from the desk of... Rande Wayne Smith D.Min., Th.M., M.Div. MAKING GOOD CHOICES

Transcription

1 from the desk of... Rande Wayne Smith D.Min., Th.M., M.Div. # January 2014 Colossians - 2 MAKING GOOD CHOICES Colossians 1:9-14 I really enjoy good milkshakes. I like going into an ice-cream shop, looking over all the flavors, picking out 3 of them, and then having the clerk blend them together into something that tastes absolutely delicious. Now when I think of good milkshakes, no offense intended, but McDonalds usually isn t on my short list however I was almost tempted to stop and get one of their eggnog milkshakes during December. I discovered that they had them through a TV commercial which I suspect most of you saw. A young lady asks her boyfriend, Larry, do you love me? If you had to choose between me and a McDonalds eggnog milkshake what would you choose? Larry? Larry? Poor Larry! He had to make a choice, and it appeared that he was undecided or maybe he was just afraid to say what he really thought.

2 Sometimes it s hard to make choices at least; it s hard to make the right ones. And that s one of the things I want us to consider this morning making good choices. 2 All of us make dozens, if not hundreds, of choices every day. Each of you made a choice this morning to come here and worship. I was going to say that you made a choice where to sit when you got here but you obviously made that choice early on in coming here where you were going to sit! Now admittedly, some of our choices are more significant than others, but all of our choices are followed by consequences. And again, there will be various levels of consequences. For example, 2 weeks ago, if I had made a choice to shovel my drive wearing only shorts, sandals, and a t- shirt the consequences would have either been the hospital or the mental ward! But seriously, I suspect that we make many of our decisions without considering what the spiritual consequences might be. And that s exactly what Paul was concerned about when he wrote his letter to the Church in Colossae. The believers there were in the process of making some really important choices with far-reaching consequences.

3 3 Choices about whom to listen to, (there were a lot of so-called teachers running around); choices about what theological jargon to use, (Church people have special terms that we use when we get together); choices about the kind of ceremonies we re to celebrate. And most important, choices concerning what spiritual truths to accept and believe, and which ones to ignore. Now those are choices that can lead to eternal consequences. Having said that, let tell you something that we all know, but at the same time we may not regularly practice. What should we do before we make decisions? (pray) Scripture says If any of you needs wisdom to know what you should do, you should ask God, and he will give it to you. (James 1:5) And that s exactly what we find Paul doing for the Colossian believers they re about to make some spiritual choices, so he prays for them. And we re going to read what he prayed in just a moment. This is a prayer of intercession. Paul s concerned about the Colossians spiritual wellbeing. Bible scholars say that these verses teach us more about the essence of prayer requests than almost any other passage in the N.T.

4 It s here that we learn to ask for the discernment of God s will and then the power to carry it out. Paul s praying for these new believers to become theologians. He wants them to know God, and have a clear understanding of who Jesus Christ is, (John 14:9) and what He came to do. (Luke 19:10) Okay, with all that as an introduction let s look at the prayer Paul prayed. Good News from Paul, to the Church in Colossae and to the Church in Rolling Meadows. Within your hearing now comes the Word of the Lord 4 For this reason we have always prayed for you, ever since we heard about you. We ask God to fill you with the knowledge of his will, with all the wisdom and understanding that his Spirit gives. Then you will be able to live as the Lord wants and will always do what pleases him. Your lives will produce all kinds of good deeds, and you will grow in your knowledge of God. May you be made strong with all the strength which comes from his glorious power, so that you may be able to endure everything with patience. And with joy give thanks to the Father, who has made you fit to have your share of what God has reserved for his people in the kingdom of light. He rescued us from the power of darkness and brought us safe into the kingdom of his dear Son, by whom we are set free, that is, our sins are forgiven. (Colossians 1:9-14)

5 5 May the LORD grant that we may engage in contemplating the mysteries of His Heavenly wisdom with really increasing devotion, to His glory and to our edification. Amen I d like our Deacons to stand. Our Deacons have a number of responsibilities, and at the top of the list, as far as I m concerned, is prayer. They re to be active in their prayer life for this Church. And to help them do that more specifically, I divided our congregation into 8 sections, and assigned each Deacon a section. That means that since last March all of you have been regularly prayed for, not only by me, but by one of the Deacons. (Okay Deacons, you may sit down.) Now let me explain some of things that we ve been praying about. Certainly when praises or concerns are mentioned on Sunday mornings the Deacons are especially sensitive to any coming from those within their assigned group. But we re also praying for your spiritual life; that you become everything that God has created you to be. We re praying for The Holy Spirit to be active in your lives. We re praying for your physical, mental, emotional, relational, and spiritual wellbeing. We re praying for protection for you against the world, the flesh, and the Devil. We re praying for the decisions that you make; that they ll be in accordance with God s will.

6 And as I began studying this passage that we re looking at this morning, I realized that that s exactly what Paul was praying for with the Colossians believers. I ve read these verses a number of times this week and I have to conclude this is a heck of a good prayer, and an excellent model for all of us. Paul is asking God for 6 specific things. And as we look at them, one at a time, I want you to imagine the Apostle Paul praying this for you, while at the same time realizing that your Deacon and I am praying for these qualities to be evident in your life. 6 I want you to be thinking, As I begin 2014, how am I personally doing in each of these areas? And, what can I do to improve before the end of the year? So, if you re not interested in growing spiritually this year, you can tune me out, daydream, take a nap, whatever. But if you want to grow closer to the Lord pay attention. And the overarching determination of how you will grow will be determined in many ways through the choices you make. Okay? Paul begins, We have always prayed for you. Let s think about that. Paul indicates that he s in regular prayer for these people. This isn t just a one shot sentence that s thrown up on occasion. Paul is faithfully, continually remembering them in concentrated prayer.

7 7 I like the plural, we, also. Remember Paul s in prison in Rome. (Colossians 4:3) Timothy is there. So are Epaphras, Tychicus, Onesimus, Aristarchus, Mark, Joshua, Luke, and Demas. I m picturing this wonderful prayer meeting going on with all these guys. And they re not praying, Lord, get us out of here. They re praying, in this instance, for the new believers in Colossae! Paul says, We ask God. Let s stop again and consider those 3 words. Think about it in prayer we are talking to God! We have direct access to Almighty God. And the amazing thing is He promises to take time to listen to us! (1 John 5:15) That thought should cause each of us to almost become tongue-tied. What makes me think that the Creator of the universe cares about what Rande Smith might have to say? (Job 38:2) And even if He does listen, what right do I have to ask Him for something? Who do I think I am anyway? Well, I m a child of God, (Romans 8:15), and Scripture teaches that, whenever we are in need, we should come bravely before the throne of our merciful God. (Hebrews 4:16) And that s only possible because of Jesus. There is one God, and there is one who brings God and human beings together, the man Christ Jesus. (1 Timothy 2:5) When Paul prays, he leans heavily on the confidence that his prayers will be heard and responded to because of his relationship with Jesus. (John 14:13)

8 8 The word ask (αἰτούμενοι) also has special meaning. When you and I ask someone for something, we re offering a hopeful desire. But the word Paul uses denotes an asking to which one is entitled. Paul is making a request for something he has a right to ask for. As one Bible scholar observed, when Herodias asked for the head of John the baptizer, she was not begging or pleading. She was asking for what Herod had given her a right to ask for. I swear that I will give you anything you ask for! (Matthew 14:7) And so with repulsive confidence, she told him that that s what she wanted. Well, Paul asserts that same right here when he goes to his knees concerning the believers in Colossae. He begins by asking God to fill them with the knowledge of his will. What a great place to start! (Jeremiah 29:13) God s will the thing we should have a penetrating knowledge about speaks to the question of life itself, His spiritual laws, and all that makes it possible to reflect honor toward Him. How many of you have ever struggled in knowing what God s will was for your life, or a particular circumstance in your life? I think that s a common concern among all believers. I wonder what God wants me to do about (some particular thing). Well, Paul prays that we would discover what God s will is.

9 And he recognizes that that comes through wisdom and understanding given by The Holy Spirit. 9 Earlier Paul had written to the Corinthians, God s Spirit has shown you everything, even the hidden depths of God s purposes. God has given us his Spirit so that we may know all that He has given us. (1 Corinthians 2:10,12) If we want to know what God s will is, then we ve got to begin with prayer. It s that simple. Scripture teaches, If any of you lack wisdom, you should pray to God, who will give it to you. We also need to be reading the Scriptures. This is God s living Word. It s in here that we find the answers to all of the spiritual choices we re called upon to make. So, we need to pray and read the Scriptures the question is, are we willing to put in the time and do the work necessary to discover God s will for our lives? Paul s praying that we will. He prays that they might have insight into God s purposes and plans. The knowledge of his will, with all the wisdom and understanding that his Spirit gives. A 2 nd thing that Paul prays for is that they will live as the Lord wants and will always do what pleases him. This is real simple, or at least it should be.

10 10 Examine your behavior and ask this basic question is God pleased with what I m doing? If the answer is yes then keep on doing it. If the answer is no then stop doing it. My Mom would tell me to ask the question, Would I want Jesus finding me doing this when He returns? Once again, this is where knowledge of the Scriptures is important. The answers to the questions we have about life are in here. How does the Lord want me to live? What he requires of us is this: to do what is just, to show constant love, and to live in humble fellowship with our God. (Micah 6:8) 3 rdly, Paul prays that their lives will produce all kinds of good deeds. What was President John Kennedy s famous quote? And so, my fellow Americans: ask not what your country can do for you ask what you can do for your country. His point what are we doing to indicate that we re good Americans? Paul is saying that there s more to Christianity than simply saying, I believe. (James 2:14) Jesus Himself warned, Not everyone who calls me Lord, Lord will enter the Kingdom of heaven, but only those who do what my Father wants them to do. (Matthew 7:21) Paul s praying that our lives will produce all kinds of good deeds.

11 11 I was talking with my son on the phone recently and he was telling me about the open house at the school where our grandson Jackson goes. You know what I m talking about. Parents walk around the classrooms or auditorium or along the halls and look at the work or projects that their kids have been doing. You ve been to those things, right? What if we had an open house here where we could showoff our work to God? Would you have something to put up on the wall to show God what you ve been doing for Him this past year? 4 th, Paul prays that they will grow in their knowledge of God. We get knowledge by learning. Now we all learn in different ways. Some of us are visual learners; some of us are hands on learners. Some of us are intuitive learns. And still others of us are cognitive learners. But no matter what kind of learner you are, it s essential that each one of us takes charge of our continuing education about God. (Hebrews 6:1) Is there anyone here who feels that they know everything that they want to know about God? In my very 1 st sermon as your Pastor on 1 July 2001, I asked you if you could name 10 attributes of God. Think of someone you love.

12 I m sure you can rattle off 10 wonderful qualities about them without any effort at all. And the reason is because you really know that person. How well do you know this God who has created you and saved you? We learn about what interests us. I knew next to nothing about autism, but after our grandson, Aidan, was born, I spent a lot of time reading and studying it because I love Aidan, and I want to know how to relate to him. 12 Are you interested in God? Boy, I hope so. Sunday School is not just for kids. We have 3 Bible Studies going right now. Paul prays that, you will grow in your knowledge of God. The Deacons are praying that, you will grow in your knowledge of God. I am praying that, you will grow in your knowledge of God. Please hear what I m saying out of my deep love and concern for each of you. If you re not doing your own independent, in-depth, study to gain more knowledge about the God who loved you so much that He sent His only Son to die for you, (John 3:16), then you should be in Sunday School, or in one of our Bible Studies. There s no excuse for not wanting to grow in our knowledge of God. 5 th, Paul prays that you be made strong with all the strength which comes from his glorious power, so that you may be able to endure everything with patience.

13 13 What s Paul praying for? Let s look at it again that you be made strong with all the strength which comes from his glorious power. Do you see a theme there? I do exercises every day in order to strengthen my muscles, and to keep my body strong. I work at that so I can physically continue to do the things I want to do. Paul s praying for spiritual strength. We talked a little last week about how teachers had come into the Colossae Church and were offering a different gospel. (Galatians 1:8) Paul prays that the believers there will have the strength to hold onto what is right. (1 Thessalonians 5:21) Where does the strength come from? The Holy Spirit. The Spirit of God is a power source which is inexhaustible, and can fill the life of the believer. And that s what Paul is asking for. Don t you know? Haven t you heard? The LORD is the everlasting God; he created all the world. He never grows tired or weary. No one understands his thoughts. He strengthens those who are weak and tired. Even those who are young grow weak; young people can fall exhausted. But those who trust in the LORD for help will find their strength renewed.

14 14 They will rise on wings like eagles; they will run and not get weary; they will walk and not grow weak. (Isaiah 40:28-31) When problems arise in your life are you able to exercise endurance and patience? Are you equipped to go the distance? (2 Timothy 4:7) Do you have the patience to wait on God for His answer, or do you try to solve the problem yourself 1 st? And when God does give you the answer, are you able to patiently wait for Him to make it happen, or do you give up and try to solve it yourself? This is a problem area for most of us because we have a tendency to take matters into our own hands. We need to learn to be patient and wait on God. (The Psalms 27:14) Remember the story of Abram and Sarai? God had promised them that they would have children, many descendants. (Genesis 12:2) And when it didn t seem like it was going to happen, they took matters into their own hands to help God out. (Genesis 16:1-6) And the world is still living with the repercussions of their decision. (Genesis 25:18) Finally, Paul prays that we would with joy give thanks to the Father. Joy is one of the fruits of the Spirit. It s listed 2 nd right after love. (Galatians 5:22-23) Do you have a sense of joy in your life when it comes to spiritual things?

15 Joy and giving thanks go hand-in-hand. A moment ago I asked if you could think of 10 attributes about God? So often in our prayers we say something like, Thank you God for all the blessings you give me. 15 If I say to Kathy, Thank you for all the stuff you do for me, I m sure she likes to hear that. But, if at the end of the day I thank her for the individual things that she has done she knows that I ve really taken notice of her specific activity in my life. I encourage you to make time each day to reflect on what God is actually doing in your life. And to help you get started on that, if you ll flip your outline over, you ll see that I ve provided a space for you to write down 10 specific blessings God has given you, and that you enjoy. Please do that sometime today and then spend a few moments in prayer thanking Him for those blessings. We live in such a negative society. Have you ever noticed how much we complain? We complain about the weather when we should be grateful to be alive We complain about traffic when we should be glad we can travel with such ease We complain about crowds in the store when we should be glad we are able to shop

16 16 We complain about the way our food is cooked, (or how long the waitress takes) when we should be grateful we have food We complain about our income, (or taxes) when we should be grateful that we have an income We complain about the government when we should be grateful that we don t live in an anarchy We complain about other believers, (they aren t as spiritual as we are, or, they re not doing their share of the work) when we should be thanking God that each of us have different gifts and abilities You get the idea. We thank God for what He s given, while at the same time feeling that He should have given more. We seem to think that if God really loved us we would have less problems, more money, more stuff, more influence, less illness, more good times, less difficult times. And yet we tell Him we re grateful. If you were God, would you believe us? It s only when people live in the environment of the things that Paul has prayed for that they can become choice makers that bear the name Christian. Paul is worried about some of the poor choices the Colossians were making. He d probably worry even more about many of us. May God give us the wisdom and understanding to make good choices in our lives this year. MARANA THA