New Image: Colossians 3.5-11 (NLT)

 For two thousand years the church has gathered together and every time we gather together there's a sense that we are reproducing what is in Heaven.  We are a reflection of Heaven.  For Baptists, we do things more casual than some and some are even more casual than us.  In this setting we can lose a real sense of what's in Heaven when we come together.  We are in God's presence when we gather together; it's not that God is uniquely here.  Worship is an awareness of God's presence.  When we sense God's presence we know we are not worthy and there's a conviction that comes; many things come to our minds.  We are reminded of the cross and the resurrection and this brings us to confession of sin.  That's what we want to do in worship.  Worship's ultimate intent is to know you're in the presence of God.  As a group when we spend time together in God's presence we model Heaven.  Sometimes we're just getting into God's presence as the service is ending.  Let's take everything to God today.

Several weeks ago on a Monday morning I had some visitors in my office.  Some children brought me breakfast just to say thank you.  They came up with the idea themselves and they acted on it.  We do these things all the time.  Last week we talked about how we can think differently.  The second part of this is acting on it.  Becoming a new person is carrying out those ideas.  Today we look at action.

This is a practical section of scripture.  Paul is answering how we live the Christian life.  We need to toss what destroys us.  We have died with Christ so we need to take the next step.

Toss what destroys you.

                    ⁵So put to death the sinful, earthly things lurking within you.

Gnosticism says the body is meaningless.  Paul says the body is valuable.  Not everything physical is bad; it's neutral.  The body can be used for good or bad.  There are parts of us that need to be put to death.  We don't crucify people in our culture, so we do not see it as force fully as Paul did.  Crucifixion has a finality to it.  To put to death is to get rid of it.  It means we are making room for something new.  We make room for what God wants to do in us.  It's the idea of organizing, sorting things out.  You do this in your home.  We get some stuff we need to get rid of.  You get Christmas gifts and a few weeks later you're told you have too much stuff.  Some things have to go.  There's something God wants to do in us.  There are things that you normally do in our culture that are normal to us.  Romans chapter 1 is an in-your-face chapter about what's wrong in the world.  The point of Romans 1 is -wow- look how messed up we are!  Paul isn't trying to condemn the world here.  He's saying all this was normal for you at one time; do not forget it.  If you want a new way of living we have to live differently than we did before.

We all know the struggle.

                    ⁷You used to do these things when your life was still part of this world. 

This isn't for "those out there," but it's for "us in here."  Our tendency when we gather like this is to say, "Look at how messed up those people are."  Our tendency is to think it's a problem "out there."  This is us.  We died in Christ, we are followers of Jesus here in this world.  We are going to go through a list of 6 tendencies that Paul talks about.  The hope of the Gospel is that this is a safe place in the presence of God.  We need to say, "Lord, here's my heart."  What we do is dismiss these things when we hear them and we say to ourselves, "I'm really not that bad."  I'm better than the rest of the world."  Let's STOP trying to justify.  May the Holy Spirit be able to do His work in us.

My friend has a teen son and they have conversations about media and shows they watch.  When my friend says to his son, "I don't think we should watch this," his son said, "I know this bothers you but it doesn't bother me as much."  Slowly things do not bother us as much.  That's a dangerous place to be.  We do not want to be comfortable in our sin.  We can swim along in the world and never become different.  I want to be a new person.

Keep what makes you like Jesus.

We are called to a full blown replacement.  We don't like getting rid of our old toys because we enjoyed them.  We can replace them with something better.

                    ¹⁰Put on your new nature, and be renewed as you learn to know your Creator and become like him. 

 The "new nature" here is the same term we'd use for putting on a new coat.  It sounds very simple.  I take off the old coat and I put on the new.  What if it's that simple?  Can you say, "God, I'm going to take this off?"  

Later today we have a child dedication.  He's a very sweet child, but as sweet as he is he also suffers from the same things we do.  We are a fallen broken people, inclined to sin.  When we bring ourselves fully before God we encounter our own brokenness.  God will do His work in us.  How does a renewal happen?  It happens as we learn to know our Creator and be more like Him.  This is the difference in Christianity and just mere moral lessons.  What we do in church is we realize our behaviors do not line up.  The serpent in the Garden of Eden attacked with knowledge.  "Is it really that bad?"  We need to diagnose our own heart condition.  In verses 5-8 Paul lists 6 things.  Can you tell yourself right now, "I'm not going to put up a wall."  These 6 things are the symptoms.  When we recognize the symptoms we can do something about them.  How many of you have tested your ability to smell recently?  Losing your sense of smell is a COVID symptom.  Addressing a symptom doesn't change the heart.  If you recognize one of these symptoms in your life you have the opportunity to tell God you do not want to be like this any longer.

Sexual Immorality/Impurity 

The word for sexual immorality here refers to someone who is paid for their services.  Our first thought might be that we can dismiss this, but we need to question where these things show up.  They're on the internet, on the TV and if we are contributing to it in any way we are supporting it.  We can get so far into this that it doesn't bother us anymore.  We want to have a sense that we are not comfortable with it.  The opposite of this is purity.

Lust/Evil Desires

The opposite of this is good passion.  Lust is a strong desire carried out in an ungodly way.  There's good passions we can have in our lives.  What can we do with these desires?  For example, Bill C. is passionate about cars, how they work and which one is the fastest.

Greed

Greed is a continual desire for more or for something someone else has that we do not have.  We have a lack of contentment.  Greed is the opposite of being content.  It's like when Charlie gives Willy Wonka back the gobstopper.  

Anger/Rage

This one is an emotional response.  Damage happens in our anger. It's like a simmering pot on the stove.  It can boil over in seconds!  The opposite is peace.  If we are not a safe place people stop trusting us.  

Malicious Behavior

This one is intentional.  You do it on purpose.  It's easy to spot.  The opposite is kindness.  Kindness is a forceful action.  Where's our heart?  Do I have spitefulness?  Do you want to make people pay?

Slander/Dirty Language

This is an attempt to tear someone down.  It's easy to do when you're talking to someone to say, "Hey, did you hear ___________?"  Slander is tearing someone down.  The opposite of this are words that build.  The Holy Spirit brings things to our minds.  We know we're not there yet.  We can say, "God, I don't want to be that person anymore. God, take my heart and make me more like You."  "I don't like this about me."  We can ask God what's causing this in our hearts.  God can produce fruit in our lives.  

Sermon is by Dr. Scotty Carpenter.  Sermon Notes are taken, transcribed and posted by Jeni Martin Johnson.

                                                                                                                                

 

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