JESUS CHRIST IS LORD: SERIOUSLY!
Living a God-Pleasing Life
Colossians 1:9-14
(Some of the information in this sermon was gleaned from other sermons found on Sermoncentral.)
INTRODUCTION:
It’s good have to have Jerry and Debra Snavely and their family with us today, as well as a group from the Eastpointe Christian Church
For those of you that may not know, Jerry is the son of Lyle and Donna Snavely. He ministered here about 5 or 6 years with our youth
ILL> I was reminiscing this week about some of the opportunities that Jerry and I were able to go golfing together. Now, most golfers have kind of a favorite club in their bag. Some really feel comfortable with their driver. Others with their putter. For me, it’s my 5 wood. I don’t know why, but I generally hit a pretty decent shot with that club.
Now Jerry’s favorite club is what is commonly known as the “foot wedge.” Whenever he gets behind a tree, the foot wedge is his choice of club. When he gets under some low branches or his ball rolls over into a bit of high grass–the foot wedge is there for the rescue.
ILL> One of golf’s immortal moments came in the 1870’s when a Scotsman demonstrated the new game to U.S. President Ulysses S. Grant. Carefully placing the ball on the tee, he took a mighty swing. The club hit the turf and scattered dirt all over the President’s beard and the surrounding vicinity, while the ball waited placidly on the tee. Again the Scotsman swung and again he missed. Our president waited patiently through six tries and then quietly stated, “There seems to be a fair amount of exercise in the game, but I fail to see the purpose of the ball.”
Do you ever feel like your life is like that ball–stuck on the tee, waiting for something to happen?
At times you may feel like that in your walk with God where you’re kind of walking around without any real purpose
ILL> Maybe you feel like the young man that Rick Warren wrote about–a man in his twenties who said, "I feel like a failure because I am struggling to become something, and I don’t even know what it is. All I know to do is get by. Someday, if I discover my purpose, I’ll feel I’m beginning to live."
God doesn’t expect us to run around all our lives without direction or purpose
God wants you to surrender to Him and to His Son Jesus Christ
To truly allow Jesus Christ to be the Lord of your life
And to take your faith seriously–to quit playing the church game and allow Him to make an impact in your life.
This church will never be what it ought to be until we, as members of Christ’s body, become what we should be.
Last week I began a new series of messages from the book of Colossians–Paul’s letter to the Christians in the city of Colosse
I invite you to turn with me to that book–Colossians 1
Over the next 6-8 weeks I want to challenge you to put Jesus Christ first in your life
To humble yourself before God and to allow Jesus Christ to be the Lord of your life–Seriously!
This morning I want to concentrate on the question, “How Can I Live a God-Pleasing Life?”
READ: Colossians 1:9-14
I have to admit that this is a hard passage to grasp the first time you read it through
One of the reasons it’s so hard to understand is because verses 10-12 are one long sentence–a total 78 words
Now if you were to write a paper in school with a sentence that long you probably wouldn’t score very high
Secondly, there are no less than 14 different ideas expressed in these 6 verses
A preacher could spend several weeks teaching on this short passage
I really believe that Paul was so excited–that he had so much that he wanted to say that he just kept going and going and going
Wouldn’t it be great if everybody was that excited about their relationship with God that they just couldn’t shut up?
SERIOUS PRAYER
The first thing that we notice in the passage we read this morning is that Paul took his prayer life seriously
VS 3 & 9
I would like to ask that you pray seriously
I know that we have a lot of prayer warriors
Here are some specific things I would like to ask you to pray for
Pray for Jon and I that God would guide
Pray for all leaders: ministers, elders, deacons, that God would let us see and clear vision for His Church here in Mt. Gilead
Pray for the ministry of MGCC that we would be a shining light in this community
Pray for hearts to be changed, that people would come into a saved relationship with Jesus Christ
I could spend an entire sermon on talking about the importance of prayer, but I want to take a look at the substance of Paul’s prayer this morning
SERIOUS LIVING
If Jesus Christ is really the Lord of our lives then He is going to have an impact on how we live day to day
Bearing Fruit
ILL> I think we have a pretty good understanding of what Paul is talking about when he says that we need to bear fruit. If we bought a fruit tree, planted it, and took care of it we would expect to be getting fruit from it in a few years. However, if in a few years the tree was not yielding fruit, we would feel that the tree was defective or that it really was not a fruit tree at all. We might take it back to the nursery where we bought it and complain because it isn’t living up to what it is supposed to be.
As Christians we are to bear fruit
One of the first things that comes to mind when we think about bearing fruit is leading to people to Christ
That is part of it, but it is much more than that
Bearing fruit has to do with living for Christ in such a way that it has a positive impact on the lives of those around us
When we play at our Christianity we blend in with the non-Christian world
But when we are Spirit filled and Spirit led, their will be a noticeable difference
2 Corinthians 1:22 (NIV)
God “put his Spirit in our hearts as a deposit, guaranteeing what is to come.”
Galatians 5:16-17 (NIV)
16 So I say, live by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the sinful nature. 17 For the sinful nature desires what is contrary to the Spirit, and the Spirit what is contrary to the sinful nature. They are in conflict with each other, so that you do not do what you want.
The person who is living a God-pleasing life will begin to see a change in their values and in their behavior–
--in their wants and their desires
Those who have been cheating others will begin dealing honestly
Those living together outside of the marriage covenant will get married
Those who have been abusive in their speech will begin to move to kindness
Those who craved gossip and tearing others down will now seek to encourage and build people up
Those who once hoarded their financial resources will begin investing their resources in the work of the Lord
John 15:4 (NIV)
4 Remain in me, and I will remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me.
God is telling us that the key to bearing fruit is draw closer to Him and fruit bearing will come naturally
It’s not a matter of trying harder, but of drawing closer
Growing in Knowledge
Growing in the knowledge of God is not the same as seeking to learn how to get more from God
Some Christians are mainly concerned about how they can tap into God’s resources–how they can get God to do what they want, or to manipulate God
ILL> How would you feel if the only time your child called was to ask for money? Would you feel loved or wanted? You would probably feel used.
If our main concern in knowing God better is how we can get more of His blessings, then we are using Him–or at least we are trying.
Growing in the knowledge of God is not the same as growing in knowledge ABOUT God
We can spend our entire lives learning about God and never really knowing Him
QUOTE> Warren Wiersbe
“In my pastoral ministry, I have met people who have become intoxicated with “studying the deeper truths of the Bible.” Usually they have been given a book or introduced to some teacher’s tapes. Before long they get so smart they become dumb! The “deeper truths” they discover only detour them from practical Christian living. Instead of getting burning hearts of devotion to Christ they get big heads and start creating problems in their homes and churches.”
It’s not enough to learn facts about God–God desires and demands a relationship
When a person truly years for a relationship with God they...
read the Bible not for just information, but to discover the heart of God. I believe some Christians read the Bible simply because they feel like they are paying their spiritual dues.
pray for more than just requesting things from God. We should present our requests to Him, but we must also listen to God through prayer and develop a closeness that can only come by drawing near to Him
Are eager to learn about God so they will know Him better
Are careful to make sure they are seeking truth and not just seeking ammunition to defend their own ideas or beliefs
Endures Troubled Times and is Patient
ILL> Have you ever had one of those weeks where every day seems like a Monday? That describes this past week for me.
My office chair has been getting worse and worse, but this week it went. As I was trying to get out of it it lunged forward and I hit the desk nearly breaking my hand trying to get my balance. I went to Krogers in Marion who sells just about anything these days including office furniture. I got the chair that I wanted and waiting in line 20 minutes. When I got to the cash register the clerk says, “You have to buy $10 worth of groceries to get that price.” I couldn’t believe it.
I went out to the van and thought, “I didn’t see any sign that said I had to buy other stuff.” So, I went back in and found the ad and sure enough I was right. So I bought the chair and came back to the office.
It was really hot Monday and by the time I got the chair together I was soaking wet. I sat down in the chair and I felt like I was getting ready to launch into outer space. The back was so flimsy that you couldn’t lean against. So, I took it back.
Friday I took Kay’s telephone to get fixed. While I was waiting I went to Staples to look at office chairs again. When I sat down in one I heard something, but didn’t think anything of it. When I got up I noticed that my pocket had caught on the edge of the chair and had ripped the whole side out of them. So, I had to figure out how to get out of the store without giving everybody a show they didn’t really want to see.
And that is just the tip of the iceberg. But, those are just little things and have to be put into perspective
QUOTE> Sometimes I get the feeling the whole world is against me, but deep down I know that’s not true. Some of the smaller countries are neutral.
—Robert Orben
Paul says that a God-pleasing life is one that is constantly being strengthened
When we are strengthened by God then we have greater endurance and greater patience when we face real difficulties in life.
It helps up to hang in there when we don’t have all the answers
Giving Thanks
Your life will be one of gratitude
Have you ever noticed how much many of us complain?
We complain about the weather (too hot, too cold, rainy, or dry)–when we should be grateful for life
We complain about our income (or the taxes we pay)–when we should be grateful that we can work and have an income
We complain about the government–though we should be glad that we don’t live in anarchy
We complain about our church family (some aren’t as spiritual as we are, you know)–when we should be thankful that God has given us many people with a variety of gifts to help build His Church
I think you get the idea
There are many Christians, and you may be one of them, that thank God for what He has given, but in reality they feel that God should have given more
We feel like if God really loved us that we would have...
Less problems
More money
more stuff
more influence
less illness
more good times
less difficult times
But we tell God we’re thankful anyway
If you were God, would you believe us?
Gratitude begins when we realize that we do not even begin to deserve all that He has given us and the inheritance that He has reserved with our name on it.
CONCLUSION:
ILL> Rescued - 7 men have been trapped in a mini-sub 625 under the water. Desperately looking for someone to rescue them. Five years ago 118 men died in another sub because the Russian government refused to ask for help.
You, too, will likewise perish unless you humble yourself before God. You cannot save yourself. Only God can do that.
Motivation
He has qualified you
He has rescued us
Brought us into the Kingdom
As you have listened to this message this morning you may have realized that you don’t have the kind of relationship with God and with His Son Jesus Christ that He really desires
It’s possible that you’ve just been “playing church,” doing a lot of the right things, but not really feeling it in your heart
You were going through the motions, but not really trying to draw close to Him
Before you can live a God pleasing life you need to accept the salvation that He offers through His Son Jesus Christ
Jesus Christ cannot be Lord unless you invite Him to come into your life–to be in charge
Unless you take Him serious
