Sermons

Thursday, 23 March 2017

…giving thanks to the Father who has qualified us to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in the light. Colossians 1:12

This verse continues on the same train of thought that has been going on since verse 9. The words, “giving thanks to the Father” explain another way in which the saints may walk worthy of the Lord, as Paul previously noted. The reason for this is that He “has qualified us to be partakers of the saints in the light.”

Paul’s choice of the word “Father” here is referring to His relationship to the Son, through whom has come the execution of His plan of redemption. He determined the plan, and it was set in motion through the giving of His Son. In turn, for those who have received Christ Jesus, we have been qualified “to be partakers of the inheritance.” The kingdom which lies yet ahead belongs to the Son. It is His inheritance, just as any son inherits from a father. In this case, Christ is the inheritor of all things. This is seen, for example, in Hebrews 1 –

“God, who at various times and in various ways spoke in time past to the fathers by the prophets, ² has in these last days spoken to us by His Son, whom He has appointed heir of all things, through whom also He made the worlds; ³ who being the brightness of His glory and the express image of His person, and upholding all things by the word of His power, when He had by Himself purged our sins, sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high, ⁴ having become so much better than the angels, as He has by inheritance obtained a more excellent name than they.” Hebrews 1:1-4

From this, those who call on Christ likewise become “partakers of the inheritance of the saints.” What this is saying, is that the promises to the Old Testament saints continues on in the new dispensation. That which was promised to the saints of old now applies to the saints of the church. The New Covenant issued from the Old Covenant when Christ fulfilled the Old in His death.

In this establishment of the New Covenant, the promises which were given to those under the Old are now realized in the new. This does not mean that the church replaces Israel, but that which is offered pertains to those who are established through the work of Christ. To understand this, we can look at the words to Daniel concerning the inheritance of the saints as was promised to him –

“Those who are wise shall shine
Like the brightness of the firmament,
And those who turn many to righteousness
Like the stars forever and ever.” Daniel 12:3

An inheritance was promised then, and the same inheritance is promised now. Those who are contained within the active covenant are those who are partakers; from Old to New Covenant. Completing the thought, he says this covenant of the saints is “in the light.”

The idea of light here is the kingdom over which God presides. There is no darkness, as there is in the current world. This is the kingdom which God offers through Christ who is the true Light. The concepts of light and kingdom permeate the Bible, but John deals with them in great measure in his gospel and epistles. What lies ahead will be marvelous. The powers of darkness will be utterly removed, and only holiness, happiness, and the glory of God will remain.

Life application: Our hope is in a world which is so wonderfully greater than anything we can actually imagine. The world around us is hemmed in with evil, and the powers of darkness are everywhere. But for those who are in Christ, a glory lies ahead which will literally radiate out in majestic splendor for all eternity. Hold fast to your faith, and be of good cheer, even when the world seems to overwhelm you. Great things lie ahead.

Heavenly Father, it is wonderful to know that something more glorious than we can imagine lies ahead. This world, even at its best, is one of death and corruption. But You have promised one which is light, life, and glory. Thank You for having sent Christ Jesus to make all things new. Through Him, we become partakers of the promised restoration which You have purposed for the saints in the light. We await that glorious day! Amen.

Wednesday, 22 March 2017

…strengthened with all might, according to His glorious power, for all patience and longsuffering with joy;  Colossians 1:11

Again as with the previous verse, this continues the thought in which Paul explains why he and Timothy were giving thanks to God and praying for those at Colossae. He says that they may be “strengthened with all might. Paul uses the same word, first in the noun form, then in the verb form. Thus it is essentially a Hebraism where the repetition of a word is given for stress. In the Greek, it says dunamei dunamoumenoi – “being empowered with all power.” This is not intended as meaning an outward display of apostolic gifts. Rather, his prayer for this is so that they will be able to meet and overcome any temptations, perform their duties as Christians by the power of Christ’s strength, and to be able to endure any trials which they were destined to face.

His prayer is that they will be so strengthened “according to His glorious power.” The Greek here reads, “according to the power of His glory.” As God’s power is one of His perfections (He being all-powerful), Paul is praying that those in Colossae (and thus us!) will be likewise strengthened by that all-powerful hand so that they will be able to meet and overcome every obstacle, and press forward in all ways which are good and true. He expresses two of those ways with the words, “for all patience and longsuffering.”

The idea of patience is putting up with those that one could otherwise dismiss. The idea of endurance is putting up with that which one cannot dismiss. He is asking for strength for both categories. For those that could be walked away from, his prayer is that we would stick it out and endure their failings or irksome ways. For that which cannot be walked away from, like it or not, his prayer is that we would be able to continue and not be overcome by the pressure of the situation.

But, Paul goes even further when he adds in the final words of the thought as a point of true grace from God – “with joy.” His hope is not just that there will be patience and longsuffering, but that there will actually be joy in the process. In understanding that being “in Christ” is the state of the believer, then whatever we experience is what God intends for us, even if it seems terrifying, overwhelming, etc. He has ordained our steps, and so we should walk in them with a sense of joy that whatever we are facing is not being faced alone. Rather, He is there with us, and has placed us there for His sovereign purposes.

In these words, we have the mode of meeting the challenge – with all might; we have the measure – according to His glorious power; we have the anticipated result – all patience and longsuffering; and we have the state in which this process should take place – all joy.

Life application: Life sends us many difficult things that we need to deal with. Some, we could just walk away from, but that may not be the proper path to take. Some, we must endure despite it being a real headache for us. It is important for us to consider our position in Christ as we face these things. In so doing, we will be more likely to respond to them in an appropriate way. Let us pray for strength in order to meet them, and deal with them according to God’s glorious power.

Heavenly Father, life sure throws us some difficult curve balls. Even on a good day, there are things we must endure that are unpleasant. And there are those who come into our lives which can sure test our patience as well. It is so much easier to walk away from them than to put up with their nonsense. But in both cases, help us to remember Your glory and to act as lights in the dark places. Be with us in this, strengthen us according to Your power, and grant us the joy of Your fellowship as we continue to swing our bat at those difficult pitches, meeting each with a home-run according to Your wisdom. Amen.

Tuesday, 21 March 2017

that you may walk worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing Him, being fruitful in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God; Colossians 1:10

This is a continuation of the previous verse in which Paul explains why he and Timothy were giving thanks to God and praying for those at Colossae. He says that their prayers were also “that you may walk worthy of the Lord.” He had just mentioned the desire that they “be filled with the knowledge of His will in all wisdom and spiritual understanding.” This then logically follows that. With knowledge, one needs to then apply what they know, living out the life that their knowledge has told them is appropriate. In this, their walk will be worthy of the Lord.

In this state, their conduct will be “fully pleasing” to Him. The word Paul uses here is found only this once in the New Testament. It is areskia, and it indicates making an effort to fully and satisfactorily please. He is making a logical sequence of events in the believers’ lives that demonstrates the process of growing unto maturity. In such a state, the believer will be “fruitful in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God.”

This thought goes backward now in order to reexplain what is “fully pleasing” to the Lord. Being fruitful indicates the positive results of a walk worthy of the Lord which is seen in every good work. Increasing in the knowledge of God is what leads to that state of fruitfulness. His thoughts form a mini chiasm as they first move forward to “fully pleasing Him,” and then moving backwards after that thought.

Paul’s desire for this to occur in the Colossians was so strong that he purposefully repeats the thought in order to solidify it in their (and thus our!) minds. Albert Barnes’ commentary on this verse is well worth citing –

“God is pleased with those who desire to understand what he is; what he does; what he purposes; what he commands. Hence he not only commands us to study his works…, but he has made a world so beautiful as to invite us to contemplate his perfections as reflected in that world. All good beings desire that others should understand their character, and God delights in those who are sincerely desirous of knowing what he is, and who inquire with humility and reverence into his counsels and his will. People are often displeased when others attempt to look into their plans, for they are sensible they will not bear the light of investigation. God has no plans which would not be seen to be, in the highest degree, glorious to him.”

Life application: If you are not growing in the knowledge of God through Bible studies, you cannot be pleasing to Him. Only when one takes the knowledge of God and His expectations, and then unites it with a walk in accord with that knowledge, can one be truly pleasing to Him. As always, it comes down to knowing the word. Study your Bible.

Lord God, thank You that we have not been left without instructions for how to conduct our lives in a way which is pleasing to You. They are there in black and white in the pages of the Bible, waiting for us to pick it up, grow in knowledge, and then walk according to that knowledge. As there is a Bible in almost every house, and 100 versions at the tip of our fingers on-line, we really have no excuse for not doing this, do we? Give us wisdom to think this through and to strive to know You, walk closely with You, and revel in who You are. Amen.

Monday, 20 March 2017

For this reason we also, since the day we heard it, do not cease to pray for you, and to ask that you may be filled with the knowledge of His will in all wisdom and spiritual understanding; Colossians 1:9

This takes us right back to verses 3-8. Paul had said in verse 3, “We give thanks to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, praying always for you.” After that, he gave his reasons for this thanks. Now, using that same list, he says, “For this reason we also…” The same thing that brought thanks to the hearts of Paul and Timothy is the thing which now brings something else along with it.

Before he tells what it is that he is referring to, he says, “since the day we heard it.” As soon as the news came to their ears, and even until the present moment, this has held true. And that thing is that they “do not cease to pray for you.” They weren’t just thankful for the good news that they heard, but they began to pray for those who they were thankful for. Although this isn’t necessary in all situations, Paul next explains what the prayers are for. He says it is “to ask that you may be filled with the knowledge of His will in all wisdom and spiritual understanding.”

These words set up the train of thought for the rest of his epistle. The question must be, “How can someone be filled with the knowledge of God’s will in all wisdom and spiritual understanding without being properly instructed in it?” Paul’s words ahead will help lead them on this path. They may have had a copy of the Old Testament writings available to them if there were Jews among them who had converted to Christ, but they probably had no instruction on the doctrines of Christ outside of their instruction from Epaphras.

Now they would need that instruction, lest they fall into the heresies which were already coming into being at the time. To have “the knowledge of His will” means that of His will for us in Christ. This is certain, because Christ is God’s will for all humanity. To have a faulty view of Christ would then lead to a faulty view of God’s will.

This knowledge is to be “in all wisdom.” The Bible says that the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom. To have that, and then to grow in that fear of the Lord is the proper path. The book of Ecclesiastes shows the contrast between earthly wisdom and that which is heavenly. The prayers of Paul and Timothy were for those in Colossae to have this heavenly wisdom.

But their prayers were not only for wisdom, but also “spiritual understanding.” This is the ability to “put things together.” Not only should the Christian have wisdom, but also the ability to take that wisdom and to be discerning in it. Though the word “Trinity” is not in the Bible, Christians should be able to discern that is is a truth which is clearly presented there, and which can be logically deduced from various passages. The same is true with other major doctrines as well. Spiritual understanding is also speaking of that which is not correct. That Jesus Christ is God is plainly evident from even a cursory reading of the Bible. Therefore, to say that He is a created being is false. Spiritual understanding will reveal this.

Life application: It is good to give thanks for the salvation of others, but it should also be our heart’s desire that they grow in wisdom and knowledge concerning God and His word. Therefore, in addition to the thanks we give for the salvation of others, let us remember to pray for their development into mature followers of the Lord.

Heavenly Father, it is always a wonderful thing to see people come to a saving knowledge of Christ Jesus, but it should also be our desire to seem them mature in their walk with Him. Help us to remember to give thanks for what You have done in them, and also to give prayers in hopes of what You will continue to do in them. May this be so in order that they will be mature, doctrinally sound believers. Amen.