Sermon Index

Last week we began a "mini-series" based on the first chapter of Colossians. As we discovered, Paul addresses the theme of spiritual maturation in this letter to the First Church of the Colossians. I hope you were able to read all four chapters of this short letter to get a better sense of Paul's entire message. But even if you didn't, today we get the exciting opportunity to continue reading somebody else's mail! It is my hope that we will recognize and embody additional qualities and characteristics of the Christian faith. As we live out these virtues, we will provide a firm foundation for spiritual growth and maturity to take place.

And that's not always easy! After we talked about some of the virtues mentioned in Colossians 1 last week, someone shared this story with me. If your household is like ours, you'll appreciate this story. How many of you have at least one dog and cat in your home? See if you can identify with this tale of two tailed pets. The author of the story proposes that God created dogs and cats to help us develop certain significant virtues in our lives. Apparently in some apocryphal or Dead Sea Scroll passage, this amazing account has been discovered. It is written: Adam and Eve said, "God, when we were in the garden, you walked with us every day." "Now we do not see you anymore; we are lonesome here." "And it is difficult for us to remember how much you love us." And God said, "No problem! I will create a companion for you that will be with you forever! This companion will be a reflection of my love for you, so that you will know I love you, even when you cannot see me." "Regardless of how selfish and childish and unlovable you may be, this new companion will accept you as you are and will love you as I do." And God created a new animal to be a companion for them. And it was a good animal, and God was pleased. And the new animal was pleased to be with Adam and Eve, and it wagged its tail.

And they said, "But Lord, we have already named all the animals and all the good names are taken." And God said, "No problem! Because I have created this new animal to be a reflection of my love for you, its name will be a reflection of my own name, and you will call it DOG." And DOG lived them and was a companion and loved them. After a while, it came to pass that an angel came to God and said, "Lord, they have become filled with pride." "They strut around like peacocks and believe they are worthy of adoration." "DOG has indeed taught them that they are loved, but no one has taught them humility." And God said, "No problem! I will create for them a companion who will be with them forever and who will see them as they are." "The companion will remind them of their limitations, so they will know that they are not worthy of adoration."

And God created CAT to be a companion for them. And CAT would not obey them. And when they gazed into CAT'S eyes, they were reminded that they were not the Supreme Being. And they learned humility. And God was pleased. And Adam and Eve became more virtuous. And DOG wagged its tail. And CAT did not care one way or the other.

So, today we will consider three more virtues from Colossians 1. Last week we thought about patience, generosity, and forgiveness-and you shared in the proclamation of the message. Every time I said, "Christ in You!" You said, "The Promise of Growth!" Today when I say "Christ in You!" I want you to respond with the phrase from verse 27-"The Hope of Glory!" Let's practice-"Christ in You!" "The Hope of Glory!"

ANOTHER VIRTUE THAT PAUL TALKS ABOUT IS FAITHFULNESS. At the very beginning of the letter, Paul praises the Colossians for their "faith in Christ Jesus!" As we move into verses 15-20, which is thought to be a hymn to Christ, we get a description of this One who is worthy of praise. Paul says that Jesus is the "the firstborn of all creation, the head of the body, the One in whom all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell, the One who made it possible for our reconciliation."

Paul proclaims in verse 23 that these gifts are available to us as we "continue securely established and steadfast in the faith." Faithfulness or fidelity is another one of those good God-words that has lost some of its power and punch. Too many people use the words in a shallow, one-dimensional way to describe a "thou-shalt-not" directive about sexual behavior. But faithfulness is about much more than sex. It is about keeping promises-or better yet keeping covenant with God and our family members and friends. It is about being true to the people God has called us to be in this world-SO that we can live with integrity and offer our real selves to God and others. Faithfulness means that we attempt to live with no hidden agendas, no dark secrets, no surprises in our psychological or spiritual closets. As we well know, we live in a society and culture that often preaches the opposite message. "Hey, don't worry about being faithful!" "You don't want to get tied down or hung up or connected or committed!" "If you do, you might miss something!"

This message is based on the lie that the grass is always greener on the other side of the fence. We even see this fickleness in the entertainment world. Even rock stars and American Idols are groaning because it is becoming a challenge to develop a faithful following of fans. A shelf full of Grammy awards doesn't guarantee future success.

I heard a song on the radio the other day and turned it up because I thought my son liked it. He changed the station and moaned, "Oh dad, that's two or three months old now." And here we are in church, often singing songs that are two or three hundred years old. In a world where fickleness is the accepted norm, how do we "do" faithfulness? Again, we cannot do it on our own-we need help. As we read Paul's mail to the Colossians, we hear his exhortation to remain "securely established and steadfast ... without shifting from the hope promised by the Gospel!" Faithfulness is possible because it is the spirit of "Christ in You! The Hope of Glory!"

IN VERSE 24, PAUL DEMONSTRATES TREMENDOUS COURAGE. It seems remarkable how routinely Paul mentions suffering. But he just doesn't mention it-he goes so far as to say that he rejoices in it-he faces these situations with incredible courage! What kind of nut claims to be "rejoicing in his suffering?" What kind of a virtue can be made out of the hard-core experiences of human pain and suffering?

Did you read the last line of this letter? "I, Paul, write this greeting with my own hand; remember my chains-and grace be with you!" "Have a nice day! He probably put a little smiley face at the end of it like we do on our emails! Are you kidding me?

When you consider whether or not you are "courageous," what kinds of situations come to mind? Generally, we probably think about situations where our lives are on the line-some of you have been in the midst of war or have public service positions where there is much risk. But courage in the face of potential suffering can be seen in many more situations and circumstances-and can be much less dramatic than standing with Harry Potter to combat the forces of doom and darkness! Most of us will live our whole lives without pulling somebody from a burning building or sinking car or standing up to a gang of thugs or vanquishing some evil empire! But I suspect that real virtues like courage may develop as we recognize and renounce real problems around us.

Consider this traditional prayer from Kenya: "From the cowardice that dares not face new truth, from the laziness that is contented with half truth, from the arrogance that thinks it knows all truth, Good Lord, deliver me. Amen!" Could it be that all of us are challenged to be courageous in some way every day-challenged to stand up for truth or justice or to do or say the right thing.

It takes courage to be someone like Holocaust survivor, Ernie Marx, who spent the last 25 years of his life speaking out against hatred and intolerance. It takes courage to arrange for a funeral, like the one the NAACP had last week for "N" word-they buried it-they said we're not going to talk like that anymore! It takes courage to walk into a workplace and be willing to blow the whistle on someone. It takes courage to be a teacher and stand in a classroom where apathy and anxiety rule instead of energy and excitement. It takes courage to forego the rewards of salary and status in order to devote your time and energy to raising a family, developing good friendships, supporting the community.

There was an article in the paper last week that ranked the cities in our country in terms of volunteerism. To qualify as a volunteer, you only had to do it once in the previous year-and the best score was Minneapolis-St. Paul with 40%. My first reaction was, "Wow-isn't that great that all of those people are helping others!" My second reaction was "Wow-the national average is less than 30%--think of the potential energy for good that could be unleashed if more of us had the courage to get off the couch and care!"

And we can-courage is possible because it is "Christ in You! The Hope of Glory!" ALTHOUGH THERE ARE MANY MORE VIRTUES TO CONSIDER FROM COLOSSIANS, THE LAST ONE I'D LIKE TO LIFT UP IS IN VERSE 28. Paul points out that his passionate proclamation of the Gospel is tempered with a restrained refrain: "teaching everyone in all wisdom, so that we may present everyone mature in Christ." There it is again-another reference to spiritual growth and maturity. Is it possible that few virtues are as actively maligned or passively ignored as the virtue of restraint? Do you ever wonder why self-control is often valued less in our culture than self-expression?

Paul seems to want to make it clear that there are certain expectations and teachings that offer guidance and healthy limits for those who would follow Jesus. You may have heard the story about the car full of innocent-looking "women in black" of the Catholic persuasion who were pulled over by a police officer. The officer asked the driver, Why are you driving so slowly on a major highway?" The woman said, "I kept seeing all these signs with the number 20 on them and figured that was the speed limit." The officer said, "No, ma'am-that is the highway number." He looked at the other passengers, who all had white knuckles and panic-stricken looks on their faces. He asked, "What's wrong with all of you?" A shaky voice came from the back seat, "We just got off Highway 101."

Restraints-limits-are important! Just as we grow impatient and want it now, now, now-we often have trouble knowing when to stop and we want more, more, more! But there is an important distinction between practicing Christian restraint and being burdened under the weight of externally imposed constraints.
Our relationship with God through Christ is one that is grounded in grace and love.

Spiritual growth and maturity is possible because it is the spirit of "Christ in You! The Hope of Glory!"
Restraint is possible because it is "Christ in You! The Hope of Glory!"
Courage is possible because it is "Christ in You! The Hope of Glory!"
Faithfulness is possible because it is "Christ in You! The Hope of Glory!"
Tolerance is possible because it is "Christ in You! The Hope of Glory!"
Generosity is possible because it is "Christ in You! The Hope of Glory!"
Forgiveness is possible because it is "Christ in You! The Hope of Glory!"
All these things are possible because it is "Christ in You! The Hope of Glory!"