Whatever We Do

Do you have any favourite motivational quotes?

Just Do It!

Reddit:

Everything you've ever wanted is sitting on the other side of fear.

Running is easy. But you gotta do it everyday, which is the hard part.

Comfort is the worst addiction.

You are what you repeatedly do.

Empathy without boundaries is self destruction.

A ship in harbour is safe, but that’s not what ships are built for.

The boat that wins the race is the one that adjusts its sails to the conditions of the day.

If you find that you’re going through hell, keep going - Winston Churchill.

Paul’s verses of motivation to church at Colossae:

Colossians 3:15-24

Colossians 3:14–24 NLT

Above all, clothe yourselves with love, which binds us all together in perfect harmony. And let the peace that comes from Christ rule in your hearts. For as members of one body you are called to live in peace. And always be thankful. Let the message about Christ, in all its richness, fill your lives. Teach and counsel each other with all the wisdom he gives. Sing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs to God with thankful hearts. And whatever you do or say, do it as a representative of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks through him to God the Father. Wives, submit to your husbands, as is fitting for those who belong to the Lord. Husbands, love your wives and never treat them harshly. Children, always obey your parents, for this pleases the Lord. Fathers, do not aggravate your children, or they will become discouraged. Slaves, obey your earthly masters in everything you do. Try to please them all the time, not just when they are watching you. Serve them sincerely because of your reverent fear of the Lord. Work willingly at whatever you do, as though you were working for the Lord rather than for people. Remember that the Lord will give you an inheritance as your reward, and that the Master you are serving is Christ.

MESSAGE NOTES

The Best for the Highest

Ever heard of that phrase?

Often used by Salvationist musicians across years.

Do your very best - in playing, singing, rehearsing, home practice, deportment, etc. because you’re doing it for God.

This challenge is biblical

Colossians 3:17 NLT

And whatever you do or say, do it as a representative of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks through him to God the Father.

Immediate context of these words is worship.

Colossians 3:16 NLT

Let the message about Christ, in all its richness, fill your lives. Teach and counsel each other with all the wisdom he gives. Sing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs to God with thankful hearts.

In many ways, Paul is motivating his readers to the best for the highest in worship.

Fill your lives with God’s Word.

Teach each other the wisdom it gives.

Counsel each other with what the Bible says.

Sing to God with thankful hearts.

Our worship should indeed be the best for the highest.

Not just for the musicians!

For all of us.

There was once a man - we’ll call him Steve - who sat in the back row of the hall, phone in hand, telling himself he’d just check one email before the meeting started. Twenty minutes later, he was neck-deep in a reply to his boss when the congregation suddenly stood.

He jolted upright with the startled guilt of someone caught in the act, trying to sing “It Is Well With My Soul” while mentally drafting a spreadsheet.

We often bring our work - or our home life, or a dozen other things - with us into worship - mentally, emotionally, even digitally.

But giving the best for the highest in worship means trusting God enough to let go for a little while. Worship is where we lay our burdens down … even the professional ones.

We should come prepared to enter fully into worship, singing our hearts out with thanksgiving to God.

Fully engaged with what’s been prepared.

Focused, and not distracted.

Ready to open God’s Word for ourselves, and to listen intently to what he has to say to us.

But Paul makes it clear he’s talking about much more than the best for the highest in worship

Colossians 3:17 NLT

And whatever you do or say, do it as a representative of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks through him to God the Father.

Whatever we do takes in our words - everything we say, wherever we are - and our deeds - our plans, decisions, and activities.

Whatever you do or say takes in preaching, teaching, eating, exercising, driving, housework, shopping, visiting, working, playing - even watching sport! - everything! Everything we say - everything that passes our lips, even in our unfiltered moments is included.

Whatever we do, wherever we are, we represent Christ. We should test our words by asking, Can we speak these words in the same breath as speaking the name of Jesus? We should be constantly asking ourselves, Can I really do this, if I am representing the Lord Jesus?

And when we need to have a difficult conversation, or we have something difficult to do, we should be encouraged to follow through, knowing Jesus Christ gives us the power to do so.

Paul goes on to show this by setting out some specific examples

Paul turns to life in the home

Because, in many ways, the Christian life begins in the home, he starts there, with the relationship between husband and wife, and the relationship between parents and children.

Many of you will know how contentious these verses are, especially in modern society and even the contemporary church.

We don’t have time this morning to put Paul’s instructions in these verses in proper context, or go into what he might mean by words like submission or obedience. That’s a whole other sermon!

But suffice to say today is that all of us have a frontline at home. And it’s where we learn or have learned to control our anger, to rein in our abusive language, and to tell the truth so that peace may reign. It’s where we learn the values of tenderhearted mercy, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience. It’s where we learn to make allowance for one another’s faults, and to forgive anyone who offends us. It’s where we learn to live in harmony by binding together in love.

There is no more difficult place to do these things day in and day out than in the home.

Why? Because it is the one place in the whole world where, for better or worse, we are most truly ourselves.

That’s what underlies Paul’s instructions here.

He is saying whatever you do at home, do it in the Lord.

Do what pleases him.

Paul turns to life at work

And again, none of us are, as far as I’m aware, in a master-slave relationship with our employer - even if it feels that way sometimes! - but what Paul says in these verses still has application for us.

Colossians 3:23–24 NLT

Work willingly at whatever you do, as though you were working for the Lord rather than for people. Remember that the Lord will give you an inheritance as your reward, and that the Master you are serving is Christ.

As Christians, wherever we work, we work first for Christ and then for the companies that write our pay cheques.

No matter what job you have, your first goal is to serve Jesus in that job.

We do not work primarily for our pay.

We don’t work out of ambition.

We don’t even work to satisfy our earthly employer.

We work so we can take every task and offer it to Christ.

No job is more holy than any other job, other than those jobs that violate our Christian standards.

Preaching a sermon is no more holy than digging a ditch.

Every job is a calling, and a witness to God’s power in your life.

So we must be conscientious.

We must work hard and meet difficult situations in God’s power.

And not just when our employer is watching us.

Paul also tells employers they have a Master too.

They are answerable to God for the way in which they treat their employees.

You should seek to preserve the dignity of your employees, treating them with fairness and respect.

If you’re a Christian who owns a business, you can’t say, this is my business and I’ll do what I like with it.

Instead, you say, this is God’s business.

He put me in charge of it, and I am answerable to him.

So, whatever you do this time tomorrow, do it for the Lord

That’s what inspired Mother Teresa in Calcutta.

She believed that when she and her Sisters of Charity were cleansing sores and touching the ill for Christ, they were doing it to Christ.

She believed the most menial tasks - washing floors, scrubbing pots and pans, are for the Lord.

Now, I am sure that many of us will not feel we are doing a great work like looking after lepers or caring for the dying this time for tomorrow.

We may be shuffling mounds of paper, or sending endless emails.

We may be digging holes and filling them up.

But whatever we are doing, we are serving God as we work.

As we are challenged here this morning to ensure that whatever we do is the best for the highest, not just in worship but wherever we find ourselves this time tomorrow, perhaps we should ask ourselves, what impression do people have of Christ when they see or talk with me?

Maybe you could join in the prayer of the people featured in this video, before we pray together

Video: FS Service 3 | 2:00

Prayer

Lord, as we scatter to our frontlines, we thank you for the many opportunities to do good in the world. 

Whatever the tasks of our week, wherever we are, we pray that you will work through them and they will bear fruit for your kingdom. 

May we do all things, attentive to your presence and with a heart set on working at them for you, first and foremost. 

Amen.