Are You Serious?

Serious.  A word that seems like it has gotten bad rap in recent times.  We warn people to not be “so serious” or that they are “too serious.” We find that being serious is only something we want in moderation.  When we look at a job, a relationship, even those who have had the difficult task of finding a new church to worship in they are looking for a “not-so-serious” aspect.  We want serious…but not too serious.  I get that, but what has happened to the virtue of being serious?  Are we just defining the word “serious” differently that we used to in previous generations?  Have we lost the genuine quality of being serious?  When did it become such a negative?  Have you noticed that there are people that just refuse to be serious at any time?

To be serious means to be sober and devoted.  To be serious, a person is thoughtful or they are subdued in appearance or manner. To be serious sometimes means that it takes much thought or work according to one definition.  But what I think the Message Bible is getting at in it’s paraphrase of Colossians 3:1 is that being serious relates to matters of importance. How important is the Kingdom?  How important are the things over which Christ presides?  How serious should we be about these things?  Listen, I am not talking about becoming an out-of-balanced zealot that never has any fun or the “Piety Police” who are always turning light-hearted moments into depressing overtures.  I am talking about understanding there is a time and a place for everything.  Ecclesiates 3:1 says, “There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under the heavens.”  Verse 4 tells us that there is “a time to weep and a time to laugh, a time to mourn and a time to dance.”  We can be lighthearted when it is time to be lighthearted but we have to be serious when it is time to be serious.

It is not so important to be serious as it is to be serious about important things.  – Robert M. Hutchins

Look at that quote again:  It is not so important to be serious as it is to be serious about important things.  What is important to the believer in Christ? Colossians chapter 3 begins the solution that the apostle Paul is giving to the church concerning the errors they were seeing take place.  They were caught up in philosophies that were deceiving the people, ceremonialism, angel worship, fleshly indulgences, as well as human wisdom that was not benefitting their spiritual lives in Christ.  Paul then says , So if you’re serious about living this new resurrection life with Christ, act like it. The Colossian church had become serious about science, philosophy, and angelology.  It wasn’t that there was not a seriousness taking place it was that they were serious about the wrong things.

This is our generation in a nut shell.  We are serious about baseball statistics and we know the scores, news, and highlights about all our favorite teams and players.  We can quote movies and sit-coms but not the Word of God with the same detail. We know the lives of Hollywood actors, but not of the prophets.  We are serious about song lyrics of our favorite rap artist, but we don’t know the Psalms.  We are serious about our hobbies and the things that have our attention, but what happened to being serious about the things that Christ presides over?

Let’s understand that God loves us to have fun and the joy of the Lord is our strength.  We can get serious about joy! We should be serious about living the abundant life of Christ! We should be serious about having peace in our heart and about loving what God loves!

Christ presides (sits as a chairman) over kingdom things.  He presides over the virtues, principles and promises of God.  So, to be serious about what He is serious about, creates the life and fullness that He wants for our life.  Are you serious!?  May our answer be: Yes, I am very serious!