Walk This Way, Part II
Colossians • Sermon • Submitted
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· 3 viewsIn Colossians 3:1-4, Paul teaches the Colossians 2 steps for securing spiritual growth: strive for the things above, and set your mind on the things above.
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PRACTICE DOES NOT MAKE PERFECT
PRACTICE DOES NOT MAKE PERFECT
How many of you guys have heard the saying, “Practice makes perfect?”… Okay, now how many of you believe that “practice makes perfect?”… I used to think so too! Until last week.
As many of you may have heard already, and as the Dixon boys have unfortunately witnessed, my golf game was and is lacking in pretty much every regard. To put it plainly, I’m terrible.
But, even knowing that, I still thought that at some level, I’d be able to get better, because “practice makes perfect”, right? So, with that confidence, I seized the opportunity to play on one of the two Grace Bible Church golf teams at the TES Tradition Classic in Jupiter, which fittingly was taking place at a real-deal golf club with a real-deal 18-hole golf course. Still, at this point, I was pretty confident in my ability to get better by the time the tournament rolled around.
Making good use of my excellent time-management skills and my knack for planning, I started practicing the night before the tournament, sometime around 10:30 started off living up to my reputation of poor play, but after an hour of trying to hit the ball and hitting it 4 times in that time span, I felt like I had a fighting chance at shocking the world. I was wrong.
Mr. Dan Healy was tasked with chaperoning me at the tournament, bless his heart. Despite all of his attempts to coach me up during the tournament, I think I hit one shot straight out of fifty. The only glimmer of hope for my golf future was a 10 foot putt that I made, but that glimmer was dashed when I launched my next shot straight into the lake.
The moral of the story is this: practice does not make perfect! I had the intention to play well, the teaching to play well, but at the end of the day, I had no clue how to actually play well myself.
And at the end of day, our attempts to grow in Christ kinda look like my attempt to play golf, don’t they? We have the intention to grow… We have the resources to grow… We even have the formula to grow… but for some reason, we can all admit that it’s still hard to really grow in Christ.
But the problem is this, right? Growth isn’t optional! We must grow spiritually if we’re in Christ, right? But at the same time, it can seem like we can’t grow spiritually, can it? We’ve got a dilemma on our hands then. So what’s the solution?
Sadly, there’s not really a one-size-fits-all answer, but the apostle Paul does hand us two important steps for unlocking spiritual growth in . Last week, we started looking at this in verse 1, where we looked at one step: strive for the things above. Tonight, we’ll spend our time in verses 2-4, where we will see another step: set your mind on the things above… set your mind on the things above.
CONTEXT
CONTEXT
We’ve been walking with Paul all throughout the first two chapters of his letter to the Colossians, as he’s addressed the problems of false teaching and legalism that have arisen in the Colossian church. In chapter 1, we saw Paul remind them of the wisdom of the true gospel and what it accomplished in them. Then, in chapter 2, we looked at the folly of false gospels, as Paul exposed the false teacher and his doctrines for their lack of godliness. Now, in chapter 3, we’re witnessing Paul lay out what the true gospel accomplishes in believers: fruit in every aspect of life.
Back in verse 1, Paul put a test to the Colossians: “Have you really been raised with Christ?” And if their answer was yes, as he expected it to be, he laid out two commands back-to-back here in the first two verses:
1) Strive for the things above,
2) Set your mind on the things above.
We looked in detail at the first one last time, but I want to make sure we get a proper look at this parallel command: set your mind on the things above… to set your mind on the things above. Follow along as I read verses 2-4.
2 Set your mind on the things above, not on the things that are on earth.
3 For you have died and your life is hidden with Christ in God.
4 When Christ, who is our life, is revealed, then you also will be revealed with Him in glory.
SET YOUR MIND ON THE THINGS ABOVE ()
SET YOUR MIND ON THE THINGS ABOVE ()
Here in verses 2-4, we find the second step to securing spiritual growth: to set your mind on the things above. Look again at what Paul says in verse 2.
“Set your mind on the things above...”
“Set your mind on” is all one word in the original text. Paul is telling the Colossians here to not just strive for the things of above, but to give careful consideration to them. He’s saying, “Don’t just seek the things above, but be intent on them.”… Or, in other words, set all of your focus, or in better words, all of your mind on them.
Just like Paul’s first command to strive for the things above, this second command is present. You must set your mind on the things above and do it now! This second command is also active. You must set your mind on the things above and do it now and keep doing it for the rest of your life!
36 Incline my heart to Your testimonies
And not to dishonest gain.
37 Turn away my eyes from looking at vanity,
And revive me in Your ways.
15 Do not love the world nor the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him.
16 For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh and the lust of the eyes and the boastful pride of life, is not from the Father, but is from the world.
17 The world is passing away, and also its lusts; but the one who does the will of God lives forever.
Does anyone remember from last week what “the things above” really are?… Exactly! The things of Christ. The things of heaven. Essentially, Paul wanted the Colossian believers to seriously ponder the things of heaven.
Now think about what that may have looked like for the Colossians. To seriously ponder the things of heaven would force them to take a hard look at every aspect of their lives! For what reason? The things of Christ are to be the driving force behind all that we do during our time on earth.
Paul wanted the Colossian believers to seriously ponder the things of heaven. N
In , Paul makes it clear that the #1 job of Christians during their lifetime is primarily to be an ambassador of Christ. This means that for every believer in this room, every step you take, every move you make, has an impact on the reputation of Christ in the eyes of all creation. To connect all of that back to Paul’s words to the Colossians here in verse 2, you can’t be an effective ambassador on behalf of anything if you’re not carefully considering all of the things that pertain to who you’re an ambassador of!
We would think it ridiculous if the US Ambassador to France knew close to nothing about what America likes, dislikes, stands for, or stands against, right? So in the same vein, it’s ridiculous if the believer, who is immediately employed as an ambassador of Christ, knows close to nothing about what Christ loves, hates, stands for, or stands against!
And even worse than that is if the believer, an ambassador of Christ, lives a life that is characterized by more of what Christ hates and stands against than what Christ loves and stands for. With that in mind, now think about what seriously pondering the things of heaven looks like for you and me.
tells us that the Lord loves holiness. Do we ourselves love holiness?
tell us that the Lord stands for purity. Is that what we stand for?
And tells us that He love His glory. Is that what we love as well?
The list goes on with how many questions we can ask ourselves about how much our will aligns with God’s will based on what He says in His Word. The main question though is this: If we claim Christ in word, do we proclaim Him in deed by striving for all that pertains to Him and setting our minds on all that pertains to Him?
The reason why Paul puts these two commands, to strive for the things of heaven, and to set your mind on the things of heaven, back-to-back is because they go hand-in-hand! No pun intended there, but here’s what I mean.
You can’t strive after the things of Christ without setting your mind on the things of Christ, and you’re not setting your mind on the things of Christ without striving for the things of Christ. Make sense?
Paul’s ensuring here that the Colossians leave this letter with no confusion about what he’s exhorting them to do. In fact, he’s making it painstakingly simple. He’s saying, “Colossians! Go diligently seek the things of Christ. At the exact same time, go diligently set your mind on the things of Christ!”
And when we’re looking at the text here, one thing is pretty interesting. Take a look at the command from verse 1. Now look at the command we’re on in verse 2. What’s different?… Well, not much, except for the fact that Paul adds “not on the things of earth” to the end of verse 2. Why exactly did he do that?
“… not on the things of earth.”
What he’s implying is that we all fall into two buckets. You either are intent on the things of the world, or you are intent on the things of the Word. What’s it gonna be?
19 “Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal.
20 “But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys, and where thieves do not break in or steal;
21 for where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.
15 Then He said to them, “Beware, and be on your guard against every form of greed; for not even when one has an abundance does his life consist of his possessions.”
18 For many walk, of whom I often told you, and now tell you even weeping, that they are enemies of the cross of Christ,
19 whose end is destruction, whose god is their appetite, and whose glory is in their shame, who set their minds on earthly things.
When we’re looking at the text here, one thing is pretty interesting. Take a look at the command from verse 1. Now look at the command we’re on in verse 2. What’s different?… Well, not much, except for the fact that Paul adds “not on the things of earth” to the end of verse 2. Why exactly did he do that?
Well, grammatically, there’s this thing called imperatives and indicatives, imperatives and indicatives. Everybody who’s been at the Snob Study should be a bit familiar with this from chapter 4 in “Free To Be Holy” two weeks ago!
The simplest way to understand this concept is that imperatives are commands and indicatives are facts. And in Scripture, they’re usually right around the corner from one another, because biblical commands must be obeyed! But, how do we obey them properly? Remember the biblical indicatives that surround that command!
Verses 1-4 here in function the same way. Back in verse 1, the imperative was to “keep seeking the things above.” What was the indicative, the why? “where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God.” Now, the imperative in verse 2 is to “set your mind on the things above...” And, what’s the indicative here? Everything that follows from the end of verse 2 through to verse 4!
Why is this important though? We’ve already looked at two commands, haven’t we? Isn’t it already inferred that from verse 1, if I strive for the things above, then I’m obviously interested in the things above, right? Sort of! Kind of! Well, not really! Why? Look at the rest of what Paul has to say in verse 2:
“… not on the things of earth.”
What he’s implying is that we all fall into two buckets. You either are intent on the things of the world, or you are intent on the things of the Word. What’s it gonna be?
19 “Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal.
20 “But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys, and where thieves do not break in or steal;
21 for where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.
15 Then He said to them, “Beware, and be on your guard against every form of greed; for not even when one has an abundance does his life consist of his possessions.”
18 For many walk, of whom I often told you, and now tell you even weeping, that they are enemies of the cross of Christ,
19 whose end is destruction, whose god is their appetite, and whose glory is in their shame, who set their minds on earthly things.
Friends, do we set our minds on earthly things? Things that fade? Things that we can easily see? Things that don’t last?
We might ask, “How do I know if the things I set my mind on are earthly or not?” Great question! Well for starters, if it’s causing you to sin or others around you to sin, then it’s probably earthly.
But, what if it’s not explicitly causing you or others around you to sin? Okay, great! So far, so good. But, that’s not the question we should be asking, is it? What we really should be asking is, “Do the things I set my mind on cause myself or others around me to grow?”
Remember - Paul didn’t rebuke the church in Corinth just because they had spiritual gifts… he rebuked them because they were using them to edify themselves and not others.
Jesus didn’t condemn people for simply having money… He condemned them for the love of it. He condemned them for storing up treasures on earth rather than heaven, like we looked at in .
The Colossians would’ve been forced to ask themselves here, “Are we heavenly-minded or earthly-minded?” We would do well to ask ourselves that same question! Are we heavenly-minded or earthly-minded?
Back in high school, my 3 best friends and I came together to form a social “super-group” of sorts… We aptly decided to christen ourselves “The Wolfpacc”, with 2 C’s for good measure. Our purpose was simple: to cause as much trouble as possible and achieve as much notoriety as possible in a 3-year span. We would get together for hours on end to do nothing but scheme out ways to do wicked things. And that desire was the driving force behind every single thing that we did! When doing evil got hard, we worked harder because we were intent on carrying out our wicked desires.
That’s a terrible example, but it’s telling of the power of the will, right? A mind that is set on the things of heaven is a mind that will strive for the things of Christ, showing off the righteousness of Christ in the process. But, a mind that is set on the things of earth is a mind that will strive for the things of earth, showing off the wickedness of man in the process. Believer, there’s only one option for us, and one path, and that’s to be a fragrant aroma of Christ, like Paul says in . The only way to do that is to strive for the things of Christ. And the only way to do that is to set your mind on the things of Christ.
You may not think that reason is compelling enough, but wait! There’s more! Why obey these commands if you’re a believer? If I’m saved, isn’t that good enough on it’s own? Look back at the text and notice with me.
3 For you have died and your life is hidden with Christ in God.
The first thing he says there is that “you have died”… “you have died...”
This is pretty straightforward in Greek and English! Paul’s stating a simple fact here… if you’ve been raised with Christ, then by default, you’ve died with Him! This isn’t rocket science. You can’t be raised from the grave if you’ve never been in the grave. We saw this idea come up already in and 2:20.
So why obey the command in verse 1? Why pay attention to the command in verse 2? Paul gives the Colossians a “colossal” reason (get it?): because believers have died to the things below!
2 May it never be! How shall we who died to sin still live in it?
20 “I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself up for me.
But that’s not the whole story, is it? What else does Paul say here in ?
“and your life is hidden with Christ in God.”
The Colossians didn’t just die with Christ in salvation. Paul’s telling them here that their life is in a new place now. Their lives are no longer on this earth but are hidden with Christ on high!
16 “For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life.
Why should any Christian strive for the things above? Why should any believer set their minds on the things above? Paul’s saying in this verse that there’s no other option! It’s the only course of action that makes sense! He’s saying, “Believer! If you’ve been raised with Christ, then orient your life around the things of Christ because your life is with Christ.”
24 “Truly, truly, I say to you, he who hears My word, and believes Him who sent Me, has eternal life, and does not come into judgment, but has passed out of death into life.
40 “For this is the will of My Father, that everyone who beholds the Son and believes in Him will have eternal life, and I Myself will raise him up on the last day.”
3 “If I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself, that where I am, there you may be also.
45 So also it is written, “The first man, Adam, became a living soul.” The last Adam became a life-giving spirit.
19 “After a little while the world will no longer see Me, but you will see Me; because I live, you will live also.
25 Therefore He is able also to save forever those who draw near to God through Him, since He always lives to make intercession for them.
If we’re honest, do we really understand just how big of a deal this is? This is the ultimate proof that the only way to be right with God, and more importantly, to know you are right with God, is through faith in Christ? This is so comforting when we take the time to think about it.
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Our past can haunt us often, can’t it? I was getting ready to teach tonight and some memories came back into my mind after I wrote about my time with my best friends in our “Wolfpacc” group that I mentioned earlier. And I remember just being grieved! My mind just got flooded with the experiences we had and things we participated in and the things we gave hearty approval to, and seeing those things now as a believer made me realize it was so wicked! But that wasn’t even the worst part about it! The worst part was that I had so much fun doing it. All of it. And the whole time, I had no idea that God’s wrath was abiding on me every moment, and frankly, I didn’t want to know.
But when God reaches in and plucks us off of the highway to hell and places us on the road to righteousness in Christ, something happens to us that we can’t forget. We die to our former selves and we are raised with Christ, right? We are a new creation in Christ, . And right after Paul says those words, he says something I’ll never forget: “the old things passed away; behold, new things have come.”
Friends, if you are a believer, that didn’t just apply to the Corinthians, but that applies to you and to me! “The old things passed away; behold, new things have come.” We shouldn’t feel burdened by our past because we have been forgiven of all of those things! I am no longer the Matt Robinson who lived for himself! Who manipulated and lied and stole and cheated and trampled on people to get what he wanted! That Matt Robinson is dead! Now, I’m a whole different person.. the game has changed. Now, I’m Matt Robinson, slave to Christ and child of God and if you are a believer in this room, it’s the same for you.
But it gets better. Look at now.
“When Christ is revealed, who is your life...”
Paul’s expanding on the same concept so that the Colossians gain a full understanding of what the gospel accomplished in their lives when they first believed and what it is accomplishing now. He’s saying, “Believer! If you’ve been raised with Christ, then orient your life around the things of Christ because your life is with Christ and your life is Christ.”
6 Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father but through Me.
12 He who has the Son has the life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have the life.
19 “After a little while the world will no longer see Me, but you will see Me; because I live, you will live also.
14 Blessed are those who wash their robes, so that they may have the right to the tree of life, and may enter by the gates into the city.
12 He who has the Son has the life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have the life.
Christ is coming back! It’s easy to get caught up, and rightfully so, in the richness of new life in Christ, of righteousness to be had, of sin to kill, and holiness to gain. But we can’t lose sight of the point of it all! We are not the main character in our lives! That may be groundbreaking truth. I am not the main character of my life story. But you know who is? Jesus Christ. And He’s not just the main character of my story, or your story, or anyone’s story, but He is the main character of all creation, in heaven and on earth and below the earth.
Why? Because Jesus is King. He will return to establish His rule on earth and make the nations a footstool beneath His feet, like says. We already know how this thing ends! And it doesn’t end up good if you’re not with Him! And He might come back any day. Paul says in 1 Thess that it’s going to come like a thief in the night… you’re not gonna see it coming? If Christ came back right now, would we be ready?
“then you will also be revealed with Him in glory.”
That’s a scary thought, and a sobering one too. If you guys are anything like me, I know I don’t take that truth seriously enough. But, I had to remind myself, and we all have to remind ourselves, of the rest of . Look at what Paul’s gotta say.
“then you also will be revealed with Him in glory.”
Mic drop! Whoa! Wait a minute! He said, “you also”? Meaning, the Colossians? Meaning, by extension, you and me? That’s crazy talk! But that’s what it says! “then you also will be revealed with Him in glory.
So why strive for the things above? Why set your mind on the things above? Here, Paul tells the Colossians why, and we would do well to listen: “You have died to the world, you have life in Christ, and you will be revealed with Him when He returns!”
So why strive for the things above? Why set your mind on the things above? Here, Paul tells the Colossians why: “You have died to the world, you have life in Christ, and you will be revealed with Him when He returns!”
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8 in the future there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day; and not only to me, but also to all who have loved His appearing.
20 For our citizenship is in heaven, from which also we eagerly wait for a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ;
21 who will transform the body of our humble state into conformity with the body of His glory, by the exertion of the power that He has even to subject all things to Himself.
8 He will swallow up death for all time,
And the Lord God will wipe tears away from all faces,
And He will remove the reproach of His people from all the earth;
For the Lord has spoken.
Isn’t that sweet? That’s why we strive for the things of Christ. That’s why we set our minds on the things of Christ. Because He is our life and when He comes to reign, we’re gonna reign with Him.
PROPER PRACTICE MAKES PERFECT
PROPER PRACTICE MAKES PERFECT
Alright. We’ve covered a lot, so let’s review. In , we’ve seen 2 steps for securing spiritual growth. The first, from verse 1, was to strive for the things above. The second, from verses 2-4, was to set your mind on the things above.
We got practical with the first step, so it’s only right if we do the same with step two. ’ve got one and only one piece of practical advice on how to take this command from Paul and walk it out tonight, tomorrow, and every day after that.
1) PROPER PRACTICE MAKES PERFECT
1) PROPER PRACTICE MAKES PERFECT
…proper practice makes perfect. What does that mean?
My biggest problem when it came to my short-lived golf-career was that I “practiced”, but I didn’t really practice. I got tips from seasoned players, but I didn’t bother to pay for a lesson! I went to go work on my swing, but I didn’t bother to start until the night before! All that did was just reveal that at the end of the day, it just didn’t really matter to me. Because if it did, my approach would have looked way different.
So we have to ask ourselves, “Do I approach the Christian life the way Matt approaches his golf game?” I’m kidding, but you can use that if that you want. But seriously. “How do I approach the Christian life?”
If our approach consists of periodic attempts to obey God’s commands and trust in His promises and heed His warnings at a surface level, then it’s no wonder we don’t gain much traction. That type of practice won’t get you anywhere.
But in contrast - if our approach consists of methodical, deliberate, intentional attacks against our sinfulness through obeying God’s commands, trusting in His promises, and heeding His warnings, then we can be assured that by the power of the Holy Spirit, we can gain traction in the Christian life. So instead of plotting and scheming on ways to carry out wickedness, like my friends and I used to, let’s plot on progress and scheme on sanctification. Let’s pray.