As ye have therefore received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk ye in him: rooted and built up in Him.…
— Colossians 2:6,7

After my family would purchase our Christmas tree and bring it home each year, we’d face the same challenge every other family did — that is, how to get the tree to stand straight and to stay green for as long as possible. Because the tree had been cut from its roots, it had no nourishing life source to keep it vibrant, so something had to be done to keep it looking fresh and green.

Like millions of other fathers, my dad purchased a tree stand for our big fir tree. It was a red metal bowl with four green legs connected to a round metal ring at the top, and it had four bolts that went through the metal ring.

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The round ring at the top could be adjusted to fit the width of the tree trunk, and my dad would insert the tree through the metal ring and center it so that the tree stood upright. Next, dad would tighten those four bolts into the tree from four directions so it would stand firmly and straight. Once he decided exactly where to set the tree in the living room, he’d set it in its place and pour water into the basin of the tree stand so the tree would have a water source to keep it looking lush and green. Every day or so, we had to refill that basin because the tree kept soaking up the water. If we forgot to do it, the tree would begin to dry up and the needles would become brittle and start turning brown.

Our beloved Christmas tree was basically a dead tree that we artificially kept looking beautiful by pouring water into the basin. Because it had been chopped from its roots, it had no natural source to keep it alive. Thank God, we as believers are not like Christmas trees, which are chopped off at the roots, fragile, and artificially kept alive. We are rooted in Christ and firmly established in Him. We are told in Colossians 2:6 and 7, “As ye have therefore received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk ye in him: Rooted and built up in Him….”

Unlike chopped-off Christmas trees, we believers are “rooted” in Christ, and we are “built up” in Him. The word “rooted” is the Greek word erridzomeno, the perfect passive participle of ridzoo. The word ridzoo means to be firmly rooted or fixed into place, like a tree that is deeply rooted and therefore immovable. It points to a past completed action, performed at the moment of repentance, with continuing results of salvation. The words “built up” in Him are from the Greek word epoikodomoumenoi, the present passive participle of epoikodomeo. This word depicts something that grows upward and is built on a strong, solid foundation — just like a tree’s root structure that holds the tree firmly in place and provides the tree with a constant stream of nourishment.

Today people purchase artificial trees as well, and although these decorations are beautiful, they are utterly lifeless. They are repackaged year after year into boxes and then pulled out each Christmas season, looking just as they looked during the previous Christmas season.

This isn’t the way it is for us who are in Christ. God doesn’t want us just to look like Christians, “artificial” and “packaged” but dull in our hearts toward Him. And He doesn’t want us to live “brittle and dry” as though we’ve been cut off from Him as our source of life. That’s why we must maintain our connection to Him, continually drawing our nourishment and life from Him. To that end, God commands us to focus on rooting ourselves deeply in Him so we can then be “built up” in Him. This can only happen as we regularly commune with the Lord in the Word and in prayer, allowing Him to refresh us continually with the waters of His Spirit that we need to stay alive and vibrant.

So in the midst of the busy Christmas season, don’t forget the most important thing of all — taking time to stop and honestly evaluate your walk with the Lord. Ask yourself today: What steps am I taking to stay connected to my root Source so I can keep receiving a fresh, daily infilling of the Holy Spirit?

MY PRAYER FOR TODAY

Father, I refuse to be beautiful but lifeless, having a form of godliness but denying the power that only comes through a vital connection with my Life Source, Jesus Christ. Holy Spirit, I ask You to reveal to me how I can let my roots grow down deeper into Him in every way. Please help me remain deeply connected to Jesus by hearing, receiving, loving, and obeying His Word so my roots will grow down deep into Him. And as I become more deeply rooted in Christ, I thank You for helping me flourish and remain vibrant in every season of life.

I pray this in Jesus’ name!

 

MY CONFESSION FOR TODAY


I confess that I put my roots deep into Christ and that His presence fills me with everything I need to be refilled and “reflourished” so I keep growing outward and upward as a Christian. I ask You, Holy Spirit, to assist me in remaining rooted and built up in Jesus Christ. I refuse to allow any event in life to cause me to behave as if I’ve been cut off from my roots in Christ Jesus. With my root structure based firmly in Him, I will continue to flourish as a growing Christian!

I declare this by faith in Jesus’ name!

 

QUESTIONS FOR YOU TO CONSIDER

  1. How are you sending your roots deeper and deeper into Christ? Are you drawing your strength and resources from being rooted in Him?
  2. What is the evidence that manifests in your life that you are rooted and grounded in Christ?
  3. How can you tell if a believer is no longer drawing his or her life support from being rooted in Christ? What are specific indicators?