Colossians 3:1-14

Introduction

As we build to our real kind of public launch we are spending some time in passages that show us the gospel How it changes us as people, and then show us in light of it that it is in everyone coming together as a church that we live it out

That is Colossians 3:1-14

Paul is getting after it

Why?

Because just like us today the small Colossians church was surrounded by teaching that called itself Christian that sold the lie that you can get a get out of hell free card Jesus live how you want just like the culture and be a consumer of the church not a servant to its mission

The message around us in hundreds of popular churches hasn’t changed

The pressure of a Jesus that just wants you to seek pleasure the worlds way was pressing down on these new believers

Paul loves these people and wants more for them then that lie

That is how i feel here

No part of your life in Christ and our Life as a church should be untouched by the scandalous grace of the Gospel

We are going to see three things this morning in this short letter to a small church surrouned by Big City messages

Our New Heart In Christ , What the War For Your Heart Looks Like, and Our New Life in Christ

1: Our New Heart In Christ (3:1-4)

Colossians 3:1–4 CSB

So if you have been raised with Christ, seek the things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things. For you died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God. When Christ, who is your life, appears, then you also will appear with him in glory.

Paul is in Prison so every word whispered to a friend writing down his words has to count

So imagine in a limited time and ink he repeats something it must be important

And what does he repeat in these 4 verses?

Set your heart on things above not on what the world offers

Heavenly minded sounds kind of unattractive if we are honest doesn’t it ?

Sounds like i am gonna miss out of the good things here?

If we are honest it sounds like we just walk around with our head in the clouds pretty useless in the day to day

But that isn’t what it means

It means to see the story of reality playing out in what you can’t see and live for it

It means to realize you have already won it is coming so live like it

It means to live like you have seen the other side and it has changed you

This may surprise you but this made me think of Lord of the Rings

This is a war for your heart and what does the fight look like?

That is Verses 5-11

2. What the War for Your Heart Looks Like 3:5-11

Colossians 3:5–11 CSB

Therefore, put to death what belongs to your earthly nature: sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desire, and greed, which is idolatry. Because of these, God’s wrath is coming upon the disobedient, and you once walked in these things when you were living in them. But now, put away all the following: anger, wrath, malice, slander, and filthy language from your mouth. Do not lie to one another, since you have put off the old self with its practices and have put on the new self. You are being renewed in knowledge according to the image of your Creator. In Christ there is not Greek and Jew, circumcision and uncircumcision, barbarian, Scythian, slave and free; but Christ is all and in all.

There is a war for your heart

Everything is selling you a version of the good life

Everything is telling you they know how to use

Mark Meynell hit this in the head: “The church was never designed to be a club for like minded or same cultured people. The whole point of the church is it brings people together who are DIFFERENT into one New Community”

With New Hearts, in this new counter cultural community…we live out counter cultural life

3: Our New Life in Christ (3:12-17)

12 Put on then, as God’s chosen ones, holy and beloved, compassionate hearts, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience, 13 bearing with one another and, if one has a complaint against another, forgiving each other; as the Lord has forgiven you, so you also must forgive. 14 And above all these put on love, which binds everything together in perfect harmony. 15 And let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in one body. And be thankful. 16 Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, with thankfulness in your hearts to God. 17 And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.

It doesn’t do us any good to just be told don’t do this but are never told what to do instead

I think the church messages I grew up with never did that

It’s like if I tell you not to think of an elephant what did you just do?

If I don’t want you to think about an elephant i should tell you to think of a Giraffe

What did you think of?

Say Giraffe and help me make the point and move on

That is what Paul is doing

He is not saying simply don’t do the no no’s listed above

He is saying they don’t lead to what you long for from those things