Pastor’s Corner: “Tall Trees and Deep Roots”
Colossians 2:6-7 (NLT) – 6 And now, just as you accepted Christ Jesus as your Lord, you must continue to follow him.7 Let your roots grow down into him, and let your lives be built on him. Then your faith will grow strong in the truth you were taught, and you will overflow with thankfulness.
A tree must have at least one deep taproot to keep the water coming to the rest of its branches. If it does not, at times of drought, the tree will die. The same is true for you and me.
We see this all the time in the church. People put their faith in Christian leaders that they look up to and have blessed them. They put them on a pedestal, doing what they do, and looking to them to help steer their spiritual lives. This person might even be a great Christian author, preacher, or speaker. But ultimately, when the person they have put their faith in stumbles and falls or disappoints them, many become disenchanted or confused and crushed in their faith. The devil would prefer we fix our eyes on a person rather than Christ because then he can quickly snatch our faith away.
Putting our faith in a person only develops shallow roots. When a drought or storm comes we either dry up and fall away or we cannot hold on in the storm. We must be careful of this and we must encourage those in our lives not to put us or anyone else on a pedestal in this way. Why? Because we are all imperfect and need Christ. You were never meant to put your faith in people.
An important part of building deep roots in your relationship with God is deciding to trust Him. Jeremiah 17:7-8 (NLT) – 7 “But blessed are those who trust in the Lord and have made the Lord their hope and confidence. 8 They are like trees planted along a riverbank, with roots that reach deep into the water. Such trees are not bothered by the heat or worried by long months of drought. Their leaves stay green, and they never stop producing fruit.
Growing closer to Jesus: We should never stop growing as Christians. Our lives should go deeper in our knowledge of Christ and grow closer in our relationship to him. It is both an upward and downward work. If you imagine a tree, it is continuously growing towards the sun and sending its roots deeper into the ground. Both serve a purpose in the health of the tree.
Reaching Upwards: Reach upward towards Christ. We want to get closer to him so that we can live in Him. This happens when we pray. Our communication with the Lord is essential to our life in Him. We need to talk to Him on a daily basis. We also need to trust Him. He has our best interests in his heart and leads us on the best path. Just as a tree grows upwards we want to stretch towards the life-giving Son.
Going Deeper: Next, we need to establish a healthy root system. This happens as we draw from the water of the word. The Bible is our daily food. It’s where we go for instruction and wisdom for daily life. Neglecting it starves our soul and recedes our growth. Are You Nourished? Some people eat all the time but are not healthy. They eat, but because they eat junk food, they are weak and sickly. What are you eating? The more we put Jesus and His Words into our heart, the deeper our roots go. That may not seem significant, but the next time a storm blows through your life you will be thankful for a deep root system.
If we are growing, we are reproducing: You don’t have to force an apple tree to give apples. It just does because it is a living apple tree. You do not have to trick it or beg it to give you apples. It does it naturally if it is alive. Anything that is alive reproduces. Have you reproduced the life of God inside you and given it to someone else? Are you bearing good fruit? Some Christians try to convince you and make you feel obligated to share the gospel with other people. But the fact is that if you really have that LIFE burning inside you, you will not be able to keep it to yourself. Jesus said, “I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit…” (John 15:5).
In His Grace,
Pastor Hamilton