INTRODUCTION
• SLIDE #1
• Today we are going to examine an important question. Is Jesus making a difference in your life?
• The answer to this question is important because the answer to this question will tell you where you are at with Jesus and just how important He really is to you.
• This message is not intended to beat anyone down; it is meant to challenge us to soar to greater heights with our great God.
• How many times have we seen a person in athletics not reach their potential, how many times have we seen students go through their schooling never reaching their potential? It is a sad sight to see isn’t it. People around them whisper about what a waste of talent and potential they see.
• I believe the church is at a crossroads, this church is at a crossroads. Individually, we must all decide how much we are going to let Jesus be our Lord, we all have to determine if we are going to totally give ourselves over to Him or are we just going to scratch the surface and be happy with that.
• Were we are at with Jesus is where the church will be at with Jesus. Are we going to be a church that is sold out Jesus or are we going to be a church that is happy with scratching the surface of what God can do?
• I hope that as we start to go through the book of Colossians we will learn some things that will help to challenge us to go deeper with Jesus.
• Paul is writing this letter to a church that is struggling with some false teachings that were prevalent at the time. This letter is written with three major purposes in mind; those purposes are still valid today.
o To encourage the readers not to go back to their former way of life
o To direct the people’s attention to Jesus and to get them to fully trust and worship Him and to fully recognize who He is.
o To emphasize the virtue of forgiveness and kindness.
• Today we are going to look at four indicators that will tell us if we are letting Jesus is make a difference in our lives.
• SLIDE #2 & #3
• Let us turn and read Colossians 1:3-8 together this morning.
• READ COLOSSIANS 1:3-8
SLIDE #4
SERMON
I. IS JESUS THE CENTER OF YOUR FAITH? (4)
• I love the way this letter starts out. It starts with Paul in verse 2 saying that he is writing to the FAITHFUL brethren at Colossae. Then he moves to telling the readers he is thankful for them and that he is praying for them always.
• Then he moves to what he is thankful for.
• He is thankful that he has heard of their faith in Jesus.
• When you think about it, this is an impressive statement. The faith of the Church at Colossae is so great that it is known all around.
• Notice too that their faith is in Jesus; it is centered and based on Him.
• Their faith in Jesus made such an impact on the lives of those in the church that they gained a reputation for their faith.
• I wonder what people would say about the church as they walked around Colossae?
• I wonder what people say about the Auburn Christian Church when the subject comes up? What are we known for?
• If Jesus is making a difference in our lives, we will be known for our faith in Jesus.
• The only way that Jesus will make a difference in our lives is if we have an undying faith in Him.
• I have seen too many people over the years play the church game. We can get so caught up in things to the point that Jesus is not really the center of our faith. For many the center of their faith is the status quo, it is their jobs, family or entertainment.
• Paul was not thankful for the church at Colossae because they had a nice building? He was not faithful because they sang a certain type of music or had a certain order of service, he was thankful for them in part because of their faith in Jesus!
• Faith means in part to trust. Who do you trust? Whose hands do you really put your salvation? Who do you turn to in times of trouble? Who do you give the glory to when things go well?
• If Jesus is the center of your faith, your life will be different. I hope that our church is known for our faith. That will not ever happen unless two things happen.
• First, our faith has to be evident in our lives and secondly we need to be involved in the lives of other people so they can see our faith in action.
• SLIDE #5
II. IS YOUR LOVE FOR THE BRETHREN EVIDENT? (4)
• The second thing Paul is thankful for is the love the church had for the brethren and for all the Saints (Christians)!
• Is Jesus making a difference in your life? If He is, He will be the center of your faith. The fact will manifest itself in how much love you have for your brothers and sisters in Christ.
• We have talked a lot about love in the past and we will continue to do it in the future. This is an important issue. IF you cannot love the most unlovely of us, then Jesus in not making a difference in your life.
• Jesus loved Judas? He had plenty of reasons not to, but He did? What is your excuse?
• We cannot ask lost people to come in and love those we will not love. If Jesus is making a difference in your life, it will show by how you are able to love the brethren!
• SLIDE #6
• 1 John 2:9 - 11 (NASB) 9The one who says he is in the Light and yet hates his brother is in the darkness until now. 10The one who loves his brother abides in the Light and there is no cause for stumbling in him. 11But the one who hates his brother is in the darkness and walks in the darkness, and does not know where he is going because the darkness has blinded his eyes.
• We can say how much we love Jesus all we want, we can tell Him how sold out we are to Him all we want, but if we do not love one another, they are just empty statements.
• If Jesus is making a difference on our life, we will love the brethren!
• SLIDE #7
III. DOES YOUR FAITH REST IN YOUR HOPE IN HEAVEN? (5)
• In verse 5 we find out why and how the Christians at Colossae had such a great faith.
• Their hope was focused on what was laid out for them in heaven.
• If Jesus is making a difference in your life, you will be able to realize there is a big picture. You will not want to get even or take vengeance on every injustice done to you.
• Paul is thankful for their hope; faith and hope are always tied together. Faith is based in hope.
• There has to be a pot of gold if you will at the end of the rainbow.
• SLIDE #81
• 1 Peter 1:4 (GWT) 4We have been born into a new life which has an inheritance that can’t be destroyed or corrupted and can’t fade away. That inheritance is kept in heaven for you,
• If we have no hope of heaven, then we will not be able to persevere when we need to. The things of the world will look too attractive to pass up if our faith does not rest in hope.
• One of the blessings of hope is it allows us to sacrifice the present on the altar of the future (John MacArthur Jr.)
• That runs contrary to human nature. Young children, for example, have a difficult time waiting for something they want. The world wants it and wants it now.
• The Christian has a different perspective. He is willing to forsake the present glory, comfort, and satisfaction of this present world for the future glory that is his in Christ. In contrast to the “buy now—pay later” attitude prevalent in the world, the Christian is willing to pay now and receive it later. What makes Christians willing to make such sacrifices? Hope, based on faith that the future holds something far better than the present.
• SLIDE #9
• Romans 8:18 (GWT) 18I consider our present sufferings insignificant compared to the glory that will soon be revealed to us.
• If Jesus is making a difference in your life, your hope in the future will allow you to sacrifice some of the present things for the future gain of heaven!
• SLIDE #10
IV. IS GOD’S WORD PENETRATING YOUR LIFE? (5-7)
• Where did they get this hope, faith, and love? Look at verse 5, they heard the word of truth, the gospel.
• They did not get their faith, hope, and love from a cereal box; they believed it because they heard the word of God!
• SLIDE #11
• Romans 10:17 (NASB) 17So faith comes from hearing, and hearing by the word of Christ.
• CONSTANTLY BEARING FRUIT
• Where ever the gospel seed is sown, fruit grows. If the gospel has penetrated your life, your life will be fruitful for God. The fruit production will never stop.
• Robyn’s father loves strawberries, my mother-in-law used to plant the strawberry plants and Robyn said they would get so many strawberries off them throughout the season she would get sick of them.
• With the strawberry plant, there would come a season when it would quit producing fruit.
• For the one who has had the gospel penetrate their life, they will produce fruit in every season of life!
• Paul says for those at Colossae, that the word has been bearing fruit from the day they heard and understood the word!
• Maybe some are not producing fruit because they are do not understand the word. The more you read it, the more understandable it becomes! LIFE EXAMPLE. KJV
• CONSTANTLY INCREASING
• Not only will our lives produce fruit, but it will be in the increase all the time! As you grow and mature, you WILL produce more and more fruit for God!
• The spiritual growth of individuals will lead to new converts being won to Christ. That was the pattern of the early church.
• SLIDE #12
• Acts 9:31 (NASB) 31So the church throughout all Judea and Galilee and Samaria enjoyed peace, being built up; and going on in the fear of the Lord and in the comfort of the Holy Spirit, it continued to increase.
• You do not need some fancy program in order to grow; you need Jesus to make a difference in the lives of each one of us in the church!
• Part of the reason a church stops’ growing is because individuals within that church stop growing!
• If Jesus is making a difference in your life, the word of God will be penetrating your life and you will produce fruit for Him.
• Are you withering in the vine or are you feeding yourself with the Word daily?
• SLIDE #13
V. ARE YOU AN EPAPHRAS?
• We do not know a lot about Epaphras except for the couple of times Paul mentions him in the letter and once in Philemon.
• He is called a fellow-bondservant who is a faithful bondservant. He was most likely an evangelist.
• Notice in verse 7 we are told they learned the gospel from Epaphras! He was producing fruit. He was not going to leave it to someone else to teach people.
• You cannot teach what you do not know and you cannot know what you do not study!
• We are told in Colossians 4:12 that he was one who labored hard for Jesus.
• If you were mentioned in the Bible, what would Paul say about you?
• I hope we could all strive to be like Epaphras.
• He was most likely nothing special; he was just willing to let God use Him!
• If Jesus is making a difference in your life, you will be a changed person!
CONCLUSION
SLIDE #14
• As we explore the book of Colossians together, I hope that we will all examine our hearts to see where we are with Jesus.
• Isn’t it about time for some of us to go out into the deeper water?
• Is Jesus making a difference in your life?
• If He is not, I challenge you to start letting Him do His work in you and through you!
