Seek Him, Slay Sin, Show Jesus

Series: All to Jesus  |  Passage: Colossians 3:1-11  |  Preacher: Dr. Shaun Miles

The book of Colossians keeps coming back to one all-consuming idea: Jesus is worthy of everything. He is worthy of all our worship and all our obedience because of who He is and because of what He has done for us. In Colossians 3, Paul turns a corner. After spending the first two chapters establishing the supremacy of Christ — His workmanship, His salvation, His total sufficiency — he now presses a single, practical truth home: because your life is in Jesus, it should be seen by the way you live.

Paul wrote this letter, likely from prison around the late A.D. 50s, into a culture that pressured believers to conform — a swirl of false teaching, Jewish legalism, mystic and angel worship, human philosophy, and harsh self-denial. The false teachers claimed believers needed something more than Christ to be spiritually complete. Paul’s answer is unwavering: Christ is enough. And because Christ is enough, our lives are free to show it.

1. Seek Him (Colossians 3:1-4)

“If you have been raised up with Christ…” Paul’s “if” is not a hypothetical — it is a settled fact. (The NIV even renders it “since.”) Because your identity is in the risen Christ, you keep seeking the things above where Christ is seated. This is not a one-time event but a daily pursuit. Paul draws out three responses: seek Him (a passionate, ongoing hunger to know Him), set your mind on things above (establish your thinking on righteousness, holiness, peace, love, and joy), and savor the truth that your life is now hidden with Christ in God. You are not only supernaturally saved — you are supernaturally kept until the day He is revealed, and you with Him.

2. Slay Sin (Colossians 3:5-7)

Paul’s language here is far stronger than “consider” suggests. The verb carries the force of put to death — the Latin Vulgate rendered it mortifico, “to mortify.” Believers are called to deliberately slaughter immorality, impurity, evil desire, and greed (which Paul says becomes idolatry). This is not legalism and it is not a license to sin; it is the loving call of the One who redeemed us. We cannot keep “pet sins” around and assume they are harmless.

Like a yard choked by invasive roots beneath the surface, sin has to be dug up at the root — not just mowed over — so the gospel can flourish and the character of Christ can grow.

3. Show Jesus (Colossians 3:8-11)

“But now” — because of what Christ has done — believers put aside anger, wrath, malice, slander, and abusive speech, and refuse to lie to one another. Why? Because we have laid aside the old self and put on the new self, “who is being renewed to a true knowledge according to the image of the One who created him.” That knowledge is not mere information; it is intimate, relational, experiential. We were created in the image of God; sin distorted that image (it did not lessen our value — Christ paid full price for us). In Christ, the distorted image is being restored. The more we walk with Him, the more we look like Him, sound like Him, and show Him to our generation.

A Closing Takeaway

Belonging to Christ comes with a glad expectation, not a way to earn salvation. We don’t slay sin to be loved — we slay sin because we are loved, rescued, and redeemed. Three practical steps frame the response: starve the temptation (identify the triggers, cut off access, change your environment), shift your mindset (know that sin is what slaughtered Jesus), and stay dependent on the Holy Spirit day by day through His Word and His presence. That is the heart of “All to Jesus” — a heavenly pursuit, an eternal perspective, and a holy practice that shows Him to the world.

Small-Group Discussion Questions

1. Paul says the “if” of “if you have been raised with Christ” is really a settled fact about your identity. How does knowing who you are in Christ change the way you approach obedience?
2. What does it look like, practically, to “set your mind” on the things above in an ordinary week? Where does your mind tend to drift instead?
3. Dr. Miles described “pet sins” we keep around because they seem harmless — like a wild animal we’ve tried to domesticate. What “pet sin” might you be feeding, and what would it mean to slay it at the root rather than just mow it over?
4. The new self is “being renewed… according to the image of the One who created him.” Where have you seen God restoring His image in you over time?
5. Of the three steps — starve the temptation, shift your mindset, stay dependent on the Holy Spirit — which one do you most need to lean into right now, and what is one concrete next step?