R1656 For the Sake of the Church

God has an encouraging word for you and me today through the Bible-based teaching of Dr. Don Wilton on this edition of The Encouraging Word. Now today's encouragement is headed to us from the book of Colossians with Dr. Don Wilton in just a moment. He's calling today's message, For the Sake of the Church. And you know, one of the reminders is it's not the church you just drove by if you're listening on the radio or in the podcast. It's not the church you attend or I attend. It's the church that's a capital C church, all of us together, working together to make a change in the world and the culture in which we live. As we push back against the culture, we have a wonderful set of resources on our website right now, a book called A Call for Courage and a message from Dr. Wilton B.

Salt and Light. Check it out on our website, www.tewonline.org and get your copy. It will fuel you to be a better representative of Jesus.

That's online, www.tewonline.org. And now, Dr. Don Wilton. The conversation today, I will guarantee you, the conversation today is that people out there will deceive you by fine sounding arguments. Not to be engaged in the body, in the church. Don't fall for it.

Hold on to that. So let's read this passage and it's very important for us to see one man under God's guidance speaking to one church. But he's speaking to all of us. He's speaking specifically here to the people, this body of Christ, this gathering of God's people at this place called Colossae. So this is God speaking to you in your church, about your church, about you, about your church, because you are the church.

And this is what he says in verse 24 of Colossians chapter 1. Now, Paul says, I rejoice in what was suffered for you and I fill up in my flesh what is still lacking in regard to Christ's afflictions for the sake of his body, the church. I have become its servant by the commission God gave me to present to you the word of God in its fullness. The mystery that has been kept hidden for ages and generations, but is now disclosed to believers. To them God has chosen to make known among the Gentiles the glorious riches of this mystery, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory. He proclaimed Jesus admonishing and teaching everyone with all wisdom in order that we may present everyone perfect in the Lord Jesus Christ. To this end, Paul says, I labor, struggling with all God's energy, which so powerfully works in me, and I want you to know chapter 2 and verse 1.

Furthermore, I want you to know how much I am struggling for you and for those that lay odyssey and for all who have not met me personally. My purpose is that they may be encouraged in heart and united in love so that they may have the full riches of complete understanding. In order that they may know the mystery of God, namely the Lord Jesus Christ, in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge. And I tell you this so that no one may deceive you by fine sounding arguments. For though I'm absent from you in body, I'm present with you in spirit, and I delight to see how orderly you are and how firm your faith in Christ is. May the Lord Jesus write this word upon our hearts for the sake of the church. I see Paul here sitting in a Roman prison talking to just a gathering of people.

You know the irony of all of this is? I don't know because we didn't have roles and numbers and all that sort of stuff. But I can only imagine the church at Colossae was probably not by any means a mega church.

I'm sure there's someone who would know this to be true. I wouldn't be surprised if there were less than 100 people that he was talking to, maybe less than 50. In all likelihood in the context, this was a small group in number, but such a value was placed.

Such a value. And I think what Paul does here is that he shares amongst many other things six things that God designs for the church that makes the church worth striving for. Maybe if I could put this in a sort of colloquial way, if someone, and they do, you know, why be a member, why become part of a church, of a local Bible-believing church?

Here are six absolute critical reasons why. He just puts them out there. He says this is the way God designed the church. Here's what you get.

Here's what you get. You know, our kids grew up and they served the Lord all over the place. And they still to this day love coming back home. Now they have their own home. They have their own home.

They have their own place, their own world, their own home, but they still love coming home. There's something about the root of it. Those family times, there's something, there's something that came out of it that flows out of the church that's in the church that's part of God's design. And God said, God said, listen folks, Jesus said, we didn't say this.

This was not our decision. We didn't look around and say, you know what, we live in a very trying and complex world. Let's find some way in which we can gather and give ourselves something really meaningful. And there are lots of very meaningful things in the world.

There are organizations and clubs and places that we go and teams that we support. But there's nothing that can compare to the church because Jesus said the church is built on the rock. It's built on God, on Christ. He's our one foundation is Jesus Christ the Lord. And the gates of hell, get this folks, will not prevail against it. I'm making an announcement today to whomever it is that's listening to me right now. Listen, stand on your head to try and break up the church of the living God.

It's not going to happen because Jesus said it's built on the rock who is Jesus and the gates of hell will not prevail against it. I want to be part of something like that. I need that. I need this rock in my life. My family needs it. My friends need this. This is not just like, well, maybe I'll give it a shot. We need this.

It's transformational. And here are six things worth striving for that Paul says to the church. He says, here it is. My purpose is, the purpose is for the church. God wants you to know and he lists from verse two of chapter two. He lists six unbelievable God-given things that I have got to have in my life. Number one, encouragement. This is spiritual encouragement. He says right there in verse two, my purpose is that the church would be encouraged in heart.

I know it's a frivolous statement and it's worn out and everybody says, I heard that since kindergarten. I will speak for me personally. I'm the pastor, I'm the preacher, I'm supposed to, this is what I do.

I cannot tell you in my life. It happens all the time. We can have everything going on. The crises of life and the burdens of life and I'm telling you, I come into church and God, God encourages me. My beloved friends, unity in the church is not silence. Unity in the church is not the inability to share and exchange godly ideas because God uses all of us. Unity in love is the fundamental basis of the Christ love in us that defies the disunity in hate that we live amongst in the world. It's the very antithesis of what you and I live in. Paul looks at the church and he says because of Jesus Christ, the church, unity in love. How is it possible to get people all different with every idea to where, to not to where, to be vaccinated, to not be vaccinated?

Republicans and Democrats, black and white, rich and poor, how is it? Where is it in this world you can ever come together and show what Jesus means by being united in love? Hey, I might get a little fired up about this. If you miss the point, man, you down the kitchen sink. That's what Paul's telling them. For the sake of the church, the church is worth striving for.

And Paul's putting himself up there as the pivotal point he's saying, folks, you talk about me, I don't even know half of you. I've never hardly been there with you, but I've been shipwrecked. I've sacrificed. I've been beaten up. I've been run out of town. I've been starved.

I've been whipped half to death and now I'm sitting in prison. But I want you to know everything that I've done is worth it for the sake of the church, because it's in God's house where you get real spiritual encouragement and where you see firsthand practically and demonstrably what it means for all people to be united together in love. I love that, man.

Don't you? Somebody say amen. I'm telling you, that's fantastic. And I'm only on point number two. Let me give you the other three or four very quickly.

Third one, he talked about six things worth striving is understanding. Forgive the interruption. We'll be back with the rest of today's message for the sake of the church by Dr. Don Wilton in just a moment. But Dr. Don wants me to remind you, we're here for you 24 hours a day. We love to pray with you and for you at 866-899-WORD.

Again, jot the number down, store it in your cell, 866-899-9673. We'll always connect you with one of us, happy to talk or listen or pray or connect you with great resources like this. First Thessalonians 5-11 says, Therefore, encourage one another and build each other up, just as in fact you are doing. Many Christians today need encouragement and the unsaved need to hear the saving message of Jesus Christ. We invite you to put your love for Christ into action. We invite you to become a monthly donor to the encouraging word. We need your support to become an encourager today. Call us at 866-899-WORD. That's 866-899-9673 to request information on how you can help support the work of the encouraging word. The encouraging word is a viewer and listener supported ministry. Thank you for listening today. Again, that's just one of many great resources you'll find on our website, www.tewonline.org and while you're there, be sure and sign up for the daily devotional from Dr. Wilton.

It comes out email-a-phonically early in the morning. That's www.tewonline.org. Third one, he talked about six things worth striving as understanding. He says not only that you might be encouraged in heart and united in love, but so that they may have the full riches of complete understanding.

Wow. That's what God's church does for you. Enables you and me to have spiritual understanding, the full riches of complete understanding about what? About God. Number four, protection. He says in verse four, I tell you this so that no one may deceive you by fine sounding arguments.

Hello. That's protection. Paul says the church is designed to protect you so that you don't give way to all this yada yada and rubbish that you're listening to. What parent in their right mind can really say that they love their children, that you don't do everything in your children's life to protect them from the rubbish out there? The influence of other people.

The influence, the pull of the world. You're always doing that. You're always talking to them, helping them. Every time they turn on that TV set, every time they go to school, they're sitting at a table with somebody else. People have got agendas. This is not always a nice world. You telling me as a parent, you don't get on your foot, do everything you can to try to protect them. So that they can make good, sound decisions and not just be sucked into these vacuums.

Of rank stupidity and frivolity. You do that. And Paul here is looking at the church and he's saying, let me tell you why I strive for the sake of the church, for understanding, for protection. And he identifies it in the Colossian world there. He says it straight out of Desmond's word. He says, I tell you this so no one will deceive you by fine sounding arguments.

All this stuff that you don't need. Why don't you? And you fall for it. We are a gullible people.

You listen to such dribble from some people, such absolute rubbish, and you just fall for it. It influences you. That's what he's talking about. The harnessing protection that God gives to us. Number five order. Get down there into verse five.

He says, though I'm absent from the body, I'm present with you. And I'm so delighted to see how orderly you are. By the way, if you do a study of that and I went in and try to really understand that. He was talking about anything but chaos. The world out here, folks, with all the good things, it's just it's chaotic.

From traffic to politics, to television, to opinions, it's just chaos. Not the church. It's this order that he's talking about. And what Paul is saying is that because Jesus Christ is the head of the church, he's the head of the church. And the way he calls the church the body, much like the body of which Jesus is.

I read that already and will again, which means all everything happens here. The head controls all the movements and determine because Christ is the head. That's where order comes from. And then finally, steadfastness. This is not only how orderly you are in verse five, but how firm your faith in Christ is.

Don't you love that? Steadfastness, steadfastness. He gives you the picture again of the rock. He says the church is the rock. Your feet are on solid ground. Your faith is rock solid. The church, the church is worth striving for. Why?

Because of spiritual encouragement and spiritual unity and spiritual understanding and spiritual protection and spiritual order and spiritual steadfastness. Wow. Isn't that fantastic? I'm so grateful, even in my more rebellious days.

I think I've told some of you. My dad was pastor of a church in Africa and when I was a teenager. I would desperately do anything possible to not have to go to church, but God's got a sense of humor.

Because the parsonage, we lived in parsonages in Africa was, I mean, this is unfair. I still want to talk to some of those deacons. The parsonage was right next to the church.

I mean, it was right next to it. And it didn't matter how much I tried to pretend I was there, but I wasn't there and like sleeping. I could hear my dad preaching.

It messed up many a Sunday morning nap. You know, I wish, I'm so grateful that God introduced me through himself into you. You know, the best part for me of the church is you. You encourage me. You unite my spirit in love and you help me in my understanding of the mystery of God. You help to protect me.

You show me how beautiful order is. And you certainly give me a solid rock that facilitates my ability to be steadfast in the faith. And so, yes, and I know that I'm a pastor and this is what I do every day. But as I leave the gathered church and I go out into the world, I am fortified, man. Would you bow your heads with me today?

Do you know where all this begins, don't you? It begins with knowing Christ. It's so worth it to give your heart to Jesus. Maybe today you've just been listening and worshiping and God is speaking to you. Give your heart to the Lord Jesus.

Trust him. You can do that. The Bible says that if you confess that Jesus Christ is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised Jesus from the dead, you will be saved. You know, when you give your heart to Jesus, you are a member of the body of Christ. And God gives us local churches to express that in, to be part of the church of the living God. I invite you today to give your life to Christ. I invite you today to become part of the body of Christ.

Do it. Let God bless you. Lord Jesus, as we come to this time of invitation today, as people get ready, people making decisions right there where they sit.

Right there in front of that television set, picking up telephones, calling numbers on the screen. In Genesis and in celebration, some people getting ready to stand up and walk down the aisle, saying I've given my heart to Jesus. To be welcomed into the church of the living God, the family of God.

People putting their roots down, people making decisions, people being so uplifted, Lord Jesus, as we go out into our world. You're a wonderful and a wonderful, great, precious Savior. You are Lord and Master. And you gave us the church. So as we respond, Lord Jesus, we honor you today as we pray this prayer together. In Jesus' name, Amen. Perhaps moments ago, as Dr. Don was leading in that prayer, you prayed along with him and said yes to Jesus Christ as your Savior and your Lord.

Or maybe you rededicated your life. Either way, Dr. Wilton has wonderful resources he wants you to have absolutely free if you'll call us. Our number is 866-899-WORD.

That's 866-899-9673. Or if you'd rather, you can meet us on our website as well and let us know you've given your life to Jesus or rededicated your life. We'll send you these free resources. Our website is www.tewonline.org.

That's www.tewonline.org. And before we get away, closing thoughts from our pastor, Dr. Don Wilton. Okay, just before you go today, I just want you to know how much I love you. You mean so much to me. And I just want you to know that with all of the things that we've talked about and the way in which God is speaking to your heart right now, we are the encouraging word and we are available to you 24-7, morning, noon, night, or day. You can call a friend, one of my friends right now, and they will encourage you, pray with you, listen to you. Isn't it great to have people around us who really care about us?

You are not alone. God bless you and be encouraged. That number Dr. Wilton's mentioning is 866-899-WORD. We do hope you'll jot it down or store it in your cell phone. 866-899-9673 will always connect you with someone ready to pray with you or connect you with wonderful resources that will help you grow in your faith. This program is brought to you and sponsored by the encouraging word and your faithful financial and prayer support.