A sermon preached for Advent 4 – Sunday 18th December. Read Colossians 1:21-23
21 Once you were alienated from God and were enemies in your minds because of your evil behaviour. 22 But now he has reconciled you by Christ’s physical body through death to present you holy in his sight, without blemish and free from accusation— 23 if you continue in your faith, established and firm, and do not move from the hope held out in the gospel. This is the gospel that you heard and that has been proclaimed to every creature under heaven, and of which I, Paul, have become a servant.
What is it that humanity seeks above all else?
Status wealth health love
We might begin by answering yes to all these – yet behind them is a yearning for peace.
Peace with God. Deep within men and women through the ages have lived with a discontent; an unease; restlessness; no peace.
Knowing there is more to life we have sought satisfaction in power, in prestige, in wealth, and when that didn’t work we cover the pain by eating to excess, drinking to oblivion and sexual relationships that only increase our sense of worthlessness and alienation.
Such is the feeling of lostness and alienation that many give up seeking an answer – they shut down; they stop their ears to the voices of truth, hope, they block out any thought of God.
Thankfully not all do this – the same discontent has sent many others on a journey seeking the peace their heart longs for – philosophy, education, various religions – and as people search God is often revealed.
This is why I delight in people that are clearly seeking understanding; why questions that challenge and probe are to be encouraged, why we must not be afraid of mixing with people of different viewpoints.
By contrast the absolute tragedy is to see women and men created in the image of God who have totally closed their minds to God.
As Paul says “once you were alienated from God”
The implications of alienation is a total separation: a deliberate turning of the back, an attitude that had no use for God, no thought of God, merely seeing God as irrelevant or non-existent.
Yet all the while the lack of peace grows – deep inside – things are not right.
The peace that we need is inner peace with God; a hard thing to do when we even deny God existence.
And our trouble is that we somehow thing we can fix ourselves; that if only we try hard enough, seek hard enough, or spend enough then we will find peace.
But some journeys are a step too far; some mountains do prove too high for even the most determined to conquer alone, some valleys too deep and the chasm we find between ourselves and God is something that we cannot bridge by ourselves.
We can go so far but sooner or later we all realise that we cannot do it alone and here’s where God has acted.
Paul did say ‘once you were alienated’ these few words from Paul are like the condensed version of the gospel – for the hope is extended that while your were alienated; and maybe you still are – you do not have to stay in that place.
We were alienated – even enemies of God – until God acts and intervenes on our behalf. And we discover that it is only by what God in Christ has done for us that we can be reconciled to God.
Verse 22: Paul begins the sentence ‘BUT NOW he (God) has reconciled you.
And whenever you hear BUT you know that what goes before it is overturned by what is now said.
You were like this BUT now you are like this.
Think about this.
None of us came up with the idea that we needed to be saved on our own. None of us sought after God without him first working in our hearts. None of us called out to God for mercy without Him first calling out to us.
I Corinthians 1:26-31 carries much the same idea.
26 Brothers and sisters, think of what you were when you were called. Not many of you were wise by human standards; not many were influential; not many were of noble birth. 27 But God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise; God chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong. 28 God chose the lowly things of this world and the despised things—and the things that are not—to nullify the things that are, 29 so that no one may boast before him. 30 It is because of him that you are in Christ Jesus, who has become for us wisdom from God—that is, our righteousness, holiness and redemption. 31 Therefore, as it is written: “Let those who boast boast in the Lord.”
In my time here at Kaikorai this has been one of my greatest joys – hearing you boast in the Lord; telling your stories of how God has acted in your life. Time and time again I have heard of your struggle, the lack of peace, the desire to find that for which you were seeking – invariably it has been God who you’ve recognised has made the decisive move in drawing you to him.
Precisely it is God in Jesus who has made the difference.
The opposite of alienation is reconciliation: you once were opposed but now reconciled; once hostile to God, now at peace with God
And this achieved not by your efforts but by Christ’s physical body through his death; the means of reconciliation is in the blood of Jesus – it is by the sacrifice of Jesus that you are washed clean; your sin attached to him on the cross.
The sin that separated you from God’s embrace dealt to. The consequence is peace: that deep inner peace that all is well.
Troubles may still come – indeed they probably will; we live in a divided world; walking around in fragile bodies; prone to making mistakes – troubles will come – there may be times of discontent let even then as we look to Jesus we realise there is a deeper reality, a true peace that gives the strength to ride the trials and tribulations of life.
Time and again I am struck by the peace people can have in the midst of serious trouble – a peace that persists despite current circumstances.
I’m reminded of many I’ve sat with close to death – who while fearful of the process have no fear of the future – they have peace with God; or others whose world falls apart and they discover that there is a deeper peace that sustains them.
In my own life I sometimes forget this – and I, and I suspect you at times, needs to be reminded of your security through Jesus.
I’m often reminded of the tragic story of Horatio Spafford who in 1873 wrote the hymn ‘It is well with my soul’
In 1871 his business interests took a massive loss in the Great Chicago Fire – however greater tragedy was to hit two years later. His wife, Anna, and their 4 daughters were sailing to England when their steamship was struck by another vessel and two hundred and twenty-six people lost their lives, including all four daughters. Anna Spafford survived the tragedy.
Sailing over the same spot in the Atlantic shortly after Horatio wrote his hymn…
When peace, like a river, attendeth my way,
When sorrows like sea billows roll;
Whatever my lot, Thou has taught me to say,
It is well, it is well, with my soul.Though Satan should buffet, though trials should come,
Let this blest assurance control,
That Christ has regarded my helpless estate,
And hath shed His own blood for my soul.Horatio Gates Spafford (1873)
This in no way lessens the tragedy – the pain of loss is real, yet there is a deeper reality, a great truth that no matter what life may throw at us it is well with our soul when Jesus is our Lord.
It is this truth that brings us peace with God and enables us to live and live well.
Paul makes the point that we do need to continue in the faith to experience this.
In an age when it is easy to profess faith but as one author puts it ‘actual Christian living is sparse’ we need to remember this word.
Continue in Christ.
Too many shrink back into the world, other priorities, laziness, hurt feelings – a failure to recognise how great is the salvation Jesus the Christ has won – these and more can see people once fired up for God shrinking away.
Paul is saying we must build on what Jesus has done – that we must remain in Christ and allow the work of transformation and sanctification continue.
That once at peace with God, once reconciled we must now continue in faith in Jesus; friends as we do so the effect of reconciliation shows in increasing measure: deeper peace, greater confidence in the gospel, life, attitudes, speech, priorities reordered to reflect the character of Jesus being formed in you.
Do you know the reality of being reconciled to God? Then rejoice and continue in the faith, do not move from the hope held out in the gospel, and peace like a river will attend your soul.
arohanui
Ian
glass of water, but use the time normally set aside for eating to prayer and reading God’s word.
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