Christ, our head

Posted on May 9, 2011 by Jefferson Vann

SDC12657 Colossians 1:1-20.  There is always a danger for the church of Christ to lose sight of Christ himself — to get carried away with mere human traditions and leaders. Paul wrote Colossians to help the churches of Colossae zero in on who Christ is — to stay completely devoted to him. In this section, Paul reminds them that Christ is their head.

  1. He commends Epaphras for his role in planting the churches, but reminds them that he is a faithful minister of the head, not the head himself (1-8).
  2. He reminds them that they are saved not because of their own works, but the Father’s grace. He has both delivered them from the kingdom of darkness, and transferred them to the kingdom in which the Son is the head (9-14).
  3. He reminds them that Christ’s authority is supreme. He is the firstborn of all creation, in that he was there creating in the beginning, and is there holding all things together now. He is firstborn from the dead, in that his death and resurrection has secured reconciliation between heaven and earth.

LORD, no matter how great the leaders who brought us to Christ, may we never lose sight of the fact that he is their head, and ours.

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joy from peace

Posted on May 8, 2011 by Jefferson Vann

SDC12634 Philippians 4:2-23.  Paul’s final words to the Philippians warn them of the things that can rob them of the peace with God which is theirs in Christ. 

  1. Personal conflicts (like the disagreement that had developed among two prominent women in ministry) can obscure the peace of fellowship and the joy that comes with it (2-3).
  2. Anxiety not checked by prayer can lead to depression which can open our minds to temptations to be unreasonable (4-7).
  3. Dwelling on the wrong things or ideas and refusal to practice godly living can also strip us of our awareness of the presence of the God of peace (8-9).
  4. Concern about unfulfilled needs can crowd out the awareness of the strength God gives us, leading to worry and doubt. Contentment and trust restore peace and foster joy (10-19).

LORD, restore to us the joy that we have in you — the peace that is ours which surpasses all understanding and guards our hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.

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joy from the Lord

Posted on May 7, 2011 by Jefferson Vann

SDC12630Philippians 3:1-4:1.  Our joy is in the Lord, and for that reason our confidence cannot be in our ancestry or our accomplishments.

  1. Because our joy is in the Lord, anything we might count in our favor is actually counted as loss compared to knowing Christ (3:1-7).
  2. Because our joy is in the Lord, anything we might suffer — like losing friends, belongings, our freedom, being imprisoned — is counted as rubbish in order that we might gain Christ and his resurrection through faith (3:8-11).
  3. Because our joy is in the Lord, we do not rest on our present relationship with him, but press on toward what God has called us to, while holding true to what we have attained (3:12-16).
  4. Because our joy is in the Lord,we keep our eyes on those who walk as his enemies. We wait for our savior to come from heaven, and stand firm in him (3:17-4:1).

LORD, our joy is in you. Our confidence is in you. Our objective is you. Our hope is you.

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joy from others

Posted on May 6, 2011 by Jefferson Vann

SDC12626 Philippians 2:12-30.  Paul was no lone ranger. He was blessed by those who ministered the gospel because of him, those who served alongside him in his team, and those who were sent to support him and provide for his needs.

  1. Paul took joy from knowing that he Philippian Christians would be willing and working for God’s good pleasure together, shining as lights in the midst of a crooked and twisted generation (12-15).
  2. He took joy from knowing that his sacrifice for them would not be in vain, because their works would greet him on the day of Christ (16-18).
  3. He took joy in knowing that Timothy would soon be ministering among the Philippians, because he knew how valuable Timothy was in the LORD’s service (19-24).
  4. He took joy in returning Epaphroditus to those who sent him to minister and pass on messages. He knew that the Philippians were concerned, because they knew of his sickness. He knew how much encouragment it would bring them to learn that God healed him by his mercy, and that he had risked his life to minister to Paul (25-30).

LORD, thank you for the other people that you bring into our lives to support and encourage our walk with you, and work for you.

[Note on healing: Epaphroditus was healed by God’s mercy, not by claiming a healing he supposedly deserved. All blessings we receive from God are through his grace and mercy. Even the covenant is a covenant of grace. Prayer for healing is not an attempt to manipulate God to do something he does not want to do. Prayer is an act of dependence, not the serving of a warrant.]

Posted in church, dependence upon God, grace, mercy, ministry, prayer, witness, works | Tagged | 1 Comment

joy from unity

Posted on May 5, 2011 by Jefferson Vann

SDC12624 Philippians 1:27-2:11.  Paul encouraged the Philippian Christians to complete his joy by fulfilling his expectations:

  1. He expected them to unite together in their stand for the gospel, in spite of the suffering it would cause (1:27-30).
  2. He expected them to unite together in their concern for one another, with each one considering the others as more significant than himself (2:1-4).
  3. He expected them to unite together in humble service because they have the mind of Christ, who disregarded his own equality with God and served humanity by dying on the cross for them (2:5-11).

LORD, may our unity be more than standing behind a name. May we be one in our stand for the gospel, our love for each other, and our humble service.

Posted in church, divisions, gospel, humility, suffering, the cross, unity | Tagged , | 2 Comments

joy from confidence

Posted on May 4, 2011 by Jefferson Vann

SDC12616 Philippians 1:1-26.  Things were getting bleak for the apostle Paul. He had been arrested and imprisoned in Rome with no knowledge of when — or if — he would ever go to trial. Even if he went to trial, the most likely outcome would be his death. Meanwhile, the churches he planted throughout the empire were facing persecution from without and schism, hypocrisy and heresy from within.

Paul had experienced times like this before. His first trip to Philippi resulted in he and Silas being jailed (Acts 16).  They responded to this bleak outcome by singing hymns of joy, and were interrupted by an opportunity to lead their jailor to Christ.

So Paul has reasons to be optimistic about this situation as well.

  1. He is confident that God will continue the good work he has begun in the lives of the Philippian Christians (6). 
  2. He is confident that the gospel will be advanced through his witness to the imperial guard (12-13).
  3. He is confident that the gospel will continue to be proclaimed by the Philippians, whether from good motives or bad (14-18).
  4. Although he thinks he will be released*, he is confident that whether this situation ends with his release or with his death, Christ will be honored, and that will be gain for the gospel (19-26).

LORD, no matter what the circumstances, may we spread thanksgiving and joy from confidence in you and your word.

*It appears that Paul was right in assuming that he would be released from this imprisonment. Some evidence suggests that he was released, only to be arrested and imprisoned again before his execution some years later.

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grace for love and war

Posted on May 3, 2011 by Jefferson Vann

SDC12613 Ephesians 6:10-24.  Paul concludes this letter with a prayer for grace to all who read it, that they might love the Lord Jesus Christ with love incorruptible.  The warfare that they face will challenge that love. His concluding words to the Ephesians reveal that the (usually) invisible forces of evil will continue to wrestle against them. They have strength for that warfare, given by grace from the Lord himself: it is his strength and his might. They must take up his armor, for he intends to fight the battle. This imagery is taken from Isaiah 59:17:  “He put on righteousness as a breastplate, and a helmet of salvation on his head; he put on garments of vengeance for clothing, and wrapped himself in zeal as a cloak.”  Isaiah saw God putting on his own armor to rescue his people. In the same way, Paul says that God himself will rescue his people by grace if they trust in him to do it. He pictures that trust as putting on the armor.

  1. Trust in his truth (fasten on the belt)
  2. Trust in his righteousness (put on the breastplate)
  3. Trust in his gospel of peace (put on the shoes)
  4. Trust in his protection (take up the shield of faith)
  5. Trust in his salvation (take the helmet)
  6. Trust in his word (take the sword of the Spirit)

The Christian life is NOT an easy life. It is a true warfare, and it takes constant prayer, because the power to deliver us from Satan’s realm is the LORD’s and is activated by prayer.  For that reason, we must keep alert and persevere not only for ourselves but for all the saints.

But spiritual warfare is not an end of itself. It frees us from the grip of Satan so that we can concenrate on the life of love that we are called to.

LORD, keep us alert and praying so that we can be free to love you with love incorruptible.

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relationships that reflect grace

Posted on May 2, 2011 by Jefferson Vann

SDC12610Ephesians 5:22-6:9.   The grace walk requires voluntary submission in all relationships. This is a means of obeying the command in 5:18, being filled with the Spirit. It is accomplished by submitting to one another. So, what follows should not be taken as a new law reflecting some kind of order of authority. Paul is encouraging mutual submission as a means of reflecting God’s grace in relationships.

  1. Wives can best reflect grace in their relationships with their husbands by submitting to them out of respect (5:22-24, 33).
  2. Husbands can best reflect grace in their relationships with their wives by sacrificial love (5:25-29, 33).
  3. Both husband and wife are equally members of Christ’s body, and demonstrate that unity by being one flesh in their marriage (5:30-32).
  4. Children can best reflect grace in their relationships with their parents by obeying the commandment to honor them – both father and mother. This goes beyond simply obeying them while still in the household. It means bringing honor to them by living the grace walk as adults (6:1-3).
  5. Fathers are reminded that discipline of young children should be for training purposes, to instill instruction in the grace walk. Otherwise they might provoke anger which might lead to rebellion (6:4)
  6. Slaves (read employees) should reflect grace by rendering service with a good will as to the Lord and not to man (6:5-8). Ephesus probably was composed of about 1/3rd bondservants.
  7. Masters (read employers) should reflect grace by acting in the same manner toward their bondservants.

The church is responsible to rebel against cultural norms, not to help impose them. The relationships that Paul encouraged were part of the grace walk that he prescribed. They were intended to show the difference between how believers lived, because of God’s grace. The mutual submission that Paul commanded would have been ridiculed by Ephesian society. The same is true of us if we dare follow this instruction.

LORD, show us how to follow the grace walk in our relationships.

go to prayer

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the grace walk

Posted on May 1, 2011 by Jefferson Vann

SDC12605 Ephesians 5:1-21.  The believer imitates God’s grace by walking the grace walk.

  1. The grace walk is a life that imitates God’s sacrificial love. Just as Christ gave himself up for us, so we who walk the grace walk are to give up the ways of the old  immoral, idolatrous, impure self, and love as children of God.
  2. The grace walk does not partner with the darkness, but is a life devoted to the light. It seeks to do what pleases the Lord.
  3. The grace walk is a wise walk. The one who walks by grace understands that the Lord wants him to celebrate his fellowship with God and other believers.

LORD, teach us to walk the grace walk.

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imitating grace

Posted on April 30, 2011 by Jefferson Vann

 SDC12603 Ephesians 4:17-32.  We are no longer the old selves. The old selves were alienated from God, corrupt on the inside and callous, carnal, and covetous on the outside. We must put off those old selves and put on the new selves. The new selves are creations of God’s grace: transformed on the inside and truthful, tranquil and tenderhearted on the outside. The new selves imitate God’s holiness and grace.  They look forward to holiness as their eternal destiny, and they have begun to fulfill that destiny in the present.

LORD, transform us so that our present lives reflect our future hope.

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