Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom; teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord. Colossians 3:16
One of our school teachers told us that people who live together tend to become like each other, and eventually, will even begin to look like each other. I am not certain that this is true, although I have lived long enough to know that in many cases, it is true. I have seen many elderly couples who think alike, who appreciate the same things, who have similar tastes in food and clothing, and who develop similar attitudes in many areas of their lives. Maybe that’s why our text today instructs us to allow the Word of Christ to dwell in us: that we might become more like Christ. Here is a list of things that the Word does for us: it enlightens us, it nourishes us, it quenches our thirst, it washes us, builds us up, and strengthens us, it completes and perfects us, and it edifies. If it will do all that for us, we should allow it to dwell in us richly! How do we allow the Word to do that for us?
First, we feed on the Word. We spend time in God’s presence, meditating on portions of the Word, allowing their treasures to permeate our soul and lift our spirit into greater appreciation of the Word and its Author. Frequent and consistent feeding on the Word will allow it to dwell with us richly.
So will reading the Word, exploring the Book by reading each of its 66 books until we are familiar with each one. The better we know our Bible, the better we will be able to allow it to dwell in us richly.
Another way in which we can allow the Word to dwell in us richly is to sing it, and sing about it, as our text declares. Not all of us are blessed with wonderful voices, but we are all able to sing a little. And we can certainly listen to others sing and to participate in hymn sings. Our Bible – in particular the King James Version – is written in majestic and uplifting English that resonates a reverence and an appreciation for the God Who gave it to us. Singing the Psalms is good for our soul, as is singing about the Word of God and about its great truths. There is practically none of that in the modern Christian music, but singing and listening to the grand old hymns of our faith will always do us good.
Do we talk to other Christians about the Word of God? Certainly we do in our Assembly Bible readings. But we should not limit it to that. Our most precious conversations with other saints will always be those times when we share our thoughts about the Scriptures. No sweeter fellowship can we know than feeding together on the Word of God, allowing it to dwell in us richly.
Would we become more like our Lord? Then let His Word dwell in us richly. – Jim MacIntosh