“So then, just as you received Christ Jesus as Lord, continue to live your lives in him, rooted and built up in him, strengthened in the faith as you were taught, and overflowing with thankfulness” (Colossians 2:5-7).

“Rooted” is a passive verb which means something is done to us by God. Roots provide continuous nourishment for a plant and when we are rooted in Christ we are given a constant source of nourishment and strength from our relationship with Him. Salvation isn’t just an event it is a continuing process that will supply us with all we need for the rest of our lives.

It is what Jesus described in the Gospel of John. “Remain in me, as I also remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me. I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing” (John 15:4-5). I used to read that as “apart from me you can’t do much.” That isn’t what it says. Jesus said “apart from me you can do nothing.”

There is good news in that statement. We as believers don’t live apart from Him. We are connected to His inexhaustible resources and our fruitfulness is guaranteed. Paul wanted the Colossians to know that our success is totally related to the fact that we remain in Christ. Don’t allow false teachers and philosophies of men to break that connection with Him.

There is another description of our lives in Christ. Paul adds an expression that describes our life in Christ. We are built up. That pictures a continuous process. When we place our faith in Christ we are rooted in Him. He will continually work in us to make us what He knew we could be when He first created us. He will continually build us up until He completes what He began when we first believed in Jesus.