Head in the Clouds
Colossians 3:1-11
INTRODUCTION... Where’d that phrase come from? (www.idiomsite.com)
1) Back to square one: Meaning back to the beginning this idiom was first heard on football radio commentaries during games. Football isn’t easy to commentate on the radio so they had the idea of splitting up the field into notional numbered squares so that listeners could be told where the ball was. Whenever the game restarted after a break it was ’back to square one’.
2) Sleep Tight : Sleep tight which means ’sleep well’ is a term which comes from how beds were made. Beds used to be made of ropes and would often slack and become loose which made sleeping very uncomfortable. So, in order to sleep well you had to make the ropes as tight as possible before falling asleep.
3) Don’t look a gift horse in the mouth: When given something don’t be ungrateful. By counting the teeth you can tell the age of a horse. Checking whether a present of a horse was old would be considered impolite.
What about these two phrases, “Mind in the Gutter” and “Head in the clouds.” We of course know that the phrase ’mind in the gutter’ means that the person is thinking about bad things and a person with their ’head in the clouds’ means they are daydreaming . I want to give you a new way to think of ’your head in the clouds’ this morning. It comes from Colossians 3:1-11.
READ COLOSSIANS 3:1-11
I. OUR IDENTITY
The Apostle Paul makes it quite clear in verse one that the people he is speaking to are different. What is different about them? What experience have they had that has set them apart? Paul tells the Colossians and he tells us as well that we have been ’raised with Christ.’ What does that mean? Does it mean that what follows applies to people who grew up in Jesus’ hometown? Does it mean that what follows applies to people who grew up in the church and have been raised in a Christian home? What does it mean to be ’raised with Christ?’
Romans 6:3-5 tells us exactly what Paul means, “Or don’t you know that all of us who were baptized into
Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? We were therefore buried with him through baptism into death in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life. If we have been united with him like this in his death, we will certainly also be united with him in his resurrection.” Those who have been raised with Christ are those that have been baptized. Those who have been raised with Christ are those that have made a lifetime commitment to Jesus. The Colossians knew what he meant as well. They may not have read the Roman letter, but in Colossians 2:12, Paul had already said, “[you have] been buried with him in baptism and raised with Him through your faith in the power of God, who raised Him from the dead.” Paul is speaking to those Colossians that had made a commitment of faith to God.
You, as a Christian, are set apart as God’s children and you are different from the world and the people in the world... or we should be. That is actually what Paul is talking about in the rest of the passage. Verse 1 points out to them and to us that we are different and are set apart by God as HIs children through our faith in Jesus Christ. This means we are to be different in some very important ways.
ILLUSTRATION... Quote from Jerry Vines, http://elbourne.org/sermons/index.mv?illustration+2567
“Our churches are in serious trouble today. There is virtually no difference between the average church member and the person who is not a Christian. God meant for the Christian to be different, to live a different kind of life, and to be on a different moral level from those who are not Christians. And yet, there is practically no difference in lifestyle.”
The Apostle Paul discusses two subjects in the rest of the passage. He describes a person with their ’mind in the gutter’ and the person with their ’head in the clouds.’
II. MIND IN THE GUTTER
The umbrella statement for those things that qualify to be in the ’gutter’ are “earthly things” in verse 2 and “the earthly nature” in verse 5. What are they? What are the earthly things that can infiltrate our thoughts and minds and draw us away from God?
1) Sexual immorality, impurity, and lust = The mind of a person can be caught up in with sex in such a way that it makes sex a sin. One of the greatest tragedies in our world is the exploitation of sex in our culture and the demonizing of sex in the church. Sex is not a sin, but the way in which our culture views sex and uses it most of the time is a sin. Even for a Christian, the world’s view of sex and use of it can become common in life and in our minds. In what ways does our world promote an unhealthy view of sex?
* TV programs show couples engaging in sex and not being married
* The proliferation of sexual sites on the Internet
* Movies promote lifestyles that revolve around the misuse of sex
* Music assumes that sex is a commonplace thing to be used and abused
* Tons of other ways
2) Evil desires, greed, and idolatry - The mind of a person can get caught up in placing many things as The priority in life. For the gambler, no game is too small and no amount of money is too great as long as they feel the rush of the win or loss. They place themselves ahead of everyone and everything. That is what idolatry is: the placing of something in the place of God. We know that God desires to be first in our lives and states it unequivocally in the Ten Commandments. God says, ’I want to be first!” The mind often says, “I want to be first!” The world says that you should put yourself, your desires, and your needs above anything and everything else. In what ways does our world promote idolatry?
* Sports teams practice and play on Sundays making sports more important than Church
* Advertisers cater to it by selling ’Have it Your Way”, “It’s all about you”, “You Deserve More.”
* Jobs, money, and success are seen as marks of a life with priorities straight
ILLUSTRATION... The Lamb & the Bear(sermonillustrator.org/illustrator/sermon2b/lamb_and_the_bear.htm)
The story is told of a Russian named Ivanovich who visited the Moscow zoo for the first time. To his amazement, he found a little lamb sharing the cage with a big fierce bear. Ivanovich expressed surprise to his guide. The guide smiled and said, "That is peaceful coexistence." When Ivanovich shook his head in a doubtful way, the guide explained, "Of course, we have to put in a fresh lamb every morning." As much as we should strive for peace, there are some things which simply cannot coexist peacefully -- truth and error, righteousness and ungodliness, morality and immorality. If we try to combine two such things in our lives, they will only coexist "peacefully" only if one gobbles up the other. That’s why James was so forceful in his warning: "You adulterous people, don’t you know that friendship with the world is hatred toward God? Anyone who chooses to be a friend of the world becomes an enemy of God." (James 4:4)
3) Anger, rage, malice = The Apostle Paul also talks about emotions being out of control. He focuses on these three negative emotions because when not dealt with, can lead to health troubles, broken relationships, and a broken faith. Many times, when these out-of-control emotions are present, they take control and destroy the person’s life.
4) Slander, filthy language, lying = The Apostle Paul then speaks about something that is more of an issue than we would realize. Paul talks about our speech.
ARTICLE... http://www.truthfactor.com/morality/morality0001.html
“There are many deeds that are listed as sins within the Bible. A person may not steal, they may not engage in sexual sins, and they may not lie. However, when it comes to their speech, they find themselves fighting the battle of the tongue. There are times when the use of foul language falls through the proverbial cracks of all that is considered sinful. For years, the television censors have limited what words could and could not be used on television. Theater movies are rated according to their language content. While the television and movie censors have softened their standards through the years, it still does not change the fact that there are certain words within our culture which are not fit for use. Paul wrote in Colossians 3:8-9... recognizing that there are times when Christians will face temptations. Paul reminds Christians that there are certain attitudes and behaviors which do not belong within their lives. One such behavior is filthy language. Paul told the Christians in Colosse that they were to stop using filthy language... “foul speaking, low and obscene speech" (Enhanced Strong’s Lexicon). What does the word foul mean? The word foul basically means to make something impure, to be offensive to accepted standards of decency, heavily soiled, etc. Christians must work to make certain that the speech they use is not offensive and impure.
1) Using curse words will hurt a Christians influence. Christians are to let their light shine before men. How does a Christian let his or her light shine? A Christian lets his light shine by living righteously or by obeying the commands of the word of God. In other words, a Christian lets his light shine by living a Christ-like life. If Christians are going to live a Christ-like life, then it is crucial that they put out of their lives the use of filthy language. Christians must exercise control over what they say.
2) Using curse words sets a bad example for those who hear the words. Our young people learn curse words from other people. Unless you take your child to an island, take away their television and radio, and take away most reading material, then you might be able to avoid your child hearing curse words. (This assumes that you have enough control not to use the words around your children.) It is unrealistic to think that a parent can completely shelter his children from ever hearing curse words. However, parents can properly teach and equip their children to prepare them for the day when they will hear those curse words.”
III. HEAD IN THE CLOUDS
Where should we be then? Paul describes for us all of the places our minds can be of they are in the ’gutter.’ Thankfully Paul does not stop there, but instructs us on the way we should be. Normally if I told you that someone had their “head in the clouds,” you might think they were a day dreamer or a lazy person. I want to use that phrase today to describe someone thinking about heavenly things.
The first step in the process of getting your “head in the clouds” is to put to death all those things that are of an earthly nature (verse 5). I want you to notice the tone of verse 5. Is it advice? Is it a suggestion? What is it? It is a command. The Apostle Paul commands that we put to death those things in our lives that are earthly... put them to rest. In verse 8 he says the same thing in different words, “rid yourselves of all such things.” The first step is a decision to move towards God and away from the world. The first step is to decide that sex will be honored in your life. The first step is to decide that God will be the priority in your life. The first step is to decide that emotions will not rule your life. The first step is to decide to honor God with your mouth. You must deny yourself and those sinful desires and desire what God wants for you.
The second step is to rely on the Savior. Verse 1 and verse 11 put all of this in perspective. Verse 1 began by talking about identity, did it not? Verse 11 says the same thing. Paul lists eight different types of people that were very different from one another. Someone might think that a Jew can do all this, but a Greek sure cannot. Someone might think that there is no way they can measure up to what Paul has just laid out. What are they forgetting? I suppose the question is better put, Who are they forgetting? They forget that they already have Jesus Christ in their lives and the power of the Holy Spirit dwells within them.
Christ is all... Is all what? Christ is all you need.
Christ is in all... In all what? In all of us.
ILLUSTRATION... Looking Down... Our Daily Bread, June 6
An article in a San Francisco newspaper reported that a young man who once found a $5 bill on the street resolved that from that time on he would never lift his eyes while walking. The paper went on to say that over the years he accumulated, among other things, 29,516 buttons, 54,172 pins, 12 cents a bent back, and a miserly disposition. But he also lost something—the glory of sunlight, the radiance of the stars, the smiles of friends, and the freshness of blue skies.
I’m afraid that some Christians are like that man. While they may not walk around staring at the sidewalk, they are so engrossed with the things of this life that they give little attention to spiritual and eternal values. Perhaps they’ve gotten a taste of some fleeting pleasure offered by the world and they’ve been spending all their time pursuing it. But that is dangerous. When God’s children, who are “seated with Christ in the heavenlies,” give their affection and attention to a world that is passing away, they lose the upward look. Their perspective becomes distorted, and they fail to bask in heaven’s sunlight. Taken up with the baubles of this world, they become defeated, delinquent Christians. Buttons, pins, and pennies, but no treasures laid up in heaven.
Christ is in all of us and He is all you need. It does not matter what you are struggling with or what sins you are tempted by. You are called as a Christian to live with your “head in the clouds” and not to have your “mind in the gutter.”
CONCLUSION
