Colossians 1:28-29
~16 min read
TRANSCRIPT
I greet all of you in the blessed name of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. Our text for this morning's message is taken from Colossians 1:28–29. Allow me to read for you. "Whom we preach, warning every man, and teaching every man in all wisdom; that we may present every man perfect in Christ Jesus: Whereunto I also labour, striving according to his working, which worketh in me mightily." The Lord bless the reading of His holy and sacred word.
In the preceding verses 23 and 25, the Apostle Paul repeatedly said that he was made a minister, which means he was called to be a minister to the Gentiles. The original Greek word for ‘minister’ is from where we get the English word for deacons. And deacons were called to serve tables.
Basically, Paul considered himself a servant. But he was not just a servant of anyone. He was a servant of Christ. Although Paul used the word “we” to refer to himself and the other apostles, but the phrase “whom we preach” refers to Christ. He was called to preach Christ. To preach Christ means to preach His gospel. It was not only the apostles who were called to preach the gospel but all believers. So this passage not only applies to Paul and the other apostles but to all of us believers as well.
The title of our message is: What Does It Take to Be Faithful in the Ministry?
I. Our Primary Duty
Firstly, we have to understand our primary duty. Beginning with verse 28: “Whom we preach, warning every man, and teaching every man in all wisdom; that we may present every man perfect in Christ Jesus.” Here Paul was referring to the Gentiles, as he was called to be an apostle to the Gentiles — but particularly the people at Colosse, who were primarily Gentiles, because he was ministering to them at this particular moment.
Firstly, he was called to preach, which means to declare the gospel — the same gospel which had saved him from eternal hell and transported him out of darkness into God's marvellous light. He was called to preach it to every man.
Once someone asked his pastor to preach the gospel to his unbelieving parents and the pastor said, ‘They are your parents, whom you spend the most time with. Why don't you take every opportunity to share the gospel with them?’ The man answered, ‘Well, I believe as a pastor and someone who is trained in the word of God, you would be able to preach better than I.’
Well, it may be true that some people are trained and gifted to articulate the gospel better than others. But no one can preach a better gospel. There is no such thing as a better gospel. We are all called to preach the same gospel. And the more committed we are to preach the gospel, the better we will be. In other words, we cannot improve and make the gospel better, but we can improve our articulative skills in presenting it.
At the same time, we must bear in mind that we are just instruments to share the gospel. It is a supernatural work. God is the one who convicts the hearts of men, that they may believe in the gospel. Is it difficult to preach the gospel? Most certainly. When you and I preach Jesus is the way, the truth, and the life: no man can go to the Father, but by Him (John 14:6), He is the only way to salvation — exclusively — people will find it offensive. But if we truly believe in the gospel — that this is the only gospel that can save their souls — then we must preach it.
Secondly, once the people were converted and believed in the gospel, Paul would warn them. The original Greek word for ‘warning’ means admonishing or counselling. It is from this word that we get the phrase biblical counselling. This had to do with counselling them what to do and what not to do. This counselling encompasses everything — from admonishing those who had fallen into sin, to counselling in matters pertaining to the church, families, children, work, making decisions, life choices, trials, struggles, etc.
It involves being proactive — because not everyone will come to the pastor for counselling willingly and spontaneously. When the pastor knows that someone is living in sin, or is about to make a foolish decision, or moving in the wrong direction, he has to actively approach the person to warn him — through the word of God. The source of counselling is always the word of God. At times he has to do it gently to restore the person to the path of righteousness, and other times he has to do it sternly and warn him that there would be serious consequences.
Having said that, we know that most people dislike being warned or being counselled. Once I was spending quite some time with a church member who had some problems. And as we left the room, I overheard another church member say to him, ‘Why having a counselling session again?’ It was said in a negative connotation with a tone of sarcasm. From then onwards, that person never came to me again with his problems. How sad.
But however difficult it may be, it is the primary duty of the pastor to be fully involved in counselling. If the pastor fails in his duty in counselling, then what other choice has the believer but to seek somewhere else. That is why people turn to psychologists, secular counselling, humanistic opinions, and the viewpoints of the world instead of biblical counselling.
Dear friend, you may not be put into a position to be involved in an official counselling session like premarital counselling or counselling regarding church discipline. But in a general sense, all believers are called to warn, admonish, and counsel one another.
Remember Colossians 3:16 says, "Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom; teaching and admonishing one another." “Admonishing” is the same word as counselling. To “let the word of Christ dwell in you richly” means to be fully equipped with the word of God. That is the only way you are able to counsel another person.
You cannot be telling the person, ‘Brother, you cannot do this thing.’
‘Why can't I do it?’
‘Well, I do not know how to explain to you. I just feel you cannot do it.’
That would be counterproductive. You must always turn to the Holy Scriptures so that you will be able to give godly counsels.
Next, Paul had to teach, and this teaching had to do with the whole counsel of God's word. As believers, we want to live godly lives. We want to worship and serve the Lord faithfully. But how can we do that? Through the teaching of the Bible. The Bible will teach us how we ought to worship, how we ought to serve, how we ought to live our lives, what we ought to do and what we ought not to do. A knowledge of the Bible plays a very important part in the believer's life.
Do you realise that our spiritual maturity has a lot to do with our biblical knowledge? Show me a spiritually mature believer — surely he is someone who is not only grounded in the word of God, but he is also able to apply that knowledge into his life. The more we know and apply God's word, the more mature we will become.
That is why being teachable is also extremely important in the believer's life. If someone thinks he knows everything and nobody can teach him anything, and his attitude is teach me something new, teach me something I don't know. He's not interested in Bible study. He does not read the Bible. Such a person is unteachable, and he will never learn and he will never grow spiritually — if he is even a believer.
Notice the phrase “in all wisdom.” What is wisdom? Wisdom is not just knowledge. Wisdom is far more than the accumulation of information and intellectual understanding. It has to do with how we live our lives. It has to do with the application of knowledge into our lives.
As I often explain it this way, you can have two persons who know the same truth. They can write down the same answers on paper. One of them has learned to live it and has skilfully applied it, but the other lives as if he doesn't even know it. And he is constantly making foolish decisions that have nothing to do with the knowledge he knew. What is the difference between the two of them? The difference is not in the knowledge. It is in the application of the knowledge.
You and I are wise only if we pay attention and live out what we know. That is wisdom. You may have good Bible knowledge. You may be able to remember all the memory verses. You may understand all the difficult doctrines. But you need to ask God how that knowledge is going to be applied in a given situation.
Every day of our lives, we are faced with different challenges and situations of all sorts. If we have the Bible knowledge, then we ought to ask God, how am I going to apply my knowledge in this particular situation?
The question is: How is God going to communicate that wisdom to us? Fundamentally, God communicates wisdom directly through His Word. The Bible is a book of wisdom. And through the wonder-working of His Spirit that indwells in us.
God communicates His wisdom through someone else — like the pastor, elders, deacons, or mature believers. As Proverbs 24:6 says, ‘in the multitude of counsellors there is safety.’ When you surround yourself with godly men and women who are able to give you godly counsels according to God's Word, you are safe.
God communicates His wisdom through His providential dealings with us. When we pray and ask God to direct our paths, as Proverbs 3:5–6 says, "Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths." God will direct our paths and show us what He wants us to do — and oftentimes by opening doors and closing doors.
Perhaps you are struggling. Should I do this or should I do that? Both ways are not forbidden in the Bible. Both ways seem desirable and right in accordance to God's Word. What should I do? Then all of a sudden the door is closed, and you don't have to worry about it anymore. On another occasion, you may be struggling — What should I do? Then all of a sudden a door is open. That is how God will lead us — by His providential hand.
The ultimate purpose of preaching, warning, and teaching is that we may present every man perfect in Christ Jesus. Our aim is not merely to win people to Jesus Christ, but also to bring them to spiritual maturity. Salvation does not stop at our conversions. That is only the first part of it. After our conversions comes the sanctification.
Although all believers strive to be like Christ, to be holy as He is holy, but no one on the face of this earth has arrived there yet. However, one day we will attain this perfection. 1 John 3:2 says, "Beloved, now are we the sons of God" - we are the sons of God at the point of our conversions - "and it doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is." So the day will come when we will attain this perfection in our glorified state. It is a time whereby we will no longer be troubled by sin, the devil, and the world — we will be basking in the presence of God.
So it is not just the duty of every pastor to preach, warn and teach the people. It is also the duty of every parent, Sunday school teacher and church leader — and to a larger extent, every believer.
Take a moment and consider this. If you are a Sunday school teacher, and you have always preached, taught and warned the children, by the grace of God, subsequently one of the children became a believer. He or she graduated from Sunday school and moved on to the youth ministry, to the adults’ ministry, and one day became a fellowship leader actively serving in the church. Have you not helped in his or her spiritual maturity in Christ Jesus? Most certainly, you have played an important part.
Or if you are a parent, you have always preached, warned and taught your children. And your child has grown up, has his own family, and now he is teaching his own children the same biblical principles he has learned from you. Have you not helped in his spiritual maturity in Christ Jesus? Again, most certainly. What a great joy it would be. But this great joy comes with great difficulties as well, because in the process of preaching, warning and teaching, there will always be resistance, rejections, hostilities and oppositions.
II. Our Source Of Strength
And this brings us to our second point: Our Source of Strength.
Look at verse 29: "Whereunto I also labour, striving according to his working, which worketh in me mightily." The word “labour” means to work to the point of exhaustion. The next word “striving” is even more intense — it is from where we get the English word for agonising. You not only work hard, but as you work hard, you are also agonised.
One theologian rightly said, ‘Labour has to do with the physical struggles, and striving or agonising has to do with the mental struggles.’ Indeed, as we preach, warn and teach, we do face both physical and mental struggles. As a pastor, I cannot tell you the number of times I face both these challenges. And every time I face both the physical and spiritual and mental struggles, I'm always encouraged by the life of the Apostle Paul.
In 2 Corinthians 11:23–28, maybe you can turn with me to this passage. Paul said: "Are they ministers of Christ? (I speak as a fool) I am more;" - he was rebuking the false teachers who were boasting about their credentials and qualifications. And he was saying to them, let me tell you what are true qualifications and credentials. I may appear to be boasting, and I may appear to be to be like a fool. But let me speak as a fool because it is necessary - "in labours more abundant, in stripes above measure, in prisons more frequent, in deaths oft. Of the Jews five times received I forty stripes save one. Thrice was I beaten with rods, once was I stoned, thrice I suffered shipwreck, a night and a day I have been in the deep; In journeyings often, in perils of waters" - or dangers of water - "in perils of robbers, in perils by mine own countrymen," - the Jews - "in perils by the heathen, in perils in the city, in perils in the wilderness, in perils in the sea, in perils among false brethren; In weariness and painfulness, in watchings often, in hunger and thirst, in fastings often, in cold and nakedness." - then he said this - "Beside those things that are without, that which cometh upon me daily, the care of all the churches."
In other words, beside all those physical struggles he faced from without, there were the daily spiritual worries he had for all the churches. So Paul had faced both physical and mental struggles as well. How then was he able to press on and persevere in the work of the ministry?
Well, he said, "According to his working, which worketh in me mightily." The original Greek word for “mightily” is dunamis, from where we get the English word dynamite. Whenever we read the word dynamite, we think of something powerful. So it can be translated as mightily or powerfully. Against all odds, Paul was able to preach, warn, and teach not only to the Colossians, but also to the Corinthians, Philippians, Ephesians, Galatians, Thessalonians, Bereans — and wherever he went — most powerfully.
It was not as if he was a superhuman being or he was special, smart and intelligent. But it was because of his working which worketh in me. He was referring to the Holy Spirit. Both words “working” and “worketh” come from the root word which means to be energised. In other words, it means the ability to work and to operate comes from God Himself.
Every believer is indwelt with the Holy Spirit. If you are a believer, you have the Holy Spirit indwelling in you. Romans 8:9 says, "Now if any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his." We have the energising force of the Holy Spirit that empowers us to live for Christ and to do His work. Who is more powerful than the Holy Spirit? No one. As believers, we have the power to endure the different circumstances of life — whether in much or in want.
As Paul said: "I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me." (Philippians 4:13) As believers, we have the power to do God’s will: "For it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure." (Philippians 2:13) As believers, we have the power to do the Lord’s work. As Acts 1:8 says, "But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you."
Now comes this question. But why is it that many pastors have left the ministry? They have thrown in the towel and walked away. Why is it that many believers are lacking in their services for the Lord, or living lives that do not manifest any victory? It is all because they do not understand how God is able to work in and through their lives. It is all because they are unaware that the power of God is able to help them accomplish God's work. When they do not understand and when they are unaware, the only thing they could do is to rely on their own strength.
Dear friend, when we rely on our own strength, we are bound to fail. When we look to the circumstances, we are bound to fail. More often than not, in the ministry we will receive criticisms. Though at times we may be appraised for the things we have done, but the criticism will always outweigh the appreciations — and that is when we are discouraged. That is when people will throw in the towel in such times like this.
How can we press on and persevere and remain faithful? Some of us are called to be pastors and preachers. Others are called to be elders and deacons and fellowship leaders. Yet others are called to be parents and individuals serving in the different areas of ministry. But wherever we are called, whatever work we are doing, all of us must remember — our calling comes from God. And He will not call us to do something without giving us the strength and the power to do it. The Holy Spirit will help us. The Holy Spirit will empower us to accomplish the work God has called us to do.
So, dear friend, if we want to be faithful, we must understand our primary duty. Wherever you are, whatever position God has called you to be in, that is His calling for you. And you must understand the source of your strength is not from you — it is from Him. It is God working and worketh in you mightily so that you will be able to fulfil His work to the glory of His precious name.
If you ever want to give up, please do not do so. Remember this: it is God who has called you, and He who has called you will not give up on you. Instead, He will give you the strength and the power to do His work — not just to accomplish it, but to accomplish it mightily, powerfully, to the glory of His precious name. That is how you and I can be faithful in the ministry. Don't rely on ourselves, but rely on Him who is all-powerful.
Let us pray.
Our Father in heaven, indeed, there are times whereby all we receive are just discouragements, criticism, difficulties, trials, struggles — and we want to throw in the towel. Many have done so. But Thou hast preserved us and caused us to learn from this passage. Just like the Apostle Paul, even while he was in prison, writing this letter to the Colossians, he was encouraging them that this is his primary duty — to preach, warn, and teach every man, so that he can present them perfect, spiritually mature, in Christ Jesus.
And therefore he laboured and strove and agonised — not in his own strength, but it is through Thy working. Thou hast worked in his life so mightily that he is able to reach out not only to the Colossians, but to the Corinthians, Ephesians, Philippians, Galatians, Thessalonians, and so forth.
In a similar fashion, Thou hast called us into various ministries, and we know that it is Thy calling. Nothing happens by chance or coincidence. Whether we serve in this ministry or that ministry, whether we serve in the office of a deacon, or as a fellowship leader, Sunday school teacher, or as a parent taking care of our children, or just a participant in one of the fellowship groups serving day by day — we pray that we will be faithful.
There is the place Thou hast called us to be. And where Thou hast called us, Thou wilt also empower us — to give us the strength and power to do it. We must understand the power of the Holy Spirit is able to do the work set before us. So we rely not on our own strength, but in Thy strength. Remind us always, because as humans we always forget.
So help us, so that we will all remain faithful in the ministry — understanding our primary duty, and understanding our true and real source of strength, and that is Thee and Thee alone. We pray all this in Jesus' name.
Amen.
THE BOOK OF COLOSSIANSA Faith And Love That ShinesA Faith And Love That ShinesColossians 1:1-4
The Blessedness Of Our Christian HopeThe Blessedness Of Our Christian HopeColossians 1:5-6a
The Transforming Power Of The GospelThe Transforming Power Of The GospelColossians 1:6b-8
The Need For PrayersThe Need For PrayersColossians 1:9
Prayer for Spiritual ExcellencePrayer for Spiritual ExcellenceColossians 1:9-12
Walk Worthy Of The LordWalk Worthy Of The LordColossians 1:10-11
What Does It Mean To Call God Our Father?What Does It Mean To Call God Our Father?Colossians 1:12a
What Does It Mean To Be Citizens Of God’s Kingdom?What Does It Mean To Be Citizens Of God’s Kingdom?Colossians 1:12b-13
I Am Redeemed And ForgivenI Am Redeemed And ForgivenColossians 1:14
Christ, The Invisible GodChrist, The Invisible GodColossians 1:15
Jesus Our Creator Loves Me, This I KnowJesus Our Creator Loves Me, This I KnowColossians 1:16-17; Romans 8:37-39
What Is Christ’s Relationship With The Church?What Is Christ’s Relationship With The Church?Colossians 1:18
What Does It Mean To Be Reconciled To God?What Does It Mean To Be Reconciled To God?Colossians 1:19-22
The Evidence Of Our SalvationThe Evidence Of Our SalvationColossians 1:23a
Are We Willing To Suffer For Christ?Are We Willing To Suffer For Christ?Colossians 1:23b-24
How Faithful Are We?How Faithful Are We?Colossians 1:25-27
What Does It Take To Be Faithful In The Ministry?What Does It Take To Be Faithful In The Ministry?Colossians 1:28-29
The Indispensable Component In Serving GodThe Indispensable Component In Serving GodColossians 2:1-2a
Message 3: What is Christ to you? My Covenantal Head!Message 3: What is Christ to you? My Covenantal Head!Colossians 2:4-9, 19
Message 4: What is a healthy and sound church? My Covenantal Haven!Message 4: What is a healthy and sound church? My Covenantal Haven!Colossians 2:7
Message 2: What is Church to you? My Covenantal Family!Message 2: What is Church to you? My Covenantal Family!Exodus 12:48-49, Colossians 2:11-12
