Over the last several months, we have undertaken a study of Paul’s letter to the Colossians. Reason’s for Paul’s writing

1. Display and manifestation of God’s Glory
   1. Col 1:27 “to whom God willed to make known what is the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory.”
   2. Eph 1:5ff. “He predestined us to adoption as sons through Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the kind intention of His will, 6 to the praise of the glory of His grace, which He freely bestowed on us in the Beloved.”
   3. Eph 1:12 “to the end that we who were the first to hope in Christ would be to the praise of His glory.”
   4. Phil 1:9ff. “And this I pray, that your love may abound still more and more in real knowledge and all discernment, 10 so that you may approve the things that are excellent, in order to be sincere and blameless until the day of Christ; 11 having been filled with the fruit of righteousness which comes through Jesus Christ, to the glory and praise of God.”
2. The manifestation of God’s glory is the fundamental reason for all that God does.
   1. His creation
      1. Ps 19:1 “For the choir director. A Psalm of David. 1 The heavens are telling of the glory of God; And their expanse is declaring the work of His hands.”
   2. His redemption
      1. C- passages above
   3. His restoration
      1. Rev 21:10 “And he carried me away in the Spirit to a great and high mountain, and showed me the holy city, Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, 11 having the glory of God.”
   4. His incarnation
      1. Phil 2:8 ff. “Being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. 9 For this reason also, God highly exalted Him, and bestowed on Him the name which is above every name, 10 so that at the name of Jesus EVERY KNEE WILL BOW, of those who are in heaven and on earth and under the earth, 11 and that every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.”
   5. It is the fundamental, ultimate, reason, it is not the only reason.
      1. While it is true that God’s plans and purposes are to display His glory, His plans and purposes also display OUR glory…not an intrinsic glory, but a “reflected” and restored glory.
         1. The “goodness” of Gen 1: 31 “God saw all that He had made, and behold, it was very good.”
         2. The glory of restoration to who and what we were meant to be.
            1. Col 1:9ff. “For this reason also, since the day we heard of it, we have not ceased to pray for you and to ask that you may be filled with the knowledge of His will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding, 10 so that you will walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, to please Him in all respects, bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God; 11 strengthened with all power, according to His glorious might, for the attaining of all steadfastness and patience; joyously 12 giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified us to share in the inheritance of the saints in Light.”
         3. All biblical instruction reflects this truth; it is given in service of manifesting God’s glory and Man’s glory as intended. It is stated in various ways:
            1. Luke 4:13ff. “When the devil had finished every temptation, he left Him until an opportune time. 14 And Jesus returned to Galilee in the power of the Spirit, and news about Him spread through all the surrounding district. 15 And He began teaching in their synagogues and was praised by all. 16 And He came to Nazareth, where He had been brought up; and as was His custom, He entered the synagogue on the Sabbath, and stood up to read. 17 And the book of the prophet Isaiah was handed to Him. And He opened the book and found the place where it was written, 18 “THE SPIRIT OF THE LORD IS UPON ME, BECAUSE HE ANOINTED ME TO PREACH THE GOSPEL TO THE POOR.HE HAS SENT ME TO PROCLAIM RELEASE TO THE CAPTIVES, AND RECOVERY OF SIGHT TO THE BLIND, TO SET FREE THOSE WHO ARE OPPRESSED, 19 TO PROCLAIM THE FAVORABLE YEAR OF THE LORD.”
            2. Col 2:6ff. “Therefore as you have received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in Him, 7 having been firmly rooted and now being built up in Him and established in your faith, just as you were instructed, and overflowing with gratitude. 8 See to it that no one takes you captive through philosophy and empty deception, according to the tradition of men, according to the elementary principles of the world, rather than according to Christ.”
            3. 1 Cor 2:7ff. “we speak God’s wisdom in a mystery, the hidden wisdom which God predestined before the ages to our glory; 8 the wisdom which none of the rulers of this age has understood; for if they had understood it they would not have crucified the Lord of glory; 9 but just as it is written, “THINGS WHICH EYE HAS NOT SEEN AND EAR HAS NOT HEARD, AND which HAVE NOT ENTERED THE HEART OF MAN, ALL THAT GOD HAS PREPARED FOR THOSE WHO LOVE HIM.”
            4. Titus 1:5 “For this reason I left you in Crete, that you would set in order what remains”
               1. To fill up that which is lacking; to bring to completeness
            5. The glory of God and the glory of Man are not in competition; they are complementary glories. They are not in conflict. The conflict is in the arena and exercise of will.
            6. The glory of Man is in that which God has prepared for him;
               1. Freedom
               2. Sight; vision
               3. Understanding
               4. Holiness; Christlikeness
               5. Discernment
               6. Participation in the kingdom of God
            7. Believers are unique in that they can truly see themselves and the world around them with clarity.
               1. Easy to read the Word from the position of responsibility and duty; and rightfully so. But we have every reason to expand our perspective… to not stop at responsibility but to see these exhortations and reminders from the position of “ability” and opportunity
                  1. The range of motivations (All legitimate)
                     1. Fear; 2 Cor 5:10ff. “For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each one may be recompensed for his deeds in the body, according to what he has done, whether good or bad. 11 Therefore, knowing the fear of the Lord, we persuade men”
                     2. Duty; Rom 12:1 “Therefore I urge you, brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service of worship.”
                     3. Obedience; Rom 6:16 “Do you not know that when you present yourselves to someone as slaves for obedience, you are slaves of the one whom you obey, either of sin resulting in death, or of obedience resulting in righteousness? 17 But thanks be to God that though you were slaves of sin, you became obedient from the heart to that form of teaching to which you were committed”
                     4. Regard/reverence Is 29:13 “Then the Lord said, “Because this people draw near with their words And honor Me with their lip service, But they remove their hearts far from Me, And their reverence for Me consists of tradition learned by rote,”
                     5. Love; 1 John 5:3 “For this is the love of God, that we keep His commandments; and His commandments are not burdensome.”
                     6. Trust; Ps 33:20 “Our soul waits for the LORD; He is our help and our shield. 21 For our heart rejoices in Him, Because we trust in His holy name. 22 Let Your lovingkindness, O LORD, be upon us, According as we have hoped in You.”
                     7. Union/joyousness; the idea of cherishing Ps 37:4 “Delight yourself in the LORD; And He will give you the desires of your heart.”
                        1. Our desires mirror His desires
                     8. Relational examples
                        1. Husband and wife
                        2. Parent and child

• Brings to mind the words of Paul in 2 Corinthians “the love of Christ constrains me” or Peter’s words to Jesus, in John 6 “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have words of eternal life. 69 We have believed and have come to know that You are the Holy One of God.”

1. Beloved, this is the mindset to which we should aspire. Let us pray.