CONTINUE STRONG TO THE END
STORY
King Uzziah was another successful King. He
reigned 52 years. Then he became proud and he offered unauthorized incense in
the Temple and the Lord struck him with leprosy and he lived out his days like
that. What a tragedy!!
King
Hezekiah was a successful king of Judah. He became king at the age of 25 and
reigned for 26 years. He fought off the Assyrians, restored worship to Yahweh
alone, dealt with idolatry, made economic reforms, had some of the most clever
military strategies. He had a lot of favor of with god. The prophet Isaiah
served in his tenure. Then he became sick and God added 15 years to his life.
Then Hezekiah became proud and started showing off his wealth to enemy kings.
That was his downfall.
Isaiah who served both these Kings prophesied the
destruction of Jerusalem but not in his lifetime. And he was pleased with
that!! (Isaiah served 4 kings over a span of 64 years.)
Why am I
telling you this? You can have success for many decades and fail at the end.
My topic for
today is Continue strong to the end.
Colossians 2:6-7
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.
Paul wrote this in prison and written to Colossians whom
he had never visited. He is addressing issues Ephaphras has raised to Paul when
he visited him in prison. He is reminding them about who Jesus is, His
supremacy and that they would hold onto the truth.
Let’s get in
our text for today.
V6 a- So
Just as you received Christ Jesus as Lord - Paul was
encouraging the Colosse Christians to hold on to truth and not be swayed by
many fine-sounding arguments ( verse4) or even a false gospel that was already
making the rounds. (verse 8). Paul
then addresses the cultural pressures that are tempting the Colossians to turn
away from Jesus.
How did
we receive Jesus?
He wants
them to hold fast to what they were taught by the apostles. They received it
from men of creditability and received it by faith.
We have no
lack choice today as to who we would like to listen to, which church sermons we
want to watch. Sometimes we can be sucked into subtle false teachings
without even realizing it.
The
Colossians were in danger of mixing Greek beliefs with their new faith in
Christ and the Jews were in danger of taking away from the finished work of the
cross by adding law to their faith.
What are we
in danger of adding of subtracting today?
.
The other
think that Paul is reminding them is about how they received Christ. How did we receive our salvation? We
received it by grace through faith. Nothing more, nothing less. The Cross of
Christ is complete and covers everything for me. I cannot earn it, I don’t
deserve it.
V6b - continue to live your lives in
him, 7 rooted and built up in him.
you, therefore, have received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in
Him, 7rooted and built up in
Him and established in the faith, as you have been taught, abounding [d]in it with
thanksgiving. (KJV)
Paul uses 3 pictures: walk, rooted and built up. All
imply movement in such a way as to go forward. Another recurring theme with
Paul is “in Christ” .
The gospel does not end with our sins forgiven. The full the gospel is salvation, redemption, reconciliation and restoration of all things
to us the children of God i.e Spirit, mind, soul and body.
WALK
In the old usage
of the word “Walk”, It meant way of life. We often see this phrase used
in the bible. Noah walked with God, Enoch Walked with God, Abraham walked with
God. It means they lived their lives before God, in a way that reflected God’s
heart and ways.
In my over 4
decades one thing I have seen and now with ever-increasing measure, sadly, is
that people often start well but do not continue with increasing fervor. Some tragically lose
their way floundering amidst the cares and worries of this world.
So the
encouragement to ‘continue ‘is not without cause. To Continue is an
important motif in the New Testament and should be in our lives too. This
is mentioned in many different ways in the Bible.
Here are some: persevere in
the faith, fight the good fight of faith, press on toward the goal, run the
race with perseverance, run the race marked out for us, he who preservers will
be given the crown of life, do not grow weary in doing good and many, many more
such exhortations.
ROOTED
As I
reflected on the word ROOTED, I thought it is good to pause and ask some
questions. Is, my life built on nothing less than Jesus blood and
righteousness? He is my cornerstone.
Why are
roots important?
It is the
life source to the whole plant. Whatever soil the roots of my heart are planted
in, will nourish me and determine how healthy the plant will be and what kind
of fruit I will produce.
So where do
I get my values from? What is influencing my life?
What my mind feeds on will affect thought
patterns, my emotions, and my behavior.
What soil
my roots are in will affect what is” built up”. I need to continue to be rooted in
Christ which is the richest and best place to have my life planted in. John 15 is full of repeated reminders to remain
in Jesus so that we will bear fruit that will last.
BUILT-UP
As a child learns to
walk they may do so with the help of a walker or by holding on to things. Once
they gain full control and balance, they do not need the walker anymore.
Or its like learning
to ride a bicycle. The trainer wheels come off when you have learned to balance
and ride well.
We continue our Christian life “In Christ” not without
Christ as time goes on. We never outgrow our dependence on Christ unlike
how it is when we learn to ride a bicycle etc. Christ is not a crutch but
the cornerstone of our very existence. The opposite is true in our
relationship with Christ.
The more I grow in
my relationship the more dependent I am on Him.
The ones that forgot this, this it to their own
destruction. Take King Uzziah. He became famous and successful and then pride
filled his heart and he offered unauthorized holy incense to God and he was
struck with leprosy.
In verse 6 Paul is urging us to continue in
certain things as we live out our Christian life and calling.
He reminds his readers of the great sacrifice that Jesus paid
for us all. He reminds us that is a complete work; Satan s defeated.
We are set free from the tyranny of the myriad
laws that encumbered the poor Jewish soul.
Now that we are free – we are free for a purpose. This is
specific for each one of us.
We are to continue in many things. However this “continue”
is not static. It’s not about maintaining the status quo. It is about
sustaining growth
verse 7, which asks us to be “built up”
Why do we need to do this? How do we do this and what is
involved?
WHY
In our journey as Christ-followers, our aim is to become
more and more like Jesus, to be Holy even as He is Holy.
HOW
We are built up as we stay rooted – as we
continue to grow deeper in our fellowship with him.
We get built up by meditating on His Word and allowing it to
grow richly in our lives, allowing the word to challenge and change us.
WHAT
What do I do, to be built up, to grow, to be encouraged, and
to be focused?
So what do
I continue in? Here are some things:
Continue to be a learner –
seeking the kingdom to influence my lifestyle and decisions.
Continue to add to my “faith goodness; and to
goodness, knowledge; 6and to knowledge, self-control; and to self-control,
perseverance; and to perseverance, godliness; 7and to godliness, mutual
affection; and to mutual affection, love.” (2Pet 1:5-7)
Continue to persevere in the face of trials
“ 3 because you know that the testing of your faith
produces perseverance. And tastings so my faith grows strong.”
(James 1:3)
Continue to dig deep into God’s word in sweet
fellowship and prayer (Col 3:16)
Continue to do good, and not
grow weary of it (Gal 6:9)
Continue to meet with other Christ-followers to
encourage and be encouraged. Let us not give up the habit of meeting
together, as some are doing.( Heb 10:25)
Continue to build on Christ the Cornerstone. (1Cor
3:11)
When I do this, I will grow strong, mature and be productive
bearing the good fruits of the faith.
CONCLUSION AND APPLICATION
Are there things
that you need to continue in that you have stopped doing?
Now is a good time to hit the reset button and restart.
If Christ has never been your cornerstone, make them the
center of your life today.
Let us encourage each other and our other brothers and
sisters to keep going. We are yet to
come into our best. Let us continue to the finish line.
Word of Grace is an Evangelical (Born Again), Spirit-filled (Charismatic), Reformed, English speaking church in Pune that upholds the Bible as God's inspired Word for life. We are a church community that has people from every part of India and parts of the world. We are here to put the Great Command and the Great Commission into practice by equipping and releasing every member into works of service. Word of Grace is a part of a wider international family of Churches called RegionsBeyond.To know more about us please log onto www.wordofgracechurch.org.
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