Col. 1:1-14
Today’s scripture is packed with words from which to elaborate on.
Paul is so thankful for the church at Colossae because he has found faithful people there.
In his prayers for the church and the people there, he thanks God always.
When I was a student at Lancaster Theological Seminary, I had a class on Spirituality.
We learned to pray without ceasing – that is always (spell).
But we also learned a variety of ways to pray. That is all ways (spell).
You can pray with exhortation.
You can pray with scripture.
You can pray with meditation.
You can pray with the mantras of the early Christian Church Fathers.
You can pray with the words of the Lord’s prayer.
You can pray with the Psalms.
You can pray with music.
You can pray with poetry.
There are prayers of thanksgiving.
There are prayers of intercession.
There are prayers of praise.
There are prayers of petition.
It is important to develop a life of prayer so that when adversity hits your path, you are ready, and in God’s presence, so that God can help you endure all things.
Paul prayed prayers of thanksgiving for the Colossians because of their faith in Jesus Christ and because of the love that they had for all the saints, because they had hope laid up for them in heaven.
There is hope for these new Christians because of God’s grace and because they have taken on the faith of Jesus as their Christ or savior.
What does this wonderful word hope mean to many people today?
Let’s try on some hopes and see how they fit.
I hope I get a raise this year.
I hope my new recipe turns out okay.
I hope I will win the lottery.
I hope my stocks go up this year.
I hope my plant doesn’t wilt.
I hope it rains.
I hope the sun comes out.
I hope it doesn’t snow.
I hope we win the basketball game or baseball game or football game or soccer game.
I hope I get a strike.
I hope I get a spare.
I hope I don’t get another gutter ball.
I hope my marriage works.
I hope I don’t have to send my mother or father to a nursing home.
I hope I live long enough to see my grandchildren graduate.
I hope I can get away with driving 70 mph in this 60 mph speed limit zone.
I hope this chocolate cake doesn’t add extra inches to my hips.
I hope our new baby grows up to be a success.
I hope our son does well in college.
I hope my surgery goes okay.
I hope I get rid of this soar throat soon.
I hope I don’t get the flu this year.
I hope I can watch Star Trek tonight.
I hope I can get this dog house trained real soon.
I hope our taxes don’t go up.
There are many hopes we have in life.
But how often do we think about our spiritual life?
Do we ever say to ourselves, I hope I’m going to heaven?
How do we know for sure what happens to us after we leave this earth?
Our faith tells us that belief in Jesus Christ gives us entrance into the kingdom of God, here on earth and in heaven.
When we have a personal relationship with Jesus Christ, we are in touch with the kingdom of God, right here on earth.
Many people go through life not knowing what’s going to happen to them.
Will they get into a car accident?
Will they get married?
Will they have children?
What am I here for?
What is my purpose?
When you have discussions with God, God reveals the spiritual answers to spiritual questions.
We know that heaven exists because of truth.
Jesus Christ gave us truth.
And Jesus Christ gave us a glimpse of the kingdom of God.
In our text this morning, Paul is praising the people of Colossia because of their faith in Jesus Christ.
Paul knows where they are going.
Paul knows their faith has released them from sin.
And because they are released from sin by the power of the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, Paul knows that they are in good hands.
They are in God’s hands.
It is the grace of God which has saved them from death and given them eternal life.
I am your pastor, but I cannot save you.
Only God can save you through belief in Jesus Christ and by asking for God’s forgiveness for your sins.
I can only share the good news with you.
I cannot make you hear or receive the good news.
That is your part.
We have a two way street here
When the words I share with you are received by you, something miraculous happens.
The Holy Spirit becomes a part of the giving and receiving and increases your faith.
I cannot increase your faith.
I can only share God’s message.
It is the Holy Spirit that will increase your faith because you are willing to be a recipient of God’s grace.
What exactly is God’s grace?
How do we define it?
If this was a Bible Study, I would get your feedback and ask your thoughts, but because this is a sermon, I will give you the answer freely.
Grace is that which God gives us unconditionally because God loves us.
There is nothing we can do to earn God’s grace.
God’s grace is a free gift.
God’s grace is available to everyone.
God’s grace is the ability to forgive us of our wrong doings and our wrong thoughts when we come before God and ask for forgiveness.
God doesn’t keep a tally and say, well, last year you did this, and last week you did that and now you have two strikes against you.
No.
God’s grace wipes the slate clean.
Absolutely, Crystal clear, clean.
Our job is to keep it clean, and that’s no easy matter.
Even just to think an evil thought begins to make us dirty inside again and separates us from the God we love because God is Holy.
The only way for us to come before God into God’s presence because of God’s sovereignty and holiness, is to confess our sins and ask for forgiveness.
That’s why we have a confession every Sunday.
But you don’t need me for a confession.
You can confess your sins to God every day.
This is not the Catholic Church.
God will forgive you without me.
I can declare your forgiveness, but I cannot forgive you unconditionally as God can.
Only God can do that.
When I declare your absolution, it is through your belief in Jesus Christ that makes your absolution valid.
Hold onto Jesus.
I am just Jesus’ messenger.
You have heard the good news.
Receive it and hold onto it.
Grow in the knowledge of God.
We can never reach our full potential when it comes to growing in the knowledge of God.
Keep growing in the Lord.
Keep asking questions.
Keep praying.
Keep worshipping.
God will see to it that God’s faithful people are taken care of.
It is God who enables us to share in the inheritance of the saints.
It is God who has rescued us from the power of darkness and transferred us into the kingdom of his beloved Son.
It is in Jesus Christ that we have redemption, we have hope, we have the forgiveness of sin.
It is our faith in Jesus Christ that will give us the power to keep on keeping on.
Do not let your hearts be troubled.
But in everything, lean on Jesus Christ our savior for comfort and peace, knowing that through God, all things are possible.
There is hope in Jesus Christ.
There is hope that is eternal.
There is hope that is of the Holy Spirit.
When the focus of our lives are transferred from the physical to the spiritual, hope takes on a very different meaning.
Hope doesn’t become a chance any more.
Hope doesn’t become dependant upon circumstances.
Hope becomes something we can hold onto.
For atheists, there is no hope.
For atheists, there is no joy in the resurrection.
For atheists, there is no hope in life eternal.
For Christians, hope becomes the greatest gift that Jesus Christ can give us.
Amen.
