as by the Spirit of the Lord. Once again, may the Lord graciously
help us as we continue our meditation in the Epistle of Paul to the
Colossians. and the first chapter in this
evening we'll read verses 25, 26 and 27. So the epistle of
Paul to the Colossians and reading verses 25, 26 and 27. Whereof
I am made a minister according to the dispensation of God which is given to me for you
to fulfil the Word of God. Even the mystery, which hath
been hid from ages and from generations, but now is made manifest to his
saints, to whom God would make known what is the riches of the
glory of this mystery, among the Gentiles, which is Christ
in you, the hope of glory.' It's wonderful to think that
the Apostle Paul is able to write such words to the Colossians
and of course they were those things which he had tasted and
handled and felt and known in his own heart and he was very
much aware that as he tells us in this 25th verse whereof I
am made a minister according to the dispensation of God which
is given to me for you he didn't choose this position himself
as I'm sure you are familiar with he was a Pharisee of the
Pharisees and very satisfied with his pharisaical religion
and thought that he was right and all the Christians were wrong
and spent his time therefore going around arresting those
Christians and having them cast into prison but nonetheless there
came that glorious day in that Damascus road when the Lord came and wonderfully
met with the Apostle, he was dramatically changed. He was changed really from doing his own will
because As he was struck down by that light from heaven, he
came and said, Lord, what wilt thou have me to do? It's a wonderful
evidence of the work of God. when he makes us willing as he
did Paul in the day of his power. And he was such a changed character.
And as we know, after those three days, he began to preach. And
what did he preach? He preached Christ. So we see he had a very clear
testimony, a very clear evidence that the Lord had called him
to preach. the unsearchable riches of Christ
and therefore surely it's not surprising that he's able to
make a statement like this and we know that the Apostle was
a humble man but we also know the Apostle was an honest man
and therefore he wasn't afraid to make those statements which
sometimes perhaps people might think were proud but no, this
was being honest to God and honest to the people. So he was able
to come and therefore say, wherefore I am made a minister. You might
realize, of course, and that refers to the previous verses
and perhaps just the previous verse, 24, where we read, who
now rejoice in my sufferings for you. Yes, the apostle was
called to suffer. and to fill up that which is
behind of the afflictions of Christ in my flesh. for his body's
sake, which is the church. The Lord had allowed him to be
greatly afflicted and to suffer much, and as he tells us, for
the benefit of the body of Christ, which is the church. You see
how glorious it is, how the Lord calls one here and one there. In his time, and in his way and
they are prepared by God for that time. And so was the apostle
to be able to write such words to the Colossians. And so he
says, wherefore I am made a minister according to the dispensation
of God which is given to me for you. So the Lord gave him The
Lord gave him the words, the Lord gave him the message, and
how wonderful it was to realise that God was with him, God had
been with him, and God will continue to be with him, which is given
to me for you. to fulfill the Word of God. Yes, he had a commission to fulfill. And the Lord did not leave him,
the Lord did not forsake him, although he suffered much. but we know that it was of benefit
and blessing to him as we referred to previously in the second epistle
to the Corinthians or that long list of difficulties the apostle
was called to suffer for Christ's sake and then he moves on and
he says even the mystery which hath been hid from ages and from
generations but is now made manifest to his saints. And really it
links very clearly with the next verse, 27, to whom God would
make known what is the riches of the glory of this mystery
among the Gentiles, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory. Well, Old Testament times The
Lord was with his people. But you see, the mystery of this
salvation of Almighty God was not clear. It wasn't... God's
saints were blessed with a right understanding of it. But you
see, it was really through a glass, darkly. there were all those
wonderful ceremonies which were carried out in the tabernacle
and then in the temple and they all pointed to the Saviour but
they were clothed in darkness really and so the people of God
they only saw vaguely they didn't see clearly even Abraham, the
Lord spoke, Abraham saw my day and was glad But we're thankful
indeed that there was those glorious evidences, even though in that
dark state, to the Old Testament saints. And it was indeed, as
the Apostle says here, a mystery, even the mystery which hath been
hid from ages and from generations, but now is made manifest to his
saints. And the now had come, the time
of revelation, the time when the Lord Jesus came into this
world and so many glorious Old Testament prophecies were fulfilled
with regard to the Saviour, which so clearly demonstrated that
He was the promised Messiah. the one that had been spoken
of, and it came to pass, in God's time, in God's time and in God's
way. We must always remember that.
God's ways are higher than our ways. You see, the Jewish people,
the Israelites, they expected the Messiah to come as a glorious,
natural king, but he came superior to that. He came as the glorious
spiritual king of all his church, and he came as not just a king,
but the king of kings and lord of lords. And how wonderful it
was that he was able to preach the glorious gospel of salvation
for those last three years of his life. and then to fulfil
so gloriously all that the Father gave him to do, did his Father's
will, even though he knew how difficult it would be as he prayed
in Gethsemane If it be possible, let this cut pass from me, nevertheless
not my will, but thine be done." A humble submission to the will
of his father. And then, as we know, on the
cross itself, he endured that great agony naturally. and a
greater agony of his father hiding his face. And he cried out, My
God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me? Well, the Lord hid his father,
hid his face from his son from those three hours. But he wasn't
forsaken. And the glory is, that none of
the church today are forsaken. They never will be. They never
have been. Can we not thank and praise our
God for this? And so we should be thankful
today if God has made known to us the mystery to his saints,
to whom God would make known what is the riches of the glory
of this mystery among the Gentiles, which is Christ in you, the hope
of glory. See, it wasn't natural riches,
but it was spiritual riches. It was a wonderful revelation
to know that the Lord Jesus Christ was indeed the Messiah. He was
indeed God's Son. He was indeed the second person
in the Trinity. And what a wonderful life he
lived. Not easy, but my friends, sinless
life. And he lived that sinless life
in order that he might be the one who was to atone for the
sins of all his church. Old Testament times, there were
all those sacrifices which as we read in the Hebrews, could
never truly take away sin. They were representative. But
this man, the Lord Jesus Christ, he did. He could and he did. He died
to atone for all the sins of all his people. It's wonderful,
surely, to meditate on this. to think that through the great
and glorious love of the Saviour we have hope of eternal life
and to us have been revealed the riches of the glory of this
mystery not natural riches but spiritual riches and spiritual
riches are far more valuable than natural riches because they
have an eternal value to think that one day, by the grace of
God, we shall be indeed with Christ, in glory, forever and
ever, where there will be no sin, no sorrow, no sighing, but
eternal happiness, and we as poor, wretched, hell-deserving
sinners, will be found in glory complete in Him well what a mercy
it is if you and I have been brought to that place it's been
revealed to us the mystery of godliness the wonder of it to
show Holy Spirit shows us our sinful and lost condition and
directed us to the wonderful salvation which is only to be
found in the Lord Jesus Christ. That is what makes the Saviour
precious to poor sinners. The Apostle Paul was able to
say the truth of that, didn't he, when he said and referred
to the Saviour and spoke of the precious blood of Christ. Well, it is precious, it is invaluable
because it was through that shed blood as the apostles said in
the Hebrews without shedding a blood there's no remission,
there's no forgiveness but can we not tonight bless God for
that finished work and you see the glory is that the Gospel
was brought to the Gentiles to you and me. In Old Testament
times, with few exceptions, it was only the Jewish people, the
Hebrews, that had any knowledge given to them of the glorious
truth of the gospel. But through the wonderful mercy
of God, the gospel has been preached throughout the world. What a
mercy. What a mercy it's reached us
here. And we should truly be thankful
tonight and have much cause, therefore, to praise our God
that we've come together. I just read those few verses
in all that chapter, rather, in the second of, third chapter,
rather, of the second of Corinthians, really because it speaks a little
bit about this, verse 13. And not as Moses, which put a
veil over his face, the children of Israel could not steadfastly
look to the end of that which is abolished, but their minds
were blinded. My friends, our minds are blinded
until the light of the gospel shines into our hearts. And he says, for until this day
remaineth the same veil untaken away in the reading of the Old
Testament, which veil is done away in Christ. Well, I hope tonight we can truly
thank and praise God for the glorious Gospel, the Gospel which
is preached, the Gospel that we can read of and the Gospel
that we can rejoice in, because through that Gospel, by the grace
of God, you and I have hope of eternal life. Our life is just
a vapour, soon passing away. That eternal life is eternal,
forever and ever, and it's a wonderful prospect. for the Church of God
to be able to look forward to that day. And so, read again,
wherefore I am made a minister according the dispensation of
God which is given to me for you to fulfil the word of God. Even the mystery which hath been
heard from ages and from generations but now is made manifest to his
saints, to whom God would make known what is the riches of the
glory of this mystery among the Gentiles, which is Christ in
you, the hope of glory. Well, what a wonderful blessing
if Christ indeed is in us, the hope of glory. If it is so, then
we shall