Hope Church LV Sermons
Out with the Old, In with the New :: Part 3
Jesus Christ made it very, very clear when He was on the earth that He had come to offer a new way, a way that offered life instead of death, a way that offered light instead of darkness and a way that offered hope instead of sorrow, and there's a verse in the scriptures in 2 Corinthians that really captures the essence, I believe, of this new life that Jesus desires for the world. It's in 2 Corinthians chapter 5 verse 17, and I want us to begin this morning by reading it out loud off the screen. It's from the J.B. Phillips translation of the Bible. Let's read this out loud together as we begin. One, two, three, four, if any man is in Christ, he becomes a new person altogether. The past is finished and gone. Everything has become fresh and new. That's what Jesus desires for us. That's what He desires for us as His creation to experience a new life. As a family of faith, we're studying straight through the New Testament book of Colossians, and for the past few weeks we've been in a series within that study called Out With The Old and In With The New. And in this series we've been unpacking this reality that we can have new life in Christ. And specifically in Colossians chapter 3, Paul has given a couple of very significant instructions that we've been wrestling with as a church. One of the instructions that Paul gives, he says, put off the old self. Colossians 3 verses 5 through 9, he teaches us, instructs us and commands us to put off the old self. And then he gives another very significant instruction. Not only are we to put off the old, but we are to put on the new. If you've not been able to be here the past few Sundays, I would encourage you to go on our website, hopechurchonline.com and catch up because God has been speaking into the life of our church about these instructions that Paul gives. And we don't have time to unpack it all this morning, but the reason he's giving us these instructions to put off the old and to put on the new is because as believers we've been given a new life in Christ. And there are a couple of defining statements we've been looking at every week in this series that really help us understand what it looks like to put off the old and to put on the new. And I want to share those again as we start today just so we're all processing through the same stuff as we look at the text here in just a moment. Here's the first defining statement we've looked at in this series. Being new in Christ means daily walking away from the old life of sin. You'll see several words up here on this board that really represent the old self and the fruit that comes from the old self. And here's what you need to realize. Living here, it's easy. It requires no effort on our part to live here. You see, when we live here, it's all about us. It's about what we think, what we feel, what we think our kingdom deserves. It's all about us, but here's the problem. If we've been made new in Christ, this is not who we are anymore. The first way to really understand what Paul is telling us is that being new in Christ means daily walking away from the old life of sin. But secondly, being new in Christ means daily living in my new life in Him. You see, through Christ, we've been given a new nature. Christ's life in us produces these things. And as we pursue this new life, we're simply living according to the new nature we've been given in our relationship with God. You see, what does that mean? Well, you see, when we embrace Christ, there is both a positional implication as well as a practical implication. And this is so powerful. You see, when I embrace the gospel, because of Jesus' life, death, and resurrection, when I put my faith in Him, I am made right before a holy God. You see, before Christ, I could never have a relationship with God because I was sinful. But when I become in Christ, positionally, God sees me as holy, just like He sees Christ. He sees me as blameless, just like He sees Christ, as righteous, just like He sees Christ. And positionally, that is our standing as believers before God. But there's also a practical implication. You see, even though positionally I've been made right with God, practically, I'm still here on earth with a flesh and a sinful nature. And so God is practically day by day conforming me into the image of His Son. And we've shared with you a life-changing reality that really captures the essence of those two ideas. And I want to put it on the screen. Everything that is true about me positionally, God is working out in my life, practically. You see, on a daily basis, God desires to conform me into the image of His Son through a process called sanctification. Now, that's a big theological word, but here's what it means. It's the process of being conformed to the image of Jesus. That's what it means. The process of Him changing our will to His will, the process of Him changing the way we feel, the way we think, what we do, and where we go to reflect His life in us. And practically, that is happening on a daily basis as we seek Him. Clyde Cranford said it this way in his book, "Because We Love Him." In sanctification, the believer is progressively set apart from the world and unto God. This lifestyle is one that results in practical holiness. Our lives more and more exemplify the spiritual virtues and moral integrity that make the true saint of God. It's powerful. You see, I find myself maybe like you do. I always want to try to rush spiritual maturity. I want to put it on the fast pace and try to get there quicker, but I can't. You see, the process of sanctification, of being conformed to the image of Jesus happens little by little and day by day. And one of the most encouraging things, at least for me over the past couple of weeks, that God's just really been speaking to me about, is how amazing it is that the God of heaven would ever so graciously use everything in my life to conform me into the image of His Son so that what is true about me positionally can be reflected in my life practically. So that's where we've been for the past few weeks. And today, here's kind of a big question I want us to wrestle with, because I meet a lot of believers who they hear this stuff and they're encouraged by it, but in a lot of ways they still live frustrated. Here's the question I want to ask. What makes the difference in someone coming to a church service and praying with us and nodding and agreeing with everything we say about the new life and then leaving and living here all week versus someone who comes and hears the truth and they leave and all week they live here. They're living in a vibrant growing relationship with Jesus. What makes the difference from someone who just hears it and doesn't experience it versus someone who actually applies it to their life? What makes the difference? Well, here's what makes the difference. It's a very simple answer. What makes the difference is a relational pursuit of knowing Jesus. You see, the single most important pursuit in your life is you knowing God by spending time alone with Him daily. The more we know Him, the more we understand who we are in Him. You see, for many people when we talk about knowing God, they always want to ask the how. Well, how do I know God? Is it Bible study? Is it prayer? Is it small group? And all those things are great. We need to understand how it is. We know our Heavenly Father, but equally as important as the how is the why. Why is it so important that I have a relational pursuit of knowing Jesus? And here's why. Because that is the means through which He conforms me into the image of His Son Jesus. That's why that's so significant. And in Colossians 3, Paul has been talking about that. He's been wrestling with these principles. So if you have a Bible this morning, turn to Colossians 3. And I want to read verses 15, 16, and 17 as we conclude this series this morning out with the old and in with the new. If you don't have a Bible, we're going to put these on the screen for you. Here's what the Bible says in Colossians 3 verse 15. Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts to which indeed you were called in one body and be thankful. Let the word of Christ richly dwell within you with all wisdom, teaching and admonishing one another with songs and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with thanksgiving in your hearts to God. Whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks through Him to God the Father. There are really three key phrases in this text that I want us to dig into this morning and how I want to unpack that is I want to share with you three priorities for putting on the new self. Three priorities that if we are going to live here and practically be conformed so that his life in us is being pressed out, these priorities that we're going to look at this morning have to be evident. As we pursue him, as we relationally pursue knowing Jesus, these things must be a priority. Here's the first one. I am to submit to the peace of Christ. I am to submit to the peace of Christ. The first phrase he says is in verse 15. He says, "Let the peace of Christ rule." Now, if we were to look back this morning at the verses leading up to verse 15, we would see that that Paul has just shared numerous virtues that are produced from Christ's life in us. And then in verse 15, he comes to share yet another product of Christ's life in us. He says peace. Now, throughout the scriptures, you'll see different references to the word peace. And it's very important that as we look at this verse, we understand specifically what type of peace Paul is talking about. For example, there are some places in the scripture and you'll see reference to peace with God. That word peace there means a treaty. It means a bond or an agreement. And here's what that type of peace is referring to. It's referring to the peace that we have with our heavenly Father. When we were born on the earth, we were born hostile to God. We were slaves of sin and enemies of God. But through the cross of Christ, through the reconciliation of our relationship with Jesus, we've been brought to peace with God. Romans 5 says it this way, therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. That's one of the ways that we will see peace referenced in the scripture. But there's another way that I want to highlight because it's actually the way that peace is used here in Colossians chapter 3. And that's not peace with God. It's the peace of God. And that type of peace means an attitude of rest or security. Here's a couple of places it's mentioned in the Bible. One verse, a lot of us know Philippians 4, 7. And the peace of God, the rest and security of God, which surpasses all comprehension, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. That's the type of peace that Paul's talking about in Colossians 3. Another place that this type of peace is mentioned is in John 14 verse 27. Jesus says, "My peace I give to you, not as the world gives do I give to you. Therefore, let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid." I want us to understand the significance of God offering this to us. In essence, here's what Jesus is saying when he talks about this kind of peace. He's saying, "I'm giving you my peace. I'm not creating your peace. I'm sharing with you my peace." Meaning he's not calming us down. He's giving us something new. He's giving us his peace. That's the type of peace that Paul's talking about. When you read on through the verse, and what does it say that the peace of Christ is supposed to do something? It says, "Let the peace of Christ rule," which is a fascinating word. The word rule literally means to umpire or to referee. It means to be in control and make decisions. Now, I know everyone in the room is not a sports fan, but hopefully you know what an umpire or referee is. But just in case you don't, let me tell you a story. I read this week a true story about the great Babe Ruth. You may have heard of him, a famous home run hitter who played professional baseball. The Babe is walking up to the plate to bat. There are 40,000 people in the stadium who are cheering for Babe, and an umpire named Ralph Penelli is behind the plate as the umpire. Babe Ruth steps to the plate, and the first pitch comes in. He doesn't swing. The catcher catches it. And Ralph Penelli says, "Strike one." Of course, the crowd goes crazy and tells him he's blind, and he can't see, and that was a bad call in the whole nine. Well, Babe Ruth steps up for the second pitch. The second pitch comes in, and Babe Ruth swings, and he totally misses the ball, and the umpire says, "Strike two." By this time, the crowd's on their feet. They want to see Babe Ruth do something unbelievable, and he steps in for the third pitch. And the pitch comes in, and Babe Ruth doesn't swing, and Ralph Penelli yells, "Strike three. You're out." And the crowd loses it. They start throwing drinks, and throwing food, and throwing trash, and calling him every name under the book. And honest to God, I read it this week. Babe Ruth looked at the umpire, and he said, "There are 40,000 people in this stadium who believe that was a ball tomato head." And I guess those were fighting words in that time, but Babe Ruth called the umpire a tomato head, and then Ralph Penelli looks at Babe Ruth. He takes his mask off, and he said, "Babe, there may be 40,000 people in this stadium who believe that was a ball, but I say it was a strike, and my opinion is the only one that matters." That'll preach. For us, the spirit of God inside of us is to be an umpire. To be the one who is in control, who is making the decisions, the one we look to, to clarify what is right and what is wrong. The ultimate authority in the sports arena is the umpire or the referee, and the comparison that Paul is making here is saying to us, "You have the peace of God, the rest and security of God inside of you. Let it be in control as you make decisions. Let it be the umpire." The ultimate deciding factor is not my judgment, my feelings, my perspective, or my preference. I am to be controlled by the peace of God through the spirit of God. This verse changes our decision-making and our lifestyle filter, because you see, when I'm confronted with a situation or a circumstance or a decision, no longer am I to process first. Well, is this a good move relationally? Is this a good move financially? Is this a good move socially? No, I must begin to ask this question first. Does this situation disrupt the peace of God that is in my heart? Roy Hessian said this, "Everything that disturbs the peace of God in our hearts is sin. No matter how small it is and no matter how little like sin it may at first appear to be, the peace is to rule our hearts or be the referee in our hearts." On a daily basis, you and I will be faced with opportunities to abide in the old and to live here or to abide in the new. And if you're a believer here this morning, I believe when you are tempted or faced with a situation that reflects your old self, that the Spirit of God within you will blow the umpire's whistle and clarify for you that that's not who you are anymore, don't abide in the old self. But in that moment, we have a decision to make. And there are really three ways to respond when the Spirit of God within you blows the whistle and says no. There are really several ways we can respond. First of all, we can just ignore it. We can just ignore what the Spirit of God is saying to us and let that decision or circumstance disrupt the peace of God in our heart. That's one option, but let me warn you, every time you ignore the voice of God inside of you, your heart gets just a little bit harder. And that's scary. Another option, as we're faced with these moments to decide, am I going to abide in the old or abide in the new? Another response that we could have is we can make up an excuse to justify what we're going to do. We all do it. We all can justify our way into a conversation or into a decision or into some type of lifestyle because in our minds, according to our flesh, we can convince ourselves that it's a good idea. That's why accountability around you is so important because your perspective is always limited and your wisdom is never enough. I need people speaking into my life because left to myself, I will justify everything in my life back to a place where I'm abiding in the old. The Spirit of God blows the whistle in your heart. You can ignore it. You can justify your way out of it or you can submit in humility to the Spirit of God inside of you. The Bible says, let the peace of Christ rule. Let it be the umpire. Let it be the one who's in control of your life as you make decisions. You submit to what the Spirit of God inside of you is saying. Roy Hessean also said this, and this is such a powerful statement. Brokenness in daily experience is simply the response of humility to the conviction of God. When the Spirit of God convicts you of something, how do you respond? Because our level of humility, our level of brokenness really is revealed by the way that we respond to the conviction of God. We can ignore it. We can make excuses or in humility. We can submit to what the Spirit of God inside of us is saying and say, Lord, you're in control and I'm not. And left to myself, I will always drift towards abiding in the old, but Lord, my desire is to abide in the new. So I submit to what you're saying in my heart. But verse 15 doesn't end there. He lays this powerful truth about the peace of God ruling in our hearts. And then he says this, to which you were called in one body. He connects this supernatural peace that is inside of us to the body of Christ. I wrote this on my notes. Genuine peace is what characterizes my relationship with God. And it should also characterize my relationship with God's family. You see, the peace of God that's inside of us should manifest itself in our relationship with one another. He's saying here, I didn't call you as a body to be divided. I didn't call you as a body to be at odds. I called you as a body to be one and at peace with one another. There is to be a oneness about this community like no other community on the planet. The peace of God is to be the umpire in our lives because that's the way God called us as his family. The first priority, if we want to live here as we pursue Jesus, we are to submit to the peace of Christ. Here's a second priority that's in this text. It's out of verse 16. I am to be shaped by the word of Christ. The next phrase in verse 16 says this, let the word of Christ richly dwell within you. Our second priority is to be shaped by the word of Christ. There are a couple of key words in this phrase that I want to clarify. The first thing he says is let the word of Christ. And by saying the word of Christ, he's meaning the revelation that Jesus brought into the world. That Christ is the promised Messiah who came, who lived, who died, and who was resurrected that we might experience eternal life. And then he says, let the word of Christ richly. The word means abundance. It means extravagance, saying that this word of Christ, don't just try to embrace a little bit or what's average. Get as much of it as you can. And then he says this word. He says, let it dwell. Let the message of Christ abundantly and richly dwell, meaning to live inside, to make one's home, our lives are to be centered and rooted in the word of Christ. We're to embrace as much as we possibly can, get it in our heart, get it in our head, and let our lives be directed by it. John MacArthur said, the truths of Scripture should permeate every aspect of the believer's life and govern every thought, every word, and every action. That's to be our perspective on this book. This is to govern what we do. We're to be shaped by the principles and the truths that are found inside of the word of God. The issue for us is that abiding in the word is not a three-step process and it's not an overnight process. It's day by day and moment by moment, spending time with our Heavenly Father and allowing His words to take root inside of us. Now for some people, I'm sure you got a really good grip on this. There are some really solid disciples in our church and in terms of your relationship to the word you can say today, the word is shaping my life. That's awesome, but I would imagine there are some other people here and you can't say that. One of the questions that a lot of people have is, well, where do I start? That's a big idea to think my life being shaped by the truths and the word of God. Where do I even start? Well, I want to give you a couple of keys, just a couple of tips. This is not an exhaustive list, but as I thought about, if you're not doing this at all, where do you put energy first? I want to give you a couple of tips, just a couple of keys. They're very, very simple. Here's the first one. Pray for true spiritual hunger. Every Monday through Friday, before our office is open, here at Hope, our staff team, we take some time and we just pray together and we pray for our city, we pray for our ministry partners, we pray for upcoming events, and we pray for you. And one of the things that I find myself doing on a weekly basis as we're gathered in a room and we're just praying together as a staff is I pray for our church, I pray that God would give us a spiritual hunger like no other, that we would long for the word, that we would long to be in the presence of Jesus, we would long for the truth to govern our lives. And that's really rooted out of Matthew chapter 5 verse 6 where the Bible says, "Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied." But here's what I realize. If the word is going to richly dwell in us, we must first see our need for the truth. And that's why I'm challenging you to pray for spiritual hunger, because for many people, when they think about the word, they think optional. The Bible I read communicates that the word is not optional. It's necessary and that man will not live on bread alone but of every word of God. And I pray for our church, I pray for my family, I pray for myself that God would give us a spiritual hunger in which we long for the truth of Jesus. My old Stanford said this, we must face up to the fact that without spiritual hunger, we cannot feed on the Lord Jesus Christ. So if you don't know where to start, if there's something in you this morning that says, "You know what, I want my life to be shaped by the word," here's where you need to start. You need to start by praying and asking God to put inside of you a spiritual hunger like never before, that you would hunger and thirst for righteousness. Here's a second tip, just a key that I think is another just great foundational principle as you seek to be shaped by the word. Aim for quality, not quantity. Aim for quality, not quantity. One of the mistakes that I've made throughout my whole spiritual journey is I've tried to go too far too fast. Some of that is because I'm emotional, some of that is because I'm not as spiritual as I think I am, but I've come to a place in my journey and maybe you have as well, that I understand depth is more important than breadth. It really is. And as I seek God every day, sometimes I'm not reading a whole chapter, sometimes it's a verse, sometimes it's a couple of words in a verse. The goals to spend time with Him, the goals to know Him, and as you do that, don't feel like you got to get through this whole book in a week. You're going to end up burnout and frustrated. I promise I've been there. Aim for quality, not quantity. But for me, there are really four habits that I've developed in my life as it relates to the word that I believe play a role in the word shaping my life. I want to give those to you real quick. The first habit that I have is I just read the word. I read it. I read the word in order to know God. For me, that looks like every day I read the Psalm and the proverb that corresponds with the day of the month, and then I'm either reading through an Old Testament book or a New Testament book. Every day, that's my practice to let the word shape me from a reading standpoint. That's what I do every day. I read the word in order to know God. A second habit that I've developed is I pray the word. There are verses that I identify as I study scripture or through in a devotional or maybe a sermon that I've heard, and I take those verses and I pray those over my life, I pray them over my family, and I pray them over our church. I just shared one of them with you a second ago that we would hunger and thirst for righteousness. I pray that for me, I pray that for my family, and I pray that for my church. I pray the word. Here's a third habit that I've developed to be shaped by the word. I memorize the word. I memorize the word to fill my heart and mind with truth. When I was in college, I walked through a season, and just quite honestly, I was just having a lot of just negative thoughts, sinful thoughts in my head, sinful motives and feelings in my heart, and I came to a place that God led me to just begin memorizing books of the Bible. It wasn't just the fancy verses that we say all the time. I just started memorizing books of the Bible, and I can honestly say that it transformed the way that the word shaped my life. It changed me, so another habit that I'm extremely passionate about is taking the word and committing it to memory and hiding the word in my heart that I might not sin against God. I read the word, I pray the word, I memorize the word, and lastly, I meditate on the word. In most cases, there's usually a couple of verses or a passage of Scripture that I'm just kind of mulling over for about a month typically, and I'll just think about it. I'll just chew on it, I'll read some commentaries on it. I'll think about it because I want to be chewing and mulling over the truth. Here's why, because I know that it's what allows my life to be shaped by the word. So those are four habits, and here's really the reason why. The primary instrument for renewing the mind is God's word. Our part is to love, to study, and to obey his word. His part is to illumine that word in our minds, endear it in our hearts, and apply it to our lives. That's the reality, and I want that. I want the primary instrument that God has given me to renew my mind, to be in my mind, and I would challenge you. What does that look like in your life? Are you to a place where you feel like the word is shaping your life, and if it's not, what habits do you need to create in your regular rhythm of life to allow the word to begin to shape you? Well verse 16 goes on, and he shares really two results of the word dwelling in us. Here's one. If the word is dwelling in me, I will sharpen others through teaching and admonishing. That's the first thing he says there. He says, "Let the word of Christ richly dwell within you, with all wisdom, teaching, and admonishing one another." The word teaching means imparting truth in order to instruct. I believe if the word is dwelling in you, you've got to be communicating it in some capacity. And listen, that doesn't have to be a sermon in front of the whole church. That can be a small group, that can be with an accountability partner, that can be a blog, that can be a lot of different things. But if the word is dwelling in us, there will be venues in which we share the truth by means of instruction. But the second thing he says here is admonishing, which means to warn people of the consequences of their behavior. Meaning if the truth's in me, and I see somebody in my life who is operating in opposition to the truth, I'm going to go to them in grace and in humility, and simply share with them what I believe the truth says. That's not confrontational, that's loving. And we're to approach them in that way. If the word is dwelling in us, there will be teaching and there will be admonishing. But he shares another result of the word dwelling in us. He says with Psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with thanksgiving in your heart to God. If the word is in us, I will sharpen others through teaching and admonishing. But secondly, I will sing about the greatness of God. Psalms were simply Old Testament scriptures that were put to music. hymns were expressions of praise to God. In spiritual songs, our testimonies of what God has done for us. If this book is in your heart and in your mind, I believe it will express itself in some form through worship. He doesn't say just the talented people do that. He says, listen, if it's in you, it's going to come out of you in some capacity in the form of worship. Listen, I can't sing worth a lick, but I love worship. I love music. And I think it's interesting. Just going to say this and move on, Teddy. What we typically concern ourselves with when it comes to music is the style. All Paul really addresses is the substance. And I believe if we'll become more concerned with the substance, the styles of stuff don't even matter. We are to make a priority of being shaped by the word of Christ. Here's the third priority. And then we're going to have a time to respond together. I am to exalt the name of Christ. I'm to submit to the peace of Christ. I'm to be shaped by the word of Christ. And I am to exalt the name of Christ. The third phrase he uses here in verse 17, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus. He says, whatever you do, meaning everything in word, what you say, indeed in your actions, and in case you missed it the first time he said it, he said, do all in the name of Jesus. Here's where this part is so challenging for me. I don't know about you, but I have a real tendency to compartmentalize my life. And there's my work life and my family life and my personal life and my social life and my recreational life. And because I tend to compartmentalize everything, I begin to look at each area differently and think that Jesus cares more about one than he does the other. And Paul gets really clear. Here's what he says. He says, in everything, do it all in light of him and the glory of his name. Here's what that means. That means that when I'm at work, I'm living, so Jesus will receive as much glory, honor, and praise for my life as possible. When I'm at home, I'm living so that Jesus will receive as much glory, honor, and praise for my life as possible. When it's just me by myself, I am to live my life so that Jesus will receive as much glory, honor, and praise, and possible. And the list goes on and on. That's what it looks like to do everything in your life, in the name, in the honor of Jesus. The question is, are you approaching life that way? Or have you so divided your life that you believe you are supposed to give God your best in some areas, but not in others? There is to be a consistent longing in our lives so that regardless of the day, the time, or the place, we are striving to exalt the name of Jesus in everything that we do. Exalting him, lifting him up, is to be a priority for us, moment by moment, and day by day. I'm going to share one more thing with you, and then we're going to have a time to respond. There's one thread that is listed in all three of these verses. Paul says it in verse 15 and verse 16 and verse 17, and it has to do with thanksgiving. He says in verse 15, be thankful. He says in verse 16, singing with thankfulness in your heart. He says in verse 17, giving thanks through him to God, the Father. The word thanksgiving means, giving thanks because of what someone has done for you. Here's what I believe. I believe when we honestly evaluate the darkness and the depravity and the sin that we've been called out of, and the life and the joy and the hope that we've been called to, you can't help but be grateful. And that gratitude must express itself in the form of thanksgiving. So as we conclude this series today, I want to challenge you to move from just listening to some content from a preacher or just writing some things down to honestly going before your heavenly Father and asking him to show you how to apply these principles to your life. To say, God, what does this look like for me? God, what's the area in all of the things we've been talking about for three weeks that you're really, you're really pushing on me about, that you really want to see conformed and changed in my life. And here's what I pray. I pray that in the days ahead, what is true about us positionally as believers will consistently be fleshing itself out practically as the God of heaven conforms us more to the image of his son. [BLANK_AUDIO]