Prophetic Prospective Daily Devotional

As we approach our extended reading for today reflect with me on our devotional in Colossians the last time we were in the book, which was the first fifteen verses of Colossians 3 .

Verses 2, 3 and 4 exhort us to set our focus and affections on the heavens where Jesus awaits the command from His Father to call the body of Christ, the Church, up to be with Him. Verse 4 says we will appear at that time with Him in the heavenlies. What a glorious hope that is for each of us as believers.

Now to our reading for today, in verse 16 we see Paul exhorts us to "let the Word of Christ dwell in us richly". That means to first read God's Word and then meditate upon what we have read. Finally we internalize the Word of God, as we apply every bit of it to our daily lifestyle.

In verses 15-22 Paul tells us what will happen when the Word does dwell in us richly. Our music will be God-honoring music. Music, by the way, is not for evangelism. In the 500 references to music in the Bible they all deal with worshiping the Lord and not for evangelizing lost people. Therefore, we don't need to mimic the world's music.

If the Word fills us, we will use psalms, hymns and spiritual songs to teach each other and admonish each other in our worship of the Lord. What we do, we do in the name of the Lord, verse 17.

Wives will submit to husbands, verse 18. Husbands will love their wives and be not bitter to them, verse 19. Children will obey parents because it pleases the Lord, verse 20. Fathers will raise their children but won't provoke them to anger, verse 21. Servants will obey masters, verse 22. Again Paul tells us that whatever we do, do it "heartily as unto the Lord and not to men," verse 23.

What we have just thought through is the lifestyle of the person that has the Word of God dwelling in them richly. Verse 24 refers us to the time of reward when the Lord will give us a special reward at the "Judgment Seat of Christ". That "reward" He will give us is for living the Word-rich life on earth, before the Judgment Seat and before we appear in His presence.

He tells us of our reward and at the same time tells us how to live so that we will indeed receive that reward. The provision He gives is His Word, which we must allow to dwell in us, richly. Thank you Lord for your Word.