Moments in the life of a Pastor

Colossians 1:21- 2:3

“21 This includes you who were once far away from God. You were his enemies, separated from him by your evil thoughts and actions. 22 Yet now he has reconciled you to himself through the death of Christ in his physical body. As a result, he has brought you into his own presence, and you are holy and blameless as you stand before him without a single fault. 23 But you must continue to believe this truth and stand firmly in it. Don’t drift away from the assurance you received when you heard the Good News. The Good News has been preached all over the world, and I, Paul, have been appointed as God’s servant to proclaim it. 24 I am glad when I suffer for you in my body, for I am participating in the sufferings of Christ that continue for his body, the church. 25 God has given me the responsibility of serving his church by proclaiming his entire message to you. 26 This message was kept secret for centuries and generations past, but now it has been revealed to God’s people. 27 For God wanted them to know that the riches and glory of Christ are for you Gentiles, too. And this is the secret: Christ lives in you. This gives you assurance of sharing his glory. 28 So we tell others about Christ, warning everyone and teaching everyone with all the wisdom God has given us. We want to present them to God, perfec] in their relationship to Christ. 29 That’s why I work and struggle so hard, depending on Christ’s mighty power that works within me. 2 I want you to know how much I have agonized for you and for the church at Laodicea, and for many other believers who have never met me personally. 2 I want them to be encouraged and knit together by strong ties of love. I want them to have complete confidence that they understand God’s mysterious plan, which is Christ himself. 3 In him lie hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.”

Along with standing and suffering we are also called to:

3.        SERVE – Vs 25 – The ACTIVITY of your life

It’s about the Church not consumerism

Paul refers to himself as a servant, and so will you if you see the Savior as supreme in your life. The word “responsibility” mean “stewardship.” Just as a well-trusted servant would manage his master’s estate, so Paul was entrusted with a special task. That task was to present the “proclaim God’s entire message” my responsibility to preach the Word of God means that I won’t shrink away from communicating the Bible, even when it’s not popular. That’s why we proclaim that Jesus is the only way to a relationship with God. A pastor has the difficult job of comforting the afflicted and afflicting the comfortable. Notice Paul says that “God gave him the responsibility of serving” Two things I want you to see here: first serving like suffering is a privilege not a pain. God has invited you to serve Him in His body it’s a privilege. Second Paul served according to God’s call, Paul serve in areas that were a match for who God created him to be. Are you serving according to your calling? Paul now reveals what servants do:

a.        Share the Secret Vs 26-27

Paul refers to this as a secret that has been revealed, unfortunately for many it is still the best kept secret in the church! So, if you have not heard is the secret, its Christ in you. That means you have accepted what Christ did on the cross, it means you are saved, it means He is alive in you. It’s not about trying but trusting not about relying on self but resting in the Savior. We have bought into the self help technic I just need more tools, you have Christ in you the One who walked on water healed the blind and raised the dead. What is the secret to my marriage “Christ in me” whats the secret to temptations “Christ in me! Have you accepted Jesus because this secret is for everyone. If you have are you serving by sharing the secret? Paul shifts from I to “we” in this verse to let us know that he and Epaphras were proclaiming the good news, and the false teachers were not. This was a team effort not just something left to professional pastor Paul! When Paul says “we tell others about Christ, warning everyone he is not saying we are timid, it means we are proclaiming Jesus with our lives. “I am not ashamed of the gospel it is the power of God that brings salvation” Its not about shoving religion down people’s throats its about sharing the truth. The problem today is not with proclaiming but who we are proclaiming. We proclaim the one who is preeminent in our life. We are not to preach ourselves, but Jesus Christ, when we talk to others about our faith, we must always focus on Christ, not ourselves. Why do we proclaim Christ? “to present them to God, perfect in their relationship to Christ” The word perfect means full grown, mature, Paul desperately wanted everyone to become complete in Christ. The word “everyone” is repeated twice, which shows that every single believer is capable of Christian maturity. We should all be in the process of growth, of becoming more like Jesus every day, its about transformation, not just information.

Colossians 1:21- 2:3

^“21 This includes you who were once far away from God. You were his enemies, separated from him by your evil thoughts and actions. ²² Yet now he has reconciled you to himself through the death of Christ in his physical body. As a result, he has brought you into his own presence, and you are holy and blameless as you stand before him without a single fault. ²³ But you must continue to believe this truth and stand firmly in it. Don’t drift away from the assurance you received when you heard the Good News. The Good News has been preached all over the world, and I, Paul, have been appointed as God’s servant to proclaim it. ²⁴ I am glad when I suffer for you in my body, for I am participating in the sufferings of Christ that continue for his body, the church. ²⁵ God has given me the responsibility of serving his church by proclaiming his entire message to you. ²⁶ This message was kept secret for centuries and generations past, but now it has been revealed to God’s people. ²⁷ For God wanted them to know that the riches and glory of Christ are for you Gentiles, too. And this is the secret: Christ lives in you. This gives you assurance of sharing his glory. ²⁸ So we tell others about Christ, warning everyone and teaching everyone with all the wisdom God has given us. We want to present them to God, perfec^] in their relationship to Christ. ²⁹ That’s why I work and struggle so hard, depending on Christ’s mighty power that works within me. 2 I want you to know how much I have agonized for you and for the church at Laodicea, and for many other believers who have never met me personally. ² I want them to be encouraged and knit together by strong ties of love. I want them to have complete confidence that they understand God’s mysterious plan, which is Christ himself. ³ In him lie hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.”

Not only are we called to stand but also to:

• SUFFER – Vs 24 – The ATTITUDE of your life

“I am glad when I suffer for you in my body” Is Paul a nut job, most of us are SAD not GLAD when we suffer! We might not expect suffering to be included in the list, but verse 24 makes it clear that Paul saw suffering as part of the job description of a Christ follower. Our response to suffering depends on the focus of my sufferings, Self or the Savior. A question we need to ask in the church today is “Do my emotions accurately reflect reality?” Our feelings focused on self are rarely based on fact. Paul willingly and joyfully suffered on behalf of others for the sake of the gospel, he was willing to serve sacrificially. Paul wasn’t just talking about the possibility of suffering but the present reality of his suffering. Paul is rejoicing precisely because of what he is going through in the present, while in prison. Most of us try to get rid of suffering when it comes our way, we view pain as a drain instead of gain. We respond by demanding relief and removal instead of rejoicing.  Paul was different, and he suffered far more than most of us ever will 2 Corinthians 11:24-29. Before Paul’s conversion, he inflicted suffering on believers, now he’s suffering for them. Christ continues to suffer when Christians suffer for Him. He asked Saul (later called Paul) on the Damascus Road in Acts 9:4, “Why do you persecute Me?” Since the church is Christ’s body, He is affected when it is afflicted. Christ suffered in death to save the church, and now Paul suffered in life to serve it, Christ suffered to accomplish salvation. We suffer to spread salvation.” 

Why does God allow suffering?

• Suffering is part of following the Savior, but its also part of getting to know Him, we know Jesus best when we suffer with Him. The problem today is that instead of allowing suffering to let us know Him better we get bitter. 
• Because it gives us the opportunity to show a skeptical world the reality of faith. When the child is taken to heaven unexpectedly; when the doctor says, “It’s malignant,” when the boss says, “You’re through”—people expect us to fall down dead. But we have the chance to embrace the suffering and show the world our faith is not based on suffering but the Savior. And if you make that choice, cynics change their minds about Christians because they see the reality of your faith.
• because suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope” Romans 5:3-4. 
• Because suffering silences Satan – Job suffered and it silenced Satan.

Suffering is a privilege not a pain. How far are you willing to go in suffering for the gospel? Most of us are making the purpose of our life pleasure and we spend exorbitant amounts of time trying to convince God to make us happy. We seek success and flee suffering, but what if suffering for the Savior is success? Most of us frankly would be better off if we faced some persecution.