A Christian's New Garments
Supremacy of Christ; Book of Colossians • Sermon • Submitted • Presented • 46:00
0 ratings
· 263 viewsFiles
Notes
Transcript
Handout
Sermon Tone Analysis
A
D
F
J
S
Emotion
A
C
T
Language
O
C
E
A
E
Social
Emperors New Clothes
Emperors New Clothes
Do you remember the story of the Emperors new clothes? Oh too bad they could not be seen. I think in the church today we have some of the same clothing. Having put off the old, we are to put on the new, but is the new seen?
Old put off when we were baptized (Col2:11-12)
11 and in Him you were also circumcised with a circumcision made without hands, in the removal of the body of the flesh by the circumcision of Christ; 12 having been buried with Him in baptism, in which you were also raised up with Him through faith in the working of God, who raised Him from the dead.
Issued new clothing as prophesied by Isaiah (Isa61:10)
10 I will rejoice greatly in the Lord, My soul will exult in my God; For He has clothed me with garments of salvation, He has wrapped me with a robe of righteousness, As a bridegroom decks himself with a garland, And as a bride adorns herself with her jewels.
Look at the garb mentioned, clothed with garments of salvation, wrapped in robe of righteousness!
And commanded in Romans (Rom13:14)
14 But put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh in regard to its lusts.
We are to put on the Lord; and we did when we were baptized. . .
Encouraged to do in Ephesians (Eph4:24)
24 and put on the new self, which in the likeness of God has been created in righteousness and holiness of the truth.
Put on the new self, who is in the likeness of God! (expand)
Somethings are better old than new.
old pair of comfy jeans
Maybe that favorite sweater with even a hole in it now
Or a certain pair of shoes.
But other things are not good old.
Old wine skin for new wine (Mk2:18-22)
So as a Christian who is born again (Jn3:5) water/Spirit we put off the old man, and a new man is born (2Cor5:17); so today want to look at the new clothing for the new man.
The grace of Christ (vv.12-14)
Peace of Christ (v.15)
The Word of Christ (v.16)
The name of Christ (v.17)
I. Put on Grace of Christ
I. Put on Grace of Christ
God’s grace given through the blood of Jesus Christ and empowered by the Holy Spirit when our sins were forgiven. God’s grace, God’s favor on the undeserving sinner.
Because He loves us (Col3:12; Deu7:7-8).
12 So, chosen by God for this new life of love, dress in the wardrobe God picked out for you: compassion, kindness, humility, quiet strength, discipline.
Chosen because of His love; it was not anything we did, but because of His own love towards us just as He displayed to Israel. They were God’s chosen people to bring the Messiah, now we are God’s chosen people loved to bring the message!
7 “The Lord did not set His love on you nor choose you because you were more in number than any of the peoples, for you were the fewest of all peoples, 8 but because the Lord loved you and kept the oath which He swore to your forefathers, the Lord brought you out by a mighty hand and redeemed you from the house of slavery, from the hand of Pharaoh king of Egypt.
Chosen before the foundation of the world
4 just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we would be holy and blameless before Him. In love
God set us apart (v.12)
To be set apart means to be holy. We heard the message, believed the message and obeyed it by trusting Him, we then are set apart from the world. We are not our own. (1COr6:19-20)
19 Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and that you are not your own? 20 For you have been bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body.
We belong to God through Christ exclusively. Just like a wedding and marriage today it is to be exclusive to each other. He set us apart as His bride!
When an unbeliever sins he is breaking the law of the Creator, but when a Christian sins he is breaking the heart of the Creator. Which is worse?
Love is the strongest motivating power in the world. As our love for God grows so will our desire to obey Him and to walk in the newness of life (Rom6:4)
4 Therefore we have been buried with Him through baptism into death, so that as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, so we too might walk in newness of life.
He loved us first and sent His Son and through the Son we have
God has given us forgiveness of sins (vv.13-14; Col2:13; Eph4:32)
Think back to Col2:13
13 When you were dead in your transgressions and the uncircumcision of your flesh, He made you alive together with Him, having forgiven us all our transgressions,
Forgiven all our transgressions, trespasses, sins. He is able to forgive us due to the sacrifice on the cross. Christ forgave us, so we too need to forgive, but more to come on that another time.
32 Be kind to one another, tender-hearted, forgiving each other, just as God in Christ also has forgiven you.
To sum this part up we are CHOSEN BY GOD; SET PART BY GOD; LOVED BY GOD and FORGIVEN BY GOD = Grace of God
I mentioned with blessings come responsibility; now let us look at some of those things we put on as our new wardrobe.
12 So, as those who have been chosen of God, holy and beloved, put on a heart of compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience;
Heart of compassion (or in other words, tender mercies) see Mt9:6, 12:7, 14:14 and 15:32)
compassion starts with pity, but it’s more, pity is the feeling of sorrow and compassion is caused by the suffering and misfortune of others. Compassion is what Jesus had.
36 Seeing the people, He felt compassion for them, because they were distressed and dispirited like sheep without a shepherd.
Do we have a heart of compassion? Have we put on tender mercies? You can look at Php2:1ff for a good description too. It is not something we turn on and off. It is something that is deep in our soul and part of us as a Christian and we develop it more and more in our transformation process.
Kindness - God’s kindness shown to us; we show to others (Eph2:7; Tit3:4; Eph4:32)
God’s kindness was shown to us
7 so that in the ages to come He might show the surpassing riches of His grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus.
shown to us in Christ Jesus
4 But when the kindness of God our Savior and His love for mankind appeared,
So now we have it in us when we accepted Him so that we may show it to others
32 Be kind to one another, tender-hearted, forgiving each other, just as God in Christ also has forgiven you.
(insert story of Mephibosheth from 2Sam9 here) (insert slide Mephibosheth; already saved on computer)
David looked for someone in Saul’s family, if any were left, to bless, and they found Ziba the maidservant who hid Mephiboseth who was the child prince of Saul who was not killed with the rest of the family was killed. It’s a great story of compassion and kindness and it would be worth it to take the time to read it and then apply to others.
Humility (humbleness) - having the right mind with right attitude (Php2:1ff; Mic6:8; Rom12:3)
Humility was not a common quality in the days of Paul, in fact the Greeks looked at it as a weakness. Having the mind of humility is not thinking less of yourself it is having the right, or proper, estimate of oneself in the will of God.
You can see Jesus example in Php2:1ff, but now look at what God looks for, what God requires:
8 He has told you, O man, what is good; And what does the Lord require of you But to do justice, to love kindness, And to walk humbly with your God?
and what Paul said to the church in Rome.
3 For through the grace given to me I say to everyone among you not to think more highly of himself than he ought to think; but to think so as to have sound judgment, as God has allotted to each a measure of faith.
The person with the attitude of humility, who is humble not only has the right perspective of self, but has the right perspective of others and looks out for them before himself.
Gentleness (aka: meekness)
Meekness is not weakness; it is power under control. Like a soothing wind, a healing medicine or a broken colt. In each there is great power, a soothing wind could be a destructive storm; too much medicine can be a killer an unbroken horse can break free.
Longsuffering (long-temper) - do not retaliate when done wrong, or persecuted (Mt5:10-12; )
10 “Blessed are those who have been persecuted for the sake of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. 11 “Blessed are you when people insult you and persecute you, and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of Me.
12 “Rejoice and be glad, for your reward in heaven is great; for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.
The person who is long suffering, like God is long suffering
9 The Lord is not slack concerning His promise, as some count slackness, but is longsuffering toward us, not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance.
What a great quality to have, but not an easy quality to posses is it?
bearing with one another- to bear each others burdens (Gal6:1-2)
1 Brethren, even if anyone is caught in any trespass, you who are spiritual, restore such a one in a spirit of gentleness; each one looking to yourself, so that you too will not be tempted. 2 Bear one another’s burdens, and thereby fulfill the law of Christ.
In other versions in (v.13) it says forbearance
13 forbearing one another, and forgiving each other, if any man have a complaint against any; even as the Lord forgave you, so also do ye:
To forbear is to “hold up or to hold back” God is forbearing towards sinners, he holds back His judgment
4 Or despisest thou the riches of his goodness and forbearance and longsuffering, not knowing that the goodness of God leadeth thee to repentance?
so maybe you can see that meekness, long-suffering and forbearance go together. and now that brings us to
Forgiveness - this is the heart of of the gospel (Mt6:14-15)
Our new wardrobe in Christ we learn to endure grief and provocation, and we refuse to retaliate and not repay evil with evil (Rom12:17); we must also forgive (Mt6:14-15).
Forgiven people forgive
14 “For if you forgive others for their transgressions, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. 15 “But if you do not forgive others, then your Father will not forgive your transgressions.
This now brings us to the unity, the perfect bond, the thing that holds it all together.
Love - the perfect bond of unity (v.14; 1Cor12:31, 13:4-6)
Love is the perfect bond of perfection.
14 But above all these things put on love, which is the bond of perfection.
It is the more excellent way
31 But earnestly desire the greater gifts. And I show you a still more excellent way.
4 Love is patient, love is kind and is not jealous; love does not brag and is not arrogant, 5 does not act unbecomingly; it does not seek its own, is not provoked, does not take into account a wrong suffered,
6 does not rejoice in unrighteousness, but rejoices with the truth; 7 bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.
and can’t stop there for we know
8 Love never fails; but if there are gifts of prophecy, they will be done away; if there are tongues, they will cease; if there is knowledge, it will be done away.
love never fails! Our new wardrobe is held together, bound up, covered in love. When love rules in our lives, it unites all these spiritual virtues (graces) so that there is beauty and harmony, proving spiritual maturity.
Now there is a shift from the character of the new wardrobe to the conduct when wearing the new wardrobe.
II. The peace of Christ
II. The peace of Christ
When we received the free gift of grace, our salvation we had made peace with God (Rom5:1) and the peace of God now brings us the peace of Christ to rule in our hearts.
15 Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in one body; and be thankful.
How can we, as Christians know when we are acting within the will of God and not desire? When we have the peace of Christ in our heart and in our church.
Here in (v.15) we see the word “rule” it is an athletic term also referenced back in Col2:18; it means to preside at the games and toe distribute the prizes. When we let the peace of Christ rule, we give all authority to Him, but with it comes responsibility to know the rules and adhere to the rules. so not to be declared unworthy, or allow anyone to take away your prize.
The peace of God is the “Umpire in our hearts and in our church body. when we obey the will of God we have the peace of Christ; when we don’t then we don’t have peace.
Be careful of false peace, it can be deceiving look at Jonah in the midst of the storm he was at peace with himself but it was because of his sin the storm was.
(insert personal story here; couple where he believed and was ok in his heart with having an affair, committing adultery on wife).
We need to remember to pray, to seek His guidance and surrender to His will, which will never be contrary to His Word. The peace of heart does not always equate to the peace of God.
When we have personal peace in our hearts, we then will be at peace with others (the church) for we are called to one body and our body is to be in unity and harmony with each other.
Peace in the heart will bring praise to the lips! And our thankfulness will be shown!
III. The Word of Christ
III. The Word of Christ
The Word of Christ without a doubt is the Word of God (Jn1:1; 14) and we need to let it dwell “richly in us.
16 Let the word of Christ richly dwell within you, with all wisdom teaching and admonishing one another with psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with thankfulness in your hearts to God.
Just as a reminder the problem that was going on in Colossi is that there were false teachers coming in trying to add man made traditions to the Word of God , traditions, rules, philosophies that could be persuasive if you don’t know the World of God.
It is the Word that is the gospel that brought you hope (Col1:5)
5 because of the hope laid up for you in heaven, of which you previously heard in the word of truth, the gospel
It is the Word that gives life, sustains us and strengthens us (1Pt1:22-2:3)
You can look up and read that passage on your own.
It is the Word of God coupled with the Spirit of God that helps us be transformed and to be matured in God and for God.
Today there is a danger, just as there has been in the past where the Word of God is minimized. You come to a building on Sunday, maybe on Wednesday and you have someone speak the Word, or maybe even in some cases only a few Words of God and more words of man.
That does not make the Word of God dwell richly in you. It takes time, it takes effort to read, to study to even memorize and apply the Word of God. Then it is dwelling richly.
I came across this when studying for this lesson today.
“Perhaps the poverty of the knowledge of the scripture is our churches is one cause of the abundance of unbiblical songs that are being put out and published and used.” - W. Wiersbe
Knowing the Word of Christ, believing the Word and having it dwell richly in you will lead you to the next part of that verse.
With all wisdom- that comes from God; if you lack, ask (Jam1:5)
teaching and admonishing with psalms and hymns
Teaching and admonishing came often in the form of the Psalm or proverbs that we passed down from generation to generation so they could be remembered. We need to be able to do it too, with the Word of God, do it as directed.
Spiritual songs: Biblical truths that are put in lyrical form. These we sing together.
Hymns, when we sing a hymn we are signing to God; when we sing a spiritual song we are singing to one another.
We sing to ourselves, we sing to our God and we sing to one another!
Now unless the Word of God richly dwells in your heart then you cannot sing from your heart, can you? Our singing should be because of the grace of God that dwells in us, not a display of a gracious melody but a gracious heart.
So when we sing in a few minutes take a second and think about the words you are singing and sing from your heart between you and God and to each other to build up, to edify one another.
One last point to go, thank you for being attentive and patient today.
IV. The Name of Christ
IV. The Name of Christ
There is something about the name. It is in His name we have our salvation, it is in His name we have authority and power. It is in His name we have our identification!
In the ancient world the name had meaning, it was chosen carefully, it was of the utmost importance, in today’s society not so much. God even changed people’s names to because of the task He had before them. From Jacob (heal-catcher) to Israel (May God prevail); Saul (inquired of God) to Paul (small or humble).
The name of Christ is where we have our identity (Christian); we have our authority to pray (Jn14:13-14). It is in the name of Jesus we have our salvation (Act22:16)
So now our motivation in everything we do should be in the name of Christ and for the glory of God.
lead to invitation:
(insert invitation slide)
Come and be forgiven, to the forgiven remember we must forgive
Come and have peace with God; remember where your peace comes from and let that rule in your heart
You have heard the word today; it is calling for you to respond; Remember the word and let it dwell richly in your heart
It is in the name of Christ that you are saved, don’t wait; and to the rest, remember it is in the name of Jesus we have our identity, and our authority, so walk in that this week.
(insert exit slide)