Walk Worthy of the Lord

Well, if we could turn back together to a reading in the first chapter of Colossians.

Colossians chapter 1.

Colossians 1 · chapter mention

And we're going to look at in particular verse 9 to verse 12.

Just read these verses again.

Colossians chapter 1 at verse 9.

Colossians 1 · chapter mention

And so from the day we heard, we have not ceased to pray for you,

asking that you may be filled with the knowledge of his will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding,

so as to walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing to him,

bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God.

May you be strengthened with all power according to his glorious might,

for all endurance and patience with joy,

giving thanks to the Father who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of the saints in light.

Paul here speaks about living a life pleasing to God,

being filled in this manner, a manner worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing him.

And it's that I want to focus on for a time this evening.

It's been a time of firsts over these last few weeks for me and for you as a congregation,

as it's a privilege to minister to you as a congregation on Sunday morning together,

to start to see faces and to get to know people.

And this evening is no less a privilege,

our first time coming together in prayer in this way,

we join together in prayer and worship.

It's a delight always to worship God together.

And as we seek to serve him together as a people,

our focus can often be guided towards thinking about those who are outside of the church at the moment,

those who are strangers to God's grace.

It's a real burden we should have as a people when we know the great love of God towards us as a people,

that we would have a longing and a desire that others would come and know that great love for themselves.

We always pray that the lost will be found, that they will come to be saved.

But together as a people, that shouldn't be our only desire.

Of great importance too is that as a people,

we seek to grow together in our own knowledge and understanding of the Lord,

to come and understand more of his grace for ourselves,

to understand more of his love towards us as a people.

Because the more and the deeper our understanding,

the more we are able to express that and to share it with others.

So that is going to be our focus together as a people as well.

We have a great burden for the lost.

We will have a great burden for one another to grow in our knowledge and understanding of God

and his love towards us through his son, Christ Jesus.

And as we look at this passage this evening, as we look at Paul's letter to the Colossians,

and indeed as you look at other parts of scripture where Paul writes to the church in different parts,

whether it's in Ephesus or Philippi, Thessalonica,

when you read through his letters, they've got a real sense of pastoring care towards his people,

towards God's people.

They are rich and deep in theology in so many ways,

but it's a theology that the people long to grasp and to know more of.

And so you see there's the two going hand in hand together

to learn the depths of the riches that we have in Christ,

but to do it in a way too, as we see with Paul,

that shows a love and a pastoral care for the people,

longing to take all along with them.

And so it's good for us just to look at these letters and to learn of the riches,

but also to learn the way in which we are to share of these riches together and with those around us.

And he begins this letter by giving thanks,

giving thanks for what has already taken place among the people of Colossae,

how they have already come to faith and come to know the love of God.

And the love that, as it says in verse four,

that they have for all the saints as they have this hope laid up in heaven for them.

He is giving thanks for everything that has happened in the past for them.

He's giving thanks for what they are.

And even as we come together here tonight,

we're so thankful.

And as the men were praying,

they're thankful for ministries that have gone on.

Thankful for everything that has happened here.

Thankful for everyone here tonight and the work of the grace of God in your lives.

For the faithfulness you have,

for the desire that you have to show your love and worship towards the Lord.

We're always thankful for what God has done.

And as Paul is saying here,

he begins with a sense of thanksgiving for what they are,

what they have come to be through faith in the Lord Jesus Christ.

But then he goes on to speak about and pray for them in another way.

And now he's praying more for what they will become.

Because the Christian life is never one while we are here on earth that has an end point,

where we say,

we've made it.

We've reached our goal.

I've learned everything that I can possibly learn of the Lord and his love towards me.

We will never come to that point.

We will never reach that point in this life,

where we say,

that's it.

I know everything there is to know of God.

And so Paul is praying here for the people in Colossae,

just as we should be praying as well,

for what we will become.

What has already been done for us in Christ,

but also this desire to go on,

to go on individually,

to go on collectively,

seeking to know more of this.

And as he says here,

it's knowing this in a way where we come to live a life in the manner worthy of the Lord,

to walk in a manner worthy of the Lord.

And perhaps we always,

well,

we ask ourselves from time to time,

am I living a life,

a walking in a manner worthy of God?

Am I living a life pleasing to God?

It's not just at a communion time that we're to ask these questions,

to examine ourselves,

but to do it on a regular basis,

to examine our lives,

to examine our hearts,

and to ask ourselves,

is my life showing that love of Christ?

Am I living in a manner worthy of the Lord fully?

He says here,

fully pleasing him.

And as soon as we ask that question,

immediately,

I'm sure your response is no,

because that's an automatic reaction.

When we think of a life worthy of the manner of the Lord,

or fully pleasing him,

we often know,

I cannot.

I cannot achieve that.

And never am I living in that way.

But he's not asking that question to make the people feel guilty.

He's asking them that question to put a desire in their heart,

to be a people who seek in all their strength,

and in all God's strength,

to live this kind of life.

There are so many people in this world who would say,

they're living good lives.

And the danger with asking that question,

with the wrong focus,

when the focus is on self,

is that we begin to say,

judge ourselves by our own standards.

There are things that we say we do,

or there are things that we say that we don't do,

and that that is what means that we are living a life pleasing to God.

The things we do might be to say,

I go to church.

I pray.

I give generously to the church.

I help people.

I help in the work on the cause of Christ.

The things that we don't do,

we could say,

well,

you know,

I don't swear.

I don't steal.

I don't slander people.

There are standards that we look at and we think,

well,

if we don't do this,

or if we do do that,

then I must be living a life pleasing to God.

But the good as these things are,

they are not in and of themselves what it is to live a life pleasing to God,

because there is a danger in them.

And the danger is spelled out for us in scripture,

where it becomes,

or it actually can become a bit self-righteous.

And we become like the Pharisee in Luke's gospel in chapter 18.

The Pharisee who was praying,

and you will know about that time when the Pharisee stood up to pray.

And he said this,

he said,

God,

I thank you that I am not like other men,

robbers,

evildoers,

adulterers,

or even like this tax collector.

As he looked beside him,

he said,

I fast twice a week.

And I give a 10th of all that I get.

And they are all commendable things.

But what was the outcome of that time when the tax collector and the Pharisee both prayed?

The tax collector prayed just a short prayer.

Lord,

have mercy on me,

a sinner.

And who went away right from God?

I mean,

people would look at the tax collector and say,

he's not worthy.

He's a wicked man.

He steals.

He does all of these things.

This Pharisee is such a good man.

He's done all of these good things,

but God sees the heart.

And who went away right with God?

It was the tax collector.

Because he asked mercy of God.

He was looking away from himself to God,

instead of looking within himself and saying,

I have done this,

but I haven't done that.

And so we have to ask ourselves,

as we're living a life pleasing,

or seeking to live a life pleasing to God,

are we depending on ourselves,

or are we depending on God?

And so Paul outlines for us here,

in order to live and walk in a manner worthy of the Lord,

fully pleasing to him,

he gives us an insight as to what it looks like.

And there are four things,

briefly,

we just want to look at here,

that he says in these verses,

that show what a life pleasing to God is like.

And that's what we see,

as we go on through verse 10,

down to verse 12.

So as you look at verse 10,

he says,

to walk in a manner worthy of the Lord,

fully pleasing to him,

the first thing he comes to there is,

bearing fruit in every good work.

Bearing fruit in every good work.

The chapter begins by outlining

how Paul is seeing the people full

in what they have already become.

How they've become faithful

in the Lord Jesus Christ.

They know the grace and peace

that comes from God.

And now he's asking

that they continue to be filled

in this way,

in order that they will live lives

transformed,

transformed by this grace,

an ongoing transformation taking place,

that they will please God.

And in highlighting these positives here,

it's a reminder of how we often think

of these things in a negative way,

ourselves as well.

You just think of the words

that Paul uses here,

when he says about walking in a manner

worthy and fully pleasing him,

he is saying,

you can please God.

We can often get bogged down

in all that we do wrong.

In every way,

we fail God

and have a sense of guilt

about this.

And there are certain times

where that is right,

where that is good for us.

We know we sin

and fall short of the glory of God.

But God never wants us

to remain in that way,

where our sins just weigh us down.

God sent his son into this world

that our sins might be forgiven,

that we might be restored,

that we might walk

in a manner worthy of the Lord,

pleasing him.

He's saying,

when you come into this relationship,

you can go on in this strength,

not weighed down,

but rejoicing in the forgiveness

of your sins.

Paul,

he does it in such a positive way,

in a pastoral way.

He brings his people,

God's people on.

He shows them their sin,

but he doesn't leave them there.

He lifts them up

to show them

what they have in Christ

and what the works of Christ

has prepared in advance

for them to do.

And so he shows them

that you can rejoice in God

and seek to live

a life pleasing to him.

And another thing is,

we can often have a problem

with the idea of pleasing God

by bearing fruit,

that it's more of

the little that we've achieved

for God.

And again,

you ask yourself

the question,

how has my life borne fruit?

Maybe you say to us,

I've not brought anyone

to the Lord.

My witness has been poor.

I have failed

in so many ways.

I've done nothing.

But again,

that's not what Paul

is getting at here

when he says,

bearing fruit

in every good work.

Paul is here speaking

about a transformation

that comes

in the heart

of the believer.

As we go on

in the strength

of God,

and we see this

in verse six

before we came

to this section,

he says that the gospel

is bearing fruit

and growing.

And it's doing this

in the whole world.

It is bearing fruit

and growing.

Now,

it's not to say

that God

is using people

to convert others

all the time.

What he's saying

in bearing fruit

is that people

are growing

in their knowledge

of God.

People are going

on in the strength

of God.

And since the day

that the gospel

came to Colossae,

its ongoing work

is transforming people.

It is bearing fruit.

The Christians

are not staying still.

What they understood

when they were first believed,

they're not still

at that same point.

It's just like

when you're going

through school.

You don't stay

in primary one forever.

You learn the basics

and you're building on it.

You go through

to secondary,

you go to college

or university.

It's an ongoing

learning experience.

You leave university,

you go into work,

you're still learning.

And that's

the Christian life.

We never stood still.

The work

of transformation,

the work

of God's grace

in our hearts

is always

ongoing.

We should see

a transformation.

We should be

bearing fruit

in this way.

We should change

and continue

to change

over time

and mature

as Christian brothers

and sisters

in Christ.

So are we

bearing fruit?

Is that our longing

to bear fruit,

to go on

learning

with a hunger

and a thirst

for the things

of God?

Paul later on

in another chapter

in Galatians,

he speaks of

the works

of the flesh

and how they are

evident.

He speaks about

sexual immorality,

impurity,

sensuality,

idolatry,

sorcery,

enmity,

strife,

jealousy,

fits of anger,

rivalries,

dissensions,

divisions,

all of these

things.

If you remain

in all of these

things,

you're not living

a life pleasing

to God.

You're not

bearing fruit.

But he says

the fruit of the

Spirit is love,

joy,

peace,

patience,

kindness,

goodness,

faithfulness,

gentleness,

self-control.

is to long

for these

things in our

lives,

to bear fruit

in that way

of the love,

joy,

peace,

patience,

so on.

So we want

to bear fruit,

not in the sense

of all the

works that we

have done

or seek to do

or to help

save other

people.

That's not what

he's talking

about.

But every one

of us can

bear fruit

in this hunger

and thirst

for righteousness

and seeking

to bear fruit

as we grow

and learn

and develop

together and

mature as

Christians,

never reaching

that point

where we know

it all,

but always

seeking day

by day

to go on

with him.

So there's

bearing fruit,

then he goes

on to say

increasing in

the knowledge

of God.

And you see

that they're

very closely

linked.

But knowledge

is often a

key teaching

in Paul's

letters.

In Romans

1, he speaks

about the

rejection of

knowledge as

the root

of evil.

In Romans

Romans 1:28

chapter 1,

verse 28,

he says,

furthermore,

since they

did not

think it

worthwhile

to retain

the knowledge

of God,

he gave

them over

to a

depraved

mind to

do what

ought not

to be

done.

They have

become filled

with every

kind of

wickedness.

rejection of

knowledge is

not a

life pleasing

to God.

And so a

life pleasing

to God is

to grow in

the knowledge

of God,

increasing in

the knowledge

of God.

And again,

you see how

it's just

closely linked

to bearing

fruit.

The two

go hand

in hand.

The more

we know

of God,

the more

we will

bear fruit.

If you're

into gardening,

if you like

growing fruits

of different

kinds,

you know,

in order to

bear fruit,

you have to

tend and

water the

plant.

You can't

just leave

it to

develop itself

without

tending to

it.

And the

same is

true for

the Christian.

In order

to grow,

in order

to bear

fruit,

we have

to increase

in our

knowledge

of God.

We have

to feed

our souls.

We have

to water

our hearts.

We need

the fruit

of the

Lord in

our hearts

too.

In a

similar way

in

Philippines,

Paul writes

very

pastorally

towards them

as well,

and he

says,

it is my

prayer that

your love

may abound

more and

more with

knowledge

and all

discernment,

so that you

may approve

what is

excellent,

and so be

pure and

blameless

for the

day of

Christ,

filled with

the fruit

of righteousness

that comes

through Jesus

Christ,

the glory

and praise

of God.

Do you

crave

this

knowledge?

Is that

what you

hunger for

day after

day,

to realize

this knowledge

and truly

be filled

to satisfaction

with it?

A lovely

story told

of a

little girl

in Wales

during the

18th century.

It was a

time of

great revival

in the

valleys in

Wales.

This

little girl

called

Mary

Jones.

She came

to faith

at the

age of

eight.

She lived

with her

family on

a farm

out in

the valleys

and in

order to

get near

to anybody

else,

she had

to walk

very often

a great

distance.

She loved

to hear

the word

of God,

but she

didn't have

a Bible

and they

didn't have

a Bible

in their

own home.

The nearest

one was

two miles

away at

another

farmhouse

and they

would often

as a

family be

found going

there just

to hear

the word

of God.

But even

as an

eight-year-old,

she decided

to start

saving to

buy her

own Bible.

And she

started just

collecting the

little money

that she

could day

after day,

week after

week,

year after

year.

She was

15 before

she could

finally afford

to buy a

Bible.

and in

order to

get the

Bible,

she had

to walk

barefoot

over the

hills 25

miles to

go and

buy this

Bible.

But her

longing,

her desire,

was to have

her own

copy of

the word

of God

and so

she bought

it.

Now today,

you can

download an

app on your

phone for

free.

In literally

seconds,

you can

have a

Bible on

your phone,

you can

have all

kinds of

Bible study

tools on

your phone,

your computer

or whatever.

We have

a plethora of

books we can

choose from

to feed our

souls and to

grow in

knowledge.

But what

use that if

we don't have

the desire of

Mary Jones,

a hunger

for the

knowledge of

God.

So may he

give us

that hunger

to increase

in the

knowledge of

God,

an appetite

and a

desire to

crave the

word of

God,

just like

Mary Jones.

The third

thing we see

here is that

we are being

strengthened.

May you be

strengthened with

all power

according to

his glorious

might.

God gives

us the

strength to

go on.

God gives

us the

strength to

do it.

God gives

us the

strength to

do it.

We sometimes

have to be

reminded of

it.

We don't

go on in

our own

strength.

To live a

life pleasing

to God is a

realization that

we are

dependent on

him.

But again,

Paul is giving

us a reminder

here that if

God asks us

to do

something,

he will give

us the grace

to do it.

He will give

us the

strength to

do it.

God doesn't

say I

will leave

you weak.

I won't

give you

a hunger.

He says if

you will come

to me, I

will give you

the strength.

I will give

you the grace.

I will give

you the power.

May you be

strengthened, he

says, with

all power

according to

his glorious

might.

Not ours,

but God's.

That is the

power that is

complete.

It's all

power.

And God

has this

power to

give to

you.

So that as

we seek to

bear fruit,

as we seek

to increase

in the

knowledge,

God can

strengthen and

does strengthen

us in this

way with all

power.

Again, just to

go to another

letter of

Paul, a

pastor letter

to the

Ephesians.

In chapter

one, he

says in

verse 18,

having the

eyes of

your hearts

enlightened,

that you

may know

what is the

hope to

which he

has called

you, what

are the

riches of

his glorious

inheritance in

the saints,

and what is

the immeasurable

greatness of

his power

toward us

who believe.

God gives

power and

grace to

his people

as they

have need.

So that

unlike the

Pharisee who

prayed in

his own

strength,

who felt

he was

strong,

but was

so weak,

that's not

the strength

that he

gives,

it's the

strength that

he gave to

the tax

collector,

the sinner,

to go away

justified and

right before

God.

As we come

weak before

him, he

gives us his

perfect strength

to go on.

This is a

young church,

the church

at Colossae,

the God's

people, young

in the faith

and facing

many trials

and temptations,

but he is

saying, Paul

is saying

through God,

God through

Paul saying

to them,

the Lord

will give

you strength.

You may

know his

power according

to his

glorious might

for all

endurance and

patience.

he will

give as

you have

need.

And so

that is

true for

ourselves as

we go

forward to

know his

glorious

strength and

the hope

that he

gives to

his people.

Living a

life pleasing

to God is

being in

Christ, as

Paul wrote

at the start

of this

letter in

verse 2,

to the saints

and faithful

brothers,

in Christ

at Colossae.

That is the

kind of people

we are to

be rooted

in Christ,

in the

vine, as

John in

his gospel

describes,

there bearing

fruit through

him.

So we are

to know

and seek

the power

of his

glorious

might for

all patience

and endurance.

Finally,

and just very

briefly here,

the fourth

thing he

says is,

with joy

and giving

thanks to

the Father

who has

qualified you

to share

in the

inheritance of

the saints

in light.

How often

are we full

of thanks

to God?

God, how

easy it is

for us to

go and

complain about

things.

It's easy.

It's second

nature to

us sometimes

just to

complain and

to grumble

about things

in this

life.

But if that's

all we do,

we lose

our joy.

We lose

our joy and

we lose it

very quickly.

God, how

do we

do?

He's telling

us that

we're to

go on,

trusting as

we're looking

at on Sunday

morning,

trusting the

Lord, delighting

in the Lord,

and all of

these things.

It's a very

similar reminder

that we are

giving thanks

to the

Father, that

everything that

we do,

everything that

we do, we

recognize it's

from God,

and that we

remember to

come back and

give thanks

to God.

It will

affect us in

how we bear

fruit, it'll

affect our

growth and

knowledge, it'll

affect our

strength in the

Lord if we do

everything with

a grumbling

spirit.

But if we

seek to do

everything,

joyfully giving

thanks to the

Lord, I know

so good and

refreshing as we

hear, praying

together and

just being

reminded of

all that we

have together.

thanks for.

Every blessing

that we have

from the hand

of God who

has blessed

us so much,

and above

all, how we

are blessed

through his

beloved Son,

who has

brought us

from darkness

into his

glorious light.

Again, it

just comes

back to

fixing our

eyes on

Jesus.

making sure

that we

are doing

everything in

his will

and by

his strength.

God is a

God who

has richly

blessed, and

so may we

joy and

delight in

him.

There was a

book I once

read on the

study of the

gospel of

Luke, and

there was a

quote in that

book that said

this, when

we locate our

joy in our

holy and

loving God,

our joy can

always be out

of reach of

anything that

would seek to

harm us.

Locating our

joy in our

holy and

loving God

can take us

to be out of

reach of

anything that

would seek to

harm us.

love us.

Now, that's

not to say

that there's

nothing that

ever goes

wrong in

our life, but

we know that

whatever comes

our way, that

we have our

joy in the

Lord who

always sustains

us.

As Paul said

to the

Philippians,

rejoice in

the Lord

always.

Again, I

will say,

rejoice.

Keep your

joy in

the Lord.

Let us

rejoice

together in

our loving

Saviour and

seek to

live a

life pleasing

to him as

we endeavour

to grow in

our knowledge

and our

understanding

of him.

That together

we would

grow and

the more we

grow, that

we would share

with one

another and

then share

with those

who have

nothing of

this knowledge

and understanding

of him.

The two

again go

hand in

hand, a

longing to

know God

and a

longing for

others to

know God.

So may God

bless us and

help us to

that end.

We're going

to

do

your

to

to

to

you