self with its practices

• We can see the fruit of repentance in the actual lives of the Colossian Christians. “You used to walk in these ways, in the life you once lived.” Paul seems to remind people of what they were before.

• In light of the grace of God we need to rid ourselves of many things. Anger is like murder in Jesus’ eyes. Rage is extreme anger. I have to repent of letting rage come into my heart from time to time.

• Malice is intending something bad to happen to someone. Slander, is dragging someone’s good name through the dirt, publically. People can be sued for slandering.

• Filthy language is perverse talk, coarse jokes, swearing, taking the Lord’s name in vain.

• Lies can be subtle. Not telling the whole truth and being vague on purpose is like lying. It misleads people. But God can not be mocked. All lies will be exposed.

• Sometimes we think that such things are not all that bad. We get angry, we lie, we take God’s name in vain, and think nothing about it. We are sort of desensitized about it as the world does.

• But it is part of our old selves and must be taken off and replaced with the HOLY image of Jesus.

2. Read verses 10-14. What is God’s purpose for us when we have put on the new self? (10-11) As God’s chosen people, what virtues should we put on? (12-13) What can bind all these together? (14)

2-1, Read verses 10-14.

10 and have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge in the image of its Creator. 11 Here there is no Gentile or Jew, circumcised or uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave or free, but Christ is all, and is in all. 12 Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. 13 Bear with each other and forgive one another if any of you has a grievance against someone. Forgive as the Lord forgave you. 14 And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity.

2-2, What is God’s purpose for us when we have put on the new self? (10-11)

and have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge in the image of its Creator.

• It is to be sanctified in the image of Jesus. It can be done by being renewed in knowledge in the image of its Creator. Our new self is not complete at the moment it is given to us.

• It is a newborn baby that needs to be nourished and grown. And the promise is that the new life will most certainly grow and mature in the knowledge of God and in the image of its creator Christ.

• What a glorious truth is given to us here. We must live the new life, and we must live it because it has been prepared for us to live.

11 Here there is no Gentile or Jew, circumcised or uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave or free, but Christ is all, and is in all.

• When we put on our new selves, then something beautiful happens in our fellowship. It is God’s intended beautiful purpose to have unity in Him.

• In the world there are so many barriers and prejudices. There are all kinds of divisions. But in Jesus every human barrier comes down.

• The closer we get to Jesus the closer we get to each other. Young and old, men and women, all ethnic groups, all social barriers, racial barriers, and all prejudices are removed.

• In Jesus we have unity. In the cross we are all brothers and sisters in Christ. A healthy church should have all different kinds of people worshipping together as one. Praise Jesus who made it with his once and for all sacrifice on the cross!

2-3, As God’s chosen people, what virtues should we put on? (12-13)

Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. 13 Bear with each other and forgive one another if any of you has a grievance against someone. Forgive as the Lord forgave you.

• God’s chosen people are holy before the eyes of God. They are made holy through their faith in the blood of Jesus.

• As a chosen people part of the new self is to be clothed with virtues such as “…compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. Bear with each other and forgive whatever grievances you may have against one another. Forgive as the Lord forgave you.”

• These virtues are probably not highly valued among ancient Greek society, especially humility or forgiveness. So is the same with our competitive world.

• But as a new person of Christ and a new community of church, they can still put into practice agape love as the Lord forgives us first.

2-4, What can bind all these together? (14)

14 And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity.

• Jesus really wants his disciples, of all ages to have unity with God and with one another.

• In John 17:11 Jesus prays for them. “...Holy Father, protect them by the power of your name—the name you gave me—so that they may be one as we are one.”

• It is by bearing and forgiving one another that we can achieve perfect unity. Forgiveness is the key to working things out. We demand that others forgive us. The key is to always remember how Christ forgave us.

• 1 John 4:19, “We love because he first loved us.” And 1 John 3:16, “This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down his life for us. And we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers.”

• We can maintain unity with Jesus and one another and put on the greatest of every virtue, love, which binds us all together in perfect unity.

3. Read verses 15-17. How should we live with the new self? (15-17) What is the secret to living this kind of life? (16) How can we let the word of Christ dwell in us richly?

3-1, Read verses 15-17.

15 Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace.And be thankful. 16 Let the message of Christ dwell among you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom through psalms, hymns, and songs from the Spirit, singing to God with gratitude in your hearts. 17 And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.

3-2, How should we live with the new self? (15-17)

15 Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace.

• Another blessing of practicing Christian virtues is peace. Instead of anger and criticism, peace should rule the hearts of anyone in the body of Christ.

• We pray that the peace of Christ may rule in our hearts because members of one holy body we were called to peace!

• Jesus gives us peace. God is glorified when there is peace among his people. People are attracted to Jesus when his people live in peace with one another and with God.

• Young people really want peace. Too often they can not find it at their broken homes. They surely can’t find it on their smartphones, music, and at the movie theater.

• They can’t find it in their broken sinful relationships. They will find it only in Jesus and we need to show it by living in peace among ourselves.

And be thankful. 16 Let the message of Christ dwell among you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom through psalms, hymns, and songs from the Spirit, singing to God with gratitude in your hearts. 17 And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.

• We can also promote peace by maintaining an “attitude of gratitude” in our hearts to God. (15b, 17b) An unthankful heart is the root of all sin.

• Satan cannot manipulate a heart that is thankful to God. Being thankful to God means being thankful for all that he has done in your life, all that he is doing and all that he will do. Thankfulness glorifies God.

3-3, What is the secret to living this kind of life? (16)

16 Let the message of Christ dwell among you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom through psalms, hymns, and songs from the Spirit, singing to God with gratitude in your hearts.

“Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom, and as you sing psalms, hymns and spiritual songs with gratitude in your hearts to God.” (ESV)

• The secret to living this kind of life is by letting the word of Christ dwell in us! “Let the message of Christ dwell in you” implies that God is trying to do something through his word.

• Let the word of God dwell in your heart richly through deep and personal and quiet Bible study. Then we will see the peace of God descend upon our hearts like a refreshing morning mist.

• The peace of God can grow among us in other ways too. “…as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom, and as you sing psalms, hymns and spiritual songs with gratitude in your hearts to God.” Christ gave us wisdom.

• We are also given wisdom to teach and encourage others. We can also influence others in the way of peace by singing spiritual songs and hymns.

• “And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus,…” This is linked to 1 Cor 10:31, which reads, “So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God.”

• God does not want his people living for their own glory and honor, trying to make a name for themselves.

• The peace of God can come upon us, and among us, when we stop living for our own glory and live exclusively for the glory of God.

• When we live for the glory of God, all together then we can have unity of love and peace and attract a non believing world to Christ through a beautiful community.

3-4, How can we let the word of Christ dwell in us richly?

• During the new year conference on zoom meeting, several coworkers pointed out how important it is to wake up early in the morning to pray always and have faith in God through meditating the words of God.

• There is no magical way to let the word of Christ dwell in us richly. It is possible for us to do so in and through our personal effort on a daily basis.

• May the Lord help us to dwell in the word of God daily so that we may be a source of blessing for others. Our believing community may be enriched with God’s words and we may mutually grow in an increasing measure in God’s divine nature as we had learned in 2 Peter.

• May the Lord richly bless our 2021 ministry by praying for 300 1:1 and 30 disciples despite a pandemic crisis.

Conclusion

In this passage we learned that after receiving our new life in Christ, we must set our hearts on things above. This means to seek heavenly things, especially Jesus sitting on his throne. This is not just an idea or a once in lifetime event, it is a lifestyle. We must put off our sinful nature and put on the new image of our Creator, Jesus Christ. We must put our old “self” to death and develop godly virtues in our lives. Then we can be one with Jesus and grow in oneness with one another as God wants us to be. We can maintain the love of God and the peace of God among us and attract many young people to a new life in Christ. The secret for all these is in and through letting the word of God dwell richly in us first. May the Lord help me to be led daily so that we may dwell in our life giving words and teach them diligently and form a loving unity for God’s glory!

One word: Let the message of Christ dwell richly in us!

2021 New Year Message

Let the Word of Christ Dwell in You Richly

Colossians 3:1-17

Key Verse 3:16

“Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom, and as you sing psalms, hymns and spiritual songs with gratitude in your hearts to God.” (ESV)

Colossians is an epistle by Apostle Paul to the church in Colosse which was in Asia Minor. This letter was sent around 62 AD. The main theme of the letter was about who Christ was. Among the four chapters in total, the first and second chapters are a doctrinal section on Christology, that Christ is the supreme Lord of all things. The third and fourth chapters are applications that talk about a principle for how believers of Christ should live. We are faced with a new year in the midst of an unprecedented COVID-19 pandemic. How must we live in the new year? How can we serve the work of God? Through this passage, may God grant us a clear spiritual direction. Look at verse 1. “Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is seated at the right hand of God.” This verse is linked with the previous section, Colossians 2:13, which says, “When you were dead in your sins and in the uncircumcision of your sinful nature, God made you alive with Christ. He forgave us all our sins.” We were born in this world spiritually dead in our transgressions and sins (Eph 2:1). We were separated from God and could not come to him. However, through Jesus' death and resurrection, God raised us from the dead. Of course, that he raised us does not refer to our bodily resurrection but our spiritual resurrection. When we believe in Jesus' death and resurrection, that is, the gospel, through faith God gives us new life. The source of this life is Jesus (Jn 1:4). Just as a branch is attached to a tree, our life is rooted in Jesus. Our life is united with the life of Christ. How grateful should we be that we were raised with Christ! How wonderful it is that our life is united with that of Christ! How should we live as those who were raised with Christ? Verse 1b says, "set your hearts on things above." In the past, when we were spiritually dead, we had no idea about the "things above". We just thought the visible, earthly world was all there was and that is all we lived for. Yet we came to know that there are things above. In that heavenly realm, Christ is seated at the right hand of God. Having subdued all his enemies, Christ now holds all power and authority in his hand, crowned with glory and heavenly blessings. Therefore, as people of Christ, we should not set our hearts on earthly things but on things above (2). For the Colossian believers at that time, earthly things did not just mean worldly passions, pleasures, and material things. It also meant religious things. Many of the believers in Colosse pursued angel worship, fasting, and legalistic lives. They appeared spiritual. But such things were also earthly things since they, in fact, through them, pursued human glory, religious esteem, and self-satisfaction. Instead of pursuing these earthly things, we must put 2 our hope in heaven and seek things above as heavenly citizens on earth. Verse 3 says, "For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God." The phrase “you died” here means that our old self is dead. When did we die? Romans 6:6a says, “For we know that our old self was crucified with Christ so that the body ruled by sin might be done away with.” When Jesus was crucified we too were crucified with him. Our old self died with Jesus and was buried with him (Gal 2:20). When he was resurrected, we were also resurrected, and now we live a new life (Eph 2:5-6). Verse 3 says, “Your life is now hidden with Christ in God.” Our new life is united with Christ, and is hidden in God. Wow! This is amazing! Whatever is hidden in God is absolutely safe. No matter how our enemy, the devil, is desperate to find and destroy our lives, he cannot do it because there is no one stronger than our God. Even though we live on earth, our true life is united with Christ, and is hidden safely in God. How assuring and comforting this is! We are sojourners in this world. When our earthly life ends, we will return to God, where our true life is hidden (2Co 5:1). When Christ, who is our life, appears, we also will appear with him in glory (4). At that time, our process of sanctification will be over and we will be transformed into the image of Christ and shine like the sun. I pray that we may continue in this hope and seek things above. In order to seek things above, what then must we do? First, we must put off our old self, and second, we must put on the new self. Look at verse 5. "Put to death, therefore, whatever belongs to your earthly nature: sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desires and greed, which is idolatry.” The phrase “your earthly nature” refers to our old self that has the fallen Adamic nature. When we were born again, our old self died with Christ, but as long as we live in the flesh, we are still under the influence of the old self. It is like a snake of whose head was crushed, yet whose body is still wriggling. While living in the flesh, we, as those who have a new life, should continue to put to death the habits of the old self and imitate Christ. When our old self was alive in the past, it was impossible for us to mortify our old nature and grow in the image of Christ. This was because our old self was too strong. But now, since our old self was crushed through the resurrection of Christ, it is no longer powerful as in the past. If we rely on God and fight, we can now win the battle. This is what Romans 6:14 teaches; it says, "For sin shall no longer be your master, because you are not under the law, but under grace.” What are the things of the earthly nature in us that we should put to death? Look at verse 5b again. "...sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desires and greed, which is idolatry.” Our earthly nature is primarily sexual corruption and excessive desire for money. Our old nature tends to be sensual and lustful. We need to kill off these desires. The ending part of verse 5 talks a little more about greed. It says, "greed is idolatry." Greed refers to the desire to have more of something, especially money. People love money and even put it in God's place, and in that sense, greed is idolatry (Eph 5:5). When we lived as unbelievers, we walked in the greed of the old self (7). At that time, we did not even know that this was wrong. But now, since we have been raised with Christ and have new life, we must put off our old self. While verse 5 talks about the nature of sin in our hearts, verses 8 and 9 talk about the outward 3 manifestation of that sinful nature. Look at verses 8-9. "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.” Anger, rage, and slander are the same as murder (Mt 5:21-22). We should put off these as we do our dirty clothes. Lying means to intentionally deceive others. Lies are a common vice in an unbelieving society, and even believers tend to take it lightly. But lies come from the devil, the father of lies, and God hates it more than any other evil (Jn 8:44). We often think we don't lie. But, as the prophet Jeremiah said, our hearts are corrupt and deceitful above all things (Jer 17:9). Whenever we open our mouths, we lie. For example, to exaggerate is to lie. When we show off, we magnify our strong points, and we don't talk about others' good points. People talk long about others' mistakes while they hardly talk about their own shortcomings. All of this is lying. We should always repent of our corrupt self and cast out lies. Look at verse 10. "...and have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge in the image of its Creator.” We have already put on the new self. We have become a new creation in Christ (2Co 5:17). Our new self is "...being renewed in knowledge in the image of its Creator.” By putting on the new self, we are blessed to come to know him. To know God is to have eternal life (Jn 17:3). By knowing him we become like him. As we become like him, we come to have the same divine character as him, and thereby we gain an even deeper knowledge of him. This knowledge is not speculative. It is a living knowledge that is working and effective in our real lives (1Jn 2:3). When God gives us new life, he activates our spiritual senses and enables us to have living and spiritual knowledge. He also renews our will so that we may be strongly drawn to the things that please God. God makes us holy by constantly renewing our knowledge and will. He restores the image of God in us and brings us into the blessed fellowship of the Holy Triune God through our union with Christ. This is the purpose for which God created us and also saved us. There is no discrimination: Greek or Jew, circumcised or uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythians, slave or free. Christ unifies all things. Christ is the Lord of all, and in all (11). What then should we put on? Look at verse 12. “Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience.” As verse 10 says, we have already put on the new self, and God accepts us as righteous. However, this righteousness is like wearing a robe prepared to enter a wedding ceremony. Now the inner person must be renewed for the robe to fit. This means to receive a new heart and a new spirit from God, to receive a new knowledge, new character, and a new desire. Practically speaking, we must become a people of compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience (12). As members of Christ, we should bear with each other and forgive as the Lord forgave us (13). Look at verse 14. "And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity." Here, love is “agape,” which refers to God's unconditional love. The supreme ethic of believers is this agape love. Love is the fulfillment of the law. You never get tired no matter how hard you may work for the one you love. Rather, you become full of joy. Those who love others, of course, never do anything harmful. Rather, with love, they constantly do good things for others. This love is the bond that unites the community of believers, just as a 4 garment is kept neat with a belt. Look at verse 15. “Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace. And be thankful.” Christ became a peace offering between God and sinners like us who lived in enmity with God. Thus, God in Christ reconciled us to himself and gave us the peace of God. This peace is a profound one from heaven which is not the same as the world gives. It is peace that comes from a deep assurance that we have already received forgiveness, salvation, and eternal life. It is peace that cannot be taken away even if you may lose everything in the world. We must ensure this peace is the greatest influence that controls our inner person. But in reality, it is never easy to let the peace of Christ always rule in our hearts. Due to the pandemic, one missionary did not earn enough money. With the meager income he calculated his essential spending and found that only $200 was left. He and his family had to survive a month with that sum. When he thought about his future, it was quite certain that his family could not afford the rent and would be thrown out on the street. He was attacked by serious anxiety. He could not let the peace of Christ rule his heart. This is an understandable situation. How should he rule his heart with the peace of Christ? He needs power. The power that comes from the grace of God. The power that comes from prayer and faith in God. Philippians 4:6-7 says, "Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.” If our hearts are not ruled by peace, we must repent and pray. We should hold onto the word of God’s promise and believe. If we don't have faith, we have to persistently pray to God to help our faith. Then God will surely guard our hearts and our minds with his peace. Also God will eventually solve all our problems. Look at verse 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” (ESV). The phrase “the word of Christ” refers to the Scriptures, that is, the Bible. The Bible is the word of God that bears witness to Christ (Jn 5:39). The new life as believers we now live is a life in which the word of God should dwell richly. When the word dwells in us richly, we can teach and admonish one another with God's word. We will be able to sing psalms, hymns and spiritual songs that come from the word of God. We will be able to praise God with gratitude in our hearts. And whatever we do, whether in word or deed, we will be able to do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him (17). We have many problems in this Coronavirus pandemic era. A missionary says that she feels limited raising disciples. In the past, when she taught her students through one-on-one bible studies, she used to spend 3-4 hours at a time. She listened to the Bible students for hours and taught the word deeply. However, now it has become almost impossible to have a lengthy one-on-one Bible study because it is done through video calls. The Bible students hang up if something happens. It seems impossible to raise disciples through video calls. One tour guide missionary says that these days his income is literally zero. He cannot find a way to support 5 himself. Others say that they were locked up and couldn't leave the house at all for four months, which made them mentally depressed. Still others confessed that they have become spiritually lazy as they watched too much news and movies on YouTube. Some say that their house is too small to have a quiet space to pray in. Indeed, there are many challenges due to the pandemic. In these times of trial, we must let the word of God dwell in us richly. One may ask, “What does letting the word of God dwell in my heart richly have to do with my bread problem?” "How can it actually help the situation where we are not able to raise disciples?" The truth is that the word of God matters to our practical issues. This is because God gives us the bread and God raises disciples. Psalm 34:10 says, "The lions may grow weak and hungry, but those who seek the LORD lack no good thing." David in the Old Testament was chased after by Saul who was determined to kill him. David had to gather troops, craft strategies, and fight against Saul. But at that time, what did David do? Psalm 119:23 says, "Though rulers sit together and slander me, your servant will meditate on your decrees." Also Psalm 119:97 says, "Oh, how I love your law! I meditate on it all day long." It sounds unreasonable to meditate on God's word all day in times of trial, rather than seek realistic solutions. However, David meditated on the word of God all day long. At that time, God himself defeated those who were against David. We can say that the word of Christ dwelling in us richly is the same as being filled with the Holy Spirit. Ephesians 5:18 says, "Do not get drunk on wine, which leads to debauchery. Instead, be filled with the Spirit." Please note the following verses 19 and 20 that talk about the fruit of being filled with the Spirit. "Speak to one another with psalms, hymns and spiritual songs. Sing and make music in your heart to the Lord, always giving thanks to God the Father for everything, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ” (Eph 5:19-20). This is almost the same as "teach and admonish one another with all wisdom, and as you sing psalms, hymns and spiritual songs with gratitude in your hearts to God” as written in Colossians 3:16. Being filled with the Holy Spirit means being filled with God's word. Even though each of us faces different challenges, what we must do is to let the word of Christ dwell in us richly and be filled with the Holy Spirit. The word of God is living and active. God's word has dynamic power. It is sharper than a double-edged sword. It penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of our hearts (Heb 4:12). The word of God reveals all our problems and gives us his wisdom. In addition, God himself leads us to follow his wisdom and overcome all our problems. We learned from this passage that we “must do” several things. We must set our hearts on things above. We must put to death whatever belongs to our earthly nature. We must rid ourselves of all sinful things. We must not lie to each other. We must put on the new self. We must bear with each other, forgive, love, let the peace of Christ rule in our hearts, and so on. When we hear all these commands, honestly, it is burdensome. We cannot do these with our own will power. We know that God's commands are right yet we feel burdened because we cannot fully keep them. We feel burdened by God as he seems to make too many demands. However, God does not just give us commands and judges us if we fail. God commands us and also he enables us to obey the commands. How? Through his word, God enables us to obey his commands. The Holy Spirit works in us through the word and enables us to keep his 6 commands by God's power. Therefore, our job is to let the word of God dwell in us richly. When we receive the word not just with our head, but with our hearts and our spirits, and hold on to it, God himself helps us through the word planted in our hearts. He provides us with desire and his great power so that we can obey all his commands. Loving the word is the same as loving God. God will surely help us with our practical issues as we continue to love the word and let it dwell in us richly in times of difficulties. Also, even though our present difficulties may not get better right away, what a great privilege it is for us to be those who are filled with the word of God! I believe that God is pleased with such a person of the word of Christ. A man of God is one in whom the word of God rules, even his thoughts, wishes, and deep inclinations. Not only during the pandemic, but also at all times, of course the time corona viruses are gone will surely come yet, worries, fears and temptations of sin always work in our hearts. If we just try to fight and defeat them on our own, we can never win. We should not focus on driving them out. Instead, we must struggle to let the word of God dwell in us richly. When the word dwells in us richly, worries and worldly thoughts lose their place to stand within us. They get pushed out. I pray that the more difficult the times become, the more we may love God's word. May we read and deeply meditate on the word. There are tremendous blessings in meditating on the Scriptures (Ps 1:1-2). One of the best ways to meditate on the word is to recite it in a low voice. It means to memorize the word by muttering it at least 20-30 times. In this way, we can meditate deeply. Heaven and earth will disappear but God's word, even the smallest letter of the word, will remain unchanged. I pray that we may eat, drink, and breathe God’s precious word of life. I pray that we may receive the word with our minds and hearts and entrust ourselves to the word so that the word may transform us day by day (Ac 20:32). During this pandemic, I have striven to read and recite the word of God. In the early hours of the day, through daily bread, I have meditated on the word of God. I have read through the Scriptures again. When I prepared Bible study for English leaders, I read the passage several times. The fresh approach to the passage with prayerful heart led me into deeper understating of the passage. Above all, I took out my Bible memorization cards that I had already memorized. And from my daily bread notes of the past five years, I selected the key verses of each day into a card to memorize them. Whenever I had time, I spent a few hours a day reciting the word. Over the past eight months, I have again memorized about 3,000 verses. As the word became rich in my heart, in every situation, the word came to my mind, and I started thinking based on God’s word. Amid many challenges and trials, heavenly joy overflew in my heart. God gave me his wisdom every time I needed through his word. God renewed my spiritual desire and helped me to restore early morning prayer. In the past, praying for five minutes seemed like an hour to me, but these days praying for an hour only seems like five minutes. He gave me the joy of meditating on the word and the joy of praying. Indeed, the word of God is the source of all blessings. It gives us wisdom and strength, transforming our character, and granting us power in all circumstances. So this is the confession that comes from my heart. "Your promises have been thoroughly tested, and your servant loves them" (Ps 119:140; ESV). 7 In conclusion, God knows everything and rules over everything. When we look at our reality anxiety, worry, fear, and despair come to us. Yet amid this trial, God wants us to let the word of Christ dwell in us richly. He wants us to live by faith in his promises with thankfulness. In the new year 2021, may each of us and our communities fervently read and meditate on the word. May God help us to commit ourselves to deep Bible study. May God bless us to be devoted also to prayer and to striving for the mission of making disciples on campuses worldwide. Amen!