Colossians 2023

Well, if you'd like to, either cast your eyes up to the screen, We're going to read colossians 3, so you can, read in your bible if you've bought 1 along, or you can follow on the screen, colossians 3, 1 to 17. And we're gonna spend our time really focusing on verses 12 to 15, this morning. But we'll read this, this half of the chapter together. Since then, you have been raised with Christ.

Set your hearts on things above where Christ is seated at the right hand of god. Set your minds on things above and not on earthly things. For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God. When Christ, who is your life appears, then you also will appear with him in glory. Put to death therefore.

Whatever belongs to your earthly nature sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desires, and greed which is idolatry because of these, the wrath of god is coming. You used to walk in these ways. In the life that you once lived. But now you must also rid yourselves of all things as these. Anger, rage, malice, slander, and filthy language from your lips.

Do not lie to each other. Since you have taken off your old self with its practices and have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge in the image of its creator. Here, there is no gentile or due circumcised or uncircumcised barbarian, scythian, slave, or free, but Christ is all. And is in all. Therefore, as god's chosen people, holy and dearly loved.

Clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. Bear with each other and forgive 1 another If any of you has a grievance against someone, forgive as the lord forgave you And over all of these virtues, put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts. Since as members of 1 body, you were called to peace and be thankful. Let the message of Christ dwell among you richly as you teach and admonish 1 another with all wisdom through Psalms, hymns, and songs from the spirit singing to god with gratitude in your hearts, and whatever you do, whether in word or do it all in the name of the lord Jesus, giving thanks to god the father through him. This is god's word to us this morning Last time we were together looking at, this chapter in colossians.

We were focusing mainly on verses 5 to 11. And in verse 5, Paul says, we've just read it, put to death, therefore, whatever belongs to your earthly nature. Now, 1 old Christian word for that is mortification. You may not have ever heard that word before. It may not be a word that you use regularly, but mortification.

It is that act of crucifying and killing and putting to death. Whatever is not consistent with our new nature, mortifying, putting to death whatever belongs to the old self, mortification. So it's very different from modification. Mortification and modification are worlds apart. They're very different ideas.

Modification is when you take something that is basically already quite good, and you upgrade it a bit. So if you've got loads of spare money kicking around, you might decide to modify your car. You could take it to the garage. You could have it spray painted a different color. You can have a body kit put on it in order to lower the chassis a bit.

You could have a spoiler put in. If you wanted a subwoofer, you could spend some money on that. You could get some of those spinning alloy hub caps that sit inside the wheels. There are all these very expensive, applications that you could make to make something already good better. Mortification is about crucifying something very bad.

There's nothing good about it. It needs to not just be updated. It needs to be put to death. That's the idea. Modification does have some value in this life when it comes to us.

So a little modification for the new year might be I'm going to try to install an app on my phone, which will make me less distractible, which will mean I procrastinate less and I do better with my time, or I'm going to eat differently, or I'm going to exercise different or I'm going to approach work in a slightly different way. We make all these different modifications, which do have some value in this life. Mortification on the other hand holds value both in this life and for the life to come. Because we are putting to death, throwing off, laying aside, casting behind us, Those things which rob us of joy and vitality in this life. We're getting rid of sin.

We're putting it to death and that will hold value in this life and it's what eternity is gonna be all about. Me, free from sin, praising god forever. It holds value both in this life and the life to come. Modification is a multi million pound industry, particularly at this time of year. So if you go on to YouTube or whatever your favorite online channel is, the algorithms at this time of year are working overtime to suggest little modifications, for you.

People spend millions and millions of pounds trying to promote and advertise lifestyle changes that you can pay for and be a part of. It's a huge industry because it's tapping into something we all want to to be the best version of ourselves. And if I can just follow these 8 steps or buy these 3 products or do this, then I might be able to be the best version of myself. We spent hours consuming that sort of content and funding those who make it. Mortification, on the other hand, is not a multi-million pound industry.

In fact, there's very few people paying money to make you do it, but it is a year apostolic priority. Verse 5, put to death, he says. This is the priority of the apostle, put to debt, mortify whatever belongs to your old nature. That's what we were thinking about in our last session together in colossians 3, but as we come now to verse 12, we've got a that as well as being things to put off, there are brand new things to put on. There is something to get rid of and to kill, and there is something to bring into our lives and to and to wear.

That's how the passage breaks up. And you can see verse 12. Therefore, as god's chosen people, holy and dearly loved clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience. 1 Christian writer called, sinclair Ferguson puts it this way. He says no 1 has ever made progress in the mortification of sin That's the killing side who hasn't simultaneously made progress in putting on the graces of the lord Jesus Christ.

In other words, to make progress in the Christian life, real progress is not just to put off the bad things but to put on the good things, to clothe ourselves in the character of the lord Jesus That's what he's saying in this chapter. Now that you are a new creation, there is a new wardrobe that you need to get into and start wearing. Now that you're a new creation, there is a new wardrobe for you to wear. Verse 12, therefore, as god's chosen people, holy and dearly love, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience. These, he says, are the sparkling new clothes.

Which must replace those tired old rags. And this morning, we're going to work our way through this new wardrobe. So you might imagine it like you've got your, your gift card. Maybe it's a neck gift card or an H and M gift card, and we're going shopping this morning. We're going into town, and we're going shopping for the new that we ought to be wearing as the lord's people.

And we're not gonna have any sort of real formal headings this morning. We're just gonna work our way through the verses and the items clothing. So like you might do when you're going clothes shopping, you know, if you're in TK Max or whatever, you you pull you pull the hangers along the along the pole just to see if there's anything you might like. That's what we're going to do. We're going to move through the items of clothing as if they were closed on on a rail and just bask in this new wardrobe that we are called to put on.

And you can see, verse 12, before we even get there, there's something really important to see. Therefore, as god's chosen people, holy and dearly loved clothe yourselves, And just to pause there, do do you notice again that before Paul gives a new command he gives that old gospel motivation. Halfway through verse 12, he says clothe yourselves, but first comes the reminder brothers and sisters before you start trying these clothes on, remember who God has made you to be. Verse 12, you are chosen he says. You have been elected of God.

You are part of the chosen love people. He has chosen to set his affection on you, church of Christ. You are his chosen people. You are holy that word which means set apart. This is who you are, church.

You are chosen. And in Christ, you have set apart, you have been washed clean. Your sins have been paid for. A righteousness of heaven has been given to you. You are holy.

You're a holy person, chosen holy, and you are dearly loved. I wonder if there's anyone who needs to particularly hear that this morning. That as a Christian, you are dearly loved. You're dearly loved. You see the order of these words is so critical, isn't it?

It's very hard for us to get, but notice what he doesn't say. Clothe yourselves with compassion, patience, and kindness, and then you will become a chosen, holy loved person. Doesn't phrase it that way, does he? It's the opposite way. Therefore, as god's chosen people, this is who you are, holy and dearly loved.

Come on. My new creations, isn't it time to clothe yourselves with compassion. With compassion. It's the first item on the rail. I'm sure you've heard the phrase You're only as happy as your unhappiest child.

You're only as happy as your unhappiest child, and I guess it could apply to other family members, of course, or others dear to you. You're only as as happy as your unhappiest child. I mean, it is very, very true. You know, if you go to the seaside for a for a day as a family, you could have, the majority of the family, loving it, having a great time. They're tiptoeing in the shallows, and they're enjoying the sand, and they're feeling the warmth of the sun on their skin, and they're building sandcastles, and playing games, and doing beach ball, but if just 1 child is hating it and they've dropped their ice cream in the sand and they're getting burnt and they didn't eat their breakfast, and they didn't nap as they should have done, and they're angry.

The whole family comes down to that level of happiness. It is very hard for them to enjoy a blissful day at the beach if 1 of them is really, really down. Because you're only ever as happy as your unhappy as child. Or more seriously, you know, if you're at, if you're at work and you're offered a promotion, And, you are gonna have a, a bigger salary, a better salary, and more opportunities in your workplace. It's it's fantastic to be offered something like that.

But if every day you've got a child who's going to school and having to face a bully, if you drive them to school every morning, on the way to your job, and you know that you're dropping them off in a school where they're going to have a really hard time that day. Or where they're struggling with some kind of condition or a or a struggle of some kind. You know, you could be made CEO of the company and it wouldn't bring you a whole lot of joy because it's really hard. You're only ever as happy as you're unhappy as a child. And we know what that's about, don't we?

When a person is so dear to you, what happens to them cannot but affect you very, very deeply. All of their joys and their sadnesses, you share them as if they were your own. That's how united you are to them. Well, here Paul turns to the church family, and he says brothers and sisters, that's compassion. That's compassion.

It may not be possible for every single person, but that is the level of sympathy that we ought to have. That is the sort of heart that we ought to have for our brothers and sisters in the church family, we are a family. You're only ever as happy as your unhappiest member, he might say. That's item number 1, compassion. Item number 2, therefore, as god's chosen people, holy and dearly love clothe yourselves with kindness.

Clothe yourselves with kindness. Now, apparently, this word, was, I'm told apparently, this word was used of a wine that had mellowed with age. Was used of a wine that had mellowed with age. And so just in that process of maturing, the harsh edge of the wine had disappeared. And I think that's a really beautiful way of thinking about kindness.

A kind person may not be old in physical years, and they may not even like wine, but by the grace of god, they've lost that prickly outer skin. You know? You don't leave a conversation with them feeling that you've been nicked by a razor blade. You know, or or cut in some way. There's no harsh edge to who they are.

They are like that fine aged wine, which over time has just mellowed. It's mellowed. It's lost the nasty edge, the bite, the cut, they're cut, they're kind people. Definitely something that we want to put in the trolley. Isn't it?

Cut kindness, clothe yourselves with kindness. Verse 12, therefore as god's chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with humility humility. So much we could say about this, but CS Lewis, great author, he said this in mere Christianity by way of a a definition. Do not imagine that if you meet a really humble man, He will be what most people call humble nowadays. He will not be a sort of greasy, smarty person.

Who is always telling you that of course he is nobody. Probably all you will think about him is that he seemed a cheerful intelligent chap who took a real interest in what you said to him. If you do dislike him, it'll be because you feel a little envious of anyone who seems to enjoy life so easily. He will not be thinking about humility. He will not be thinking about himself at all.

How wonderful it would be to be to be like that, to be so totally self forgetful. That you don't have to go into a conversation planning to be humble. I've gotta be humble. I've gotta make sure they know I'm humble. I've gotta tell them I'm nothing.

I've gotta tell them I'm a nobody, I've gotta get them to think that I think that I'm really nothing at all, but to just be so totally self forgetful, to be so totally interested in what other people are saying. And not what I'm feeling about how this conversation reflects on me. I'm just happily interested in what you're saying to me. And not what I think about how this is looking for me. Paul says in Philippines 2 value others above yourselves, not looking to your own interests.

But each of you to the interests of the others. It's a it's an other's interestedness that he's calling us to here. Verse 12, therefore as god's chosen people, Holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with gentleness, with gentleness. And again, you could say lots about this 1, but but here's 1 aspect. I picked this up in, something I was reading.

A gentle person will not dominate manipulate or coerce for their own ends, even if they have the power and ability to do so. Let me read it again. A gentle person will not dominate manipulate or coerce for their own ends, even if they have the power and ability to do so. So here is a person who will not use their gift or their position or their intellect to take advantage of another person. You might remember the story of Noah.

Do you remember Noah after he gets off the arc with his, with his family? And he has that moment where he sadly drunk and he humiliates himself, in a tent. And 2 of his sons, chairman Japeth, they want to turn away from what they're seeing, and they want to cover up their father's failure. They want to use who they are and the time that they're in to walk in backwards so that they don't embarrass their father further. They want to cover up his failure, but 1 son ham thinks it will be funny to increase his father's humiliation.

So he uses that scene as an opportunity to embarrass his dad. And to get everyone to look at how silly his dad has become. That's such a shame, isn't it? When somebody to use what god has given them to embarrass other people. In fact, they see it as a ministry to make sure that you feel a little bit more silly or uneducated or unable than you did before you started talking to them.

They see that as a ministry to put you to to use what they have been given to make you feel small. That is not what a gentle person does. A gentle person will not dominate or manipulate or coerce for their own ends. Even if they have the power and ability to do so, but rather they will use those abilities, and that position, and that intellect, and that personality in order to nurture and encourage others around them. That is what a gentle person does.

They channel the strengths that God has given them to encourage and build up other people rather than seeing it as their ministry to make other people feel silly about themselves. That is a person who has not got strength under control. A gentle person uses what they have to bless other people. Verse 12, Therefore, as god's chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with patience. Some months ago in the evening service we looked at the parable of the wheat and the weeds.

And, if you're familiar with that story, you'll know you've got wheat and weeds growing together in the harvest field, which is the kingdom of god. And you've also got these very Zealous farmers who want to rush into the field and pull out the weeds as soon as they can so that they can purify the crop. That's what happens. They see the the first shoots of the weeds and they say master, do you want us to go in and start pulling them out? But the master says to them, just hold on.

Let let's leave it for now. Your heart is in the right place, my laborers. But if you are too hasty here, you might damage this crop. We need to be patient in this work, and we need to let it grow until the proper time. Patience.

I remember when I was a trainee here at the church, meeting somebody who was who was not a Christian. It was student at university. They weren't a Christian. I think it had some kind of Christian upbringing, but we're we're getting interested in in the Christian faith and wanting to read the Bible and explore more. And looking back on it this week, I really wish that I had better understood the teaching of colossians 3.

Because sadly, with him, I did not follow Paul's example in this chapter very well. I did not start with verse 1 to 4. And get him to see who he could become in Christ, get him to really understand what Christ had done for him. So that he could die and rise and become a new man in Christ. And I was far too quick to try and rush in and pull out the little lifestyle weeds in his life to try to correct the little habits that would need to be correcting.

When really I should have slowed down, and I should have been patient with him, and I should have taught the gospel, and I should have allowed the spirit to do his work over time in that in that guy's life. And so I guess the question for all of us is, how do you react to the weaknesses of those around you. And how do you respond to yourself when you fail? Are you able to think about your growth as a Christian in terms of years and not in terms of weeks? Are you able to see the lifetime graph, which plots a person's progress over 10, 20, 30, 40, 50 years and be content to let the lord work over the long haul?

Or do we see it as our ministry to pull out every single weed that we see straight away? You see, often I think people who lack patience like me think that they can do a better sanctify job than the Holy Spirit, that they can see things clearer than the Holy Spirit, that they can do jobs quicker than the Holy Spirit. That they know what people need and when they need it with a greater degree of wisdom than even the Holy Spirit has. When really we should be content as god often is to be patient and to play a longer game. You'll know these words from 1 Corinthians 13.

Paul says if I give all I possess to the poor, and give over my body to hardship that I may boast, but do not have love. I gain nothing. And what's the first thing he says about love in that list? Love is patient. Love is patience.

Verse 12 then, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, and gentleness and patience for every single Christian, these items never go out of fashion. They always look great. In every season and in every culture, you see someone wearing those and my, how beautiful do they look? How well does that fit? Those clothes look like they were hand tailored for They look wonderful.

They always always look good. And then as we move to verse 13, and we'll look at the rest of the verses briefly. As we come to verse 13, we move further into application. How are we going to know if these virtues are alive in us. In other words, what does it look like when a person is wearing these clothes verse 13, they will bear with each other and forgive 1 another.

Are you a compassionate kind and patient person, well then you will bear with each other and forgive 1 another. That's how this checks out in practice. That's how it looks like on the ground. If I am to be gentle with you and you are to be gentle with me, it will mean you're gonna have to bear with my weaknesses. I'm afraid.

You're gonna have to bear with them and you're gonna have to use the strength that God has given you to bear with me and to encourage me. If you are going to be kind to me and if I'm gonna be kind to you, it means I've gotta resist temptation to give you a harsh word. And you've got to resist the temptation to give me the cutting word. Even though most of the time, I will probably deserve it. You gotta resist the temptation so that you can bear with me so that you can forgive me.

That is what gentleness and patience looks like in practice. It means we will bear with 1 another and forgive 1 another. And you know, if that doesn't happen, it is just it's- it is so sad because what happens is we will end up going around churches looking for people who think exactly the same way as we do on every single detail of life who see everything in the way that we see it, who have Jesus plus the style of worship, I think they should be, who have Jesus, plus my stance on social justice, who have Jesus plus my particular brand of politics, who have Jesus, plus my approach to parenting, and we will end up in love with a heavenly congregation that simply does not exist rather than the messy, odd, different, but wonderful people who actually do exist, and those are the people to which we have been called. When a local church bears with each other in love, they commend the gospel to the world because they say, look, we don't agree on every single issue. And we don't manage each other's difficulties very well sometimes, but we are not like the world, and we don't go blocking and cancelling, and unfriending, and deplatforming, and no friending, and unfollowing.

And we don't just look for an ever more pure group of people who see things exactly the way we do, but don't actually exist. We bear with each other because the cross of Jesus Christ keeps us together. We have something greater than our differences, verse 11. Christ is all. And is in all.

And so, therefore, we bear with 1 another, and we forgive 1 another because that commends the gospel to a watching world. This is what we are. Compassionate kind, gentle look, we bear with 1 another. That's how it looks in practice, but also verse 13, forgive as the lord forgave you I was helped by a, a podcast I was listening to recently, which was a discussion about a book, a new book called, love the ones who drive you crazy love the ones who drive you crazy, which I haven't read, but the title sounds great. And if it's anything like the podcast discussion, I'm sure it will be great.

But in the conversation, they were talking about this issue of forgiveness in church. And 1 of the guests was saying that church really is like a family. It really is like a family. And that means when we sin against each other, it is actually painful. It it does hurt because of the closeness of our relationships.

But unlike your physical family, if the church is large enough, you can then just avoid those people who upset you. You can just structure your time so that you don't have to see the people who upset you. With my physical family, that's gonna be a very difficult maneuver. Because if I sin against Laura, there's not many places in my house for her to hide. We're we're gonna eventually cross paths in some lobby or corridor or something, and we're gonna have to do that forgiveness thing because we're a family and we can't escape each other.

But with the church, you can actually arrange it if you're clever enough so that you don't have to see the people who upset you. You can avoid them if you like. Just make sure you don't attend the events that they will probably be attending. Make sure you do not sit on the row on which they normally sit. Make sure you don't have coffee in the place where they usually do.

And what happens is over time, you can actually yourself that you have forgiven them. When really you're just avoiding them and something hasn't been dealt with. And that is just not what verse 13 actually says, is it? However, appealing that might be. It's not what it says.

Forgive as the lord forgave you. How did the lord treat you brothers and sisters when you upset him? You see the world is big enough and history is long enough that the lord Jesus Christ could have just ignored you. He could have arranged history so that he did not have to deal with you, but he chose to move towards you. And so how can we in good conscience withhold forgiveness from somebody else?

How will it look in practice to be compassionate and gentle and kind and patient. It will mean that we bear with 1 another, and we forgive 1 other as the lord forgave you. And verse 14, and over all of these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity. It's interesting when Jesus summarizes the law, he says this, love the lord your god with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the first and greatest commandment and the second is like it, love your neighbor as yourself.

Now why do you think he doesn't say Love the lord your god and be gentle with your neighbor. Love the lord your god and be kind to your neighbor. But the reason he doesn't say that is because all of those other virtues are an expression of this greatest of virtues which is love. These are all part of love in action. And practically, that's quite an important thing to just register.

Because it stops us focusing on 1 of these virtues to the exclusion of the other, doesn't it? If love is my guide and my rule, then I won't just focus on 1 of them. They'll all matter to me. You see, imagine a worker saying, well, next week when I go back to the office, I'm gonna try and be more patient with my colleagues. Patience is gonna be my 20 24 focus.

I'm not gonna stop stealing from the company this year, because I can't do everything in 1 year. I'll deal with the robbery stuff in 20 25, but 20 24 is gonna be the the patience year. Well, silly illustration, but in what sense is that love? Surely, if love is my moat, that it it includes all of them or perhaps on a more local level. It might be like saying, yes, I love that stuff kindness.

I wanna be a mature wine. I want my conversation to be a mellow wine. I like the sound of that, but I certainly won't be forgiving her anytime soon. Won't be doing that? The kindness love it.

That forgiveness stuff, well, do you know that that touched a bit of a nerve with me? Maybe I'll kick that into 20 20 life. But again, in what sense would that be loving? Love is like the belt which holds all of these garments together. It keeps them up.

It tucks them in you tighten the belt. It keeps everything in its proper place. Love. Over all these virtues put on love. And then lastly, verse 15.

Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts since as members of 1 body, you were called to peace and be thankful. And that phrase their rule in your hearts is like the word for an official or a judge. So it's as if we've got a perfect referee in the church. And whenever we're unsure of what to do, whenever we're facing a difficult situation or we're at the crossroads, We can go to this referee and say, will you will you have what's your judgment, ref? What's your judgment?

What do you think we should do? Will you consult VAR for us? Look at what needs to be looked at. Which way should we go? And every single time the referee will answer, choose the way of peace.

Choose the way of peace. Which road should you take? Take the road that we'll maintain peace in the body of Christ. Now there are times of course when it's right for us to upset the piece because an issue in verse 5 or verse 8 is causing harm and division And it's actually gonna be impossible for us to deal with it without creating a little bit of tension, but neither should a Christian always be standing at the crossroads thinking which road can I take? Which will lead to more people being challenged?

Who do I need to confront this month? What am I not happy with which I need to challenge this week? It's like a snow globe. You know, there there are some folks who cannot let the snow globe light. They've gotta shake it all the time.

They gotta shake it. They wanna see it swirl. It's a ministry of avoiding peace and creating disturbance. I gotta shake the snow globe. I don't want peace to settle.

I don't want peace to rule. But the word of god says brothers and sisters, you don't want a referee like that. You don't want a referee like that. Let the peace of Christ be the umpire in your heart. Let the peace of Christ be the referee on the pitch in the church since as members of 1 body you were called to peace.

Now in a couple of weeks time, after Commission Sunday, we're going to have a look at verses 16 and 17 glorious verses. But as we finish, I just want to share 1 last quote with you, which I think crystallizes this teaching, better than I can, certainly. Here it is. The most, it is most significant to note that every 1 of the graces listed has to do with personal relationships between man and man or woman and woman or man and woman, there is no mention And this is quite startling, isn't it? There is no mention of virtues like efficiency or cleverness.

Not even of diligence or industry, not that these things are unimportant, but the great basic Christian virtues are those which govern human relationships. That's gotta be right, isn't it? See, we tend to prize the things which make us stand out from other people. We tend to value the things which make us shine more brightly than our neighbors, but the new testament would have us prize the things which keep us together. Would have us prize the things which we have in common.

The new testament would have us know that there are differences, there's Jews, and there's Greeks, and there's clever people, and there's not so clever people, and there's physically able people, and there's less physically able people And those differences do exist, but Christ, Christ is all. Christ is all and is in awe. Irrespective of those things. And therefore, what matters most of all is this kind of 1 another ring. Which grows our unity as a church.

Real gospel on the ground holiness is these virtues which govern human relationships. And so brothers and sisters adds god's chosen people. That's who you are. Holy and dearly loved. Will we put to death the things which spoil relationship ships.

And will we put on these new clothes which strengthen them and commend our glorious savior to the world. Let's pray that the lord would help us to do just that. Heavenly father, we thank you that in Christ. The old has gone. And the new has come, that we are new creations.

And therefore, we pray that you would help us not to dress any longer in those ripped, dirty old rags. But rather to clothe ourselves with these always fashionable, sparkling clothe us, kindness, and compassion, and humility, and patience and gentleness, and over all of these things, might we wear the belt of love, which holds them all together? As we go into a new year, with 12 months ahead of us, we we we guess unless you there are going to be not just 1 but many occasions in which we upset each other and which we say things that are not kind or when we leave undone things that we really should have done. And we will have plenty of opportunities to bear with 1 another and to forgive. But lord, this is such a supernatural work.

And we can't do it by ourselves because our tendency is to run away and to hide and to cut people off and to bear grudges, and we just don't want to do that. It's not the direction in which your spirit would have us go. We want to be those who can bear with and forgive. Throughout our years together as a church family. So please do what we cannot do in this church in Jesus' name.