1. ( Verse 3 ) Paul and his other leaders pray for those they lead regularly. Pray for those you lead! (You will be held accountable!)

2. ( Verses 3-6 )Paul thanks God that these people exist. Paul realizes that it is just a blessing to know that there are more people who are trying to live and work for the almighty God. He realizes that these people, like him self, are ready to sacrifice their lives to some degree to grow closer to God and further the Kingdom. We should praise God for the same reasons. Furthermore, Paul realizes that this group is just part of a larger whole that is growing all around the world. The church is a huge organism and the groups we lead are just one small part of it. As leaders we have to remember that we aren’t competing against other groups/ministries, but are completing what Jesus himself began.

3. ( Verse 7 ) Paul praises Epaphras leadership. Paul praises him for being faithful and starting this group, and for being a servant to others. As leaders in the church, we have to realize it isn’t about us. Its about working to the benefit of others so that they can know, grow, and work in Christ’s love.

4. ( Verse 8 ) Leaders, tell others about the good things that are happening with those you lead, and give God all the glory for it. If God isn’t ultimately getting the glory from his people’s work, you might need to ask who’s work is really being done.

5. ( Verses 9-12 ) Paul prays that the church in Colossae will gain greater Spiritual wisdom and understanding, so that they may live a life that is worthy and pleasing to God. Leaders, more then anything else, we have to encourage those around us to get intimate with God. Only by devoting ourselves to knowing the Spirit can we live in a way that pleases God. If we live by the spirit we will be able to:
   -bear fruit in the good works that we do
   -grow in knowledge of God (and what he wants us to do)
   -be strengthened with the power to keep going and be patient through the trying times
   -truly praise God with joyful thanks

6. ( Verses 12-14 ) Paul reminds the Colossians that we will receive and inheritance as God’s chosen people, that we are part of one kingdom, that God loves us, and that God has forgiven our sins. As church leaders, we need to remember all these things and help our teams understand them during times of conflict. First we are all of the same family and all of the same kingdom. We aren’t fighting against each other, but love each other underneath it all and need to work through difficulties through love and mercy. Secondly, We need to realize that nothing we do in this life and no work that we do for the church is important enough to hurt others in our family. What we will receive in the end is an inheritance. We don’t have to earn it through works. Thirdly, we need to remember to forgive others because we have been forgiven (this isn’t a suggestion, Jesus commands us to do so in Luke 6:37). If we are able to lead by and teach our teams these three principles, I believe we will be able to do amazing things for the King.

Paul was one of the greatest church leaders in history. I pray that we can learn from his wisdom, and be even more gripped by God’s direction and the leadership potential that is in all of us within the Holy Spirit. May God help us lead so that  all His people will be found to be mature and pleasing to Him. Thanks be to God. Amen.

6. The sword of the Spirit – the word of God: Throughout scripture the word of God is referred to as a sword. Here Paul tells us that the sword isn’t a physical thing, but is of the Spirit. It is a supernatural force that is given to us from Jesus. We need to spend time and train ourselves with the word of God. We need to come to know the word intimately.  We need to learn to use it just like one masters using a sword. You have to put in time practicing and training so that you can understand the swords form and function. The more you practice with the sword the more its use becomes second nature. The sword becomes an extension of your arm, a part of your being, and you can use it correctly and masterfully. As the word of God becomes more and more a part of us, as the Spirit becomes more natural to us, we learn that the word ( like a sword) can be used effectively to penetrate into others. The word can cut to the heart of others and break through sin and darkness. To be useful in battle, a soldier must be trained and prepared to use his sword. In the same way we must learn and be prepared to use the word of God to cut away anything that hinders. I need God’s word to be so much more a part of me then it currently is.

7. Prayer in the Spirit: Prayer takes place in relationship to the Spirit. To pray effectively we need to become consumed with the need to know God’s word (as it is seen in the bible) and God’s son, Jesus (who is the word). If a soldier forgets his commander, the battle is lost. We need to communicate with Him constantly, asking for advice and divine reinforcements. I too often forget how important prayer is ( and I suspect that I’m not the only one). Paul is telling us to not forget how important it is! Paul urges us to pray for “all the Lord’s people” on “all occasions” with “all kinds of requests.” I’m beginning to understand just how important prayer is to God’s work. Without persistent prayer, basically nothing can be done for God’s kingdom, no God sized tasks ever comes to pass (see Jesus’ teaching in Luke 11:5-13 ), and people forget how dependent they are on God. Paul hasn’t forgotten this dependence. In verses 19 & 20, he is begging the Ephesians to continue to pray for him, just so he can continue to work for God in the same radical fashion he has been. Paul knows that it is only by God’s power ( that he and others have asked for through prayer) that he can do anything amazing for God’s kingdom.

Am I dressed for God’s occasion? ( aka Spirit : one size fits all)

• Am I trying to find time to read scripture and pray or am I trying to find things to fill time so I don’t have to read or pray?
• Am I asking God to do things for me that I can take care of, or am I asking God for big things that he can do and gain honor from?
• Do I know the Word well enough, that I can confidently speak it (penetrate) into others’ lives with the Truth?

4. The Shield of Faith. “Take up the shield of faith with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one.” Faith gives you the ability to stand and continue to advance and do God’s work. When you raise the shield of faith, you block your view of the things that Satan is trying to use to distract and harm you.  Sometimes when you’re holding up the shield of faith, you can’t see what’s ahead of you. Someone once asked me if I believe in blind faith. I’m not quite sure if faith is ever totally blind. Even when faith is the only thing you can see, God still has given you a direction and will guide your steps. It’s better to be blind and secure in God then clear sited and obviously wounded, afflicted, and distracted by the enemy (imagine a guy standing, looking, and pointing at the flaming arrow in his side). 

5. The Helm of Salvation. Of all the pieces of spiritual clothing, the helm of salvation may be the most important. The helm of salvation might be best thought of as a motorcycle helmet for professional dirt bike racers. In professional circuits bikers can’t compete without a helmet. Without their helmet,  any crash a dirt biker has at any substantial speed will probably be fatal. Not partially fatal, completely fatal (you’ll get that joke later). Bikers would have to be crazy to enter the fray without a helmet. Anyone who is trying to run the Christian race, but hasn’t found salvation through Christ is just as crazy. To try and run the race without Jesus’ salvation, people are just setting themselves up to die and spend eternity apart from God. We must have the helmet of salvation before we ever try to pick up speed. Without the realization that eternity has already been won for us most people will never enter the race, the risk is too great. When the helm of salvation is firmly planted on your mind, it disciplines the way you think. Salvation keeps you focused on the road ahead and the true victory that awaits. Salvation allows us to compete in such a way to win the prize that has been set before us.

Am I dressed for God’s occasion? (aka God’s eye for the average Guy)

• What are we seeing and what is on are minds? ( Is it something that God has given us or something that is distracting us?)
• If you have the helm of salvation, then are you ready to wear it and accelerate in God’s race?
• Are we standing with faith that extinguishes the enemies attacks or are we just using rules to run from attack?

2. The Breastplate of Righteousness. At the time when Paul was writing, if someone was  wearing a breastplate you knew they meant business. They were probably a soldier or guard. They were probably assigned to a mission or task by a higher power, and where dressed appropriately to complete that task.  In the same way, Jesus expects us to be dressed correctly and carry out the task He has given us. Take a look at Luke 12:25-48. Jesus says that good servants should be dressed as for a wedding. One of the important ideas in this statement is that it’s not about what you want to wear. It’s about what the master expects you to have on. In our lives we need to be asking, am I wearing the shirt of self-righteousness that I made and picked out or am I wearing the shirt of God’s Righteousness that was given to me as a gift purchased by Jesus. Note the differences between the two. Take a look at Malachi 3:18. Self-righteousness is made out of only what you can produce and in God’s eyes makes you look like crap. God’s righteousness was made by God, reflects his matchless glory, and was purchased for you by Jesus’ blood on the cross. What are the advantages of wearing God’s righteousness? People will know there is something different about you (you are a man on a mission from a King), you don’t have to worry about what you need to look like in any situation (because you will look like Jesus), and it never wears out and remains stainless (because it is constantly cleaned by an eternal king named Jesus).  The challenge of wearing God’s righteousness is that it requires obedience.  You have to live out what you are wearing (you have to practice what you preach, and your actions will speak much louder then your words) and it may require more then you are willing to give up( because it requires your entire life, look at Jesus).

3. Feet fitted in Readiness that comes from the Gospel of Peace. Paul tells us to put on a readiness that comes from the Gospel of Peace. What does the Gospel of Peace look like? To me, it looks a lot like Acts 4:12. There is no other name that by which we must be saved other then Jesus’. This is the good news. Once you got Jesus, you don’t need anything else, and in that knowledge there is peace that makes you ready enough to do anything. With the Lord of the entire Universe for you, who can stand against you? Realize that Paul doesn’t say have your feet fitted by the security of the Gospel of Peace. There is really nothing comfortable about these shoes (think more like taped feet). Scripture is telling us to be ready to move. God’s saying be ready because I’m about to ask you to do something bigger than you can handle, and I will be with you.  Most likely you will be afraid, weak, and not completely sure what God’s plan is when He ask you to go, but the peace of knowing that He is with you will get you to move. Until you have the peace that only God’s might can offer, you will never be capable of being uncomfortable and stepping out to do something radical for God’s kingdom.

Am I dressed for God’s occasion? (aka What not to Wear: Jesus edition)

• What does my ‘shirt’ truly read: “4 sale” , “it’s all about me” , or “Jesus is the savior of my life and I live to glorify His name” ?
• Am I willing to walk across rough terrain to save my life? Am I willing to do it to save others?
• Am I too worried about something to move?

1. The belt of Truth. “Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist …” ( v14). Paul is making a very obvious statement here: Don’t let your pants fall down! You can’t walk properly if your pants are hanging down to your knees. In the same way you can’t walk properly with God without Truth. You can try to walk around without a belt on (or without truth), but eventually your pants are going to fall down and people are going to see it. People want to know that they can trust you and that your a person who keeps your word. When your fail to tell the truth and lie, you create and image of yourself that people wont soon forget. They may never forget that time you lied to them, “that time your pants fail down”, and probably wont want to be around you depending on how bad that image of you is. We also need to remember that God knows your thoughts, hears what you say, and sees what you do all the time. You can’t hide your lies from God, and if your going to miss handle small truths, God isn’t going to let you handle any bigger truths. With that being said, grow up, pull up your pants, and start walking with the belt of Truth on.

Am I dressed for God’s occasion? ( aka Does this belt make my butt look big? The answer is who cares, if you don’t wear it your going to show your rear to everyone). 

• Am I convinced that Truth is necessary for me to walk in life and live to the fullest?
• Am I willing to stand in Truth even though it appears no one else around me is? (don’t lower your standards because others are lowering theirs)
• Am I willing to stand against people that want me to lie or be dishonest?

How does this make since? By worldly wisdom it doesn’t (go back and look at 1 cor 1:23-25). But when we step out, and put our faith into action, it shows Godly character within us. When we step out, our fear becomes courage, our weakness becomes perseverance, and our trembling shows humility. All of these are characteristics of the righteous, but their only known when we take action. Without action fear remains fear, weakness never goes away, and your trembling is pathetic. And the thing is that when you  take action, what you show the world is true courage, persevere, and humility. Your weaknesses, fear, and trembling don’t need to be masked by some self made pride or by anything else (Jesus was pretty bare on the cross). When you step out in faith what people will see is God in you, they see courage, persevere, and humility. And that is the power of God working in you, because people just don’t face fear in our society, people don’t push through weakness, and no one humbles themselves before anyone(especially the ones they are confronting).

With that being said, if you truly want someone to hear the true testimony about God, you have to be the one to step out. Paul would of never gotten to share the story of Jesus with the Corinthians if he never decided to stepped out. It’s not about how strong we are. It’s about how strong God is even in our weakness. That’s the story of the Gospel, that’s the source of our wisdom as believers, and that is how God reveals his power.

3.  Are we serious about reaching the world?

This is a question that I unfortunately think the church has answered: NO. Or at least we haven’t let our actions speak louder then our words. Perry makes a couple points about how many churches are trying to compete against other churches, and how people get comfortable in their ways and no longer wish to grow. We forget how we use to be. How it was when we were far from God and needed someone to reach out to us and invite us into Jesus’ love.  DayStar is part of a new generation of churches. An age of churches that will be truly compelled by Jesus’ love and wont shut up about it.

Let’s take a look at what Paul has to say, look at 1 Corinthians 1:13-31. Paul starts by reminding the church it isn’t about church leaders (like himself). The mission is all about Jesus (verse 13 Was Paul crucified for you?) Then he tells them his strategy. It’s a simple one, tell people about Jesus. (verse 17) It’s not about being fancy. It’s not about trying to out smart people. It’s about letting them know the good news.  In verses 18-25 Paul elaborates on what is the power of the gospel. Unlike what I would have expected, Paul doesn’t say the gospel’s power is in Christ’s resurrection, but it is in Christ Crucified. Paul says “Think of what you were when you were called” (v26). I think I too often forget where I came from. I get use to walking with Jesus and reigning with him and forget about the price that was paid. I forget that people don’t need to hear about how good I’m doing, and need to hear about how much good Jesus has done for me. That’s the cross. All of Jesus’ love is known on the cross. All of God’s love is seen on the cross. 

The Christ Crucified is the power of the gospel. It shows us that God wishes to take all the dead in sin, the lowly, the unwise, the forgotten, the abused, the hurt, the dirty, and the unloved, and radically transform them because He loves them. Jesus deserved to become none of these things, but became all of them and died so that we might live. This is the news people need to hear and the news people need to see us live out. Ya it sounds crazy and a bit foolish (Paul thought it did too v23-25). But Jesus is our wisdom, our righteousness, holiness, and redemption, and we need to live into that.

Easter will be here in two Sundays. Be a little foolish and crazy and bring someone to hear the story of Jesus. It may just change their life, it may just change your life.

2. Are we willing to work?

In 1 Corinthians 9:19-22 Paul told us that, even though he has all the freedom in the world in Christ, he chooses to change in any way that will help save others. Now look at 1 Corinthians 9: 23-27. Paul tells us that he works in the way that he does to advance the good news of Jesus and to share in the blessings that come with it. He then goes on to describe his work ethic. What does he say? Does he say that he prays for 12 hours a day? Does he say that he reads lots of christian literature? Does he say that he listens to Pastor Steven Furtick and three other messages a week? NO, Paul’s says he goes into strict training. That he beats his body and makes it a slave. He uses very physical examples in describing how a follower should do God’s work. 

Perry’s point with this question, and what I think is Paul’s point with these verses, is that the Church needs to stop over spiritualizing the work that needs to be done.  The bible describes members of the church as farmers, fishermen, soldiers, and runners. All of these roles are physical! All these jobs require us to go out into the world, to work hard, and to sweat. Most christians are ready to do some harvesting if they don’t have to leave their house. Some are trying to fish but catching nothing because they don’t want to move to where the fish are. Some soldiers are too worried about defending the Church ( I think Jesus is pretty well equipped to protect his own bride!) then going out onto the battlefield and telling people that Jesus has already won. Some of us runners want to get the blessings(to get the “victor’s crown”) but to never train for it. And some of the well trained runners need to realize its time to get off their treadmills and run some bigger races. Some days are bodies shouldn’t feel so great about the work we did yesterday. Our muscles should ache and the only thing that keeps us going is that we know that we will reap a reward from our discipline and obiedence (How do you think Jesus felt on the way to his death?).

Just like a marathon runner or a boxer, we need to train and remove anything that hinders. We need to burn off the fat that prevents us from running to win. Maybe that means taking some time off from work to invest in your family( who God has called you to make a priority). Burn the fat! Maybe that means you should stop just praying for the homeless and go feed some. Burn the fat! Maybe it means you should stop complaining about the crime in our city and write a letter to an inmate telling them that someone (named Jesus) actually loves them. Burn the fat! Maybe it means stop listening to those members of your family that say you will never do anything good. Burn the fat! Maybe that means actually getting off your butt, putting down the snack cakes, and getting fit enough so that you could potentially actually run and tell someone the gospel. Burn the fat! Just like in the old testament, when we do God’s will and burn the fat, it is a sweet aroma pleasing to the Lord. 

More often then not, we need to say to God “Move mightily and do what You want do, and tell me what to do.” Then we need to pick up are cross and go, pick up are mat and go, or pick up are seed and sow. If we truly want an eternal prize in the Kingdom, then we need to be working hands on in Kingdom affairs now. Thank God for the opportunity to do greater things through Him.

1. Are we willing to embrace change?

Look at 1 Corinthians 9:19-23. Paul tells us that he will change in any way possible to advance the gospel. He is prepared to talk to people he use to be like ( to the Jews I became like a Jew) He is prepared to change the way he preaches/acts to meet people where they need to be met ( to those under the law … to those not under the law). He is prepared to not put up a front and do things that he is not good at and fail ( to the weak I became weak). Paul does all of this so “that by all possible means I might save some. I do all this for the sake of the gospel, that I may share in its blessings.”

What does this mean for you and me? This means we need to be willing to embrace change. Perry said during the session, You will never be comfortable hearing the voice of God, if you are uncomfortable with change. I think he is right on. This doesn’t necessarily mean you have to quit your job and travel the rest of your life giving out bibles, but it does mean you may need to change your spending habits, change your negative disposition at work, or talk to people you don’t know instead of people you do know at church. The prayer of our hearts should be, “God show me how I must change for the sake of your gospel? Give me the strength to hear what you have to say, and to make the changes that are needed. Don’t allow me to be so fullish to think that you want me to stay the same forever.” Only by allowing God to transform us and change the way we think will we ever be able to share in the the blessings of the good news of Jesus Christ this side of eternity. Thank God that He is awesome.

1. Just visiting twice a year isn’t enough.
Everyone knows your suppose to visit the dentist twice a year to get a check up. Unfortunately this is the same attitude many people have in regards to church. The flip side is that everyone knows that going to the dentist twice a year isn’t the key to good dental care. If you decide to not brush or floss for six months and then show up for your appointment, then odds are your going to have some nasty messed up teeth. The daily effort is far more important then the checkup. The same thing is true when following Jesus. The daily pursuit ( of praying, reading scripture, singing praise, etc ) is far more important then showing up on Easter and the Sunday before ”Jesus Birthday.”

2. Some people are scared of the dentist.
As the Church we need to realize a lot of people are scared of God. Just as many people (especially immature children) are afraid of the dentist. They don’t understand that he only has their best interest in mind. To help calm their fears, we need to create an atmosphere where they can relax. We need to play music that will make them feel comfortable. We need to establish trust with people, and assure them that things will only be better once the doctor works on them (especially when there is a lot of work to be done).

3. New patients can be hard to find.
I asked my dentist (Dr. Hines) today, how he first got patients. He told me that he worked with another dentist in his early years, and when that dentist retired he bought his office from him and inherited many of his clients. Other then that, the rest of his early patients came from recommendations by his friends, and from talking to people himself. In many ways this is exactly the status of the Church. The work has been passed to us by God. He got us started by inviting the first clients himself, now it is our job as His friend to invite more people.

The hard part is that we aren’t just interested in getting people who already have a dentist to come to our office. Following this analogy, we are basically trying to get people who don’t care about their dental health (or don’t know there is such a thing) to come and visit our office. These people are often the ones who need the most work done, and have the most to gain. If we truly care about people’s health then we need to recommend them to Jesus.