Deeper Walk

Introduction

Good evening and welcome back!

This evening we are going to be looking at one of Paul’s letters, this one to the Colossians.

And the subject we are going to be diving into is our need to take a “Deeper Walk” with God.

And for reference we will be looking at Colossians 3, verses 12-15.

But before we get into the Scripture itself, I think we need a little bit of background about the people and culture that this letter was written to.

Like I said in the beginning, this letter is written by Paul to the church in Colossae.

And they think that it was probably written during his first imprisonment in Rome.

It was actually written about the same time as Ephesians and Philippians.

And as a fun fact, Paul did not personally know the people in the church at Colossae.

He had never been to the church before.

The church had actually been planted by a man named Epaphras, who was the pastor.

Paul was the overseer, which would have kind of been like our District Superintendent.

So, Paul knew them through Epaphras, and that was it.

And the majority of the people in the church were Gentiles who were new converts.

They were progressing along in their walk with the Lord and this new found faith in Jesus Christ.

But there was a problem.

There is always a problem—at least one.

In this case, a great heresy had crept into the church that threatened to destroy these new young Christians.

This heresy was a false belief called syncretisticism, which was composed of elements drawn from paganism, Judaism, and Christianity.

One commentator describes it this way:

"The pagan element espoused a false philosophy that appears to have been an early form of Gnosticism. This movement viewed matter as evil, denied the divine creation of the universe, held to many angelic beings or spiritual intermediates existing between man and God and advocated the worship of these angelic beings, stressed a secret knowledge that was given when you joined the cult as the means to salvation. The Jewish element was legalistic in nature, retained the Mosaic Law, imposed circumcision, followed dietary restrictions and calendar observations, and advocated asceticism (self-deprivation to attain salvation). The heresy's Christian component did not deny Christ, but dethroned Him. He was not regarded as divine or as Creator of the universe, and His death was deprived of any saving merit."

So, a mashup of all kinds of different religious beliefs.

It had something that would appeal to everyone, the pagans, the Jews, the Christians.

Kind of like a buffet of religion.

And it was destroying these young Christians.

Throwing them into confusion.

So, Paul's letter was intended to combat this and to give the people weapons to fight this attack of the enemy that had crept in among them.

And, where we pick up in chapter three is Paul's explanation to them how they are going to attain victory and move forward in the face of the enemy.

So, that’s where we are at, so let’s read our passage and then start to break it down.

Paul writes in Colossians 3, starting in verse 12 . . .

Scripture Focus

Colossians 3:12–15 NIV84

Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. Bear with each other and forgive whatever grievances you may have against one another. Forgive as the Lord forgave you. And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity. Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace. And be thankful.

Called to Holiness

So, really pretty standard stuff for Paul.

He starts out . . .

Colossians 3:12 NIV84

Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience.

“Chosen people” here or in the KJV, the “elect of God.”

And literally this means, they have been saved by God and because they had chosen to follow Christ, God has chosen to accept them as His children.

A key aspect here is their choice as a people who have chosen to pursue God.

They could have chosen any religion, any belief, anything they wanted, but they chose God.

And this actually mirrors what Peter tells us in 1 Peter 2:9-10 . . .

1 Peter 2:9–10 NIV84

But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light. Once you were not a people, but now you are the people of God; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy.

Really, it is a direct parallel.

And, not only were they God's chosen people, His elect, Paul says they were holy and beloved.

And to be holy means to be sanctified or set apart, separate, cleansed and prepared for God's use.

And people many times confuse this and confuse what being holy and set apart really is.

We hear a lot about holiness and how this is what "holiness looks like or that is what holiness looks like."

For generations the "holiness doctrine" has been watered down and beat down because it has been reduced to a set of rules to follow or a set of spiritual gifts to exhibit.

This may shock and offend some people, but holiness has nothing to do with "rules," or "gifts.”

And where we have went wrong for generations is that the only way we knew to describe holiness was describing the DESIRED OUTCOMES of being made holy or being sanctified.

We focused solely on what we thought holiness looked like and have ignored what Holiness really was and also ignored the actual ways to achieve Holiness the way God intended for us.

Holiness has to do with one thing, THE CONDITION OF YOUR HEART.

Look at Hebrews 12:14, which we are very familiar with . . .

Hebrews 12:14 NIV84

Make every effort to live in peace with all men and to be holy; without holiness no one will see the Lord.

And we understand that without holiness, without being holy we will not see the Lord.

However, there is more to that verse. The first part says "live in peace with all men."

How do we have peace with all men?

What has to be present for us to be able to do this?

LOVE.

Holiness flows out of love.

First a love for God.

Second a love for others that is a demonstration of our love for God.

We know it well . . .

Matthew 22:37–40 NIV84

Jesus replied: “ ‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.”

And when we can say that we love God with all our (1) heart, (2) soul, (3) and mind, then we begin to have a complete love and develop a deeper understanding of God.

But this takes effort.

It doesn’t come naturally to us.

We have to put in some work.

So, how do we get to that place though when we are completely in love with God?

Well, our Bible tells us . . .

Psalm 34:17–19 NIV84

The righteous cry out, and the Lord hears them; he delivers them from all their troubles. The Lord is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit. A righteous man may have many troubles, but the Lord delivers him from them all;

And . . .

Psalm 51:17 NIV84

The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart, O God, you will not despise.

And . . .

2 Chronicles 7:14–16 NIV84

if my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and will heal their land. Now my eyes will be open and my ears attentive to the prayers offered in this place. I have chosen and consecrated this temple so that my Name may be there forever. My eyes and my heart will always be there.

We come to God in the same way we did when we came to be saved.

Broken hearted, a contrite spirit, humbling ourselves, praying, and earnestly seeking His face.

We get to that place when we are able to lay all the cards on the table before Him and say:

"HERE I AM LORD, SEND ME, USE ME LORD, LET YOUR WILL BE DONE."

When we are able to do that, God will change our heart.

When we invite the Holy Spirit in, He will come in and abide in us and dwell in us, cleansing our hearts making them pure.

This is why Paul, in our passage tells them to "put on" or "clothe yourselves."

In other words they are to take on certain attributes and certain characteristics that demonstrate the Holy Spirit present in their lives.

These are the things people should see when they come into contact with God's people.

And let’s be clear, these attributes or behaviors are not what sanctifies us, but rather the evidence that we have been sanctified.

The evidence that God has worked a second blessing in us, that our hearts are now pure and changed.

THAT WE HAVE BEEN MADE HOLY.

So, what are they?

Glad you asked.

These attributes are:

(1) compassion

(2) kindness

(3) humility

(4) gentleness

(5) patience

(6) bear with each other and forgive each other. Forgive as the Lord forgave us.

(7) Above all put on love, that binds all of these together in perfect unity.

Sound familiar?

These are the attributes of those who have been sanctified by the Lord.

Paul also talks about these in his letter to the Galatians.

Galatians 5:22–26 NIV84

But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law. Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the sinful nature with its passions and desires. Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit. Let us not become conceited, provoking and envying each other.

The Peace of God

And we as Christians ought to desire this deeper walk, this deeper understanding.

We should be desiring the deeper things of God.

The complete blessings of God!

But, let’s finish up and look at verse 15 . . .

Colossians 3:15 NIV84

Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace. And be thankful.

And, in a nutshell, this is what sanctification does, it brings about the peace of God.

That abiding comfort that no matter what happens, no matter what takes place, God is with us.

Hebrews 13:5–6 NIV84

Keep your lives free from the love of money and be content with what you have, because God has said, “Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you.” So we say with confidence, “The Lord is my helper; I will not be afraid. What can man do to me?”

And . . .

Romans 8:15–18 NIV84

For you did not receive a spirit that makes you a slave again to fear, but you received the Spirit of sonship. And by him we cry, “Abba, Father.” The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God’s children. Now if we are children, then we are heirs—heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ, if indeed we share in his sufferings in order that we may also share in his glory. I consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us.

And . . .

2 Timothy 1:6–7 NIV84

For this reason I remind you to fan into flame the gift of God, which is in you through the laying on of my hands. For God did not give us a spirit of timidity, but a spirit of power, of love and of self-discipline.

Isn't that what we are really after, Peace, and no fear.

The power to actually do God's Will.

Doe that mean we will always be perfect and act perfectly.

No, but it means we strive for a perfect heart.

We strive to follow God perfectly.

I like what our Nazarene Manuel says about sanctification:

10.1. We believe that there is a marked distinction between a pure heart and a mature character. The former is obtained in an instant, the result of entire sanctification; the latter is the result of growth in grace. We believe that the grace of entire sanctification includes the divine impulse to grow in grace as a Christlike disciple. However, this impulse must be consciously nurtured, and careful attention given to the requisites and processes of spiritual development and improvement in Christlikeness of character and personality. Without such purposeful endeavor, one’s witness may be impaired and the grace itself frustrated and ultimately lost.

Altar/Challenge

Luke also records a conversation in the Book of Acts, when Paul runs on some disciples that he didn’t know.

And he asks them . .

Acts 19:2 NIV84

and asked them, “Did you receive the Holy Spirit when you believed?” They answered, “No, we have not even heard that there is a Holy Spirit.”

They had the beginnings of faith but had not taken the plunge.

They had not sought after the deeper walk with God.

They had not sought perfection, to be Holy, sanctified, set apart.

Have we?

Let’s pray . . .