Meeting The Challenge
“The Unspoken Essentials”
Colossians 3:1-17
* Let’s begin this morning with repeating our 5 core beliefs. While some might know these, mom told me that ‘repetition was the mother of learning.’ (say)
* Turn your attention to #5, “The Local Church is the hope of the world.” How many words will it take to convince you that this world needs hope, that these United States is in a mess and needs help, and that even our community requires redemption?
* Have you ever simply sat and considered the implications of this core belief & how it should affect this congregation? Or maybe how this should affect you? Until the truths of God’s word affect me, it can never affect this body.
* Consider the expectations which our Lord has placed on us. Jesus’ words leave little room for debate that we are to live by the Great Command (James calls it the “Royal Law) and also by the Great Commission. Candidly, have you ever asked yourself (or Him) why? Why did Jesus convey to us that we were to be witnesses & examples? Did He just think we needed something to do? Or did He like to hear Himself talk? Perhaps He didn’t even mean it?
* He did mean it, He didn’t simply like to hear Himself talk, and He didn’t think we ‘needed’ something to do; WE ARE HIS PLAN A FOR GETTING OUT THE MESSAGE OF REDEMPTION & RECONCILIATION. We are it and if we don’t do it, chances are, it won’t get done and worse, we’ll stand accountable.
* But we KNOW this (as do all Bible-believing) people, yet, if we know this, why is it that so many know so little about so much (that is, spiritually speaking). Why is it that we live among a people who are eager to find spiritual answers but reluctant to look inside a local church for those answers? Honestly, the local church SHOULD BE where people look, so why are they?
* Today we continue with the series of messages, or better said, the “Call” to the task of “Meeting the Challenge.” Over the last weeks the call has been for us to ‘Be a Gamechanger’ which called us to pay attention to our finances & facilities. Last week, the call was to be a “People of Faith.” However, if we are to fulfill the Great Commission and make disciples of all men, we must face and meet the great challenge of a society which has been seemingly anesthetized to message of the church. How did this happen? What cause it? We will discover the answers in God’s word.
* Baby Boomers represent about 30% of today’s population. This causes all areas of society to take note of their likes and expectations. Lyle Schaller, an Illinois church consultant discovered these things: High-quality preaching, good music and social groups. Baby boomers also expect big meeting rooms, a quality kitchen, childcare, ample parking and clean rest rooms. I would say that we have at least some of those things. But guess what?
* The first century church had none of these & they grew at an exponential rate. Why is this? When scripture is taken collectively, there is 1 overriding quality which seemed to permeate the first century church. This attribute is practically seen in 4 characteristics, which is needed today.
* Several years ago, I was not particularly healthy. My cholesterol was at an all-time high, my BP was running away, & my triglycerides were off the chart. I like giving credit. It wasn’t my doctor; it was Bro. Gary who talked with me about the ‘essential’ as in essential fatty acids and other things. The word essential expresses a sense of vital, crucial, critical & important. The message for us today is essential, “IF” we are to meet the challenge.
* The one quality that society is seeking in a church and church people is ‘authenticity.’ What they desire to observe is that we take seriously this thing of our relationship to God. To put it in the terms of our text; they want to sense that we seek what is above because we have set our minds on what is above. The want to observe that we have put to death some things, put away other things, and have put on the things of God. We authenticate who and whose we are by how we live, what we say, how we treat each other, & what we do.
* Even though they may not ‘know’ the Bible, they have a clear understanding that the way of Christ are not found in malice, slander, and filthy language. When they see unfettered anger and our unfiltered tongue from one who ‘claims’ to know Christ, instinctively they know that something is not right about this. Never forget, an authentic life is not about convincing people what you are, it’s about letting them see what you’re made of. When we have to “convince” someone about our love for Christ, it may be an indicator that our love is suspect. Candidly, we don’t feel the need to convince others of our love for children, grandchildren, or other family members. Why is that? Because the love we feel deep inside naturally flows out, it’s authentic.
* We will be authenticated as believers when; our Saturday night behavior is the same as our Sunday morning behavior, when our talk at school is the same as our talk in Sunday School, when our attitudes reflect the attitudes of Jesus. A dozen years ago George Barna told us that Americans perceive two attributes of ‘Christians’: a) they attend church and, b) they are judgmental.
* Here are 4 characteristics that are the unspoken essentials for a Church family and/or Believers who will meet the challenge of today.
1. FOLLOWSHIP – What exactly does it mean to follow? The story is told of a young lady who applied to a college. In the application the question was asked, “Are you a leader?” Dismayed she honestly checked, “NO”. To her surprise she received a letter which said, “You have been accepted. Out of a class of 1492 applicant, we needed at least one follower.” Christ calls us to follow Him. We all do follow something; His call is to “Follow Me.”
* Let’s see from the text what it means to follow Him;
a. We walk in HIS PATH. – To truly follow someone we must walk a mile in his moccasins. Jesus’ call is to ‘follow me.’ So where does He lead us? Verse 1 begins, “So “IF” you have been raised with Christ.” This is a conditional question. The ‘if’ should get our attention because there is only one way to be raised with Christ and that is to have ‘died with Christ.’ Paul states this in Galatians 2:19-20. Most translations read that verse 20 says, “I am crucified with Christ; nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ lives in me.” Yet it appears that the sentence construction is a little different in the Original language. While not getting to technical, “With Christ”, begins the sentence. This is for the emphasis that when HE was crucified, if we have been raised with Him, then we were crucified. This is why Colossians 3:4 says, ‘You have died and your life is hidden in the Messiah.” All of this speaks of our salvation; dying to self, buried with Him, and then rising to walk in newness of life. It’s essential.
b. We live by His Principles.- Verse 5 tells us to ‘put to death’ the worldly, Verse 7 says ‘put away’ the wicked, and Verse ‘put on’ the godly. Living by His principles are one of the almost ignored truths of God’s word. To read this list of things to put off and put on is sobering. You can take each one of these sins and build an entire sermon around them illustrating how these essentials are largely being ignored inside the church today. Also, when I consider the things we are commanded to put ON, I shudder.
c. We develop His Practices. In a nutshell, we accept one other, we forgive one another, and we love one another. To accepts means to ‘forbear’, ‘endure,’ ‘suffer with,’ and even ‘bear with.’ Jesus accepted those whom the religious would reject. He forgave those who were not worthy to be forgiven because He put on the “heartfelt” attributes of verse12. Please don’t miss this truth; to have an unforgiving spirit is to demonstrate that you have never been or have forgotten what it is to be forgiven. The Bible teaches that our forgiveness is tied to our willingness to forgive.
* At the risk of appearing unkind, I submit that following in His footsteps is largely overlooked today. He has called us to accept, forgive, and love. If the church is to meet the challenge of this culture, it will not come through programs and activities; it will begin with following Christ.
2. FRIENDSHIP – In this day of text message, Facebook, Twitter, Skype, emails, and candidly, instant communication, we are still a lonely people. You & I are made for relationship, deep relationships. Men & women need friends with who they can share their deepest hurts, deepest joys, and most personal thoughts. I heard it said at “Leader Lab” this year, “People aren’t looking for friendly churches, they are looking for friends.” One lady was standing in a long time to buy stamps because the cashier asked about her.
* I read this story: "A pastor saw Robert Schuller’s TV program "Hour of Power." One of the things that impressed him the most during the program was watching everyone turning around to shake hands with and greet other worshippers seated near them. The pastor felt that his church was a bit stuffy and could use a bit of friendliness. So, at Sunday morning worship he announced that next week they would initiate this custom of greeting one another. At the close of this same worship service one man turned around to the lady behind him and said a cheerful, "Good morning!" She looked back at him with shock at his boldness and said, "I beg your pardon! That friendliness business doesn’t start until next Sunday!"
* We are told in this text to put on love. Jesus said, “By your love, they’ll know that you are my disciples.” The New Testament gives two ways people will discern who & what we are, “By our Love & by our fruit.” If you have lunch with someone & berate your church family, do not be surprised if they refused to attend an event with you. The lost world gets enough of the back-biting and bad attitude in their world. What will speaks into their hearts is to see a people who live by, with, & give grace.
3. FELLOWSHIP – I dare say that this is the most misunderstood term used in the church today. When we say “fellowship”, we tend to think ‘food.’ While food might be a part of fellowship, it is a SMALL part of authentic fellowship. Verse 14 tells us that LOVE is the perfect bond of unity. In John 17, Jesus prayed His final prayer for His church to have unity. In Acts 2, when they were altogether in one accord and in one place, God sent the Spirit. This is HIS desire for us. (Read Acts 2:41-42) Notice that fellowship & breaking of bread are 2 different items. Fellowship is a form of that familiar word, “koinonia” and carries the idea of partnership, joint participation, community, connection, association, and commonality. It is a common salvation which promotes authentic fellowship. This is a ‘care more for others than self’ type of mentality. (Story of heaven & hell with long spoons). This is a picture of authentic fellowship. Our culture is starving today because too many times they find us trying to take care of ourselves and our own instead of being concerned for others.
* In Romania, and in many Eastern European countries, there are so many orphans institutionalized that there isn’t enough food or medical supplies or staff members to take care of them. The babies, often past toddler age, are still kept in diapers and placed in cribs because there’s no other way to take care of them. They are lifted out to be fed and they infrequently have their diapers changed. There is no real physical contact with other humans, especially any of the cuddling and holding that babies need to develop normally. They end up in semi-catatonic states and often die from a lack of human contact. This condition is called "failure to thrive syndrome."
* To meet the challenge means being authentic in these three areas.
Story of Heaven & Hell with Long spoons
There is much speculation concerning what heaven and hell will be like. One contrast of heaven and hell tells of a man who had a dream that he was allowed to see both places. He was first taken to hell.
He was taken to a large room in the middle of which there was a large pot of stew. The stew smelled delicious. But all around this point there were people who were starving and in desperation.
They all held spoons in their hands that had unusually long handles that reached all the way to the pot, but because the spoon handles were longer than their arms, they were unable to return the spoons filled with stew to their mouths. Their suffering was terrible and continuous.
Then the man was taken to heaven. Heaven was identical to hell; the rooms were identical, the pot of stew in the middle of the room was the same, and the spoons were the same. But, the people in this room were well-fed and joyous.
The man was perplexed when first walked into the room. But as he watched the people in this room, he learned the difference. The people had spoons that would not allow them to feed themselves, so they fed each other.
