The church is to remain strong! – Colossians 3:11-17
The church is to remain strong! – Colossians 3:11-17
By Pastor Lee Hemen
February 23, 2020
One of things that many senior adults do not do is to get enough exercise in order to maintain their muscle tone and bone density in order to remain healthy. While the number of senior adults living longer has grown, those who live active and strong lives have not. Keeping oneself strong later in life is extremely important and the same is true for a church.
Paul wrote the church at Colossae between 60-62 AD while he was imprisoned in Rome the first time and one purpose was to correct the heresy that had sprung up in Colossae. This false teaching seemed to be the beginning of what later developed into Gnosticism. It contained specific characteristics. (1) It was Jewish stressing the need to observe Old Testament laws and ceremonies. (2) It was philosophical, laying emphasis on some special or deeper knowledge (gnōsis). (3) It involved the worship of angels. (4) It was exclusivistic whereby only the privileged and select few who adhered to it were prefect. (5) It was also Christological but denied the deity of Christ. In the face of this the church at Colossae needed to remain strong. Let’s see how…
READ: Colossians 3:11-17
Unity is more than a word; it is to be a way of life for the Christian. We experience unity first with God through Jesus. Jesus prayed that we would be one as he and God the Father are one and that “I in them and you in me. May they be brought to complete unity to let the world know that you sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me. (John 17:23 NIV)” We discover that…
I. Our church remains strong when it is unified! (Vv. 11-14)
Here there is no Greek or Jew, circumcised or uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave or free, but Christ is all, and is in all. Therefore, as God's chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. Bear with each other and forgive whatever grievances you may have against one another. Forgive as the Lord forgave you. And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity.
1. Paul reminded his readers that within the church “there is no Greek or Jew, circumcised or uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave or free, but Christ is all, and is in all”! Within the church, the body of Christ, there is no ethnicities. We are all brothers and sisters in the Lord. Non-Jewish believers, Jewish believers, and even those considered barbarians as bad as Scythians, those who owned slaves and those who were slaves were now in Jesus! Our church remains strong when it is unified! The outcome of faith in Jesus produced results and “Therefore, as God's chosen people, holy and dearly loved” people of God we are to “clothe” ourselves with the characteristics of Jesus. Those who know Jesus, his people who comprise his church, display his characteristics of “compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience”! These are nonnegotiable because Paul knew that anyone who had faith in Jesus would have the Holy Spirit living in them and the Spirit seals us for him and our faith changes us from sinners to saints! And just like Jesus, as his holy and dearly loved people we are to use these characteristics to “Bear with each other and forgive whatever grievances you may have against one another.” A church family that loves the Lord will love one another! In fact we are to “Forgive as the Lord forgave” each of us! The mere fact we can do this is simply because of Jesus who is the personification of God’s love: “For God so loved the world”. So “over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity.” Not the wishy-washy touchy-feelie love of mankind that thinks by “feeling” something you are spiritual but in the simple truth of Jesus who is the love of God that unifies us. Our church remains strong when it is unified!
EXAMPLE: Some folks have faulty thinking when it comes to the idea of being unified. Unity does not mean we have to agree about everything all the time. The disciples had disagreements, even Jesus disagreed with them from time to time. Unity in the Lord means we are eager to seek what God desires, that we are in prayer about it, and we try our best to reach a godly consensus. This may mean some of us have to compromise! Our church remains strong when it is unified!
As a church we are strongest when we are untied but it is more than being in agreement with one another. A church becomes a family and when it is working well it becomes a home. A place where each of us is accepted, encouraged, and matured in Jesus. It is a matter of how we walk in Christ as we walk with one another. Paul writes that…
II. Our church remains strong when we reside in Jesus! (Vv. 15-17)
Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace. And be thankful. Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom, and as you sing psalms, hymns and spiritual songs with gratitude in your hearts to God. And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.
1. Today’s world sees faith as a means to feel good about oneself and a way to remain happy. But this is not the truth. It is a lie that the world propagates for its own selfishness. The real church, the real body of Christ in the world experiences the peace of Jesus that the world can never give or understand. We are to therefore “Let the peace of Christ rule in [our] hearts, since as members of one body [we] were called to peace.” The sacrifice of Jesus gives us peace with God and his wrath no longer resides on us! John the Baptist taught that “The Father loves the Son and has placed everything in his hands. Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life, but whoever rejects the Son will not see life, for God's wrath remains on him. (John 3:35-36 NIV)” Paul would state that “Since we have now been justified by his blood, how much more shall we be saved from God's wrath through him! (Romans 5:9 NIV)” We should then “be thankful”. It is our duty and obligation to walk in Jesus. He told his followers “Remain in me, and I will 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. (John 15:4 NIV)” We “remain” in him because of his Spirit within us and we “remain” in him as we walk in him as believers. We are to “Let the word of Christ dwell in [us] richly as [we] teach and admonish one another with all wisdom, and as you sing psalms, hymns and spiritual songs with gratitude in your hearts to God.” This describes perfectly what our church worship, our personal devotions, and our daily walk is to be about! “And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.” Our church remains strong when we reside in Jesus!
EXAMPLE: Walking with Jesus is more than a feeling it requires our actions and attitudes are in sync with him. If you have placed your faith and trust in Jesus you have the Holy Spirit living in you. Therefore you can know and do the will of God. Because he resides in us through the Spirit we can know how to walk in him through our prayer, reading the Bible, through Godly family and friends, and through the experiences God has brought us through. Throughout the years I have led us as a church to spend a time of praying together, talking to one another, using the Bible, and reviewing our past as a church to see where God is leading us into the future. It has never failed. Our church remains strong when we reside in Jesus!
Conclusion:
Our church remains strong when it is unified! Our church remains strong when we reside in Jesus!
---
This article is copyrighted © 2020 by Lee Hemen and is the sole property of Lee Hemen, and may not be used unless you quote the entire article and have my permission.
By Pastor Lee Hemen
February 23, 2020
One of things that many senior adults do not do is to get enough exercise in order to maintain their muscle tone and bone density in order to remain healthy. While the number of senior adults living longer has grown, those who live active and strong lives have not. Keeping oneself strong later in life is extremely important and the same is true for a church.
Paul wrote the church at Colossae between 60-62 AD while he was imprisoned in Rome the first time and one purpose was to correct the heresy that had sprung up in Colossae. This false teaching seemed to be the beginning of what later developed into Gnosticism. It contained specific characteristics. (1) It was Jewish stressing the need to observe Old Testament laws and ceremonies. (2) It was philosophical, laying emphasis on some special or deeper knowledge (gnōsis). (3) It involved the worship of angels. (4) It was exclusivistic whereby only the privileged and select few who adhered to it were prefect. (5) It was also Christological but denied the deity of Christ. In the face of this the church at Colossae needed to remain strong. Let’s see how…
READ: Colossians 3:11-17
Unity is more than a word; it is to be a way of life for the Christian. We experience unity first with God through Jesus. Jesus prayed that we would be one as he and God the Father are one and that “I in them and you in me. May they be brought to complete unity to let the world know that you sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me. (John 17:23 NIV)” We discover that…
I. Our church remains strong when it is unified! (Vv. 11-14)
Here there is no Greek or Jew, circumcised or uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave or free, but Christ is all, and is in all. Therefore, as God's chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. Bear with each other and forgive whatever grievances you may have against one another. Forgive as the Lord forgave you. And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity.
1. Paul reminded his readers that within the church “there is no Greek or Jew, circumcised or uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave or free, but Christ is all, and is in all”! Within the church, the body of Christ, there is no ethnicities. We are all brothers and sisters in the Lord. Non-Jewish believers, Jewish believers, and even those considered barbarians as bad as Scythians, those who owned slaves and those who were slaves were now in Jesus! Our church remains strong when it is unified! The outcome of faith in Jesus produced results and “Therefore, as God's chosen people, holy and dearly loved” people of God we are to “clothe” ourselves with the characteristics of Jesus. Those who know Jesus, his people who comprise his church, display his characteristics of “compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience”! These are nonnegotiable because Paul knew that anyone who had faith in Jesus would have the Holy Spirit living in them and the Spirit seals us for him and our faith changes us from sinners to saints! And just like Jesus, as his holy and dearly loved people we are to use these characteristics to “Bear with each other and forgive whatever grievances you may have against one another.” A church family that loves the Lord will love one another! In fact we are to “Forgive as the Lord forgave” each of us! The mere fact we can do this is simply because of Jesus who is the personification of God’s love: “For God so loved the world”. So “over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity.” Not the wishy-washy touchy-feelie love of mankind that thinks by “feeling” something you are spiritual but in the simple truth of Jesus who is the love of God that unifies us. Our church remains strong when it is unified!
EXAMPLE: Some folks have faulty thinking when it comes to the idea of being unified. Unity does not mean we have to agree about everything all the time. The disciples had disagreements, even Jesus disagreed with them from time to time. Unity in the Lord means we are eager to seek what God desires, that we are in prayer about it, and we try our best to reach a godly consensus. This may mean some of us have to compromise! Our church remains strong when it is unified!
As a church we are strongest when we are untied but it is more than being in agreement with one another. A church becomes a family and when it is working well it becomes a home. A place where each of us is accepted, encouraged, and matured in Jesus. It is a matter of how we walk in Christ as we walk with one another. Paul writes that…
II. Our church remains strong when we reside in Jesus! (Vv. 15-17)
Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace. And be thankful. Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom, and as you sing psalms, hymns and spiritual songs with gratitude in your hearts to God. And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.
1. Today’s world sees faith as a means to feel good about oneself and a way to remain happy. But this is not the truth. It is a lie that the world propagates for its own selfishness. The real church, the real body of Christ in the world experiences the peace of Jesus that the world can never give or understand. We are to therefore “Let the peace of Christ rule in [our] hearts, since as members of one body [we] were called to peace.” The sacrifice of Jesus gives us peace with God and his wrath no longer resides on us! John the Baptist taught that “The Father loves the Son and has placed everything in his hands. Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life, but whoever rejects the Son will not see life, for God's wrath remains on him. (John 3:35-36 NIV)” Paul would state that “Since we have now been justified by his blood, how much more shall we be saved from God's wrath through him! (Romans 5:9 NIV)” We should then “be thankful”. It is our duty and obligation to walk in Jesus. He told his followers “Remain in me, and I will 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. (John 15:4 NIV)” We “remain” in him because of his Spirit within us and we “remain” in him as we walk in him as believers. We are to “Let the word of Christ dwell in [us] richly as [we] teach and admonish one another with all wisdom, and as you sing psalms, hymns and spiritual songs with gratitude in your hearts to God.” This describes perfectly what our church worship, our personal devotions, and our daily walk is to be about! “And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.” Our church remains strong when we reside in Jesus!
EXAMPLE: Walking with Jesus is more than a feeling it requires our actions and attitudes are in sync with him. If you have placed your faith and trust in Jesus you have the Holy Spirit living in you. Therefore you can know and do the will of God. Because he resides in us through the Spirit we can know how to walk in him through our prayer, reading the Bible, through Godly family and friends, and through the experiences God has brought us through. Throughout the years I have led us as a church to spend a time of praying together, talking to one another, using the Bible, and reviewing our past as a church to see where God is leading us into the future. It has never failed. Our church remains strong when we reside in Jesus!
Conclusion:
Our church remains strong when it is unified! Our church remains strong when we reside in Jesus!
---
This article is copyrighted © 2020 by Lee Hemen and is the sole property of Lee Hemen, and may not be used unless you quote the entire article and have my permission.
Comments