Missions Paul

When someone becomes a Christian more often than not they will attend a discipleship class. This class is an important part of their new journey and will contain lots of new understanding on who God is and how we should journey as a Christian in this life. However there is a lifetime of discipleship/learning to be had so that we continue to follow Him.

The Apostle writes to the Colossian people because they are in danger from false teachers who are teaching that Jesus was just one of many gods to follow. He was not the only way. Paul tackles this through his letter. He begins by saying he is praying for their discipleship.

Over the last few days I have thought about the following within these blogs:-

Make Him proud (live well); Expect He will succeed through you; Grow to know Him; Last the long haul; Be thankful that He qualifies to be a disciple. The 6^th is found in this verse, “For he has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves” (Colossians 1:13)

This word ‘rescued’ is a past completed act. It is the work of Christ on the cross. We were under the rule of darkness but now we have been brought under the rule of Jesus who God loves. Not only that God loved His Son, Jesus, but that Jesus, the Son, shows us how much God loves us.

The Apostle Peter used the same word (in 2 Peter 2:7-9) to say just as God rescued Lot then the Lord knows how to rescue the godly from trials.

All around the world, right now, maybe for you, there is a cry for rescue.

You are not immune, the evil taunting voices of torment and the attacks of every kind can settle on you as a darkness. Sometimes the Lord delivers us from this desperate place and at other times He delivers us within them.

From the pulpit to the pew darkness descends from nowhere and perspective can be easily lost with irrational thoughts and the results can be devastating. Friends can walk away not knowing what to say nor having the patience to wait. It is an awkwardness that doesn’t sit well with the victorious Christian life. But it is there.

The disciple has been rescued but will continually need rescuing in this life. The Kingdom is the safe place. “Rescue me to your Kingdom reign, Jesus!”

I have sat with the most beautiful people who were rescued from the most evil of places. It is where I am most comfortable and where I am home.

Tanzeela, now a teenager whose life up to 10 years of age was pitiful, begging on the streets of an anti-Christian nation. Her family are all drug addicts. But this girl is now rescued and safe.

Hassan, now an adult, but I met him as a 15 year old boy who loved football and Chelsea! He saw his parents gunned down and he was taken as a child-soldier. Drugged and brain-washed he was taught how to use a gun and he used it every day in his darkened world. After 3 years, 6 months and 21 days he was rescued.

Mukamunana, a woman who was raped multiple times in a civil/tribal war wrote me a letter, “I don’t figure out how one can be hunted like an animal until the hunter expresses their hatred.” But she was rescued and is rebuilding her life.

When I need rescuing I am reminded of my friends. What He did for them He can do for me.

When I need rescuing I am reminded of Christ and how He has done that rescue already so that I need to step into that once again.

I don’t know what you might be going through but if you need lifting up from your painful circumstance, if you need drawing closer to the Lord, if you need rescuing then He who rescued you will continue to rescue you from your trial. Call to Him now.

Disciples know they are rescued and know they need rescuing.

Oh and one final thought. If you see someone who is drowning and needs rescuing, dont walk on, dont turn away, rescue them! You might be in the same situation one day.

I am highlighting one aspect of discipleship that the Apostle mentions in response to what he has heard about the Colossians who need to know they are indeed true disciples. Here is the 5^th “…and giving joyful thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of his holy people in the kingdom of light.” (Colossians 1 v 12)                              

If the only prayer you said in your whole life was ‘thank you’, that would be sufficient.

The Jew spends every day focused on thankfulness. In fact because of a legend regarding a plague that took the lives of 100 people in one day during King David’s reign the rabbi’s came to understand the spiritual reasoning for the plague and thus instituted the need to say 100 blessings of thankfulness to God.

Here is a Jewish prayer: “Even if our mouths were filled with songs like the sea, our tongues with joy like its mighty waves, our lips with praise like the breadth of the sky, if our eyes shone like the sun and the moon, and our hands were spread out like the eagles of heaven, if our feet were as swift as the hind, we should still be incapable of thanking You adequately for one thousandth part of all the love You have shown us.”

But why?

So many people have lived their life with the words ‘You aren’t good enough’ hanging over them. One click on social media and we realise there are more beautiful people than us, more likeable, than us and more importantly, more qualified than us to be somebody special. Everyone else seems to be qualified to have that special moment, romance, dream job, adventurous holiday, big house, how do they do it? What’s wrong with me?

One of the hallmarks of a disciple of Christ is that you are joyfully thankful that He has qualified you to be, do, have and experience … Him!

You have come to know that God says yes to you. He has given all you need to follow Him. He gives you His presence. He bridges the distance between Himself and you. He untangles our mess; He restores and revives us to go again; He cleans our life and chooses us every day to follow Him. Graciously and mercifully calling us to follow. The battle for discipleship will always be focused around qualification.

The Apostle tells the Colossians “You are Qualified!” He was wanting them to realise that they can say NO to those who say we need to enter into performance religion in order to be good enough. Jesus Christ has qualified us to be disciples of His!

I am highlighting one aspect of discipleship that the Apostle mentions in response to what he has heard about the Colossians who need to know they are indeed true disciples. Here is the 4^th: “…being strengthened with all power according to his glorious might so that you may have great endurance and patience” (Colossians 1 v 11)

I sat with one of my ministers the other day, he’s a friend and he’s struggling.

I heard this week of some ministers who were thinking of quitting the ministry altogether. They cannot continue. They can but they don’t want to.

I had emails this week from ministers who reported how people had chosen a different church during this pandemic season.

The Covid pandemic has battered many people whether in the pulpit or the pew. In fact the pews are now being opened and the familiar are not there. Will they be back? Time will tell.

In every sector of society people are questioning their positions. What do they want for the rest of their lives?

I think there may be some in the Church who went into the pandemic wilderness who may not come out of it. There will be a drop-off rate not just a transfer. Not everyone survives the wilderness.

As a disciple Jesus may be still asking the question, “Do you want to leave as well?” as he did of the Twelve when the other disciples left him.

Today, ask Jesus to strengthen you with all power according to his glorious might so that you may have great endurance and patience. Do not give up.

The inner battles within that are conquered are often greater victories than some public display of success. What good would it be to have a cabinet of the trophies of life but have a character that is broken? I know of a man who on the outside is seen to be a rising star but cannot get through life without seeing a counsellor for the overwhelming fear within. People never just give up. They gave up behind the smiles and laughter a long time ago. No matter how resilient you are if you are not continually being empowered by Christ then you will fade.

The word endurance is the English translation of Hupomone. This Greek word the Apostle uses doesn’t mean to ‘pull your socks up’ or to ‘keep smiling’ under duress. It is rather a conquering patience with anything that life can throw at us knowing that God will always turn even evil into good!           

It is always too soon to give up because there is always God!

I am highlighting one aspect of discipleship that the Apostle mentions in response to what he has heard about the Colossians who need to know they are indeed true disciples. Here is the 3^rd: “…growing in the knowledge of God” (Colossians 1 v 10)

“You’ll grow into it.” I grew up knowing what that meant. This huge jumper which I could camp out in was going to be mine for the next few years and although at that moment it looked like I was hiding under a marquee eventually I would grow for it to be an amazing fit!

In the bombardment of lessons to learn, opinions to heed to, guidelines and directives, achievements, vision and strategies, make sure one thing is happening, you are growing to know Him more.

1. Grow to know Him because you don’t know Him enough.
2. Grow to know Christ and Him alone.
3. Grow to know Him through the toughest of experiences.

William Borden (1887-1913) was heir to the Borden dairy estate, which was sold for $2 billion in 1995 William was a millionaire by 21, but he renounced his fortune, giving nearly all his wealth to missions. His heart’s desire was to take the gospel to Muslims in China. On his way to China, William stopped in Egypt to study Arabic, but four months later he contracted spinal meningitis and died at the age of 25. He is buried in the American Cemetery in Cairo. The inscription on his grave stone says these words after a brief description of his life:

A Man in Christ

He arose and forsook all and followed Him

Kindly affectioned with brotherly love

Fervent in spirit serving the Lord

Rejoicing in hope patient in tribulation

Instant in prayer

Communicating to the necessity of saints

In honour preferring others

Apart from faith in Christ there is no explanation for such a life.

Go into all the world and preach the Gospel to every nation.

Charlie Campbell one of Williams friends received his Bible after his death. Inside William had written these words which he remembered him writing in their college days:

No reserves

No retreats.

But Charlie also found 2 more words that William had written just days before he died:

No regrets.

The explanation for your life is to grow in the knowledge of Jesus. If I know Him then I will know who I am. If I know how He works then I will know how to work. No reserves, no retreats and no regrets.

I am highlighting one aspect of discipleship that the Apostle mentions in response to what he has heard about the Colossians who need to know they are indeed true disciples.

The founder of the Baptist Missionary Society, William Carey (1761-1834) said these famous words in a sermon in 1792, “Expect great things from God; attempt great things for God!”

Expect and so attempt great things from and for God.

The Apostle says these words, “… bearing fruit in every good work …” (Colossians 1:10)

Today is your day of success and a day when you can thrive. You can do good and do it really well!

Paul has already mentioned there is a fruit of the gospel (1:6). I heard yesterday of a church having 47 new people attend its first Alpha course!

Last evening I was in a meeting where we honoured a colleague who is retiring this year. The tributes paid spoke of a fruitful life. This fruit was the impact in other people’s lives.

Success doesn’t lead to pride because anything good that comes from us comes from God.

Success doesn’t make us better people than anyone else, we are just still children, loved by Him whether we are successful or not.

Success doesn’t just come because God chooses to work through us. It takes work. We know we do not just automatically love or be kind, we have to choose to do so.

Success doesn’t come for a few. As a disciple with the Holy Spirit within then you are enabled to do so.

Your life was meant to be a battle. If you wake today and you are struggling once again, then that is how life is.

At the end of the Bible we read these words: “Then the angel showed me the river of the water of life, as clear as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb down the middle of the great street of the city. On each side of the river stood the tree of life, bearing twelve crops of fruit, yielding its fruit every month. And the leaves of the tree are for the healing of the nations.” Revelation 22: 1-2

At the beginning of the Bible on the 3^rd day of creation, we read these words:

“Then God said, ‘Let the land produce vegetation: seed-bearing plants and trees on the land that bear fruit with seed in it, according to their various kinds… And God said, ‘Let the water teem with living creatures, and let birds fly above the earth” and said, ‘Be fruitful and increase in number and fill the water in the seas, and let the birds increase on the earth.’ … So God created mankind in his own image, God blessed them and said to them, ‘Be fruitful and increase in number”

In between Genesis 1 and Revelation 22 that both speak of fruitfulness there is conflict, struggle and the need to overcome many challenges to either keep the fruit or produce it.

I try and focus on 3 aspects in order to be successful.

1. Culture: If God is working through me He will do it through a good soil, a good heart and a good atmosphere within my life. There are simply 3 things that produce this type of great culture: Prayer, Bible reading and Faith.
2. Surrender: I have learnt this sentence and I try to live it out every single day – “It is never about me.” Complete and total submission to Jesus.
3. Fight: The good fight. The forces behind people. The voices of doubt and negativity. The constant onslaught. The fiery darts. Changing the ‘I can’t’ to ‘I can do all things through Christ that strengthens me’.

Those who don’t know success have been defeated in one of the 3 areas above.

What is a disciple of Christ? How do we become one? How do we make them?

The Apostle writes to a people he has never met in a place he has never visited and he shares his heart to them regarding who they are and how they should live. These Christians at Colossae were under threat from false teachers who were insisting that following Christ was not enough. They were confused as to whether or not their salvation experience was enough. Were they true disciples?

Over this next week I intend to be very brief but to highlight one aspect of discipleship that the Apostle mentions in response to what he has heard.

He has been praying that they may know the will of God for their lives through the lens of being confident in Christ, loving others and their hope of heaven. He now goes further “… so that you may live a life worthy of the Lord and please him in every way” (1 v 10)

Yesterday I made a call to my godson who is training to be a vicar and I ended the conversation with the same thing I say to my own children constantly, “I’m proud of you.”

Now apparently there are people who don’t like to hear this and are actually offended by it as if hearing it means they are less than the individual saying it. That it was some patronising remark. “I’m proud of you losing weight” meaning ‘”you really needed to.”

Why do we have to twist some of the most beautiful encouraging sayings into negative comments?

The Apostle says if you want to know you are a disciple of Christ then you are going to live your life in such a way that it pleases Him.

“I’m proud of you. I see myself in you. I am pleased to be connected to your life. I am honoured to be associated with you. My name is comfortably resting on you.”

No pressure then!

How do we live that kind of life?

The Apostle has already told them in the previous verse, “We continually ask God to fill you with the knowledge of his will through all the wisdom and understanding that the Spirit gives so that …”

Here is the prayer that drives this thought home:

“Holy Spirit help me today to live my life in such a way that Jesus is proud of me. I cannot do it alone. I need you to do that work in me. Amen”

What does God want from me? What should I do? I am at a crossroads? He just needs to tell me and I will do it.

I saw a cartoon someone sent me. The question was: “Lord, have I eaten too much during lockdown?” And in the sky above the question was a cloud shaped as a pig.

If only God would speak to us through shaped clouds!

I don’t hold to a prescriptive will of God for my life. I used to but having children changed my thinking. I have never been all that bothered what they did but who they were. Their relationship with me when they got to being adults was always more important than what they did in life.

I do hold to a life of submission and surrender of laying my life down for Him and others.

But the will of God isn’t an itinerary to follow after spending years trying to discover it. It isn’t a blueprint of a plan which tells you what to do and where to go. If only God would tell me? Why doesn’t he tell me? He tells everyone else but me? These can be destructive thoughts.

Let’s see what the Apostle says to the Colossian Christians who are facing an onslaught of false teaching that would tempt them away from their faith.

The Apostle has been praying, in fact since he got the report from Epaphras he hasn’t stopped, “For this reason, since the day we heard about you, we have not stopped praying for you. We continually ask God to fill you with the knowledge of his will through all the wisdom and understanding that the Spirit gives” (Colossians 1:9)

1. There is a wisdom that comes from the Spirit. It is a wisdom regarding life and what God thinks about it. It is about who we are in that life.
2. There is an understanding of that wisdom. Knowing how to apply that wisdom into life. For example, Christ loves so I love.

So what we see is this:

The Colossians had faith and love. They had hope of heaven. These were the Spirit’s work in their lives. The will of God stems from these 3 things:

I have confidence in Christ (faith)

I will love others (love)

I will see things from an eternal perspective (hope)

Who I am is more important than what I do.

I need to seek more about being the ‘who’ then the ‘what’ will flow from this person I am becoming.

Maybe God isn’t answering the ‘what’ prayers because He is waiting for us to acknowledge who we are first?

Maybe God isn’t that bothered about what we do but who we are becoming?

Maybe we have more freedom to do than be?

Already we are liking this group of believers that the Apostle is writing to. The Colossians are people who trust and love Christ and each other, they are gospel people with a sincere hope of heaven. Epaphras has brought a wonderful report “and who also told us of your love in the Spirit” (1:8)

The Spirit doesn’t divide.

The Spirit doesn’t give words to be spoken that destroys.

The Spirit doesn’t puff up the person speaking.

The Spirit doesn’t belittle a person who is hearing.

The Spirit doesn’t intimidate and sow fear into hearts.

The Spirit doesn’t ignore the preaching of the Word.

The Spirit doesn’t build apathy so only a few gather to pray.

The Spirit doesn’t remind others of their past failures.

The Spirit doesn’t make gurus or charismatic celebrities to be adored.

The Spirit doesn’t discourage ministers of the gospel.

The Spirit doesn’t abuse the people in the pew.

The Spirit doesn’t berate, humiliate or start arguments.

None of the above is the Spirit’s work.

When will we realise this? When will we be bothered?

When will the Church stop scoring own goals?

Epaphras had found evidence of the Spirit in Colossae. The Apostle had never visited. So the report was important.

Does Epaphras talk of the atmosphere of worship?

Does he speak of the sphere of prophecy and the other gifts?

Does he speak of miracles and the manifest presence of God?           

Does he even speak of how many people are in their Church buildings?

No.

He speaks of Agape.

The Spirit breeds love.

Give me a spiritual man or woman and I will be sitting in a place of love for people.

That’s the Church Christ desired. That’s the Church the Spirit dwells in. That is the evidence.

A Minister simply means Servant. So we are all ministers aren’t we?

They are also referred to as overseers and elders.

How do we know who are Christ’s ministers?

“You learned it from Epaphras, our dear fellow servant,who is a faithful minister of Christ on our behalf” Colossians 1 v 7

Let me use 2 other occasions Paul mentions Epaphras:

“Epaphras, who is one of you and a servant of Christ Jesus, sends greetings. He is always wrestling in prayer for you, that you may stand firm in all the will of God, mature and fully assured.”  (4:12)

“Epaphras, my fellow prisoner in Christ Jesus, sends you greetings.”  (Philemon 23)

So Christ’s ministers are:

1. Fellow servants. Epaphras is the servant of the central figure: Christ.
   1. They get down into the dirt and wash feet.
2. Faithful ministers of Christ: Epaphras has proven his worth.
   1. They stay the course.
3. Represent others: Epaphras has given a glowing reference of the Colossian community.
   1. They speak well of others.
4. Intercessors: Epaphras wrestles in prayer for the Colossians.
   1. They lead and are known as people who pray
5. Knows suffering: Epaphras is also in prison or house arrest with Paul.
   1. There is evidence of the sacrificial life.
6. Are ordinary: Epaphras does not have any special title but appears to have begun the work.
   1. They don’t use their titles or credentials to lord it over people.

If you can’t spot any of the above then question the validity of what is before you.

What are you hoping for? A better life?

I’m not sure who said it but we can quote it: “Too heavenly-minded for earthly good.” I wish we couldn’t quote it. I don’t really believe it.

Being heavenly-minded will not hinder our lives or stop us from reaching out to others. But being worldly-minded will. Being caught up with the desires and passions this world can offer will. The Apostle says, “we have heard of your faith in Christ Jesus and of the love you have for all God’s people— the faith and love that spring from the hope stored up for you in heaven” Colossians 1 v 4-5

In 1991 we were singing Graham Kendricks ‘Heaven is in my heart.’ Is it still?

Let us be people consumed with the hope of heaven. No matter what beautiful experiences and treasures you have gained on this earth they are just a taste, a small example of what is laid up for us in heaven. Our world needs to see heaven again. Eternity needs to be born into our conversations and our prayers and our work. We declare our faith because of heaven and we love because of heaven.

Hope of heaven causes us to love. Heaven bursts onto our earth with the inspiration we need to love all of God’s people.

There are many who are bound and stretched in a variety of ways across the world but they are so with hope of heaven. This world is smaller today than it has ever been. Every nation reachable within hours and yet those who are pressed down today they can feel like they are the furthest point from earth. But heaven is in their heart. All that they have and actually perhaps what has got them into their predicament in the first place is their citizenship in heaven. But this is the most important thing and not just for them but for all of us who are Christ followers.

The powerful truth of our eternal citizenship is effective when we know it and live our lives so the enemy knows it too.

What can the enemy do when you declare who you are in God and your security in Him? The persecuted have lost everything but they are not destroyed.

You always live. You always have the last word. You may die but you will live. Heaven is in your heart. Christ gives Hope for Heaven