"In Grateful Stride With God"

Walking with God in Love and gratefulness should be our biggest priority. From that priority, everything falls into its rightful place.

Colossians 2:1-8

Bible Passage

Colossians 2:1-8 (ESV - English Standard Version)

1For I want you to know how great a struggle I have for you and for those at Laodicea and for all who have not seen me face to face,

2that their hearts may be encouraged, being knit together in love, to reach all the riches of full assurance of understanding and the knowledge of God's mystery, which is Christ,

3in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.

4I say this in order that no one may delude you with plausible arguments.

5For though I am absent in body, yet I am with you in spirit, rejoicing to see your good order and the firmness of your faith in Christ.

6Therefore, as you received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in him,

7rooted and built up in him and established in the faith, just as you were taught, abounding in thanksgiving.

8See to it that no one takes you captive by philosophy and empty deceit, according to human tradition, according to the elemental spirits of the world, and not according to Christ.

1

HOOK (Grab Attention)

Illustration

Enoch walked with God.

If I can make it to the end of my life and have this be my testimony, I would be absolutely elated.

To have such a simple story, but it be so profound.

Not profound because of performance of the walk, but profound because of who is present with you in the walking...

If we get stuck on our performance over His presence, we will look anywhere and everywhere for direction, instead of watching Him.

I remember when I was a kid and we would be in a store and I would be following my mom, dad, and/or Grandma Edith throughout the store.

I remember getting distracted and seeing something that I would want to look at, or something would catch my attention.

Immediately when I would realize what I was SUPPOSED to be doing, I would look up and realize that I was either far away from my parents...

...or that I couldn't see them anymore.

In those moments, at that age, those were some of the most terrifying feelings in the world.

Isn't our walk with Jesus like this sometimes??

We are supposed to be FOLLOWING Jesus, but we get distracted.

Then we feel ALL OUT OF SORTS 

We start asking questions like:

"God, where are you??"

"God, why did you leave me??"

"God, why are you allowing me to be so confused??"

QUESTION:  Who was the one who stopped walking??

2

BOOK

Bible Passage

Colossians 2:6-8 (ESV - English Standard Version)

6Therefore, as you received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in him,

7rooted and built up in him and established in the faith, just as you were taught, abounding in thanksgiving.

8See to it that no one takes you captive by philosophy and empty deceit, according to human tradition, according to the elemental spirits of the world, and not according to Christ.

Explanation

"as you received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in him"

this is NOT "accept Jesus in your heart"

that is found NOWHERE in Scripture!

"Receive" = learned/gotten familiar with

come into alignment with the Truth of who He is and who we are in that Light

come to the threshold of the "treasures of wisdom and knowledge" hidden in Christ (verses 2-3)

Paul doesn't want us to become "deluded" with "plausible arguments"

KJV translates it as "enticing words"

wearing the guise of "wisdom and humility"

Have you ever seen these people in your life?

They try their best to present themselves to have some sort of “wisdom” that has no basis…

What did we receive?

Christ Jesus the Lord

The gospel.  The Good News.

Jesus IS the gospel (Good News)

We cannot know or comprehend the depths of the "good news" until we understand the "bad news"

Apart from Christ, we are sinners

We have broken EVERY Command

Ten Commandments

We deserve the wrath of God for the deeds done in the body.

BUT Christ is forgiving, right??

Jesus said, in Mark 1:15

"The time is fulfilled, the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe the gospel"

present imperative = Be repenting and believing the gospel

If at any time we are not walking in this repentance or believing Jesus, we have no evidence of salvation.

NOT that you LOST it, but you have NO PROOF you were actually "born again"

I don't mean every time you "stumble", I mean walking in disobedience with no power over sin in your life.

If you are born again, you have a NEW NATURE...The nature of Jesus

We grow in that.  That means THINGSCHANGE to look more and more like JESUS, NOT THE WORLD.

"...So walk in Him

This is the message that has come to your heart's door.

Are you repenting?

Are you believing Christ?

Not just believing IN Christ..

Even the demons do that (James 2:9)

and they TREMBLE...

WALK in this NEW NATURE OF LIVING as a born again believer.

3

LOOK

Application

WHAT DOES THIS LOOK LIKE IN OUR LIVES??

"Rooted and built up"

"Rooted" implies

You are firmly planted in the ground

You cannot be "blown over" by every "wind of doctrine" that comes your way.

You test it by Scripture, because you are growing in your UNDERSTANDING OF SCRIPTURE

Because you are IN SCRIPTURE

You are MEDITATING on SCRIPTURE

JESUS IS THE WORD

You are talking with HIM

If you don't talk with a person, you don't have much of a relationship

A relationship is more than handing someone a list and walking away...

"Rooted" also implies "vitality"

Your spirit has LIFE in it

The greatest evidence of being born again is LOVE.

NOT just the emotion.

Love that is on display.

Loving God with all your heart, mind, soul, and strength and;

Loving your neighbor in the same way you love yourself.

Obedience AND Caring

One without the other is INCOMPLETE

"Built up in Him"

You are "solid" in Him

Your foundation in WHO HE IS is SOLID

"Established in the faith"

"confirmed"

It is plain to see that you aren't easily going to be moved

ILL:  Grandma Edith's tree in the backyard

it is WELL ESTABLISHED

it is seasoned

it has been tried by wind, rain, and storms

And there it stands.

Solid

confirmed.

"Established...as you have been taught"

NOT opinions.

NOT ideas.

NOT point of views.

BUT THE TRUTH OF THE MATTER OF THE GOSPEL

ILL:  Grandma Edith's Tree has "all sorts of things" that are trying to "take it over", but it stands FIRM in what it is intended to be.

"ABOUNDING IN THANKSGIVING"

Romans 1 shows us that UNTHANKFULNESS will DRAW us AWAY from the presence of God

How?

Self-absorption

How so?

We believe everything that we have is because we deserve it.

"Well, I have EARNED what I have, because I have worked hard."

Who woke you up this morning?

Who gave you your breath?

Who is causing your heart to beat?

Who gave you the brain to learn things?

GOD DOES NOT OWE US ANYTHING.

Gratefulness keeps the posture of our hearts set in His presence.

Genuine Gratefulness takes humility

Saying "thank you" is almost a lost art in today's world.

That ought not to be so in the life of a believer.

We, of all people, ought to know best what we are without Christ.

We have EVERY reason to be "Abounding in Thanksgiving"

Bible Passage

1 Thessalonians 5:18 (ESV - English Standard Version)

18give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.

Bible Passage

Colossians 2:8 (ESV - English Standard Version)

8See to it that no one takes you captive by philosophy and empty deceit, according to human tradition, according to the elemental spirits of the world, and not according to Christ.

Explanation

DON'T BE TAKEN CAPTIVE!!

By:

"Philosophy"

What people THINK about this life.

"Empty Deceit"

"according to human TRADITION"

What men/women SAY about this life.

"according to the elemental spirits of the world"

What people DO in this life.

"NOT according to Christ"

JESUS IS WHO WE ARE WALKING BEHIND

NOT your favorite idol

NOT your favorite philosophy

NOT your favorite way of doing things

LIFE IS NOT ABOUT HAVING YOUR PREFERENCE, IT IS ABOUT BEING IN HIS PRESENCE

TO BE "ROOTED" IN HIM IS TO BE ROOTED IN LIFE.

Jesus is the Life Giver.

and that "life" is from HIM, not from this WORLD.

4

TOOK

Challenge Application

I want to challenge you to do just as Holy Spirit is telling us through Paul to the Colossians...

"Walk In Grateful Stride With God"

Walk in the TRUTH of the gospel

Rooted, built up, and established in the faith, as you were taught truthfully.

ABOUNDING IN THANKSGIVING

NOT BEING TAKEN CAPTIVE by:

What people THINK about this life. (philosophy)

What people SAY about this life.  (Tradition)

What people DO in this life.  (elementary principles)

be "taken captive" with WALKING WITH GOD.

How would your life be different, if your MAIN GOAL each day is to "WALK WITH GOD"?

Maybe we wouldn't feel like we're "wandering" so many times.

Maybe we would feel alive...because we WOULD be.

If we are alive, then we would see our purpose in life clearly.

What if we, with Enoch, could have the testimony at the end of our lives that "_________ walked with God."??

Walking with the Creator of all things.

That's what He desires for us.  For us to stay with Him and not wander off in distraction.

Bible Passage

Psalms 16:11 (ESV - English Standard Version)

11 You make known to me the path of life;

 in your presence there is fullness of joy;

 at your right hand are pleasures forevermore.