Supremacy in Intimacy

Colossians 2:6–7 ESV

6 Therefore, as you received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in him, 7 rooted and built up in him and established in the faith, just as you were taught, abounding in thanksgiving.

We concluded our study of Colossians last week, with Paul establishing that his entire goal and purpose in ministry was to present everyone as mature believers in Christ, not just good converts, but faithful disciples of Christ. He goes on to establish that such maturity is only found in understanding the wisdom and knowledge hidden in Christ Jesus our Lord. Paul, now in Colossians 2:6-7, follows a horticultural parallel to walking as mature followers of Christ, requiring us to be fully planted and grounded in Jesus Christ. 

This section circles back to the main point of Colossians 1:3-23, which is to “walk … worthy of the Lord.” The goal is that believers be complete in Christ (1:28,) which is achieved by them not being “deluded” by false teachings. These are observable things that should be noticed in a genuine believer’s life. If there are no roots, there is no plant; if there is no plant, there is no fruit; and if there is no fruit, there is no true follower of Christ. 

The initial word “therefore” indicates that the preceding context provides the basis for the command to “walk.”

So, the previous teachings in the letter are highlighted. He has emphasized that Christ is the fullness of God, and through Him, believers have been made complete. Now, Paul is applying this truth to daily living. 

The focus and basis is Paul’s desire that the Colossians would become “complete in Christ” (1:28) by disregarding false teachings and maintaining “stability of faith” in true Christian teaching. For this, Paul continued to toil and struggle for the early church. Paul was not sitting in prison writing this letter to the Colossians because he went along with the current culture’s flow.

He wasn’t in prison for giving people the message that they wanted to hear. Paul was in prison for proclaiming the truth of God’s word and walking in a manner worthy of the calling that he had been given in Christ Jesus. Paul begins this section by commanding his listeners to “walk” in Christ in the same way (by faith) that they received Christ. The truth of the gospel should strike a chord in everyone’s heart.

The truth is that the spotless lamb of God laid down his life for sinners like you and me. However, when the fairytale dust wears off our conversion experience, we return to the reality of what we are called to in Christ. Our walk can only be based on Christ.” We can no longer walk in our own desires, agendas, or plans; we must now reorient our lives to walk according to His desire, agenda, and plan. This appears to be a simple idea; however, the longer we live our lives according to the ruler of this world, the harder it is to change the way we have been walking. 

Notice that Paul begins by pointing out that those who received Christ Jesus as Lord should now be walking in Him. The journey does not end at the point of our conversion. Conversion is just the beginning of the intimate relationship that will be fostered over a lifetime of faith and trust in Jesus as the author and perfector of our Salvation. 

Paul is now hitting the gospel from the 1,000 foot view to the gospel on the ground as you live it out in your daily lives.

1. Intimacy Requires Faith in Action

“Walk in Him”

In his book, Faith That Endures, Ronald Boyd-MacMillan tells the story of a number of conversations he has had with Wang Mingdao, one of China's most famous church pastors of the last century. The first time he met this famous—and persecuted—Chinese pastor, they had the following interchange:

"Young man, how do you walk with God?” I listed off a set of disciplines such as Bible study and prayer, to which he mischievously retorted, “Wrong answer. To walk with God, you must go at walking pace."

The words of Wang Mingdao touched me to the core. How can I talk about the Christian life as walking with God when I so often live it at a sprint? Of course, we "run with perseverance the race marked out for us," but we may fail to run with "our eyes [fixed] on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith" (Heb 12:1-2). Jesus is inviting me to walk with him. Too often, I find myself running for him. There's a difference!

On another visit, Boyd-MacMillan asked Wang Mingdao about his twenty-year imprisonment for proclaiming Jesus in China. That cell became a place of unchosen unhurried time for Mingdao. There was nothing to do but to be in God's presence, which he discovered was actually everything

Walking in Him points to the active nature of the Christian faith. It is not enough to simply believe in Jesus; we are called to live out our belief in every aspect of our lives.

The action of travelling on foot at a normal pace. The image of walking with God is used in Scripture to represent the behavior of believers in their relationship with God.

Intimacy with God

Intimacy goes far beyond a surface-level relationship when Paul speaks of walking in Christ. Intimacy is the experience of knowing and being known by another person. Intimacy is experienced over a long period.

A deeper level of trust is probably the number one thing that makes us feel intimate with someone. The more we trust someone, the closer we allow them to get to us.

*Walking in Him is More than Knowledge

One key mistake Christians make is assuming that accumulating knowledge equates to an intimate relationship with Jesus. While we must know things about the one that we worship and trust, head knowledge will never bring an intimate relationship. 

America is not Abounding in Enoch’s

(or find them miraculously disappearing)

Saints who walk with God in such an intimate and profound way that God takes them up to heaven before they die.

In Genesis 5, we read that Enoch lived 365 years on earth. Verse 24 declares that Enoch walked with God, but he was not, for God took him. He was not indicates that he was here one day and the next in the presence of God.

Why is America lacking in Enochs? Because knowledge is not synonymous with trust. Look how Jesus addressed the religous leaders of his day who were encyclopedia’s of knowledge

Why is America lacking in Enochs? Knowledge is not synonymous with trust. Look how Jesus addressed the religious leaders of his day, who were encyclopedias of knowledge,

John 5:39-40

John 5:39–40 ESV

You search the Scriptures because you think that in them you have eternal life, and they bear witness about me, yet you refuse to come to me that you may have life.

*Walking in Him is more than an Aesthetic Experience

Another mistake people make is tying an aesthetic experience with a deep intimate relationship.

Field of Dreams Relationship If we build the right environment, then He will come. 

You can find this in a highly liturgical worship experience intended to bring transcendence and mystery. Others pursue this in contemporary worship settings designed to transport people to an experience of God’s presence. 

If we already fully trust Jesus, then such environments can encourage our intimacy with God. But none of them have the power to bring about God’s nearness and intimacy into your life. 

Think about a candlelit romantic dinner with your spouse. The candlelight and atmosphere may encourage romantic feelings; however, once the candles are burned out and the lights come back on, all the distance and issues in the relationship remain.  That’s how it is with our intimate relationship with Christ. 

These experiences cannot replace a deep, intimate walk with God. Suppose these things have to be present in order for you to experience a deep, intimate relationship with God. In that case, such methods are incapable of restoring the gap between you and your relationship with God. 

GOD IS IMPRESSED WITH OUR FAITH. NOT OUR FEATS

When God sees someone whose heart fully trusts his promises and lives by them, God comes to strongly support that saint.

2 Chronicles 16:9 ESV

For the eyes of the Lord run to and fro throughout the whole earth, to give strong support to those whose heart is blameless toward him. You have done foolishly in this, for from now on you will have wars.”

God wants to have a deep, abiding, intimate relationship with you. Christ has already done all of the hard work on the cross to provide the way. 

The Intimacy Test

*Do you trust God with every area of your life?

*Do you look forward to spending time with God?

*Do you go to God’s word daily for the answers?

2. Intimacy Requires Continual Growth

“Rooted in Him”

Paul stresses both the need for a firm foundation (rooted) and the importance of ongoing, continual growth (built up). The Christian life is dynamic, not static. Believers are to mature in their faith, constantly deepening their understanding of who Christ is and how HIs work impacts their daily lives.

We have numerous illustrations in Scripture that deal with the foundation on which our faith is built.

Jesus illustrates our foundation in Matthew 7 as the one who hears his words and does them. Such a man is one who has built his house on the rock, and when the rain fell, and the floods came up and beat against the house, it stood firm. The one who hears His words and fails to do them is like a man who has built his house on the sand, and when the rains and floods came, and when the wind blew and beat against the house, it fell, and great was its fall. 

The foundation is of utmost importance when building a house. We see houses with poor foundations beginning to sink into the ground and eventually falter.  We see poorly formed believers all the time who did not have their faith firmly rooted in the truth of God’s word. Paul spoke of having a faith that was stable, steadfast, and unshifting earlier in chapter 1:23. 

*Being Rooted Keeps Christ at the Center

You don’t plant a plant in the soil and then leave it alone, expecting it to continue to grow to maturity. Paul is describing our positional status with the Lord that needs to remain firmly planted in Him. 

Paul is describing our positional status with the Lord that needs to remain firmly planted in Him. Living in Christ means that everything about our lives - our thoughts, our actions, our relationships- should be in alignment with Him. 

The Christian journey is not about adding Christ to our lives but about living in Him.

Look how the psalmist describes what being rooted in Christ looks like.

Psalm 1:3 ESV

He is like a tree planted by streams of water that yields its fruit in its season, and its leaf does not wither. In all that he does, he prospers.

We need to look back at verse 1 to see what the foundation is of the plant that is being planted. Psalm 1:1-2

Psalm 1:1–2 ESV

Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the wicked, nor stands in the way of sinners, nor sits in the seat of scoffers; but his delight is in the law of the Lord, and on his law he meditates day and night.

The word of God is a continual source of life for the Christian who is planted in Christ. If you neglect the plant, it will eventually wither and die. There is a continual process of meditating on God and his word. 

The nation of Israel wandered in the wilderness because of their disobedience and lack of trust in God’s sufficiency.

Remember, this is the key problem that Paul is fleshing out for the Colossian people. There is a lack of trust that God and His word is enough. 

Look at what Joshua says to the people right after Moses' death and God’s commissioning him to take the nation of Israel into the promised land. 

Joshua 1:8

Joshua 1:8 ESV

This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success.

Notice what Joshua declares will bring a prosperous life and success.

A prosperous and successful life is being built on the foundation or the root source of God’s word. When you wake up in the morning and go to bed at night, is the Word of God ever on the front of your mind? 

What do you meditate on during the long days of life when things seem pointless and hopeless?

Is it the root source of God’s word? 

Now let's look at one of the most quoted words of Jesus about the continual process of being rooted in Him.

John 15:4-7

John 15:4–7 ESV

Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in me. I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing. If anyone does not abide in me he is thrown away like a branch and withers; and the branches are gathered, thrown into the fire, and burned. If you abide in me, and my words abide in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you.

The roots provide access to the source of life and stability, keeping us from shifting to the right or left.  The Massive Root System of Trees Here is how a tree’s root system stabilizes the tree.

Anchored - Large woody roots referred to as structural roots radiate out from the trunk and anchor deep into the ground. Providing structural support to resist the wind that could cause it to topple over.

Soil Reinforcement—The roots gather reinforcements from the soil around them, providing a mesh-like structure that binds the soil particles together.

Water absorption and Management: Roots absorb water, which provides moisture for the surrounding soil and can directly affect its stability.

Interaction with soil: Roots help facilitate soil aggregates, which improve the soil’s structure and make it less susceptible to erosion.

In historic districts of most communities that have large tree’s that have been growing for hundreds of years. Builders have to get permission to build in these areas to insure that the root system of tree’s are not harmed or destroyed. We see tree roots that have the ability to bust through enormous foundations causing structural damage to buildings.

1). We anchor our root system in Christ and his word as the key source of our root system.

2). We reinforce our root system by continually walking out our faith with other believers and staying grounded in the truth of His word.

3). We absorb nutrients for our root system by regularly exercising the spiritual disciplines, fasting and prayer, bible reading, bible meditation, and fellowship with the body. Without the support of the root source, it can directly affect the stability of the roots.  

*Being Rooted is a Growing Process

Paul points out that those rooted in Christ are also being built up in him. Being built up is the process of growing. “Being” indicates an ongoing process in our lives.

Now, Paul weds the agricultural process with the architectural process. Notice that it is all about building something substantial that can withstand the enemy's onslaught when he comes to do his worst. 

Growing fully formed and committed followers of Christ requires the right ingredients for success.

First, you must have dedicated servants to the mission of growing committed followers of Christ. The harvest is definitely ready but those able and willing to gather the harvest are few and far between.

Look how Paul describes the process in

1 Corinthians 3:5-11

1 Corinthians 3:5–11 ESV

What then is Apollos? What is Paul? Servants through whom you believed, as the Lord assigned to each. I planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the growth. So neither he who plants nor he who waters is anything, but only God who gives the growth. He who plants and he who waters are one, and each will receive his wages according to his labor. For we are God’s fellow workers. You are God’s field, God’s building. According to the grace of God given to me, like a skilled master builder I laid a foundation, and someone else is building upon it. Let each one take care how he builds upon it. For no one can lay a foundation other than that which is laid, which is Jesus Christ.

First, the process requires servants willing to go out into the field.

Second, while planting watering is taking place.

Third, growth will only come through God, who gives the growth. 

If you have ever been discouraged after pouring into someone’s life only to see them reject the truth you are giving them, remember that God brings the growth, not you or me. When people reject you they are not rejecting you they are rejecting Jesus.

God is growing a spiritual house that He will come to live and dwell inside of 1 Peter 2:5

1 Peter 2:5 ESV

you yourselves like living stones are being built up as a spiritual house, to be a holy priesthood, to offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.

How are you daily preparing your House to be the Dwelling place of Jesus?

The church today in many respects is a mile wide and an inch deep. I hear it all the time, people don’t want doctrine, they don’t want theology, well, I guess they don’t want Jesus. The biggest problem with the church today is that its root system has been neglected for so long that it is in danger of toppling over. 

3. Intimacy Requires Being Established in the Truth

“Being established in the faith”

This is a summons to deeper Christian understanding. It is the third example Paul gives of the urgent need to grow up to our full stature, this time in knowledge. To be established in the faith is to be consolidated in the truth (faith here is not the believer’s trust but the apostle’s teaching.

Growing out of the Simplicity of the Gospel

You cannot abandon the Old for the New. How often do people feel as though they have grown past the simplicity of the gospel message? We roll our eyes and say, We have been there and done that, pastor, could you get on to explaining the deeper things in scripture? 

I still believe that the gospel message is one of the most profound aspects of Scripture that we need to guard against quickly passing on to other, more profound things in Scripture. There is nothing bigger or more profound than that the God man would come down from heaven and die for you and me. 

I believe that this breeds a sense of complacency in the church today.

*A Lack of Established Truth Brings Complacency

We live in a Christian culture today where complacency is everywhere.

Complacency is the feeling of self-satisfaction without knowledge or awareness of the dangers that are lurking or the deficiencies lurking within oneself. Complacency describes the state of so many. They are complacent in their work, relationships, and ambitions. All without realizing that they are headed toward destruction. So many haven’t thought through where the drifting through life is taking them, and the answer is nowhere good. 

People are drifting through their own self-absorbed worlds without knowing if they have left their first love. Their deepest longing is no longer for a deep, abiding, intimate relationship with their first love, Jesus Christ.

You hear married couples often speak about falling out of love with their spouse. Is it possible for us to fall out of love with our relationship with Jesus Christ?

Complacency is dangerous because all you have to do is sit back and go with the flow. To go against the flow requires work, controversy, struggle.

We are called to action, discipline, and accountability.

Hebrews 2:1 ESV

Therefore we must pay much closer attention to what we have heard, lest we drift away from it.

You are Either Growing in an Intimate Abiding Relationship with Christ, or you are drifting away

This is a relationship problem. Our culture today has trained us to be complacent about how we live and govern our lives. “You do you” is the model of a whole generation of Christians today.

This is a relationship problem. Our culture today has trained us to be complacent about how we live and govern our lives. “You do you” is the model of a whole generation of Christians today. 

The gospel will not allow you to be complacent in relationships. We do not let relationships drift aimlessly; we pursue people for Christ and help build one another up in Christ.  The church is not a complacent group of people drifting through life together. Paul used many illustrations of physical exercise. The word "discipline" comes from the Greek word "gumnasia," from which we derive "gymnasium" and "gymnastics." The word means to exercise discipline. 

In 1 Corinthians 9:26 Paul declares that he does not run aimlessly like someone beating or boxing the air. He runs to discipline his own body and bring it under control. We are not drifting through life just hoping we fall into an intimate relationship with Christ.

What if we treated our married relationships this way? What if we just entered marriage and did nothing to grow or foster a deep, intimate relationship? I believe this is why 40-50% of marriages in America end in divorce.

Consider if one of these applies to you. If it does chances are you are in some season of complacency, and need to take a deep look at the root system of your relationship with Jesus Christ.

1) Far Too Easily Satisfied

How do you see your growth and successes in your spiritual life over the past year? Does attending Church or community once or twice in the past month look good to you? Are you satisfied with only knowing three or four verses of scripture for memory and continually stumbling around in God’s word for the answers? 

2) Quick to Make Excuses.

Are you quick to offer all kinds of excuses why you are not growing in your walk: the kids are a distraction, I’m too tired, I have too much work to get done….. 

Challenges are allowed to become obstacles, obstacles are allowed to become barriers, and barriers are allowed to become excuses. It is all too easy to hide out behind such excuses as a reason for your acceptance of the status quo. 

3) Never Enough Time

When it comes to complacency in the Church, there is this veneer of busyness or activity that appears as a facade of meaningful activity. However, when you peel back that onion, it adds no eternal or lacking value to your life. 

More often than not, your 40 or more hours per week are spent doing what you enjoy, and what gives you the most strokes, but not necessarily what advances the church and its mission.

4). Content with Early Success

I see this all the time, particularly in people who come into the faith later in life. They experience all of this early success after their conversion. They begin experiencing victories in their lives and are excited about this newfound freedom in Christ. 

It is much like a marriage. The Honeymoon period lasts for the first two or three years. Both partners experience this unrealistic view of marriage, they walk through these first few years with rose colored glasses on only seeing rainbows, and fluffy bunny’s. 

However, somewhere in the fourth or fifth year, reality sets in, perhaps they have their first real conflict as a couple. While the early success was great, they now fall into a state of despair, and reality begins to set in; they realize they are in a lifelong relationship that takes work. 

*A Heart of Gratitude Brings a Transformed Perspective

Gratitude in Thanksgiving highlights the importance of thankfulness. A grateful heart reflects a deep understanding of the gospel. The more we grow in our faith, the more we realize the magnitude of God's love and grace, and this should naturally produce a spirit of thanksgiving. 

Going back to the marriage that has passed the honeymoon phase. Having a heart of gratitude for your spouse even in the conflict reminds you of why you got married in the first place. It brings a transformed perspective and heart of thankfulness.

The antidote to becoming complacent is to daily foster a life of thankfulness to God.

I believe one of the best pictures of what it looks like to desire an intimate relationship with Jesus happens at Bethany in the home of Simon the Leper or Lazarus’ house.

The Woman’s Extravagant Gift

All four of the Gospels give an account of this woman’s gift. Mark and Matthew point to Mary of Bethany Lazarus’s sister.

She brought an alabaster jar of expensive perfume (pure nard) worth about a years wage. Typically this perfume was bought and saved either for a gift at your wedding, or saved to pour on your body at death.

In Mark and Matthew’s account we read that she broke the jar and poured all of the perfume on Jesus head. This was an act of total surrender and irreversible worship. Nothing held back.

She is criticized, especially by Judas, for wasting what could have been sold for money and used for the poor. It wasn’t as if Judas had a great concern for the poor.

The woman offers something of immense value, not to gain favor, but as a response to grace and love.

Judas saw his relationship to Jesus as what Jesus could do for him, the woman saw her relationship as what she could do for Jesus.

Her Intimacy to Faith into action, her intimacy was rooted in the one at the center of her story, Jesus Christ, her intimacy established the truth of who Jesus was and what he came to do.

Do you have an intimate faith that moves you to action?

Do you have an intimately rooted faith in the one at the center of your story?

do you have an intimate relationship that is grounded and established in the truth of your faith?