15 – Colossians 4:14-18 – Finishing Well
What is significant about the fact that Demas who deserted Apostle Paul for the world (2 Timothy 4:10) was once among the list of people that Apostle Paul counted on? As a follower of Jesus, what is significant is that I should never be comfortable or confident about where I stand. In other words, my faithfulness is only as good as what I am thinking and what I am desiring today. I cannot take pride in my faithfulness in the past and I cannot look to the past to project my faithfulness in the future. If I think this way then I will coast spiritually today, and if I do then I am setting myself up for doom. I need to be faithful today. I need to do the tough work of applying the gospel to my heart today, and repenting of sins and false values. As a leader of followers of Jesus, I need to help others deepen their faith, knowledge and understanding of the gospel even to those who are encouraging disciples of Jesus. The point is that anyone call fall in the future, and so I must approach others not just with confidence but also with concern and care.
Reflect on Apostle Paul’s personal exhortation to Archippus in v.17, in light of what happened to Demas at the end. What is the work that I have received from the LORD and what may hinder me from completing that work? The work that I received from the Lord is the work of sanctification of my spiritual life and raising leaders. What may hinder me from completing the work is being satisfied with my definition of successful completion. Being a sinner, my definition of successful completion is different from God’s. I don’t need to work as hard, and I don’t need to persevere, in order to achieve my definition of successful completion. In other words, what will hinder me from completing the work that I received from the Lord is the idea that I think that I’ve done enough. I get satisfied too easily, and what this tells me is that I have my standards in mind and not the Lord’s.
Reflect on the importance of finishing well in life. Are there some areas in which I am declining in perseverance? Write out a personal prayer about living out my Christian commitments with faithfulness to the end.
Dear Heavenly Father. You know how easily and how frequently I lose perseverance. Lord, I think I know when those periods happen. I hope that you may give me the courage to share about it with my leaders and my peers so that I may receive help. Father, I still need to persevere in the matters of personal repentance and being colored by the gospel. I feel that a lot of the spiritual cancer cells have been wiped out, but the last remaining spiritual cancer cells are always the hardest to remove. They probably won’t be until I see you heaven, but until then help me to fight a steady and steadfast battle.
Reflect on the words “remember my chains.” What effect would remembering Paul’s imprisonment have had on the Colossians? Who are the people, and what are the chains I need to remember in living my Christian life? Remembering Paul’s imprisonment would have inspired the Colossians to live out the gospel in the manner similar to Apostle Paul. It would have inspired them to evangelize harder, it would have made any fears of imprisonment smaller, it would have made them more zealous.
Tags: Colossians
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