Increasing in the
Knowledge of the Peace of God
Book of Colossians
3:12-4:1
Last week we saw
that the Christian Life is not very easy. If we live in these bodies
of flesh we will find it very hard to be like the Lord Jesus Christ.
This should still be
our goal!
The Lord knows that
this is impossible for us to do every day because in our heart we
would be like Christ, but we find that our flesh is weak and cause us
to give in to temptation. We need watch out for things that are not
good for us and pray for the strength to overcome our weaknesses!
Mat_26:41 Watch and
pray, that ye enter not into temptation: the spirit indeed is
willing, "but the flesh is weak".
We must base our
faith on the knowledge that once we have accepted the Lord Jesus
Christ, we have a new life and we are to hate all the things of our
old life.
Rev_2:6 But this
thou hast, that thou hatest the deeds of the Nicolaitans, which I
also hate.
It was these
Nicolaitans the Lord hates and we are to hate this doctrine also.
We see this in our
world today more than ever before.
These were
professing Christians who brought a false freedom to sin into the
Church.
They brought
licentiousness into the church which is, an excessive indulgence of
Christian liberty!
The modern-day
church has become this way and licentiousness is the god of fools!
If we have removed
the old man and put on the new man, then we know we do not have the
freedom to sin in any case!
If we are at peace
with God, then we have become the elect of God and this should be
noticeable to all the world!
*****Col 3:12 Put
on therefore, as the elect of God, holy and beloved, bowels of
mercies, kindness, humbleness of mind, meekness, longsuffering;
Col 3:13 Forbearing
one another, and forgiving one another, if any man have a quarrel
against any: even as Christ forgave you, so also do ye.
We could say, what
are the essentials of Christian character?
Those who are the
elect, are those who have chosen to follow in the ways of the Lord
Jesus Christ. God knows we will not be perfect and God knows in fact,
we will make many mistakes, but God will always defend His Church.
Luk 18:7 And shall
not God avenge his own elect, which cry day and night unto him,
though he bear long with them?
Luk 18:8 I tell you
that he will avenge them speedily. Nevertheless when the Son of man
cometh, shall he find faith on the earth?
It is also a fact
that when the Lord returns, He will have already called the church
out of this world and He will not find any of faith but those who see
Him will certainly realize everything they have said of the church
was wrong and some of them may then become believers but for most who
have already rejected the truth, it will be too late!
It is mainly the
Jews and the strangers that help them, whose eyes will be opened.
Rom_11:25 For I
would not, brethren, that ye should be ignorant of this mystery, lest
ye should be wise in your own conceits; that blindness in part is
happened to Israel, until the fulness of the Gentiles be come in.
We may not realize
it but there are also elect angels who have stood by Christ rather
than follow Satan!
1Ti 5:21 I charge
thee before God, and the Lord Jesus Christ, and the elect angels,
that thou observe these things without preferring one before another,
doing nothing by partiality.
When we get to
Heaven, we will be surrounded by just those who have chosen Jesus
Christ and rejected the world and all the angels who have also
rejected Satan (Lucifer)!
So, while we are
still here on earth to serve the Lord, let us be blameless!
Let us be the moral
standards for this immoral world!
Let us show true
affection to all our brothers and sister in Christ!
Let us pity the lost
enough to still love them and witness Jesus to them if the
opportunity arises.
Let us express
gentleness in our way of life.
Let us be modest in
all our life style.
Let us be meek in
our demeanor.
Let us be patient
Christians, busy for the Lord, knowing He will be returning soon, or
at any time!
Let us bear with and
endure one another in a loving way! As the Lord commands!
Let us forgive just
as the Lord has forgiven us, because there are consequences to all
these things but to this one especially.
Mar_11:26 But if ye
do not forgive, neither will your Father which is in heaven forgive
your trespasses.
The Lord says even
if we are in a quarrel with someone and we are the ones who are
right, we must still forgive that other person.
Christ said to
forgive!
Peter asked: Mat
18:21 Then came Peter to him, and said, Lord, how oft shall my
brother sin against me, and I forgive him? till seven times?
Mat 18:22 Jesus
saith unto him, I say not unto thee, Until seven times: but, Until
seventy times seven.
Jesus said we are to
forgive every time, period! Another sin is in holding a grudge!
All these things are
covered by the "garment of mercy" which resembles the mercy
of God.
Even with all these
things, there is still something of greater importance in the way we
are to treat all others.
*****Col 3:14 And
above all these things put on charity, which is the bond of
perfectness.
How does the Bible
explain Charity?
1Co 13:4 Charity
suffereth long, and is kind; charity envieth not; charity vaunteth
not itself, is not puffed up,
1Co 13:5 Doth not
behave itself unseemly, seeketh not her own, is not easily provoked,
thinketh no evil;
1Co 13:6 Rejoiceth
not in iniquity, but rejoiceth in the truth;
1Co 13:7 Beareth
all things, believeth all things, hopeth all things, endureth all
things.
1Co 13:8 Charity
never faileth:
How does the
dictionary explain charity?
The dictionary says
charity is love that compares to the supreme love of God. A giving,
affectionate love.
It is easy to see
that the English dictionary just does not have enough words to
explain charity as well as God does.
The only perfect One
that we know of is the Lord Jesus Christ, charity is the bond of
perfectness, when we love others the way that the Lord loves us and
gave Himself for us!
Gal_2:20 I am
crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ
liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by
the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me.
Charity can resemble
God's "grace"!
When we wear the
"garments of mercy" and put on the cloak of "Grace"
and these things rule our heart, then we can say we are at peace with
God.
A tall order for any
of us but the Lord will help us be these things and more, if we will
just follow His example and get up close and personal with Him!
*****Col 3:15 And
let the peace of God rule in your hearts, to the which also ye are
called in one body; and be ye thankful.
When we are saved we
have become at peace with God.
Rom_5:1 Therefore
being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord
Jesus Christ:
Only as we grow in
Christ, are no longer babes in Christ but, mature Christians will the
peace of God rule in our hearts.
The truth is, those
who are at peace with God and have the peace of God are the same ones
who will show the love of God, not only in their own heart but toward
all others!
The peace of God may
be the greatest blessings we can receive from the Lord!
True peace comes
only to those who know Jesus Christ personally and as their Savior!
If we notice that
word "rule" in this passage, this means that this is a
commandment.
Notice this is a
commandment for each saint of God but also for the body of the
Church!
And above all we are
to be thankful for the great benefits for serving the Lord.
Psa_68:19 Blessed
be the Lord, who daily loadeth us with benefits, even the God of our
salvation. Selah.
We must make a
choice as the elect of God, are we going to be obedient to all the
Word of God or not?
If God has allowed
us to be in harmony with Him and in true peace, then surely, we can
give these pitiful temporary bodies to Him for His use!
These are things we
are called to do and if each one of us including myself, would be
obedient in these things we could alter the course of this world.
We can blame the
world for many things, but we cannot blame the world for the laziness
of the church!
God has only one
body of true believers and they are scattered in all denominations
and it is time for us to unite on the truth of God!
It's time to leave
those who reject the truth of the Scriptures behind, they made their
choice!
There will be no
strife’s and no divisions where the peace of God rules in the heart
of the believer!
*****Col 3:16 Let
the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom; teaching and
admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs,
singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord.
What is the Word of
Christ?
The entire Old
Testament will lead us to Jesus Christ our Savior.
The entire New
Testament was written from the words of Jesus Christ as given to the
apostles.
All Scripture is
given by the inspiration of the Holy Spirit:
2Ti_3:16 All
scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for
doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in
righteousness:
So, all these are
the Words of Christ!
Jesus Christ is the
Author of salvation!
Heb_12:2 Looking
unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that
was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set
down at the right hand of the throne of God.
Jesus Christ is the
"subject matter" of the entire Bible!
Joh 1:1 In the
beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was
God.
Joh 1:2 The same
was in the beginning with God.
Joh 1:3 All things
were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was
made.
We are to dwell in
the Word of Christ!
We are to live in it
as a home, we are never to be a stranger or a visitor, or as an
acquaintance.
We are to allow the
Word of Christ to dwell in us!
It is not enough
that it is our home, but it must be our heart, it must become our
spiritual nature.
It must control our
life and our conduct in this life!
Psa 119:11 Thy word
have I hid in mine heart, that I might not sin against thee.
To dwell richly
means we are to have an intimate knowledge of the Words of Christ.
We must seek to
understand all that God has to say to us!
We must teach and
admonish one another!
God has chosen the
church to be the greatest place for this but, there must also be some
personal study time.
We must be joyful
enough to sing the Words of Christ.
We must be engrossed
with Jesus Christ!
Act_17:28 For in
him we live, and move, and have our being; as certain also of your
own poets have said, For we are also his offspring.
What so ever we do
in deed, we must do it in the name of Christ Jesus!
*****Col 3:17 And
whatsoever ye do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord
Jesus, giving thanks to God and the Father by him.
We see that in all
these things we have a choice we can be a Christian or we can be part
of the world. There is no in between!
As Christians, we
are responsible for all the things we do, we cannot blame others!
As Christians, we
know that the name of Jesus Christ is the only name God will accept
in His presence.
We are to do all
things in His name!
We cannot approach
God without Jesus Christ!
The world hates us,
and the world hates us for this one thing, they hate the Lord Jesus
Christ!
God will only accept
a life that comes to Him in the name of Jesus Christ, all others will
find death!
When we speak we
should speak Jesus, this is our new language!
1Pe 4:11 If any man
speak, let him speak as the oracles of God; if any man minister, let
him do it as of the ability which God giveth: that God in all things
may be glorified through Jesus Christ, to whom be praise and dominion
for ever and ever. Amen.
So far, we have seen
what the Lord commands each individual Christian and now let's see
what Jesus speaks of the family.
*****Col 3:18
Wives, submit yourselves unto your own husbands, as it is fit in the
Lord.
We must understand
that the Christian home is the first place we are to practice all the
commands of God.
We know that God is
a God of order!
Wives are to submit
themselves to the Lord because God created man first and woman
second. The wife was created as a helpmeet to the man.
She is the weaker
vessel physically in most instances.
The woman is to
never to submit in such a way to a husband who thinks he is a king.
The husband is honor
his wife as his helpmeet or their prayer life will suffer greatly!
1Pe 3:7 Likewise,
ye husbands, dwell with them according to knowledge, giving honour
unto the wife, as unto the weaker vessel, and as being heirs together
of the grace of life; that your prayers be not hindered.
This husband and
wife union is to be as two Christians submitting to one another but
as the wife submits to her own husband and the husband to his own
wife.
Eph 5:20 Giving
thanks always for all things unto God and the Father in the name of
our Lord Jesus Christ;
Eph 5:21 Submitting
yourselves one to another in the fear of God.
1Co 7:2
Nevertheless, to avoid fornication, let every man have his own wife,
and let every woman have her own husband.
The Husband to wife
relationship is to be as the relationship as the Lord Jesus Christ is
to the church!
Eph_5:25 Husbands,
love your wives, even as Christ also loved the church, and gave
himself for it;
As Christians this
obligation of these two Christians should be until the death of one
or the other.
1Co 7:39 The wife
is bound by the law as long as her husband liveth; but if her husband
be dead, she is at liberty to be married to whom she will; only in
the Lord.
And now the husband.
*****Col 3:19
Husbands, love your wives, and be not bitter against them.
Husbands also are to
love their wives as Christ loved the Church and remember Christ gave
His life for the church, we should not be afraid to give our lives
for our wives.
The husband is not
to have dominion over his wife. Dominion is not about love.
The husband is not
to be a tyrant!
The love of the
husband for the wife is to be as the "agape" love of God
toward His children.
This is a love that
is selfless and unselfish.
This is a giving and
sacrificial love, remember the word "Charity".
This is a love of
the will as much as a love from the heart.
This a love of
commitment. The husband must be committed to this relationship as
well as the wife.
And get this
husbands, this is a love that works for the highest good of the wife!
Besides the Lord she is to be the most important person in the life
of the husband.
The truth is, the
husband does not seek a wife to fulfill his needs but just the
opposite, the husbands desire is to meet, nourish and nurture his
wife, all their days.
A husband is to love
sacrificially, regardless if his wife is not perfect in her
commitment.
The example here is
the Lord and the church. The Lord is perfect, but the church, (the
bride) is less than perfect!
The Lord does not
give us commandments He is not true to, Himself!
Above all these
things, both the husband and the wife are to obey Christ Jesus
regardless, this is the will of Jesus Christ and the Father!
And next the
children:
*****Col 3:20
Children, obey your parents in all things: for this is well pleasing
unto the Lord.
Col 3:21 Fathers,
provoke not your children to anger, lest they be discouraged.
We know we have been
using the Christian family as our example and all these things of the
families that do not know Jesus Christ struggle the most with their
children.
In the Christian
family that has the Christian father and the Christian mother then
the children should obey their parents in all things.
God is well pleased
with all these things!
In fact, Christian
children who obey their parents can even extend their years of
happiness.
Exo 20:12 Honour
thy father and thy mother: that thy days may be long upon the land
which the LORD thy God giveth thee.
That word obey means
for the children to respect the authority of their parents because
their parents have respected the authority of our Father who is in
Heaven.
When the children
disrespect the parents, they have disrespected God!
There is only one,
"only one" limitation for the children in these things.
Mat 10:37 He that
loveth father or mother more than me is not worthy of me: and he that
loveth son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me.
If both parents or
either parent go against the Word of God, then the children are
certainly not to follow!
The child must be
very careful in this thing but anything that causes the child to
renounce the Lord "should not be observed"!
The most important
task of the parents is to follow the Lord and give this example to
the children.
The next most
important task is to raise the children in a godly manner according
to the Word of God.
The child must
understand that though the parent is not always right, he or she must
still have an opportunity to observe discipline and order.
A good rule of thumb
for all children is in a passage from the Book of Ephesians.
Eph 6:1 Children,
obey your parents in the Lord: for this is right.
Being obedient to
parents is just the right thing to do and God loves righteousness!
As a Christian
father the bulk of responsibility will always aimed at him but
raising children is the equal responsibility of both parents.
1Ti 3:4 One that
ruleth well his own house, having his children in subjection with all
gravity;
The children must
never be provoked to do ungodly things.
The children must be
prepared to serve the Lord first!
The children must
next be prepared to be godly parents themselves.
If we as parents
anger our children, then teaching will stop until that anger passes.
Children should
never be pampered but it at all possible parents should meet the
needs of the children.
Children on the
other hand must realize that both parents have duties and they must
be given the time to do these things.
Children must
realize the world we live in and accept that the parent has more
knowledge than they might have.
The children should
submit to the parents but again not as tyrants but as loving parents
trying to do the right thing.
We all still live in
these bodies of flesh, so problems will arise but as it is in all our
lives, Jesus Christ is still the answer, even when dealing with
children!
The parents must
observe that there is a proper way to discipline children and the
worldly way for the most part should be ignored, and the Word of God
followed!
Even when parents
have made mistakes, the Scriptures still say to honor the parents!
Deu 27:16 Cursed be
he that setteth light by his father or his mother. And all the people
shall say, Amen.
God is very strict
because we all as the children of God have a Father in Heaven that
always knows what's best for us even when we disagree!
There is a great
Scripture that meets the standards God has set for us all!
Pro_22:6 Train up a
child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart
from it.
In the times of the
Bible many families had servants. Remember it was illegal for the
Jews to have slaves.
We can also relate
this next today in our jobs and other places.
*****Col 3:22
Servants, obey in all things your masters according to the flesh; not
with eyeservice, as menpleasers; but in singleness of heart, fearing
God:
Col 3:23 And
whatsoever ye do, do it heartily, as to the Lord, and not unto men;
Col 3:24 Knowing
that of the Lord ye shall receive the reward of the inheritance: for
ye serve the Lord Christ.
Col 3:25 But he
that doeth wrong shall receive for the wrong which he hath done: and
there is no respect of persons.
We know these
Scriptures were written in Bible times. These Scriptures deal as much
with today and the work place of today as they did in the day of
Paul.
In the day of Paul,
if a master of men embraced Christianity then what was he to do with
his slaves. God provides him the answers.
A Christian master,
in Paul's time or today is place in a precious position.
As Christian workman
we are to put forth our best effort no matter our circumstances.
If the work we do
conflicts with the Word of God, we should find a new profession if
possible, but this may not always be the case.
A Christian worker
should never be just an average worker but always better than
average.
This means we must
be obedient workers no matter who our master or what they believe.
The Christian Master
is to be no different from the Christian worker because he or she
knows they also have a Master!
Eph 6:9 And, ye
masters, do the same things unto them, forbearing threatening:
knowing that your Master also is in heaven; neither is there respect
of persons with him.
The Christian worker
to has an obligation to be a witness for the Lord as best he or she
can.
The Christian master
and the Christian worker are to consider themselves working for the
Lord!
Eph 6:7 With good
will doing service, as to the Lord, and not to men:
Keeping in mind that
the Christian will still have to obey the unjust commands of their
masters.
1Pe 2:18 Servants,
be subject to your masters with all fear; not only to the good and
gentle, but also to the froward.
1Pe 2:19 For this
is thankworthy, if a man for conscience toward God endure grief,
suffering wrongfully.
1Pe 2:20 For what
glory is it, if, when ye be buffeted for your faults, ye shall take
it patiently? but if, when ye do well, and suffer for it, ye take it
patiently, this is acceptable with God.
It is the reverence
for the Lord that should be the mark of the Christian worker.
As Christians we are
not to be disappointed with the service we give to an unjust master
because our aim is to please the Lord in everything we do!
Eph 6:6 Not with
eyeservice, as menpleasers; but as the servants of Christ, doing the
will of God from the heart;
We sometimes get
confused when we talk about the "Judgment Seat of Christ".
Certainly, our
salvation will not be in questioned.
Many think we will
only be judged for the work we have done for the Lord and we will.
We will also be
judged for how we served in our workplace. We will be judged for all
our activities while being a Christian.
It is very important
that we shine bright as Christians and not as any part of this world
in all we do!
Masters and
Management certainly will face a harsher judgment than the servant or
the employee!
*****Col 4:1
Masters, give unto your servants that which is just and equal;
knowing that ye also have a Master in heaven.
As Christian Masters
we are to treat all those under us, no matter if they are Christian,
equally and just.
We know the Lord
provides for the saved and the just!
That word "knowing"
is very important because the Christian masters should know according
to the Word how to perform his or her job, knowing the Lord is
observing as He sees all things everywhere!
We can only serve
one Master in all the things we do, and we must serve knowing that He
has His eyes upon us always.
Again, not so He can
just beat us down for our failures but, so He can reward us for our
goodness!
One of the first
steps in righteousness is to respect the relationship!
It does not hurt to
know somethings about the people you work with but demanding such
knowledge is also wrong.
Pro 27:23 Be thou
diligent to know the state of thy flocks, and look well to thy herds.
All in all, a
friendly relationship works out to be the best!
Pro_18:24 A man
that hath friends must shew himself friendly: and there is a friend
that sticketh closer than a brother.
We can see that the
Lord had a lot to say about our economy of today!
Amen
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