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.”

1. STRIVE in the Spirit Vs 1:29 – 2:3

 Struggle and Sweat 

If you are serious about your purpose then you can’t be passive. Paul talks about “work” which means to “grow weary through hard toil.” The word “struggle” comes from the root word in Greek translated “agony.” Both words were used of athletes competing in the arena working to the point of exhaustion. Paul used this same word at the end of his life as he reflected on how he had lived in 2 Timothy 4:7: “I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith.” We’re called to lay ourselves out, to become spiritually fatigued to sweat in order to move people toward full devotion to Christ. But Paul doesn’t just work in his own strength; He instead depends and relies on the power of Christ as he struggles “with all His energy, which so powerfully works in me.” There’s a play on words in the Greek text here. We might translate it this way: “Striving according to His energy which powerfully energizes within me.” Paul surrendered his availability to God’s ability. Don’t hold back, don’t become spiritually lethargic or lukewarm, enrich the lives of others through encouragement. Paul uses a medical metaphor “knit together in love.” We are to be connected to each other, everyone here needs you, and you need everyone else. It’s impossible to fulfill God’s plan alone, your purpose is in the context of community. You can’t do it alone. 

CONCLUSION

Have you been ministering for God and not allowing God to minister through you? Is it time to let Christ live His life in you and through you; to love through you, forgive through you, suffer through you; reveal His Word in and through you. The Christian is the dwelling place of God, the riverbed of the glorious flowing streams of the Living Word.