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Set Your Mind on Things Above - Part 2 (Colossians 3:1-17)
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Set Your Mind on Things Above - Part 2 (Colossians 3:1-17)
Colossians: The Preeminence of Christ
Sunday Message recorded 03 September 2023
by Associate Pastor Josh Shell
First Baptist Church -- Columbus TX
1700 Milam St.
Columbus, TX, USA 78934
Recommended
Transcript
Introduction and Study of Colossians
00:00:06
Speaker
Good morning, everybody. How are we doing this Sunday morning? Good. Good. It's good to see you guys. I'm glad you guys decided to come back after last week. I'm just kidding. If you're visiting with us, don't be scared, OK? It's fine.
Paul's Transition from Doctrine to Guidance
00:00:20
Speaker
But I am excited to be back with you guys this week as we continue The section of chapter 3 of the book of Colossians as many you guys know we've been walking through this letter over the past few weeks and last week we began to Look at chapter 3 with verses 1 3 4 and the goal for today is to finish this section all the way down to verse 17 So if you have your Bibles go ahead and pull those out and open up to Colossians chapter 3
00:00:48
Speaker
Colossians chapter three.
00:00:52
Speaker
Well, for those of you guys who were with us last week, you guys can remember what we looked at. We looked at how Paul began to make this transition in this letter from chapters one and two where he was addressing doctrinal issues or outside issues that were trying to infiltrate the church, that were trying to lead it astray from its foundational core beliefs of Christ, of the gospel. They were trying to bring in teaching outside thought,
00:01:20
Speaker
either adding things to the truth or taking things away. And they were leading these young believers of Colossae away from the truth of the gospel. And so that's what Paul was addressing in the first two chapters.
Living in Christ's Truth
00:01:32
Speaker
And in chapter three, we began to see Paul now practically laying out for these believers what this looks like for them to set themselves up for success, to walk completely and truly in Jesus, regardless of what the outside noise is saying.
00:01:48
Speaker
And we saw that in chapter two verse eight, where it says, see to it that no one takes you captive by philosophy and empty deceit, according to human tradition and according to the elemental spirits of the world. And then later on that same chapter in verse 18, he says, let no one disqualify you, assisting on asceticism and worship of angels, going on in detail about visions being puffed up with reason by sensuous minds. And he goes on and on and on.
00:02:18
Speaker
So again, he's declaring, he's making the statement to them. He says, hey, be on guard. Don't let these people who are outside of the gospel infiltrate the truth to where you are now being disqualified to walk in the newness of life in Christ. Now, what about you guys? I don't know where all of you guys are at this morning. Some of you guys are in this position.
00:02:40
Speaker
where you know Jesus and you've proclaimed to put your faith up and trust in him, but yet you're allowing outside noise to infiltrate your thought, your faith, your surrender to the gospel. We are called to one truth, and that is God's truth, that he came to say his one and only son to die on the cross for our sins as perpetuation, as a substitutionary atonement. In other words, he came to take your sin so you don't have to bear it anymore.
00:03:08
Speaker
And in that we now have freedom from sin. We have freedom from the evil things of this world because of the hope that we now have in Christ. Once you put your faith, hope and trust in Him. That's the reality of the hope that we now have
Setting Minds on Heavenly Things
00:03:22
Speaker
in Christ. And Paul is trying to remind them of these things. There's nothing else that you need to add to it or take away from it. It's perfect the way it is, walk in it.
00:03:31
Speaker
And so as I said in chapter three though, verse one through four, we see Paul beginning to give some practical guidance for these believers on how to continue to walk in this manner.
00:03:42
Speaker
As we looked at last week, the first thing, there's this phrase that you see in verse one that says, seek the things that are above. And in verse two it says, set your minds on the things that are above. So in other words, he's calling into action these believers of, hey, don't keep your eyes here. You need to look up always. This is not just physically, but spiritually. And we looked at four different things he told us to look at. And the first thing was the resurrection. Set your mind on the resurrection.
00:04:13
Speaker
Because as a result of the resurrection, we are now positionally in Christ. We are no longer enemies or strangers of God, but rather we are sons and daughters and co-heirs with Christ in the gospel because of his resurrection. It all hinges upon the resurrection, as Paul talks about in 1 Corinthians 15, 12 through seven. Go read that chapter, it's phenomenal. The second thing we looked at was setting your minds on the things of heaven.
00:04:41
Speaker
In other words, you need to keep your eyes on Christ because Christ laid out for us an example of how we are to live in a manner worthy of the gospel on this life and how we display our character towards one another and how we love one another, how we serve one another. If we are truly desiring to walk in faith in Christ, then we are gonna keep our things on the things above where Christ is seated at the right hand of God.
Embodying Faith-Focused Behaviors
00:05:09
Speaker
And the third thing was the newness of life in Christ. We've got to remind ourselves daily of this new identity, this new hope that we now have. We are no longer dead to our trespasses and sins. We are no longer a part of the flesh, but rather who are we in? Jesus Christ. That's right. We are in Christ. Our identity is in Christ. We is no longer our own. Again, we are positionally in Him and we are hidden as Paul talks about. We are hidden in Christ.
00:05:39
Speaker
is no longer our own but it is his. And the last one we looked at was the future glory. There in verse four it says, when Christ who is your life appears and you also will appear with him in glory. There is no greater hope for us in this life than that truth right there. This life is hard. There is evil and wickedness that is running rampant and that's just the result of sin.
00:06:06
Speaker
But the reality is, is that this is not our permanent home. We are strangers here. We are aliens, this Paul talks about, not like the kind of coming on UFOs, but like we are just, this is not our permanent home, this is temporary. But rather our permanent home is in heaven where Christ is, where He went to prepare the way for us. So why are we clinging to the elemental things of this world that do not affect or have a weight on anything in the eternal?
00:06:35
Speaker
So we need to keep our eyes on the future things as Paul talks about Romans 818. He says, for I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us. And then also in Philippians 3 verses 13 and 14, he says, brothers,
00:06:54
Speaker
I do not consider that I made it my own, but one thing I do, forgetting what lies behind, talking about the desires of the flesh in which He once walked in, this manner of life that He once walked in, and straining for what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upper call of God in Christ Jesus. That is His future glory.
00:07:16
Speaker
So again, Paul lays these out for us as practical guidance as bumpers as you would for those who like bowling, I see you Brian, right? He puts these bumpers up, these guidelines for us as how we can walk in this manner without allowing this outside noise to come in and infiltrate.
Denouncing Sinful Behaviors
00:07:32
Speaker
But today what we're gonna be seeing is how Paul goes from giving practical guidance in steps to overcoming these false teachers or this false teaching that's coming into the church, but rather now he's gonna be addressing specific behaviors
00:07:47
Speaker
that as you do these things, it's not just a matter of clinging to these things, but rather he's calling us into action of putting off the old self. He's going to be addressing specific behaviors that need to be handled, that need to be denied in this life if you proclaim the name of Jesus as Lord and Savior of your life. And not only does he address these behaviors that need to put off, but rather he's going to address behaviors that we need to put
00:08:32
Speaker
But rather it's removing the things of the flesh and putting on the things of Christ. That's what he's encouraging us to do in these verses.
00:08:44
Speaker
So I hope you guys brought your seat belts, go ahead and get clicked in, because we're gonna run through these verses, because we got quite a few to go through. I'm gonna read these verses to us, because it's a longer section, I'm just gonna ask you to remain seated, but will you please follow along if you don't have, if there's a Bible in the back of you, if you don't have your own, or you can follow along on the screens. But we're gonna read verses five through 17, so let's jump in and get to it. So, verse five.
00:09:12
Speaker
Put to death, therefore, what is earthly in you, sexual morality, impurity, passion, evil, desire, and covetousness, which is idolatry. On account of things, the wrath of God is coming. In these, you too once walked when you were living in them.
Abandoning Sinful Attitudes
00:09:33
Speaker
But now, you must put them all away, anger, wrath, malice, slander, and obscene talk from your mouth.
00:09:42
Speaker
Do not lie to one another, seeing that you have put off the old self with this practices and have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge after the image of its creator. Here there is not Greek and Jew, circumcised and uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian slave free, but Christ is all and in all.
00:10:04
Speaker
Verse 12, put on then as God's chosen ones, holy and beloved, compassionate hearts, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience, bearing with one another. And if one has to complain against another, if one has to claim forgiving each other as the Lord has forgiven you, so you must also forgive.
00:10:28
Speaker
Above all these put on love which binds everything together in perfect harmony. And let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts to which indeed you are called in one body. And be thankful. Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, singing songs and hymns and spiritual songs with thankfulness in your hearts to God.
00:10:50
Speaker
In whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him. Let's pray. Father, we come before you giving thanks because of the finished work of the cross.
00:11:10
Speaker
And as a result of that, the death, burial, and resurrection of your son Jesus, we are now positionally in him, and we now have access to you, and we are able to have fellowship with you.
00:11:22
Speaker
But God, I pray that as we work through this passage, this is so practical, I pray that we will learn how to put off the flesh of which wages war against our soul and put on the newness of life in Christ every single day. Father, I don't care how mature we are in Christ or how new we are in Christ, Father, these are things that we all need to do daily and I pray that we will heed this.
00:11:46
Speaker
that we hear Paul's words that were written over 2000 years ago that still practically apply to us today. Will you prepare our hearts? It's in Jesus name, amen. All right, so Paul opens up this section. We're just gonna walk through this. We're gonna let scripture speak for itself here. Verse five, put to death.
00:12:12
Speaker
Is that a passive statement? Is that like a question that Paul's making? Is this just a suggestion? No, this isn't imperative. This is a command. This is something that Paul's like, hey, if you are in Christ, you need to put to death what is earthly in you.
00:12:36
Speaker
Because when it comes to the reality of, when you experience Jesus for the first time, it's transformative. As Paul later talks about elsewhere in 1 Corinthians, he says that for anyone who's in Christ, they are a new creation. The oldest passed away, the newest come. So when you experience Christ, there is a newness of life in you. So we need to put to death the things that are contrary to Scripture, that are contrary to Christ.
00:13:00
Speaker
and his behavior and his nature. And he gives us this very extensive list of things that is not exhaustive. However, these are the ones that not only the Church of Colossae we're dealing with, but what many of us are dealing with today. I'm not saying you in this room, but I'm saying those in this world today. And he starts off with these of sexual immorality, impurity, passion, evil, desire, and covetousness.
00:13:31
Speaker
Sexual impurity, referring to both within and without marital union. This idea of not remaining faithful. Impurity, speaking to the moral purity, or
Adopting Christ-like Virtues
00:13:44
Speaker
the moral impurity. These ideas of sensually suggestive thoughts and humor, or perverted fantasies, or lusting within your heart. These are the things in which he's talking to.
00:13:57
Speaker
When he talks about passion, he's speaking to the depraved affection or uncontrollable desire for sensual relationships. Whether it's heterosexual or homosexual, we need to put to death these desires.
00:14:14
Speaker
He doesn't stop there, though. He says, not just these desires, but evil desires. He takes it a step further. What does it mean by evil desire? It's speaking to the nature of wicked or bad, lust or desire that is controlled by sin. So it's taking these other ones, sexual morality and purity and passion, it's taking it to a whole new level.
00:14:39
Speaker
that we need to be on guard against these things and not be controlled by our sin that wages war against our soul. And then lastly, covetousness, speaking to a specific type of greed that desires or a wanting more outside of what God has given you. We don't need to long after those things that are outside what God has given us. God is sufficient. I love that song that Marsha sang again, the all sufficient merit. Christ is sufficient in all things.
00:15:09
Speaker
and what He did for us as our atonement to what He now provides for us daily and our spiritual needs. He is sufficient in all things. We don't need to long for the things that are outside of that. That is covetousness, which is idolatry. And we see what Paul talks about there when it comes to these things. On account of these things, what is coming?
00:15:35
Speaker
Hello? The wrath of God. Y'all awake? Because that's a very important verse. On account of these things, the wrath of God is coming. Our heart is the most deceitful thing above all things. And we need to guard ourselves against what the flesh is desiring.
00:15:58
Speaker
these sinful actions. And again, this is not an exhaustive list of what Paul is mentioning here of what we are struggling with today. We can go on with this list for a long time. We don't have time for that today, don't worry, we're not gonna do it. But these are just the prominent things that if we're all honest, we have struggled with some of them, if not all of them at one point in our life. Some of us in this room are still struggling with them today.
00:16:25
Speaker
But he goes from listing out these sinful actions in verses five and six to going on in verse seven. He says, in these two, you once walked and we're living in them. So he's reminding these people of like, hey, when you look out and you see those who are struggling with these things, or when you look out in your congregation, you see others struggle with it, you have to remember to remind yourself, hey, I was gonna say, I am the better.
00:17:00
Speaker
He goes on in verse eight, he says, but now you must put them all away. He goes, and he continues his list from sinful actions to sinful attitudes. Anger, wrath, malice, slander, and obscene talk from your mouth. Now you guys are probably thinking, man, those first ones that he mentioned? I clear your balance, I'm good. Then you use this and I'll come.
00:17:28
Speaker
really failed on this one. So anger, anger, this is speaking of the, really to the unsafe person, that is the inward attitude of the sinful flesh, okay, so how we respond in our flesh. Because anger in itself is not necessarily sinful. Now you guys, I got some attention right there, right? Anger in itself is not sinful.
00:17:58
Speaker
when you approach it correctly. When you are controlled by the Holy Spirit and you use it for holy reasons, it is not sinful. However, we just need to allow the Holy Spirit to guide us in that. But if we're approaching it from our flesh, that's where it gets hairy. That's where it gets dangerous.
00:18:22
Speaker
and we need to guard ourselves against this. So at any point in your life, and you're trying to justify using anger, I'm just gonna say don't try to justify, because typically we're wrong most of the time when you are angry. There's only a few times where we are righteously angry, right? But the second thing is wrath, and it's similar to the attitude of anger, but can be described as white hot anger. It is uncontrolled rage expressed through outbursts of temper.
00:18:52
Speaker
Has anybody ever experienced that before?
Love as the Binding Force
00:18:57
Speaker
What's that? Over me, okay. I was about to say, hey man, when I'm watching Tennessee football sometimes, it just gets really ugly, okay? My wife can attest to it. No, I'm just kidding. But anyway, so this is white hot anger. We need to put it away. Malice, it's the ill intention or desire to do evil. This idea of animosity or gossip.
00:19:25
Speaker
Anybody done that? Your intention behind gossip is to put down somebody, to ruin their reputation. This idea of slander, this damaging or ruining someone's reputation or status. Lastly, obscene talk is this idea of disgraceful speech. This one gets touchy, because people don't want to give up their vocabulary.
00:19:52
Speaker
when we allow each other to come alongside one another to encourage and to speak truth to one another, addressing those things that are at the root of your heart. That's when the church is most effective and our witness is most received. No one wants a false witness. We can go out and share the gospel every single day until we're blue in the face.
00:20:22
Speaker
But what really speaks is how we act, how we interact with one another. Again, one of the biggest, you guys ever asked somebody who's, they rejected the church, you're like, hey, why do you not go to church? What's one of the most common responses you get? People, that's right. The people, they're hypocrites. They act one way in the church, but man, outside those walls are a completely different person.
00:20:51
Speaker
That should not be the case. Oh my goodness, that should not be the case. We need to put to death the things of the flesh, what is earthly in us, so that way we can truly be the witness that we can be for Christ. Putting off the old self with his practices and putting on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge after its creator.
00:21:18
Speaker
This idea of constant growth, constantly being renewed by God's knowledge. This is why we must be in God's word daily and allow the word of God to speak to us rather than us try to speak to the word. This book has withstood thousands of years and it has withstood countless times of trying to be destroyed.
00:21:50
Speaker
Christianity has been tried to be wiped out multiple times throughout the generations and it is still withstood because this word never fails. We stand upon this word. This word goes before us. It speaks and cuts to the hearts of those who hear it. That's why you're here today. At least I hope.
00:22:13
Speaker
And if you're here today, you haven't ever realized your need for Jesus, I pray that you do that today, that you'll allow this word to cut to the heart. And you'll recognize your need for a loving Savior who wants to restore you and who wants to renew you and bring you into fellowship with Him forevermore in His future glory.
00:22:34
Speaker
So put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge after the image of its creator. Let that last part sink in. Put to death what is earthly, so that when we put on the new self, we now can be renewed in knowledge after the image of our creator. When we walk around, when we interact with each other, we're not just speaking on behalf of Josh Scheller, speaking on behalf of Victor Morrison, no, we're speaking on behalf of God.
00:23:04
Speaker
We are in his image. So let us walk in it. And he goes on and expounds on this idea. It says, here there is neither Greek and Jew, circumcised, uncircumcised, barbarian, Cynthia slave are free, but Christ is all and in all. There's no distinction. The gospel message is for all of us.
00:23:32
Speaker
and the gospel message renews and restores, and it also transforms every person in the same way. It doesn't matter what ethnicity you are, it doesn't matter what race you are, it doesn't matter if you're a heterosexual or a homosexual, the gospel message pierces the heart and soul of every man.
Guidance of Christ's Peace and Unity
00:23:54
Speaker
We have got to allow it to do that.
00:24:00
Speaker
So put to death what is earthly in you and do not lie to one another or lie to yourself. And then Paul now transitions to things that we must put on. So he gives us these lists of things that we need to take off, but now we need to look at what we need to put on. Compassionate hearts, kindness, humility, meekness and patience.
00:24:26
Speaker
these virtues of Jesus that He portrayed for us all throughout His ministry and His life here on earth. If we were to walk in Christ, we need to put these on as He demonstrated themselves. Compassionate hearts referring to having a heartfelt sympathy for those who are suffering or in need. This implies that our hearts must be softened, invulnerable, which the culture says the opposite.
00:24:55
Speaker
We need to put on kindness, which is grace in action, having a friendly and helpful spirit. As one commentator I read, he says, it's concrete action of compassion. I love that definition. I love the way you say so. Kindness is concrete action of compassion. This idea of heartfelt sympathy and suffering for the need, putting that in concrete action. Humility, which is an individual that is free from pride.
00:25:25
Speaker
Not allowing your pride to lead you, but rather getting rid of that. It's someone who sees himself as a product of divine grace. We are not here because of anything we did. We are here because of the grace of God. We need to acknowledge that. We need to walk in that. Meekness, this is power under control. It can also be referred to as gentleness. It's a person who is marked with a spirit of quiet submission.
00:25:54
Speaker
So as we lead one, it doesn't matter what position you're in. I don't care if you're a CEO of a company. I don't care if you're a principal of a school. I don't care if you're a pastor of a church. We need to put our power under control. We need to view one another with great humility and gentleness. This idea of meekness. And then patience, we all love patience. It's wrath that is put far away. Have you ever heard it described that way?
00:26:22
Speaker
So when you're experiencing that wrath, it's the idea, it's the mindset of putting that far away. It's the capacity to accept or bear injustice or injury without the desire of retaliation or revenge. That's sobering. But he goes on, he continues in verse 13.
00:26:49
Speaker
Oh yeah, so it says bearing with one another and if one has a complaint against each other, what does he say that we must do? Forgive. Forgive. Let go. Forgiving each other as the Lord has forgiven you so you must also forgive. Again, this isn't a suggestion, this is a command.
00:27:14
Speaker
As the Lord has forgiven you, you must also forgive. Don't hang on to it. Don't let it eat your soul away. Don't be bitter. But above all these, verse 14, put on love, which binds everything together in perfect harmony. This idea of love, it's a feeling of deep affection. This is what defines our relationship with God and it's ultimately what dictates how we should interact and treat each other. Love. This is what holds all these virtues that we just mentioned.
00:27:43
Speaker
Compassion, kindness, humility, neatness, patience, tolerance, forgiveness. Love is what binds them all together. So may we hold fast to this. For as Paul says in 1 Corinthians 13, four through seven, love is patient and kind. No love is not envy or boast. It is not arrogant or rude. It does not insist on its own way. It is not irritable or resentful. It does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth.
00:28:15
Speaker
Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, and endures all things. 1 John 3, 14 says, we know that we have passed out of death into life because we love the brothers. Whoever does not love abides in death. Going back to what Paul was talking about there in verse five, the things of the flesh. 1 John 4, 8 through 10, we are almost done, bear with me.
00:28:42
Speaker
Anyone who does not love does not know God because God is love. In this, the love of God was made manifest among us that God sent his only son into the world so that we might live through him. And this is love. Not that we have loved God, but that he loved us and sent his son to be our perpetuation for sins. Lastly, John 15. I like John. I like what John says. John 15, 12 through 14. This is my commandment. This is Jesus speaking.
00:29:13
Speaker
This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you. Greater love has no one than this, that someone lay his life down for his friends. Listen to what he says, you're my friends if you do what I command you. So we must walk in love. If we truly abide in Christ and truly believe that he is our Savior, our Messiah, our Redeemer, we must love and allow these other virtues to overflow as a result of that.
00:29:44
Speaker
He wraps this up though with verses 15 through 17. He says, and let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, rule in your hearts in which you are your deed and call to one body. This idea of peace is an incredible thing.
00:30:00
Speaker
we must let his peace reign and rule in our hearts. Because this peace refers to divine peace that can only be obtained through the triune God, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. It's also the same peace that refer, it's a ruling peace, which means that it goes before us, it commands our every action. It leads us, it guides us, and it's also a unifying peace. It sort of allows us to be able to come together and fellowship with each other.
00:30:26
Speaker
Let this peace of Christ rule in your hearts to which you need to recall to one body and be thankful. Let the word of Christ dwell. Let it dwell in you richly. Let it take root. Let it affect your daily thoughts. Let it affect your daily actions and desires.
00:30:48
Speaker
Let it dwell in you richly, teaching and monitoring one another with all wisdom, singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs with thankfulness in your hearts to God. In other words, let this peace dwell in you so that way we can come together and do this. Fellowship with one another, worship with one another, as we were called to.
00:31:10
Speaker
In verse 17, this is one that we all know. This is one that we've memorized, I'm sure. And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him. Whatever you do.
00:31:30
Speaker
Allow the word of God to lead you, allow the spirit of God to guide you, to put to death what is against the spirit, as Paul would talk about in Galatians, that is put to death the flesh that wages war against our soul, and that is put on the newness of life in Christ.
00:31:52
Speaker
We'll wrap up with this, 1 Peter 3, 8 through 12. It says, finally, all of you have unity in mind, sympathy, brotherly love, a tender heart, and a humble mind. Do not repay evil for evil or reviling for reviling, but on the contrary, bless, to this you recall, that you may obtain a blessing,
00:32:16
Speaker
For whoever desires to love life and see good days, let him keep his tongue from evil and his lips from speaking deceit. Let him turn away from evil and do good. Let him seek peace and pursue it. For the eyes of the Lord are on the righteous and his ears are open to their prayer. But the face of the Lord is against those who do evil.
00:32:43
Speaker
Again, I don't know where we're at, I don't know what's going on in our lives this morning, but I pray that as we've worked through this, that you've allowed God to speak to your heart into the things in which you are dealing with right now. If you're struggling with any of these sinful actions or sinful attitudes, take time this morning to surrender it. Surrender those things, especially if you're a believer in Jesus.
00:33:11
Speaker
Don't let that take root in your life. Don't let it hold you captive. Don't let it disqualify you. Because what's happening is that those sinful actions are disqualifying you in a culture that is seeking to destroy Christianity. So don't let those things take you captive or disqualify you of the faith.
00:33:35
Speaker
but rather put on these things in which Paul has told us to put on in verses 12 through 17. Compassionate hearts, kindness, humility, meekness and patience, forgiving and bearing with one another. That's my prayer for us. And if you're in this room and you, if you never put your faith, hope and trust in Jesus and you're hearing these things and you're just like, wow, this is the oddest thing I've ever heard in my life.
00:34:05
Speaker
I pray that you'll allow it to penetrate your heart so that way you can come to know the saving truth of Jesus. And that you'll allow these verses to set you free from the bondage of sin and death in which wages war against you. Because not until you put your faith up and trust in Jesus will you experience true peace in this life.
00:34:24
Speaker
So I'm going to ask the worship team to come up as we wrap up and I'm going to be down front. Um, if you, if you need somebody to talk to, you can come talk to me and come talk to Victor. I think he's less intimidating. Um, I'm just kidding. He's really, I'm just kidding, but come talk to us. Come talk to me or if you don't want to come talk to us, talk to a neighbor, talk to someone that you trust.
00:34:47
Speaker
someone you have a relationship with in that regard who knows Jesus, who knows the truth, talk to them and let the truth set you free this morning. I'm gonna pray for us and we'll go into this time of invitation. God, we thank you so much for this morning. God, we thank you for your word. It's living and active. It's sharpened the knee to its sword. And God, it doesn't take much for it to reveal itself to us. We just have to let it speak.
Conclusion and Reflection
00:35:13
Speaker
And I pray that's exactly what we did this morning.
00:35:16
Speaker
And God, I pray that you will work in the hearts of all of us who are in this room today, because Lord, the reality is that we all struggle with our sin. None of us are perfect in this life. Until we are with you in heaven, we are gonna struggle with sin. So I pray that if there's anything in our hearts that we need to confess that we'll do it this morning, there's anything in our hearts that we need to lay down before you that we will do it, that we will put on the fullness of Christ and walk in a manner worthy of the calling and the prize of Christ Jesus.
00:35:47
Speaker
Lord, I love you, I praise you, and I thank you for this congregation. I thank you for my brothers and sisters in Christ and how we can walk through this life together. It's in Jesus' name I pray, amen. This is a ministry of First Baptist Church, located at 1700 Milam Street, Columbus, Texas.