In St. Paul’s letter to the Colossians, we read, “Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, singing psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs, with thankfulness in your hearts to God” (3:16). This command of St. Paul was directed toward those Christians at Colossae, but is a very timely message for every Christian for all time. It is perennially the task of the Christian to allow the Word of God to penetrate ever more deeply into the recesses of the soul. What this looks like is not some abstract “moving and coming” into the depth of the heart, but rather, a changed and transformed life.
When the Word of Christ dwells in us richly, our actions take the mold of the life of Jesus and we begin to look like him. Our thoughts, feelings, and desires take on the shape of the thoughts, feelings, and desires of Jesus himself. We begin to want to serve others in the way he wants us to serve others. We begin to act in the way he acts in the world, and in doing so, we truly become what we are meant to be as “members of his body” (Ephesians 5:30).
This transformation occurs in very concrete ways. When St. Paul calls the Colossians to “let the word of Christ dwell in [them] richly,” he isn’t simply asking them to think about Jesus coming inside of them. He is asking them to allow the life of Christ to be lived over again in them – in their actions, thoughts, and lives – by intentionally changing their lives.
St. Paul mentions a few of the ways that Christ’s own life can begin to be lived in ours. He mentions “psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs” as one of the ways. Praying and singing the Psalms has always been a fundamental way for Christians to take on the mind of Christ. These are the prayers inspired by the Holy Spirit to lead us into the heart of God. Because of that, the more we repeat the words of the Psalms with our voices and in our minds, the more our minds and bodies take on the mind of God. We could say the same about any part of the scriptures, but for reaching the heart and mind of God, the Psalms and canticles of scripture truly hold the pride of place. The repetition of the Psalms teaches us to think like Jesus.
St. Paul also mentions teaching and admonishing one another. As we teach our faith, whether to our children, our peers, our elders, or those entrusted to us, we become more attentive to the truths of our faith. As we admonish those who are doing wrong, it actually causes us to be more attentive to our own moral life. Living the moral life is a primary way that we take the Word of God into our lives and hearts.
Finally, St. Paul counsels the Colossians to let the Word of God dwell in them richly by living in thanksgiving. Gratitude is that attitude of the heart that recognizes that all we have received is a gift, and it becomes a prayer when we recognize that it is a gift from God. This recognition leads us to speak out in prayer, whether out loud or in our hearts, to God himself and thank him. Entering into this relationship with God our Father is a way of joining Jesus in his eternal thanksgiving to the Father for the gift of his very being (an eternal gift in the relations of the Trinity that we share through adoption).
On this Word of God Sunday, we remember that that Word has come and dwelt among us. He teaches us the way to the Father, and he desires to dwell in us richly. We see that this indwelling is no abstract reality, but a very real and concrete transformation of our lives from a life lived outside of a relationship with the Father to one where we begin to think, feel, desire, and act as the Word of God himself does, as a member of his body on earth. May the Lord strengthen us in our union with him, and may he dwell in us ever more richly. Amen!