Colossians 3:5-11

(Colossians 3:5-11)

Mortify therefore your members which are upon the earth; fornication, uncleanness, inordinate affection, evil concupiscence, and covetousness, which is idolatry:  For which things' sake the wrath of God cometh on the children of disobedience: In the which ye also walked some time, when ye lived in them. But now ye also put off all these; anger, wrath, malice, blasphemy, filthy communication out of your mouth. Lie not one to another, seeing that ye have put off the old man with his deeds; And have put on the new man, which is renewed in knowledge after the image of him that created him: Where there is neither Greek nor Jew, circumcision nor uncircumcision, Barbarian, Scythian, bond nor free: but Christ is all, and in all.

The Bible speaks of covetousness, 『fornication, uncleanness, inordinate affection, evil concupiscence, and covetousness』. It all starts with covetousness. Covetousness was called idolatry. Who is idolating to whom? After all, it is to worship the old man who is crouching in his heart. Covetousness defiles your conscience and causes you to fall into sin. So, the Bible says to kill covetousness. Covetousness is also a love for the world. So, the Bible says to die about the world. In 1 John 2:15-16『 Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him.  For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world. 』 In 1 John 5:4, 『For whatsoever is born of God overcometh the world: and this is the victory that overcometh the world, even our faith. 』 No one can beat the world except the born again. Those who are born again deny themselves, and those who are born again by the power of God.

In Luke 12:15, Jesus said, “And he said unto them, Take heed, and beware of covetousness: for a man's life consisteth not in the abundance of the things which he possesseth. 』. And in verses 16-21, he said figuratively, "People accumulate riches, but it is of no use if God takes away life." Jesus continually urges us not to worry about wealth. However, if there is not enough wealth, it is a world that cannot live.

God tells humans not to covet riches, and humans think that they are satisfied only by accumulating riches. Satan's covetousness leads to human destruction. According to Satan, the Spirit will surely die. In the Garden of Eden, God said, "If you eat the fruit of a tree that knows good and evil, you must die." However, Eve fell into Satan's temptation and ate fruit. It was because of the desire to be like God. Even today, Satan is constantly tempting with covetousness. Even this covetousness appeared in some large churches. Covetousness makes not only humans, but also churches like Laodicea and Sarde. The Bible says, "They are alive but dead."

This is because covetousness is in your heart. 『Anger, wrath, malice, blasphemy, filthy communication out of your mouth. Lie not one to another 』. With covetousness, these expressions appear when one is not satisfied with a person's mind. All of these are the hearts of Satan. In particular, Satan is known as a deceiver. In the kingdom of God, Satan deceived the spirits to escape his position, and in the garden of Eden, he deceived Eve and ate the fruit of the tree of knowledge of good and evil.

『 ye have put off the old man with his deeds; And have put on the new man which is renewed in knowledge after the image of him that created him: 』 Those who are born again are those who took off the clothes of the old man and were clothed with Christ. In Ephesians 4:22-24, the apostle Paul said the same thing.『 That ye put off concerning the former conversation the old man, which is corrupt according to the deceitful lusts;  And be renewed in the spirit of your mind; And that ye put on the new man, which after God is created in righteousness and true holiness. 』 Paul also expressed the old man in Romans. Romans 6:6-7『 Knowing this, that our old man is crucified with him, that the body of sin might be destroyed, that henceforth we should not serve sin. For he that is dead is freed from sin. 』

What is an old man? In the Bible, God told Adam, "Don't eat the good and bad, and if you eat, you die." Eve broke the word of God and ate the good and bad. Then he gave his husband, Adam, a section of good and evil, and ate it. God has promised humans. But Satan, an old snake, deceived, "Eating good and evil can make you like God." When Satan spoke, humans thought for themselves. She did not ask God. If you lose your mind, this will happen.

Eve had no sins before eating the good and bad. But she sinned herself. When you become the owner, you are an old man. Even with the word of God's promise, the old man will do what he thinks. So the old man must die. The old man is the root of sin. The key to salvation is who is the master. The flesh received from the parents thinks that it is the owner. However, those who are born again to heaven are the masters of God. Who is the owner?

The Bible says that sin is forgiven of Jesus' blood, but the old man must die with Jesus. Faith associated with Jesus' death occurs only with the repentant. It is not said to remember and memorize this, but this faith is a gift to the repentant.

In Chapter 6:2, 『God forbid. How shall we, that are dead to sin, live any longer therein? 』Only those who have died of sin can overcome sin. This happens only when it comes from the world's desires. When in the world, the Lord does not speak of sin. Because being in the world speaks of an unsaved state.

In the world, Satan (Pharaoh in Egypt) is king. The reason why we do not realize when we speak in the analogy of the time of the Exodus from the past is because the devil interferes or the world's anxieties and temptations of the world come.

The world becomes enemies with God. In 1 John 2:15, 『Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him. 』 We must be crucified against the world. In Galatians 6:14『But God forbid that I should glory, save in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom the world is crucified unto me, and I unto the world.』

What is in the world eventually decays. There is covetousness in the love of the world. Covetousness is the root of all world evil, because it is idols. In particular, the Bible says about the love of wealth among covetousness. The Bible says that we cannot love God and wealth. The Bible describes wealth as God. Riches themselves are not idols, but loves more than God are idols. If you love anything more than God, you must give up. Because God does not forgive.

It is associated with the self. It is because self comes from the flesh that makes God unbelievable. The self is the desire to be like God because it is erupted in the body. When the Spirit of Truth comes to this world, he rebukes it. The Holy Spirit rebukes for not believing in the promised word of God. That is a sin.『 Where there is neither Greek nor Jew, circumcision nor uncircumcision, Barbarian, Scythian, bond nor free: but Christ is all, and in all. 』 The Lord is the head of the church above all things, and the church inside all things is his feet. So, those who are in Christ cannot be discriminated against. In Christ, the saint becomes an army capable of fighting Satan. Become one with the body of the Lord, the head of the church. It is done through the unity of the saints. It is not a denomination between churches, and it does not mean that they are together in a church building. One who is united by the power of the Holy Spirit among those in Christ is unity. “The church is his body, the fullness of the one who fills all things in all things.” Jesus makes all things full through the church.