REPRESENT!
Colossians 3 Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. 2 Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things. 3 For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God. 4 When Christ, who is your life, appears, then you also will appear with him in glory. 5 Put to death, therefore, whatever belongs to your earthly nature: sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desires and greed, which is idolatry. 6 Because of these, the wrath of God is coming. 7 You used to walk in these ways, in the life you once lived. 8 But now you must also rid yourselves of all such things as these: anger, rage, malice, slander, and filthy language from your lips. 9 Do not lie to each other, since you have taken off your old self with its practices 10 and have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge in the image of its Creator. 11 Here there is no Gentile or Jew, circumcised or uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave or free, but Christ is all, and is in all. 12 Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. 13 Bear with each other and forgive one another if any of you has a grievance against someone. Forgive as the Lord forgave you. 14 And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity. 15 Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace. And be thankful. 16 Let the message of Christ dwell among you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom through psalms, hymns, and songs from the Spirit, singing to God with gratitude in your hearts. 17 And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.
The key idea of this message is to represent Christ! See verse 17 as the summary of the whole thought. Whatever we do, whenever we do it, however we are feeling, whatever we are facing, etc. we are to REPRESENT Christ in our attitude, actions, in all aspects of life—Paul tells us how to REPRESENT Christ effectively in the discourse leading into vs. 17. – we need to live a life that is heaven set—we are to set our purpose to strive toward the goal of heaven—we REPRESENT by having heaven set: sight-vs. 1, thoughts -vs. 2, showing off Jesus- vs. 4, rejecting sin- vs. 5-9, renewing self in Christ-vs. 10,11, clothing self in caring- vs. 12-14, hearts of peace- vs. 15, and speech- vs. 16, 17. Prayerfully consider if we are truly REPRESENTING Christ in all areas of our life-both public and private!
EXEMPLIFY!
1 Thessalonians 1: 3 We remember before our God and Father your work produced by faith, your labor prompted by love, and your endurance inspired by hope in our Lord Jesus Christ.4 For we know, brothers and sisters loved by God, that he has chosen you, 5 because our gospel came to you not simply with words but also with power, with the Holy Spirit and deep conviction. You know how we lived among you for your sake. 6 You became imitators of us and of the Lord, for you welcomed the message in the midst of severe suffering with the joy given by the Holy Spirit. 7 And so you became a model to all the believers in Macedonia and Achaia
Vs. 7 – the key thought here—are we an EXEMPLIFYING Christ to others? Are we models of who Jesus calls us to be—are we “Christ-like” in our walk, our words, our work? Are we an EXAMPLE ( “ a type, a pattern, a model”) of how we are changed by the power of the Holy Spirit? Are we living a life that pleases our Savior? How do we evaluate if our EXAMPLE measures up? Look at verse 3—is our Work (task, employment; a deed, action) EXEMPLIFYING faithfulness to God’s Word, is our labor (toil, labor, laborious toil, involving weariness and fatigue.) EXEMPLIFYING itself through a love for Christ—no matter what we face, what we are dealing with, how much we are going through- we do it in love!
Is our endurance (steadfastness, patient waiting for) EXEMPLIFYING the hope that we have in Christ? Do we live in such a way that no matter what we know that “this to will pass” and we are on our way to heaven! That this life is but a blip, a vapor on the radar screen of eternity! Live in such a way , everyday , that EXEMPLIFIES Christ in us!
DEMONSTRATE!
Ecclesiastes 12: 13 Now all has been heard; here is the conclusion of the matter: Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the duty of all mankind.14 For God will bring every deed into judgment,
including every hidden thing, whether it is good or evil.
2 Thessalonians 1:11 With this in mind, we constantly pray for you, that our God may make you worthy of his calling, and that by his power he may bring to fruition your every desire for goodness and your every deed prompted by faith. 12 We pray this so that the name of our Lord Jesus may be glorified in you, and you in him, according to the grace of our God and the Lord Jesus Christ.
2 Thessalonians 2:15 So then, brothers and sisters, stand firm and hold fast to the teachings[a] we passed on to you, whether by word of mouth or by letter.
We are to DEMONSTRATE who Christ is in us and what He did in us! Solomon, the wisest man who ever lived, writes in Ecclesiastes that after all his life, searching for happiness, searching for fulfillment, having all the riches, all the knowledge, all the pleasures of life, etc. settles on one the one and only thing that matters---FEAR GOD and KEEP HIS COMMANDMENTS! Why? Because everything we do will be judged—the good, bad, and ugly of our life—even the parts of life we keep “secret” will be exposed before God—so how we DEMONSTRATE what God has put in matters in the end—It is God who works in us ( He provides a way to salvation in Christ, He provides the Holy Spirit to empower us to live this life, He gives us His Word to direct our life, etc.) but we choose how we DEMONSTRATE all He gives us. We are exhorted by Paul in 2 Thessalonians to DEMONSTRATE the life we are given in a worthy way—worthy of being called His children—not on our own, but through His power working through us to bring our faithful deeds into fruition! We are encouraged to glorify Christ in living out our life. We are exhorted to stand firm and hold fast to what He has given us, worked in us, and provided for us—stay in His Word, stay connected in Worship and Prayer, join others in worship and fellowship to encourage, challenge, and grow in your faith as a community of believers. DEMONSTRATE Christ in our life, our purpose, our Worship, our faithfulness, our choices, and our connections.
“ALTAR”ATION
Ezra 3
3 "When the seventh month came and the Israelites had settled in their towns, the people assembled together as one in Jerusalem. 2 Then Joshua son of Jozadak and his fellow priests and Zerubbabel son of Shealtiel and his associates began to build the altar of the God of Israel to sacrifice burnt offerings on it, in accordance with what is written in the Law of Moses the man of God. 3 Despite their fear of the peoples around them, they built the altar on its foundation and sacrificed burnt offerings on it to the Lord, both the morning and evening sacrifices."
Instead of alterations that we make in life, alterations we make in our clothes, alterations we make in our home and yard-we need to get back to the real “altar”ation we need to make—our heart! Reading the passage above, we see the place that we need to come back to is the altar! Before Israel did anything else after their return from exile, before they built their homes, rebuilt the temple, opened their businesses, planted crops, etc. they met together as one and rebuilt the ALTAR! They knew the land and their lives needed an “ALTAR”ation and focus back on God and His ways. They knew they need God’s presence and touch in their lives. They put it as a first priority to seek God, come to the ALTAR ( a place of sacrifice, a place of surrender, a place of laying down our life before God) -- Before we can really do anything of real substance in life, meaningful purpose, or Spiritual growth we need an “ALTAR”ation—we need to come before God and lay our goals, ambitions, desires, purposes, and plans at His feet , at His ALTAR and surrender our will to His. We need to pray as Jesus Himself prayed—Lord, not my will but yours be done! Sadly, in many lives and churches today, the call to come to the “ALTAR” goes unheeded. We sit in our seats, cross our arms, and wait to be dismissed! Let me challenge you to respond to the ALTAR , to come to the ALTAR, to rebuild the ALTAR in your life—to make it a priority, whether at home, about your day, or even in church to spend time at the ALTAR ( place of surrender before God) and allow Him to make the “ALTAR”ations He needs to make so we can grow to be more like Christ!
REFLECT!
Titus 2:7-12
New Living Translation
"7 And you yourself must be an example to them by doing good works of every kind. Let everything you do reflect the integrity and seriousness of your teaching. 8 Teach the truth so that your teaching can’t be criticized. Then those who oppose us will be ashamed and have nothing bad to say about us.
11 For the grace of God has been revealed, bringing salvation to all people. 12 And we are instructed to turn from godless living and sinful pleasures. We should live in this evil world with wisdom, righteousness, and devotion to God"
Our life is our loudest testimony-- verse 7 -"let everything you do "REFLECT" the integrity and seriousness of your teaching" When we REFLECT what we read in Scripture, REFLECT the life of Christ, REFLECT His image to the world-- there can not be any accusation of our life that we are "hypocrites"-- so we need to take time each day to consider who and what am I REFLECTING with my life-- does my testimony ( words) match my life (REFLECTION)-- does my life look more like Jesus everyday?
"2 Corinthians 3:18 So all of us who have had that veil removed can see and reflect the glory of the Lord. And the Lord—who is the Spirit—makes us more and more like him as we are changed into his glorious image."
James 1:22" But don’t just listen to God’s word. You must do what it says. Otherwise, you are only fooling yourselves. 23 For if you listen to the word and don’t obey, it is like glancing at your face in a mirror. 24 You see yourself, walk away, and forget what you look like. 25 But if you look carefully into the perfect law that sets you free, and if you do what it says and don’t forget what you heard, then God will bless you for doing it."
Our life needs to REFLECT Christ in all we do, so our words match our life-- because our life story REFLECTS a bigger impact on others than our verbal story.
LEFTOVERS OR BESTEVERS?
Malachi 1: “But you ask, ‘How have we shown contempt for your name?7 “By offering defiled food on my altar. “But you ask, ‘How have we defiled you?’“By saying that the Lord’s table is contemptible. 8 When you offer blind animals for sacrifice, is that not wrong? When you sacrifice lame or diseased animals, is that not wrong? Try offering them to your governor! Would he be pleased with you? Would he accept you?” says the Lord Almighty.9 “Now plead with God to be gracious to us. With such offerings from your hands, will he accept you?”—says the Lord Almighty.10 “Oh, that one of you would shut the temple doors, so that you would not light useless fires on my altar! I am not pleased with you,” says the Lord Almighty, “and I will accept no offering from your hands. 11 My name will be great among the nations, from where the sun rises to where it sets. In every place incense and pure offerings will be brought to me, because my name will be great among the nations,” says the Lord Almighty.12 “But you profane it by saying, ‘The Lord’s table is defiled,’ and, ‘Its food is contemptible.’ 13 And you say, ‘What a burden!’ and you sniff at it contemptuously,” says the Lord Almighty. “When you bring injured, lame or diseased animals and offer them as sacrifices, should I accept them from your hands?” says the Lord. 14 “Cursed is the cheat who has an acceptable male in his flock and vows to give it, but then sacrifices a blemished animal to the Lord. For I am a great king,” says the Lord Almighty, “and my name is to be feared among the nations.
As you read this passage consider what we offer God in our lives. Do we give God our BESTEVERS or our LEFTOVERS? What do I mean? Well consider your average day. When you wake up and go through the day how does God fit into your plans? Do you rise and spend time in His Word and prayer or do you go about the day and “might” remember to offer a pray over dinner? Do you go through the day considering God and His Word in your choices and plans or do you just do what you want to do, when you want to do it and “hope” God is okay with what you are doing? Do we come to church, sit in the chair, leave as soon as it is over and maybe give a couple dollars in the offering; or do we come to church ready to serve God with your gifts and talents, and give God your best offering? Do we prioritize God and His church or do you prioritize your own agenda and fit God in when you have the time? These are all questions to consider that our text is addressing. We are not to give God our “LEFTOVER” time, gifts, talents, focus, offerings, etc. We are commanded to give Him our “BESTEVERS” , our primary focus, our primary agenda, our daily purpose, etc. Are we living our life with God on the front of our mind and thinking? Are we seeking first the kingdom of God ( i.e.- His way of doing things), are we giving Him our “firstfruits”—our very best or are we only offering what we have left?
Let me challenge you to give God your “BESTEVERS” and not just “LEFTOVERS”! But that is not just my challenge to you—it is the very Word of God!