IN HIM: We Belong
Tim Keller shares this illustration on
Our Riches In Christ: "Imagine you're a billionaire with three ten-dollar
bills in your wallet. You get out of a cab and hand the driver one of the bills
for an eight-dollar fare. Later in the day, you look in and find out there's
only one ten-dollar bill there, and you say, "Either I dropped a
ten-dollar bill somewhere, or I gave the taxi driver two bills." What are
you going to do? Are you going to get all upset?
Are you going to the police and
demanding that they search the city for the cab driver? No, you are going to
shrug. You're a billionaire. You lost ten dollars. So what? You are too rich to
be concerned about that kind of loss. This week, somebody criticized you.
Something you bought or invested in was less valuable than you thought.
Something you wanted to happen didn't go how you wanted it to—these are real
losses. But what are you going to do if you're a Christian? Will this setback
disrupt your contentment with life?
Will you shake your fist at God? Toss
and turn at night? If so, I submit that it's because you don't know how truly
rich you are. If you're upset about your status with other people and
constantly lashing out at people for hurting your feelings, you might call it a
lack of self-control or self-esteem, and it is. But more fundamentally, you
have totally lost touch with your identity. As a Christian, you're a spiritual
billionaire, and you're wringing your hands over ten dollars."[1]
On Easter, we celebrated our risen
Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. As commissioned by Jesus, the early followers
preached the Good News of the Gospel everywhere. The Gospel reached the
farthest regions of the World and changed many lives. In our sermon series
called IN HIM, we will study the lives of the believers in an ancient
city called Colossae and discover the incredible riches that are in store for
all believers in our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.
Eugene
Peterson of The Message Bible has this to say in his introduction to
Colossians.
"Hardly
anyone who hears the full story of Jesus and learns the true facts of his life
and teaching, crucifixion and resurrection, walks away with a shrug of the
shoulders, dismissing him as unimportant. Of course, people who are ignorant or
misinformed about the story regularly dismiss him. But with few exceptions, the
others know instinctively that they are dealing with a most remarkable
greatness.
But
it is quite common for those who consider him truly important to include others
who seem to be equally important in his company—Buddha, Moses, Socrates, and
Muhammad, for a historical start, along with some personal favorites. For these
people, Jesus is important but not central; his prestige is considerable, but
he is not preeminent. The Christians in the town of Colosse, or at least some
of them, seem to have been taking this line. For them, cosmic forces of one
sort or another were getting equal billing with Jesus. Paul writes to them to
restore Jesus, the Messiah, to the center of their lives." [2]
How do you consider Jesus Christ? Do
you see him as an important person in your life, but add other gods, religious
leaders, and prominent personalities along with him? If that is your view of
Christ, you must read Colossians to move Jesus from a list of importance to the
center of your life. Our study of Colossians would help us keep Jesus at the
very center of our lives. Before we study Paul's Epistle to Colossians, what do
we know about the Church in Colossae?
Colossae was a city in Phrygia, in
the Roman province of Asia (part of Modern Turkey), about 100 miles east of
Ephesus in the region of the seven churches of Rev.1-3.
Although Colossae's population was mainly
Gentile, there was a large Jewish settlement. This mixed population of Jews and
Gentiles manifested itself both in the composition of the Church and in the
heresy that plagued it, containing the elements of both Jewish legalism and
pagan mysticism.
The Church in Colossae began during
Paul's three-year ministry at Ephesus. Its founder was Epaphras, who apparently
was saved during a visit to Ephesus and likely started the Church in Colossae
when he returned home. Paul wrote the letters to Ephesians and Colossians during his imprisonment in Rome, between AD 60 and 62. He sent them by the same
messenger, Tychicus. Paul begins his letter by reminding the believers of their
threefold belonging. Colossians 1:1-8.
I.
IN HIM: We Belong To God.
Belonging is an essential aspect of human
survival. From the time we are born, we have an innate need to belong. None of
us likes to be isolated or excluded. We will do anything to overcome that sense
of not belonging anywhere. Why is belonging important to people? Studies tell
us, "There are several individual benefits of belonging as well. The
Belonging Barometer found that in addition to workplace benefits, belonging
also leads to better physical and mental health, increased life satisfaction,
and decreased pain, stress, and loneliness.
It
also leads to better social cohesion, including community involvement. This
aspect of social cohesion is especially interesting as it links back to the
workplace. In the same study reported by Harvard Business Review, researchers found that feeling
excluded causes people to give less team effort. The direct impact on the
workplace is that if employees feel excluded, they likely aren't giving their
all to the organization."[3]
When
there are so many benefits to belonging, how can one truly meet the need for belonging? Who could satisfy the inner longing for belonging and being
connected? That was the first thing Paul reminded the Colossian believers. Col 1:1-2a,
"Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, and Timothy our
brother, To God's holy people in Colossae."
Paul
regards Colossians not from their past sinful background but from their redemptive
restoration background. He calls them God's holy people. It doesn't mean they
were sinless, but it suggests they were set apart and belonged to God. Not only
the Colossians but every believer in Christ now belongs to God. Do only
believers belong to God, or do all human beings also belong to God? How would
that impact you and your relationships once you know you belong to God?
II.
God desires all humans to live with Him forever in Heaven
In Genesis' second chapter, we read that God created humans, male and female, in His own likeness. He placed them in a beautiful Garden
of Eden to work and care for it. Man and Woman enjoyed their relationship with
God. God visited them every evening. But Satan, the deceiver, tempted them to
sin against God, breaking up that peaceful relationship.
Since
then, humans have become restless, searching to return to God and rejoin Him. Man has tried everything to regain his lost relationship with God, but
nothing has helped him in his pursuit. In the end, God, in his love for the
people he made at the appointed time, sent His begotten Son, Jesus Christ, into
the World to bring his lost sons and daughters back home.
III.
Jesus' mission is to reconcile people to God.
During
his ministry on earth, Jesus clarified several times why he came to the world.
Matthew 20:28, "The Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve and
to give his life as a ransom for many."
After
bringing salvation to Zacchaeus, a rejected tax collector by society, Jesus
said, "Today salvation has come to this house, because this man, too, is a
son of Abraham. For the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost."
Luke 19:9
Jesus
reconciled the Jews and Gentiles to God. "His purpose was to create in
himself one new humanity out of the two, thus making peace, and in one body to
reconcile both of them to God through the cross, by which he put to death their
hostility." Ephesians 2:15-16. Through Christ's death on the Cross, both
the Jews and Gentiles have access to the Father.
The
most important relationship to be restored is our relationship with God. If you
have not been reconciled with God, you can do so by trusting Christ. What are
the implications of belonging to God? Our peace and joy are restored. Our
purpose and hope are renewed. We can even experience physical healing. But
above all, we will live with God forever in Heaven.
