Rid Yourselves

Colossians 3 cont’d:

But now you must also rid yourselves of all such things as these: anger, rage, malice, slander, and filthy language from your lips.  Do not lie to each other, since you have taken off your old self with its practices and have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge in the image of its Creator.

We have here  more instructions on what to rid out of our lives.

It’s interesting to note that anger, rage, and malice are listed first and then the fruits (rotten, stinky ones) that result from these seeds are slander and filthy language.  Most cursing occurs when anger or rage rises up.  And we only slander those whom we hate or have malice towards.  Finally, filthy language is more than just a few bad words…it’s talking trash…and those words need to be tossed.  Lying follows in the next verse, and we are told simply not to lie.

When we profess to be a follower of Christ, it means we are dead to our old sinful ways and alive in Him.

In fact, we are “renewed” in “knowledge.”

The only way to put away these things that come from our flesh is to put on the things that come from the Spirit.

We cannot do one without the other.  In other words, if we don’t walk in the Spirit, we WILL continue in the flesh. 

It's that simple.