Text: Colossians 1:15-20, Title: The Center of the Universe, Date/Place: WHBC, 9/16/18
A. Opening illustration: Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs: Physical/Physiological, Safety, Love/belonging, Esteem, and Self-actualization (meaningfulness in life). We need a spiritual “gut-check.” Uncle Chuck,
B. Background to passage: Today we are going to talk about priorities. No apologies or caveats about the message today. Some of these things overlap, but ultimately, there is only one that reigns supreme on our hierarchy of priorities. Just by the way, I am skipping the normal idols that supplant the proper positions of glory in our lives. Possessions, passions, and self are only the obvious and wide hurdles. They take many down, but those in the church that believe they have sidestepped or overcome these defensive linemen, still have the linebackers, the cornerbacks, and safeties before you get to the endzone; and first downs are not good enough in the football game of life, only the endzone provides complete satisfaction and purpose to your existence.
C. Main thought: We must decide what lies at the center of our universe.
1) People at the Center (v. )
a. Times of struggle have often pitted Christian men and women to ask the question about the value of those closest to them versus the value of the allegiance to Christ.
b. Argumentation
c. Illustration: the Chinese pastor in the dark room – “Is it worth it?”, proudest man in prison if he hears of the martyrdom of his wife and children if they stand for Christ, Star Wars fans may remember when Yoda tells Anakin, when he is having dreams about the death of Padmea during childbirth, “death is a part of life, learn to let go of things that you fear to lose, fear is a path to the dark side,”
d. People in this life are dear to us, this is not a sin. In fact, relationships are given to us to be a blessing and a help in our holiness and pursuit of God. The place where idolatry arises is when others take the place of prominence over God in our lives. There are times in your life where you are going to be faced with decisions that require you to take into account things more important that those close to you. There are not exceptions in the scripture that say that it’s OK to consider the desires of your children, spouse, parents, teachers, over the desires of Christ. You must choose a side, and your allegiance must be with Christ. If it is not, your commitment to Christ, maybe even your salvation is in question. How you deal with this reflects value, which is the ultimate call and bar of prominence of Christ in your life.
2) Church at the Center (v. )
a. The church is Christ’s bride. It is of utmost importance to him. It is through the church that God promises to display his wisdom to the world and the heavenly hosts. But the church is the church and it is not Christ.
b. Argumentation
c. Illustration: Idolatry is worshiping anything that ought to be used or using anything that ought to be worshiped. -Augustine, one of my main convictions about worship, is not the genre of music, not the lights, not instruments, not the overhead, not the sound, but evaluation based on a simple truth, worship that does not lead people to the throne of God has missed the point. Talking to Philip the other day about the number of adult baptisms they have had, most are people raised in the church, never having left, but missing Christ.
d. Here in the south we have placed such a high value upon church attendance, church service, church giving, church events, church trips, church meals, church worship, etc. that one can go through the church being a “churchian” instead of a Christian. You can do all of those things and miss the point. You can go through the church and serve in every position, even pastor, have perfect attendance in SS, go on mission trip after trip, give your tithe, none of these things being inherently bad, but all the while making church your god. Please examine your heart, what is first, Christ or the church? This reflects in your decisions and attitudes, and ultimately where you place preeminence. Christ must be more important than church to you.
3) Salvation at the Center (v. )
a. Another rung on the ladder of improper supremacy is the salvation of men. I know, a collective gasp just came from the room, but just hold on. I did say that there was some overlap, however there is only room for one at the top of the ladder. The salvation of men and the reaching the nations is a nobler goal than the priority of man or church as an organization, but it is only a means not the end. The end is the exaltation of Christ forever and ever. This involves evangelism but does not follow subsequent.
b. Illustration: “Almighty God, just because He is almighty, needs no support. The picture of a nervous, ingratiating God fawning over men to win their favor is not a pleasant one; yet if we look at the popular conception of God, that is precisely what we see. Twentieth century Christianity has put God on charity. So lofty is our opinion of ourselves that we find it quite easy, not to say enjoyable, to believe that we are necessary to God. But the truth is that God is not greater for our being, nor would He be less if we did not exist. That we do exist is altogether of God's free determination, not by our desert nor by divine necessity.
c. Probably the hardest thought of all for our natural egotism to entertain is that God does not need our help. We commonly represent Him as a busy, eager, somewhat frustrated Father hurrying about seeking help to carry out His benevolent plan to bring peace and salvation to the world…The God who worketh all things surely needs no help and no helpers.
d. Too many missionary appeals are based upon this fancied frustration of Almighty God. An effective speaker can easily excite pity in his hearers, not only for the heathen but for the God who has tried so hard and so long to save them and has failed for want of support. I fear that thousands of young persons enter Christian service from no higher motive than to help deliver God from the embarrassing situation His love has gotten Him into and His limited abilities seem unable to get Him out of. Add to this a certain degree of commendable idealism and a fair amount of compassion for the underprivileged, and you have the true drive behind much Christian activity today”
e. We must evangelize. We are called to evangelize. It is paramount to every ministry in the church. We should train for it, teach it, and do it. But there are two dangers of making evangelism supreme over Christ, 1) reducing the bar for salvation so that many false converts are made, and 2) reducing God from the all-powerful, all-sufficient, mighty God to a needy god on charity. We do not want people professing Christ because they want the benefits of salvation, but don’t know the cost. We don’t want people so simply know the cost, but not have the affections. We don’t want a God who requires men to help him carry out this plan of salvation that he can’t seem to pull of without us, and now he is in a bind.
4) Jesus at the Center (v. )
a. There are a lot of important planets in our lives. As you have seen by now, the only proper sun and the center of our universe is Christ. Not possessions, passions, people, education, position, power, occupation, family, money, goals, church, even evangelism. His gravity and value are the only thing that holds all other planets in their place. We as individuals, and we as WHBC are on perilous ground if the wrong sun is in place.
b. Illustration: The centrality of the local church is derivative of the supremacy of Jesus. If it weren’t for him and who he is, the local church would simply be an affinity club, something conjured up by our own devices and sustained for our own false sense of hope. But Jesus is who he is, and he’s behind this thing. Jesus is the one who has all authority in heaven and on earth (Matthew 28:18), the one before whom everyone will bow (Philippians 2:9–11), the one who reigns among a cascade of endless praise (Revelation 5:9–14). Everything that is, or could be, for as long as it will ever be, is entirely pointing to Jesus — the eternal Son of God, the radiance of God’s glory, the exact imprint of God’s nature, the second person of the holy Trinity through whom all things were made, the one who became God with us, God in human flesh, the God-man, the last Adam, the offspring of Abraham, the lion of Judah, the prophet like Moses, the root of Jesse, the descendant of David, the suffering servant, the hope of Israel, the Savior of the world. “The inner essence of worship is experiencing Christ as a more satisfying treasure than anything you would lose in death and everything you would have in life.” -Piper,
c. The psalmist says as the deer pants for the water, early I seek thee, only one thing I desire. Jesus says I am the treasure in the field, the pearl of great price, the straight, narrow, and difficult path, the good shepherd and the solid ground, and the first love. Paul says he is the firstborn of all creation, the one to whom every knee shall bow, the one to whom I am willing to die, to count all things trash to suffer with. Peter called him the lover of our soul and Chief Shepherd. The writer of Hebrews calls him the creator of all and the exact imprint of God’s being. He is the center of the universe, but if he is not the center of your life, the love of your life, your greatest treasure, the satisfaction of your soul, you should be afraid. You are an idolater. If He is not at the center of our universe at WHBC, we will have planets flying out of orbit. He that doesn’t love the Lord, let him be accursed. You will not walk in the Spirit, know the will of God, reach spiritual maturity if the planets of your life are out of alignment, because the sun in your system is out of place. I want to lead us, God wants us to be a people totally committed to Jesus Christ as the center point of our lives. The exaltation of Christ is our goal. Anything less is idolatry. Luther wrote, let goods and kindred go, this mortal life also, the body they may kill, God’s truth abideth still, his kingdom is forever. If our friends/family forsake/taken, if the church closes, if we fail at evangelism, we look and see if we have lifted high the name of Jesus! Are you there? Do you love him most! You gotta this! We gotta get this! He is most precious, most valuable, we must have him! Seek him, long for him, love him first! Put him at the center, evaluate everything by him, make him your joy and treasure, repent from anything, anything that sits before him.
A. Closing illustration: It isn’t that money, sex, and power are evils. In their proper orbits, they are glorious. But if we reject the sun and pull these planetary glories from their orbits to either serve as our suns or orbit around our darkened desires, they turn deadly. Our moral universe is thrown into destructive chaos and all our pursuits of sunlit happiness end in dark, barren misery. “The Bible shows us another way. When [Jesus Christ] takes his glorious place at the center of the solar system of our lives, the massive pull of his all-satisfying beauty corrects the erratic path of every planet, and makes the whole system sing with joy.” Where are the young men and women of this generation who will hold their lives cheap, and be faithful even unto death, who will lose their lives for Christ’s, flinging them away for love of him? Where are those who will live dangerously, and be reckless in this service? Where are the men of prayer? Where are the men who count God’s Word of more importance to them than their daily food? Where are the men who, like Moses of old, commune with God face to face as a man speaks with his friend? Where are God’s men in this day of God’s power?
