Jesus is all the world to me 1

Colossians I – 1:1-8: nv 9/2/07pm

OS: We live in a world of fraud - Farmer Joe decided his injuries from the accident were serious enough to take the trucking company (responsible for the accident) to court. In court, the trucking company’s fancy lawyer was questioning farmer Joe. "Didn’t you say, at the scene of the accident, ’I’m fine’?," questioned the lawyer.
Farmer Joe responded, "Well I’ll tell you what happened. I had just loaded my favorite mule Bessie into the..."
"I didn’t ask for any details," the lawyer interrupted, "just answer the question. Did you not say, at the scene of the accident, ’I’m fine’!"
Farmer Joe said, "Well I had just got Bessie into the trailer and I was driving down the road..."
The lawyer interrupted again and said, "Judge, I am trying to establish the fact that, at the scene of the accident, this man told the Highway Patrolman on the scene that he was just fine. Now several weeks after the accident he is trying to sue my client. I believe he is a fraud. Please tell him to simply answer the question."
By this time the Judge was fairly interested in Farmer Joe’s answer and said to the lawyer, "I’d like to hear what he has to say about his favorite mule Bessie."
Joe thanked the Judge and proceeded, "Well as I was saying, I had just loaded Bessie, my favorite mule, into the trailer and was driving her down the highway when this huge semi-truck and trailer ran the stop sign and smacked my truck right in the side. I was thrown into one ditch and Bessie was thrown into the other. I was hurting real bad and didn’t want to move. However, I could hear ole Bessie moaning and groaning. I knew she was in terrible shape just by her groans. Shortly after the accident a Highway Patrolman came on the scene. He could hear Bessie moaning and groaning so he went over to her. After he looked at her he took out his gun and shot her between the eyes. Then the Patrolman came across the road with his gun in his hand and looked at me. He said, "Your mule was in such bad shape I had to shoot her. How are you feeling?"
It was then that I said, "I’m fine."

***5 piece luggage set –

TS] Be careful what you buy in to because most things in life are not what they’re cut out to be.

I.       If we are buying in to anything or any person other than Jesus we are heading for disappointment.

A.     Money, fitness, diet, stuff…

B.Early on the attack on Christianity was focused on changing the essence of Jesus – now the tactic is different – just replace Him with something else.

II.    As a church – Christianity – if it is not centered on Jesus it’s centered on the wrong thing!

A.     Acts Sermons of Peter, Stephen, Paul, and on and on – Jesus, …..

B.Colossians is a letter emphasizing the fact that Jesus is truly the answer for everything!

III. Text 1:1-8

TS] Paul gives thanks, (faith, love, and hope – all founded and centered on Jesus) Thank you God for providing true substance for our lives – concrete / stability / something to sink our teethe into…

To the Colossian Christians – Look at how you’ve changed! Look at how you’ve grown! Thank God for what He has done in your life!

Three things God has provided in Jesus – Be thankful for….

I.       Legitimate faith

A.     Without Jesus – what can you put your faith in?

                  1.     Government?

                  2.     Economy? Savings account? Job?

                  3.     People? People let you down don’t we?

                  4.     Self? Most popular of our day along with stuff.

B.Religious standpoint…without Jesus

                  1.     Religious form?

                  2.     List of do’s and don’ts?

                  3.     A Congregation?

C.     "I have now disposed of all my property to my family. There is one thing more I wish I could give them and that is faith in Jesus Christ. If they had that and I had not given them a single shilling, they would have been rich; and if they had not that, and I had given them all the world, they would be poor indeed." (Patrick Henry)

TS] Thanks be to God….Legitimate faith….

II.    Legitimate Love

A.     Where can you find real legitimate love apart from Jesus?

                  1.     LOVE – Can there be love in the absence of Jesus?

                  2.     The world says, “Love those who love you”, “get ahead however you have to”, “don’t worry about the other person, you have to take care of yourself first.”

                  3.     Even families fail in the love category!

                  4.     God is Love 1 John 4 8 Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love. 16 And so we know and rely on the love God has for us. God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in him.

B.Who would be our model if not Jesus?

                  1.     1 Corinthians 13 / Romans 5

III. Legitimate hope

A.     What can you hope for without Jesus?

                  1.     Medical technology – stop aging?

                  2.     Physical fitness – prolong life?

                  3.     Special diets

                  4.     Be careful, get checkups, watch cholesterol, etc.

                  5.     All of the above may be good and/or interesting, but if that’s where you put your hope then you will be disappointed! The only real hope we have of living eternally is found in Jesus Christ!

B.John 14

                  1.     Jesus has prepared a place for us in heaven. Because our dwelling is prepared in heaven, there is no person, power, or anything that can take that from us other than ourselves.

IV.  Let us be thankful to God for giving us some substance for our lives! Faith, love and hope! The only legitimate answers to life are found in Jesus

A.     Looking in the wrong places

                  1.     We tend to look in the wrong places to find what we need. Like when I go to the grocery store to pick something up for Debbie, “What took you so long?” “I couldn’t find it!” there are so many things to choose from it is easy to get frustrated.

                  2.     Life is the same. The Christian life is the same. There are so many items to focus on, that we can fail to take in and enjoy the forest for the trees. We can become so preoccupied with the pebbles and rocks that we fail climb the mountain and enjoy the view.

B.Example: some become so preoccupied with the end of time, the signs of the times that they fail to proclaim the gospel.

                  1.     John 5:39-40, 39 You diligently study the Scriptures because you think that by them you possess eternal life. These are the Scriptures that testify about me,  40 yet you refuse to come to me to have life.

C.     Colossians is a book that will remind us of the supremacy of Christ, and bring us back to the realization that Jesus is all the world to me.