The book of Colossians, or the letter to the churches in Colosse and the surrounding areas, was written by Paul about 30 years after the crucifixion and resurrection of Christ. Paul’s words were written while he was in prison in Rome, awaiting trial. Tradition tells us that Paul would be beheaded only a few years later in Rome, while Nero was Emperor. So Colossians is considered to be one of Paul’s prison epistles. And as we have mentioned before, it is only by the grace of God that Paul could write words of love, words of encouragement, words of warning and words of compassion while he was in chains, beaten and persecuted.
He is writing this letter to help the church get back on track. The church at Colosse began during Paul’s three year ministry at Ephesus. Its founder was not Paul, who had never been there, but Epaphras who was saved during a visit to Ephesus and then likely started the Colossian Church when he returned home. Several years after it was founded, a dangerous heresy arose to threaten it – Gnosticism; that God is good, but matter is evil, that Jesus Christ descended from God, and being less than God, that a secret higher knowledge of Scripture was necessary for enlightenment and salvation. More Jewish legalism, that circumcision was necessary for salvation, observance of the ceremonial rituals of the Old Testament, (diets, festivals) the worship of Angels and other mystical experiences. We read in chapter 4 verses 12 & 13 that Epaphras was so concerned about this heresy that he made the long journey from Colosse (in modern Turkey) to Rome (in Italy) to visit and speak with Paul.
Similar things were happening in the Ephesian church where Paul ministered. Ephesus was located about 100 miles to the west of Colosse. Remember a few weeks ago we read from the book of Acts where Paul found some disciples of Jesus Christ in Ephesus and asked them if “They received the Holy Spirit when they believed?” And they answered him, “We have not so much as heard whether there is a Holy Spirit.”
Here are Paul’s words found in Colossians, chapter 3, verses 12 through 17: “Therefore, as the elect of God, holy and beloved, put on tender mercies, kindness, humility, meekness, longsuffering; bearing with one another, and forgiving one another, if anyone has a complaint against another; even as Christ forgave you, so you also must do. But above all these things put on love, which is the bond of perfection. And let the peace of God rule in your hearts, to which also you were called in one body; and be thankful. Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom, teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord. And whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him.”
If we go back to verse 10 we would have read that Paul tells his readers at Colossae to put on the new self being renewed in the knowledge and image of its creator. Christians are being made anew in the image of their Creator. We all are made in the image of God; that image is marred by sin, ruined by sin. But as we come to Christ, as we become Christian then that image is renewed and restored in us.
Being a Christian, living a Christian life is not something which occurs spontaneously or automatically. It doesn’t just happen. We don’t just sit back and do nothing about it. Rather, we do have to actively strive to be compassionate and kind.
And the other things which Paul mentions too: Bear with each other, he says, forgive each other, and what greater motive is there to forgive each other that Jesus Christ himself has forgiven us. How can we refuse to forgive our brother or sister their small and trivial offences? And over all these virtues, says Paul, put on love which binds everything in perfect unity.
The American commentator John Macarthur says this: “Love is the beauty of the believer dispelling the ugly sins of the flesh that destroy unity.”
And it is love which binds everything in perfect unity. This means that we can see the measure of how much the love of Christ dwells within a Christian congregation, within a Christian fellowship by the degree of unity. Is a Christian congregation or fellowship divided within itself? Then there is very little of the love of Christ in its member’s hearts. Sadly the history of the Christian church we see so much of that lacks of unity; a lack of the love of Christ.
And Paul is saying over all these virtues put on love "Put it on". Yes, it’s the fruit of the Holy Spirit within us but still our human flesh wants to go the other way, and wants to seek self. Constantly we have to remind ourselves that we are Christians and strive to be like our Lord. Jesus Christ, for then the Holy Spirit will indeed make us like him.
Paul is writing about the character of the new man and woman. We are changed, our lives should be transformed receiving new mercies every day. So character? Character is certainly one of the most important virtues in our daily lives. It is how we are known. God formed our hearts, but our character is formed by our families, our friends and those around us. What could possibly be the greatest character trait we could develop? I recently read this regarding ethics and virtue:
“Virtues" are attitudes, dispositions, or character traits that enable us to be and to act in ways that develop this potential. They enable us to pursue the ideals we have adopted. Honesty, courage, compassion, generosity, fidelity, integrity, fairness, self-control, and prudence are all examples of virtues.
How does a person develop virtues? Virtues are developed through learning and through practice. It is suggested, a person can improve his or her character by practicing self-discipline, while a good character can be corrupted by repeated self-indulgence. Just as the ability to run a marathon develops through much training and practice, so too does our capacity to be fair, to be courageous, or to be compassionate.
Virtues are habits. That is, once they are acquired, they become characteristic of a person. For example, a person who has developed the virtue of generosity is often referred to as a generous person because he or she tends to be generous in all circumstances. Moreover, a person who has developed virtues will be naturally disposed to act in ways that are consistent with moral principles. The virtuous person is the ethical person.
We live in a world that is starving for men and women who have godly character. There is a shortage of it in our country, and our churches, and our homes. And do you know what? God is all about character. He desires that we develop godly character.
D.L Moody said, “Character is what you are in the dark.” Or, “True character is what we are when nobody’s looking, in the secret chambers of the heart.”
Just as individuals develop character, the same is true for churches. We all need to be passionate about our love for Jesus Christ by modeling His life. And the church needs to be passionate about the love of Christ as well.
In his book, “Life Wide Open” Dr. David Jeremiah speaks about passion and its opposite, “Passivity.”
“The sinister cancer of passivity slowly squeezes the passion out of our life. The passionate life is one of activity, enthusiasm and energy. Passivity shorts out all the circuits and leaves us bored and in a rut. It has been said that the most powerful weapon on earth is the human soul on fire. Passivity snuffs out that vital inner blaze. Passivity doesn’t only attack our spiritual life. It is just as easy to slip into a passive lifestyle in our relationships with family and friends, in our work, in our activities and in our ministries at church. In fact, if these other areas of our life are marred by apathy, boredom and a “who cares” attitude, it’s a sure bet that the vitality of our relationship to Christ has dwindled to a simmer. Unleashing the power of a passionate life begins by defeating the passivity in our heart toward God.”
So what is the greatest character trait we can develop?
Jesus addresses this very thing in the book of Revelation, remember? He specifically addresses the Ephesian church. He didn’t say the church wasn’t dedicated, it was. The people were active and busy, even to the point of exhaustion. He didn’t say the people weren’t determined, they were. We also know that the problem of the church at Ephesus wasn’t a lack of discipline. So what was the problem at Ephesus? Today, if we described a church as dedicated, determined, and disciplined, we would be talking about a church on the right track, correct? And that’s the root of the problem. Despite all the Ephesian Christians had going for them, Jesus said, “Nevertheless, I have this against you, that you have left your first love.” In less than a century, the church at Ephesus had moved from faith to formalism. In all of their busyness they had lost their passion for Jesus. They were so involved in keeping up the religious practices of the church that they had become passive in their devotion to the Head of the Church, Jesus Christ.
And we see the same thing happening today. There are over four hundred thousand churches in America, but what effect are we having? Are we turning our society upside down the way Jesus and the apostles did? Not really. And it’s because we are more in love with the church than with the Lord of the church. We have moved from faith to formalism. We have lost our first love. Losing our first love is another way of saying we have lost our passion. And the way the church at large – or any local church like ours – loses its passion is by individual Christians becoming passive about their devotion to Christ.
David Jeremiah closes his book with these words: “Be passionate about every portion of your life. Nothing is more deathlike than the life unlived. Dare to live, dare to meet the day with all that your soul can offer it. I deeply want to avoid dying before I have truly lived. I want to be a pioneer who pushes further and further into that last frontier – the transforming presence and power of God. I want people to say of me, “This was a person of passion.” I want them to say, “This was a person of peace.” Above all, I want to glorify God and enjoy Him forever.”
Now read further in Paul’s letter to the Colossian’s, same chapter 3 verses 23 & 24; “Whatever you do, do your work heartily, as for the Lord rather than for men, knowing that from the Lord you will receive the reward of the inheritance. It is the Lord Jesus Christ whom you serve.”
“Heartily?” Another translation, another word…..Believe it or not, passion. Yes passion. Everything we do, everything we say, everything we are. Let’s be passionate for our Lord, not for men but for Him! Amen!
