Transcription downloaded from https://yetanothersermon.host/_/swbc/sermons/100426/the-gospel-is-enough/.

Disclaimer: this is an automatically generated machine transcription - there may be small errors or mistranscriptions.
Please refer to the original audio if you are in any doubt.


[0:00] I invite you to open up your Bibles to the book of Colossians this morning. We are starting! a new sermon series this morning through the book of Colossians. I'm excited about this.

[0:11] After spending some time in the Old Testament, we are now jumping over to the New Testament, to one of Paul's epistles to the church in Colossae. If you don't have your own Bible, that's okay, but you do need a Bible, so I would encourage you to open up one from the seat back nearby in front of you. You should be able to find one. It's there in the New Testament, Galatians, Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians. If you hit Thessalonians, you've gone too far. Go backwards.

[0:38] But we're in Colossians chapter 1, and our passage this morning is the first eight verses, chapter 1 verses 1 through 8. And when you found that, let's stand together in honor of the reading of the Word of God. The letter of Paul to the Colossians. Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, and Timothy our brother. To the saints and faithful brothers in Christ at Colossae, grace to you and peace from God our Father. We always thank God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, when we pray for you, since we heard of your faith in Christ Jesus, and of the love that you have for all the saints, because of the hope laid up for you in heaven. Of this you have heard before in the word of the truth, the gospel, which has come to you, as indeed in the whole world it is bearing fruit and increasing, as it also does among you, since the day you heard it and understood the grace of God and truth, just as you learned it from Epaphras, our beloved fellow servant. He is a faithful minister of

[1:46] Christ on your behalf, and has made known to us your love in the Spirit. The grass withers and the flower fades, but the word of the Lord endures forever. Would you pray with me once more? Father, as we open up a new book and begin a new series through another place in your word, we ask the same things that we always ask God. Would you take your word, and would you plant it deep within our hearts? And would you cause it to bear fruit? And would you open our eyes to behold the glory of God and the gospel of Christ this morning? We pray in Jesus' name. Amen. You may be seated.

[2:24] Do you have enough? A recent Gallup poll found that 69% of non-retired Americans worry that they will not have enough for retirement. And fear of not having enough consistently ranks among the top of anxiety-inducing worries among Americans, especially within the financial world. In fact, a separate study done by A Lion's Life. It says that for two out of every three Americans, the fear of not having enough outranks the fear of death itself. Now, of course, the not enough message is pervasive in our culture. The message that you get on all sides at all times seems to be that you need more and more and more and more. And then once you happen to get more, well, guess what? More isn't enough, is it?

[3:22] And you can see and understand why so many are anxious and worried. But this message of not enough is not just a problem in the financial world. The message of not enough can also be pervasive in spiritual issues as well. We're starting in the book of Colossians this morning. And while they don't have retirement on the mind, they are still wrestling with this issue, this problem of not enough.

[3:51] Paul doesn't know these saints and these believers in Colossae. He has never met them. Paul did not personally plant this church. In fact, Paul is sitting in a Roman prison cell and he receives a visitor, his old friend named Epaphras. And Epaphras brings him this report of this church in Colossae.

[4:11] And he brings his old friend Paul some concerns. False teachers have crept into the church in Colossae. And they have come with this anxiety-inducing message of not enough. And they are spreading a message, a lie, that, well, what you have right now, that's a good start. Jesus Christ is a good place to begin.

[4:34] The gospel is a great starting point. But what you really need is some of our information, some of our knowledge, some of our rules, some of our religious practices. And then, maybe then, you will finally have enough. And so Paul writes this letter to the church in Colossae to teach them and to remind them what Epaphras had already delivered to them, that the fact is, if you have Jesus Christ, you have enough. The gospel of Jesus Christ is enough. And this is the main message of our passage this morning.

[5:15] And I wonder, church, if we believe this truly. Now, this letter was written by the Apostle Paul several thousand years ago, around AD 61. But it could just as easily have been addressed to us here in 2026, because we, too, constantly wrestle with this temptation and constantly have to defend ourselves against these false messages from the outside that lead us to think that the gospel of Jesus Christ is not enough for us. And we constantly wrestle with the temptation to leave the gospel behind and move on to bigger and better things. We can be prone to wonder whether our little church here in Allendah really has enough to survive. And not just survive, but whether we have enough to thrive and be all that God has called us to be. Paul writes to remind us this morning, see we may, if you have believed in the gospel of Jesus Christ, you have everything you need.

[6:18] Do you believe it? He shows us that this incredible gospel message can do what nothing else can. The gospel is the power of God to accomplish the plan of God. And he shows us this in three clear ways in these eight verses this morning. This will be our outline if you're taking notes. We're going to ask the question, well, how do we really know that the gospel is enough? What proof is there that the gospel is enough? And we have three answers to that question. The gospel is enough because the gospel alone can produce a new man, a new manifestation, and a new mission. This will be our outline this morning. First, we see the gospel is enough because the gospel alone produces a new man. And we see this in the first two verses of our passage this morning. Look there with me. Verses one and two. Paul introduces himself here in the first verse. Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ, meaning as an apostle, he is one of the few men who has been appointed to this foundational office in the early church. These men were eyewitnesses of the resurrected Christ. They were specifically appointed as direct representatives of the

[7:36] Lord in the early days in the foundation of the church. Paul wrote 13 or 14, if you include the letter of Hebrews, 14 to 13 books of the New Testament. When Paul speaks, he is speaking the very word of God himself in these words of scripture. This is a big claim that he's making, isn't it?

[7:57] Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ. But you know, it wasn't always that way for Paul, was it? Do you remember what Paul used to be? Paul was not always a defender of the faith. He did not always give his life away for the sake of the gospel. It's a bit ironic that he's writing this from a Roman prison cell because guess what? Paul used to be the one throwing men and women, throwing Christians into jail for saying that Jesus was the Christ. Paul used to be the one persecuting the church of Christ. He used to spend his time arresting and persecuting and silencing the spread of the gospel. But now he's an apostle of Jesus Christ, giving his life away to build up the church. What in the world happened to Paul? He encountered the risen Lord Jesus Christ on the road to Damascus and his entire life was changed upside down. His entire identity was changed. So the disciples said of him, he who formerly persecuted us now preaches the faith which he once tried to destroy. How do you explain a change like that? The gospel, the gospel has made Paul new. It's not just the apostle Paul who's different. Look what he says about the Colossians, those believers there in Colossae. You see, these Colossians, again, they were facing these lies from these false teachers who were saying that if you really want to be new, if you really want to be of service to Jesus, if you really want to make it and arrive as Christians, well, you need more than the gospel. But look what Paul says.

[9:42] He says, you Colossian believers, you are saints in Christ. Every last one of them are saints, meaning they are holy in the sight of God. They are set apart and made distinct from the world in the eyes of God. They are his, not only this, but they are faithful in Christ. Now Paul, again, he doesn't know these people. He has no knowledge of their religious performance, of their track record, of what they've done today from nine to five. All he knows is that they are in Christ, but that's enough for him, isn't it? If they are in Christ, they are saints and they are counted faithful. In other words, right off the bat, you see it? He tells them, you don't need to add to the gospel in order to be enough.

[10:32] The gospel is enough. And if you believe it, the gospel makes you enough in the sight of God. Church, do you realize this is true for all who believe in the gospel of Jesus Christ?

[10:46] Christ, not just then and there, but here and now. If you are in Christ by faith, if you have heard and understood the grace of God and truth and the gospel of Jesus Christ, you too are a saint in the sight of God. You too are counted faithful in the sight of God. Your past matters not. Your performance matters not. All that matters is if you are in Christ by faith in the gospel. If anyone is in Christ, he tells us in 2 Corinthians 5, 17, he is a new creation. The old has gone. Behold, the new has come. The very fact that Paul is writing this letter is a testimony to the fact that the gospel message is actually enough to radically transform even the greatest sinner into a completely new creation and use them in powerful ways in the service of God's kingdom. That's not all.

[11:50] We see also that this gospel message, it also gives us a new family. Paul doubles down here on these first two verses. He wants us to see that we're not just saved as individual Christians and then left to figure this all out on our own. No, he wants us to understand that we are then brought in to this brand new belonging and this brand new family of God. And so he writes this letter, he says, with his brother, Timothy. They're not biologically related, are they? They are spiritually related in Christ.

[12:24] And he writes to this church, again, that he does not know, but he calls them what? Brothers and sisters in Christ. Why? Because they share the same God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. They are brought into this spiritual family in the household of God. And all of this, all of this, he says, is because they are in Christ. How can someone be made new? They must be in Christ. And when you look at the address on the front of this envelope here, it is directed to the believers in Colossae. And if you know anything about Colossae, you know that Colossae was not much. It used to be, historically, in fact, it used to be this large, busy, bustling city.

[13:20] It was world famous for this Colossian red wool and this clothing that they would produce. But by the time that Paul writes this letter, guess what? Everything had changed. The Romans had developed this new highway north to south. And instead of going through Colossae, they bypassed Colossae entirely, went through Laodicea instead. And so almost overnight, this populous, thriving, metropolitan city was now an afterthought. They were has-beens. Socially, they were what used to be important, what used to be special, what used to be valuable. You can see how this lie of not enough might appeal to them.

[14:01] But Paul reminds them, and us, there is a much more significant location to consider. Far more important than them being in Colossae is the fact that they are in Christ. The gospel of Jesus Christ has taken these men and these women who were socially second-rate, and it has given them a brand new value and status before God. Their past doesn't matter. Their performance doesn't matter. Their place doesn't matter. It only matters that they are in Christ.

[14:44] Friend, there is no other message in the world. There is no other power in the world that can do this. every other world religion. It will sell you a path of self-improvement, a way to climb the ladder and better yourself. Only the gospel of Jesus Christ can transform you into a new creation.

[15:11] The gospel doesn't just make you a better man. It makes you a new man in Christ. And with this new man comes this fruit of a new life. I want you to look at what Paul says the gospel has already begun to produce in and through these believers in Colossae. This is the second point this morning. Second, the gospel is enough because the gospel alone produces a new manifestation.

[15:38] A new manifestation. You see, the gospel is not just information only. The gospel is a message of transformation. And once the gospel seed is planted in your heart, and once that message begins to take root in the heart of a believer, you're going to begin to see this seed bear fruit. It's going to manifest itself here. We see at least three clear ways that the gospel is manifesting itself here.

[16:06] One of those manifestations is in verse three. Paul says, we always thank God, the father of our Lord Jesus Christ, when we pray for you. Now stop right there and think about that for a minute.

[16:21] Again, remember, Paul does not know these people. He's never seen their faces. He can't even do what we do today and follow them on Facebook or have a Zoom call or a FaceTime call with them. All he knows is what Epaphras has shared with him. And yet here in prison, what is he doing? He is bowing his knees, praying for them, giving thanks to God, the father for them. The gospel and what it's done in their lives has overflowed with thanksgiving and praise to God miles and miles and miles away from this little church in Colossae all the way to a prison cell in Rome. The gospel has borne the fruit. It has manifested thanksgiving in the heart of a stranger, but a brother in Christ. This is one manifestation.

[17:14] But we see what is it in particular that he's thanking God for. He says, verse four, we always thank God since we heard of your faith in Christ Jesus and the love that you have for all the saints. These are our two more manifestations of the gospel, faith in Christ Jesus and love for the saints. These are undeniable fruits, manifestations, results of the gospel bearing fruit in their life.

[17:41] It's this vertical faith in Christ and horizontal love for one another. He says, we've heard that you have faith in Jesus. Don't you understand that's a miracle of God's grace? Don't you understand you can't produce this in yourself? Don't you understand that no amount of religious performance or secret knowledge or law keeping or whatever else these false teachers would add to you, none of that can produce genuine faith in Christ? Only the power of God through the gospel can do that?

[18:18] But I see it at work in you. It is proof that the gospel has taken root. It is proof that the gospel is enough. And not only that, but you also have this horizontal love for one another. That doesn't come from this list of rules, does it? This is obedience to Jesus's command. Love one another. By this will all men know that you are my disciples if you have love for one another. Where in the world did that come from? This too is a work of God's grace through the gospel. The gospel is bearing fruit in you. It's working. I see it. And what's driving all of this? He says, verse five, it is all because of the hope laid up for you in heaven, which you have heard about in the word of the truth, the gospel.

[19:12] This new faith and this new love and this new identity, it's the overflow of this new hope. Now, I want you to please understand that the Christian hope, this hope is not how we talk about hope in the world. It's like wishful thinking, like we just hope that this will work out. Right? I hope that this is going to go my way.

[19:35] That's not the Christian hope. The Christian hope is an absolute rock solid certainty. Now, what is our hope? Our hope is what Christ Jesus has purchased for us in the gospel. We believe that his perfect life has earned all the rewards of perfect obedience and it is credited to us who believe. We believe that his sacrificial death has perfectly removed the wrath of God that was due to us. So now by faith in him, we are reconciled to God. We believe that his victorious resurrection from the grave is the first fruit of a new resurrection life that belongs to all who are united to him by faith. And so we have this certain hope ahead of us of eternal life, enjoying the glory of God. What more can you need than that?

[20:32] What can you possibly add to that? What else do you need to be added to that for you to be happy and secure and certain of your life in Christ? Because of the hope laid up for you in heaven. I mean, let me ask you something. Think back to those stressed out Americans I mentioned earlier. Those people who are so anxious that they won't have enough in retirement, so they worry. They do these little side jobs. They pick up hours at Starbucks as a barista. They don't sleep well at night. How do you think it would change things for them if they knew without a shadow of a doubt that they were secure? How would it change things for them if they knew that it didn't depend on their working or their effort, that they had this large, untouchable inheritance waiting for them?

[21:24] Paul acts like a spiritual financial advisor here for the Colossians. He pulls out the balance sheet. He looks it over and he says, you have absolutely nothing to worry about. Have you forgotten about the inheritance that you have waiting on you? You couldn't spend this away in a million lifetimes?

[21:46] And for all your working and all your laboring and all your stressing, you couldn't add to it if you tried. Friend, if you are in Christ, you don't need to worry that you don't have enough or that you aren't good enough or that the gospel isn't enough. The gospel is the good news that there is a certain hope of eternity with God ahead of you who simply believe in Jesus Christ.

[22:16] Peter says, blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled and unfading, kept in heaven for you who by God's power are being guarded through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.

[22:43] Does that sound secure enough to you? Paul says, how can anybody say you don't have enough? I see the gospel bearing fruit in you. This is proof positive that it's working. It's bearing fruit in you. I see your faith in Christ. I see your love for the saints. It's all because of the certain hope that you have in heaven. It's all anchored in what Christ has already done in the gospel.

[23:09] You cannot add a thing to it. Don't listen to anyone who would lie to you in that way. The gospel is already bearing fruit in you, but not only in you. This is the third and final proof.

[23:24] Paul says, third, the gospel is enough because the gospel alone produces a new mission. A new mission, and that's a mission of both global and local significance.

[23:41] Paul says this glorious hope of a sin-free, joy-filled, eternal life and a brand new creation in the presence of God who made you. This hope came to you in the form of a message.

[23:59] It's almost too simple, isn't it? It is almost too simple. Of this you have heard before in the word of the truth, the gospel, which has come to you.

[24:11] It's breathtakingly simple what the mission of the church is. Churches and Christians can really make things a lot more complicated than they need to be.

[24:22] Let's simplify things just a little bit here. Our mission, see we may, our mission is the mission given to us by King Jesus.

[24:33] What is it? Go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to obey all that I have commanded you.

[24:47] Our mission is the message of the gospel. Our mission is the message of the gospel. Paul says this simple message of the gospel that was spoken and declared to you in words, it came to you here in this little forgotten town of Colossae.

[25:06] It's made its way all the way to you. Can you believe it? And so now you, Colossians, simply by believing this message are in Christ, now you are citizens of the kingdom of God, and now you know what it means to have your sins forgiven, now you know what it is to have this certain hope of eternal life, now that you have this power within you to truly love one another.

[25:29] Why? Because the gospel has come to you. The word of the truth has come to you. And by God's grace, you understood it and you received it.

[25:40] It has come to you, but not only to you. He says it came to you as indeed in the whole world. It is bearing fruit and increasing.

[25:52] This same gospel that came to you and has done this incredible work in your hearts, well, guess what? That same thing is happening all over the world right now.

[26:07] It is spreading all over the world. This is the way that God is accomplishing His purposes in all the earth. You know what it is? God's plan to bring glory to His name is through the church.

[26:23] That's His plan. And how does that happen? How does He do it? How does He do it? The gospel has to be spread. The word of truth is what forms the church.

[26:35] And then the church is what proclaims the word of truth. So that more believers are formed. And more churches are formed. And as more believers are formed and more churches are formed, guess what?

[26:46] The gospel is proclaimed. And as the gospel is proclaimed, guess what? I'm talking in a circle. You see it? As the gospel is proclaimed, the church is built.

[26:56] And as the church is built, God is praised for His glorious grace in the gospel of Christ. This is His plan. This is His mission. Church, we can't grow tired of this message.

[27:11] The temptation is to think, well, maybe that message was enough then. But maybe it's not enough now. What does our culture need to hear now in 2026? What do we need now?

[27:22] How do we reach these people here now in 2026? How do we do it? We reach them with the simple message of the gospel. Maybe you say, well, that message may float in South Carolina.

[27:38] All in all? What about New York, right? What about New Jersey? All in all's approach might not work up there. Or California, right? Maybe we need a different approach there.

[27:49] And Paul says, no. What Colossae needs is the same as what Rome needed. The same as what Ephesus needed. The same as what Philippi needed.

[27:59] And Crete. And Thessalonica. And Jerusalem. And Judea. And Samaria. And the uttermost ends of the earth. We don't need a new and improved message. We need to proclaim the message we got.

[28:13] We need the gospel. And the world needs to hear this gospel. This is the mission of the church. For every generation. In every place. For every Christian.

[28:25] Our role is the proclamation of the gospel of Christ. Christ. I had the privilege of going to Scotland a couple years ago. Amanda and I went to the Pillar Network International Conference.

[28:37] And we gathered there with brothers and sisters in Christ from all over the world. I mean, it was awesome. That's where I met Yvonne from Ghana. Who's one of our partners now.

[28:49] But I also met brothers and sisters from France. And from Amsterdam. And from Kenya. And from Qatar. And from Germany. And from Poland.

[28:59] And do you know what we shared in common? Not much. But one thing. The gospel had come to us.

[29:11] The gospel had changed us. And then the gospel had moved us out to share this powerful message with others. The gospel is the origin story of every Christian church.

[29:26] It is the origin story of every Christian. And then it is the ministry of every Christian church. And it is the ministry of every Christian.

[29:36] And we see some of that local gospel ministry there in verse 7. Don't we? Paul says the gospel is bearing fruit and increasing in the whole world.

[29:48] This big global perspective worldwide. As it also does right there among you in Colossae. Since the day you heard it. And understood the grace of God in truth.

[30:02] But ask how did they hear it? How did they understand it? How did the gospel come to them? When they had never heard this message before. What happened? Verse 7. Just as you learned it from Epaphras.

[30:16] Our beloved fellow servant. He is a faithful minister of Christ on your behalf. And has made known to us your love in the spirit. Now think about this.

[30:27] Paul is probably the most famous missionary in the history of the world. Right? We all know Paul. Now Paul is this famous apostle. He's got this dramatic conversion story.

[30:39] He's well known. Raise your hand if you know much about Epaphras. And we don't know much about him. Except. That he is a faithful minister of Christ.

[30:53] And he has taken it upon himself. To proclaim the message of the gospel. And look what's happened because of it. Church. I pray.

[31:05] That from Seawee Bay Baptist Church. Maybe there will be a few like Paul. Who will go on to have these. These. These. Incredibly. Unusually powerful ministries.

[31:16] This influential. Worldwide reach. But I pray. Even more than that. That Seawee Bay. Would be filled with men and women. Like Epaphras. Who would be faithful.

[31:29] Ministers of the gospel. On behalf of your family. With your children. Around the dinner table. Faithful ministers of the gospel.

[31:41] Who take the gospel. To the neighborhood. On behalf of your neighbors. Who take the gospel. To the ball field. On behalf of.

[31:52] Your teams. Who take the gospel. To your places of work. On behalf of your co-workers. And your friends. So that the gospel. Might come to them. And by God's grace.

[32:03] They might understand. The grace of God. In truth. You know. The greatest. And most important thing. That the church can do.

[32:14] That this church. Can do. Is emphasize. And share. And give. The gospel. Of Jesus Christ. We cannot improve upon it.

[32:26] And we. Can't grow tired. Of it. The message. Of the gospel. Is enough. It is more than enough. To captivate.

[32:36] All of God's people. For the rest. Of eternity. And to motivate us. Here and now. To live. For the glory. Of God. Together. As a gospel. Shaped. Family. So I.

[32:47] Return. Again. To the question. I asked you. At the start. Church. Do you have enough? Do you have enough? For your standing. Before God.

[32:57] Do you have enough? To be. Spiritually secure. Before him. Does this church. Have enough? To be a faithful. Vibrant. Body of Christ.

[33:08] Here. In this community. Do you. Have. Enough. The good news. Of the gospel. To us. This morning. If you. Have Christ. Jesus. Friend. You.

[33:19] Have. Enough. Your spiritual. Account. Is full. Your future. Hope. Is secure. You can live. In the freedom. And the joy.

[33:30] Of joining. Christ. In his. Mission. And work. In the world. Sharing the good news. That Jesus. Christ. Is enough. Amen. Father.

[33:41] We praise you. That. We can. Rest. In the finished. Work. Of Christ. That Jesus. Has done. Everything. Needed. For. Us.

[33:51] For our life. And salvation. And God. Because of that. And out of that. Lord. We pray. That from. This position. Of fullness. And from. This position. Of acceptance. Before you.

[34:02] God. That we would. Live. For the glory. Of God. And proclaiming. The gospel. Would we rest. Secure. And work. Hard. Lord. To make your name.

[34:13]  Known. We pray this. In Jesus name. Amen. Amen. Amen.