May 26 - Colossians 1:24-27 - "Mission Unpopular?"

MPC 26th May 2019.

Phil Campbell

Some of us are may be celebrating after last weeks election results. Other of us are maybe genuinely grieving on behalf of the pensioners or the refugees who are missing out on being part of a more compassionate Australia.

Some of us maybe, there's a sigh of relief particularly because there seems to be maybe a reprieve when it comes to freedom of religion. Freedom to express our Christian faith. Without threat of losing our jobs or being taken to court. Or something worse.

Because it felt like. Maybe it still feels like. That you can be anything you like in Australian society.

... Other than a Christian. And that you'll be affirmed for any and every other identity, no matter how far from the old idea of normal it sounds. But the one thing you won't be affirmed for. Is following Jesus. And especially. If you're the sort of Christian who has the gall to invite anyone else to follow Jesus with you.

We're a church that proudly says we want to invite other people to follow Jesus with us. And while 51.4% of Australians might endorse us in doing that... 49.6% more and more loudly... don't. And last weekend it felt like we maybe came within a whisker. Of living in Australia where that number flipped.

And many of us, I think... . feared it would. Did you?

Now I'm not here to complain about that this morning. That's the world we live in.

I'm here to ask you, how do you feel about it. And is it going to stop you. Being Christian.

Because while we might look at the example of the Australian Rugby Union, or pressure in your own workplace, that pales into insignificance. Compared to the suffering of Christians in places like Pakistan.

Where Asia Bibi was originally sentenced to death for blasphemy. Because as a Christian she shared a drink cup with a woman who was Muslim.

Or the churches being systematically bombed and burned. Philippines in January. Sri Lanka at Easter.

The Early Rain Covenant Church in China closed down. Pastor Wang Yi and the elders arrested and in prison. Charged with inciting subversion of state power.

As the voice of Christians is systematically silenced. Either through secularism. Or militant Islam. Or Communism. Or our own quiet consumerism.

Again. I'm not here to complain about that this morning. That's the world we live in.

I'm here to ask you, how do you feel about it. And is it going to stop you being Christian?

Because I want to suggest, being Christian has always. From the very start. Gone against the cultural grain. Right from day 1.

Jesus himself. Suffered.

And this morning. As we turn to the words of the apostle Paul. You'll see he's taken up the mantle. And so he's suffering as well. In prison for the cause of proclaiming Jesus to the Gentile world.

And he... rejoices.

We're picking up in Colossians 1 verse 24, and that's what he says. Now I rejoice.

Not because he's a masochist. Not because he enjoys the pain. But because it's so incredibly worth it.

Follow his words. "Now I rejoice in what I'm suffering for you. And I fill up in my flesh what is still lacking in regard to Christ's afflictions."

Jesus suffered for you already. And now I'm suffering on your behalf some more. Because the job Jesus started. Isn't quite finished yet.

Now that's often been noted as an odd verse. As if he's saying there's something lacking in the sacrificial death of Jesus on the cross. As if there's something more Paul's got to add to their atonement.

Which couldn't be further from the truth.

We just saw back in verse 19; God was pleased to have all his fullness dwell in him. And through him, verse 20, to reconcile to himself all things. By making peace through his blood. shed on the cross.

All kinds of people. In all kinds of places.

The lack is, for Paul, that there are all kinds of people who haven't heard about it yet. Which is why Paul says he's so busy proclaiming that... to every creature under heaven. Because, and this is what I think Paul's getting at, that's a mission that Jesus only got started.

And now in his own body. Paul's taking up the same unpopular path of suffering. To finish it.

Look, it's an underlying thread that runs right through the passage; right through Colossians from the start. And in a couple of minutes, there's going to be a cool little animated diagram that if you glaze over while I'm talking about it you can switch back in then and it will maybe bring it all together. And help it make sense.

Because the reality is, and we often gloss over this, is that Jesus came first and foremost to the nation of Israel. Because they were the people of God's promise.

And all his ministry. Was focused geographically on Israel. And all the first Christians. Were Israelites.

And it's onlyafter his resurrection; just before his ascension in Acts chapter. 1. That Jesus says to his disciples, okay, go. Acts 1:8:

But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.

Spread out. Jerusalem. Judea. Samaria. and to the ends of the earth.

Which you might remember, from the book of Acts, they're actually very slow to do. Except for Paul. Especially when it came to the issue of mixing with and sharing with and eating with and talking with unclean gentile outsiders. Like us.

Except for Paul.

You might remember as well, this is back in the book of Acts that maps out the story of how the early church started, it took a dramatic turnaround to get things happening. The risen Jesus stops super-Jewish Paul in the middle of the road. On his way to persecute some Christians. And strikes him blind. Then sends a guy named Ananias to recommission him.

Ananias doesn't want to go. He's heard Paul's reputation. But the Risen Jesus says to him, go and do it. Because this man Paul is my chosen instrument to proclaim my name to the Gentiles and their kings. And to the people of Israel. I will show him. Get this bit. I will show him how much he must suffer. For my name.

The bad news is, it's all part of the deal. See, that's Paul's job description. Right from the start. Jesus says, The suffering's not over. Because now... my name's got to be proclaimed not just to Israel. But to the Gentiles.

And that's the suffering Paul says here in Colossians that he's going to complete. A suffering servant, following on from the ultimate suffering servant.

Not complaining. But rejoicing.

And why should we expect any different today?

Paul says, for the sake of Christ's body, the church; he's putting his own flesh on the line. He's suffering. He's contending. He's pouring himself out. Just so he can present to us the word of God in it's fullness. By which he means, you'll see in the next few verses, presenting Christ to us.

Now look, I've kind of drawn the short straw as preacher this week, because I reckon this section's got all the complicated bits.

But stick with it, because in a minute or two we'll come to the little cartoon animation that I promised.

But one thing it's really worth getting our heads around is the whole language of what Paul's saying about these people called the saints.

Because without that, it's hard to make sense of the exact logic of verse 26 and 27.

Which is partly because our English translation is just a little bit too user friendly. It's ironed out a level of detail from the original language that I reckon needs to be put back so it properly makes sense.

And you might have looked at this already if you're in a Growth Group.

Because I mentioned already that the first Christians were all Jewish. And Paul himself is one of them.

And I've put the case before when we were looking at Paul's letter to the Ephesians based on the work of Donald Robinson that Paul's got a word for the original Jewish Christians, and that's the word saints. Which technically means God's set apart ones. And was constantly used in the Old Testament to talk about the faithful members of the people of Israel.

The Catholic Church wants to use saint for anyone who gets a special merit certificate from the Pope. Which isn't the original meaning at all.

Like I said, it's a level of detail that's dropped out of our modern English translations. So you most times don't even see the word saints in your English bible. Which means we miss out on a level of Paul's logic. Which is kind of a shame.

See, I know there are people in Sydney who sign up their kids before birth for membership of the Sydney Cricket Ground. There used to be something like a 30 year waiting list. So the dream was, you'd grow up, you'd hit your 30s, and you can sit in the members stand. And sip champagne while you're watching Australia lose another test match.

Exclusive. Astonishing privilege.

If you read Colossians carefully and you pick up what he's saying about God's saints; this is a membership even better than that. It's an incredible privilege. That you had to be born to.

And yet now, membership's been thrown wide open. And the original members... are meant to be actively inviting people to come in.

Step through with me. On the screen. He's writing to two kinds of people. In verse 2.

2 To God's Saints in Colossae, and the faithful in Christ: Grace and peace to you from God our Father

The original members. Who are all Jewish. And the new. Who are Gentile. To the saints. And you lot as well who have trusted in Jesus.

And then as he opens the letter, his focus goes straight to the second group. The Gentiles who have put their faith in Jesus. He says, I'm so thankful for you guys. He says, I'm...

12 ... giving joyful thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of his saints in the kingdom of light.

It's so good to have you with us!

And then stepping up to our key verses.

"I've become a servant of the church by the commission God gave me to present to you Gentiles the word of God in its fullness." The mystery, he says...

26 the mystery that has been kept hidden for ages and generations, but is now disclosed to the Saints.

... we Jewish Christians have heard about it...

And so now, he says, and this is maybe a slight change in the translation taking the dative case as instrumental if you want to check in a Greek text book... so now,

27 Through them; through the saints; God has chosen to make known among the gentiles the glorious riches of this mystery, which is Christ in you [plural you] the hope of glory.

Do you get that? If you didn't, get ready to watch the screen.

It ain't quite an episode of The Simpsons. But see if you can follow the logic. That the saints, in the Old Testament, that word means all of Israel. But now it's not. It's the Israelites. Who have faith in their messiah. Jesus followers.

Who are now meant to throw open the doors. And welcome Gentiles who follow Jesus as well.

As Paul takes on his commission to make known to the Gentiles the mystery that's been revealed to the saints.

And ultimately draws both these fundamentally different groups together as one. All of them saints. All of us. the church.

Watch it on the screen. And see how it plays out.

Gentiles like you, says Paul. joining the saints. In the church. Living with all the hopes and privileges that come with faith in the glorious Jesus.

Which is why, says Paul, I'm going really hard at it. There's nothing more important.

Christ. Among the gentiles. And not just the Jews. Christ for everyone everywhere.

Friends, here's the problem. It's a very politically incorrect dream, isn't it? That everyone. Every kind of person, and every person of every kind of person. Would bow to the universal lordship of Jesus.

That's why it's so problematic in China. Christians there serve a different regime. They're not going to give ultimate allegiance to their government. The charges are true. It is subversive.

But that's his goal. Every kind of person, and every person of every kind of person. Hearing Christ proclaimed. Taught about him. Admonished. Urged. To fully trust him. And live for him.

And notice, at every point it's all about Jesus. He is the one we proclaim, verse 28. He's the mystery resolved.

He's the one we proclaim, admonishing and teaching everyone with all wisdom, so that we may present everyone fully mature in Christ. To this end I strenuously content with all the energy Christ so powerfully works in me.

I don't know what level of God given energy you've got. What light of Christ is burning away in your boiler. But it's worth stopping to ask, what are doing with it? What are you strenuously contending at? To similar news stories in the past week.

The death of Formula One driver Nikki Lauder. At 70, lived far beyond what anyone expected because of the famous fiery crash that almost claimed his life. It's the story about him everybody remembers. Trapped in his burning car for over a minute; last rites on his death bed. But then he fought back with superhuman energy. And was driving again two months later. And that year, took out the world championship.

Astonishingly driven. Couldn't wait to get back behind the wheel. Unstoppable. Similar story.

Former President Jimmy Carter. He's not dead. But he's 94, and through the week he fell and fractured his hip. hip replacement surgery.

And his biggest concern, according to the official announcement, other than missing the turkey shoot he'd been planning to go on, was that he'd miss teaching the Sunday school class at his church.

And that was at the top of the official announcement. "Former President Jimmy Carter will not be teaching Sunday school this week, because although he is 'progressing well, he underestimated the amount of time he would need to recover from his recent hip replacement.'"

Two men. Incredibly driven. Inspiring energy. One to get back in his car and keep chasing after glory. The other. Couldn't wait to get out of hospital to teach his Sunday school class.

Where's your energy going? What's your focus? Paul says he's pouring himself out. Struggling with all his energy. Doing everything he can with everything in his tank. No matter what the risk, no matter what the cost. To invite people like us. People like the Colossians. People in Laodicea. Everywhere. To be part of God's gathering. To be part of God's saints. To be part of God's church.

All his energy. To point us to the full riches of the knowledge of God. That comes from simply knowing and trusting Jesus.

No hidden technique. No special secrets.

The mystery, he says, it's fully known now.

First to the saints. And now to Gentiles like us.

No secret sauce. No next big thing. No special anointing poured on on some American preacher who's just written a book.

Just sticking with what we know about Jesus.

Will Smith. He's the genie in Disney's new Aladdin. Granting everyone's wishes when you rub the bottle.

At the premiere the other day, Will Smith was interviewed. And he was asked a question. if you had one wish. What would you wish for?

And Will Smith took the question seriously.

And he said, "What would I wish for? Divine wisdom. Divine understanding. I'd love to know what all this is about."

Maybe you're still on the same kind of journey as Will Smith, and you've just got endless questions like that. Life's beyond you.

Maybe you've been a Christian a while, and you still resonate with that. And you've still got heaps of questions, and things are still tough, and you maybe thought being a Christian should eliminate all that.

Well, Paul says I might be suffering. But I'm rejoicing as well. I might be struggling and contending. I might be pouring out every drop of the energy Christ has poured into me. But the one thing I want to say to you, is that whatever you're looking for. Jesus is where you'll find it. Whatever you're longing for. You'll find it in Jesus. Whatever wisdom and understanding you're reaching for. Jesus is the answer. He's the source. And he's the satisfaction. So look no further.

That's his point in the monster sized 48 word sentence that makes up the first two verses of chapter 2. With a chain of clauses that are all heading towards that one fundamental goal of presenting Jesus to everyone.

Take a look at how it works on the screen.

2 My goal is that they may be encouraged in heart and united in love, so that they may have the full riches of complete understanding, in order that they may know the mystery of God, namely, Christ, 3 in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.

Look, he wants them to be encouraged in heart and united. That's a given. For any church. But it's not his final goal. It's for a reason. He says so that they maybe have the full riches of complete understanding.

But even that's not the final goal.

He wants them to have understanding. in order that. They'll know the mystery of God.

Namely. That they'll know Christ.

Because in him, he says, are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge. All things made by him. All things made for him.

And whether you're Gentile or Jew, that includes you. That there's true satisfaction. That life finds all kinds of answers. In alignment with the lord Jesus.

And so the only way to grow is to grow in him. And not be led sideways. To other options.

See, here's the genie, the genie says you've got one wish, you say, well, I want divine wisdom to know what life's all about.

The Genie will say to you, it's all about serving the lord of the universe. And his name is Jesus. Just hang on to that. Because it's all you need to know.

And you're saying, man, I wasted my wish. Because I heard that from Paul already!

Because look, here's the essence of the passage. The essence of the whole letter.

Verses 4 to 7. Paul's telling us why he's been telling us this stuff. Which means it's a good point to pay attention.

4 I tell you this so that no one may deceive you by fine-sounding arguments. 5 For though I am absent from you in body, I am present with you in spirit and delight to see how disciplined you are and how firm your faith in Christ is. 6 So then, just as you received Christ Jesus as Lord, continue to live your lives in him, 7 rooted and built up in him, strengthened in the faith as you were taught, and overflowing with thankfulness.

He's saying, don't be fooled by anyone who wants to say different. He says I'm absent from you in body because I'm suffering here in prison. But don't be fooled.

Don't be fooled by anyone who says the Christian life is meant to be easy. That if you have enough faith you'll be rich and fabulous. Because the road is hard. Don't be fooled by anyone who says you've got to go back and take on Jewish rules and laws. Because we're past all that. As God's saints made holy by his Spirit.

Don't be fooled by fancy philosophers. Who make you feel dumb. Or political voices. That make you feel outnumbered and old fashioned.

Here's how you grow. If you've received Jesus as lord already, verse 6; just keep going the way you started. Even when things get tough. Keep on living our lives in him. Rooted and built up in him. Even if you're opposed. Strengthened in the faith we were taught. Even when people disagree. Or offer other options. And all the time, being very, very, thankful.