This is the Truth Network. Welcome to Ignite the Light Ministries radio and podcast. It is our mission to help listeners develop a deeper relationship with Jesus by sharing what the Bible says and what it means. We aim to encourage and equip you to serve others, share the gospel, and reflect Christ in every aspect of your life. I'm Pastor Wyatt Cudd.
Thank you for tuning in.
So we're gonna be in Colossians. Chapter 4. Verses 2 through 18. A wide cut classic.
Okay. Yeah.
Well, I don't know what to say to that. Uh Colossians chapter 4. Verses 2 through 18. So, as always, we're going to do a scripture reading and just let the Word of God speak for itself before I open my big mouth. And then we will go through verse by verse and we'll talk about it.
So, beginning. Colossians 4, 2 through 18, starting here at verse 2, it says, Devote yourselves to prayer. Being watchful. and sightful. and pray for us too that God may open a door for our message.
so that we may proclaim the mystery of Christ. for which I am in chains. Verse 4, pray that I may proclaim it clearly as I should. Be wise in the way that you act towards outsiders. Make the most of every opportunity.
Let your conversation be always full of grace, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how to answer. Everyone. And the final greetings here, verse 7. Tychicus will tell you the news about me. He is a dear brother, a faithful minister, and fellow servant in the Lord.
I am sending him to you for the express purpose that you may know about our circumstances, and he will encourage your hearts. He is coming with Onesidus, our faithful and dear brother. who is one of you. They will tell you everything that has happened here. My fellow prisoner Aristarchus sends you his greetings, as does Mark the cousin of Barnabas.
You have received instructions about him. If he comes to you, welcome him. Verse 11, Jesus, who is called justice. also sends his greetings. These are the only Jews among my co-workers for the kingdom of God, and they have proved a comfort to me.
Epaphras, who is one of you and a servant of Christ Jesus, sends his greetings. He is always wrestling in prayer for you that you may stand firm on the will of God, mature and fully assured. Verse 13: I vouch for him, he is working hard for you and those in Laodicea and Heriopolis. Our dear friend Luke, the doctor, and Demas sends his greetings. Give my greetings to the brothers and sisters at Laodicea, and to Nympha and the church in her house.
After this letter has been read to you, see to it also that it is also read in the Church of the Laodicians, and that you in turn read the letter from Laodicea. Tell Arcipus, see to it that you complete the ministry you have received in the Lord. I, Paul, write this greeting in my own hand. Remember my chains. Grace be with you.
So, throughout this epistle, the letter to the Colossian church, Paul has been putting a spotlight on Jesus, explaining to us who Jesus is and what it means for us. to be rooted in Christ. And this final section ties everything together for us.
So, verse 2 through 4 is about right prayer. Pray for yourselves, for one another, pray for the lost. Pray for your leaders. Verse 5 to 6 is right action. Take advantage of every opportunity to be a good witness in your behavior and in your words.
Be a good example of how Christ can change a life. I speak the gospel message. And it's not if we share the gospel. It is how, it is when we share the gospel. Take full advantage of every opportunity to speak in love.
but also not hesitate to speak in truth.
So we have pray to God for others. and speak to others about God. Then the final section, the close, verse 17 to 18. It's a standard format for this time of how letters are closed, though the names that Paul mentioned are certainly not random.
So starting here at verse 2, devote yourselves to prayer, be watchful and thankful. A Greek. Reading here that's more word for word will say, In prayer, continue steadfastly, watching in prayer with thanksgiving. Verse 3: At the same time, praying also for us.
So, if we are to be a faithful church. We must be a praying church. Devote yourselves to prayer. Give thanks to God Daily. As we say in the Lord's Prayer, give us this day our daily bread.
We're expected to show up to receive what God has for us. daily. Jesus, the bread of life. We receive him daily.
Now, this isn't done out of legalism. This isn't done out of ritualism, scoring points for the afterlife. That I pray consistently, look at my track record, God. It's not about that. We are designed to have daily fellowship with our Creator.
It's the best, most healthy thing. for us to do. Verse 3. And pray for us too that God may open the door for our message, that we proclaim the mystery of Christ for which I'm in chains. The mystery of Christ for which I'm in chains.
So, to recap some context, Paul is in a Roman prison roughly a thousand miles away. Epaphras is the faithful leader. Tychochus and Onesimus are the deliverers of this letter. And the church at this time is dealing with a brewing Gnostic heresy. It didn't kick the front door down and storm the pulpit.
It seeped in through the walls, through the culture. And one of the major tenets of this Gnosticism is that there is this secret higher knowledge that we have to work out to attain something other than the gospel, that we attain some kind of enlightenment.
So Paul, being very culturally relevant, points to Christ. Christ is the highest mystery that there is. Knowable. yet transcendent infinitely above us. Very culturally relevant to the Colossian church.
Now, when we go out and we share the gospel, we should also make it culturally relevant to our community, too. What holds the attention in Appomatics? What are common lies that people believe? What are common spiritual struggles that we are seeing?
Now, this isn't changing the gospel by any means, but it's us being. Bilingual, speaking two languages, speaking the language of the Bible, speaking the language of mathematics, and being the bridge.
So, how can we, Trinity and Mount Comfort, communicate the gospel language? in the language of affirmatics.
So the NIV it says our message. Pray that God may open the door for our message. The Greek reads something like pray that God may open the door for the word.
Now that the word it's in the genitive case which communicates possession so our message is a is a decent translation, but the word used for message there is logu Uh and The root of that connects To the who the person of Jesus, who he is. The Greek language, how it's written, it's so poetic. Logu is a parsing of the word logos. Logos is the Word. We see it in John 1:1.
In the beginning was the Word, the Logos. And the Word was with God. The Word was God. He was with God. In the beginning, through Him, all things were made.
Without Him, nothing was made or has been made. In Him was life, and that life was the light of all mankind. Logos The Greek word is often used philosophically as a reference to a transcendent. organizing principle of everything. We look around, we see the world is organized.
Uh and this organization Demands an organizer or some kind of spiritual principle, a principle above everything that is making sense of everything, making it rational, cohesive, something we can see, empirically test, something we can do science on. It's something we depend on: that the laws of nature are consistent, they do not change. And the same with the laws of logic.
Now, other religions are very aware of this. We see the Hindus call this. Whatever it is, this organizing principle, they call it Brahman. It is the ultimate reality. The Taoists call it.
The Tao.
Now we see in Acts 17 when Paul goes to the people of Athens, the people have built an altar to it. to the unknown God. Perhaps more honest than some calling it the unknown god.
Now what all other religions have in common is that this logos, whatever language they use for it, the organizing principle, the Tao, the Brahman, Allah, whatever we may call it, that thing that organizes the world, we know it's there. But it's not knowable. I can't have a relationship with it. It's way too transcendent. It's way too above me for me to know it, though I know it must be there.
John 1.1, the Logos, was in the beginning. It was with the Maker. Through it, all things were made. And all other religions say, yes, yes, the organizing principle, whatever it is, yeah, that's true about it. But Christianity continues.
Uh it says the logos this is a person. The Logos came to earth and died on a cross for our sins. He rose again three days later in victory, defeating sin, defeating death. Ascending into heaven back to his rightful place as our Lord. And John.
This person is Jesus. He is the logos, the organizing principle. He is the one who organizes and holds everything in his hand. And he is knowable. We can have a relationship with him.
We can have a relationship with the Logos because it's a person, it's not a thing. And he is imminent as He is transcendent. He is as near to us as He is far and above us.
So if you ever wonder Well why Christianity? Yeah, there's so many other religions, so many other opinions out there. What makes Christianity special? It's this. The thing that holds everything together is not a thing.
It's a person. Jesus. And he's knowable. We can have fellowship with Him. Every day, what a blessing we can wake up and pray to Heaven.
It's not just ritual. It's not just speaking a wish to the universe. No, it's genuine two-way fellowship with our Creator, the one who stitched us together in our mother's womb. Nothing else out there offers that. Everything else simply has their own version of an altar to an unknown God.
That's what's different about Christianity. Our God is noble. The Logos, this organizing principle, is a knowable person. It's Christ.
So back to Colossians 4:16. This is the Logu, this is our message. That's the significance, the root word, logo, the language Paul is using, hearkens back. To the significance of who Jesus is. It's in the language itself.
The knowable God took on flesh. Verse 4. Pray that I may proclaim it clearly as I should. Greek reads something like, Pray that I should make it the mystery of Christ clear as it moves me to speak. Paul is asking for prayer and Paul needs this prayer.
I, as your pastor, need this prayer in the same way because, verse 3: the mystery of Christ is just that. It's a mystery.
Now, it's a mystery revealed, simple to understand, but it's infinitely complex in its depth. and significance to our lives. And Paul says the same thing, Colossians 1:27, to them God has chosen to make known among the Gentiles the glorious riches of this mystery, which is Christ. In you. That's the mystery.
The logos, the thing that organizes everything, Christ, the person, Jesus, our all-powerful, eternal creator, is now in you. That's the mystery revealed. How do I even begin? To explain the significance of that, unless the Holy Spirit moves me. Congregation, please pray for me.
Verse 3: And pray for us too that God may open the door for our message, so that we may proclaim the message of Christ. for which I am in chains. Paul is in chains. He's locked in a prison cell, and he prays for the church. Uh that the door may be opened.
to the gospel message. He doesn't pray for his prison cell. He prays the gospel, a message. The door may be opened to that. Man, if I was in his position, I might be praying.
Pray that God opens the door to this cell. Get me out of here. The food is terrible. The guards are mean. My cellmate just has the worst B.O.
Oh my gosh. Dawn to dusk, just nostril assault. Get me out of here. I don't want to be here anymore. Pray God opens the door to my cell.
But Paul doesn't pray that. He's concerned with the gospel message being spread. It's the most important desire for him. And he's asking for prayer for what's most important there. And he has this supernatural faith.
I'm in this prison. God wants me out. He'll get me out. But I am right where God wants me. And that's the safest place we can be, it's right where God wants us.
Our surrounding circumstances may be absolute chaos. We may face danger, uncertainty. Absolute chaos, but if we are right where God wants us in life, it's the safest place we can be despite our circumstances. I think of it like standing in the eye of a hurricane. There may be utter disaster around us.
But we are safe in the arms of Christ. Verse 5: Be wise in the way we speak towards outsiders. Make the most of every opportunity. Let your conversation be full of grace seasoned with salt that you may know how to answer everyone.
So, the way you act towards outsiders, make the most of every opportunity. We act in light of the truth of the gospel, and this should be reflected. in us having a changed life. Are you struggling? with habitual sin.
Okay. If you are. I want to tell you something. Satan would love to have you believe you're the only person dealing with this, that you're the only person struggling in this way. Let me tell you right now.
It is not. True.
So I encourage you. Find another person, a friend, another believer that you trust, and do the hard thing. Confess it to them. Because we're a team, we're not meant to be a lone wolf, we're meant to bear each other's burdens, and you may be shocked to find. We all struggle in ways.
We all struggle with, we've all struggled with habitual sin in some capacity or another. You are not alone. That's a lie that Satan wants you to believe to isolate you, to break you down. Do not allow this. Find somebody you trust.
and talk to them.
Now in the same vein Brothers and sisters, If you have someone who comes to you with a problem, Keep it to yourself. It's no one else's business. But you by privilege and the lords. And if I understand acromatics correctly, Everyone kinda knows everyone. Is that true?
Everyone kind of knows. everyone.
Now there's some real strengths to this. But at the same time There's a real danger. I'm gossip. If I am struggling with something that I need to talk to somebody about. But I know my junk could be publicised.
You think I'm telling anybody? Why would on earth would I share that? Why on earth would I share it? I'm going to keep my skeletons in the closet. I'll just suffer with them in silence.
That's what gossip does. is it isolates people. I don't know if this is exactly an encouragement to People struggling to hear that laid out. But my goodness, if we want to convince, if we want to. present our community mature in Christ, we have to kill gossip.
Unless someone is in real danger to themselves or somebody else, we really have to consider the fact we would be of more benefit to them as a confidant. Follow the Holy Spirit on this, of course, because each situation is unique. But in general, I encourage us, we have to become a place of safety and confidence. for those who are hurt, vulnerable, seeking genuine help. How else will they find help?
Everyone's just looking for a friend they can trust.
So be that friend. You have discipleship opportunities. You will have the opportunity to share the gospel like you wouldn't believe when you be people's friends.
Now is this not wisdom? and how we act towards outsiders. Is this not making the most of every opportunity? Gossip is a real danger in tight-knit communities.
So if you're not sure if it's okay to share something or not Ask the person. Just ask them. And then ask Jesus. I know he will tell you.
Alright, so seasoned with salt. It says uh uh have our language seasoned with salt. This is Speaking with flavor. The gospel is the best news in the world. It certainly isn't boring, shouldn't be presented boring.
Speak the gospel beautifully. Speak it well. Speak it with. Flavor. Know how to answer everyone.
I want to ask you. Do we know how to share the gospel? What words do we use? Would you be confident if a non-Christian asked you, Uh Why are you Christian? Who is Jesus?
How does someone become Christian? Would you feel confident? in uh leading somebody to Christ. If the answer is no, But we have some work to do. Because we're commanded to share the gospel.
I don't know if you guys have seen that bumper sticker, it says. Preach the gospel at all times. And when necessary, Use words. Y'all heard that saying before? I don't like that saying.
I think that's a bad saying because the Bible says in Romans 10: how can they believe in the one whom they have not heard? Heard. How can they hear unless someone preaches to them? Preach the gospel at all times, and when necessary, use words. I think it's a bad saying.
Living in light of the gospel is mandatory, yes, but we can't let that become an excuse to not prepare ourselves for gospel conversations. Preach the gospel in your actions. and in your words. In our lives, we'll come across people looking for the logos, the organizing principle. What is true?
What made everything? How can they know? unless someone guides them. If you're not comfortable having gospel conversations, In our Wednesday night Bible study, we've been doing an evangelism series. We would love to have you.
I would love to help you get equipped and feel confident to engage the world with gospel conversations. It's at 7 p.m. We're not meeting this week, but when we meet again, 7 p.m. Wednesday nights. And if that time doesn't work with you, speak to me, speak to my wife, speak to any of your church leaders.
I will make sure you have resources that you can feel equipped and confident. for gospel conversations. All right, moving on to the final greetings, verses seven to seventeen. I'm not going to go through each verse here, but I will say if you have the right people, If you have the right team in your life, You can make it through anything. You can make it through anything with the right team.
I think of a basketball team. You know, even the MVP, the star player, if they're in conflict with their team, nobody's passing them the ball, they're gonna suffer. We need team. We need teamwork. We need trust.
We need camaraderie in life. We are not built to be silos, to be independent lone wolves. We are built to be interdependent. It's not independence that we want, it's not dependence that we want, we want interdependence in our community. You lift me up, I lift you up.
That's exactly what we see exemplify here. If it was not for the people surrounding and uplifting Paul, we wouldn't have this epistle. It would not have made it past that prison. Because of Paul's team, here I am preaching the book of Colossians.
So value your friends, value your family, both blood and otherwise. Cling to one another, protect them, vouch for them, lift them up in their time of trouble, and reach out to that person you haven't heard from in a while. Frankly, when we pass on from this life into the kingdom of heaven, relationships are the only treasure that we bring with us. All the gospel is about relationships. My relationship with other people, my relationship with God.
All of the gospel hinges on relationships.
Now let's talk about the church for a minute. Trinity is not a building. You know, we got the here's the church, here's the steeple, and are all the people. Trinity is not the building. It's all of you.
Our church is not a building, it's not our programs, it's not our systems or structure, it's not our style of worship. Our church is not defined by our budget or the amount of work that we do. Our church is our community. Our church is everyone here. And those who are not here, it's all of you who make up the church family.
The church is the community. Hey there. I hope this sermon has enriched your day. If you like this message, I want to personally invite you to join us for Sunday worship. We have two locations in Virginia, Trinity Methodist Church in Concord and Mount Comfort Methodist Church in Appomattox.
Come join us Sunday morning at 9.45 and we will help you get connected. As always, I'm Pastor Wyatt Tudd. Thank you for tuning in.
