Sermon 13: Christian Life And Ministry Are A Team Effort Series

Introduction:

A. The America’s Cup is a sailing competition and is the oldest international competition still operating in any sport and has the oldest trophy dating back to 1851.

1. Dennis Conner is one of America’s most successful yachtsman and has won in many different kinds of sailing competitions, including the large sailing vessels used in the America’s Cup.

2. In the most recent years, each yacht has had 7 sailors working together with the skipper to keep the boat on course.

3. Interestingly enough, one of the most important crew members never sees what takes place on the ship’s deck.

4. This crew member works down in what is called the “sewer of the boat” and is continually drenched by the ocean water as it comes onto the deck and down through the hatch onto him.

5. According to Dennis Conner, the skipper who gets all the accolades, the job that that crew member does down in the sewer of the boat is what makes the race possible for the boat and victory wouldn’t be possible without his contribution.

6. How’s that for teamwork!!

B. Charles Swindoll wrote and interesting piece about team work:

How important are you? More than you think.

A rooster minus a hen equals no baby chicks.

Kellogg minus a farmer equals no corn flakes.

If the nail factory closes, what good is the hammer factory?

Paderewski’s genius wouldn’t have amounted to much if the piano turner hadn’t shown up.

A cracker maker will do better if there’s a cheesemaker.

The most skillful surgeon needs the ambulance driver who delivers the patient.

Just as Rogers needed Hammerstein you need someone and someone needs you.

C. As we close out Paul’s letter to the Colossians and examine the final verses, what we will notice about Paul is that he was a man who knew how dependent he was on other people.

1. What we will notice is that Paul wasn’t reluctantly or resentfully dependent, but was gladly and thankfully dependent.

2. Paul was glad to be in fellowship with brothers and sisters in Christ, knowing full well that his co-laborers in the Gospel were indispensable, both to his own life, but also to the advance of the Gospel.

3. Eleven people are mentioned by name in the last 12 verses of Colossians.

4. No matter how good and effective we might be on our own, we are so much better when we partner with others.

D. Before we explore Paul’s relationship with these people and their contributions, let’s do a quick review of what we have learned during our study of Colossians.

1. Paul wrote this letter of Colossians to a church that he’d never visited before, a church he did not plant, but a church he was greatly concerned about.

2. Colossae was a city in Asia Minor, currently Turkey, with nearby Laodicea and Hierapolis which were part of a triad of cities in the Lycus Valley, about 100 miles east of Ephesus.

3. The population of Colossae was predominantly Gentile, but there was a sizeable Jewish population there as well.

4. Therefore, the church at Colossae had to face challenges from both ends, both from the pagan culture from which many of them had come and also from the Jewish culture that had not, for the most part, accepted Christ or the Gospel at that point.

5. The church at Colossae was planted by Epaphras.

6. By the time of Paul’s letter, the church was already in a battle for its theological soul.

a. The heresy facing the Colossians was a deceptive combination of many things; including: Jewish legalism, pagan astrology, mysticism, and asceticism.

b. The heresy was a mixture of things that had something for everyone – like a cafeteria line you could pick and choose your combo plate.

c. And in the middle of these other things was Christianity.

d. The false teachers claimed that they weren’t denying the Christian faith, but were just lifting it to a better and higher level.

e. We face similar challenges today because people what to add things to Christianity that don’t belong and aren’t biblical.

7. Paul addressed these heresies in the letter by communicating many important truths.

a. He pointed to the supremacy of Christ and the mystery of the Gospel of Christ.

b. He contrasted the fullness we have in Christ with the inadequacy of man-made religion.

c. Paul encouraged them to set their minds on things above, to put off the attitudes and practices of their old life, and be clothed with the characteristics of Christ.

d. Paul encouraged them to allow the peace of Christ to rule in their heart and to allow the word of Christ to dwell in them.

e. Then, Paul gave them relational instructions for the home and workplace.