How We Doing?
- Jul 17
- 4 min read
Pop Quiz: How Are You Really Doing?
Nobody likes pop quizzes.
They're unexpected. They reveal what we've actually learned—not just what we've heard. They test whether the information has become part of us or if it simply passed through our minds for a moment.
As we wrapped up Colossians chapter 3, Paul gives believers what could be described as a spiritual pop quiz.
Over the past several months, we've walked through fourteen sermons in Colossians. We've been encouraged to read it, memorize it, and allow God's Word to shape our lives. Scripture isn't meant to simply fill our minds with knowledge—it is meant to transform the way we live.
The real question is:
When life catches us off guard, do we react like everyone else, or do we respond like someone who has been raised with Christ?
That's the test.
Question One: How Is My Peace?
Paul begins with these words:
"And let the peace of God rule in your hearts..." (Colossians 3:15)
Notice the phrase "let."
Peace isn't forced upon us.
God invites us to allow His peace to become the ruling authority in our hearts.
The word Paul uses carries the idea of an umpire or referee—someone who has the authority to make the final call.
Every day we choose what will rule our hearts.
Will fear make the call?
Will anxiety make the call?
Will anger or resentment make the call?
Or will we allow the peace of Christ to have the final word?
That raises an honest question:
On a scale of one to ten, how would you rate your personal peace?
Peace with God
Everything begins here.
Have you trusted Christ as your Savior?
Real peace isn't found in circumstances. It begins with reconciliation to God through Jesus Christ.
Peace with Others
Paul is writing to the church.
He knows believers will disappoint one another.
Relationships will become strained.
Conflict will happen.
The question isn't whether disagreements come.
The question is whether we'll fight for relationships instead of fighting against one another.
Sometimes the most spiritual thing we can do is have a difficult conversation filled with grace and truth.
If holding onto bitterness costs you your peace, it's simply too expensive.
Peace Within
Paul ends the verse with another command:
"...and be thankful."
Thankfulness is rarely our first reaction.
But it can become our chosen response.
Matthew Henry once reflected after being robbed:
"Let me be thankful because I was never robbed before; because though he took my purse, he did not take my life; because though he took all I possessed, it was not much; and because I was robbed, and not I who robbed."
What an incredible perspective.
The amount of peace we experience is often directly connected to the amount of trust we place in God.
Question Two: How Am I Growing?
Paul continues:
"Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly..." (Colossians 3:16)
The word "dwell" means to make itself at home.
God's Word isn't meant to be an occasional visitor.
It's meant to become a permanent resident.
So another question naturally follows:
On a scale of one to ten, how would you rate your spiritual growth?
Are you consistently reading Scripture?
Attending church?
Studying God's Word personally?
Participating in a small group where you can grow alongside other believers?
Knowledge alone isn't the goal.
Transformation is.
Every time we open God's Word, we should ask:
"How does this change the way I live today?"
Worship Shapes Our Hearts
Paul also reminds believers to sing together.
Corporate worship isn't simply the music before the sermon.
It teaches us.
It encourages us.
It reminds us of what is true.
It lifts our eyes above our circumstances and redirects our attention back to Christ.
God designed His people to worship together because He knows we need one another.
Question Three: How Is My Surrender?
Paul closes the chapter with one of the most comprehensive commands in all of Scripture:
"Whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus..." (Colossians 3:17)
Notice the word whatever.
There are no exceptions.
No hidden categories.
No situations where Jesus doesn't matter.
Everything we say.
Everything we do.
Everything becomes an opportunity to reflect Christ.
That makes this final question deeply personal:
On a scale of one to ten, how surrendered is my life to Jesus?
Sometimes we're not the best judges of ourselves.
It may even be helpful to ask someone who knows us well:
Would you say my words reflect Jesus?
Would you say my actions reflect Jesus?
Would you describe me as someone marked by gratitude?
Those questions can be uncomfortable.
But they can also become powerful tools for growth.
The Goal Isn't Perfection
By the end of this kind of self-evaluation, it's easy to feel overwhelmed.
Maybe your numbers weren't as high as you hoped.
That's okay.
The purpose of Scripture isn't to discourage us.
It's to transform us.
God isn't interested in simply increasing our Bible knowledge.
He's making us more like Jesus.
The Holy Spirit empowers us to become what we could never become on our own.
Little by little.
Day by day.
One act of obedience at a time.
One Final Question
As the sermon came to a close, one final challenge remained.
Take a quiet moment before the Lord.
Ask Him honestly:
"Lord, what is one area You want me to improve?"
Not ten things.
Not an impossible list.
Just one next step.
Maybe it's choosing peace.
Maybe it's spending more time in God's Word.
Maybe it's becoming more faithful in worship.
Maybe it's surrendering an area you've been holding back.
Wherever He leads, remember this:
The Gospel isn't just the message that saves us.
It's the message that continues shaping us every day into the image of Christ.
So when the unexpected "pop quizzes" of life come—and they will—may they reveal hearts that are increasingly ruled by His peace, filled with His Word, and surrendered to His Lordship.
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