Sermon Title: A Worthy Walk
Text: Colossians 1.1-14 (LSB)
Introduction to the letter to the Colossians
Author:
Audience:
The Problem:
The False Teachers:
The General Theme:
The Purpose of the Letter:
1.
2.
Colossians 1:1-8 (LSB)
1 Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, and Timothy our brother, 2 To the saints and faithful brothers in Christ in Colossae: Grace to you and peace from God our Father. 3 We give thanks to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, praying always for you, 4 since we heard of your faith in Christ Jesus and the love which you have for all the saints, 5 because of the hope laid up for you in heaven, of which you previously heard in the word of truth, the gospel 6 which has come to you, just as in all the world also it is constantly bearing fruit and multiplying, just as [it has been doing] in you also since the day you heard and understood the grace of God in truth; 7 just as you learned [it] from Epaphras, our beloved fellow slave, who is a faithful servant of Christ on our behalf, 8 who also informed us of your love in the Spirit.
Our Church
should be a second
.
1 Corinthians 13:13 (LSB)
13 But now abide faith, hope, love–these three; but the greatest of these is love.
Faith, Hope, and Love produce
.
Colossians 1:9-11 (LSB)
9 For this reason also, since the day we heard, we have not ceased to pray for you and to ask that you may be filled with the full knowledge of His will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding, 10 so that you may walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, to please [Him] in all respects, bearing fruit in every good work and multiplying in the full knowledge of God; 11 being strengthened with all power, according to His glorious might, for the attaining of all steadfastness and patience; joyously
The greatest Christian responsibility is a deep growing
of Christ and His
.
Philippians 1:9 (LSB)
9 And this I pray, that your love may abound still more and more in full knowledge and all discernment,
Philemon 1:6 (LSB)
6 [and I pray] that the fellowship of your faith may become effective through the full knowledge of every good thing which is in you for the sake of Christ.
Ephesians 1:17 (LSB)
17 that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give to you [the] Spirit of wisdom and of revelation in the full knowledge of Him,
Colossians 1:12-14 (LSB)
12 giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified us to share in the inheritance of the saints in light. 13 Who rescued us from the authority of darkness, and transferred us to the kingdom of the Son of His love, 14 in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.
Spiritual Knowledge comes through the work of the
.
“who has qualified us”
John 14:26 (LSB)
26 “But the Advocate, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all that I said to you.
John 16:8-11 (LSB)
8 “And He, when He comes, will convict the world concerning sin and righteousness and judgment; 9 concerning sin, because they do not believe in Me; 10 and concerning righteousness, because I go to the Father and you no longer see Me; 11 and concerning judgment, because the ruler of this world has been judged.
Application:
Colossians 1:10a (LSB)
10 so that you may walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, to please [Him] in all respects,
The Worthy Walk:
A Knowledgeable Walk
A Powerful Walk
A Thankful Walk
A Joyful Walk
A WORTHY WALK
The Hebrews saw an absolute connection between knowledge and conduct. From their perspective, a person did not know something unless he or she did it. This is from where Paul and indeed all authentic Christianity springs. True spiritual knowledge means action! This strikes at the very heart of the unhealthy dichotomy which is so prevalent today. I am speaking of the tendency of people of knowledge not to be activists, and the reverse tendency of people of action to neglect the pursuit of knowledge—thus producing unbalanced extremes.
Let me mention two examples: on the one hand you have the ignorant “soul-winner” who knows only a rabbit track through Scriptures and has no thought-through answers of his own, and on the other hand you have the contemplative scholar filled with knowledge who has never led a soul to Christ. Neither situation was ever meant to be! Paul was the ultimate contemplative mind, but also an incredible man of action. John Calvin, utilizing his transcending intellectual powers, would lie upon his bed and dictate commentaries, but he was also actively involved with people and politics and life. That was also part of the genius of John Wesley, and of Francis Schaeffer in our own day. We need balance.
A profound knowledge should profoundly affect one’s walk. It must be understood that any doctrine which isolates the believer from the needs of the world is not a spiritual doctrine. Or put another way, if our doctrine lifts us so high that our feet cannot reach the ground, it is false. Paul prayed that the Colossians would walk their talk, that their knowledge of Christ would grow, and that this in turn would produce a conduct which was worthy of the Lord, pleasing him in all respects. This is how we should pray.
What is to be the result of this worthy walk? “Bearing fruit in every good work” (v. 10). Good works are the outworking of Christ’s life in his people. Paul thus prayed that they would act out Christ’s kind of life in every situation. Thus the reality of the Colossians’ faith would be seen by the surrounding community, and Christ would be glorified and souls drawn to him. The participle “bearing fruit” is present and continuous. Paul prayed that this fruit-bearing would be a constant, ongoing reality.