Sermon - "How Should Christians Live?" (Colossians 3:1-17)

Sermon - "How Should Christians Live?" (Colossians 3:1-17) First Baptist Church - Eureka Springs, Arkansas firstbaptist-eurekasprings.org SERMON OUTLINE A. Introduction Having shown that everything necessary for salvation and spiritual life is found in Jesus Christ, Paul now turns directly to how Christians should live. If we have been saved by Christ, made new in Christ, and made complete in Christ, our lives should increasingly reflect that new reality. B. Walking Through the Main Text 1) Christians Should Set Their Minds on Things Above (vv. 1–4). Because believers have been raised with Christ, our desires, priorities, and thoughts should increasingly be centered on Jesus and the things that have eternal value. Our true life is “hidden with Christ in God,” and when Jesus returns, those who belong to Him will appear with Him in glory. (Matthew 6:19–21; Philippians 3:20–21) 2) Christians Should Put Sin to Death (vv. 5–11). Believers must actively put away the sins of the old life, including sexual immorality, covetousness, anger, slander, obscene speech, and lying. We don’t fight sin in order to become new people; we fight it because God has already made us new in Christ and is continuing to renew us. (Romans 6:11–13; Romans 8:13) 3) Christians Should Put On the Character of Christ (vv. 12–17). Christians are to put on compassion, kindness, humility, meekness, patience, forgiveness, and above all love, while allowing the Word of Christ to dwell richly within us. Everything we say and do should increasingly reflect Jesus and bring honor to Him. (Galatians 5:22–23; Ephesians 4:31–32) C. Conclusion How should Christians live? We should keep our minds centered on Christ, actively put sin to death, and increasingly reflect the character of Jesus in every part of our lives. The new life God has given us in Christ should produce a new way of thinking, a new relationship with sin, and a new way of living. D. Take-Aways 1) Set your mind on Christ and the things that have eternal value. 2) Take sin seriously and actively put it to death. 3) Put on the character of Christ in everything you do.