Colossians 4

Be Praying, Be Mindful

How many of y’all know sometimes we just need a moment?

Think about it, in a busy day transitioning from one meeting to the next, or trying to turn work off so you can be present at home… Sometimes we just need a moment.

I’ll tell you one thing, if I took a moment and considered what I was going to say or do more often I probably would have made some better decisions, can y’all relate? Sometimes we just need a moment.

I know that if I don’t take a moment in the midst of my stress, business, and plans I am not being the best I can be.

Can I be honest about something? All too often when I need a moment, Ill hype myself up, take deep breaths, think ahead to whats next, but I won’t invite the living God into the moment with me.

I may say a quick 5 second prayer, but ultimately in the midst of all that is going on, there is a part of me that tells myself I am too busy to be with God in this moment.

Here is the problem with that, at all times, in all moments, we aren’t simply dealing with the task at hand but there is a spiritual war taking place for our souls and the souls of those around us.

And as Paul closes his letter to the Colossians he is going to give them some final instructions, and in these instructions Paul encourages them to have a rhythm of taking a moment to be with God. I’m not talking about a quiet time, I am talking about what happens when you get up from your quiet time, do you take God with you?

Often we are so focused, myself included, on the to do list that we forget, we don’t fight with flesh and blood, We fight with the powers and principalities of this world, and we serve a living God who says Prayer is powerful and effective. In a sin-stained world with so many lost a searching, how can we stand strong against the enemy and show Christ to those we desperately want to see saved. We need to take a moment.

How many of y’all know sometimes we just need a moment?

Open to Colossians chapter 4 and stand in honor of God’s word.

Colossians 4:2–6 ESV

Continue steadfastly in prayer, being watchful in it with thanksgiving. At the same time, pray also for us, that God may open to us a door for the word, to declare the mystery of Christ, on account of which I am in prison— that I may make it clear, which is how I ought to speak. Walk in wisdom toward outsiders, making the best use of the time. Let your speech always be gracious, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how you ought to answer each person.

Let’s pray.

Today is our last Sunday in Colossians, so lets recap where Paul is as he lands the plane. What you will see is there is a logical flow to his letter. He began in chapter one with Who Jesus is, remember,

Colossians 1:15–20 ESV

He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. For by him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things were created through him and for him. And he is before all things, and in him all things hold together. And he is the head of the body, the church. He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, that in everything he might be preeminent. For in him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell, and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven, making peace by the blood of his cross.

So Paul tells us who Jesus is, and now because of who Jesus is, Paul says we must become new people

Colossians 2:6 ESV

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

Colossians 3:1–2 ESV

If then you have been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth.

Remember we are putting off sin, and putting on Colossians 3:12

Colossians 3:12 ESV

Put on then, as God’s chosen ones, holy and beloved, compassionate hearts, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience,

So because of who Jesus is we become new people, and now in today’s passage, the final chapter in Colossians, Paul says because of who Jesus is and the new people we have become, we must show others this Jesus we know.

So this is where we are going today, Paul gives some final instructions how how we can show others Christ in our daily lives, and it can seem like Paul is listing a bunch of things we should do, which can feel overwhelming, but when we look at the original Greek Paul gives just two imperatives, just two commands, which he expects the church to fulfill.

He commands the church to be steadfast in Prayer and Be Mindful of how we live before those who do not know Jesus. Two commands, Pray and Be Mindful. What you’ll see as we unpack these two commands is that both require that we take a moment, because as we intuitively understand, sometimes we just need a moment.

Let’s dig in.

Colossians 4:2 ESV

Continue steadfastly in prayer, being watchful in it with thanksgiving.

Paul’s first imperative is to be steadfast in prayer. Now if you are taking notes braket 2-4 and 5-6. 2-4 is all one command, be steadfast in prayer. 5-6 is be mindful of how we live before others. Paul unpacks each of those with specifics but they each have one imperative, or command.

So Paul gives us three words as to how we should pray, steadfastly, watchful, and with thanksgiving.

To understand why Paul uses these three words, we need to remind ourselves of the context in which Paul is writing this letter. Remember this is a letter to real people, and Paul is addressing real concerns.

Paul’s friend Epaphras had visited Paul in prison and told him the cultural pressures that were tempting the church in Colossae to turn away from Christ Jesus. 

This is why Paul in Chapter 2 addresses these pressures directly, Colossians 2:4-8

Colossians 2:4–8 ESV

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

So the church, the people that make up the church in Colossae are being pressured to leave the faith by very real outside forces, and in this Context, Paul is exhorting the Church as he closes his letter to, Colossians 4:2

Colossians 4:2 ESV

Continue steadfastly in prayer, being watchful in it with thanksgiving.

Steadfastly, is to persist, be busily engaged in, or give constant attention. So we aren’t supposed to just pray in the morning and evening we are to be steadfast in prayer. This is going to require that we take a moment. Not once or twice a day but throughout the day.

Watchful literally means to “stay awake”, to be aware. How many of you know we have a very real enemy who seeks to steal kill and destroy? In the midst of this we must be watchful in prayer. Constantly aware of the spiritual war, Ephesians 6:12

Ephesians 6:12 ESV

For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places.

To be watchful in prayer requires us to, take a moment. We must recognize that behind todays to dos, and concerns is a very real enemy who seeks to take us captive. We must be watchful.

Pauls third word on prayer is thanksgiving, this idea of gratitude, remembering what God has done. Y’all know the reason the Israelites built the Gold calf? Complained about the manna in the wilderness? Because they forgot about the God who split the red sea. If we don’t remember how God has moved with gratitude we may believe the lie that God is not working in what I am experiencing right now. And before we know it, we’ll built a gold calf.

Paul says be constant, steadfast in prayer, alert to the ways of the enemy, and remembering all God has done so that you will not be taken captive by the lies of the enemy.

Sometimes we can be so busy, that we subconsciously, or at least act in such a way that says we are too busy for prayer. There can be so much going on that checking things off the list becomes more important than taking a moment to be steadfast in prayer, watchful against the enemy, and remember what God has done.

If you feel convicted by that, and acknowledge that you have believed the lie that you are too busy for prayer, let me tell you something… same. Y’all prayer can be so hard for me. Some of you are prayer warriors, prayer flows from you like an ever flowing fountain, yeah no me, I struggle , y’all know I am not here to throw stones. There is no room for that in me. Let me tell you what has helped me more than anything.

Every Thursday at 4pm for the past, gosh 3 years at this point, I call my Grandma and Grandpa, we talk for an hour and pray together. My grandparents are so faithful in prayer, and the more I sit under their prayer and receive their prayer the more I have grown in prayer.

It can be so hard to step out and ask a brother or sister to pray for you, but y’all that is what we are here for. To bear one another’s burdens. To rejoice with one another, to weep with one another. I think we, and I am guilty of this, we come to church and put our best face on to appear as though we have it all together. Let me address the elephant in the room:

The person next to you, the person behind you that you don’t know, the person in front of you that you think you know, has some messed up stuff in their heart and in their life. There is brokenness, shame, and hurt. Matter of fact, find the person in this room you think is most perfect, the family who has it all together… let me tell you something… they are just the ones who are good at hiding it.

We are called to be steadfast in prayer, watching for the enemy and remembering what God has done so that we will not be taken captive by the enemy, if we are to do that we must take a moment, moments throughout the day to pray, and if prayer is hard, we can lean on each other to help us grow in it.

Colossians 4:3–4 ESV

At the same time, pray also for us, that God may open to us a door for the word, to declare the mystery of Christ, on account of which I am in prison— that I may make it clear, which is how I ought to speak.

Remember this is the same imperative, be steadfast in prayer, now Paul asks they’d be steadfast in prayer that God would open a door for him to declare Christ Jesus to those who do not know him.

Now I want you to notice the irony here. Someone pointed this out to me this week, Paul is in prison, asking that God would open doors for him to share the Gospel.

Idk about y’all but if I am in prison, my prayers look like this: “Lord open the door of this cell in Jesus name” but Paul is praying not for an open cell, but an door to share the gospel. How many of y’all know God can use your suffering to open a door to the Gospel?

Have you ever considered that God has you where you are so he can use you for the eternal purpose of sharing the Good news of Jesus with someone who desperately needs it.

I want you to think for a moment of a person who you long to see come and know Jesus? Think about it, got that person? Let me ask you this, have you prayed for them? Have you asked God to open a door for you to share with them? I know it sounds simple, but I say that because I forget to all too often. That is a great place to start.

Maybe you have prayed for open doors and for God to move in their heart and God seems to be saying “not right now,” I know how devastating that can be, and my heart breaks with you. Keep praying, be steadfast in prayer, you never know when God is going to open a door, so be steadfast and watchful. Remember what God has done in you, he is working in ways you cannot yet see. Keep taking a moment, pray for them, pray for an open door.

Now Paul is going to shift from his first imperative, to his second. Walk in wisdom towards outsiders, or be mindful. He says this

Colossians 4:5 ESV

Walk in wisdom toward outsiders, making the best use of the time.

Paul tells us to be mindful, to walk in wisdom, towards those who do not know Jesus. This is referring to action, so we are to act with wisdom towards outsiders. If we are going to be wise in the way that we approach unbelievers we are going to need to take a moment. Paul is not telling us to lean on our wisdom, but to use Godly wisdom to engage with others.

There are certainly unwise ways in which we can engage with unbelievers, for example sinning is never an acceptable way to witness. In student ministry I hear it all the time, I was there doing this because I am trying to be a light in the darkness. Sounds to me like you were just contributing to the darkness. We need to have wisdom.

Paul also says to make the best use of time.

The literal translation of this phrase is to redeem or buy back the time. It refers to, literally and I quote “snapping up every opportunity that comes.”

Now this can be stressful right? How can I possibly snatch up EVERY opportunity. I gotta share the gospel with every person I ever see. No.

Remember we walk in wisdom, God’s wisdom. The essence here is be mindful. If we have a rhythm of taking a moment, it will be clear to us when God is opening a door. Let me give you an example.

Sophomore year of college me and my buddies decided we should share the Gospel with people on campus. So we got together to pray one night that God would open doors for us to share the good news and that people would come to know him.

I think it was the next day and we were walking across campus intending to be mindful of open doors, and stumbled upon a deserted folding table with a half eaten Publix cake just sitting there with plates and forks. It was pretty clear by the condition of the table and cake that no one was coming back for it. Now a normal person would say huh, that’s strange, and move along with their day. Not us.

I turned to my buddies and said, lets start handing out cake. So, as 19 year old boys will do, we started handing out cake. You may think whos taking this random cake, well You’d be surprised how few questions people ask when you are handing them cake. As we handed out the cake, we began to pray for people and share Jesus. From those interactions I started a Bible study where later that semester one of the kids I talked to while they were eating cake came to profess Christ and another I got to disciple and read the bible with every morning for a semester.

The only reason this happened was because we prayed for God to open and door and made the most of the time before us, yes, even with a deserted Publix cake.

What I hope this illustrates is that God can open a door whenever, wherever, with whoever. Our job is to pray and be mindful. How can we see the metaphorical Publix cake moment if we are not in a rhythm of taking a moment to pray and be mindful? As risk of belaboring the metaphor, If we are too busy to pray we will miss the Publix Cake every time.

So we walk in wisdom with outsiders, making the best use of time, and finally verse 6 Colossians 4:6

Colossians 4:6 ESV

Let your speech always be gracious, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how you ought to answer each person.

This is Paul’s version of your mom saying “think before you speak”. Idk about you but I have some thoughts about how I ought to answer some people in my life and gracious isn’t the first word that comes to mind if you know what Im saying. But Paul says, let your speech be gracious, seasoned with salt. What does seasoned with salt mean, its referring less to the preservative quality of salt and more to the way salt enhances flavor. In short, It means that our speech would be winsome. Our speech should make people want what we have… Jesus.

If we aren’t mindful, walking in prayer and wisdom, if we don’t take a moment how will we know how we ought to answer each person? The truth is we won’t.

How many of y’all know sometimes we just need a moment? If we are going to be darkness disrupters and agents of hope in this world we need to take a moment to pray and be mindful so that we are watching against the enemy and being winsome for Christ.

Maybe you need reminders in your phone to take a moment, to pray and be mindful, maybe you need a sticky note in your car, on your mirror, whatever it is, be steadfast in prayer, and be mindful of the open doors.

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25MIN MARK…. 8:45, 10:00, 11:30

Now I’m done preaching, because I want us for the final 10-15 minutes together, to lean into a moment, right here and right now. 2 or more of us are gathered, and the spirit is here. I want you to take a moment. Close your eyes, bow your head.

God Remove Distractions

Lay out to the Lord whatever is on your heart, what are you bringing in here today.

28MIN MARK… 8:48, 10:03, 11:33

First verse/chorus on Thank You Jesus for the Blood [Jackson Stay on Stage]

30MIN MARK… 8:50, 10:05, 11:35

Now I want you to think of two people

that person you long to know christ

who you are inviting to easter, may be same person

Invite to alter, worship in seat, prayer team in the room to pray with them for people or whatever is going on in life.

33MIN MARK… 8:53, 10:08, 11:38

Thank You Jesus for the Blood [Jackson maybe on stage, maybe at alter, unsure?]

39MIN Mark… 8:59, 10:14, 11:44

Jackson close in prayer

Dismiss