Walking in a Worthy Manner

Colossians 3:5-11

This morning: 1 Thessalonians 2:11-12

We are exhorting, encouraging, and charging one another, or testifying to one another...

To what end? So that, we all will or would walk worthy of God who calls us into His own kingdom and glory.

We want to walk in a worthy manner, and we want all believers to walk in a worthy manner.

Christ makes this possible. He uses us. We are called to come along beside other believers. And we are called to take responsibility for our own walk, or lifestyle.

Going back to Colossians:

Colossians - What have we learned?

Christ is above all things. He has delivered us from the power of darkness. He has redeemed us (bought you at a great price). He has reconciled us (brought us to Himself and to one another). We are buried with Him in baptism and we are raised to walk in the newness of life.

3:1 - Now... We are seeking those things now, which are from above. We are setting our minds on heavenly truths/realities. Our lives are hidden with Christ, called righteous, holy, the children of God...

What are we to do? We are to act like it. We are to act like we believe these things.

We are to walk in a worthy manner… We are to live a life that reflects these truths/realities. We are to live lives that reflect this grace and love… this forgiveness and kindness.

We are to live lives that reflect our love for Christ and our hatred towards sin.

Listen: If we say that we have a new relationship with Christ… We are going to have a new relationship with sin.

We are going to hate the sin that condemns. We are going to hate the sin that sent Jesus to the Cross. We are going to hate that which God hates and we are going to love what God loves.

Our life, our joy, our peace, our treasure, our world is found in God now… in Jesus now.

We are seeking Him… We are living for Him… and we know that only he can fulfill and satisfy our hearts...

What do Christians desire? We desire now to live lives that communicates this… “I am a child of God, and I want to honor and please my God in every way. I want honor Him with my words and my actions… I want to live a life that glorifies God and tells God “thank you” every single day.”

Christians want to walk in this way.

Romans 12:1 - Paul urges the church in this way: “I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship/ or your reasonable service.”

This is what Christians do: Christ lays down His life for us and then... we lay down our lives for Him… To live for Him... This is our reasonable service and spiritual worship.

Jesus gave us His life… we give Him our lives of praise, worship, and service.

This is reasonable and right.

And notice that in Romans 12:1 that he does not say… “Present your hearts...” but he says, “present your bodies...”

Now I know and you know that if you have the heart in it… the body will follow. Whatever a man thinks in his heart, so is he (Proverbs 23:7). Proverbs 4:23 - Above all else, guard your heart, for everything you do flows from it. Luke 6:45 - A good man out of the good treasure of his heart brings forth good, and an evil man out of the evil treasure of his heart brings evil. James 4 - Where do wars and fights come from among you? Do they not come from within you?

But so many people will hear you when you exhort them with Scripture, preach and teach them these truths from Scripture… and they are living like demons on wheels… But they will declare to you, “Yeah, well, the Lord knows my heart… I love the Lord and He knows my heart...”

But Scripture tells us in so many places… Your actions will show your hearts. Your words will show your hearts. Your wrath, or your lifestyle of sin… will show your hearts… For a tree will be known by its fruits.

“Yes, but I love the Lord...” Those who love the Lord will keep His commandments. “Yes, but He is my Lord.” Why do you call Him Lord and do not do what He says.

Listen: He does not have your heart if you are giving your body to the world and to the devil. He does not have your heart if you are giving your life to sinful practice.

To walk in a worthy manner… Is to live a lifestyle consistent with Christianity.

To practice righteousness and holiness is to reflect the reality of Christ within us.

To practice sin… To walk or to practice an lifestyle of sin is hating God, living in darkness, and not practicing the truth. 1 John 3:10 - By this you will know who the children of God are and the children of the devil are.

(Picture time)There was a pig that lived in the pig pen, and lived as a pig… until the day that God transformed that pig into a man. The man was familiar with pig life… But something has changed. He can no longer sleep in that mess. He can no longer eat the same food. It makes him sick. Even at times when he wants to return to the pen to experience the old life he had… He could never stay there and enjoy it.

He is a new creature...

But here we are in Colossians 3:5-11 - And how many church goers, self-professing Christians are practicing fornicators… living lives of selfish passions… Running after men, women, lusts of the flesh, passions for worldly pleasures… and coveting what others have?

There are those who are living these lifestyles… and they are unrepentant, they don’t care, they have no conviction about these lifestyles… and so many of these persons will say “they love God.”

They will say… “Well, sin is sin… So judge not...”

But what has the Bible been showing us and teaching us about the heart and the body that follows?

Your lifestyle flows out of your heart. Your lifestyle shows what you are.

The Christian that has been saved, blood bought, buried and raised with Christ… Those who are now new creatures… Their hearts are now directed towards this person who guides their affections and their will.

Their hearts desire to love Christ and to please Christ, to obey Christ; to lay down their bodies as living sacrifices which is their reasonable service...

What is reasonable? Verse 5 - Putting to death anything that leads us to sin. Putting to death lifestyles of sin. Putting to death things that tempt...

What is reasonable is to look to Christ and what He did and become aggressive with sin...

(picture) There was that dog that came up to the house, or it is one that began to become unpredictable. All of a sudden he is growing at you… All of a sudden he is killing the neighbors dogs and the neighbors chickens… All the while you say, “it will be ok; he will not go any further; he will get out of this stage...”

And then a mother and her child is walking down the road and the dog mauls them...

Listen: The movie Old Yeller was sad… but once Old Yeller got rabies, he was forever changed. That dog would have infected and killed other things… even people.

Travis, the owner, did the right thing… He put the dog down… and it was painful.

He put one thing to death so that others may have life.

Listen: It is reasonable to put to death some things, for life to continue. It is reasonable to prune tree branches, and to remove tumors.

What is unreasonable? To let sin reign and kill our relationship with God and others.

What is unreasonable? To take the grace of God and use it as a license to sin, and do whatever you want.

What is unreasonable? To become apathetic about about my sin and temptations, to the point that I sacrifice my relationship with the Lord, and do damage to this life that Christ redeemed.

God is calling His people to put somethings to death, so that they may walk in a worthy manner, and in the joy of their salvation.

Christianity is not just about going to church. It is not just about knowing some bible verses and speaking a church language. Christianity is not just some things that you do…

It also involves things that we don’t do.

As we look at these in verse 5: Put to death these things that compete with Christ. Put to death that which you are running to satisfy your life, your flesh, your heart… But it isn’t God… They are idols.

Put to death these things that are taking you away from Christ… They are hindering you!

Christian: When you are tempted to go back to the old life, and you become convinced that God is keeping you from something better…

What do we need to do? Cut this thought out. Set you minds on things above.

Cut out these thoughts and actions that only lead you away from Christ and into guilt, shame, and condemnation...

These lifestyles, like the pig who became a man, will make you sick. It will make you miserable. It will not increase joy, peace, and enjoyment in the Holy Spirit… You will quench Him, grieve Him… and you will experience great pains...

Therefore… put these things to death.

God wants to keep you from these things.

Verse 6 - 7 - Listen: It is because of these that the wrath of God is coming upon the sons of disobedience (unbelievers). This is where you were. And you were going to face this wrath/hell, but God saved you through Christ.

He saved you out of these lifestyles… from these lifestyles...

1 Cor. 6:11 - This is where you were… but you were washed, sanctified and justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God.

That is where you were. That is where Jesus finds you… That is not where He leaves you.

If He would have just left you alone, you would have become harder and harder in your heart and God would have handed you over to a debased mind… and these would be your lifestyles.

Read Romans 1:24-32 - Those who continuously reject God and the Gospel, worship the world, exchanged the truth of God for a lie… God gives them over to vile passions… and they will be filled with unrighteousness, and the lifestyle of this condition is sexual immorality, homosexuality, wickedness, covetousness… and those who practice such things are deserving of death...

And that could have happened to each and everyone of us...

But God… who is rich in mercy, because of His great love… by His grace… He saved you.

And now… we want to go back to that? Go back to that darkness? This is a contradiction.

This does not make sense. This is not reasonable.

If you can go back with peace and joy… you cannot be a new creature.

But if you are that new creature and you are trying to go back to the old way of life… this is leading you to misery, pain, grief, quenching the Spirit of God inside of you...

Put these things to death. Put these thoughts to death.

Back to Colossians 3:8-11 - No, the Old man has been put away with all of his ways… don’t go back to that guy and his ways. You are brand new… You are the new man created in Christ Jesus, God’s workmanship. You are being renewed day by day by the One who died and lives for you...

No, no… Christian this is who you are. Act like who you are. Know the will of God, be renewed in knowledge; be renewed in your minds… You are a child of God. You are a child of the King. You are the salt and light of the world… You are citizens of the Kingdom of God.

Act like it!

Put off your anger. Take off your wrath. Remove this malice. Have noting to do with blasphemy or filthy language… Let nothing like that come out of your mouths… You are no longer liars but ambassadors of the truth… You are truth bearers… Be men and women of your word.

You are Christ’s man. You are Christ’s woman. You are Christ’s child.

Put these things to death. Do not give them any place in your life. The Holy Spirit is working in your life. Yield to Him and do not grieve Him.

Verse 11 - And remove, put off, take off all partiality, all favoritisim, sexism or all racism.

God has brought and is bringing every nation, tribe, and language into One Body. You are not the supreme. They are not they supreme. Jesus Christ is the only Supreme One and He is bringing all colors together...

So be sure you are not pushing any colors out...

Be sure you are not looking down on others… Since Christ has brought us all together at the foot of the Cross.

For Christ is all… and in all.

Put to death this partiality and favoritism that keeps you from helping others, loving others, and treating others better that yourself.

Hate kills. Our words can kill. Our anger will kill.

Travis from Old Yeller did the right thing...

This is our right thing...

Put those things to death before you or somebody else gets hurt!

Christ is our aim, our target, our life and direction.

Christ is the reason we live.

Christ has given me His life. Christ has given us His life.

And it is our reasonable service to lay down our lives for Him...

Christian: You want to live a life that is pleasing to Christ.

Christian: You want to walk in a worthy manner.

Christian: You want to make progress.

Is there something you need to cut off today?

Is there something that needs to be put to death?

Have you been going back to the pig pit, or to the old man, to find sickness and misery?

Have you been trying to put back on anger, hatred, filthy language, and lies… and you have been suffering in your Christian walk?

You must confess these sins, turn from them. They are not who you are. They do not reflect you you are or who Christ is and the Holy Spirit is inside of you to produce Christ likeness.

Cut these things off and experience the blessings of Christ again.

Close.