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Put To Death Your Earthly Nature
Brian Mashburn
July 1, 2012
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Why Such Strong Language?
In the ancient civilization if someone wanted to overthrow a King from his reign, they would not do anything as tame as imprison or banish that King.
They would kill that leader.
What's more, they would kill every single person in that leader's family, no matter how distant the relation was. Why?
Because they didn't want any future trouble from anyone in that family claiming to have a "right" to the throne. They didn't want anyone or anything infringing on the new reign of the new King.
Paul is equally dramatic in his insistence that Christians completely "dethrone" their old way of doing things, and every single behavior remotely associated with those old ways, for Christ. He says, "Put to death, therefore, whatever belongs to your earthly nature." (Col 3:5)
He doesn't say tone your earthly nature down a bit. He doesn't say make a slow transition out of your earthly nature. He doesn't say indulge your earthly nature in moderation. He says to mortify it.
Put it to death.
For all of our talk about avoiding extremes, I wonder: Have you ever tried the extreme approach to changing your life?