21-10-24 AM, Christ Above All: Faith, Hope, and Love, Colossians 1.1-8
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21-10-24 AM, Christ Above All: Faith, Hope, and Love, Colossians 1.1-8
INTRO
Never has it been so hard to find the real story.
Big Tech- censorship and theories, Legacy media agendas, politicians with agendas
On a variety of topics, we are pulled one way or the other regarding what to believe.
It can be very disorienting.
How do you cut through the noise?
You have to have some reference points. These serve as anchors which keep you secure while the wind and waves whip around.
Pilot instrument panels can keep the plane straight even when the scene outside the window is misleading.
As Christians who live in a topsy turvy world, the Bible is our instrument panel. We trust it as the standard for belief and conduct.
In the Bible we have God’s Word. The Bible is reliable to tell us the truth and to be our compass for life. It instructs us about what God says is right and wrong.
It reveals to us how things have happened and how things will happen and why things do happen.
In it God reveals to us His redemption plan for creation- the gospel.
God’s Word has always served in this way.
Even before the Bible was finalized, God’s Word was the source for stability for believers in an unstable world.
This was certainly the case in the first century in Colossae.
If you remember, Colossae was known for its refreshingly cold mountain spring water.
There was a man who lived there named Epaphras. What likely happened was that Epaphras went to Ephesus in order to buy supplies and he became exposed to the teachings of a man named Paul.
Paul taught for a long time in the Hall of Tyrannus in Ephesus. He preached the gospel of Jesus Christ.
8 And he entered the synagogue and for three months spoke boldly, reasoning and persuading them about the kingdom of God. 9 But when some became stubborn and continued in unbelief, speaking evil of the Way before the congregation, he withdrew from them and took the disciples with him, reasoning daily in the hall of Tyrannus. 10 This continued for two years, so that all the residents of Asia heard the word of the Lord, both Jews and Greeks.
Epaphras heard the gospel and believed. He learned from Paul during this time. Then Epaphras gave the gospel to his friends and family in Colossae and many of them believed. Soon, the Lord used Epaphras to begin a new church in Colossae.
Epaphras models the Great Commission very well- 1) share the gospel, 2) lead people around us to Christ, 3) begin a new church as necessary, and 4) repeat.
This young church started very well, but soon got into trouble with heresy.
From clues within the book, the best explanation is that someone influential within the church started to teach local folk beliefs instead of the gospel. This person gained a following.
Whatever was taught had a mix of Jewish and pagan elements- Worship of angels (2:18) and ascetic practices like fasting, special knowledge.
The situation grew large enough in the church that it proved to be an existential threat to the church. It was about to become something else other than a Great Commission church.
So Epaphras felt the need to talk with Paul directly. The only problem was that Paul was no longer in Ephesus 100 miles away, now he was in Rome in house arrest 1000 miles away!
Yet, this was so important that Epaphras set off to find Paul.
The letter we are studying, Colossians, is Paul’s response to the church in response to the brewing heresy.
Onesimus and Tychicus (Tich-i-kus) delivered it to the church.
The theme of the letter is this: “Christ is Lord over all of creation, including the invisible realm. He has secured redemption for his people, enabling them to participate with him in his death, resurrection, and fullness” (ESVSB, 2289).
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1 Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, and Timothy our brother,
Paul is the author. He calls himself an apostle. This word means “sent one”. It was a tactful way to articulate his authority in Christ and his humility.
Paul’s life was defined by His calling by the Lord God. His life as an apostle was not one he would have chosen (he was a persecutor of the church). Rather, it is one decreed to him by God’s will. That calling was to bring the gospel to the Gentiles.
Remember, Paul persecuted the church, but he met the Lord on the road to Damascus. He witnessed the risen Christ and heard His voice. From that moment on, Paul was a transformed man- given whole-heartedly to the advancement of the gospel- to the Jews and to the Gentiles.
Do you remember how the gospel powerfully changed your life?
Have you told anyone this story lately?
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In the greeting, Paul cites Timothy as well. Timothy is Paul’s child in the faith who accompanied Paul on the most incredible missionary journeys. Timothy also was unswerving in his convictions about the supremacy of Christ because he too had seen God advance His kingdom in incredible ways.
2 To the saints and faithful brothers in Christ at Colossae:
Grace to you and peace from God our Father.
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Saints- “Holy Ones”, faithful brothers in Christ. Faithful is only used in Paul’s writing to refer to believers.
Grace to you- an appeal for further grace beyond that by which they were saved; continuing unmerited kindness which the Father lavishes upon His children. God the Father- Source of grace
General Grace
44 But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, 45 so that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven. For he makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust.
Special Grace
16 “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.
As much as God is a source of grace, He is also the source of peace.
In our relationship with Him and with others
In the midst of or circumstances.
General well- being
6 do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. 7 And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
Such is the peace Paul speaks of
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3 We always thank God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, when we pray for you, 4 since we heard of your faith in Christ Jesus and of the love that you have for all the saints,
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Paul prays for them. He gives thanks for them.
Through prayer Paul moved from indirect involvement with them to direct involvement with them.
Prayer is also the way we can impact those whom we do not have direct contact.
Paul gives thanks for several reasons.
1. There is spiritual fruit in their lives. At least three kinds
First, because of their saving faith in Christ- vs. 4
By faith they were justified- ABC
They believed in the person and work of Jesus Christ-
His identity as the Son of God
His vicarious sacrifice on the Cross
His resurrection
His ascension
Their salvation through calling Him Savior and Lord.
Abiding in Christ daily
It is a big deal for people to become spiritually alive through faith. We should never forget how impossible this is without God.
When we see other people become Christians, regenerate, spiritually animated, it is appropriate to thank God because He made life to happen through redemption.
We get to see the Missio Dei at work!
Paul and Timothy certainly did.
They probably remembered the day they found out that a church had started in Colossae. What a happy day that was to see it happen, especially when they were not directly involved. It must have been exciting and a boost of confidence that indeed the gospel is powerful to transform people.
By faith they were being sanctified.
A second spiritual fruit
Second, they gave thanks to them for their love.
Love- for all the saints; Christian love is the natural product of faith in Christ
7 Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God, and whoever loves has been born of God and knows God. 8 Anyone who does not love does not know God, because God is love.
The Colossians had a reputation of caring for one another. It appears they had a network which helped these Christians to take care of these groups of Christians in and around Colossae, Laodicea, and Heirapolis.
Are you known by your love? Thoughts, Words, Actions
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And a third spiritual fruit they had was...
Hope
5 because of the hope laid up for you in heaven. Of this you have heard before in the word of the truth, the gospel,
Something else about the Colossians was that they reflected a lot on their hope of heaven and the New Creation. This anticipation of future glory and the stage for worship and relationship with God affected the way they lived their lives in the present. They lived for today in the reality of the future.
They studied the apostles teachings on the eschaton and talked about it hopefully with one another.
Have you ever noticed that talk about the eschaton is more about debate than of fellowship and comfort.
How do you manifest this hope in your life? Do you do a regular, “if my life were to end today...” reality check? These are good practice in perspective for the day that when we get that sobering news that our end us upon us. If we are unsure about the New Creation, then we leave it to desperate days to become students of it, instead of being comforted by it.
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In v. 5, Paul completes his accolade of their spiritual fruit and starts to remind them of the source of it…the word of truth, the gospel of Jesus Christ, which they heard from him through Epaphras.
How they came to have Faith, Love, and Hope? It came by the Gospel, Word of Truth- the message of the cross and resurrection of Jesus christ.
The gospel is powerful and effective
16 For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek.
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Of the gospel, Paul says
6 which has come to you, as indeed in the whole world it is bearing fruit and increasing—as it also does among you, since the day you heard it and understood the grace of God in truth,
The gospel message, when accepted, has some predictable effects:
it bears fruit and increases in the whole world- Faith, Love, and Hope
believers grow as a new people group who believe in Jesus Christ and form churches all around the globe.
The increase is both qualitative and numerical. Both are oriented toward the addition of praise to the glory of God.
Healthy things grow, true for nations, churches, business, etc.
This increase was seen in the world generally and it was seen in Colossae specifically.
As it is here in FBC Harrah and the church of believers in Harrah, America
There should be increase both in quality and quantity. individually and in us as a people.
Is it bearing fruit and increasing in you?
From the day you heard it, understood it and accepted it, it should have been growing in quality and quantity.
Has it? It is a strange thing to see “Christians” who’ve trusted in the Lord earlier in life, who’ve not grown, or have digressed in the faith.
The Bible will make a strong argument that their lives have not evidenced a true conversion from the start. Our growing faith is proof of original conversion.
Grow and Go
Purpose of preaching and teaching; growth groups; Going in evangelism and missions.
How did you hear, understand, and accept? Have you reviewed that story of late? How have you gone?
The longer I do this I think going actually means going.
Epaphras- Their spiritual advocate
7 just as you learned it from Epaphras our beloved fellow servant. He is a faithful minister of Christ on your behalf 8 and has made known to us your love in the Spirit.
Epaphras the preacher/teacher, servant, messenger to Colossae. He sacrificed greatly that these people might know the apostles teachings and mature in their faith in Christ.
Now, this introduction is not without purpose. Paul’s purpose in writing is to press them to draw a line in the sand regarding the sound doctrine of Christ which they received from him. With this letter, he’s laying the groundwork to get them to shake things up and kick to the curb those heretics who are promoting a compromised version of Christ in the church.
For this reason, he reminds them about their testimony and their present spiritual fruit. The gospel has made a change in them that these new teachings could never even come close of.
The application of this is the simple theme of the questions we’ve been asking.
Is Christ and His Word enough in your heart and mind?
Is there spiritual fruit missing from your cornucopia?
Are you growing and going like Epaphras?