I'll begin our worship this evening by singing to God's praise. We're going to sing in Psalm 1a.
Sing Psalm's version, page 1 of the psalm book, Psalm 1a.
Blessed is the one who turns away from where the wicked walk, who does not stand in sinners' paths or sit with those who mock.
Instead, he finds God's holy law, his joy and great delight. He makes the precepts of the Lord his study, day and night.
We'll sing the whole of this psalm, 1a, to God's praise.
Blessed is the one who turns away from where the wicked walk,
who does not stand in sinners' paths or sit with those who mock.
Instead, he finds God's holy law, his joy and great delight.
He makes the precepts of the Lord his study, day and night.
He prospers ever like a tree that's planted by a stream.
And in whose season yields its fruit, its leaves are always green.
Not so the wicked they are like the chaff that's blown away.
They will not stand when judgment comes,
For with the righteous stay.
It is the Lord who sees and knows
The way the righteous go.
But those who live and need will lie,
The Lord will overthrow.
Let's bow our heads in a word of prayer. Let us pray.
Our Father in heaven, we do come in need of your presence at all times,
In need of your help, in need of your blessing over us.
We know, Lord, that your word reminds us again and again
That apart from you, we can do nothing.
But we thank you that it continues to remind us, too,
Of your great mercy towards us,
Your great love towards us,
That you are a God of faithfulness towards your people.
And we have been singing of what it means to walk in the ways of being blessed.
And we sing these words that remind us that
It is about being close in our relationship with you.
It is about your word and the study of it.
And how your word instructs us and helps us
Day by day to know you and to worship you as we should
And to live according to your ways.
To live a life pleasing to the Lord,
Even as we were considering together this morning.
And we thank you that your word
Gives us such wonderful encouragement and instruction.
A word that reminds us of
Our frailties and yet your strength.
That you are the one who makes strength perfect,
Even in our weakness.
And we thank you, Lord,
That you are the one who is able to do so much for us.
That there is none of us here this evening,
As we come under your word,
Who is ever too far away from you.
That your mighty arm is not able to save.
There is no one here who is going through
Any struggles that you are not able to help with.
There is no one here this evening
Who can stand before you saying,
Look at what I have done for you
In our own strength.
But we can all come and plead with you before you
To have mercy on us.
And thankful for all that you have done for us
Through your Son, Christ Jesus our Lord.
And when we fall short, as we often do,
We thank you that we have a great Saviour.
That in Jesus Christ we have your Son,
Who you sent into this world for sinners.
And we are all that.
But we thank you that he came to be with us.
That he came to be among your people in this world.
To bear witness to you.
To show the fulfilment of all your prophecies and promises.
To show the fulfilment of your great mercy towards us.
That you would provide a Saviour.
The one whom the woman at the well spoke of
When she said that we know that Messiah is coming.
And he stood before her and said,
I am he.
And we thank you that this evening we come
Looking to Jesus, the one who is the Messiah.
The Redeemer.
The Saviour of the world.
And we pray that you will
Remind us of what that means.
Remind us of who we are in light of it.
That in the world that we live in,
Which can be so confusing at times.
And full of so much sorrow and sadness.
So much uncertainty.
A world that is so often changing
Even before our eyes.
And even as we change
Before your eyes too.
And yet we come
To the one who never changes.
The one who is the same
Yesterday, today
And forever.
And we pray to know you.
To know you
And your mercy and your grace
More and more abundantly.
In all our lives.
To know what it is to repent.
And to confess our sins before you.
To know what it is.
To know forgiveness for our sins.
That you are faithful and just
To pardon our sins.
And so help us that we would come
In that sense of confession.
But also repentance.
Turning from our sin.
And we thank you that in prayer
We have such a wonderful way
To come to you.
Not just with words to you
But even with the groanings of our hearts.
That nothing is hidden from you.
And we thank you
That even before we open our mouths
That every uttering of our lips
Is known to you.
Our very hearts are poured out to you.
For you see them already.
You know our grief and our pain.
You know our joy and our gladness.
You know all things about us.
And you know the world in which we live.
You created it and formed it.
You were pleased with it.
As we read at the beginning of the Bible.
In the book of Genesis.
And you saw all that you made.
And it was very good.
And yet.
Not long after that.
We know that sin.
Sin came into the world.
And spoiled the creation.
And there is nothing good in us now.
But we thank you for your goodness.
And your mercy towards us.
And we pray Lord.
That in the wickedness of the world.
In which we live.
That you would come in your mercy.
And in your power.
We so often pray for circumstances.
And situations around the world.
That where we see evil and wickedness prevailing.
Where we see the wickedness of man.
And it's in humanity against one another.
And we pray Lord.
As we often do.
For your mercy over those who desire evil.
And whose hearts are wicked.
We pray for mercy for them.
But even as we have been singing in this psalm.
We are reminded too.
That you are a God who is able to overthrow.
And sometimes maybe that needs to be our prayer as well.
That you would overthrow those in authority.
And ruling over nations.
Where there is wickedness to the fore.
Where there is war and greed.
And so many tragic things happening.
We pray Lord.
That these wicked rulers.
And environments Lord.
Will be overthrown by you.
And for a day of peace to come.
For you to come in your power.
And to show your power in our midst.
You do so so often in many ways.
And yet we heed it not.
But we pray Lord.
That as you show yourself in all of these ways.
That you would bring us to our knees.
And to cry out for mercy.
So Lord hear our prayers.
And receive our thanks at this time.
For all your goodness to us.
As a people here.
And as we represent just a small part of your church this evening.
We thank you for one another.
We thank you for the bonds of fellowship that exist here.
And for all your praying people.
For all who gather week by week around your word.
Both present in the building.
And also tuning in online as well.
And we thank you that we come prayerfully to you.
Pleading with you Lord.
For your goodness over us as a people.
For your help towards every home and family represented here.
To know your peace over us as a people.
To know your strength in the midst of times of weakness.
To know your blessing even as we pray for the week ahead.
And we thank you that we can commit one another to you.
We can commit those who are unwell.
And those who are suffering in different ways.
Those who are mourning and grieving.
Lord we continue to pray for your help.
And your comfort in the midst of so many difficult situations.
But we thank you too that life is not always sadness and sorrow.
But that there are times of much blessing and rejoicing.
And we pray to know these days.
Even in our own week ahead.
That we would be able to rejoice with those who rejoice.
As we even mourn with those who mourn.
And we pray that there will be rejoicing in our midst.
Oh Lord in this coming week.
As we gather for worship and for communion.
We pray as we read in the word.
That there will be rejoicing in heaven.
Over one sinner who repents.
Lord we long to see that many come to Christ.
And we pray.
That your hand will be upon us for good.
To that end even in these coming days.
That by your word and by your spirit.
By the preaching of your word.
That we would come under your mighty hand.
And that we would recognize who you are.
And our great need of you.
And so we pray your blessing.
As we prepare for our communion weekend.
To bless the preaching and ministry we receive.
And the fellowship we enjoy with one another.
Around your word.
That you would be in the midst of all that we do.
May you go before us in all of these things.
Lord and prepare our hearts and the way ahead as well.
And Lord help us to continue faithful in prayer day by day.
Help us to walk closely and humbly with you.
As we long to see your goodness over us.
We pray Lord that you will help us and strengthen us.
For all of our days.
We pray for our church as a whole Lord.
That you will pour out your blessing on us.
That we would know the spirit.
And its mighty work over our land and our nation in these days.
Lord we ask all these things pleading with you.
To remember us.
To do us good.
And to pardon all our sins.
As we bring our prayers before you.
In the mighty name of Jesus Christ our Lord.
As we ask it for his glory.
Amen.
Well we will again sing to God's praise.
This time in Psalm 86 in the Scottish Psalter.
Page 340 of the Psalm book.
Psalm 86.
We will sing from verse 1 down to verse 8.
A psalm that reminds us that as we pray to God.
We pray that he will hear and answer prayer according to his will.
O Lord do thou bow down thine ear and hear me graciously.
Because I sore afflicted am and am in poverty.
Because I am holy let my soul by thee preserve it be.
O thou my God thy servant save that puts his trust in thee.
We will sing from verse 1 to verse 8.
To God's praise.
Amen.
O Lord do thou bow down thine ear and hear me graciously.
Because I sore afflicted am and am in poverty.
Because I am holy let my soul by thee preserve it be.
O thou my God thy servant save that puts his trust in thee.
Sith unto thee I daily cry.
Be merciful to me.
Rejoice thy servant soul.
O Lord I lift my soul to thee.
For thou art gracious, O Lord.
And ready to forgive.
And rich in mercy.
All that fall upon thee to relieve.
Hear, Lord, my prayer.
And to the voice of my request.
In trouble, my prayer.
I will call on thee.
For thou will answer sin.
Lord, there is none among the gods that they with thee compare.
And like the works which thou hast done.
Not any work is there.
And then, I will call on thee.
Amen.
We will turn to reading God's word now in the New Testament and Paul's letter to the Colossians.
Colossians chapter 4.
You will find this around page 1185 or thereabouts.
Colossians chapter 4.
And we take up our reading at verse 2.
Paul's concluding remarks to the church at Colossae.
And he gives instruction to them.
And he reminds us in the last part about people, greetings from different people.
And it's that we're going to focus on at the end of the chapter from verse 12 in particular as we come to look at this passage.
We'll read from verse 2.
Continue steadfastly in prayer, being watchful in it with thanksgiving.
At the same time, pray also for us that God may open to us a door for the word to declare the mystery of Christ, on account of which I am in prison.
That I may make it clear which is how I ought to speak.
Conduct yourselves wisely towards outsiders, making the best use of the time.
Let your speech always be gracious, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how you ought to answer each person.
Tericus will tell you all about my activities.
He is a beloved brother and faithful minister and fellow servant in the Lord.
I have sent him to you for this very purpose, that you may know how we are and that he may encourage your hearts.
And with him, Onesimus, our faithful and beloved brother, who is one of you.
They will tell you of everything that has taken place here.
Aristarchus, my fellow prisoner, greets you.
And Mark, the cousin of Barnabas, concerning whom you have received instructions.
If he comes to you, welcome him.
And Jesus, who is called Justice.
These are the only men of the circumcision among my fellow workers for the kingdom of God.
And they have been a comfort to me.
Epaphras, who is one of you, a servant of Christ Jesus, greets you, always struggling on your behalf, in his prayers that you may stand mature and fully assured in all the will of God.
For I bear him witness that he has worked hard for you and for those in Laodicea and Hierapolis.
Luke, the beloved physician, greets you, as does Demas.
Give my greetings to the brothers at Laodicea and to Nympha and the church in her house.
And when this letter has been read among you, have it also read in the church of the Laodiceans.
And see that you also read the letter from Laodicea.
And say to Archippus, see that you fulfill the ministry that you have received in the Lord.
I, Paul, write this greeting with my own hand.
Remember my chains.
Grace be with you.
Amen.
And may God bless that reading from his word.
Before we turn to look at this passage again, we'll sing to God's praise once again in Psalm 28.
Page 33 of the psalm books.
Let's sing Psalm's verse in Psalm 28.
And we can sing from verse 4 down to the end of the psalm, verse 9.
So you have these verses that show a pleading with the Lord to deal with the injustices of this world.
And then in the final verses, you see what it is to lift up our eyes to the Lord.
My heart uplifted leaps for joy.
My thanks to him I gladly sing.
The Lord God is his people's strength, a saving fortress for his king.
We'll sing from verse 4 down to the end of the psalm.
To God's praise.
Amen.
Repay them for their evil deeds
and for their acts of wickedness.
Bring back on them what they deserve
and punish their unrighteousness.
Because the Lord's works they despise
and treat his actions with disdain.
In justice he will tear them down
and never build them up again.
Praise to the Lord for he has heard
the plea for mercy which I made.
He is my strength, he is my shield.
I trust in him who sends me there.
My heart uplifted leaps for joy.
My thanks to him I gladly sing.
The Lord God is his people's strength.
A saving fortress for his king.
Lord, save your people, your own flock.
Be pleased, your heritage to bless.
Be their good shepherd, carry them
Forever in your faithfulness.
We can turn back to our reading
in Paul's letters to Colossians chapter 4.
And like I say, we're looking at the end
of this letter from verse 12 down to the end.
We're seeing different characters
and different people here
and learning a little from them
of what it means.
Connected with what we were looking at this morning,
you see this letter is just beside
1 Thessalonians which we were looking at this morning
and looking at the theme of living a life
pleasing to God.
And we see this evening
what that looks like in some ways
and also perhaps what it doesn't look like too
as we look at some of these people mentioned
at the end of this passage.
We read in verse 12,
Epaphras, who is one of you,
a servant of Christ Jesus,
greets you, always struggling on your behalf
in his prayers that you may stand mature
and fully assured in all the will of God.
For I bear witness, bear him witness
that he has worked hard for you
and for those in Laodicea
and in Hierapolis and so on.
It's maybe hard for us to imagine
what it was like to be a people
receiving this letter from Paul
as we read it together this evening.
It maybe doesn't have the same impact
as it did to the people
who were hearing it for the very first time.
The church at Colossae had known
a great blessing
as Paul had come to minister to them
as the church was established
there as they came to hear
of the great mercies of God
through Jesus Christ, his son.
They'd learned so much.
Paul had been then taken away from them.
He had gone to other places.
And as you read through this letter,
you find that Paul is now in prison.
And he's writing from prison
this letter to them
to encourage them
and to strengthen them in the Lord,
knowing that there's a great many challenges
going on around them
and especially those who are coming
into their midst
with a different kind of teaching,
a different teaching to the gospel
that was seeking to take them away
from their faith
in the Lord Jesus Christ.
So it's hard to enter in
just what it was like
to hear this letter for the first time
because so many of them
would have been wondering
what was happening to Paul,
what was going on in his life,
what was happening
to all these people like Epaphras
who had gone from them
and gone with Paul,
what was going on in their lives.
And letters,
especially as you find letters
written by hand,
very personal letters,
they have a powerful impact on us.
And you can maybe think of letters
you've received yourself
or letters you've read yourself.
It's not as common today
because we communicate
in a very different way,
whether it's texts or WhatsApps
or short messages.
We're often using them now.
Perhaps in an email,
we'll write a little longer,
but we still keep it short
and to the point.
But there was a day
when very personal letters
would be written and sent.
Maybe when you were away
in university or college,
back in the day,
you were hearing from different people,
writing letters to you,
telling you what was happening
back at home.
For myself,
it was when I was away at sea,
different parts of the world
and receiving letters from home
and hearing what was happening.
It didn't have to be anything
out of the ordinary,
just the little things.
But just to receive a letter
handwritten
with such a personal touch
that someone had taken time
to write
and was thinking of you
as they wrote it,
it means so much.
And that is really
what is behind this letter as well.
There's a sense of
the personal nature of it
and Paul's love
for the church at Colossae,
as you see in so many
of the letters that he writes
in the New Testament.
They're powerful.
They're personal.
They're longing
that the people
would be growing.
We saw it this morning
with 1 Thessalonians,
his longing
for the people
to grow in the Lord,
to live a life
pleasing to God.
So we live in a world
where communication
is so often instant,
where if we send a message,
we expect a reply
within almost seconds sometimes.
Maybe you've got someone
in your life,
a parent or a partner
who they message
and then if you haven't replied
within a minute or two,
they're getting worried,
they're getting anxious
and they're phoning you.
You didn't reply
to my message.
Where are you?
Is everything okay?
Well, if Paul was sending letters
from Rome,
as he was in prison,
to places like Colossae
or Thessalonica,
it was going to take months,
maybe even over a year
for the letter to get there
and then a reply to come back.
It wasn't the instant communication
that we have.
But his letters
are beautiful letters
and they're worth
just reading through
and taking your time.
God's word through him
to the church at Colossae here.
God's word to ourselves today.
There's a beauty in these words
and a power in these words.
And this evening,
I want to give you
two bits of homework.
The first bit I'm going to give you
just now to do later on
with something to do.
And then the last part
as we come to the end
is something to think about,
to take away and think about
and see if you can understand it
for yourself.
So the first one
is something to do.
And what I want you to do
is to go home tonight
and to read through
the whole of this letter.
It's not a long letter,
four chapters,
but to begin in chapter one
and just to take your time
and read through
the whole of the letter
and to see
the power of God's word,
to see what it's saying to us,
the wonder of God's love
and mercy to us,
the wonder of a concern
and a compassion
as we see Paul's heart
for the people here
and the way the power
of God's word
is able to change
and to keep us
on the right track.
So go home,
take your time
to read through.
It'll take only 10,
maybe 15 minutes
to read through
the whole of the letter
and it'll hopefully help
to put this evening sermon
into context as well.
We're only looking
at the very end
of the letter,
but if you just go back
even to the very start
of the letter,
it starts with
a real sense
of relationship there.
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.
Then he goes into
the next section
that we are always
giving thanks to God
in our prayers
for you.
There's a warmth
from the outset,
there's teaching
as you go through it,
and then there's warmth
and love
as it comes
to a conclusion as well.
So that's your first part
of your homework,
to go home
and to read the whole
of this letter,
to get a feeling
of what's behind it
and the context
of it arriving
with a sense of concern
that people had
what was happening
and then hearing
the love of Paul
and the love of God
towards them
through it.
So this evening
we're going to
just look at the concluding
part of this letter
from verse 12
and looking down
to the end
of chapter 4.
And what you find
as Paul is concluding
his letters
is so often
he mentions people
by name.
And you can learn
a lot
from these people.
We've already looked
at this letter before,
verse 7 down to 11.
We looked at it
a few months ago
and we picked out
the characters
that we see there
and just learned
a little about them
and what it means
for ourselves.
We're just going to
do the same thing
this evening,
picking out some
of the characters
we see here
and learning a little
bit about them.
There's individual
characters,
but the last one
we're looking at
is Archippus,
but also the church.
It's the wider context
of this letter
being written
about a people.
It says in verse 16,
when this letter
has been read among you,
have it also read
in the church
of the Laodiceans.
The people of God
are to hear
this letter.
And when we think
of people,
we often describe people
in different ways.
And the title
for the sermon
this evening
is Past,
Present,
and Future.
And the reason
for that is
we see
how it applies
to people
here in Paul's day
and to ourselves
today as well.
This letter
speaks
into the people's past,
into their present,
and into their future
in the same way
as it speaks
to us
of the past,
the present,
and the future.
And what kind
of people
do we find
in life?
we find people
who sometimes
live in one
of these three
categories.
You can often
find people
being described
as people
who live in the past,
harking back
to previous days.
Others,
you hear of,
they're just living
in the present.
They're living
for the moment,
just wanting
to enjoy
the here
and now.
Or others,
they're living
with,
we sometimes say,
one eye on the future,
one eye on what lies
ahead.
But the reality
is we should be
all of these.
We should never
lose sight
of our past.
We want to live
in the present,
but we always
want to have
an eye,
not just one eye,
but both eyes
on the future,
on what lies ahead.
And that's
what we find
as Paul
concludes
this letter.
There's a little
of the past,
the present,
and the future.
And let's
begin by
reflecting on
the first
character we
have here
in verse 12,
Epaphras.
We take him
and we look at him
just for a few
moments.
The mention
of Epaphras
here would
take the people
back to the
past.
Epaphras,
it says,
who is one
of you?
He has been
with them
in the past.
But the question
would be,
well,
where is he
now?
If you go back
to chapter 1,
verse 7,
verse 6 and 7,
this word
that has come
to them,
as it says,
which has come
to you as indeed
in the whole world,
it is bearing fruit
and growing,
as it also does
among you
since the day
you heard it
and understood
the grace of God
in truth,
just as you learned
it from Epaphras.
our beloved
fellow servant.
He is a faithful
minister of Christ
on your behalf.
So,
there's a beauty
in these words
as they begin
to hear of Epaphras
from the outset
and here he is again
mentioned
in the closing stages.
It would be easy
for the people
of Colossae
to think
Epaphras
has almost
bailed out on them,
that he's gone
away from them
and just forgotten
all about them,
that he's not
concerned
for them anymore,
but Paul,
as he writes
to them,
he mentions Epaphras
at the beginning
and the end.
He's one of you
and he says
he still has
this concern
for you.
And what we see
in Epaphras
is what we would
long to see
in all of ourselves
as well.
As we were reflecting
this morning
on what it means
to live
a life
pleasing to God.
Here is an example
for us.
Epaphras.
It says here
in verse 12,
Epaphras is one of you,
a servant
of Christ Jesus,
greets you,
always struggling
on your behalf
in his prayers,
that you may
stand mature
and fully assured
in all the will
of God.
For I bear him
witness
that he has
worked hard
for you
and for those
in Laodicea
and Hierapolis.
They may have
been thinking
that he has
abandoned them,
that he has
lost any thought
of them,
but it's the
complete opposite.
He's never
forgotten them
and he's always,
as it says,
struggling on your
behalf
in his prayers.
He always
has them
in his heart
and in his prayers.
He's longing
for them
to stand
mature
and fully
assured
in the will
of God,
even though
he is far
from them.
And that's
the wonder
of God's
grace
in life
as well.
The grace
that we see
in this life
of Epaphras.
He was fully
aware of the
dangers
of false
teaching
that was
present
in Colossae.
And he was
praying,
Lord,
keep them.
Lord,
look after
them.
Lord,
be near
them.
Hear my
prayers
for them.
When it
says there,
always
struggling
on your
behalf
in prayers,
it's not
meaning that
he's struggling
in the sense
of he just
can't get
his prayer
together.
He can't
find the
words for
prayer.
It's a
struggle of
a fight
in prayer.
It's a
struggle of
never letting
go
in prayer.
And it's
the kind
of struggle
that we
should have
in our
prayers
as well.
We're not
going to
let issues
go.
We're not
going to
let people
go in
our prayers
just because
we feel
our prayers
are not
being answered.
We are
going to
keep
praying.
We are
going to
keep
struggling
in our
prayers
on behalf
of them,
whether it's
family or
friends or
work colleagues
or anyone
we have
around us,
to have
a people
that we
are praying
for.
I noticed
online just
yesterday that
North Tolstair,
the congregation
there,
they're setting
a challenge
to the
congregation
for each
month.
And for
the month
of February,
it's to
think of
three people
in the
community
and to
pray for
them.
And I
think that's
a great
thing.
To think of
three people
and to
pray for
them,
for that
month,
to pray
for them.
We will
all have
people on
our minds,
family members,
people we
know well
that we
pray for
often.
But even
from time
to time,
to think
of someone
new,
someone
different,
and to
pray for
them.
This is
the example
of Epaphras.
He's one
of you,
a servant
of Christ
Jesus,
struggling
on your
behalf
in his
prayers.
He is
laboring
in prayer.
He's
intense
in prayer
and he's
intentional
in his
prayers.
But we
see to
another
side
that,
yes,
there is
prayer,
but he's
also one
who is
hard-working.
It says,
I bear
witness that
he has
worked hard
for you
and for
those in
Laodicea
and
Hierapolis.
He's
a faithful
servant
of Christ
Jesus.
In his
prayers,
struggling
and laboring
there,
but also
in his
work.
He is
laboring,
working hard
for them
and for
others
in the
kingdom
of God.
And again,
it's a
challenge for
ourselves
too.
as we
think of
a life
pleasing
to God,
what does
that
entail?
Well,
again,
it's just
a wonderful
example to
us to
be a
people of
prayer and
to be a
people of
practical,
practicing
our faith
in life,
doing
for the
Lord.
And he's
got this
heart
desire that
the people
would stand
mature and
fully assured
in the
will of
God.
And if
you're
thinking,
what do
I pray
for people?
Well,
there is a
prayer for
us,
that people
would come
to know
the Lord,
that people
would come
to stand
in the
Lord,
to become
mature in
the Lord,
to become
fully assured
in the
will of
God,
that God
would work
in their
lives and
in their
hearts.
So,
Epaphras,
he was
one they
maybe felt
had abandoned
them in
some ways,
had never
been heard
of again,
and yet
they're
reminded
here he's
never
forgotten
them.
He's
always
laboring
for them
in prayer.
He's
always
working
hard for
them.
So,
an
encouragement
and an
example
to them
at Colossae,
but also
to
ourselves
as well.
the
second
ones we
want to
look at
here.
We want
to take
Luke and
Demas,
and we
see that
in verse
14.
Luke,
the beloved
physician,
greets you,
as does
Demas.
Now,
it doesn't
seem to
say much
to us,
but
we're
reminded
here that
there's
something
in the
present,
and the
present
here with
both Luke
and Demas
is that
they are
fellow
workers
with
Paul.
So,
if you
look at
the current
situation as
Paul is
writing to
the Colossians,
if you look
at Philemon
as well,
you find
them mentioned
there,
Demas and
Luke as
well,
fellow
workers
with
Paul,
and it
all looks
good.
It all
looks
positive.
And again,
just looking
back to
this morning,
as we
were thinking
of Paul
writing to
the Thessalonians,
he was so
encouraged by
the report
that Timothy
brought back
from Thessalonica
about what
was happening
there,
that they were
standing firm
in the faith.
They were
encouraged to
hear that.
And initially,
there's encouragement
here for us.
Luke and
the beloved
physician greets
you,
as does
Demas.
So,
they're there
with Paul.
They're there
working
for them.
That's the
present.
But then you
start looking
into Luke
and Demas
in the future.
What you find
with Luke
is encouraging.
He stands
firm in the
Lord.
We have the
gospel of Luke.
We have the
book of Acts,
all written
by Luke,
the physician.
We have an
insight into
his life,
how he
walked
closely
with the
Lord,
how he
was living
a life
pleasing to
the Lord,
and the
Lord was
working in
him.
But as we
were thinking
of this
morning,
the reason
that Paul
was writing
to the
Thessalonians
was that
their pathway
would continue
in that
direction,
that their
pathway would
be one
that's living
close to
the Lord
all the
time,
and growing
in their
knowledge and
understanding
of God,
and their
sanctification,
as we were
thinking about
God working
in them.
And he
was writing
that to
these churches,
whether it's
Thessalonica
or Colossae,
knowing there's
always the
temptation of
drifting away.
And that's
what you find
with Demas.
Because when
you read of
Demas in
2 Timothy
chapter 4
and verse
10,
listen to what
it says of
him.
for Demas,
because he
loved this
world,
has deserted
me and
has gone
to Thessalonica.
Because he
loved this
world,
has deserted
me.
He had
left
Paul.
He had
gone away
from Paul
and from
God.
And that
stands there
as a reminder
to us of
the need
to always
seek to
walk
closely
with God.
In that
section
in
2 Timothy,
it says,
Luke is
with me.
And you
see there
the difference.
Demas,
because he
loved the
world,
has gone
away.
Luke is
with me.
And there's
the challenge
for us.
You know,
what are we
doing for
the Lord?
Are we
standing firm
in our
faith?
That's great
when we are
in the
present,
but always
be on your
guard for
the future.
Never take
your eyes
of the
Lord.
That's the
warning that
comes through
loud and
clear here.
Luke,
yes,
he's with
Paul.
He's standing
firm.
And Demas is
here at this
moment,
but Demas,
because he
loved the
world,
deserted him.
And I'm
sure we all
know people
who have
seemed to
be walking
close with
God.
They've been
with us
perhaps over
the years,
and we know
that they're
not there
now.
And why
is that?
So often
it's just
because of
what happened
to Demas,
because he
loved the
world.
we allow
the Lord
to lose
focus in
our lives
and in
our hearts.
We allow
things to
come in
that take
us away
from that.
Little by
little,
as we
stop living
a life
pleasing to
God,
then we
find ourselves
just drifting
away.
Drifting
away little
by little.
But we
should never
stop praying
for those
who find
themselves in
that situation.
And we
should never
stop praying
for ourselves
that we
will be
kept from
drifting away
as well.
Whatever we
do, we
are to do
as to
the Lord.
That's what
Paul teaches
so often
throughout this
letter.
To do as
unto the
Lord.
To do all
for Him.
because the
moment we
start doing
it for
self,
that's when
the world
starts to
come in
and the
love of
this world
and the
praise of
people in
this world
becomes more
important than
walking closely
with God.
Luke,
the beloved
physician,
greets you
it sees.
The one
who remained
faithful to
God,
who served
God with
all his
heart.
And then you
have the
comparison
of Demas,
the one
who loved
the world
and deserted,
who turned
away.
So there's
these warnings,
these contrasts
for us of
a life pleasing
to God on
one hand,
but a life
of turning
away from
God on
the other.
There's a
past,
there's a
present,
there's a
future in
all of these
lives.
Luke and
Demas and
ourselves.
It's not
just about
looking back
and saying
that's when
I was
converted.
It's not
just about
looking to
the present
and saying
I'm standing
firm now,
but it's
looking to
the future
as well
and pleading
with God,
Lord keep
me.
Keep me
on your
right path.
Keep me
close to
you.
The final
thing I want
us to see
here is
when we
look at
Archippus
and the
church.
And what
do we
learn from
them?
Well, when
you look at
what it
says about
Archippus
here, it
doesn't say
much again.
Say to
Archippus,
see that
you fulfill
the ministry
that you
have received
in the
Lord.
In many
ways, it's
maybe a
little like
both Luke
and Demas.
Luke went
on to
fulfill the
ministry that
he was
given.
Demas
deserted.
And here's
a reminder
to Archippus
too.
See that
you fulfill
the ministry
that you
have received
in the
Lord.
And then
when it
speaks about
the church
as well,
and what
does it
say to
us?
Well,
Paul is
writing here
to his
beloved
and to
the Lord's
beloved.
As it
says at
the start
of chapter
1,
verse 2,
to the
saints and
faithful
brothers in
Christ at
Colossae.
He's
writing to
the church,
to the
people of
God.
And what
he's saying
to them
is kind
of marrying
the two
things together
that we've
looked at
already.
The place
of prayer
and the
place of
working
for the
Lord.
Epaphras
was one
struggling on
your behalf
in prayers
but working
hard.
Luke was
one who
worked hard
and kept
on praying
and demons
deserted.
Archippus is
reminded too,
see that you
fulfill the
ministry that
you have
received in
the Lord.
It's showing
the different
aspects of
what church
looks like.
A praying
people and
a practical
people.
People who
are fulfilling
the ministry
of the Lord
that has been
given to
us.
And when
you think
about it,
when you
look at
the past
of the
church in
Colossae,
what was
it?
As we
read through
this letter
we see
the wonder
of the
gospel that's
changed this
city,
changed this
place.
The power
of the
gospel has
come to
them and
has transformed
the place.
There's still
challenges,
there's still
false teaching
coming in,
but the
church of
God has
flourished
here.
But it
was not
always that
kind of
place.
It was a
place of
paganism,
false gods,
many gods,
false teaching
was there
in abundance,
and it had
been transformed
by the
gospel.
It had a
past that
was ungodly,
it has a
present that
was very much
God in their
midst, but
what would it
hold for their
future?
Well, that's
what he was
writing to,
to encourage
them to
remain faithful
in prayer and
the ministry
that the
Lord had
given to
them.
And when
we look at
ourselves here
in our own
islands, what
do we see
when we look
to the
past?
So often
our past
can look
back to
days when
churches were
flourishing and
abounding,
times of
revival and
great blessing
in our
islands.
But you
don't have
to go too
much further
back to
realize that
there was a
time when
the church
here was
almost
non-existent,
when paganism
and all these
kinds of
things were
in our
islands.
And the
church came
into the
midst of
that and
transformed,
transformed
people,
transformed
communities,
transformed so
many lives.
And we're
thankful for
the gospel
that came
to our
islands.
But what
of the
future for
ourselves?
What of
the future
for our
church here?
Well, we
stand in
historic
times in
many ways.
We always
stand in
historic
times.
But this
is a time
that God
has given
to us as
a people.
And just
as Paul
was writing
to the
church at
Colossae,
to encourage
them to
be strong
in the
Lord,
to have
courage,
to be
prayerful,
and to be
fulfilling the
ministry that
the Lord has
given to
them.
And so
it is saying
the same
to us.
We have a
ministry
from God.
We have a
commission
from God
in His
Word.
We have
instruction
from God
in His
Word.
Are we
fulfilling
that ministry
in our
personal lives?
Are we
listening to
the gospel?
Are we
heeding
the Word
of God
to us
to repent
and to
believe?
And then
are we
heeding
the Word
of God
to be
struggling
in prayer,
to be
praying for
our people,
to be
praying for
our communities,
and to
be,
do we
live a
life
working
hard as
servants
for the
Lord,
fulfilling
the
ministry
that God
has given
to us?
We need
both.
We have
seen only
prayer can
change,
and we say
that so
often.
But in both
Epaphras and
Archippus and
Luke too,
we have the
challenge to
be prayerful,
but to
be serving
the Lord
with all
our heart
as well.
A life
pleasing
to God
is both.
And this
is where I
want to
leave you
with your
last bit
of homework.
And it's
something to
think about.
And I
want to
read to
you a
little from
something that
Charles Studd
wrote.
Charles Studd
was a
missionary
to China,
and he's
possibly most
famous for
something that
he wrote,
a quote that
we maybe often
hear, where
he said,
only one life
will soon be
passed, only
what's done
for Christ
will last.
I'm sure
many of you
will have
heard that
quote.
But I want
to leave you
with something
else that he
wrote.
It's a little
longer than
that, but I
want to share
it with you.
He said,
too long
have we
been waiting
for one
another to
begin.
The time
of waiting
is past.
The hour
of God
has struck.
War
is declared.
In God's
holy name
let us
arise
and build.
The God
of heaven,
he will
fight for
us,
as we
for him.
We will
not build
on the
sand,
but on
the bedrock
of the
sayings
of Christ
and the
gates
and
minions
of hell
shall
not
prevail
against
us.
Should
such
men
as we
fear,
before the
world,
I,
before the
sleepy,
lukewarm,
faithless,
namby-pamby
Christian
world,
we will
dare to
trust our
God.
We will
venture our
all for
him.
We will
live and
we will
die for
him.
And we
will do
it with
his joy
unspeakable,
singing
aloud in
our hearts.
We will
a thousand
times sooner
die trusting
only our
God than
live trusting
in man.
And when
we come to
this position,
the battle
is already
won,
and the
end of
the glorious
campaign in
sight.
We will
have the
real holiness
of God,
not the
sticky stuff
of talk
and dainty
words and
pretty thoughts,
we will
have a
masculine
holiness,
one of
daring
faith and
works for
Jesus
Christ.
It's a
real challenge
in these
words to
us.
And that
is what
his longing
was.
He saw
the time
of conflict
and war
that they
were in
as Christians.
And he
was challenging
the church
to arise.
But this
is a challenge
and something
really to
think about
as he
went on
to say
this.
We
Christians
too often
substitute
prayer for
playing the
game.
Prayer is
good, but
when used
as a
substitute
for
obedience,
it is
nothing but
blatant
hypocrisy
and despicable
pharisaism.
To your
knees,
man, and
to your
Bible,
decide at
once,
don't hedge,
time flies,
cease your
insults to
God, quit
consulting the
flesh and
blood, stop
your lame,
lying, and
cowardly
excuses,
enlist.
When I
read the
first part
of that,
I thought,
wait, there's
a challenge
there.
We
Christians
too often
substitute
prayer for
playing the
game.
Prayer is
good, but
when used
as a
substitute
for
obedience,
it is
nothing but
a blatant
hypocrisy.
Is he
right?
Something to
go away and
think about.
But the
challenge is
certainly there
for us.
We are in
warfare.
We are in
conflict.
Yes, it's
a time to
pray.
It always
is.
But we
need
obedience.
obedience to
the will
of God,
to the
ministry
that we
have received
from the
Lord.
And he
leaves us
with that
challenge.
Enlist.
Be
among the
people of
God.
Be in the
army of
God.
Be in
this
conflict
that we
are in.
And that
was a
challenge
to the
Colossians.
To stand
firm in
the conflict
that they
were in.
We see it
so powerfully
at the
end of
Philippians
when it's
talking about
putting on
the armour
of God
and to
stand
firm.
That is
the same
context as
runs through
so many
of the
letters.
To stand
in the
Lord.
To enlist.
To pray.
And to be
obedient.
They shall
pass for
us all.
as there
always is
as you
reflect on
the past
even of
Colossae
we reflect
on our
own past.
A time
when God's
word was
not even
here.
We have a
past where
we've seen
God's
blessing.
We have a
present when
we're seeing
where we are
now.
We long
for the
hand of
God upon
us and
his blessing
and favour
towards us
as a
people.
But what
will we
stand on
the side
of God?
Will we
enlist in
his army?
Will we
struggle in
prayer?
Will we
work hard
in obedience
to him
to fulfil
the ministry
that the
Lord has
given to
every one
of us?
To love
the Lord
and to
work for
him as
he works.
in us.
Let us
pray.
Our
gracious
Father in
heaven,
we thank
you for
so many
ways that
you have
been so
faithful to
us and
the way
that you
bless us
with your
word,
the way
your word
challenges
us and
yet reminds
us of
the many
encouragements
that we
have.
We pray,
Lord,
that you
will make
us a
faithful
people,
even like
Epaphras,
one who
struggled in
prayer for
our people
he loved,
that we
would be
so,
that we
would labour
in our
own prayers
for those
we love
and those
all around
us,
but too
that we
would be
a people
who work
hard,
who work
hard for
the cause
of Christ,
depending on
your strength
and blessing
for us,
but also
looking to
you and
seeking to
honour you
in fulfilling
the ministry
that you have
given to
each and
every one
of us.
So hear
our prayers
and guide
us in
our thoughts
and in
our
continued
prayers.
We ask
it all
in Jesus'
name.
Amen.
We'll
conclude by
singing to
God's
praise on
Psalm 36,
page 251.
Psalm 36
6 on
page 251.
We'll
sing from
verse 5
to verse 9.
Thy mercy,
Lord, is in
the heavens.
Thy truth
doth reach
the clouds.
Thy justice
is like
mountains
great.
Thy
judgments
deep as
floods.
We'll
sing from
verse 5
to verse 9
to God's
praise.
verse 10.
Amen.
Thy mercy,
Lord, is in
the heavens.
Thy truth
doth reach
the clouds.
Thy justice
is like
mountains
great.
thy judgments
deep as
floods.
Lord,
thou
preservest
man
and
peace.
How precious
is
thy grace.
Therefore,
in shadow
of thy
wings,
men's
sons their
thrust
shall
place,
they
with
the
fatness
of
thy
house
shall
be
well
satisfied.
from
rivers
of
thy
pleasures
thou
wilt
drink
to
them
provide.
Because
of
life
the
fountain
here
remains
alone
with
thee.
And
in
that
purest
light
of
life
we
clearly
life
shall
see.
after
the
benediction
I'll
go to
the
door
to
my
right.
We'll
close
with
the
benediction.
Now
may
grace,
mercy,
and
peace
from
God,
Father,
Son,
and
Holy
Spirit
rest
upon
and
abide
with
you
all
now
and
forever
more.
Amen.
God
life
him.
For
그렇
me
him.
Thank you.