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. (Colossians 2:7)
On this Thanksgiving Day, I am struck by the description of thanks-giving here in Colossians 2 by the Apostle Paul. He mentions overflowing thankfulness. Abundant. Generous. Free-flowing! Not inhibited. How do we get to that point? How do we break out of ‘polite amount of thankfulness’, or ‘perfunctory thankfulness’, or a sort of ‘expected thankfulness’, the kind you express when someone hands you a glass of water, though you aren’t particularly thirsty, but it’s a nice gesture. You are thankful to receive it, but you are not particularly taken by it, and will soon forget it.
Paul describes how we reach that point of overflowing thankfulness towards God (and note that this is not thankfulness to a person for an act of kindness, but towards God for what He’s done). First, we take intentional action to grow in Christ. We plant our lives, so to speak, firmly in Him. Our roots go down deeply. We are not in surface relationship with him, or a nodding relationship, but we are rooted in him.
This idea of ‘root’ is a foundation-building word. Deep into the soil. Not easily moved. Established.
He adds that we are to build our lives on him. Again this is intentional action. We are neither going our own way, nor setting our roots into another nor being built up in any other person. I think of it this way with the planting and growth imagery in this verse: we seek to become deeply established in him. In effect, that is a downward motion, if you will. One of foundation building. And then we grow ‘up’ into him, in that our lives are built on him. So, I think of a beautiful, hearty, healthy plant: one that has an excellent root system, and what we see above ground, the part that is ‘built’, is the part we admire and enjoy.
Once rooted and built, then our trust in Jesus and belief in Him will increase. Once that happens, the result is an overflowing thankfulness. Why? Because as we enter into this kind of deep, growing, intimate relationship, we realize more and more who he is, what he has done, what he can do, and what his plans are for his people, his family members. One thing that especially happens is that we are taught truth from him—and since we are rooted and built in him, we are able to discern what is truth coming from him and what is error coming from elsewhere. The result then is that our faith grows strong.
The result of a strong faith? Paul identifies it as overflowing thankfulness. It’s not a trickle. It’s not a token amount of thankfulness. It’s abundant, full, spills-all-over-the-place, can’t-contain-it kind of thankfulness. Why? Our belief and trust in Jesus is solid. Not built on wishes or ‘maybes’ but built on Him, the one with the perfect track record. The one who can be depended on in all circumstances.
During the Thanksgiving weekend, members of my wife’s dad’s side of the family gather for an annual reunion. In addition to the scrumptious feast, and touch football game in the host’s backyard, we usually conclude by taking time to share with each other and update as a group on life’s developments over the previous 12 months since we last met. It’s not unusual in that sharing to hear reports of Overflowing Thanks. Despite the normal ups and down of life, we can look back and see how God has been good to us, and we rejoice together as a family!
Here’s the summary of this meditation: as our lives are established on Jesus, and we get to know Him better and better, and trust Him more and more, we realize that He is without equal. That He is exactly who He says He is. That He will do what He says He will do. And the logical outcome of this relationship is that we overflow, more and more, with thanksgiving to Him.
Simple question: are you rooted and built on Jesus? If the answer is yes, then what is your ‘thankfulness gauge’? Does it record a minimal amount of activity, or is it overflowing? And, are you part of a group where that is being expressed?
“Father, thank you for the privilege of being rooted in Jesus, and built up in Him. Help us to be aware of how he is caring for us daily, and blessing us beyond all we can ask or think. Then, let our level of thanks come to a point of automatically overflowing as we are taught his truth and as we draw near to Him by faith.”
Freddy Boswell 