A forest of quaking aspens in Utah is known by the name Pando, meaning, “I spread.”
It’s also called “the Trembling Giant.”
This is because all the trees in this 106-acre forest are genetically identical and are believed to have a single, combined root system.
In essence, this forest is a single tree with 40,000 trunks, each of which appears to be a separate tree from an above-ground perspective.
Colossians 2:7 reads:
“Let your roots grow down deep 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.”
This is the way it is in the Body of Christ. We are all rooted in Christ. The question we could ask is: “how deep are our roots?” In order for our roots to be deep in Him, 4 things need to be true:
1. We need the right source of nourishment, vs. 7a, “Let your roots grow down deep into Him.” We see here that Paul is using an agricultural term and the idea is that God has caused us to take root, with our roots dug deeply and firmly into the richness of Christ. The deeper our roots go in Christ, the more His life-giving strength will be manifested in and through us. May we sink ourselves deep in Christ, so we can move forward spiritually!
2. We need the right building material, vs. 7b, “and let your lives be built on Him.” Because we have been firmly rooted and are drawing our nourishment from Christ as our source of life, then we can go on to erecting the building. Christ is the sphere within which the building process goes on and He is the building material. The whole building process is done within the sphere of Christ’s life and power. We individually and as a body, are being brought, by Christ’s power, to higher and still higher ground in Him, as you would raise a building a tier at a time.
3. We need the right kind of faith, vs. 7c, “then your faith will grow strong in the truth you were taught.” We are to take advantage of every opportunity to be strengthened more and more with reference to our faith. It is a process and not something that takes place once and then we forget about it. We are strengthened in our faith the more we live in dependence on the Lord and His Word.
4. We need the right kind of spirit, vs. 7d, “and you will overflow with thankfulness.” If we have been deeply and firmly rooted and are in a process of being built up in Christ, and our faith is being strengthened, then we will become more and more grateful. We are to give thanks freely and continuously, as a way of life, like a river overflows its banks.
Trees that are not deeply rooted can dry up and die, may our roots grow deeply in Christ as our source of Life, so we can thrive in this life!
Blessings,
Pastor Ken Keeler