Knowledge of God's will produces our fruitful perseverance

Richland Center Free Methodist Church Sermon

Kids time:

Do you guys have any questions or topics from me you want to talk about? About God, the bible, life? Any Challenges for me?

How do we know truth? How do we learn?

- Truth is revealed to us. People tell us and teach us things.

- Everything I know is a jumbled up mix of what I have learned from my parents, teachers, friends, books, online, from the bible, and many more places.

Do all these sources/ people always agree with each other? -No

Lets play a little game and we can get your parents involved to:

- How many legs does a lobster have? 10 – their front legs have claws on them

- How many holes does a straw have? – 1

- How many bones are in the foot? - 26

Then How do we know who to trust? Am I always perfect and will always tell the truth? Will your friends always tell the truth?

- No – because I don’t know everything, your friends don’t know everything.

- A little surprise, your parents don’t know everything.

- How could I possible know everything if I am just one person living my one life. I have been going to school for around 20 years!! And I still know very little.

Then how do we know who to trust? So who does know everything? Who is it that everything he says is always true?

- God!

And does God talk to us? Does he try to teach us? How?

- YES! Through the Bible!

- So whenever we are being taught something, but it disagrees with what God is teaching us, then who should we choose to trust??

Colossians 1:9-12

9 And so, from the day we heard, we have not ceased to pray for you, asking that you may be filled with the knowledge of his will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding, 10 so as to walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, fullypleasing to him: bearing fruit in everygood work and increasing in the knowledge of God; 11 being strengthened with all power, according to his glorious might, for allendurance and patience with joy; 12 giving thanks[d] to the Father, who has qualified you[e] to share in the inheritance of the saints in light.

Intro

1. Adam Kilgas Married to wonderful supportive wife Jennifer

2. HPC Pastoral Fellow (working with Nellie Cejpek)

3. Going to trinity

So When I asked what to preach on, your staff gave the suggestion that I preach on something like “persevering in joy”. At first, my heart had the wrong reaction to this and I thought something like “I want to challenge myself with something harder….” Well, after reading many different passages, I ended up with Colossians 1 being pressed on my heart for you and to my slight shock, joyful perseverance is in there.

So, if you were to tell me, what is needed for persevering in serving the lord with true joy? What would you say? What would be the one thing you seek/pray for/be filled with?

Problem: We aren’t filled with the will of God.

Why should we be filled with the knowledge of his will? – so that…

In the American Church and culture there is this general idea that “we need Love, no knowledge”

1 Cor 8:1-3

Now concerning[a] food offered to idols: we know that “all of us possess knowledge.” This “knowledge” puffs up, but love builds up. 2 If anyone imagines that he knows something, he does not yet know as he ought to know. 3 But if anyone loves God, he is known by God.

- Many in the American Church have taken the idea from this passage “knowledge puffs up, but love builds up” as an unconscious slogan for their lives. It is easy to look at this and see that Paul is advocating for denial of knowledge and replace it with emotional passionate love for God.

- Can’t All of Christianity can be summed up with “Love God and Others”

- In some ways this is right

§ We are to reject simply building up knowledge that inflates our ego. I am proud that I have a mechanical Engineering degree from UW Madison, but I shouldn’t put more value in that knowledge than in my love for God.

§ God requires from us hearts that rejoice in him and hearts that mourn for sin, loss, corruption. Emotional hearts that lead us to deeply loving God.

§ I need to grow deeper in this and there are many here that probably feel the same. We need to love God, not just value knowledge.

- But in other ways,

§ This is a great simplification that will lead us astray

§ Paul advocates the opposite - that we require knowledge. Like we will see in Colossians 1

So, the main question we must ask, what knowledge do we need? And what is the outcome when have it?

So instead of being puffed up by vain knowledge, what knowledge should we be filled with?

I am going to read this again: Colossians 1:9-12

9 For this reason, since the day we heard about you, we have not stopped praying for you. We continually ask God to fill you with the knowledge of his will through all the wisdom and understanding that the Spirit gives, 10 so that you may live a life worthy of the Lord and please him in every way: bearing fruitin every good work, growing in the knowledge of God, 11 being strengthened with all power according to his glorious might so that you may have great endurance and patience, 12 and giving joyful thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of his holy people in the kingdom of light.

What is the flow?

- Parallel – Knowledge of God’s will produces 4 things

- We can see that right…. Give quick one line examples

- Series – Does the first build up the second which builds up the 3….

- Trick Question – Its both – There is a series, but each are still individually supported on the foundation of God’s will and specifically, our knowledge of it.

- These each could get their own sermon. But as I am still learning to give sermons and you don’t want to listen to me for the next hour, I am going to run through this flow, but hopefully camp on Patient Endurance a little bit more.

And if that is all too much for you, then a simple summary

Proposition ideas: Being Filled with the Knowledge of God’s Will produces our Fruitful Perseverance

Point Structure

1. Being Filled with the Knowledge of God’s will bears good fruit.

a. Vs 10 “Bearing Fruit in every good work”

b. Illustration – we have plants on our apartment porch – we really have to stay ontop of keep all the plants filled with water---

c. We need God’s will to know what is true and good

i. love is complex

ii. Loving God and others is the summary of the entire law. And requires more from us than what is simply written down.

d. So what is this fruit?

i. Is this just converting people and bringing them into the kingdom of God? No, it covers every aspect of our lives. (now that I said it isn’t just converts, don’t you dare use that in our hearts to say you then don’t need to care about evangelism.)

ii. We are called to be “filled…for every good work” not glass half full type of people. See God’s will for all your relationships, with your family, friends, neighbors, co-workers….

e. Ask yourself, are you living a productive life? Would God see your life and say you are “bearing fruit in every good work?”

i. I can’t say this about my own life, and looking at Paul’s example, we are to pray for and seek to be filled with God’s Will!

2. Obedience to in every good work grows Knowledge of God.

a. Vs 10 “growing in the knowledge of God”

b. There are many passages that express this concept

i. Matthew 5:13-16 – Salt and Light

ii. John 15:8 – I am the vine, you are the branches

iii. This not only applies to others, but ourselves.

c. Our faith precedes our obedience, but our obedience builds our faith

i. Have you ever met someone struggling in faith, unsure if they believe in God. And you look at the rest of their life and see willful disobedience?

ii. This is a natural cycle that we should seek to maximize – you are already on this cycle if you know any bit of God’s will, follow through, and glorify God in the results.

d. Again, do you find that you are obedient to God and see his goodness as a result?

i. This is tough, I know many of us feel incapable of obedience. We know what is right, good, according to God’s will, so much more than we actually can live it out.

ii. If you struggle with obedience… Be filled with the knowledge of God’s will. Go deeper, don’t stay on the surface.

3. Knowledge of God empowers endurance and joyful patience.

a. Vs 11: “being strengthened with all power according to his glorious might so that you may have great endurance and patience”

b. First, we are not only being strengthened by his might, but because of our knowledge of his might and goodness and his will.

i. “Do you see this!”

c. Strength and power for endurance and patience

i. We are in a fight! We are in a battle not against other nations, not against the political party across the isle from you, not even against the supposed “loss of a Christian America”

ii. We are empowered – we don’t give an inch to worldliness! We are called to crucify our flesh and it’s desires, and we have an enemy, an accuser, that we are to resist.

iii. We fight, but we also endure with patience. We know God’s victory is coming. We don’t need to lash out when we seem to be failing.

iv. When dealing with people, this is hard because we must be brutal against sin, but compassionate to the sinner. All the while, preserving ourselves.

1. Analogy – fencing – constantly parry

a. We are in the fight, can’t separate from the world

b. We can’t brutalize others

c. We also can’t just let them destroy us – we don’t get to role over and give up

d. Lets slow down for a moment – How else could we really do that unless we are overcome by the knowledge of God’s Glorious and Holy Might!!

i. Not just head knowledge, but when was the last time you have tasted and seen his goodness!

e. How do we err?

f. Do you struggle with the long fight of perceived defeat? Be filled…

4. Ok, last point, Our Endurance in Salvation Produces Unending Thankfulness

a. vs 12 “giving joyful thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of his holy people in the kingdom of light.”

b. Faith in God, trusting in Jesus as 1. The rightful Lord over your life 2. your Savior from the condemnation of sins, given the inheritance of God’s people, this should produce in us an unending thankfulness.

c. This is a matter of weight-iness. What else in our life can be put on the other side of the scales to be weighed against and compared to our eternal life?

i. Yes, there is still a time to mourn for we still live in a broken world, but our hope and joyful thankfulness should far outweigh it.

Conclusion

5. This is not something to do in part – but in full! Take note of the times “all” is used.

6. So how do we do this? How can we be filled with the knowledge of his will leading to good fruit, increased knowledge of him, strength for endurance, and thankfulness?

a. We look to Jesus

i. Who was filled with Knowledge of God’s will

ii. Lived a worthy live

iii. Bore fruit in all his works

iv. Providing to us knowledge of God incarnate

v. Who empowered everyone he came in contact with

vi. And is the first and lead for us into joyful eternal life.

Colossians 1:13-20

13 For he has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves, 14 in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.15 The Son is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. 16 For in him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things have been created through him and for him. 17 He is before all things, and in him all things hold together. 18 And he is the head of the body, the church; he is the beginning and the firstborn from among the dead, so that in everything he might have the supremacy. 19 For God was pleased to have all his fullness dwell in him, 20 and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether things on earth or things in heaven, by making peace through his blood, shed on the cross.

7. Pray for and seek to be filled with the knowledge of God’s will!

Pray to close

God’s will is for Perseverance

Filled with Knowledge of God’s Will produces our Perseverance

Problem: The world denies God is God, but we make Him common, insignificant, inconsequential, and thus fail to live lives worthy of Him.

What are our errors in respect to the knowledge of God’s will?

- Over ritualize God’s will into legalism

- Growth in knowledge isn’t followed with passion and action – great theology but no fruit

- Throw out God’s will as a suggestion, an add on to faith, rather than a command from our good king (our culture has deep mistrust for authority right now)

All of this, not properly experiencing the weight of God’s will, produces a life without fruit, deeper knowledge of God, joyful endurance, and thankfulness.

1. Many of us instead are more focused on what football game is on next or what Netflix series am I going to watch after my current one. We all have a distraction our minds often default to.

2. Why would the world believe God is real, if we treat him as common rather than holy.

Filled with Knowledge of his will directs, motivates, produces, us to live worthy lives:

Knowledge of God’s will outweighs the world, our flesh, and the enemy.

Knowledge of God’s will bears fruit, grows knowledge, empowers, and results in thankfulness.

Point Outline

1. Goodness bears good fruit

a. We understand what is true and for others proper good – can enter into the complexities of love for others good

i. All the law and God’s will for us is summed up in Love for God and Love for others.

b. Good fruit is not just getting new converts, but covers every aspect of life

i. Don’t you dare use that as an excuse then to not include evangelism as good fruits.

c. Do you find that your life produces good fruit in God’s eyes? Increase your knowledge of his will.

2. Obedience grows knowledge of God

a. Obedience before understanding (Faith)

b. This produces a natural enriching cycle. Knowledge directs obedience produces goodness which grows knowledge of God.

i. How do you get on this cycle? You already are there, you are learning about God and his will and give your life for it.

c. Taste and see that the Lord is good.

d. Others see your obedience and know God

i. Matt 5:13-16 “That they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven”

ii. John 15:8 “by this my father is glorified, that you bear much fruit and so prove to be my disciples.”

e. Do you find that when you are obedient to God, you see his goodness? Increase your knowledge of his will.

3. Truth of God empowers endurance and joyful patience

a. Endurance - God is God means we don’t give an inch to the world, flesh, or devil in our fight against them. No compromise in our spiritual fight. God gives us strength and power to endure.

b. Joyful Patience – God is God means we don’t lash out or use our power against others (patience) and that nothing can shake our joy (see next point)

c. Analogy – Fencing – We infinitely parry – never being overcome by others nor attacking and beating down others.

4. Salvation produces unending thankfulness

a. What in our meager, vain, little lives could be so appalling that it outweighs the goodness that God qualifies us to inherit like a saint.

b. Yes, there is still plenty in life that we are right to mourn, and it would be wrong to ignore.

i. We don’t try to comfort a mother who just lost a baby by saying “well at least you are saved”

c. But we don’t

These all apply always to all aspects of every part of all of your lives.

Conclude – read vs 13 to 23 – Gods will in Christ and his relation to us.