“As ye have therefore received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk ye in him: rooted and built up in him, and stablished in the faith, as ye have been taught, abounding therein with thanksgiving.” Colossians 2:6-7 (read Colossians 2:1-10)
The Apostle Paul warns his hearers, both at Colosse and around the world today, to beware “lest any man should beguile you with enticing words” (v. 4). Much is preached and proclaimed in the name of Christianity which is nothing of the sort. The messages may be persuasive and enticing, but the result — even if the spokesmen are well-meaning — is to deceive and take people away from saving faith in Jesus Christ!
The believers at Colosse had heard the Gospel message from Epaphras. He had proclaimed to them that Jesus Christ, the very Son of God and Creator of all things, had atoned for all their sins and won their reconciliation to God the Father by suffering and dying upon the cross for their sins and rising again on the third day. Through faith in Jesus they had “redemption through his blood, even the forgiveness of sins” (1:14). Through faith in Jesus, God the Father had “delivered” them “from the power of darkness” and “translated [them] into the kingdom of his dear Son” (1:13). For the sake of Jesus’ shed blood, they were now counted “holy and unblameable and unreproveable in [God’s] sight” (1:19-22). And as a result, they had a certain hope of the everlasting blessings of heaven (1:5).
Therefore, Paul lovingly wrote to the believers in Colosse, “As ye have therefore received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk ye in him: rooted and built up in him, and stablished in the faith, as ye have been taught, abounding therein with thanksgiving” (2:6-7). They had all they needed in Jesus their Savior — nothing more was required of them in order to be saved.
Paul warned them: “Beware lest any man spoil you through philosophy and vain deceit, after the tradition of men, after the rudiments of the world, and not after Christ. For in him dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead bodily. And ye are complete in him, which is the head of all principality and power” (v. 8-10).
The apostle did not want them to be stripped of their faith and assurance in Jesus by human doctrines dealing with what foods they should eat, on what days they should worship and regarding spiritual knowledge and angelic intermediaries (cf. 2:16-18). They were complete in Jesus; for He fulfilled all of the righteous demands of God’s holy law in their stead, and He suffered and died and paid in full for all their sins and rose again on the third day. Through faith in Jesus they had forgiveness for all sins and the certainty of life everlasting! And, through faith in Jesus, we too have forgiveness for all our sins and the certainty of a place in God’s eternal kingdom!
The Old Testament ordinances dealing with sabbath days, holy days and foods were only a shadow of things to come and were to point us to Christ (2:17). Now that Christ has come and accomplished our salvation, it would be foolish to return to a mandatory observance of mere shadows and give up the blessings won for us by our Savior!
Rather, we should continue in the faith in Messiah Jesus, as taught to us in the Holy Scriptures. We should continue in the hope and assurance that He has redeemed us from all sin by the shedding of His holy and precious blood for us upon the cross. We have all we need in Jesus — we are complete in Him!
O dearest Jesus, thank You for fulfilling all the holy demands of the law for me, and thank You for paying the just penalty for my sins that I might have forgiveness and life everlasting with You in heaven. Graciously keep me in the true faith and let no false teaching rob me of Your blessings. Amen.
[Scripture quotations are from the King James Version of the Bible]
“Behold, these are the ungodly, who prosper in the world; they increase in riches. Verily I have cleansed my heart in vain, and washed my hands in innocency. For all the day long have I been plagued, and chastened every morning.” Psalm 73:12-14 (Read Psalm 73)
Have you ever noticed how the unbelieving and wicked prosper in this world? While Christians struggle to survive and are plagued with troubles, the ungodly appear to be blessed with all their hearts desire.
Like the psalmist, it would be easy for us to think that we have cleansed our hearts in vain and that there is no reward or gain for following after the LORD and walking in His ways. But consider the rest of the psalm.
Though the wicked prospered in this world at every turn, when the psalmist entered into the sanctuary, he saw their end and realized that truly he was blessed. The end of the wicked was coming, and he had the everlasting blessing of the Almighty. God was with him and holding his hand through life.
The psalmist wrote: “Thou shalt guide me with thy counsel, and afterward receive me to glory” (v. 24).
God leads and guides us through life with His Word. He holds our hand and never leaves or forsakes us (cf. Ps. 32:8; Heb. 13:5). And, when we die, He receives us to Himself in glory — all for the sake of Jesus Christ, who suffered and died to pay the penalty for all our sins and rose again in glory!
In this life, the wicked and unbelieving may prosper and we may struggle. They may possess the world and we may have nothing. But, by the grace and mercy of God, we have God Himself. Through faith in Christ Jesus and His innocent sufferings and death upon the cross, we have forgiveness for all our sins, are accepted as God’s dear children and have an eternal inheritance in heaven which can never be taken from us (cf. Gal. 3:26ff.; Eph. 1:3ff.; 1 Pet. 1:3ff.).
With the psalmist, we can say: “My flesh and my heart faileth: but God is the strength of my heart, and my portion forever” (v. 26).
When the unbeliever dies, he leaves all his wealth and prosperity behind in this world and stands before the Judge of all naked and with nothing. He is condemned.
When the believer dies, he leaves behind the pain and suffering of this life and stands before the Judge of all the earth clothed in Christ’s righteousness — all His sins have been washed away in Jesus’ shed blood and Christ’s perfect righteousness is imputed to him. He is received into the everlasting joys of heaven and dwells with His God forever and ever!
As we read in Psalm 17:14-15, the men of the world have their portion in this life and God fills their bellies with his hidden treasure: “they are full of children, and leave the rest of their substance to their babes. As for me, I will behold thy face in righteousness: I shall be satisfied, when I awake, with thy likeness.”
Keep me from doubting Your Word, O Lord, and strengthen my faith that I might not desire the goods of this world which shall pass away but desire and wait patiently for the eternal blessings promised in Your Word to all who place their hope in the Lord Jesus Christ and long for the everlasting joys of being in Your presence. Amen.
[Scripture quotations are from the King James Version of the Bible.]
“Who now rejoice in my sufferings for you, and fill up that which is behind of the afflictions of Christ in my flesh for his body’s sake, which is the church: whereof I am made a minister, according to the dispensation of God which is given to me for you, to fulfil the word of God; even the mystery which hath been hid from ages and from generations, but now is made manifest to his saints: to whom God would make known what is the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles; which is Christ in you, the hope of glory: whom we preach, warning every man, and teaching every man in all wisdom; that we may present every man perfect in Christ Jesus: whereunto I also labour, striving according to his working, which worketh in me mightily.” Colossians 1:24-29
Why was the Apostle Paul suffering? Why was he persecuted, imprisoned and facing death? And Paul, like the other apostles of our Lord Jesus, faced many hardships.
To the Corinthians he wrote (2 Cor. 11:24-28): “Of the Jews five times received I forty stripes save one. Thrice was I beaten with rods, once was I stoned, thrice I suffered shipwreck, a night and a day I have been in the deep; in journeyings often, in perils of waters, in perils of robbers, in perils by mine own countrymen, in perils by the heathen, in perils in the city, in perils in the wilderness, in perils in the sea, in perils among false brethren; in weariness and painfulness, in watchings often, in hunger and thirst, in fastings often, in cold and nakedness. Beside those things that are without, that which cometh upon me daily, the care of all the churches.”
Paul suffered all these things because he was a minister of the Gospel — he preached Christ, and Him crucified, as the only way to heaven, as the only salvation for sinful mankind. The Apostle called on men everywhere to repent of their unbelief and sin and return to the only true God through faith in the crucified and risen Son of God. And for that, Paul suffered greatly in this world — though he now wears a crown of righteousness in heaven with his Savior (cf. 2 Tim. 4:7-8).
Paul was a prisoner when he wrote this letter to the believers in Colosse. He was in bonds for preaching forgiveness of sins and life eternal in the crucified and risen Christ Jesus. Paul didn’t hold back from setting forth the truth in order to preserve his own life or to avoid trouble from those who opposed the Word of God. Believers could and still can rejoice in the Apostle Paul’s sufferings because he was suffering for his faithfulness to Messiah Jesus.
So, should we be surprised at trouble and even persecution here in this world? Should we be shocked when people speak evil of us for seeking to be faithful to God and His Word?
The Apostle Paul wrote to Timothy: “Yea, and all that will live godly in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution” (2 Tim. 3:12).
Jesus said, “Whosoever will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me. For whosoever will save his life shall lose it; but whosoever shall lose his life for my sake and the gospel’s, the same shall save it. For what shall it profit a man, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul? Or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul? Whosoever therefore shall be ashamed of me and of my words in this adulterous and sinful generation; of him also shall the Son of man be ashamed, when he cometh in the glory of his Father with the holy angels” (Mark 8:34-38).
Jesus Himself said, “Blessed are ye, when men shall revile you, and persecute you, and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely, for my sake. Rejoice, and be exceeding glad: for great is your reward in heaven: for so persecuted they the prophets which were before you” (Matt. 5:11-12).
As Jesus said, and as His apostle Paul said, those who preach the truth of God’s Word, pointing out sin as sin and proclaiming the redemption accomplished by Christ Jesus as the only source of forgiveness and life everlasting, will be hated and persecuted in this world. People will hate them and persecute them because they don’t want their own sins exposed for what they are — wickedness in God’s eyes. And people will persecute them because they do not believe and trust in Jesus as God the Son and the Messiah and Savior of the world.
Jesus suffered and died upon the cross, paying in full for the sins of the whole world, and He rose again from the dead on the third day. Those who trust in Jesus for forgiveness and life and follow after Him will also suffer in this world. Because the world hated Christ Jesus, it will also hate those who follow Him and proclaim His Word.
For not shrinking back but being faithful to Jesus, Paul suffered and helped fill up that which was lacking in the sufferings of the church — the true believers in Christ Jesus. For Paul’s faithfulness to Jesus and His unashamed preaching of the gospel of forgiveness and life in the crucified and risen Christ we too rejoice.
Even though so many within the visible church today would hold back to avoid sharing in the reproach of Christ, when followers of Jesus do hold fast to their Head and unashamedly proclaim His Word of life, we can also rejoice, even in their sufferings for Christ Jesus; for all who follow Jesus and are unashamed to speak His Word will suffer persecution in this world, and great is their reward in heaven!
If we must suffer for our faith in Christ Jesus, if we must face trouble and persecution because we follow Christ and seek to uphold all that God’s Word teaches, we too can rejoice for the privilege of sharing in the sufferings of our Savior. And the Scriptures assure us that a crown of righteousness awaits us with our Savior in heaven!
Dearest Jesus, our blessed Savior and Redeemer, embolden us to speak Your Word faithfully as we should and not hold back, calling upon people everywhere to repent of their sinful ways and trust in You for forgiveness and life. And, if we must suffer persecution — even if that be prison or death — let us rejoice that we were privileged to suffer for Your name’s sake. Amen.
[Scripture quotations are from the King James Version of the Bible.]
“24 Another parable put he forth unto them, saying, The kingdom of heaven is likened unto a man which sowed good seed in his field: 25 But while men slept, his enemy came and sowed tares among the wheat, and went his way. 26 But when the blade was sprung up, and brought forth fruit, then appeared the tares also. 27 So the servants of the householder came and said unto him, Sir, didst not thou sow good seed in thy field? from whence then hath it tares? 28 He said unto them, An enemy hath done this. The servants said unto him, Wilt thou then that we go and gather them up? 29 But he said, Nay; lest while ye gather up the tares, ye root up also the wheat with them. 30 Let both grow together until the harvest: and in the time of harvest I will say to the reapers, Gather ye together first the tares, and bind them in bundles to burn them: but gather the wheat into my barn … 36 Then Jesus sent the multitude away, and went into the house: and his disciples came unto him, saying, Declare unto us the parable of the tares of the field. 37 He answered and said unto them, He that soweth the good seed is the Son of man; 38 The field is the world; the good seed are the children of the kingdom; but the tares are the children of the wicked one; 39 The enemy that sowed them is the devil; the harvest is the end of the world; and the reapers are the angels. 40 As therefore the tares are gathered and burned in the fire; so shall it be in the end of this world. 41 The Son of man shall send forth his angels, and they shall gather out of his kingdom all things that offend, and them which do iniquity; 42 And shall cast them into a furnace of fire: there shall be wailing and gnashing of teeth. 43 Then shall the righteous shine forth as the sun in the kingdom of their Father. Who hath ears to hear, let him hear.” Matthew 13:24-30, 36-43 KJV
Jesus explains this parable for us. He, through His servants, sows the good seed. The field is the world. The good seeds are the children of the kingdom of God; but the tares (or darnel) are the children of the devil, the evil one.
Jesus, through His faithful ministers, sows the pure seed of the Gospel in this world and thus produces true believers who trust in Christ for salvation and are members of His eternal kingdom. These are the good seeds, or the wheat.
But in the same field where the Gospel is proclaimed and produces Christians, the devil and his false prophets sow error and false doctrine which produce false Christians. These may appear to be genuine Christians, but they do not have saving faith in Jesus Christ and their fruits or works are unacceptable to the Lord God.
In this world, true believers and false, unbelieving hypocrites continue to dwell side by side until the day of judgment. Then God’s holy angels will separate the true believers from the false.
Those whose religion did not spring up from the good seed of the Gospel will be separated from the true believers, gathered up and cast into hell! But those whose faith comes from the pure Gospel — who despair of their own righteousness and trust in Jesus Christ alone for the forgiveness of their sins and for eternal salvation, who also as a fruit of that faith produce fruit acceptable in God’s sight for Jesus’ sake — will be taken to heaven where they will live with Christ in righteousness and purity forever!
This is a warning to us that, wherever the Gospel is sown and true believers are, the devil will also sow his lies and false doctrine to lead people into a false confidence and hope based on their own works and righteousness or upon some other lie or deception of the evil one. They may appear to be a part of Christ’s church in this world but they are not. In the end, they will be gathered up and cast into the fires of hell!
Only those who hear God’s Word, repent of their sins and trust in Christ and His blood shed upon the cross for all will be gathered up by God’s angels and given eternal life in heaven!
Let us hold fast to Jesus Christ and continue in His saving Word lest we also be misled by the working of the evil one!
Defend Thy truth, O God, and stay this evil generation; and from the error of its way keep Thine own congregation. The wicked everywhere abound and would Thy little flock confound; but Thou art our Salvation. Amen. (The Lutheran Hymnal, #260, Verse 6)
The Confession
I now ask you in the presence of Almighty God, who searcheth the heart: Do you truly acknowledge, confess, and lament that you are by nature sinful, and that by omitting to do good and by doing evil you have in thought, word and deed, grieved and offended your God and Saviour, and thereby justly deserved His condemnation? If this be the sincere confession of your hearts, declare it by saying: Yes.
Answer: Yes.
Do you truly believe that Jesus Christ came into the world to save sinners, and that all who believe on His Name receive the forgiveness of sins? Do you, therefore, earnestly desire to be delivered from all your sins, and are you confident that it is the gracious will of your Heavenly Father, for Christ’s Sake, to forgive your sins and to cleanse you from all unrighteousness? If so, confess it by saying: Yes.
Answer: Yes.
Is it your earnest purpose, henceforth, to be obedient to the Holy Spirit, so as to hate and forsake all manner of sin, to live as in God’s presence, and to strive daily after holiness of heart and life? If so, answer: Yes.
Answer: Yes.
Let us humbly kneel, and make confession unto God, imploring His forgiveness through Jesus Christ our Lord.
O God, our Heavenly Father, I confess unto Thee that I have grievously sinned against Thee in many ways; not only by outward transgression but also by secret thoughts and desires which I cannot fully understand but which are all known unto Thee. I do earnestly repent, and am heartily sorry for these my offenses, and I beseech Thee of Thy great goodness to have mercy upon me and, for the sake of Thy dear Son, Jesus Christ, our Lord, to forgive my sins and graciously to help my infirmities. Amen.
The Absolution
Almighty God, our Heavenly Father, hath had mercy upon us and, for the sake of the sufferings, death and resurrection of His dear Son, Jesus Christ, our Lord, forgiveth us all our sins. As a minister of the Church of Jesus Christ, and by His authority, I, therefore, declare unto you who do truly repent and believe in Him, the entire forgiveness of all your sins in the Name of the Father, and of the Son and of the Holy Ghost. Amen.
[On the other hand, by the same authority, I declare unto the impenitent and unbelieving, that so long as they continue in their impenitence, God hath not forgiven their sins, and will assuredly visit their iniquities upon them if they turn not from their evil ways and come to true repentance and faith in Christ ere the day of grace be ended.]
The Lord’s Prayer
Our Father, who art in heaven: Hallowed be Thy Name; Thy kingdom come; Thy will be done on earth, as it is in heaven; Give us this day our daily bread; And forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us; And lead us not into temptation; But deliver us from evil; For Thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, forever. Amen.
The Collect for Peace
O God, from whom all holy desires, all good counsels and all just works do proceed, give unto Thy servants that peace which the world cannot give, that our hearts may be set to obey Thy commandments, and also that by Thee, we, being defended from the fear of our enemies, may pass our time in rest and quietness; through the merits of Jesus Christ, our Savior, who liveth and reigneth with Thee and the Holy Ghost, ever one God, world without end. Amen
The Benediction
The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ and the love of God and the communion of the Holy Ghost be with you all. Amen.
“For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.” Romans 6:23 (read verses 1-23)
That we are all guilty before God and stand guilty and condemned under the law of God is made clear in Romans 3:9-20.
That God provided a way for sinners to be justified and counted righteous by God through faith in Christ Jesus and His atoning sacrifice on the cross for the sins of the world is revealed and explained in Romans 3:21-28 and the following two chapters of Paul’s letter.
In the sixth chapter, the Apostle Paul addresses the errors of those who think they can continue in sin and still possess the benefits of God’s grace in Christ Jesus.
“What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin, that grace may abound? God forbid. How shall we, that are dead to sin, live any longer therein?” (v.1-2). We were saved for a life with purpose (cf. 2 Cor. 5:15). We were joined, in our baptisms, to Christ in His death and resurrection in order that Christ’s death on the cross would be our death and punishment for sin and that Christ’s resurrection, after He paid the price for our sins, would be our resurrection to new life in fellowship with and service to our God and Savior (v.3ff.).
“What then? shall we sin, because we are not under the law, but under grace? God forbid. Know ye not, that to whom ye yield yourselves servants to obey, his servants ye are to whom ye obey; whether of sin unto death, or of obedience unto righteousness?” (v. 15-16).
If we willingly give ourselves back into sin — yielding ourselves to the temptations of the devil, the allurements of the world and the sinful desires of our flesh, we again become slaves of sin and reap the results, the wages of sin, which are spiritual death and eternal death and damnation! Cf. Gen. 2:16-17; Heb. 10:26-31; 2 Pet. 2:20-22; Rom. 6:20-23.
If we turn away from Christ and back into sin, seeking to turn God’s grace into a license to live in rebellion and enmity against God, we justly earn the penalty for our sins, which is death and the eternal wrath of God.
But if, by the grace of God, we continue trusting in Christ Jesus and His sacrifice for our sins, we are set free from the condemnation of the law and from our former servitude to sin, and God’s gracious gift to us is forgiveness for all our sins and eternal life for Jesus’ sake.
If, by the grace of God, we trust in Christ our Savior and walk in fellowship with God through faith in Christ (cf. 1 John 1:5 — 2:2), we possess and receive the gracious gifts of God which Jesus won for us — forgiveness of sins and everlasting life in fellowship with our God and Maker.
“For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Rom. 6:23; cf. Deut. 30:15-20).
Dearest LORD Jesus, grant we not turn away from You and back into sin but hold fast to You and the new life You have given us by means of Your death upon the cross for our sins and Your triumphant resurrection on the third day. Amen.
[Scripture quotations are from the King James Version.]