DEFEATING DISCOURAGEMENT

Acts 18:1-11 and I Cor. 2:3

We are living in what we might call, “Why I remember back when…” times.

You may say to your children or your children may say to your grandchildren something like…

Why I remember when the unemployment rate hit 9% and people were excited about how good things were. Actually, lots of people have just given up—they’re no longer looking for work so they don’t appear in the statistics.

Why I remember when recent college graduates with brand new degrees couldn’t find work.

Why I remember neighborhoods where houses were never on the market for more than two weeks, suddenly saw For Sale signs up for months.

Why I remember when people watched their pensions dwindle after years of looking forward to a comfortable retirement.

An old story tells of how the devil once began to examine his long career and decided that the time had come, at last, for his retirement. Like many about to retire he decided to clear out some things, so he had a yard sale featuring the tools he had used in his work of attempting to thwart God's plan.

A customer was looking over Satan's collection of tools and saw one that was exceptionally worn and exceptionally high-priced. The customer asked, "Why is this old tool so expensive?"

"That," Satan replied, "has always been one of my most effective tools. I hate to part with it."

"What's it called?," the customer asked.

"That," Satan said, "is discouragement. I've found it to be especially useful against Christians."

Satan held the tool for awhile, then he smiled wickedly.

"This tool has a lot of work left in it and so do I," he said as he took down the "For Sale" sign.

That fanciful story reveals one of the solemn truths of the Christian life. Discouragement is one of the perils we all have to face.

The story of Paul's first visit to Corinth is unique because we have his own commentary on his emotional and spiritual state when he came to the city. Listen to what he says,

“I came to you in weakness and fear, and with much trembling.”

Another translation renders the verse this way: “...when I came to you I was weak and trembled all over with fear.” And, still another says, “I came before you weak, nervous, and shaking with fear.”

In short, Paul was discouraged; he had been robbed of the courage he needed to keep going. Yet, when we look back with hindsight we realize he had a long and effective ministry in Corinth. Somehow he must have overcome his discouragement. How he got into such a discouraged condition and how God helped him get overcome is a remarkable study.

It reminds us that, with God's help, we can find the resources to keep going when we feel like quitting.

I

THE REASONS FOR DISCOURAGEMENT

How did Paul come to be in this situation? Several factors combined to generate this state of discouragement in Paul.

1. He was experiencing continuing assault upon his spiritual sensibilities.

1:1: Athens had shocked his religious sensibilities.

1:11 One writer had said it was easier to find a god there than to find a man.

1:12 Acts 17:16 describes his response. He was agitated to the very core of his being. Every idol was a reminder of the spiritual blindness of a world without Christ.

1:2. Corinth shocked his moral sensibilities.

1:21 The phrase "to live like a Corinthian" meant to live without moral restraint. The seaport town was "sin city" of the Mediterranean world. The temple of Aphrodite had more than 1000 temple prostitutes who made nightly forays into the city in the name of the goddess of love.

1:22 Imagine how the man who would write to the Corinthian Christians, "Don't you know the body is the temple of the Holy Spirit" felt has he witnessed this unbridled sensuality.

1:3 Our culture sometimes assaults our sensibilities.

1:31 Most of us aren't so callous that we are indifferent to the stories of violence against children and the elderly, of sexual immorality, of murder in our homes and on our streets. We are shocked by crimes of children against children, students against teachers and parents. We are dismayed that young people turn from the truth of Christianity and embrace the lies of the cults. We are distressed that our children are so filled with despair that they turn to drugs, suicide, or simply make no effort to learn in school.

1:32 Do you ever feel weary when you hear the statistics I quoted or think about the conditions in our cities and our suburbs? Then you can understand how what Paul saw in Athens and Corinth contributed to his discouragement.

2. He was experiencing physical fatigue.

2:1 Paul had been on the road almost constantly, preaching and establishing churches. In Philippi he had been beaten and imprisoned. In Thessalonica he had been nearly stoned to death. When Paul told the Corinthians he was weak, he may have simply meant he was physically exhausted.

2:2 You and I live in an exhausting age. "The Hurry Sickness" has impacted all of us. We were promised the advent of the computer would mean fewer hours on the job—it was a lie. Have you ever noticed if your bouts of discouragement seem to correspond with your periods of intense physical and mental labor? Chances are they do.

3. He was experiencing spiritual fatigue.

3:1 Paul had been constantly giving out, with very little opportunity to take in. There were no books on ministerial burnout in those days but Paul may have been suffering from it.

3:2 He experienced what must have seemed like failure. His recent visit to Athens ended with less than spectacular results. Luke summarizes the response to Paul’s preaching: “When they heard about the resurrection of the dead, some of them sneered, but others said, "We want to hear you again on this subject." At that, Paul left the Council. A few men became followers of Paul and believed.” (Acts 17:32) Note the ever-honest Luke’s word “few.”

3:3 It can be tough to keep giving out, to serve with little or no recognition. Some of you know that experience. Do you ever feel that fatigue?

4. He was experiencing fear for his safety.

4:1 The enemies of the Gospel were in hot pursuit, Paul may have believe they were close behind.

4:2 We don't face physical danger, but we are increasingly aware of the pressure placed on us to be silent about our faith.

5. He was experiencing loneliness.

5:1 Luke, his friend and physician, had remained behind in Philippi. Timothy, the young protégé, and Silas, the man who sang a duet with him in prison, were in Berea.

5:2 He was experiencing some of the greatest stress in his life and there was no one to talk to, no one to pray with, no one to speak a word of encouragement.

5:3 Loneliness seems to be a plague of our time. Busyness and distances conspire to keep us isolated. We can come to believe that we must face whatever the world throws our way without any human support.

II

THE REMEDY FOR DISCOURAGEMENT

In the seemingly disconnected events of Acts 18 God dealt with Paul's problem of discouragement.

1. God provided a change. (3)

1:1 We often think of Paul's "tentmaking" as a means of supporting himself, as a interruption in his important work of preaching.

I think his tent making was probably more therapeutic than economic or detrimental to his work.

1:2 Sometimes it helps to refocus our minds for a while, to take a break from the intensity of our work, whether that is work for the church or at the office.

(ILL) Several years ago, in another place of service, I needed a diversion, something to bring some relief from the pressures of the pastorate. Out of the blue came an opportunity to teach a basic math course for a junior college. Although a few of my high school math teachers would have needed CPR had they known I was teaching such a course, it came at a time when I desperately needed a break.

Have you made a place for something completely different in your life? It may be a hobby, a sport, a class, or anything else which lets you stretch new muscles, use the other side of your brain. Ask God to show you a diversion which will be both therapeutic and enjoyable.

2. God provided companions.

2:1 God led Paul to some new friends who were filled with enthusiasm for the Gospel. (v2)

I believe Aquila and Priscilla were already Christians when Paul found them. They shared something in common. They were different enough to make their friendship interesting. (Was Paul, who had lived so long on the road, now able to enjoy the comforts of a home, including good home-cooked meals?)

2:2 God gave him back some old friends. (5)

2:3 When you feel discouraged, that's the time to start looking for a friend. If you don't have one, make one. When your energy and enthusiasm is low, look for someone energetic and enthusiastic. God still helps us find the friends who can help us.

(ILL) Jon and I were unlikely friends. He was southern-born son of an art professor at a small town college and I the Yankee son of a pipefitter in a big-city steel mill. We had diverse interests and temperaments. The only thing we had in common was the fact we were non-Texans serving small churches in the heart of Texas cattle country. Yet, I believe we helped each other through tough times in our lives and ministries.

3. God provided a challenge. (9)

3:1 Discouragement brings with it the temptation to stop. Perhaps even Paul felt it. So God said, "Don't stop." This was not Paul's call to preach it was a call to keep preaching. Maybe this is why Paul would write to the Corinthians one of the finest defenses of preaching.

3: 2 When you get discouraged one of the first things you will feel is the temptation to stop. Most preachers I know need an occasional call to keep preaching. We don't talk about it much because so many non-preachers seem to think that one call is all you ever need.

You might ask, "Shouldn't I stop and leave it to God to call me again?" It takes a lot of energy to stop and even more energy to get going again. What was Paul doing when the challenge to keep preaching came? He was preaching.

Does this mean you should never take a break from the choir or Sunday school teaching? No. The danger is not in changing the form of your ministry, the danger is in dropping out altogether. And that is Satan's goal when he wields his tool of discouragement.

So when you are discouraged and thinking of quitting, keep your heart attuned to what God may say. He may say, "Change." He may say, "Keep going." He probably won't say, "Stop and do nothing."

4. God provided courage. (9)

4:1 In the midst of the activity of ministry, God spoke to Paul. This seems to have been the final treatment for his discouragement.

In a vision God called Paul to courage and then gave several reasons why he should not be afraid.

> He was assured of God's presence. The God who had provided friends would be by his side too.

> He was assured of his safety. Paul would face danger again but right now he needed a break, God gave it to him. Although Paul was eventually beheaded in Rome, for a while, at least, there were no more beatings, stonings, or other physical assaults. Sometimes God says "enough is enough;” sometimes he calls us to endure. While Paul would face assaults again, this respite was enough to remind him that “every man is immortal until his work is done.” Whatever comes our way, he gives the grace to face what comes.

> He was promised success. Despite incredible odds, including a scandalous moral climate and opposition from the religious establishment, Paul's preaching would touch people and they would be changed. Even in Corinth the Gospel would make an impact.

It is difficult to look at a tough, pleasure-loving city and realize that God has people ready to respond to the gospel; sometimes it is equally difficult to look at the sophisticated, complacent, affluent suburb and realize that God has people ready to respond to the gospel.

But he does. Take courage. Don't give up. Keep sharing the good news.

It might not come to us as it came to Paul, but the message is the same. Throughout the ages God says to the weary laborer in his Kingdom, “Don’t be discouraged, we’re in this thing together.”

Bu what if we’re not talking the work of the Kingdom? What if we’re talking about some other challenge, some other elusive goal? Pursuing it without success can be draining and frustrating—discouraging. You may feel ready do give up. Don’t God wants us to take care of our families, to overcome the persistent habit that controls us, to be better than we ever thought we could be. When we face discouragement in pursuing these good goals, God will be there for us.

CONCLUSION

There are times when God's most effective servants are gripped by discouragement. If you think back to the illustration I used at the beginning, that experience of discouragement may mean that you're so effective in serving God that you demand Satan's efforts to try to stop you.

I know what it means to be discouraged so I don't want to treat it lightly. I know it is discouraging to prepare a sermon and only a handful come to hear it, so I understand if you are discouraged when you prepare a lesson or a special program and only a few show up.

In light of Paul's experience and the fact that every one of us faces discouragement from time to time, let me recommend the following steps in dealing with discouragement. I think the principles apply whether we’re talking about doing the work of the church or building your life, family, career.

1. With God's help find and do something which will exercise some physical, mental, or spiritual muscles that haven't been exercised for a while.

2. Turn to your friends for encouragement and strength. Always be ready to let God introduce you to new friends.

3. Ask God to renew your challenge in an unmistakable way; ask him to help you be clear about how you can best pursue your goal.

4. Boldly seek a new vision, not of what you may do for God, but of what God is doing and will keep doing for you. Knowing that God is at work in your life, perhaps behind scenes, is a powerful antidote to discouragement.

5. Remember that your bout of discouragement may only be the prelude to success and a period of effective service.

*******

Jesus, Lord of the church,

you who appeared to Paul to encourage him when he was discouraged,

speak to those struggling today,

to those who have already drafted their spiritual letters of resignation.

Help them to keep on—

give them new energy for the ongoing challenges,

companions who will cheer them on,

a vision of what you are doing despite outward appearances,

and a sense of your pleasure and presence.

We pray for this in your holy Name.

Amen.

[Some of the sermons which appear on these pages are in a simple manuscript format. This sermon uses a different form. Like all outlines, it is designed to show the flow of thought and the subordination of thoughts in the text.]

Notes on Church Music From Someone You Don't Want to Hear Sing

Years ago, when both my sons were still at home, they would occasionally offer observations about the music at our Sunday services.  Often, there comments would be something like, “Well, Dad, this morning every song was from 18^th century,” or “Today, we didn’t get into the 20^th century even once.”  They’d learned to look at the information at the bottom of the page to find out when a song was composed and were too often surprised to discover that George Washington could have sung the hymn the church had sung that morning. 

Whenever a congregation is comprised of older Christians, I suppose those Christians will inevitably turn to the old familiar hymns and songs to give expression to their faith.  In the early 1990s I asked some church musicians, “What do you think of contemporary Christian music?”  The most outspoken of the group, who had been involved in church music for at least three decades, said, “Oh, I like Andraé Crouch.”  As it happen, I also like Crouch, but his career began in the late 1960s and his earliest album had appeared twenty years before I asked my question.  It seemed an unusual definition of “contemporary.”

I am familiar with most of the old songs.  I know about the lives of people like Augustus Toplady (author of Rock of Ages and such a mean-spirited Calvinist you wouldn’t want him as a pastor) and I know what it means to “raise my Ebenezer,” but I sometimes wish for something a little fresher and I certainly sympathize with the younger members of our congregations.

Church music has been the subject of so many discussions, seminars, books, and magazine articles that it would be hard to keep up with all being said.  I am not a musician but I don’t think the “worship wars” have reached a truce.  Rather, the antagonists have simply entrenched themselves on different strongholds.  Think of the number of church signs you see announcing  a “contemporary service” and a “traditional service.”  This is not the place for an exhaustive look at what the Bible says about music but I do want to make some observations, based on what Paul says in Colossians and elsewhere.

àPaul seems to see the music of the church as a blend of the old and the new, the traditional and the contemporary (from "psalms" to "spiritual songs"). What is important to Paul is the content and character of what is sung. He wants it to be scriptural and spiritual. It should be rooted in scripture and promote spiritual health.

Some have been too narrow in applying this principle.  In the 16" century, Swiss reformer John Calvin decreed that churches should only sing the psalms and for almost two-hundred years the Reformed churches sang only from the Psalter.  In the same century, German reformer Martin Luther was composing hymns which reflected Biblical themes in the language the people.  I think Luther had a clearer vision for what Paul had in mind.  Two centuries later Wesley asked "Why should the devil have all the good tunes?" and church music really began to change.

In any case, we can be thankful there have always been those who have kept us rooted to the Scripture as they have helped us sing out our faith.

à Paul says nothing about style, nothing.  As a consequence the style of church music over 21 centuries has been rich and varied; and often changing. Yet, change is not always easy to accept.

During the 90's there was a conference at a college in Northern Michigan where a number of church leaders met to discuss changes in church music. One group of pastors was particularly incensed by the introduction of what they considered to be "worldly" or inappropriate instruments into the churches. Another group, while appreciative of their denomination's musical tradition, felt these new instruments might help reach a new generation. The conference ended with the participants agreeing to respect one another despite their differences. They allowed the "peace of Christ" to rule in their hearts.

By the way, I should tell you this conference took place in the 1890s and the instruments which caused such controversy were the saxophone, the guitar, and the piano.  As late as 1903 the pope declared the piano unfit for use in a Christian worship service.  We’re so accustomed to the piano in church that some might believe Euodia and Syntyche’s squabble was over who got to play on Sunday morning.  (Philippians 4:2)

Beloved hymn writer Fanny Crosby, author of "He Hideth My Soul" and "To God Be the Glory," originally published her works under an assumed name because some people reacted so negatively to her new style of music.

We can be thankful there have always been pioneers, like Luther, Wesley, Watts, Sankey, Crosby, and others with a vision for celebrating their faith in song.

à In I Corinthians 14:26 Paul mentions those who come to church with "a song" apparently inspired in some way by the Holy Spirit. Although problems at the Corinthian church made is necessary for Paul to limit the number of such songs that could be used in a worship service, what he says, at the least, is reminding us that from the beginning God has "gifted" certain people in the area of music. These Christians, some with formal training and some without, have blessed us with their writing, their composing, and their performance.

But this doesn’t mean church music must be in the hands of the professionals, those who have trained at the conservatory.  God has honored the words of those part-time poets who have put their faith into words in journals or diaries.   In 1873, in the depth of his grief at the loss of his two daughters in a shipwreck, Horatio Spafford wrote a poem to express his faith in God.  That poem became the hymn, “It Is Well With My Soul.”  He was a businessman, not a professional musician.

àWorship is not about me.  Too many Christians complain because the worship isn’t to their liking.  I’ve heard the proponents of “traditional” worship and the proponents “contemporary” worship opine that only their preferred form of worship is “real” worship.  What they really mean is, “That kind of worship is different, I don’t like it, it can’t be worship.”  Save us from that kind of self-centeredness.  Sadly, I’ve heard church musicians take similar stands.  They like only one form of music so they aren’t going to incorporate any other form in their worship planning.  They should know better.

Do we have to sing to worship?  I don’t know.  I do know that singing seems a natural outflow of our deepest emotions.  Mothers (and fathers) will sing to their infants even if their singing is so bad it would go viral You Tube after they are voted off the first audition show of the new season of American Idol.  They sing, not because they are gifted singers, but because of the way they feel about the squirming bundle they are rocking to sleep or trying to comfort.  Singing is a part of who we are as humans.

Still, any activity, singing, Scripture reading, and even preaching that becomes perfunctory contributes little to worship.  Better not to sing than to sing because we’re supposed to sing at this point. 

I learned recently of a “home church,” where the participants have been meeting for years without singing.  Now, they are beginning to introduce the occasional praise song into their meetings.  Makes sense to me.  These young Christians have long dedicated themselves to looking into the Scripture, discovering what it says about the glory of God and the richness of his salvation.  Now, with those truths planted deep in their hearts, they want some way to express their gratitude and praise.

DRESSED FOR THE OCCASION

Text: Colossians 3:12-17

 In the preceding verses, Paul has talked about those things that Christians are to "put off."  Now he talks about their new wardrobe, what they are to "put on."

*************

If I were so inclined I might be tempted to believe there was a special detachment of demonic beings sent to hide shoes, Bibles, and keys sometime between Saturday night and Sunday morning.

You know you have at least six pairs of black shoes but none of the six shoes you've found match any of the other five.

Frodo's problems in Lord of the Rings pale beside the task of getting Billy to let you wash his face and comb his hair or convincing your eighth-grade daughter that brushing her teeth is not caving into a male- dominated culture's enslavement.

Sometimes it's a classic Catch-22 situation. You get dressed first so you can then help your children, but by the time you've look under beds for missing Harry Potter shoes or the Princess Fiona sunshades you look like you slept on a park bench.  Or, you can get your children dressed first before you turn attention to yourself; but, then, when you're finally dressed, you discover your children decided to wash the dog so he would look good for Sunday, too.

Getting yourself and a baby dressed for church has a Gothic quality to it. You look perfect in that silk blouse your husband/infant-daughter gave you for Mother's Day—after about two dozen hints—as you dress the baby in an outfit so cute even the stuffiest deacon couldn't resist her. You're ready, she's ready— with just enough time to make it to Sunday school on time for once. Your husband is outside warming up the car so the baby won't get a chill—hey, June mornings in Ohio can be brutal. You pick up the baby, snuggle her close, and start toward the door. At this point she decides she didn't really want the last couple of ounces of formula she had that morning.

Paul was no fashion maven but he wanted the Colossians to be properly dressed for church. He wanted the Colossians to embrace the virtues which would enrich their church life and their impact on the world at large.

What he has to say to them will remind us that worship and witness requires lives which reflect crucial virtues.

Let's join the Colossians this Lord's Day morning as we begin...

GETTING READY FOR CHURCH

When I was in school in New Orleans, we were members of the First Baptist Church. Driving to church from the seminary took us through a neighborhood near the corner of St. Charles and Napoleon where lots of people walked to church. There were little girls dressed in beautiful pleated white dresses, women wearing feathered hats, and men in fine suits. It was evident these men and women took going to church seriously. The South, in fact, may be the last stronghold of the notion that going to church means dressing for the occasion. And, I'm sure, even that is changing.

In our more casual culture we don't divide our wardrobe into "everyday" clothes and "Sunday-go=to-meetin" clothes.  And that’s probably just as well.  Paul would never turn away anyone because of their clothes but he does remind the Colossian Christians that there were certain items which every Christian ought to "wear" to church. (12)

These garments or "virtues" reflect the identity they have through Christ. Such virtues are proper attire for

"God's chosen people"- Those who had been without spiritual identity but now are God's people.

"Holy"-People set apart for God's own purposes.

"Dearly loved"-Those for whom Christ died, for whom the Cross is a continuing reminder of the depth of God's love for them.

How are such people to be dressed?

Just as Christians are to strip off certain negative characteristics, they are to clothe themselves with other positive characteristics. Listen to the elements of this spiritual wardrobe. There is to be...

·                     "Compassion" also described as "tenderheartedness" or "tenderhearted mercy." This describes an attitude toward others. It is an attitude which would keep us from rushing to judgment.

·                     "Kindness" Paul probably has in mind the practical outworking of "compassion." Not "random" acts of kindness but thoughtful acts toward others.

·                     "Humility" Depicts an attitude toward ourselves. It involves "lowliness of mind" toward ourselves. The false teachers did little to promote genuine humility.

•                     "Gentleness" also described as "meekness." This is not weakness but reflects strength under control. Gentleness is displayed by the one who could 'best' another but does not.

•             "Patience" A quality which does not try to rush another on the road to growth and maturity; which does not feel the need to hurry God along in what he is doing.

When these virtues are present we will practice forbearance and forgiveness (13). This is a not so subtle reminder that the folks in the pews are not perfect; we will sometimes hurt others with our words and actions and we will sometimes be hurt by the words and actions of others. The way of forbearance and forgiveness is the way to manage this reality.

Forbearance begins with a willingness to "make allowance for each other's faults," a task made especially difficult when dealing with those who see themselves as having no faults.

The demonstration of this attitude is forgiveness. Paul's indicates this forgiveness is to have a fairly large breadth, "whatever grievances you may have."

McDonald explains how these qualities work themselves out in our lives.

"The forbearing person will remain calm whatever he provocation, and will keep clear of unkind reactions. The forgiving person must go even further, and wipe clean from his heart all bitterness and irritation. Forbearing one another and forgiving one another are then the high charge of Christian duty—the outworking of the virtues put on."

The model for our life of forgiveness is Christ who has so readily forgiven us.

In finishing his directions about what the Colossian Christians are to put on, Paul says, "And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity."

It's hard to imagine Paul listing Christian virtues without mentioning love. Here he gives love a key role in the Christian's wardrobe. Love is like the sash or belt which holds the varied articles of clothing together. Love is the virtue which controls the expression of all the others.

And love is also the virtue which holds the church together.

A jacket and tie might be optional for a properly dressed Christian at church. These virtues aren't optional. If you ever hear of a church spoiled by contention and strife, if you ever hear of a church which has split, you may be sure a significant number of people in that church have abandoned these virtues.

Now that we're dressed we're ready to go to church. Once we've arrived there are some goals to keep in mind as we are...

II

CONDUCTING OURSELVES AT CHURCH

(15-16)

Recent archeological discoveries suggest that the first building actually functioning as a church may date from the end of the first century. That means church buildings were in use about two hundred years earlier than previously thought. Interestingly, that first-century church was a remodeled house.

What Paul has to say to the Colossians and to us aren't instructions for behavior inside a church building. They are instructions for the people who are the church. What does he have to say?

1.  While we are being the church we should make "peace" a priority. (3:15)

We often think of "peace" as inner tranquility, calmness, freedom from worry. Christ gives such peace but that is not the kind of peace Paul has in mind here. This peace is the peace generated by Christ who has brought together such a diverse group of people as the new people of God (3:11).

This peace results from Christ's work and is to be a natural part of being in the Body of Christ.

This peace is to "rule" in our hearts. The word means "arbitrate" or "umpire." Paul is saying that any behavior on our part ought to be weighed in light of its impact on the peace, unity, or harmony of the church. This is not "peace at any cost" for that isn't real peace; this is a spirit which is willing to lay aside personal grievances and resentments for the sake of peace. At times it may even mean surrendering our "rights" for the sake of the church's unity. Paul modeled this when he wrote to the Corinthians that he was willing to give up eating meat if eating it offended his fellow Christians.

Henry links the two ideas of peace when he writes, "We are called to peace, to peace with God as our privilege, and peace with our brothers as our duty."

How can we live like this?

The virtues which Paul listed earlier ready us for the task of making peace our priority.

2.  While we are being the church we should be enriched by the wisdom of "the Word of Christ". The "word of Christ" is probably both the word about Christ and the word from Christ. It is to permeate the church's corporate life. This word is the source of real wisdom, real insight, real understanding. As a church we are to be Word-enriched as we

It would be hard to underplay the importance of the teaching ministry of the church. Unless we pass along what Christ taught and what has been taught about Christ the very future of the church is threatened.

As a church we should seek to make clear what we believe. Too many of Christians are confused about the doctrines of the church. I've known some church members who are so poorly grounded in Christian teaching that they actually believe the distortions of Christian doctrine in the media are accurate. As a consequence, they are ashamed and afraid to declare their allegiance to Christ.

The church has an obligation to each new generation to proclaim and explain what it believes. Only then will we give believes confidence and hope in the midst of challenging times.

As a church we are to be Word-enriched as we admonish.

It maybe just a little arbitrary to separate the tasks of teaching and admonishing because the Bible never shows the church teaching simply for the sake of passing on knowledge, there is always an effort to apply the truth to life.

In any case, I think this is what Paul has in mind here. Some translations render "admonish" as "advise." Ultimately, I believe Paul sees the church drawing from the wells of God's word to challenge and correct God's people.

We need challenge and correction to our erroneous ideas and behavior.

How do the virtues Paul wants us to "wear" to church play a role as the church carries out its ministry of teaching and admonishing believers?

We need patience and forbearance as we deal with those who have had the principles of an erroneous world-view so deeply ingrained into their thinking.

We need compassion, gentleness, and forgiveness as we deal with those believers who have fallen prey to the temptations of an unsympathetic culture.

We need humility as we are confronted by our own erroneous thinking and our own failures. As a church we are to be Word-enriched as we sing.

Throughout the history of the church the faith of believers has found expression in song, songs born out of gratitude for what Christ has done for his people.

The three terms Paul suggest the source and the character of what the early Christians sang.

1. "Psalms "—The Psalms were regularly sung in Jewish worship. Many of those psalms were seen as foretelling the coming of Christ. The use of the psalms reminds us that the church never lost touch with its roots. This also suggests the importance of the content of our songs. They should be scriptural in content and message.

2. "Hymns"— Matthew's Gospel (26:30) refers to Jesus and his disciples singing "a hymn" at the conclusion of the Passover meal. This would have been one of the Hallel Psalms (115-118). So, "hymn" may be synonymous with "psalms" but not necessarily in the context of Colossians. These "hymns" may have been compositions by gifted Christian writers and composers. Some may have even been preserved in the New Testament. For instance, many believe Colossians 1:15-20 was such an early Christian hymn.

3. "Spiritual songs "—These may have been simple musical pieces inspired by the Holy Spirit. They may have been spontaneous expressions of the Spirit's activity in the heart of a believer. F F Bruce defines them as "unpremeditated words sung 'in the Spirit' voicing praise and holy aspiration."

Whatever the source and content of these songs, Paul reminds us that our singing is directed "to God." This is not an excuse for church music to be shoddy or ill-prepared but it does remind us that worshipful singing is not the same as a performance on a stage.

If we are properly dressed for the occasion, when we worship in church, whether we are singing a centuries-old hymn or a chorus fresh from the publisher, we will focus our praise on God, we will rejoice in who he is and what he has done.

And when the song ends, enriched by God's word, we will be ready to step out of the church...

III

INTO THE WORLD

                For each of us there comes a time when we must leave the Bible study, the sweet music, and the fellowship of like-minded people to step back into the world. What do we do then?

One thing we don't do is rush home to change clothes. The same virtues we brought to church we are to take into the world.

Paul puts is so well, "And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him."

This command contains a principle for living in the world.

Every action and word is to be done in the name of Christ. Jesus is Lord both in the church and outside the church.

This command gives us a perspective for seeing what we do in the world.

This new perspective sanctifies a variety of what might be considered mundane behavior while it sets boundaries on behavior which would dishonor Christ.

Some of those to whom Paul wrote would walk away from the Christian fellowship were they were treated with respect and equality and go to places where they were treated as drudges. As they carried this new perspective with them, they would no longer allow the demeaning attitudes of those for whom they worked to make them forget that they were part of "God's chosen people, holy and dearly loved." For that they could give thanks to God.

At the same time, they would approach the most menial of tasks with a fresh vision. No longer were they simply sweeping streets, mucking out stables, selling cheap pottery, they were finding ways to bring honor to Christ.

All of this is a result of our relationship with Christ, the relationship which belongs to all who seek to live their lives "in his name." One writer has summed it up in this way:

"Jesus' Name will hallow every ordinary thing and give significance to the small and meaning to the monotonous.

"As Jesus he belongs to the real world of human concerns. For he worked as a carpenter and lived in an ordinary home. He knows all about the talk and toil of everyday life, and he showed us how life is to be lived and its affairs conducted. It is this same Jesus who in the Christian's Lord. In the everyday world where we labor and love, we place ourselves under the lordship of Christ. To do anything which would bring disgrace on the fair name of Christ is to compromise his sovereignty. Rather, we are to aim every day and in every way to honor the name of the Lord Jesus."

CONCLUSION

There's nothing like putting on a set of fresh, clean, new clothes. It makes you feel great, ready for anything.

Paul invites us to put on a set of clothes which will make us ready for the great tasks which belong to "God's chosen people."

We will be ready to worship and to witness.

Are you dressed for the occasion?

HOW TO LIVE NOW THAT YOU'RE DEAD, PART II--OFF WITH ANGER

Colossians 3:5-11

I’ve become used to the church receiving anonymous letters.  Most often they contain some word of alarm.  It may be about a bill Congress is about to pass.  The letter may be claim knowledge of a conspiracy at the heart of American government.  Sometimes the writer may be attacking some leader who “isn’t what he appears to be;”  it may tell me the President isn’t really an American citizen (it took several years to forge a birth certificate) or that Billy Graham is agent of Rome (the one in Italy, not Georgia).  So, I was a little surprised last week when I received an anonymous letter with a rational, reasonable prayer request.

The letter pointed out that last year about this time there were several murders in the Columbus area.  There were nine homicides in one two week period.  The coming of the hot weather seemed to lead to an outbreak of violence.  So, this anonymous Christian was encouraging churches to pray for a more peaceful, less violent summer. 

We do seem to be living in an angry time.

When the economy is going through a tough time, people often succumb to anger.  It happens at the work place as the stress and tension of facing possible job loss or failure puts people on edge.   Men and women facing accumulating bills and financial stress often strike out verbally or even physically against their children or their spouses.

Not everyone who becomes angry will shoot up an office, restaurant, or shopping mall but anger is destructive all the same.  And not just destructive against the objects of our anger.  Western writer Louis L’Amour puts these words into a character’s mouth, "Anger is a killing thing: it kills the man who angers, for each rage leaves him less than he had been before - it takes something from him."

Anger can prompt us to lose control, to do something wrong in our rage. 

Anger can worm its way into our souls and become resentment and bitterness.  It can fill us with an unforgiving spirit.  It can cause us to forget that we stand in the need of grace, to forget that we are capable of action that might prompt God to a righteous anger toward us, if he were  not a God of great grace and persistent patience. 

Paul knows the danger of anger.  He knows that Christians are susceptible to the power of anger and he also knows we can overcome its power.

AS WE SEEK TO BE CHRISTLIKE

IN A SPIRITUALLY UNSYMPATHETIC CULTURE

WE ARE TO STRIP OURSELVES OF CONSUMING ANGER.

(8-9)

Of course, we aren’t always ready to admit our anger is wrong.   Even in an age as obsessed with the sensual as ours seems to be, most Christians would say behavior like adultery is wrong.  They might not be so quick to condemn the expressions of anger which Paul lists here. 

Strangely, even those who aren’t especially inclined to pursue a Biblical lifestyle, know the danger of our angry age.  Listen to this warning from a prominent social critic:

"I consider myself some sort of liberal, but I don't like where liberalism has gone in this country in the last twenty years. It's become mindless-medallion-wearing and placard-bearing. It's a cover also for a great deal of resentment and hatred, these terrible outbursts from people whose principles are affronted when you disagree with them."

Although he was writing about only one group Saul Bellow’s comments could apply to conservatives and many others as well.

The approving attitude toward revenge which dominated the Greco-Roman society would have created a real market for those tee-shirts that say, “I don’t get mad, I get even.”

But Paul calls the Colossian Christians to eradicate from their lives those things which marked their earlier lives, including those rampant emotions directed toward others. 

1.  anger--the fundamental emotion of negative feelings toward another.  One commentator suggests that when this emotion is present, “the heart is like a roaring furnace.”

2.  rage--your control is lost in rage.  It is one thing to feel anger toward someone, it is another to lose all control of those feelings.

3.  malice--the feelings feed the plotting of evil against the person.  The word suggests Paul was not just talking about a momentary burst of emotion, like you feel when someone cuts you off in traffic.  He had in mind feelings that were stoked and kept alive. 

4.  slander--the anger takes the form of words, particularly words which convey a false impression about the other person. 

While a condemnation of what we would call swearing is contained in this phrase, it is primarily directed at abusive language which denigrates another. 

5.  The warning about lying (Do not lie to each other) may reflect a further progression of the anger. Slander becomes out and out lying.  Kim and Patterson found that some 91% of Americans lie regularly.  Many of those lies are born out of a desire to destroy the reputations of those with whom we are angry.

While the Bible recognizes a place for what we sometimes call “righteous indignation,” it warns that such anger can become twisted into personal vindictiveness.

When we Christians give way to such emotions we risk losing our credibility as witnesses. 

While I was taking a seminar from a moderately well-known evangelist he proudly told of an incident which took place when he was leaving a Central American country following a crusade.  A guard at the airport asked him to open his suitcase for inspection.  The evangelist was incensed at being treated this way.  So, he angrily opened his case and began emptying it.  Even after the guard told him he could move on, this representative of Christ continued to elaborately lay out its contents—including his dirty underwear.  While he thought he was putting a minor bureaucrat in his place, his anger only succeeded in embarrassing his missionary hosts and hurting the cause of Christ.

Can you imagine Christ behaving in such a manner?

With the example of Christ in mind, Paul tells the Colossians that they are to take such attitudes and strip them off like a filthy garment which no longer fits.  That tee-shirt which say “I don’t get mad, I get even” is to be tossed aside for one which says, “I do get mad…but I’m learning to forgive.”

Keep this in mind.  Paul was writing to a variety of people.  He may have been writing to a slave whose back bore the marks of an unjust beating.  Perhaps his words were written to a slave girl who had been abused and misused by her master.  Maybe they were written to a man who had lost his job because he had aligned himself with the church.  He may have been writing to a young woman whose Jewish parents had expelled her because she had embraced Jesus as the Messiah.  To these men and women he said, “Lay aside your anger.”

But how do we do it?   There are a few things we can do.  When you seek to overcome the problem of anger, it may help to keep these guidelines in mind:

1.  Begin by admitting anger is a choice.  Have you ever heard a child make an excuse for striking out at a playmate by saying, “He made me mad?”  Maybe you’ve pointed out that the friend doesn’t have that kind of power.  Yet, we sometimes make the same excuses.  If we are really mature, we know our anger is a choice.

2.  Guard against allowing anger at a situation becoming anger at a person.  Sometimes when we are angry at a situation, a policy, a state of affairs, we try to put a face on the problem—we personalize it.  So we look for a person to blame, to be the object of our anger.  This can be unfair and unwise.

3.  Don’t make your happiness, contentment, or sense of self-worth dependent on others.  When they fail, as they will, you may become outraged and vindictive.  They have disappointed you and caused you pain, so they have to pay.   It’s a self-defeating way to live.

4.  Try to be truly humble.  In Romans 12, Paul urged his readers:  “Don’t think of yourselves more highly than you ought to think.”  Sometimes we get angry because we think we should be exempt from the hassles of life.  We shouldn’t be caught in traffic jams.  What we want should never be on back order.  At a restaurant our meal should never be late, overcooked, undercooked, or poorly seasoned.  When we face these common problems, we get angry.  A dose of humility is a good antidote to that behavior.

5.  Learn to verbalize your anger respectfully, honestly, and constructively.  Use clear, unembellished statements that begin with “I,” not “you.”  Something like, “I feel worried when you don’t let me know you’re going to be late.”  Not, “When you don’t call, it proves you’re a selfish pig.”

Okay, we all know this—but sometimes we just say the wrong thing. We spit fuel onto the fire. 

But that can be said about all of these guidelines.  We know they contain good advice but we don’t live up to them.  We let our anger get the upper hand. 

Once again, Paul seems to be asking the impossible.

 How do we deal with a temper with a low flash-point?  How do we keep the memory of a past hurt from continuing to manifest itself in seething anger toward the world at large?

In our hearts we know the only way we will be able to lay aside such anger, would be to somehow manage our anger as Christ would. 

This reality brings us to the key point Paul is making, whether he’s talking about our sexuality or our anger.

AS WE SEEK TO BE CHRISTLIKE

IN A SPIRITUALLY UNSYMPATHETIC CULTURE

WE MUST OPEN OURSELVES TO

A TRANSFORMING RELATIONSHIP WITH GOD

(9b-11)

Paul comes to the heart of his challenge to the Colossians.  He wants them to know that Jesus Christ has ushered them into a relationship with God that will so transform them they will be able to live with integrity in the midst of their culture.

The spiritual reality of what happened in Christ ought to lead to changed behavior.  It demands our cooperation but our efforts alone will not be sufficient.  We need God’s own help.

God’s work in us accomplishes more than merely "turning over a new leaf";  God’s work in us produces Christlikeness.

The esoteric knowledge offered by the false teachers actually made individuals less like Christ (because it filled them with pride and haughtiness).  True God-given knowledge (which is knowledge born out of a relationship) makes them more like Christ. 

This transforming relationship, which begins the moment we trust Christ, is the birthright of every believer.  In this process we move ever closer to becoming what we are.  We possess a “new self” and through God’s Spirit we are able to live like it.

The term for this process is “sanctification,” that doctrine which reminds impatient believers that even though we become saints in an instant it takes time to become saintly.

While the false teachers who were stalking the Colossian church taught that God had his “favorites” Paul reminds his readers that this relationship may be experienced by all who trust Christ.  He confirms this by pointing to the kinds of people who were on that road to Christlikeness.

Here there is no Greek or Jew, circumcised or uncircumcised, barbarian,

Scythian, slave or free, but Christ is all, and is in all.

Certainly Paul is saying there no basis for racial pride in what God has done for us.  We are all products of God's great grace and the trophies of God’s grace come from every ethnic, social, and economic grouping. 

Let’s look at just one example.  Paul mentions the Scythians.  Who were they?

Paul is referring to a group of people who, in the 7^th century BC, invaded Asia and the Fertile Crescent, including Palestine.  They were known for “their violence and their arrogance.”  Tertullian reported that they drank the blood of the first enemy killed in battle, that they made bowls of skulls and napkins of scalps.  Josephus wrote:  “The Scythians delight in murdering people and are little better than wild beasts.”  Several translations render the word as “savages.”

Paul is saying that even such persons as these may be redeemed and remade by the power of God’s Spirit. 

To appreciate the impact of what Paul wrote, imagine him writing a letter to remind us that the most fanatic members of Al Qaeda can be transformed into those whose manner and behavior is like Christ’s.

Now, imagine that friend, neighbor, or relative you’ve been praying for.  Have you come to a point of wondering if they are beyond the reach by God’s grace?  Have you begun to doubt if even God’s Spirit could transform them? 

Or, perhaps you’ve begun to wonder if you will ever have final victory over those temptations which keep you from living your Christian life with integrity.

Put aside those doubts.  If you’ve opened your life to him, God is constantly at work to transform you.

We have the assurance that "Christ is everything in all of you" (NET).  He is our source of hope and salvation, there is no other.  He will transform us, even in the midst of our culture, if we open our lives to him.

*********

If we open our lives to the transforming power of God we will become more and more like Christ.

Are you frustrated as you struggle to live with spiritual integrity?  Don’t depend on your own strength and resolve.  Allow God to do his work in you.

Have you postponed professing your faith in Christ because you believe you must change your own life?  You’re taking on an impossible task.  Open yourself to let God mold you to be like Christ.