Ingredients of the Church (peace and thankfulness)

Colossians 3:12-17

a. Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts (3:12-15)

b. Let the word of Christ bring about thankfulness (3:15-17)

1. INTRODUCTION

a. Peace is one of those things that we know what it is, but we take for granted. We have lived in a period of human history with unprecedented peace, especially after the devastation we saw in World War I & II. We have faced a period of tranquility and peace.

b. But even as we have witnessed this peace, many don’t live with peace. Christians as well as unbelievers live in fear because of the economic hardships and the fear of the unknown. We don’t know what tomorrow will bring and peace flees from us.

c. But Paul in this section of Scripture reminds us of the believer’s peace. What does it mean that a Christian has peace? Paul reminds us two things regarding the virtues a Christian is to possess.

2. BODY

a. Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts (3:12-15)

i. Paul’s focus in verse 12 is that God has chosen us. Because He has chosen us, we are to put on a heart of compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience. This is the purpose for God calling us.

ii. Paul then goes on to detail what it means for God to call us. What does this choosing and putting on this heart mean? Well Paul goes into detail here in verse 13 by telling the church at Colossae to bear with one another, forgiving one another, and forgiving as the Lord forgave you.

iii. Then Paul closes verse 14 by telling them, put on love, which is the perfect bond of unity. Last week we spoke about unity but here Paul speaks about unity by helping us understand that through love, we can achieve unity.

iv. Understanding the purpose of God here in this context is knowing what God has done in bringing people together. It is to mirror Christ. All the descriptions of what Paul calls the church to do, is what Christ has done for us. Therefore, imitate Christ.

v. Then Paul writes something interesting. Paul starts verse 15 by telling the church to let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts. Then He writes, not only should you let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which you were called into one body, but also be thankful. Those are the two things we want to look at today.

vi. But I want us to examine what is this idea of peace? What is the peace of Christ then? It is to know that we were once at war with God, but through the death and resurrection of Christ, we have peace with God. It is to know that God no longer is our enemy but now He is our friend.

vii. Therefore, when dealing with others in the church, always let this peace, the fact that we are no longer enemies with God because of Christ determine how we build relationships with others in the church. We should not look at others as enemies, but recognize that we have all been purchased by Christ.

viii. But practically, what does this mean that the peace of God rule in our hearts? What does it mean that I have peace? It means that I don’t have anxiety or worry. Why? We don’t have anxiety or worry because Christ has overcome died and overcome the grave. I don’t have anxiety or worry because I am trusting in God who has achieved and finished the work of salvation on my behalf.

ix. A part of trusting of enjoying the peace of Christ ruling in my heart is the simple truth that I don’t have to earn my salvation. I have peace because I know Christ has accomplished this on my behalf.

x. We can be thankful for this, but does this move me? Does this cause me to do something for Jesus? That is where I want us to be. I want us to be stirred in our hearts, to do something for God because we thank Him so much for what He has done for me.

xi. How does this happen? Well, let me give you a practical scenario. One of the things we do is we are taught is that we are sinful. We are taught that there’s nobody who has or stands righteous before God because all have sinned. We know this because it says so in the Bible. Where?

xii. Well we are taught that our sins are great and Christ died for our sins. But the problem is that we focus too much on our sins and our sinfulness. The great news of the Gospel is that I am a sinner and Christ died for my sins. The problem we cause in our lives is that we focus so much on our sins that we don’t and can’t look to Jesus. We are taught that we must hate sin but what we do is, we end up hating ourselves because we are taught to hate our sin.

xiii. Now, I am not saying we should minimize our sin. No, the Gospel has no value or worth if we don’t look at the weight of our sin. We must have a weighty understanding of our sin. At the same time, we must understand the greatness of our savior. The problem lies, when we strictly focus on our sin and our wretchedness, that we stay there and bury ourselves due to our sin. We focus all our attention on our sinfulness, and the Law, that we forget to look to Christ.

xiv. When we focus on our sinfulness and we stay there, there is no peace. When Paul says to let the peace of Christ rule in you, He is speaking of the reality that Christ has redeemed you despite your sinfulness. Yes, you are a sinner. Yes you were dead in your sins. Yes, you still sin every day. But stop looking to yourself sinfulness. Stop thinking to yourself that if you stop sinning, you think as if, you are good enough and God will save you because of what you’ve done.

xv. God wants you to focus on your sinfulness. He wants you to know that you are a sinner, but come to Him. The purpose of the Gospel is not that we sit on our sins and feel sorry for ourselves, but rather, to take our sins and lay it at His feet. We must understand that Christ has accomplished our salvation and forgiven us of our sins. We need to stop internalizing our sin. What we are called to do is, to look upon the savior. Look to Jesus. Let the peace of Christ rule in your heart. Let the anxiety and worry of your sinfulness be washed by His blood that was on Calvary. Stop looking at your sinfulness and think as if God can’t forgive you. He already has forgiven you. Trust in Him. Look to Him. Let the peace of Christ rule over you.

b. Let the word of Christ bring about thankfulness (3:15-17)

i. What does the peace of Christ ruling over you produce? In the words of Paul at the end of verse 15, be thankful. How do we become thankful in Christ? Verse 16, Let the word of Christ richly dwell within you. The Word of Christ here might make sense that it’s talking about the word of God, but it is better understood when we translate it to the message regarding Christ or the message that proclaims Christ. It is the truth of who Christ is and what He has done.

ii. Why do I say this? Because of what Paul writes after, Let the word of Christ richly dwell within you. Richly here refers to abundance, simply meaning, let the word of Christ fully dwell within you, literally, let the word of Christ to find its home within you. Richly here signifies that it should not be a temporary thought but a permanent thought in our hearts and a penetrating thought in us that has transforming power in our lives.

iii. Look at what Paul is saying here. Let the word of Christ, let the message of Jesus Christ, the person of who He is and what He has done dwell within you deeply. Let that truth transform you. Let that word rule in your heart. Let that truth bring peace to you. Let that truth cause you to be thankful.

iv. You see, Paul’s message here is clear. The truth of the Gospel is found in the person of the Lord Jesus Christ. It is not through our actions or our faith that we are saved. It is not through our thoughts or our wisdom that saves us. It is simply those who are called and chosen of God (3:12), and if you are one of those who were called and chosen, then trust in Him. Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ.

v. Paul says in verse 16, sing with thankfulness in your hearts to God. Love the Lord Jesus Christ with all your heart. In everything that you do, live in thankfulness to God. Teach each other, and admonish each other with songs and hymns, speak in love to one another.

vi. Why do we do this? Verse 17, The peace of God that rules in our hearts, causes us to be thankful and when we are thankful, everything we do, we do for the name of the Lord.

vii. I want to ask you a question that you should ask yourself every day. What kind of man are you going to be today? What kind of woman are you going to be today? What kind of Christian are you going to be today? We can’t sit here without deciding what kind of person we will be. If we are thankful, we must not simply sing our thankfulness to God, but with every word or deed, we must do all for the name of Jesus. So what will you do starting today?

viii. My prayer is that whatever you do, starting today, do it because of the peace that rules in your heart. Do these things because of your thankfulness to Christ. Do whatever you say you will do today because you want to show your love for Him. Through this, I pray that we would all edify and encourage each other to be thankful to Him.

3. CONCLUSION