Colossians 2:6-7 -- Therefore, as you received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in him, rooted and built up in him and established in the faith, just as you were taught, abounding in thanksgiving.
Quiet time with the Lord led to Colossians and a deep dive into giving thanks as part of our daily walk with the Lord, not just as a holiday. Here's how the Lord walked me through these verses today.
Stick with me through all of this as I know it's a lot of English and Greek stuff.
The subject of Colossians 2:6-7 is "YOU".
There are a total of seven verbs found in the Greek for these two verses.
1. paralambano | received
2. peripateo | walk
3. rhizoo | rooted
4. epoikodomeo | built up
5. bebaioo | established
6. didasko | taught
7. perisseuo | abounding
Now four of these seven verbs are in the Passive Voice. Meaning the subject (YOU) are receiving the verb. In these verses God's Word says you are the receiver of rooted, built up, established, taught. These are not things you are doing they are happening to you.
Christian, pay close attention to the next part because they require the subject (YOU) to do something.
Three of the seven verbs are in the Active Voice. Meaning the subject (YOU) are the one doing the verb or action. In these verses YOU have three actions to do, receive Christ Jesus, walk in Christ Jesus, abound in thanksgiving.
Christian, did you catch that? After you have received Christ Jesus as Lord, you are now commanded to WALK in Him, then to ABOUND in thanksgiving!
Colossians 2:6-7 -- Therefore, as you RECEIVED Christ Jesus the Lord, so WALK in him, rooted and built up in him and established in the faith, just as you were taught, ABOUNDING in thanksgiving.
Out of those three Active verbs, there are two that are in the Present Tense. Meaning they are presently, actively, to be ongoing, continue to do. They are WALK and ABOUNDING.
You are to walk and keep on walking in Christ Jesus.
You are to abound and keep on abounding in thanksgiving.
To clarify exactly what it is you are to do and keep on doing after receiving Christ Jesus as Lord, let's do one final English/Greek dive on what Walk and Abound are.
WALK in the Greek is PERIPATEO and means to tread all around, make one's way, progress, to make due use of opportunities. To live, to regulate one's life, to conduct oneself.
This is much more than just walking around the grocery store. This is everywhere you go, everything you do, every step you take, being regulated, and conducted in and through Jesus Christ, the Word, the Way, the Truth, the Life.
ABOUND in the Greek is PERISSEUO and means to superabound (quantity or quality), be in excess, exceed a fixed number or measure, to abound, overflow AND to be pre-eminent, to excel in something.
Beloved, catch this you're not just called to abound and overflow in thanksgiving you are called to EXCEL in THANKSGIVING! We're to do it presently, ongoing, always.
Okay but life is hard. We can get knocked around. How can I possibly walk around overflowing in thanks all the time?
I'm glad you asked.
Let's take one final look at these verses and watch the verbs in order because it's a roadmap on how to end up excelling in overflowing thanksgiving in all circumstances.
1. You have RECEIVED Christ Jesus. (Gotta do this or the rest won't work.)
2. You are to WALK and conduct your life always, every day, in and through Christ Jesus, the Word, the Way, the Truth, the Life.
3. If you genuinely did #1, and your actively doing #2, then you will now be ROOTED in Christ Jesus. Your stability and nutrients (all you need for life) are now firmly in the Word, the Way, the Truth, the Life.
4. So now with #1 in the bag, #2 actively ongoing, #3 has your stability and nutrients locked in Christ, you begin being BUILT UP in and through Christ Jesus, the Word, the Way, the Truth, the Life.
5. NOW with #1-#4 in place you will be ESTABLISHED in the faith. That is being made firm, confirmed, made sure in the faith. Faith is your shield, it is what you cling to, what protects, and quenches fiery darts from the enemy. Hebrews 11:1 says it's the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.
6. Comes as a reminder of what you were TAUGHT from the Word. It's good to stay grounded in the Word!
7. So now you have seen #1-6 in order and if those things are in place, have been done, and you are actively ongoing doing #2 (walking/living in Christ Jesus), you will now be at the place of ABOUNDING in and being able to excel in OVERFLOWING thanksgiving!
Beloved, I know this was a lot, but God is so good! He lays it out step by step for us in His Word. Remember though, you must CHOOSE whether you're going to do these things or not. He's given you EVERY SINGLE THING you need to do it. Life will still be hard, there will be ups and downs, some days it'll be easier than others, you may fall down, but will you get back up and keep pressing forward as He's told you to?
It's a daily choice to WALK and ABOUND in THANKSGIVING.
Don't take my word on a single thing here. I beg you please get into your Bible, talk with the Lord, let Him show you directly in His Word!
You are loved. You are prayed over. You are not alone.
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