“You Are of Great Value”
Sunday, March 6, 2011
Gospel of Matthew 10:26-39

Introduction: For those of you who know me, you know that I’m not a morning person. I like to stay up late, and sleep in. But those who are morning people have told me how beautiful the early morning can be. Those who are morning people talk about getting up early, grabbing a cup of coffee, maybe the morning paper, and enjoying the quiet and calm of the morning, with maybe just the noise of the birds to be heard.
Often, our lives can seem calm in this way, and yet can become chaotic quite quickly. Especially if we decide to truly be a disciple of the Lord, and seek to share the message of salvation with others, As we talked about last week, taking advantage of the opportunities God gives us to share our faith.
This morning, as we look at Matthew 10:26-39, we will not be looking at external adjustments like “dressing for success,” “power language,” or “popularity schemes.” We will be looking at attitudes…..godly attitudes…..a way of viewing our world as modeled by our Master, Jesus Christ. A look at what we should fear, and what should not cause us fear. A look at how valued we are in the context of this world. A look at where we will find peace, and where we will not.
I believe this sermon will help prepare us for our Lenten Season, which starts on Wednesday with our Ash Wednesday service. A time of the year where we are to make extra preparations and an extra effort to be right with God.


I. Whom to Fear- (Matthew 10:26-28)

a. What do you fear?- Example- Not too long ago, after I had written my
sermon, I deleted parts of my sermon that are not part of the outline so I could send the outline to Susan. After which it asked me, ‘Do you wish to save the changes?’ I said no because usually I have the sermon on one document, and then a copy of the sermon to make the outline. After I deleted it I discovered that I had not saved my sermon. I HAD ERASED MY WHO SERMON!!
My day quickly went from calm, to chaos in a split second. I was now going to have to re-write my sermon. Have you ever had something like that happen to you? Maybe you deleted something on your computer, or maybe you lost something of value, or maybe you irritated somebody and caused a great conflict.
These are some of the things that we fear in our life. And yet, are they really things to be feared? In Matthew 10, verse 26, Jesus says- “So have no fear of them; for nothing is covered up that will not be uncovered, and nothing secret that will not become known.” Two times in the first part of this passage Jesus encourages the disciples to not fear. Do not fear those who have persecuted you. Any suffering you encounter will one day be brought to light, and those who you have suffered by will be punished and because of your suffering you will receive blessing!
Now if I asked you the question “What do you fear?” we would all have different answers. Our answers would range from things like speaking in public, to heights, to snakes, to losing our health. But one that is shared by many, is having to talk to people who are not open to the Lord. There is something about rejection that causes us fear. There is something about persecution that causes us fear. Now I would have to go along with you that suffering, and persecution are not on my top 10 list of things to experience, but they are not something to be feared.
b. Understanding fear- EX. A couple of years ago, when I was the Vice
President of our small Townhouse complex, it came to my attention that the President of the complex had been overly aggressive, and maybe even somewhat abusive verbally to some of the homeowners. A conversation had to occur over this. And so at the board meeting immediately following this we had to discuss this issue along with some others. Now I could have worried all week long about this conversation, and I could have had some fear over how he was going to respond, but this is not really worthy of fear. (In the end we talked it over and worked it out)
Now the dictionary says that fear is: “an unpleasant often strong emotion caused by anticipation or awareness of danger.” And in hearing this definition you might say: “Yeah, see I should have fear for those things that cause in me an unpleasant emotion or anticipation of what will come to me.” But Jesus wants us to think of fear in different terms.
In verse 28, Jesus says- “Do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill
the soul, rather fear him who can destroy both soul and body in hell.” Jesus is saying that many situations that cause us fear, like potential conflict with another, is not serious enough to warrant fear. We should treat these things with a healthy respect, and be mature and responsible in how we approach them, but they should not cause us fear. We therefore should not fear what people think or say, for people can do us no real harm in this way, and ultimately the power of people ceases at death. The danger is not in the judgement of people upon us, but the judgement of God. The one thing that should cause us to fear is to spend eternity in hell!
Illus. Some kids were having a discussion about death one day, and Jim says: “When you die, they bury you in the ground and your soul goes to heaven, but your body can’t go to heaven because it’s too crowded up there already.” Judy then responds: “Only the good people go to heaven. The other people go where it’s hot all the time like in Florida.” Then John says: “Maybe I’ll die someday, but I hope I don’t die on my birthday because it’s no fun to celebrate your birthday if you’re dead.” Marsha joins the conversation and says: “When you die, you don’t have to do homework in heaven, unless your teacher is there too.” (1001 Humorous Illus., p. 100, # 233)
Hell does exist, and it will not be a fun place, for it will be a place where we are eternally separated from God and His love. We need to fear this, for it is eternal. And we need to fear this for those who do not know Jesus as well.

II. You Are of Great Value- (Matthew 10:29-33; Psalm 136)

a. Our value expressed- So Jesus goes on to tell us why we are not to fear.
He tells us that God values the life of a sparrow. And if this is the case, won’t God care for us all the more, since we have been created in His image? And so as the Father is fully aware of what happens to the sparrow, so He will have all knowledge of what is to come to us. And God will make it all profitable.
Example- There is a story of a man who lived in West Texas, and one day during tornado season, a tornado came to their small town. The father hustled his kids indoors and had them lie on the floor, and laid a mattress over them. One of the boys peaked out from under the mattress, and saw how his father was not hiding under protection, but was standing by the open window, watching the funnel twist and churn across the prairie. As the boy saw his father standing there, he knew where he wanted to be. So he struggled out of his mother’s arms, and out from under the mattress, and ran to wrap his arms around his father’s legs. (In the Eye of the Storm, Lucado, p. 202)
We are in God’s hands, so we should not fear! The safest place to be in the time of a storm, or potential storm, is next to the Father. If we let ourselves follow the call and are faithful in living our lives as Jesus did, for the Father, then we will have nothing to fear, and all will be well in the end!!
Psalm 136 is a wonderful psalm that tells about God being the God of creation, who made the heavens and the earth, and the sun and the moon and the stars; then it goes on to tell the story about how God is the God of history, the God who rescued Israel from Egypt and who fought her battles for her; then finally it goes on to speak of God as the God “who gives food to all flesh.” The God who made the world and who controls all history is the God who gives us food and watches over us in our every need.
But even more, this God is the God who values us, for He created us as well. Jesus tells us that God knows us so well that He even knows the number of the hairs on our head. God has intimate and detailed knowledge of us. This is how much He cares!
b. Value returned- And yet, Jesus wants us to show that God has value to
us. So Jesus wants us to understand and acknowledge that it is through Christ and Christ alone that we have salvation. It is because we have value that Christ would die and make it possible for us to have this relationship and this eternal home in heaven.
Our time here on earth is relatively short, and the time in eternity is long.
Our time here on earth is a time for decision-making. Who will we follow? Will we value our relationship with Jesus Christ? Will we follow the call and speak for Him? Those who are true to the word and confess Jesus here on earth, will find Jesus Christ standing by their side in the hour of God’s judgment. Jesus will then acknowledge us and come to our aid when Satan comes to accuse us before God.
Jesus will then pronounce our name before the heavenly Father. If we have been true to Jesus in our life, Jesus will be true to us in eternity. But if we have been ashamed of our Lord and of his name, He will likewise be ashamed of us at the time of judgment. These are heavy words, but true.
So our courage to speak and live for the Lord is found on the conviction that whatever happens here on earth, we cannot drift from the love of God. He will not leave us or forsake us, but we will be forever in the care of God. If that is so, then why should we be afraid of anything?

III. Not Peace, But a Sword- (Matthew 10:34-39)

a. The choice- Kids come up with some amazing questions. Sometimes the questions are actually profound and thought provoking. Like the little girl who came up to her father one day and asked: “Why do I want to do bad?” Which is really the question: “If sin separates me from God by causing me to do the bad, why doesn’t God separate me from sin?”

Behind our actions is a choice, a choice to do the right thing, or a choice to do the wrong thing. And sometimes the wrong thing seems like the right thing, and sometimes the right things, seems like the wrong thing. Like Jesus’ statement in verse 34: “Do not come to think that I have come to bring peace to the earth; I have not come to bring peace, but a sword. For I have come to set a man against his father, and a daughter against her mother…”

Now when you first read this, it seems wrong. Isn’t God a God of peace? Isn’t God loving? Then why would He want to cause conflict and dissension?

Well, the answer to this, is that the peace of Jesus is the cross. But the cross is the sword of God, and this sword creates division. And one of the places that it causes the greatest division is in the family. The hardest people to share God’s message of salvation with is your family. I know this from experience, as I have tried for years to share with my brother and my sister.

So we see that Jesus brings to us this call of the Christian that is most demanding and uncompromising. As messengers of Jesus, this rejection will even come from our family. It will divide us because our family members do not believe what we believe. The more committed we are to telling our family members about Jesus and salvation, often times the more division that is caused. You cannot have the conviction, that you know the only way to heaven is through faith in Jesus Christ, and not offend people with this message.

b. The decision- Illus. You may have heard this story before, but whenever I come across it I am always amazed……….(“Steve Lyons Drops His Pants!” Lucado, Eye of the Storm, p. 247) Steve Lyons, who was a baseball playe,r who played in the 80’s and 90’s, had a very memorable game in Detroit in 1990. After sliding headfirst into first base to beat out a bunt hit, Lyons, maybe forgetting where he was, pulled down his pants to empty the dirt out and brush off his shirttail. After a few seconds (and a reaction from the crowd of over 14,000), he realized what he had just done and quickly pulled them up, humorously embarrassed.

Now the phrase “Don’t get caught with your pants down” usually refers to someone not getting caught by surprise. One of the things I love about Jesus is that He doesn’t want us to be unaware of anything. That is why He tells it to us straight. And so Jesus tells us that we must decide. As he says to us in vss. 37-38- “Whoever loves father or mother more than me is not worthy of me; and whoever loves son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me; and whoever does not take up the cross and follow me is not worthy of me.”

Jesus wanted people to know that God must be first in our lives over all other things. Being faithful to living for God each day must be equally as important. We cannot compromise this for anyone or anything. So Jesus says, if you and I don’t step up and answer the call to tell people about Jesus, and by doing this show how much we value God and God’s children, then who will? God’s love for us is shown in the cross, and in calling disciples who are willing to go out and tell others about God’s love and God’s plan.

Conclusion: We will not be able to live our lives to fulfillment unless we are living them for God. That is what Jesus meant when He said that “….those who lose their life will find it.” Too often we make choices with only ourselves in mind, and not God in mind. This is not the right choice, and ultimately will not bring us the fulfillment we desire. In this promise that Jesus speaks of, we hear the voice of Him who holds the keys of eternal life, the Son of God, Jesus Christ, who goes to the cross and the resurrection, and with Him takes His own. May we choose to be faithful followers of Jesus, and show value to Jesus as He shows value to us. Amen.

“As For the Lord”

Sunday, February 27, 2011

Colossians Series: Colossians 3:18-4:6

Introduction: I was e-mailed this poem last week that I’d like to read for you. It’s called the “New School Prayer.”

Now I sit me down in school, where praying is against the rule. For this great nation under God, finds mention of Him very odd. If Scripture now the class recites, it violates the Bill of Rights. And anytime my head I bow, becomes a Federal matter now. Our hair can be purple, orange, or green, that's no offense; it's a freedom scene. The law is specific, the law is precise, prayers spoken aloud are a serious vice. For praying in a public hall, might offend someone with no faith at all. In silence alone we must meditate, God's name is prohibited by the state. We're allowed to cuss and dress like freaks, and pierce our noses, tongues, and cheeks. They've outlawed guns, but First the Bible, to quote the Good Book makes me liable. We can elect a pregnant Senior Queen, and the 'unwed daddy' our Senior King. It's 'inappropriate' to teach right from wrong, we're taught that such 'judgments' do not belong. We can get our condoms and birth control, study witchcraft, vampires, and totem poles. But the Ten Commandments are not allowed. No word of God must reach this crowd. It's scary here I must confess, when chaos reigns the school's a mess. So, Lord, this silent plea I make: should I be shot; my soul please take! Amen.

The truth is, it is in more places than just schools where we have failed to show obedience to God and His word. This morning we finish up our series on the book of Colossians by looking at Colossians 3:18-4:6. Let’s start with Col. 3:18-4:1.

I. Learning to Submit- (Col. 3:18-4:1; Ephesians 5:21-25)

Colossians 3:18-4:1, “Wives, submit yourselves to your husbands, as is fitting in the Lord. ¹⁹ Husbands, love your wives and do not be harsh with them. ²⁰ Children, obey your parents in everything, for this pleases the Lord. ²¹ Fathers, do not embitter your children, or they will become discouraged. ²² Slaves, obey your earthly masters in everything; and do it, not only when their eye is on you and to curry their favor, but with sincerity of heart and reverence for the Lord. ²³ Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for human masters, ²⁴ since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving. ²⁵ Anyone who does wrong will be repaid for their wrongs, and there is no favoritism. ¹Masters, provide your slaves with what is right and fair, because you know that you also have a Master in heaven.”

From Colossians 3:18-4:1 we see Paul talk about the topic of submitting. In this section he talks about husbands and wives, parents and children, slaves and masters, and our submitting to God Himself.

Of course, submitting is really a state of mind; an attitude of the heart. It actually is a change of heart. As we talked last week about our sinful desires and putting them off so that we can put on our new clothes, so submitting is one of those ‘new clothes’ we need to put on. Our natural tendency is to want to be independent; even from God. That is why Adam and Eve were so tempted to eat of the fruit. They wanted to know good and evil, just like God did. They felt like God was holding them back. This idea of submitting goes along with this attitude of not wanting to be held back. It is Paul getting practical with us, teaching us how to be Christians in our every day relationships.

a. Husbands and wives- Paul starts with husbands and wives. As we

think about this passage, we need to be careful about how we interpret it. And to interpret it correctly, we have to understand the historical setting. In Paul’s time, husbands basically owned their wives. A woman was a possession. A husband could divorce his wife for almost any reason, but a woman had no right whatsoever to initiate divorce. From the wife, the husband could demand complete submission and servitude.

Paul writes Colossians 3:18-19 to give some balance to this relationship; to give a Christian perspective on it. There was to be mutual submission, care, and concern. It didn’t matter what the law said, because God was a higher law, and had higher expectations of this relationship. That is why Paul says in v. 19, ‘Husbands, love your wives and do not be harsh with them.’

Even more, we see Paul tell us in Ephesians 5:21-25, “Submit to one another out of reverence for Christ. ²²²³ For the husband is the head of the wife as Wives, submit yourselves to your own husbands as you do to the Lord. Christ is the head of the church, his body, of which he is the Savior. ²⁴ Now as the church submits to Christ, so also wives should submit to their husbands in everything. ²⁵ Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her.”

This is a wonderful passage, because it teaches us that the concept of submission is not about submitting to a tyrant, or a dictator, but to a servant. Just as Christ served the church, and died for the church, so the husband should be a total servant to his wife, caring for her every need. In this way there is mutual submission and servanthood in the relationship!

PAUL’S WORDS WERE GROUND BREAKING WORDS AT THE TIME. If more couples gave heed to these words, I believe we would have far less marital problems, and the divorce rate would go down!

b. Children and parents- Next, Paul turns his attention to the

relationship between parents and children. Now children had even less rights than wives. Children were under the domination of their parents. A parent could do anything they wanted to do with their children, including selling them into slavery if they so chose.

Again, Paul is trying to help the Colossians understand that God had a greater idea of what the relationship between a parent and a child should be. This relationship should be loving in nature, not tyrannical. This relationship should have depth. This relationship should be meaningful, much the same way as our relationship with God.

So Paul says in verse 20: ‘Children, obey your parents in everything, for this pleases the Lord.’ Paul starts with the role of the child. Children were to be obedient; obedient in everything. First, because a child doesn’t know what is right and wrong (even though they think they do, especially when they become a teenager). Second, because God has established parents to have the role of authority for children, and to help guide them in their lives. But third, because if the child is disobedient, then it will upset the parent, and lead the parent to be reactive in their parenting, instead of parenting out of love.

I know that when my kids are defiant before me, it changes my perspective, and keeps me from being able to work with them. Instead I have to discipline and challenge them. This does not lead to us working together.

But Paul also has a word for the fathers, because God has given them a great responsibility in this relationship. The parents are to develop a loving, growing, productive relationship. So Paul says in verse 21, “Fathers, do not embitter your children, or they will become discouraged.” While at the time a father had every right to treat his children however he wanted, Paul is warning fathers that this would not be beneficial to the relationship. Even more, it is not how God designed for the relationship to work.

I know that sometimes when I am overly hard on my kids, they do get discouraged; they do feel unloved; they do feel beaten down. In these times I have to step back and work with them, and love them a little extra to get them back on track.

c. Slaves and masters- Third, Paul turns his attention to slaves and

masters. While God does not support slavery, this was a practice at the time. And so Paul is trying to help slaves not be abused. Paul is trying to make the best of a wrong situation. Paul is trying to help masters to treat their slaves with love and respect. A slave was really seen as a thing, in this day and age. They had no rights. They couldn’t marry. If they were to have a child, the child would belong to the master. Paul is trying to get the master to turn his thinking from, ‘what do they owe me?’ to that of what Christ would have them think, ‘what do I owe others?’

So Paul says, ‘Slaves, obey your earthly masters in everything; and do it, not only when their eye is on you and to curry their favor, but with sincerity of heart and reverence for the Lord. ²³ Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for human masters, ²⁴ since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving.’

Paul, knowing that this life of a slave was a grueling, disheartening place, writes 3 verses of encouragement to the slaves. Paul is helping them to understand that as Christians, they have to be obedient to the authority under which they find themselves, because it is their duty, and because their disobedience will just cause them trouble with their masters. Any disobedience on the part of the slave is an excuse for the master to come down on them.

But Paul gives them a fresh perspective, and that is for them to do their work as if they were serving the Lord; which in the end, that is indeed what their lives were to be about. If they work for the Lord, and not for their human masters, then they could work with joy in their hearts, knowing that they will find blessing from God in this world, and in their life in heaven!

And isn’t that how we should treat our jobs; work for the Lord, not for our employers? If we do this, we too will experience more joy in our work!

Paul also has a word to say to the masters in 4:1, ‘Masters, provide your slaves with what is right and fair, because you know that you also have a Master in heaven.’ As a Christian, a master was to treat his slaves differently than those who were not Christian. They were to treat them with fairness, even though nothing in the law dictated this to them. Masters were to let their slaves have some rights. Again, Paul words are transformative for the time.

All of these relationships were to come out of our first being submissive and obedient to the Lord. We serve the Lord in our lives, and if we have the right attitude, then we will seek to be right in all of our relationships. Hopefully, with this in mind, we will be led to be better spouses, employees, children, and parents. Hopefully, we will seek to live in mutually submissive relationships.

II. Devoted to Prayer- (Col. 4:2-6; Ps., 17:1; John 14:13-14; Matt. 21:22)

Let us finish with 4:2-6, “Devote yourselves to prayer, being watchful and thankful. ³ And pray for us, too, that God may open a door for our message, so that we may proclaim the mystery of Christ, for which I am in chains. ⁴ Pray that I may proclaim it clearly, as I should. ⁵ Be wise in the way you act toward outsiders; make the most of every opportunity. ⁶ Let your conversation be always full of grace, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how to answer everyone.”

a. Why do we pray? Paul next turns his attention to prayer. For

Paul, prayer was essential to our faith, essential to our living, and especially important in our service to the Lord. The problem for many Christians is that they don’t understand prayer. For many, prayer is just words we say to an invisible God. They don’t understand the depth of prayer and the power behind our prayers. How can you be devoted to something you don’t understand? You can’t.

So let’s take a moment to see why Paul challenged us to ‘devote yourselves to prayer.’ I came across this piece titled…

Illustration: “An Interview with God.” found on the internet; source unknown.

I dreamt I had an interview with God. "Come in," God said. "So, you would like to interview Me?" "If you have the time," I said. God smiled and said: "My time is eternity and is enough to do everything; what questions do you have in mind to ask me?" "What surprises you most about mankind?" I asked. God answered: "That they get bored of being children, are in a rush to grow up, and then long to be children again. That they lose their health to make money and then lose their money to restore their health. That by thinking anxiously about the future, they forget the present, such that they live neither for the present nor the future. That they live as if they will never die, and they die as if they had never lived…" God’s hands took mine and we were silent for a while and then I asked…"As a parent, what are some of life’s lessons you want your children to learn?" God replied with a smile: "To learn that they cannot make anyone love them. What they can do is to let themselves be loved. To learn that what is most valuable is not what they have in their lives, but who they have in their lives. To learn that it is not good to compare themselves to others. All will be judged individually on their own merits, not as a group on a comparison basis! To learn that a rich person is not the one who has the most, but is one who needs the least. To learn that it only takes a few seconds to open profound wounds in persons we love, and that it takes many years to heal them. To learn to forgive by practicing forgiveness. To learn that there are persons that love them dearly, but simply do not know how to express or show their feelings. To learn that money can buy everything but happiness. To learn that two people can look at the same thing and see it totally differently. To learn that a true friend is someone who knows everything about them…and likes them anyway. To learn that it is not always enough that they be forgiven by others, but that they have to forgive themselves."

I sat there for a while enjoying the moment. I thanked Him for his time and for all that He has done for me and my family, and He replied, "Anytime. I’m here 24 hours a day. All you have to do is ask for me, and I’ll answer."

1. Connects us to God- If we could interview God and talk to God in this

way, we would be able to grow in our relationship with God. That is exactly what prayer is, the avenue by which we connect to God. The psalms are really just prayers to God. The writers of the psalms knew that their prayers were heard by God and connected them to God. As Psalm 4:1 says, “Answer me when I call to You, O my righteous God. Give me relief from my distress. Be merciful to me and hear my prayer.” You can hear the connection that the psalmist wants to have with God here. OR, Psalm 17:1, which says: “Hear, O Lord, my righteous plea; listen to my cry. Give ear to my prayer, it does not rise from deceitful lips.”

2. Opens doors- Paul asks the Colossians to pray for doors to be open.

Another wonderful aspect of prayer is that when we pray with faith, God will open doors for us to spread His word and to teach others. God graciously answers our prayers for His glory. As we are told in John 14:13-14, “And I will do whatever you ask in my name, so that the Father may be glorified in the Son. ¹⁴ You may ask me for anything in my name, and I will do it.” AND Matthew 21:22- “If you believe, you will receive whatever you ask for in prayer.”

b. Prayer leads us to good behavior- It is by prayer that the power of

God’s Spirit works on us to lead us to behave as we should. As Paul says to the Colossians in verses 5-6, “Be wise in the way you act toward outsiders; make the most of every opportunity. ⁶ Let your conversation be always full of grace, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how to answer everyone.”

As God gives us open doors, we must be wise in what we say to others. We must not be contentious with them, or argumentative, but speak with grace and love. We must live our lives with eyes wide open, so that we can be ready for the opportunities that God gives to us.

Illustration: “The Blind Boy and the Man,” e-mail

A blind boy sat on the steps of a building with a hat by his feet. He held up a sign which said: "I am blind, please help." There were only a few coins in the hat.

A man was walking by. He took a few coins from his pocket and dropped them into the hat. He then took the sign, turned it around, and wrote some words on it.
He put the sign back so that everyone who walked by would see the new words.
Soon the hat began to fill up. A lot more people were giving money to the blind boy.
That afternoon the man who had changed the sign came to see how things were. The boy recognized his footsteps and asked, "Were you the one who changed my sign this morning? What did you write?" The man said, "I only wrote the truth. I said what you said but in a different way." I wrote: "Today is a beautiful day but I cannot see it."
Both signs told people that the boy was blind. But the first sign simply said the boy was blind. The second sign told people that they were so lucky that they were not blind. Should we be surprised that the second sign was more effective?

So many people are blind to who God is and the difference a relationship with God can make in their life. We should seek to gain more knowledge of God’s ways so that we can answer all who have doubts and questions. We need to pray for them, and have others pray for us in our behavior and witness!

Conclusion: This whole section really comes down to the idea of our submitting to God. When we humble ourselves before God, and submit to God, then we will be more likely to have good and right relationships in our lives, we will be devoted to prayer, and we will seek to not only live out our faith, but share our faith with others! This is at the core of what Paul desires the Colossians to know; desires for us to know.

So, we have made it through Colossians. This letter speaks to the Colossians and to us about the heresies and worldly pressures that exist around us. To stand strong in our faith we must hold fast to the Lordship of Chris in our lives, be devoted to prayer, and understand that our goal in life should be to become mature believers.

Let us hear the words of the apostle Paul, so that we can be ready to do the work of the Lord, standing strong in our faith, and making a difference with our lives. Amen.

"Raised with Christ"

Colossians Series; 2/20/11

Colossians 3:1-17

Introduction: Last week this story, Breakfast at McDonalds, was e-mailed to me. I believe it sets us up for what Paul wants to teach us in Colossians, chapter 3. So, let me read it to, because I believe it is more powerful in her own words...

"I am a mother of three (ages 14, 12, 3) and have recently completed my college degree. The last class I had to take was Sociology. The teacher was very inspiring with the qualities that I wish every human being had been graced with. Her last project of the term was called 'Smile.' The class was asked to go out and smile at three people and document their reactions. I am a very friendly person and always smile at everyone, so I thought this would be a piece of cake. Soon after we were assigned the project, my husband, youngest son, and I went out to McDonalds to share some special time together. We were standing in line, waiting to be served, when all of a sudden everyone around us began to back away, including my husband and son. As I turned around I smelled a horrible 'dirty body' smell, and there standing behind me were two poor homeless men. As I looked down at the short gentleman, close to me, he was 'smiling.' His beautiful sky blue eyes were full of God's light as he searched for acceptance... He said 'Good day' as he counted the few coins he had been clutching. The second man fumbled with his hands as he stood behind his friend. I realized the second man was mentally challenged and the blue-eyed gentleman was his salvation. I held my tears as I stood there with them. The young lady at the counter asked him what they wanted, and he said 'Coffee is all miss.' That is all that he could afford (if they wanted to sit in the restaurant and warm up, they had to buy something. They just wanted to be warm). The I really felt it- the compulsion was so great I almost reached out and embraced the little man with the blue eyes. That is when I noticed that all eyes were set on me, judging my every action. I smiled and asked the young lady behind the counter to give me two more breakfast meals on a separate tray. I then walked around the corner to the table where they were sitting, and laid my hand on the blue-eyed gentleman's cold hand. He looked up at me and said 'Thank you.' I leaned over, began to pat his hand, and said: 'I did not do this for you. God is here working through me to give you hope.' I started to cry as I walked away to join my husband and son... When I sat down my husband smiled at me and said, 'That is why God gave you to me, honey, to give me hope.' We held hands for a moment and at that time we knew that only because of the grace of God given to us were we able to give to others.

In this chapter Paul challenges us to set our minds on the things above, to put off our old sinful practices, and to seek to teach one another the way of Christ!

I. Set your mind on things above- (Colossians 3:1-7; Matthew 6:19-21; Philippians 4:6-7)

Let us start by reading Colossians 3:1-7, “Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. ² Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things. ³ For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God. ⁴ When Christ, who is your life, appears, then you also will appear with him in glory. ⁵ Put to death, therefore, whatever belongs to your earthly nature: sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desires and greed, which is idolatry. ⁶ Because of these, the wrath of God is coming. ⁷ You used to walk in these ways, in the life you once lived.”

a. Heart and mind- Paul knows that our hearts and minds control

our feelings and our thinking, which in turn determine how we live our life. This is something Jesus, Himself challenged us with, when He said in Matthew 6:19-21, “Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moths and vermin destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. ²⁰ But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moths and vermin do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. ²¹ For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” Our heart determines what our greatest desire is. Our heart leads us to act. We may say we want to do something (like go on a diet), but then we see this dessert we like and we decide to eat it, because in reality our hearts desires to enjoy the dessert more than it desires to lose the weight.

With this in mind, we can understand Paul’s words, when he tells us to set our hearts and minds on things above, not on earthly things. This is a continuation of what Jesus said in Matthew 6. Paul wants us to understand that the things of earth are temporary, and will disappoint us. Sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desires, greed, idolatry are not only unhealthy for us and will not satisfy us, they are temporary and will fade away. We are to set ourselves on that which has eternal impact. Why? Because we are now in Christ, and should value the things of Christ.

b. Put to death- So we see that we shouldn’t desire the earthly things.

But how are we to overcome our desires? Paul tells us to ‘put to death.. whatever belongs to your earthly nature.’ We are to put our desires ‘to death.’ Now we can’t exactly stab our desires, or shoot our desires. So how do we put them to death? We put them out of our mind by dwelling on the things of God. We RID ourselves of them. As Paul says in Philippians 4:6-7, “Finally brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable, if anything is excellent or praiseworthy, think about such things.” THINK ABOUT SUCH THINGS. What you put into your brain will ultimately move to your heart, and will live there. You have to find new things to desire by dwelling on them regularly.

Illus., Stories for the Heart, p. 144, “Act of Love.” There is a story of a little girl who came home from school one day all excited to tell her mother what had happened. The girl began to tell her story, but when the mother realized that the story was going to be a long one, she asked her daughter if they could finish it later. The mother got the dinner ready, and then after dinner the phone rang and the mother had to take the call. When she finally hung up her daughter asked her: “Mommy, do you really love me even in if you don’t have time to listen to me?”

We show what we love by what we make time for. To put to death our earthly desires means we don’t make time for them, but rather make time for the things of heaven; the things of eternal value. So to do this, we have to understand what has eternal value. We have to understand what are to treasure in heaven. We have to understand what are the things above.

The only way we can do this is to see what Christ valued; see how Christ lived. And when we look at the life of Christ, we see that He valued relationships, starting with His relationship with God the Father. Christ valued prayer. Christ valued ‘loving others.’ Do you value these things?

II. Put off old practices- (Colossians 3:8-14)

Paul continues in this thinking in verses 8-14: “But now you must also rid yourselves of all such things as these: anger, rage, malice, slander, and filthy language from your lips. ⁹ Do not lie to each other, since you have taken off your old self with its practices ¹⁰ and have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge in the image of its Creator. ¹¹ Here there is no Gentile or Jew, circumcised or uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave or free, but Christ is all, and is in all. ¹² Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. ¹³ Bear with each other and forgive one another if any of you has a grievance against someone. Forgive as the Lord forgave you. ¹⁴ And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity.”

a. Evil practices- Not only are we to rid ourselves from our earthly

desires, but we are to rid ourselves from our evil earthly practices. Paul gives us a list of some of these practices: anger, rage, malice, slander, lying and filthy language from your lips. I think it is pretty obvious that the characteristics on this list are not what God would have for us. On top of this, they are not what would help us in our life or our relationships.

It is really like putting off our clothes. If you were wearing clothes that were terribly dirty, and that smelled bad, you would not want to keep these clothes on. You would take them off so that you could put on new, clean clothes! So, our old self is dirty, and stinky and needs to be put off, SO THAT WE CAN PUT ON SOMETHING NEW.

b. Godly practices- vss. STORY (via internet: “A Voyaging Ship was

wrecked”) A voyaging ship was wrecked during a storm at sea and only two of the men on it were able to swim to a small, desert-like island. The two survivors, not knowing what else to do, agreed that they had no other recourse but to pray to God. However, to find out whose prayer was more powerful, they agreed to divide the territory between them and stay on opposite sides of the island. The first thing they prayed for was food. The next morning, the first man saw a fruit-bearing tree on his side of the land, and he was able to eat its fruit.
After a week, the first man was lonely and he decided to pray for a wife. The next day, another ship was wrecked, and the only survivor was a woman who swam to his side of the land. Soon the first man prayed for a house, clothes, and more food. The next day all of these were given to him. However, the second man still had nothing but a little food.
Finally, the first man prayed for a ship, so that he and his wife could leave the island. In the morning, he found a ship docked at his side of the island. The first man boarded the ship with his wife and decided to leave the second man on the island. He considered the other man unworthy to receive God's blessings, since none of his prayers had been answered. As the ship was about to leave, the first man heard a voice from heaven booming, "Why are you leaving your companion on the island?"
He responded: "My blessings are mine alone, since I was the one who prayed for them. His prayers were all unanswered and so he does not deserve anything." "You are mistaken!" the voice rebuked him. "He had only one prayer, which I answered. If not for that, you would not have received any of my blessings." "Tell me," the first man asked, "What did he pray for that I should owe him anything?" The voice of God said to him: "He prayed that all your prayers be answered."

How do we know that the prayers that are answered for us were not answered because someone else is praying for us? Our problem too often is that we are like the first man, only caring about ourselves. This regularly leads us to our evil practices. Paul tells us to ‘put off’ our ‘old self,’ and ‘put on’ our ‘new self.’ Then he precedes to give us a list of some of what is included in these new clothes we are putting on: compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, forgiveness and patience.

These characteristics can only be put on if we take our eyes off of ourselves, and put our eyes on others. We have to open our eyes and look for situations where we can be kind, forgiving, compassionate. Actually, we don’t have to look too far or too hard to find these opportunities. I’m sure if you think back on your week, you will realize the times you had an opportunity to show these qualities to others, and in fact, you might be already doing this. If that is the case, then this passage is just a reminder to keep doing what you are doing.

III. Teach one another- (Colossians 3:15-17)

We finish up by reading verses 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. ¹⁶ Let the message of Christ dwell among you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom through psalms, hymns, and songs from the Spirit, singing to God with gratitude in your hearts. ¹⁷ 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.”

a. Message of Christ dwell in you- So we have this message of Christ

dwelling within us. It is there in a way that we remember daily. It is the message of love, and compassion, and forgiveness. It is with us in a way that we cannot forget, because it is part of who we are, since we have put on these new clothes.

I might have mentioned this before, but one of the turning points for my life was when I read a book called “The Practice of the Presence of God.” It is written by a monk, who talks about how we are to constantly be in conversation with God. In being in this constant conversation, we are then more aware of Christ’s message in our lives. We are more concerned with what we are to do and who we are to be.

As we have this message of Christ within us, we also experience the peace of God in our lives. Peace is an important aspect of life. Without peace we struggle to enjoy life. Without peace we worry more and trust God less. Without peace we feel at odds with our life. With peace we are comfortable with who we are and what we are called to do. With peace we believe that all things will work out for the good. With peace we can recall more readily the message of Christ!

b. Word or deed- But Paul reminds us that we are not just to have

the message of Christ dwelling within us; we are to teach this message to others. When Paul talks of teaching, he is not just referring to those who have special gifts of teaching, but he is speaking to all who follow Christ; all who have the message of Christ within them!

If you were to look at Jesus’ life, the amazing thing is that most of Jesus times of teaching were not in the synagogue, but in his every day traveling around. Think about it for a minute: As you take a quick look through the gospels, you see that Jesus was teaching as he called the disciples (telling them He was going to make them ‘fishers of men.’); He taught the Beatitudes on the top of a mountain; in fact, Matthew, chapters 5 through 7 were all taught from this mountain top. We travel some more through the gospel of Matthew and see Jesus teaching the disciples by His calming the storm; later the disciples of John the Baptist come to Him and ask Him about fasting, and He takes the opportunity to teach them right there (He doesn’t say: ‘Come to the synagogue this Friday and I will be teaching on that). And on and on it goes. If you were to take away these “interruptible” moments of Jesus’ life, you would see very little teaching and ministry going on.

What does this mean for you and me? When I say that we are to teach the message of Christ to others, I mean that we do it in our every day lives; we do it with our words, ‘yes,’ but also our deeds. We teach someone about the love of Christ when we walk with them in their pain and struggles. We teach people about forgiveness, when we forgive them, or when they see us forgive others.

The truth is, our message is more powerful when it is lived out, as opposed to just being spoken. When we come to church each week, we speak a message of being committed to worship. When we serve in the church, we speak a message of giving away ourselves to others. When we help others in a time of need, we speak a message of how God has time for people as well. ‘And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus.’

Conclusion: If you were to say, ‘that person is a changed person,’ what would you mean by that? Usually, this statement means that a person has improved who they are as a human being. Maybe they were making poor choices, but now they are making choices that not only benefit themselves, but others as well. When Paul tells us in Colossians 3:1, ‘Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is…,’ Paul is telling us that we are changed people. We have died to our old life and have now been raised to a new life.

What is this new life? It is what we have talked about in chapter 3: being committed to Christ in our hearts and minds; putting off our sinful practices, and being more Christ-like in our behavior; practicing godly behavior; and seeking to teach others about who Jesus is, and how Jesus calls us to live our lives.

Let us commit ourselves today to live as those who have been raised with Christ, and let us do it with our words, and with our deeds, in thanksgiving for this new life God has given us in Christ. Amen.

"Fullness in Christ"

Series on Colossians: Colossians 2:1-23

February 13, 2011

Introduction: Illus. “Twinkies and Root Beer,” via the internet. A little boy wanted to meet God. He knew it was a long trip to where God lived, so he packed his suitcase with Twinkies and a six-pack of Root beer and he started his journey. When he had gone about three blocks, he met an old man who was sitting in the park just staring at some pigeons. The boy sat down next to him and opened his suitcase. He was about to take a drink from his root beer when he noticed that the old man looked hungry, so he offered him a Twinkie. He gratefully accepted it and smiled at him. His smile was so pleasant that the boy wanted to see it again, so he offered him a root beer. Again, he smiled at him. The boy was delighted!

They sat there all afternoon eating and smiling, but they never said a word. As it grew dark, the boy realized how tired he was and he got up to leave, but before he had gone more than a few steps, he turned around, ran back to the old man, and gave him a hug. The man gave him his biggest smile ever.

When the boy opened the door to his own house a short time later, his mother was surprised by the look of joy on his face. She asked him, "What did you do today that made you so happy?”

"He replied, "I had lunch with God. You know what? He's got the most beautiful smile I've ever seen!"

Meanwhile, the old man, also radiant with joy, returned to his home. His son was stunned by the look of peace on his face and he asked, "Dad, what did you do today that made you so happy?" He replied, "I ate Twinkies in the park with God. You know, he's much younger than I expected."

Paul has never met the Colossians, although it came from his indirect ministry, yet he is able to write these words in Colossians, chapter 2, to encourage them, strengthen them, and build them up in the Lord! It is Paul’s desire that they meet God, and in meeting God receive encouragement, strength, and freedom in faith.

I. Encouraged and United- (Colossians 2:1-5)

Let’s read the first 5 verses of chapter 2: “I want you to know how hard I am contending for you and for those at Laodicea, and for all who have not met me personally. ² My goal is that they may be encouraged in heart and united in love, so that they may have the full riches of complete understanding, in order that they may know the mystery of God, namely, Christ, ³ in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge. ⁴ I tell you this so that no one may deceive you by fine-sounding arguments. ⁵ For though I am absent from you in body, I am present with you in spirit and delight to see how disciplined you are and how firm your faith in Christ is.”

a. Encouraged in heart- Have you noticed how many people in our

world seem discouraged and downcast? I am quite amazed at this. Maybe it is because I feel that God has given me the gift of encouragement, and I am sensitive to noticing those who need encouragement. The wonderful thing is that encouragement can be pretty easy to give: a sent e-mail, a hug, a smile, a kind word, or a compliment, can all encourage someone who needs encouragement.

The apostle Paul wanted the Colossians to be encouraged in their hearts. Why is this? Because Paul knew that for them to continue to grow in their faith (as we talked about last week in chapter 1), and for them to bear fruit (which we also talked about last week), they needed to be ready and willing to stand strong in their faith and to share this faith with others! Those who are discouraged struggle to move forward in their faith.

Along with this, you cannot stay in your discouragement if you hope to cope with the situations of life you face. We are constantly bombarded with the challenges that life brings to us. They can easily discourage us. But if we let the discouragement control us, then it will win, and we will lose, because we will not be able to get past these challenges. We will feel lost in life. We must be a people of God, a church for God, that is encouraged in our hearts, and encourages others!

b. United in love- Along with being encouraged in their hearts, Paul

wanted them to be united in love. ILLUS. A couple of weeks ago when my family and I went skiing in Mammoth, it was fun to work with Tiffany and Tyler in their skiing and snowboarding. They had never done it before, so we started out on the easiest slopes on the hill. I was so pleased with how quickly they picked it up. By the late morning they were ready to go on some harder ski slopes, so we went over to another lift, and up we went. After going down these tougher hills for a while, Tiffany wanted to go back to the easier hills, while Tami, Tyler, and I wanted to stay on these new hills. As you can imagine, it is not good to not have been unified, because we couldn’t go in different directions, we needed to stay together as a family.

Without love for one another, you cannot have a church. Without being unified in purpose and direction, you cannot have a fruitful church. Now, that doesn’t mean you won’t ever have differences of opinion. But to be unified in love is to work things out, and to ultimately agree on a direction. In the end, we took a lunch break, then after lunch we skied the easier slopes some, and then finished with the harder ones. Compromise is an important aspect of being unified in love!

c. The treasure of wisdom and knowledge- Next, Paul talks about

how the Colossians have the treasure of the wisdom and knowledge that are found in Christ. While at face value these words might seem similar, they really aren’t the same. The knowledge that Paul talks about here is better translated as “critical knowledge,” and is the ability to assess a situation and decide on an appropriate course of action. Wisdom, on the other hand, is the ability to confirm the truth once it has been grasped. Wisdom is what confirms that the faith that you have in you is true.

You can understand a situation, but without wisdom, you struggle to carry it out. You probably know of people who seem very knowledgeable, but their actions are not always very wise. They have grasped the knowledge, but struggle to know how to implement it. In the spiritual sense, this is even more true, in that without wisdom we might know what the Bible tells us to do, but we get sidetracked by false truths and we don’t act wisely.

Paul tells us that this knowledge and wisdom are made known to us in Christ. What was once hidden is no longer hidden because the Spirit of God resides in us, and helps us to understand what we are to know, and how we are to wisely act.

II. Strengthened in Faith- (Colossians 2:6-15)

Let us continue with verses 6-15: “⁶ So then, just as you received Christ Jesus as Lord, continue to live your lives in him, ⁷ rooted and built up in him, strengthened in the faith as you were taught, and overflowing with thankfulness. ⁸ See to it that no one takes you captive through hollow and deceptive philosophy, which depends on human tradition and the elemental spiritual forces of this world rather than on Christ. ⁹ For in Christ all the fullness of the Deity lives in bodily form, ¹⁰ and in Christ you have been brought to fullness. He is the head over every power and authority. ¹¹ In him you were also circumcised with a circumcision not performed by human hands. Your whole self ruled by the flesh was put off when you were circumcised by Christ, ¹² having been buried with him in baptism, in which you were also raised with him through your faith in the working of God, who raised him from the dead. ¹³ When you were dead in your sins and in the uncircumcision of your flesh, God made you alive with Christ. He forgave us all our sins, ¹⁴ having canceled the charge of our legal indebtedness, which stood against us and condemned us; he has taken it away, nailing it to the cross. ¹⁵ And having disarmed the powers and authorities, he made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them by the cross.”

a. Deceptive philosophies- Paul, in teaching the Colossians, lifts up

the idea of not being taken captive ‘through hollow and deceptive philosophy.’ Now there are many teachings in this world that are false, but since Paul focuses so much on Christ, let us do the same.

It is easy to think that ALL RELIGIONS are good. Now if you are thinking that they are good because they make people nicer people, then maybe there is some good to them, but not all religions are good, because they don’t all lead to the One true God. This is why Jesus came to the earth, and why Christ died for us.

We will get to this more in a moment.

Now when I say religions, I am not talking about the different Christian denominations: like Methodist, Baptist, Episcopal, and even Catholicism. What I am talking about is religions that are different than Christianity, such as: Hinduism, Buddhism, Mormonism, and Jehovah’s Witness, to just name a few. They are deceptive, because they are well thought out, they have been around for quite some time, and they have MANY followers. Plus, we live in a society where we are supposed to honor others beliefs.

The problem with these other religions, is that there is no connection with God and us, His followers. Along with this, there is no assurance of salvation. For example, some Muslims believe that they can kill themselves and the infidels around them (all those who are not Muslim) and they will go to heaven. Jehovah’s Witnesses believe that they can LOSE their salvation by committing a terrible sin.

b. The fullness of Christ- The difference between the other religions,

and Christianity, is their concept of who Jesus Christ is. Paul wants us to rightly understand who Christ is, and the role Christ holds in this world, and in eternity. Paul specifically tells us that Jesus Christ is GOD IN THE FLESH, by saying: ‘For in Christ all the fullness of the Deity lives in bodily form.’ The fullness of deity (of Godness) dwells in Christ!

The truth is, the only thing we need for salvation is Christ. If Christ was not God in the flesh, then His death would not have given us forgiveness for our sins. But since He was God in the flesh, Christ, being perfect, took our penalty onto Himself, and removed the penalty from us.

There is a true story of a missionary in India who was challenged by all the other faiths he encountered in India. In his talking with the Hindus, the Buddhists, and the Muslims he finally discovered the One truth that made his faith secure: that God took on flesh, in the Incarnation, and lived among us, and died for us. Whenever he spoke about this truth, the meeting would lapse into silence, sometimes for many minutes, and then someone would say: “We have nothing in our faith that compares to that. Nothing!”

Christ has triumphed over all things, and in this we are not only saved from our sins, but as we will see in the last part of the chapter, we find wonderful freedom in Christ.

III. Freedom found in Christ- (Colossians 2:16-23)

We finish up the chapter by reading verses 16-23: “¹⁶ Therefore do not let anyone judge you by what you eat or drink, or with regard to a religious festival, a New Moon celebration or a Sabbath day. ¹⁷ These are a shadow of the things that were to come; the reality, however, is found in Christ. ¹⁸ Do not let anyone who delights in false humility and the worship of angels disqualify you. Such a person also goes into great detail about what they have seen; they are puffed up with idle notions by their unspiritual mind. ¹⁹ They have lost connection with the head, from whom the whole body, supported and held together by its ligaments and sinews, grows as God causes it to grow. ²⁰ Since you died with Christ to the elemental spiritual forces of this world, why, as though you still belonged to the world, do you submit to its rules: ²¹ “Do not handle! Do not taste! Do not touch!”? ²² These rules, which have to do with things that are all destined to perish with use, are based on merely human commands and teachings. ²³ Such regulations indeed have an appearance of wisdom, with their self-imposed worship, their false humility and their harsh treatment of the body, but they lack any value in restraining sensual indulgence.”

a. What you eat and drink- The major challenge to the Colossian

Christians was Gnosticism. In this last section of chapter 2, we see Paul bringing up these many Gnostic ideas. The first idea is about what you eat and drink. In the Gnostic thinking there were many regulations about what could not be eaten and drunk. They had become much like the Jews in this way, with their lists of what was clean and what was unclean.

The Gnostics believed that matter was evil, and thus the body was evil. If this is the case, then the body must be beaten down in its every impulse. Paul is saying here that they were not to have anything to do with those who identify their religion with laws of what can or cannot be eaten and drunk. For what we eat and drink is digested, and then excreted from the body.

While we are to keep ourselves from drugs and overindulgence of alcohol, since these negatively affect the body and mind, we are not to be guided in our faith by rules of food and drink. We have freedom from this in Christ.

b. Celebrations- Second, was the observation of specific feasts and

New Moons. Again, we see legalism taking shape here as they drew out lists of what was to be done, and what was not to be done. They turned their religion into a ritual. Paul’s criticism was that they had been rescued, freed by Christ from such rituals and regulations.

There is great wonder and worship that can be attained through rituals, such as Advent and Lent seasons, the praying of the Lord’s Prayer, and Communion. What needs to be avoided is qualifying when they have to be done and how they have to be done. When ritual controls your faith and practice, you lose the personalness of who God is, and how God wants us to worship Him. Our faith is to lead us into a growing relationship with God, not a constricting one.

c. Special visions- A third idea that was causing confusion with the

Colossians was those Gnostics who talked about the “special visions” they were having. Now the Bible does talk about “visions” that God gave to His prophets, and that He still gives to His followers from time to time. The visions wasc not what was wrong, what was wrong was the attitude they had behind them. They talked as though they were more special than other believers because they had these special visions. So, if you were not one who had visions, then you were made to feel lesser than those who had them.

The truth is, we all can have special visions given to us from God. For some it might happen in their dreams. For others it happens by God giving them an idea of something that God wants done. And still for others it can happen through special insight into a ministry or need of the church. The important factor here is not so much the vision, but making sure that what is seen is from God, and not what the person wants to see.

Conclusion: Experiment (via the internet)- “Great violinist Joshua Bell plays violin.” On a cold January morning, in the Washington, DC Metro Station, a man with played Bach on his violin. For about 45 minutes he played. During that time, approximately 2,000 people went through the station, most of them on their way to work. As he played he was notice by a middle-aged man, who stopped for a few seconds, then a woman stopped long enough to throw a little money in his hat on the ground. One young man actually stopped and listened for a few minutes, then walked on. Some children were curious, and tried to stop, but their mothers hurried them along. In all, only 6 people stopped and listened for a short while. About 20 people gave money as they walked on by, that totaled 32 dollars. Who was the violinist? His name was Joshua Bell, one of the greatest musicians in the world.

He played one of the most intricate pieces ever written, with a violin worth $3.5 million dollars. Two days before, Joshua Bell played in a sold-out a theater in Boston where the seats averaged $100 each to sit and listen to him play the same music. This experiment was organized by the Washington Post about perception, taste and people's priorities.

I believe Colossians, chapter 2 is similar to this, in that Christ came into this world, God in the flesh, and gave Himself for us. Many people don’t stop and notice; even fewer give themselves fully to Christ. Paul writes this chapter to inform and challenge us to live in unity with one another, encouraged by the fact that we have salvation, forgiveness of sins, and God’s wisdom. He wants us to understand that we have freedom in Christ when we live in Christ, not giving ourselves over to the false doctrines around us. The question is, will we walk on by, or will we stop and pay attention? Amen.