When Christ is Not Rightly Placed
There are many things in life that can be "out of place" without causing a much of a problem. For instance, In my classroom at my school there is a great chance during the day, with 56 kids in the room, for some stuff to be misplaced. Sometimes papers are placed in the wrong pile, supplies not returned, or books not put where they belong. When this happens it puts a small inconvience in the day. Now if I were to misplace one of my students this would be a different conversation. When things are not in their place in the classroom, though, I have not only myself to blame but also those 56 little ones that blur in and out of my room. My first tendency is usually to blame them. Funny though, many times it was me who misplaced something. Yet day by day my first response is to turn to the kids when something goes missing or is not in its place.
What about in my own llife? My spiritual life (I say this loosley believing that my life in Christ has everything to do with everything in my day and all that I am). What happens, though, when I misplace the eternal? The one that holds all things together and is the beggining and then end? The question I am getting at is what happens when Christ does not hold His right place in my life. I can't look around the room for the 56 others to blame. I only have one place to look and that is in the mirror. When Christ is not held in first place above all else in my life, and He is not the priority in all things, it is no small inconvience. Without Christ as our supreme focus, things that could be great become sinful, life makes no sense, and we tread on dangerous ground. Recently my wife and I decided to start setting new habbits in the way we eat. It is a whole new plan and a far deviation from how we were eating. When we first began to discuss this new lifestyle I was very excited and it sounded great. I trully felt we were making the right move in our diet. Not only for the sake of our health, but for the glory of God and being a good steward of the lives God has blessed us with. This was how I felt before we started the diet! After a very tough first week and the loss of nine pounds I struggled to keep this mindset with Christ as my focus. I soon found my self feeling in bondange to our diet. I would constantly think about my next meal and how much it cost. I would think soley about this new lifestyle all the things I had to give up. Christ slipped from the priority in my life as the diet quickly took over. I was miserable. Here was something that was supposed to be great, but had quikly turned for the worse. This is just one of many instances in my life of something that was purposed to be great but went terribly wrong in the hands of a sinner who did not hold the glory of God as an ultimate mindset.
Scripture proclaims that, "He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. For by Him all things were created, both in the heavens and on the earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominoins or rulers or authorities- all things have been created through Him and for Him. He is before all things, and in Him all things hold together. He is also head of the body, the church; and he is the beginning, the first born from the dead, so He Himself will come to have first place in everything" Colossians 1:15-18. When we lose sight of this truth from scripture and do not hold Christ in His right place, we lose our true understanding of ourselves and of sin, great things become idols, and ultimatly we lose hope. I heard a powerful sermon recently by a great pastor who said, "that when we truly understand Christ's pre-eminance, even the economic situation we live in makes sense. With the right mind set we see it as allowed and controled by our Lord and in all ways used for his Glory. We can take hope that it did not suprise God and he is not affected by it. We can see instances of Christ bringing sin to the surface that has been hidden or not acknowleged and purging individuals of this sin."
With the right mindset and holding Christ as ultimate, we see our current economic situation in a far greater sense than just a tough time and unfair. We can truly begin to see some part of how great God is as He, with infinite wisdom, guides all things. Whether a diet or economic turmoil, without Christ held as ultimate and seen as first in all matters, we will struggle to have hope and even the best of our efforts will fall short. Whether we acknowldge Him as first or not, He still holds that position. In the end, I only have myself to examine for whether or not I have placed him there in my life.
Steve
What about in my own llife? My spiritual life (I say this loosley believing that my life in Christ has everything to do with everything in my day and all that I am). What happens, though, when I misplace the eternal? The one that holds all things together and is the beggining and then end? The question I am getting at is what happens when Christ does not hold His right place in my life. I can't look around the room for the 56 others to blame. I only have one place to look and that is in the mirror. When Christ is not held in first place above all else in my life, and He is not the priority in all things, it is no small inconvience. Without Christ as our supreme focus, things that could be great become sinful, life makes no sense, and we tread on dangerous ground. Recently my wife and I decided to start setting new habbits in the way we eat. It is a whole new plan and a far deviation from how we were eating. When we first began to discuss this new lifestyle I was very excited and it sounded great. I trully felt we were making the right move in our diet. Not only for the sake of our health, but for the glory of God and being a good steward of the lives God has blessed us with. This was how I felt before we started the diet! After a very tough first week and the loss of nine pounds I struggled to keep this mindset with Christ as my focus. I soon found my self feeling in bondange to our diet. I would constantly think about my next meal and how much it cost. I would think soley about this new lifestyle all the things I had to give up. Christ slipped from the priority in my life as the diet quickly took over. I was miserable. Here was something that was supposed to be great, but had quikly turned for the worse. This is just one of many instances in my life of something that was purposed to be great but went terribly wrong in the hands of a sinner who did not hold the glory of God as an ultimate mindset.
Scripture proclaims that, "He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. For by Him all things were created, both in the heavens and on the earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominoins or rulers or authorities- all things have been created through Him and for Him. He is before all things, and in Him all things hold together. He is also head of the body, the church; and he is the beginning, the first born from the dead, so He Himself will come to have first place in everything" Colossians 1:15-18. When we lose sight of this truth from scripture and do not hold Christ in His right place, we lose our true understanding of ourselves and of sin, great things become idols, and ultimatly we lose hope. I heard a powerful sermon recently by a great pastor who said, "that when we truly understand Christ's pre-eminance, even the economic situation we live in makes sense. With the right mind set we see it as allowed and controled by our Lord and in all ways used for his Glory. We can take hope that it did not suprise God and he is not affected by it. We can see instances of Christ bringing sin to the surface that has been hidden or not acknowleged and purging individuals of this sin."
With the right mindset and holding Christ as ultimate, we see our current economic situation in a far greater sense than just a tough time and unfair. We can truly begin to see some part of how great God is as He, with infinite wisdom, guides all things. Whether a diet or economic turmoil, without Christ held as ultimate and seen as first in all matters, we will struggle to have hope and even the best of our efforts will fall short. Whether we acknowldge Him as first or not, He still holds that position. In the end, I only have myself to examine for whether or not I have placed him there in my life.
Steve
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