Colossians - A Message for Living

Lonnie Brooks

Series on book of Colossians • Sermon • Submitted 6 years ago

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Introduction

Good morning, we have the pleasure of having some colder temperatures this past week with Christmas and all… And here we are and it is New Year’s Eve...

And it has already started?

What have you promised yourself about the New Year...

Please don’t be embarrassed, or think to yourself, I don’t know why I even think about those things....

It is good that we set some goals for the coming year, and with this bringss the last night of the year, ole 2017 - we say goodbye too!

And tomorrow if the Lord allows us to wake up, well, it will be a day we can give to Him with a new thought, plan or a purpose.

So what do you want to do this coming year?

And better yet, what do you want to do for God this year?

Here is a thought...

How about we with the Lord’s help, we get a person involved in church,.

What about leading someone to Christ, or seeing someone walk in victory over addiction or sin????

That would be awesome...

It is possible! if we are willing to walk with the Lord!

So with all of this in mind, lets turn to the book of Colossians in the New Testament and see what God would say to us today.

Colossians 1 ESV

1 Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, and Timothy our brother, 2 To the saints and faithful brothers in Christ at Colossae: Grace to you and peace from God our Father. 3 We always thank God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, when we pray for you, 4 since we heard of your faith in Christ Jesus and of the love that you have for all the saints, 5 because of the hope laid up for you in heaven. Of this you have heard before in the word of the truth, the gospel, 6 which has come to you, as indeed in the whole world it is bearing fruit and increasing—as it also does among you, since the day you heard it and understood the grace of God in truth, 7 just as you learned it from Epaphras our beloved fellow servant. He is a faithful minister of Christ on your behalf 8 and has made known to us your love in the Spirit. 9 And so, from the day we heard, we have not ceased to pray for you, asking that you may be filled with the knowledge of his will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding, 10 so as to walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing to him: bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God; 11 being strengthened with all power, according to his glorious might, for all endurance and patience with joy; 12 giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of the saints in light. 13 He has delivered us from the domain of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of his beloved Son, 14 in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins. 15 He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. 16 For by him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things were created through him and for him. 17 And he is before all things, and in him all things hold together. 18 And he is the head of the body, the church. He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, that in everything he might be preeminent. 19 For in him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell, 20 and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven, making peace by the blood of his cross. 21 And you, who once were alienated and hostile in mind, doing evil deeds, 22 he has now reconciled in his body of flesh by his death, in order to present you holy and blameless and above reproach before him, 23 if indeed you continue in the faith, stable and steadfast, not shifting from the hope of the gospel that you heard, which has been proclaimed in all creation under heaven, and of which I, Paul, became a minister. 24 Now I rejoice in my sufferings for your sake, and in my flesh I am filling up what is lacking in Christ’s afflictions for the sake of his body, that is, the church, 25 of which I became a minister according to the stewardship from God that was given to me for you, to make the word of God fully known, 26 the mystery hidden for ages and generations but now revealed to his saints. 27 To them God chose to make known how great among the Gentiles are the riches of the glory of this mystery, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory. 28 Him we proclaim, warning everyone and teaching everyone with all wisdom, that we may present everyone mature in Christ. 29 For this I toil, struggling with all his energy that he powerfully works within me.

Colossians 1

, Verses 1-8

Colossians 1:1–8 ESV

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Now Paul opens this letter with a greeting, one like he always does and with it He has some very warm words for those he loves at the church at Colossae.

There has been some false teaching in the church, Paul is not there and neither is Epaphras, who we believe was there at the beginning and helped this church in the beginning. The type of false teaching appears to have a Jewish note to it, so most like Judiaizers were mis leading forcing some to continue to practice Jewish observances in the newly formed Christian church.

It is nothing more than a form of heresy, it has no meaning on the first century Church.

So as we walk through this sermon series I believe there is much we can learn from the text.

So here is my first point....

Give Thanks for One Another

Consider this..... What are you thankful for ?

There is indeed much we can be thankful for day in a day out, the Lord is and continues to be so faithful in providing for His people.

Yet, What the Lord provides each day is more than provision, it is more than health or His watch care over us.

Each of these are important, but I want to pull you forward and ask you this...

Are you thankful for those around you...

This is a concept that we have talked about before, so often in the Scriptures we see great men of God expressing their thankfulness for their brothers and sisters in Christ.

And we must do the same.

Give thanks for one another. Look back at our text my friends, verses 3-4

Colossians 1:3–4 ESV

3 We always thank God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, when we pray for you, 4 since we heard of your faith in Christ Jesus and of the love that you have for all the saints,

Paul shares his heart here for us to see. He is thankful, and he gives thanks to God the Father when they pray…

Why?

Because of the great faith the believers exhibit, and the love they have for all the saints.

Now this phrase “all the saints” is inclusive… the love other believers, no matter who they are, where they are from. They recognize the truth that they are family.

The word Paul uses in verse 3, pray… the Greek word means to petition daily. So Paul is expressing that daily,- every single day Paul is sharing his thankfulness in front of God as He prays.

He is praying for and thankful for their faith and love that comes only from a redeemed heart, because they are brothers and sisters in Christ.

Why am I bringing it up?

To remind us through this coming year to exercise a spirit of love in such away that our hearts are in tune with our father above and we have a love for each other.

You see there is nothing the devil would enjoy more than getting a wedge into the church. Finding a little crack of division, animosity, drama what ever it is… and it disrupts the work of God.

Am I saying there is division here… no not at all.... So what will keep it away? Prayer, Love and true thankfulness for each other.

I want to challenge you, each day this year 2018… please ask God to examine your hearts, my heart: proof our words and take captive our thoughts, that in all things we might live in peace, harmony and love, helping advance the kingdom of God.

Now as we love in this passage, what else can we learn.... from this passage.

We must be Careful to Walk Upright.....

I have spent the last month and a half reading a new book my Johnny Hunt, the pastor of 1st Baptist Church of Woodstock Georgia. The title of this book is Demolishing Strongholds...

It is a great book, and it speaks to so many points of action necessary for the person who has put his or her faith in Jesus Christ. It is a good read for anyone.

What did i glean form it....

At the heart of it all is obedience, being a person who is pure, able to walk in ways of the Lord.

Walking Upright is a necessary point for the Christian life.

Now please understand this statement doesn’t mean there are people who have lived so well, they have made no mistake.... no that doesn't exist.

Look through the Bible and you find people who sinned, messed up, failed in front of God.

Adam, Moses, Abraham, Jacob, Samson, David, Solomon, Peter, Paul.... and I mean those are just the well knowns....

People fail all the time… I do, and frankly you do as well.

But here is what is special, they didn’t remain in failure! They turned back to God, repented of theirs sins and pushed forward.

Side note.... No one as the right to say I have done to much, God doesn't want me.

The promise of God is this

1 John 1:9 ESV

9 If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

They pushed forward and got on track.... So if you are on track today or off track, everyone can move forward and live for God.

Now let me take you back to our text… look at verse 7

Colossians 1:4–8 ESV

4 since we heard of your faith in Christ Jesus and of the love that you have for all the saints, 5 because of the hope laid up for you in heaven. Of this you have heard before in the word of the truth, the gospel, 6 which has come to you, as indeed in the whole world it is bearing fruit and increasing—as it also does among you, since the day you heard it and understood the grace of God in truth, 7 just as you learned it from Epaphras our beloved fellow servant. He is a faithful minister of Christ on your behalf 8 and has made known to us your love in the Spirit.

Colossians 1:7 ESV

7 just as you learned it from Epaphras our beloved fellow servant. He is a faithful minister of Christ on your behalf

The phrase that is important here is “…just as you learned it from Epaphras.....”

Epaphras is the one who planted the church at Colossae. He most likely encountered Paul at Ephesus we think, but it is possible that Paul was closer than we think to Colossae.

But none the less, Epaphras modeled the faith in front of the church, he provided and taught them a Christian witness that was a faithful one.

The Word “learned” in verse 7, means to learn as a disciple...

By his faith and witness, they learned what it was to walk upright in front of God.

And again we see why Paul was again thankful for these precious brothers and sisters… they walked upright.

It is a blessing to God and to each of us when we know our brothers and sisters are walking upright in such a way that benefits the church and blesses their Father in heaven.

What does it mean to walk upright? It means to walk rightly before God..... Listen to the 1st Psalm....

Psalm 1 ESV

1 Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the wicked, nor stands in the way of sinners, nor sits in the seat of scoffers; 2 but his delight is in the law of the Lord, and on his law he meditates day and night. 3 He is like a tree planted by streams of water that yields its fruit in its season, and its leaf does not wither. In all that he does, he prospers. 4 The wicked are not so, but are like chaff that the wind drives away. 5 Therefore the wicked will not stand in the judgment, nor sinners in the congregation of the righteous; 6 for the Lord knows the way of the righteous, but the way of the wicked will perish.

David contrasts two types of people here in this chapter.... a blessed man is one who lives, acts, tarries with the righteousness… The wicked are not so...

Verse 5 is key, in judgment, the sinner will not stand. but the righteous will....

We must be careful.... my friends it is so easy to stumble, We never intend too… but it happens. Pray, invest the Word into your life so that we can stand in our day of trouble.

Be careful my friends, it is dangerous out there.

Now just one last thought I see in this brief section that we can pay attention too…

Bear Fruit....

If there is anything we are designed to do, it is to bear fruit my friends. You see all of creation is called, created with the unique purpose of reproducing after their own kind.

You take one of these beautiful oak trees out there on the mountain, any tree or plant for that matter… But that ole oak tree, grows and when it is ready it begins to produce acorns..

The acorns are food for so many animals, but their real purpose is to hit the ground and remain there, sink into the ground and then sprout, grow and become another mighty oak tree.

We as the children of God are called to reproduce, bear fruit!

Look at verse 6

Colossians 1:5–6 ESV

5 because of the hope laid up for you in heaven. Of this you have heard before in the word of the truth, the gospel, 6 which has come to you, as indeed in the whole world it is bearing fruit and increasing—as it also does among you, since the day you heard it and understood the grace of God in truth,

The hope we have is because of the gospel, it changed us forever, made us alive and has given up hope.

Colossians 1:6 ESV

6 which has come to you, as indeed in the whole world it is bearing fruit and increasing—as it also does among you, since the day you heard it and understood the grace of God in truth,

Hope is a beautiful word my friends. (Jesus, the gospel gives us hope). And the gospel in us grows, flourishes and produces growth, which is fruit.

The work of Jesus in my life as changed my life so much that I do not act like i once did, instead I try to live and act as Jesus would have me live.

That is fruit… so in our lives, because of the gospel we are producing fruit.

Now do not think of the fruit of the Spirit only...

Galatians 5:22–24 ESV

22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law. 24 And those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires.

tells us about the fruit of the spirit

Galatians 5:22 ESV

22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness,

But also you are growing, and your light is shinning, and you are sharing your faith with those around you.

Have you ever been a part of seeing someone come to faith in Jesus Christ....See a person saved, leading a person to faith in Christ is some of the most awesome experience a person can be a part off...

The brothers and sisters at Colossae, were learning, growing and bearing fruit…

That is what is asked of us as well, that we bear fruit!

As we move into 2018, ask yourself, do you want a deeper, more obedient walk with the Lord that bears fruit....?

Some people will remain the same, those who have learned of God will change the world.

So think of this… 2018 is close at hand, tonight at 12, the new year will be here.

Be careful to give thanks to one another

Walk uprightly

Bear fruit

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