Christ at the Center: Living Beyond the Checklist

There's a profound difference between putting something first on your list and making it the center of everything you do. When we place Christ first, we acknowledge His authority at the start of our day. But when we place Christ at the center, we recognize that He is the foundation upon which our entire life is built.

Think about it this way: putting Christ first means He outranks everything else. But putting Christ at the center means everything revolves around Him. He's not just our top priority—He's our very identity.

The S'more Principle

Consider the humble s'more for a moment. When you eat a s'more, you don't consume the marshmallow first, then the graham cracker, then the chocolate as separate items. That would defeat the entire purpose. The marshmallow serves as the glue, binding everything together so that every single bite contains all three elements working in harmony.

This is how Christ should function in our lives. He's not a box to check off at the beginning of our day before moving on to "real life." He is meant to permeate every aspect of our existence—our marriages, our families, our friendships, our work, our hobbies, our finances, everything. When we say yes to Christ, we're saying yes to giving all of ourselves to Him for the rest of our lives.

The Ancient Struggle That Still Exists Today

The early church in Colossae faced a particular challenge that resonates powerfully with believers today. They were surrounded by a culture that promoted a belief system called Gnosticism—a philosophy that promised secret knowledge leading to spiritual perfection. It was an appealing mixture of Jewish rituals, Eastern mysticism, and the pursuit of spiritual experiences.

The danger wasn't that this teaching was obviously evil. The danger was that it looked like a deeper level of spirituality. It promised believers they could achieve perfect relationship with Christ through special knowledge and rituals. But it was leading them away from the simple, profound truth of the gospel.

Three specific dangers threatened that ancient church, and they threaten us still:

First, they elevated spiritual experience above biblical truth. How often do we hear someone say, "God told me to do this," even when it contradicts Scripture? The Word of God must be our foundation, not our feelings or experiences.

Second, they combined different religious systems together. They wanted Jesus plus astrology, Jesus plus mysticism, Jesus plus their own ideas. But the gospel doesn't work that way. It's not Jesus plus anything—it's Jesus, period.

Third, they downplayed the deity of Jesus. They saw Him as an iteration of the divine rather than God Himself. This battle continues today as various belief systems attempt to make Jesus merely a good teacher or enlightened person rather than the Son of God.

The Drift We Don't See Coming

We don't naturally drift toward correct theology. We drift away from it. That's why gathering together under the authority of God's Word is so essential.

Right teaching doesn't always result in right believing or right living. You can start your morning perfectly—Bible open, coffee in hand, worship music playing, heart full of gratitude. But then you get in the car, hit traffic, and suddenly that peace evaporates. Outside forces begin interfering with what we know to be true.

This is why Scripture functions like rumble strips on a highway. When you start drifting toward the edge of the road—toward the ditch on one side or oncoming traffic on the other—those rumble strips shake you awake and alert you to danger. God's Word does the same thing for our souls. The Holy Spirit uses Scripture to prick our hearts when we begin to veer off course, guiding us back to the path of life and blessing.

The Patience Problem

One of the most subtle temptations the Colossian church faced was impatience. They wanted spiritual perfection, and they wanted it now. The heresy they were tempted by promised them immediate results, instant spiritual maturity, perfect relationship with God through the right rituals and knowledge.

But spiritual growth doesn't work that way. Colossians 1:11 speaks of "being strengthened with all power according to his glorious might so that you may have great endurance and patience." The path of faith requires endurance. It requires patience. It requires trusting God's timing rather than demanding our own.

Many of our sinful earthly cravings are actually distorted longings for what God has freely promised to give us in heaven. Sin is often a shortcut attempt to steal what God has already promised to provide. We sin seeking satisfaction, but God promises complete satisfaction in eternity with Him. We sin trying to find belonging, but God has prepared a place for us. We sin attempting to numb pain, but God promises a day when there will be no more tears, no more sorrow.

As Charles Spurgeon once expressed, "A little faith will bring your soul to heaven, but a great faith will bring heaven to your soul." We can experience a taste of heaven's satisfaction here on earth through Christ—not the fullness we'll know in eternity, but enough to sustain us, enough to keep us from sin, enough to bring us joy.

From Darkness to Light

Perhaps the most powerful truth in this entire discussion comes from Colossians 1:13-14: "For he has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins."

The dominion of darkness doesn't always look dark. The enemy masquerades as an angel of light, making evil look like good things. The temptation to elevate money, comfort, success, or even family above God—these don't appear evil on the surface. But anything that takes God's rightful place becomes part of that dominion of darkness.

Sin promises joy, happiness, and pleasure, but it delivers destruction. It takes you farther than you want to go, keeps you longer than you want to stay, and costs you more than you want to pay.

But here's the gospel: God didn't just rescue us from a burning building. He placed us somewhere beautiful. He brought us into the kingdom of Christ. We're not just saved from destruction—we get to step into the fullness of joy. We get to be in Him forevermore.

The Invitation

Are you tired of the shame of sin? Tired of its bondage? Tired of its dominion over your life? The invitation stands open: repent, bend your knee to the lordship of Jesus, ask for forgiveness, and walk in the kingdom of Christ.

This isn't about adding Jesus to your life like another item on your to-do list. This is about making Him the center—the glue that holds everything together, present in every moment, every decision, every relationship, every breath.

When Christ is truly at the center, everything changes. Not because we've achieved perfection, but because we've found the One who is perfect and who promises to complete the good work He's begun in us.