Walk in Christ

I contributed this article to my friend Noah Toney’s Substack, Appalachian Exposition. Check it out here: https://ntoney.substack.com

Read

“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” Colossians 2:6-7

Explain

Paul begins his letter to the church in Colossae with gratitude for their gospel reception, prayer for their gospel growth, and a clear description of Christ’s person and work. The redeemed have Christ living within them. It’s the mystery revealed, the hope of glory. In Christ, all treasures of wisdom and knowledge are hidden. In Him, the redeemed are matured. This is especially important for disciples in Colossae to embrace as false teaching abounds.

Colossians 2:6-7 is a sentence explaining the life and growth of a Christ-follower. The imperative given is a Greek word translated as walk or live in English. Paul’s argument is shaped by a clear command to walk in Christ.

Walking is active by nature, involving numerous muscles and bones. Walking is intentional by nature. It takes you in a certain direction. The spiritual walk Paul argues for is an active pursuit in the right direction. It’s the same walk Paul refers to in Romans 6:4, when he writes, “We were buried therefore with him [Christ] by baptism into death, in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life.”

Walking in new life is Paul’s plea for the Colossians. He loves them. He rejoices in their salvation. And he doesn’t want them to be swayed by heretical teaching.

The redeemed in Christ must keep walking. What does it mean to walk in Christ?

To walk in Christ is to be established in faith.

The Colossian believers have faith in Christ (1:4), and they’re instructed to “continue in the faith, stable and steadfast” (1:23). Paul rejoices in the firmness of their faith (2:5). In verse 7, he says they are rooted in Christ and “established in the faith.”

The author of Hebrews describes faith as “the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen” (11:1). It’s impossible to please God without faith (11:6). It’s by grace through faith in Christ that one is saved (Ephesians 2:8).

The concept of being established or rooted evokes images of strength and stability. Just as a tree stands with deep roots or a house sits on a concrete foundation, so believers find solid ground in Christ by faith. In His famous sermon, Jesus says, “Everyone then who hears these words of mine and does them will be like a wise man who built his house on the rock” (Matthew 7:24).

Walking in Christ means walking on a strong foundation of faith.

Growing up along the Ohio River, it was common to find sheets of ice on its surface in the winter. Apparently, there was a time in the 1940s and 1970s when the Ohio River was frozen with ice so thick that people could walk across it. But apart from rare occurrences like those, it’s a dangerous idea to walk on river ice. Not only is it slippery and unstable, but at any moment, the ice can break.

Thankfully, walking in Christ isn’t like walking on sheets of ice. It’s much more stable. It’s eternally secure. This rooted, established experience comes by faith in Christ. And it’s essential for believers to withstand false teaching and grow in godliness. Paul knows this, so he encourages the Colossians to live from a place of security—firm, rooted, and established faith in Christ.

To walk in Christ is to be expansively fruitful.

While Paul tells the Colossian believers to be rooted and established in faith, he doesn’t tell them to be passive and stagnant.

He celebrates how the gospel is “bearing fruit and increasing” among them (1:6). He prays for them to “walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing to him: bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God” (1:10). In 2:7, he says they are “built up” in Christ. It’s the same concept communicated in Jude 20, which says, “But you, beloved, building yourselves up in your most holy faith and praying in the Holy Spirit.” In other words, there’s something being built on the foundation of faith. There’s growth. There’s fruitfulness.

Jesus uses the imagery of a plant in John 15:4-5. He says,

“Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in me. I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing.”

To walk in Christ means to grow. It means to be fruitful. But it comes from being rooted and established in Christ by faith. From a steady foundation, our faith expands. Our fruitfulness expands. Just as a tree grows stronger as the roots go deeper, our pursuit of Christ results in an expansion of our faith and fruitfulness for God’s glory.

In the face of false teaching, Paul wants the Colossian believers to understand that they never get past the gospel. They never grow out of it. Instead, they keep walking in it. An expansion is taking place. Christlikeness is built on established faith in Christ. Fruitfulness comes from deep roots.

Andrew Murray once said, “Apply this, your experience in coming to Jesus, to the abiding in him. By faith you became partakers of the initial grace; by that same faith you can enjoy the continuous grace of abiding in him.”

To walk in Christ is to be excessively thankful.

The gratitude Paul has for the Colossian believers is clear. He says, “We always thank God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, when we pray for you” (1:3). He prays for them to give thanks to God for granting them redemption (1:12). And considering the walk Paul describes for them in 2:7, he ends by telling them to abound in thanksgiving.

Abound is a present, active verb getting at the idea of excessiveness. Paul tells them to be excessively thankful as they walk in Christ—despite the heretical teaching surrounding them. Notice he doesn’t tell them to be excessive in the heresy itself. The point isn’t to know every heresy in detail as if that’s going to keep one faithful. The point is to know Christ so deeply and grow in Him so passionately that a heresy has little chance to seduce or sway.

The person and work of Jesus should stir hearts in excessive gratitude. In the first part of his letter, Paul presents a gloriously beautiful Christology (1:15-20). The eternal Son has come in the flesh, reconciling sinners to the Father through His blood on the cross. Through this reconciliation, sinners who repent and believe are presented “holy and blameless and above reproach before him” (v. 22). The risen Christ is coming again one day. Believers have every reason to be excessively thankful.

In chapter 3, Paul reminds the Colossian believers that while they once walked and lived in sin (v. 7), they now walk and live in Christ. Although this walk is hard at times, it’s full of joy and hope. Excessive thanksgiving characterizes it.

Apply

Believers today are, like the Colossian believers, called to walk in Christ. Like them, we live in a difficult and deceptive world. Like them, we’re surrounded by heretical teaching. The gospel that came to Colossae has come to us. It’s time for us to live it out as Paul instructs the believers there.

Remember what you were taught about Christ

Just as the Colossians are told to remember what they were taught concerning Christ, so must we. In a world full of unbiblical teachings and ungodly influences, we must hold on to what we know to be true about Christ. The Spirit has a vital role in this.

As believers, the Spirit lives within us. The Bible describes the Spirit as a comforter who points believers to Christ and guides believers in truth. The Spirit convicts and empowers. The Spirit works in believers for growth in godliness.

As Spirit-filled believers, let’s remember what we’ve been taught about Christ, allowing Him to shape our lives.

Trust God to expand your faith and fruitfulness in this season

As we walk in Christ, let’s surrender ourselves more and more to Him. We’re established in the faith by His grace. The foundation is solid. But we’re still being built. Expansion is happening. God is making us more and more like Jesus. We call it sanctification.

How is God expanding your faith in this season? What areas of your life are you learning to let go of? What is God teaching you through the difficulties, discouragements, and distractions?

How is God expanding your fruitfulness in this season? Perhaps He is using the challenges you face today to prepare you for something ahead. Is there a step He is calling you to take? Maybe He is calling you to commit, to serve, or to study. Who in your life today needs a relationship with Christ? Is He calling you to go somewhere else and engage people with the gospel?

As a believer, God desires to use you on mission for His glory.

Thank God more today than you did yesterday

The redeemed of the Lord have many reasons to be excessively thankful.

We’re all excessive about some things in our daily lives. Some excessively consume sugar, others excessively watch reels. Some excessively check Facebook, others excessively check a bank account.

Each day is a new opportunity to be excessively and increasingly thankful for Jesus and what He has accomplished for us. No matter what we face, we must keep walking in Christ. No struggle or heresy is greater than Him. No sickness or pain is stronger than Him.

So, let’s put one foot in front of the other, one day at a time, and keep walking.

Pray

Father, we praise you for sending Christ that we might receive Him by faith, and through Him, have a relationship with you. As we grow in Christ, expand our faith and fruitfulness for your glory and our good. As we tell others about Him, open deaf ears and soften hard hearts. And through it all, let us be excessively thankful in the gospel, not swayed by the winds of false teaching and worldliness. In the name of Jesus, Amen.