When one comes to Christ and becomes a member of the Christian family through water baptism, that individual receives all that he or she needs to grow toward spiritual maturity.
So many of us fail to realize “you are complete in Him” (Colossians 2:10). You do not have to look for something else, something new, something different, and something in addition to Christ.
What is needed in the Christian life is to continue to grow in what we received when we were baptized into Christ.
The apostle Paul wrote, “We have not ceased to pray for you and to ask that you may be filled with the knowledge of His will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding, so that you may walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, to please Him in all respects, bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God; strengthened with all power, according to His glorious might, for the attaining of all steadfastness and patience; joyously giving thanks to the Father who has qualified us to sharer in the inheritance of the saints in light” (Colossians 1:9-12).
There were false teachers telling these Christians they had to have some additional experience
in the Christian life. They were suggesting that Christ is not enough. The apostle Paul writes this letter to refute that nonsense. Christ is all-sufficient for every believer in everything that we need.
Where do we find this “spiritual wisdom and understanding?" We discover it “in Christ.” The false teachers were saying you find it in their exclusive possession of their kind of knowledge. The apostle Paul said, "No, you find it in an intimate personal knowledge of the Son of God." This knowledge is not a hidden secret to be whispered in the ear of an initiate. It is open to all and it is to be broadcast to the world. Paul’s prayer is that every Christian be filled with this knowledge. The end result of such knowledge is to “walk worthy of the Lord.” What we know will affect the way we live. Right thinking leads to right conduct.
Paul says that you will be filled with the knowledge of God's will in all spiritual, wisdom, and understanding so that you may walk in a manner worthy of the Lord. That comes from the study of the Word of God under the illumination of the Holy Spirit. We can please Him in all respects, bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of Christ Jesus. Spiritual growth is not automatic, but we have been equipped us by the Word and the Spirit.
The (so-called) best person in any church knows well that he is unable to come into the presence of God on the basis of his own self-merit. No one can receive anything from God on the grounds of his or her own goodness. However, on the merits of the shed blood of Jesus Christ even the worst sinner who turns from his sin and accepts Christ as his Savior can come with boldness and be “strengthened with all power, according to His glorious might.” That “strength with all power, according to His glorious might” comes from God. It is what God gives us “in Christ.” It is possible only on the basis of the death of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Saturday, May 31, 2008
Philippians 1:27
"Only let your manner of life be worthy of the gospel of Christ, so that whether I come and see you or am absent, I may hear of you that you stand firm in one spirit, with one mind striving side by side for the faith of the gospel."
The words used here are very interesting. The RSV says, "your manner of life", or as it is in the KJV "your conversation". It is a word from which we get our English word "politics", or "politician". The Greek word is politeuma, a word that means your conduct as a citizen or a colony. This is the first indication in this letter of a very interesting condition that prevailed in the city of Philippi. Everyone who read this letter, or heard it read in the church, would be aware that the citizens of this city were members of a Roman colony. They were actually citizens of Rome even though they were a thousand miles away. This was because of the great battle that had been won by the Roman Emperor, and in gratitude to the residents, they were made citizens of Rome. They were colonists, citizens of Rome, a thousand miles away in Macedonia.
Paul builds on this idea and says to them, in effect, you Christians in Philippi are members of another government. You cannot, therefore, have a similar attitude to the rest of the citizens of Philippi. You belong to a colony of heaven; therefore you must behave like citizens of heaven. This is a very illuminating picture of the Christian in the world. We are a colony of heaven. So, the word of the apostle is let your manner of conduct be worthy of the government to which you belong, the kingdom of God and the gospel of Christ. That consists of two essential things. What should you be as a citizen of heaven?
First, "stand firm in one Spirit (I think he means the Holy Spirit), and second, "with one mind strive side by side for the faith of the gospel." Those are the essentials. That is conduct worthy of the gospel of Christ. In other words, Paul is saying never depart from complete dependency on the Spirit of God to do through you everything that needs to be done. That is the first essential of a Christian life. That's very important, you know! I hope you begin to grasp that the Christian life is lived by a totally different process than you lived before you came to Christ. It is God's life through you. It is the indwelling Lord Jesus expressing Himself in terms of your human personality. Never depart from that, he says. Never let anything shake you, or remove you, or cause you to turn back to the basis on which you once lived. That is the first essential. The second is, never let anything but serious heresy keep you from working side by side In the gospel. Those are the great essentials.
Now interestingly enough, all the wiles of the devil, all the thrust and power of his activity is aimed at these two things. To keep us from observing them, the enemy tries first one and then the other. He tests us first on one point, and if he can't derail us there, he goes to the other point. He tries to get you to depend upon yourself, not on the indwelling life of Christ, and to make you therefore fearful, worried, discouraged, impatient, or upset with something. Haven't you felt this? This is the attack of the enemy, trying to budge you from your position in Christ which makes for victory.
That is why in the close of the Ephesian letter Paul refers to the same thing. He says we are not engaged in wrestling against flesh and blood. Our enemies are not human beings. They are those invisible powers ensconced in high places which are working through human beings. We wrestle not with flesh and blood but with principalities and powers, invisible wicked spirits working in high places. What does he say to this? Stand fast! Don't let them budge you from that essential relationship in which your life is dependent upon: the inner life of God.
Whenever we get discouraged, we are depending on ourselves. We're discouraged because we were expecting that we could do something and we failed. We've been self-confident, counting on ourselves, thinking we have all it takes to do the job. We think we don't need any help from God. We then move from that position of dependency on God's Spirit. We get worried, anxious, fearful, timid, and impatient. We have yielded to the attack of the enemy and temporarily have shifted from that position of dependency.
If that doesn't work, and we stand firm, then the enemy tries another strategy. He tries to make a breach between us and those who labor with us. He tries to split us up, divide us, create suspicion, smoldering resentments and personality conflicts. He tries to get us to not talk with each other, have nothing to do with one another, look down on others, cut them off from our fellowship, conversation, and contact.
Now I know you feel, as I have often felt, that in this warfare in which we are engage it seems as though we have to face a thousand fronts. Every time we turn around we're under attack, and we never know when he will strike next and we have to be constantly on guard. But that isn't true. We have only two things to watch, that's all. These two things mentioned by Paul, that we stand firm in one Spirit, and that we strive side by side together in the gospel. That's all. If we are careful to keep our eyes open to the power of God working within in these two areas, our conduct will become worthy of the gospel of Christ.
The words used here are very interesting. The RSV says, "your manner of life", or as it is in the KJV "your conversation". It is a word from which we get our English word "politics", or "politician". The Greek word is politeuma, a word that means your conduct as a citizen or a colony. This is the first indication in this letter of a very interesting condition that prevailed in the city of Philippi. Everyone who read this letter, or heard it read in the church, would be aware that the citizens of this city were members of a Roman colony. They were actually citizens of Rome even though they were a thousand miles away. This was because of the great battle that had been won by the Roman Emperor, and in gratitude to the residents, they were made citizens of Rome. They were colonists, citizens of Rome, a thousand miles away in Macedonia.
Paul builds on this idea and says to them, in effect, you Christians in Philippi are members of another government. You cannot, therefore, have a similar attitude to the rest of the citizens of Philippi. You belong to a colony of heaven; therefore you must behave like citizens of heaven. This is a very illuminating picture of the Christian in the world. We are a colony of heaven. So, the word of the apostle is let your manner of conduct be worthy of the government to which you belong, the kingdom of God and the gospel of Christ. That consists of two essential things. What should you be as a citizen of heaven?
First, "stand firm in one Spirit (I think he means the Holy Spirit), and second, "with one mind strive side by side for the faith of the gospel." Those are the essentials. That is conduct worthy of the gospel of Christ. In other words, Paul is saying never depart from complete dependency on the Spirit of God to do through you everything that needs to be done. That is the first essential of a Christian life. That's very important, you know! I hope you begin to grasp that the Christian life is lived by a totally different process than you lived before you came to Christ. It is God's life through you. It is the indwelling Lord Jesus expressing Himself in terms of your human personality. Never depart from that, he says. Never let anything shake you, or remove you, or cause you to turn back to the basis on which you once lived. That is the first essential. The second is, never let anything but serious heresy keep you from working side by side In the gospel. Those are the great essentials.
Now interestingly enough, all the wiles of the devil, all the thrust and power of his activity is aimed at these two things. To keep us from observing them, the enemy tries first one and then the other. He tests us first on one point, and if he can't derail us there, he goes to the other point. He tries to get you to depend upon yourself, not on the indwelling life of Christ, and to make you therefore fearful, worried, discouraged, impatient, or upset with something. Haven't you felt this? This is the attack of the enemy, trying to budge you from your position in Christ which makes for victory.
That is why in the close of the Ephesian letter Paul refers to the same thing. He says we are not engaged in wrestling against flesh and blood. Our enemies are not human beings. They are those invisible powers ensconced in high places which are working through human beings. We wrestle not with flesh and blood but with principalities and powers, invisible wicked spirits working in high places. What does he say to this? Stand fast! Don't let them budge you from that essential relationship in which your life is dependent upon: the inner life of God.
Whenever we get discouraged, we are depending on ourselves. We're discouraged because we were expecting that we could do something and we failed. We've been self-confident, counting on ourselves, thinking we have all it takes to do the job. We think we don't need any help from God. We then move from that position of dependency on God's Spirit. We get worried, anxious, fearful, timid, and impatient. We have yielded to the attack of the enemy and temporarily have shifted from that position of dependency.
If that doesn't work, and we stand firm, then the enemy tries another strategy. He tries to make a breach between us and those who labor with us. He tries to split us up, divide us, create suspicion, smoldering resentments and personality conflicts. He tries to get us to not talk with each other, have nothing to do with one another, look down on others, cut them off from our fellowship, conversation, and contact.
Now I know you feel, as I have often felt, that in this warfare in which we are engage it seems as though we have to face a thousand fronts. Every time we turn around we're under attack, and we never know when he will strike next and we have to be constantly on guard. But that isn't true. We have only two things to watch, that's all. These two things mentioned by Paul, that we stand firm in one Spirit, and that we strive side by side together in the gospel. That's all. If we are careful to keep our eyes open to the power of God working within in these two areas, our conduct will become worthy of the gospel of Christ.
To Christ Belongs Our Love And Devotion
Our Lord paid a serious price for our redemption from sin. When we think of the extreme suffering He endured to purchase our freedom from sin’s penalty, our hearts should overflow with love for Him. When we realize that He did it all for us and not for himself, it should be easy to come to worship, to participate in ministry, to not gossip, to turn the other cheek, to put others first and to give according to how we've been blessed financially.
There are many voices in the world calling for our attention, but the only voice that should dominate our hearing is the voice of Christ. Our jobs, hobbies and even our families should never have priority over the things of the kingdom.
I heard a story about an orphaned boy who was living with his grandmother when their house caught fire. The grandmother, trying to get upstairs to rescue the boy, perished in the flames. The boy’s cries for help were finally answered by a man who climbed an iron drainpipe and came back down with the boy hanging tightly to his neck.
Several weeks later, a public hearing was held to determine who would receive custody of the child. A farmer, a teacher, and the town’s wealthiest citizen all gave the reasons they felt they should be chosen to give the boy a home. But as they talked, the boy's eyes remained focused on the floor. Then a stranger walked to the front and slowly took his hands from his pockets, revealing severe scars on them. As the crowd gasped, the boy cried out in recognition. This was the man who had saved his life. His hands had been burned when he climbed the hot pipe. With a leap the boy threw his arms around the man’s neck and held on for dear life. The other men silently walked away, leaving the boy and his rescuer alone. Those marred hands had settled the issue.
Lake Ida, many voices are calling for our attention. Your friends want your attention, you family wants your attention, your activities want your attention, your job also wants your attention. But also among them is the One whose nail-pierced hands remind us that He has rescued us from sin and its deadly consequences. To Him belongs our love and devotion.
There are many voices in the world calling for our attention, but the only voice that should dominate our hearing is the voice of Christ. Our jobs, hobbies and even our families should never have priority over the things of the kingdom.
I heard a story about an orphaned boy who was living with his grandmother when their house caught fire. The grandmother, trying to get upstairs to rescue the boy, perished in the flames. The boy’s cries for help were finally answered by a man who climbed an iron drainpipe and came back down with the boy hanging tightly to his neck.
Several weeks later, a public hearing was held to determine who would receive custody of the child. A farmer, a teacher, and the town’s wealthiest citizen all gave the reasons they felt they should be chosen to give the boy a home. But as they talked, the boy's eyes remained focused on the floor. Then a stranger walked to the front and slowly took his hands from his pockets, revealing severe scars on them. As the crowd gasped, the boy cried out in recognition. This was the man who had saved his life. His hands had been burned when he climbed the hot pipe. With a leap the boy threw his arms around the man’s neck and held on for dear life. The other men silently walked away, leaving the boy and his rescuer alone. Those marred hands had settled the issue.
Lake Ida, many voices are calling for our attention. Your friends want your attention, you family wants your attention, your activities want your attention, your job also wants your attention. But also among them is the One whose nail-pierced hands remind us that He has rescued us from sin and its deadly consequences. To Him belongs our love and devotion.
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