Colossians 1. Verse 29. The name of the message
is, His working, laboring by God's power. His working, laboring
by God's power. Colossians 1.29. We will be finishing
this chapter this week, and Lord willing, next week we will continue
our journey in chapter 2. Chapter 2. Colossians 1.29. Let's read it in context of 27-29. To whom God would make known
what is the riches of the glory of this mystery among you, or
among the Gentiles, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory,
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 labor, striving according to His working, which
worketh in me mightily. So tonight's verse is, Whereunto
I also labor, striving according to His working, which worketh
in me mightily. Last week we looked at verse
28, which declares, Whom we preach, warning every
man and teaching every man in all wisdom, that we may present
every man perfect in Christ Jesus. And we looked at who we preach. Whom we preach, and we connected
that with the verse before that, which is Christ in you, the hope
of glory. We preach Christ and Him crucified. This is our one mission, is to
proclaim Christ and what He has done in the sinner's room instead. We warn every man. Look, it says,
warning every man. We warn every man. The general
call goes out to all men to repent and turn to Christ. And we look
where it says, in teaching every man in all wisdom, we looked
at how the Holy Spirit teaches all those who are God's sheep,
in that one day they will be presented be presented in Christ,
faultless before the throne of God, clothed in the righteousness
of Christ. Now, I talk with a lot of religious
folks. I've talked with a lot of religious folks in Oregon.
I was a religious person very much before the Lord saved me.
I talked with a lot of religious folks in Oregon, talked with
a lot of religious folks here. And one thing seems to be prevalent
among them all. It's this, what are you doing
and what have you done for Jesus? What are you doing and what have
you done for Jesus? They do not talk about the Savior,
about what He's accomplished, about what He's done, but they
continuously ask, what have you done? And that other Christians,
or people who they believe are Christians, that they don't do
enough for Jesus. They don't do enough for Jesus.
Well, when we tell them that we are
resting and reposing in Christ Jesus alone, often the reply
is, well, what about your works? What about your works? Turn,
if you would, to James, chapter 2. What about your works? Certainly, you have to do something.
I remember talking to someone in Oregon, and I said, well,
I just preach and proclaim Christ and tell the sinner to rest in
Christ and Him alone. And I tell believers to do the
same thing. We've talked about what is witnessing,
right? Just telling the great things
that God has done for you. When the Lord opens the door
and gives you the opportunity to talk, we just tell people
what God's done for us. Look, Christ saved me from all
my sins. He redeemed me. I couldn't save myself. My mighty
savior saved me. He saved me, he redeemed me.
So what do we do? We brag about what he's done,
about his works, about his works. Now do Christians do works? Yes,
yes. Most of the time we don't even
know when we do them. But look at James 2, verses,
we'll look at 17 to 24. Even so, faith, if it hath not
works, is dead, being alone. Yea, a man may say, Thou hast
faith, and I have works. Show me thy faith without thy
works, and I will show you my faith by my works. Thou believest
there is one God, thou doest well. The devils also believe
and tremble. But wilt thou know, O vain man,
that faith without works is dead? Was not Abraham our father justified
by works which he had offered Isaac his son upon the altar? seest thou how faith wrought
with his works, and by works was faith made perfect. And the
scripture was fulfilled, saith Abraham, believe God, and it
was imputed unto him for righteousness, and he was called the friend
of God. Ye see then how that by works
a man is justified, and not by faith only. So now the main difference
between grace and religion is this. that any works that we do, we believe that they are all
done in the power of the Holy Spirit. All done in the power
of the Holy Spirit, and they will gain us absolutely no merit
and favor before we die. If we do anything, we do it out
of a grateful heart. for what our great King has done
for us. Now, I believe that works are
evidence of faith. They're evidence. And I believe
that's what James is saying here. James isn't contradicting Paul.
Not at all. Not at all. Our works are evidence of our
faith. Hence, faith without works is dead. When James speaks of
being justified by works as well as by faith, he is in view that
those works which show faith to be real and vital. It proves
our... Brother Henry Mahan says, it
proves our faith. It proves it. That it's real. Evidence. There are evidence
that we're born again. Do you desire to read your Bible?
Do you desire to pray? Do you desire to be with the
brethren? Do you desire to come to church and hear the gospel
proclaimed? You didn't before. Brother Matthew and I've talked
about that many times. We didn't before. Now we love it. Nowhere else
we want to be but under the sound of the gospel. So when James speaks of being
justified by works as well as by faith, he is in view that
those works show faith to be real and vital. Dead works avail
nothing. They show no life from God. But
we are in no way justified by our works. Who are we justified
by? Christ. Christ in him alone. Our works
are evidence of our faith. And religious folks stumble over
this precious truth. They stumble over it. That we believe that our works
can in no way gain us merit and favor with God, but that they
are evidence of our faith. So let's go back to our verse
in Colossians 129 and let's look at this in light of this and
pray that God the Holy Spirit will illuminate the scripture
and teaches of Christ and teaches of His mighty power, of His mighty
power which works in each believer. As I said, a lot of folks will
tell you what they're doing or what they've done, about how
righteous they are compared to others. Look at what this verse
says here in Colossians 1.29. Whereunto I also labor, striving
according to His working. And that is tied in with the
verses above. Being Christ. Which worketh in
me mightily. I remember Brother Henry saying
this. and this stuck with me, I shared it with Sister Cara
earlier tonight, that if one worm is comparing himself to
another worm, sinner comparing himself to another sinner, we
can look pretty good. We can always find another worm
that's worse than us. Always. But, when this worm compares himself
with Christ, oh my. Oh my. We fall desperately short,
hopelessly short of God's standard. How perfect do we have to be
to get into heaven? As perfect as God. Good news though. The believers
glow clothed in His perfect righteousness. As perfect as God we have to
be. As perfect as Christ. And we worms fall very short,
very short of perfection, as everything that we do is tainted
with sin. Everything. If a person thinks that he's
better than someone else, all his works are just as tainted
with sin as the person he's accusing that he does better works. They're
all, we're sinners. Spurgeon said, I sin enough from
my getting out of my bed, going to the breakfast table to damn
a thousand souls. Now, that's a man who had a perspective
on sin. And what we were talking about too earlier, sister, about
we know what we are. God has revealed to us that we
are sinners in desperate, desperate need of Christ. In desperate
need of Him. I ask you this, beloved, you
who are redeemed, in light of this, I ask you this, do you
sin more than you want to? Do you loathe and despise sin
more in yourself than in anyone else? We can all say amen. Oh, my. And you know that Paul
had the same struggle as we did. Oh, wretched man that I am. Who shall deliver me from the
body of this death? Oh, this is Paul the Apostle.
I thank God through Jesus Christ our Lord. So then with the mind
I myself serve the law of God, but with the flesh the law of
sin. Romans chapter 7 verse 24 and 25. Now false religions will tell
you to look within yourself. I was talking to a dear brother
today from back in Oregon. And he was telling me he remembered
one time when he was out talking to people about Christ, that
he ran into this Buddhist guy who was teaching other people
his poison. And the Buddhist was telling
those who were listening that they must look within. They must
look within. Look within yourself. Now what do we see when we look
within? Oh my. Nothing but sin in our natural
state. Now the whole scheme of salvation
is totally dependent upon a man, right? Totally dependent upon
a man. Man, Christ, Jesus. And it looks,
religion, workspace salvation is totally dependent upon man.
totally dependent upon man, and it looks inward for all hope
and happiness and help and holiness. We look outward to a man, the
man Christ Jesus, who gave himself a ransom for all. Nothing but
sin in our natural state. And works-based religion makes
man the principal object of worship. Works-based religion makes man
the principal object of preeminence. In workspace, religion makes
man the principal object for all glory. But what does grace do? What
does grace do? Grace gives Christ all the praise,
all the glory, all the honor, all the preeminence. He gets
it all. Now look at Paul's response.
Turn, if you would, to Romans 7. Let's look there. Paul says,
O wretched man that I am, who shall deliver me from this body
of death? Romans 7, verse 24 and 25. Who
shall deliver me? He's got this battle within him. Sounds familiar, doesn't it?
He's got this battle within him. The new man versus the flesh. Oh, wretched man that I am. I know I've been there. Who shall deliver me from the
body of this death? And look, he doesn't look inward,
does he? Look where he looks. He doesn't look inward. He looks
out. I thank God through Jesus Christ
our Lord. He looks to Christ. He looks
to Him. He looks to the one who is victorious.
The one who has conquered sin for His people. Who's paid the
price that God's demanded for all the sins of all the elect
once. Once. Grace preaching tells you to
look away from yourself and look to Christ. He is the only hope
for sinners. And the whole scheme of God's
salvation is dependent upon Christ and Him alone. No words. You look, no words. He is the
appointed mediator. He is the sinner's surety. He
is the sinner's substitute. He is the sinner's redeemer.
And He has purchased His people with His own precious blood. Oh, what a wonderful Savior.
What a wonderful Savior is Jesus, my Lord. Jesus Christ is the
principal object of all worship, preeminence, and glory for His
people. You see how it's the opposite
of works-based religion? Oh, God forbid that I should
glory save in the cross of the Lord Jesus Christ. The grand
design of God's salvation is the glory of the Lord Jesus Christ. Turn, if you would, to John 17.
The glory of the Lord Jesus Christ. John 17, verses 4 and 5. 4 and
5. John 17, verses 4 and 5. I have glorified thee on the
earth. I have finished the work which
thou gavest me to do. And now, O Father, glorify thou
me with thine own self, with the glory which I had with thee
before the world was. The grand design of God's salvation
is to give God all the glory. All the praise. Do we not worship
our King? Do we not just bow down before
Him with grateful and thankful hearts? I was talking to a young
man today who came to visit and just asked some questions about
the church here. And one of the things that we
talked about is that religion says that God looked down through
time and saw who would choose Him. And I told the young man
as we were talking, I said, when God looked down through time,
all he saw was a bunch of sinners, dead in trespasses and sin. And
he said, I'll have mercy on them all. I'll have mercy on God. I'll have mercy on this. I'll
have mercy on that. He chose each one of us. And He saw us dead in trespasses
and sins. What a wonderful, wonderful,
amazing Savior we have. Let's go back to our verse in
chapter 1, verse 29. Whereunto I also labor, striving
according to His working which worketh in me mightily." Paul's
strength came from Christ by the power of the Holy Spirit
of God. And he knew that if he labored
in his own strength, it would be all for naught. All for naught. Oh, my. Turn, if you would, to
Zechariah 4. Zechariah 4. Paul was ordained
by God to preach and proclaim the Gospel of the Lord Jesus
Christ. And here in our closing verse
in chapter 1, we see where Paul's strength came from. Whereunto
I also labor, striving according to His working which worketh
in me mightily. And turn to Zechariah 4. Spurgeon says on the verse in
Colossians, he says this, There will never be any mighty work
come from us unless there be first a mighty work in us. In us. No man truly labors for
souls unless the Holy Ghost has first wrought mightily in him. Oh, look at Zechariah 4, 6, and
7. Then he answered and spake unto
me, saying, This is the word of the Lord unto Zerubbabel,
saying, Not by might nor power, not by any man's doing, not by
any man's strength, Not by might nor power, but by my spirit,
saith the Lord of hosts. Who art thou, O great mountain,
before Zerubbabel? Thou shalt become a plain, and
he shall bring forth the headstone thereof with shoutings, crying,
grace, grace unto it. Salvation is of the Lord. And it's not by man's might.
It's not by man's power. It is by the power of the Holy
Ghost regenerating dead sinners. Oh, ye must be born again. And
so Paul says in our text in Colossians 1.29, Whereunto I also labor,
striving according to his working, which worketh in me mightily. Paul had been entrusted by God. And if anyone gets up to teach
and preach, remember, you're entrusted by God to proclaim
the Gospel of God's free grace in Christ alone. Oh, what an
honor. Oh, what a privilege. Never to
be taken lightly. And Paul says, whereunto I also
labor striving. Paul labored in word and doctrine
by preaching Christ. By preaching Christ. Warning
sinners of their danger. teaching them the way of salvation
in Christ alone, proclaiming Christ's death upon the cross
and the shedding of His precious blood to save His people from
their sins, and proclaiming repentance and faith in Christ Jesus alone
for salvation. Oh, he labored, striving. Paul loved the Christ of the
Gospel. Therefore, he labored in proclaiming
our Lord Jesus Christ in Him alone. The Greek word for labor
here means to work hard, to work hard. And the Greek word for
striving means this, to enter a contest, contend in the gymnastic
games, to contend with adversaries, fight. Metaphorically to contend,
to struggle with difficulties and dangers, to endeavor with
strenuous zeal, strive to obtain something. I remember when I
first moved here. Brother John took me to a wrestling
match. We were watching his two grandsons. Two of his grandsons, they were
competing. And I was struck as I watched
them. As I watched them wrestle, they struggled with each other.
They grappled. And I remember John and I talked
about how this was a picture. This was a picture of the Christian
life. And how we struggle and we battle
through this life on earth as we run the race that is set before
us. Hebrews says this, wherefore
seeing we are also compassed about with so great a cloud of
witnesses, let us lay aside every weight in the sin which doth
so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that
is set before us, looking. Remember Buddhism and all that,
tells you to look in. What's grace? What do grace preachers
tell you? Look to Christ, right? Here's a grace preacher. Looking
unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, before the joy
that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame,
and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God. Hebrews
12, verses 1 and 2. Now Paul was an apostle called
by God to preach. Whereunto I also labor striving."
He was an apostle called by God to preach the Gospel, and he
labored diligently, beloved. He labored diligently in the
ministry which the Lord had called him, called him to, and placed
him in. Called him to and placed him
in. He counted all that he did as a Pharisee, remember? He counted
all that he did as a Pharisee as nothing but done. All the
religious attainments. He's a Pharisee of Pharisees.
He had obtained a wealthy position. He counted all that he accomplished
as nothing. Nothing but dung. And we who
come out of religion feel exactly the same way. Exactly the same
way. Paul labored and strived more
abundantly than all the apostles, but let us note this, he never
drew attention to himself. never drew attention to himself. He had one mission. He had one
calling. From the captain of his salvation,
and this was to preach and proclaim Christ Jesus and him crucified
to a lost and dying world. And beloved, when he preached,
or when he taught, or when he wrote letters, To the church,
he gave the Lord Jesus Christ all the glory and all the honor
and all the praise. Just read his epistles. It's
incredible. He was Christocentric. That's
what he was. And we looked at earlier the
meanings of the Greek words for labor and striving found in our
text. And striving means to labor fervently,
to contend with an adversary, to fight. Turn, if you would,
to 2 Corinthians chapter 11. 2 Corinthians chapter 11. Now Paul did all that he did
and suffered painful persecutions from the enemies he fought against
because of his loving, zealous dedication to our sovereign Lord
and King, the Lord Jesus Christ. His sincere desire is to glorify
God, to glorify his suffering Savior in the preaching of the
gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ. So let us ponder these things.
As Paul is writing to the Colossians, let us ponder, as we look at
our text in Colossians 1.29, let us ponder some of the things
that Paul went through for the preaching of the Gospel. 2 Corinthians
11, verse 22. Are they Hebrews? So am I. Are
they Israelites? So am I. Are they the seed of
Abraham? So am I. Are they ministers of
Christ? I speak as a fool. I'm more in
labors, 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 water and perils of robbers, and perils
of mine own countrymen, and perils by the heathen, and perils in
the city, and perils in the wilderness, and perils in the sea, and perils
among false brethren. All this he endured. for our
great King, for the furtherance of the gospel. 27, in weariness
and painfulness, in watchings often, in hunger and thirst,
in fastings often, in cold and nakedness, beside those things
that are without, that which cometh upon me daily, the care
of all the churches. We looked at earlier in this
study how Paul, he prayed for churches. He prayed for God's
people amongst the different churches. Who is weak? Am I not weak? Who is offended? And I burn not? If I must need glory, I will
glory the things which concern mine infirmities. The God and
Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, which is blessed forevermore,
knoweth that I lie not. In Damascus, the governor under
Artaeus, the king, kept the city of Damascus with a garrison,
desirous to apprehend me. And through a window and a basket,
I was let down by the wall and escaped his hands. All these struggles, all these
labors, Paul went through for the preaching and proclaiming
of the Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ. Turn, if you would, to 2 Timothy
chapter 4. Paul contended with his opponents
and overcame them by enduring. which was all by the power of
God working in him. And I'll read our text again
tonight. Whereunto I also labor, striving according to his working,
which worketh in me mightily. Look at 2 Timothy. 2 Timothy
4, verses 5-8. But watch thou in all things,
endure afflictions, do the work of an evangelist, make full proof
of thy ministry, for I am now ready to be offered Remember
all he went through. And the time of my departure
is at hand. I have fought a good fight. I
have finished my course. I have kept the faith. Henceforth
there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness, which the Lord,
the righteous Judge, shall give me at that day, and not to me
only, but unto all them that love His appearance." All Paul's
laboring, all Paul's striving, was all by the power of the Holy
Spirit of God working in him. Let's look again at our verse
tonight and let us remember that as this was true for the Apostle
Paul, so it is true for every, every
single child of God. We need his strength. We need
his working. Spurgeon again said, if I could
fall, I'd fall a thousand times a day. And to him that is able to keep
you from falling presents you faultless before his throne with
exceeding joy. Oh, what a mighty Savior. What
a mighty Savior. We labor and we strive, not according
to our own power and strength, but according to the grace and
strength which He gives. Again, our verse says, Whereunto
I also labor, striving according to His working, which worketh
in me mightily. according to His working. And
again, that's tied in. Look at verse 28. Whom we preach,
warning every man, and we know that's Christ, but just from
the end of verse 27, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory,
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 labor, striving according to His working, which
worketh in me, my Lord. according to His work in which
worketh in me mightily." Let us note here in our text that
Paul tells us that all his laboring and all his striving in preaching
and proclaiming the Gospel and in living a Christian life comes
not by his own power, but by God working in him mightily. And it's true for every one of
God's people. He keeps us. He keeps us. It was all according to his working,
God's working, which worked in him mightily. All Paul's prayers
and all his preaching and any success in his ministry was powerfully
wrought in him by God. See, we can't boast in anything
but Christ. Do you see how it shuts us to
ourselves? It's magnificent. It's absolutely
magnificent. It gives God all the glory. And
it gives Him all the praise. And it makes us so grateful that
He saved us. That He had mercy on us. That
He redeemed us from all our sins. All. And this is the good news. We proclaim to sinners. It's
just hard to find sinners nowadays. But oh, if the Holy Spirit gets
a hold of someone. And if He reveals to them what
they are, they will run to Christ, born again by the Holy Spirit
of God. And we will rejoice with them. We will rejoice with them. Oh, all the power in Paul's preaching
and all the power in the ministry all comes from God. His endurance,
remember the whole list of things that we read? His endurance to
endure all those things. All those things. His running
the race until its end. His fighting the good fight of
faith was all done not in his strength, but by the power of
the Holy Spirit of God. Turn, if you would, to Ephesians
1, 19-20. The power of preaching Christ was enabled by God. It was all by His power. enabled him to preach the gospel
far and wide, in season and out of season. Oh my. Look at Ephesians 1.19.
And look at this. That same power. That same power
for all believers. In what? Verse 19, chapter 1,
19 and 20. What is the exceeding greatness
of His power? Now remember when we did our
study on this verse, there's three different Greek words here
used for power. And they all disable man's ability. And what is the exceeding greatness
of His power to us who believe according to the working of His
mighty power. Now think of our verse. Whereunto
I also labor, striving according to His working, which worketh
in me mightily. Tie that in with this verse.
And what is the exceeding greatness of His power to usward? Who believe? Who believe? According to the
working of His mighty power, which He wrought in Christ when
He raised Him from the dead and set Him at His own right hand
in heavenly places. So for the believer, the power
I've spoken of in Ephesians chapter 1, verses 19 and 20, That is
the same power that works faith in the believer. It's regenerated
by the power of the Holy Spirit. And that is the same power that
raised Jesus from the grave. And that is the same power that's
spoken of in our text. Oh my. God is in absolute control. Oh, don't you rejoice. The same power which gives Paul
the power to labor, striving, and works according to God's
will within him, works mightily in Paul, is the same power that
works in every redeemed child of God. The power of the Holy
Spirit of God. and turn with you to 1 Corinthians
15, verse 10. The response for the believer
is to praise Him, to praise God. And the believer says this with
Paul. 1 Corinthians 15, verse 10. And then put your finger
in 2 Corinthians, and that will be the last place we'll turn
tonight. 1 Corinthians 15.10, now this
is the response for the believer, is to praise Him, to give Him
all the glory, knowing that it's God working within us. Look at
this. Look at this, beloved. You remember
when we were dead in trespasses and sins? Look at this. But by the grace of God, I am
what I am. I am what I am by the grace of
God. In His grace which was bestowed
upon me, it's a gift of God, was not in vain, but I labored
more abundantly than they all, yet not I, but the grace of God
which was with me. Oh, there's the source of Paul's
belly. Paul knew that any good that
came from him was the result of the Lord Jesus Christ working
in him. And I ask you, beloved God, is
it not the same for us? Oh, my. Oh, my. 2 Corinthians 12. Turn there if you could. And put your finger in 2 Corinthians
13. And I will read Philippians chapter
2, verse 13, if you want to write it down for reference. Philippians
2.13 says this, For it is God which worketh in you both to
will and to do of His good pleasure. For it is God which worketh in
you both to will and to do of His good pleasure. And then look
at 2 Corinthians 12, 9 and 10. And he said unto me, my grace
is sufficient for thee, for my strength is made perfect in weakness.
Most gladly, therefore, will I rather glory in my infirmities
that the power of Christ may rest upon me. Therefore, I take
pleasure in infirmities and reproaches and necessities and persecutions
in distress for Christ's sake for when I am weak. This is the opposite of what
the world thinks. For when I'm weak, then I'm strong. Then am I strong. Because God's
Holy Spirit works in the believer. And in turn, if you would, one
chapter over, God's power, His Holy Spirit works in the believer.
2 Corinthians 13 verses 3 and 4, Since ye seek a proof of Christ
speaking in me, which to you, Lord, is not weak, but is mighty
in you. For though he was crucified through
weakness, yet he lived by the power of God. For we also are
weak in him, but we shall live with him by the power of God
toward you. Mercy. Mercy. And we'll tie that in
again with Philippians 2. I'll read that one more time.
For it is God which worketh in you. Philippians 2.13 For it
is God which worketh in you, both to will and to do of His
good pleasure. And now this wonderful truth. This wonderful truth that Paul
wrote of applies to all believers in the Lord Jesus Christ. This
wonderful truth in the very last sentence, the last text, the
last verse of Colossians 1, Whereunto I also labor, striving according
to his workings, which worketh in me mightily. This wonderful
truth that Paul wrote of applies to all believers in the Lord
Jesus Christ. In Christ, We have the hope of glory. We
have the hope of glory. It is Christ in us, the hope
of glory, who is working in us both to will and to do of his
good pleasure. It's marvelous. It's the opposite
of what man thinks. It's the total opposite of what,
it's the total opposite of works-based religion. Nothing good dwells in our flesh.
The only good that is in us is the spirit of Jesus Christ, the
Holy Spirit of God. And God is the one who has given
us the spirit of adoption, which he himself predestinated before
the world was. Why? What a Savior. What a gospel. What power! To God be the glory, great things
He hath done. And it's all for the glory of
God in Christ Jesus our Lord.