Colossians 1:24-29 –
24 Now I rejoice in my sufferings for your sake, and in my flesh I am filling up what is lacking in Christ’s afflictions for the sake of his body, that is, the church, 25 of which I became a minister according to the stewardship from God that was given to me for you, to make the word of God fully known, 26 the mystery hidden for ages and generations but now revealed to his saints. 27 To them God chose to make known how great among the Gentiles are the riches of the glory of this mystery, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory. 28 Him we proclaim, warning everyone and teaching everyone with all wisdom, that we may present everyone mature in Christ. 29 For this I toil, struggling with all his energy that he powerfully works within me.
Introduction
Last Sunday, for missions week, I preached a high-level overview of this passage. My main aim was to help you see the kind of perspective Paul had that enabled him to rejoice in his missionary sufferings. His answer, in simplest terms and consistent with the theme of missions week, is that while the sufferings he suffered were significant, they were far lesser than the greater good of bringing the gospel of Jesus Christ to the world.
In other words, Paul was able to rejoice in his sufferings because although the cost was high, the reward was far greater. The loss of worldly comfort was a price worth paying for the gain of living in the will of God and love for His people. It was better, he reasoned, to die to the pleasures of the world than to live apart from the eternal pleasure of God and the saints.
In that way, much of what I pointed out last week focused on how the claims of this passage support that glorious reality in relation to missions and how they relate to a well-stewarded missions ministry.
For the next couple of weeks, then, we are going to circle back through the passage in order to consider more closely and practically what it means for the ministry to which we’ve been called. Last week, the focus was on doing that internationally. This morning we’re going to consider the heart and marks of a well-stewarded local ministry. To be even more specific, I’m going to make the case that this passage is a charge to all of us (to all Christians) to make it our life’s chief ambition to bring the glorious riches of the gospel to bear on everyone we meet. That’s the big idea and the main takeaway.
Follow My Example
Without getting too deep into the weeds, before getting into the meat of this sermon, it’s important for me to acknowledge/remind you of a few things concerning the context of this passage.
- I’m arguing that we apply this passage to our local ministry, but Paul had never met the Colossians.
- I’m arguing that we apply this passage to our local ministry, but Paul was hundreds of miles away from the Colossians when he wrote this letter.
- I’m arguing that we apply this passage to our local ministry, but Paul functioned mainly as an on-the-move missionary.
- I’m arguing that we apply this passage to our local ministry, but Paul’s ministry was as an apostle.
- I’m arguing that we apply this passage to our local ministry, but Paul’s ministry was directly, audibly, visibly, and explicitly given to him by Jesus.
The question, then, is: How do I get from there to here? Am I being faithful to this passage in claiming that it is a charge for us to heed and example to follow, both in missions (last week) and local ministry (this week)?
I think I am being faithful to the text for two main reasons: (1) Paul’s command in 1 Corinthians 11 and (2) His words in v.28.
Paul’s Command (1 Corinthians 11:1)
In 1 Corinthians 11:1, Paul commands his readers to “Be imitators of me, as I am of Christ.” The NIV translates it like this, “Follow my example, as I follow the example of Christ.” Paul meant his readers (which includes us) to look to his life and do what he did, love what he loved, and say what he said, because he did, loved, and said what Jesus did, loved, and said.
He was not, of course, calling everyone to imitate him as an imprisoned, apostolic, missionary. Nor was he calling people to perfectly follow his perfect example of the perfect example of Jesus. But he was claiming that by God’s grace, his life was a good example of godliness for others to follow.
In my estimation, following the Paul’s example boils down to living continually out of three main convictions, no matter our context: (1) Treasuring Jesus above all, (2) Expressing that through whole-life, glad-hearted, Spirit-empowered obedience to God, and (3) Doing so especially by proclaiming and applying the gospel everywhere and among everyone, no matter the earthly cost.
In that way, although this paragraph in Colossians was written from prison, to a church he’d never been to, it flowed out of the same convictions that led him to spend 2+ years investing in churches in Tarsus, Ephesus, Rome, Corinth, and a few other cities as well.
For us to obey 1 Corinthians 11:1 in light of this paragraph, then, ultimately means learning to live out of the same core convictions that Paul was living out when he wrote it (which is a local ministry for most of us).
Paul’s Friends (1:28)
The second reason I think this passage is rightly applied to our local ministry is found in v.28. Throughout most of our passage (vs.24-27, 29), Paul described his ministry in first person terms (I/me). But in v.28 he switched to the third person (we). “Him [Jesus] we proclaim…that we may present everyone mature in Christ.”
Timothy, Epaphras, Tychicus, Onesimus, Aristarchus, Mark, Justus, Luke, Demas, and Nympha are all explicitly mentioned in this letter as significant ministry partners (part of the “we” of v.29). Each of those individuals played different ministry roles for the sake of the Church. Paul charged Timothy, for instance, to follow the example he set in this paragraph as a pastor of a local church (in Ephesus). More to the point, what was missions work for Paul, was at the same time, local church ministry for Epaphras (who was from Colossae).
Therefore, just as those who were with Paul shared his convictions and followed his example in whatever context God put them in, so too should we. Grace, may we all treasure Jesus above all, express that through whole-life, glad-hearted, Spirit-empowered obedience to God, and do so especially by proclaiming and applying the gospel everywhere and among everyone, no matter the earthly cost.
The Heart of a Well-Stewarded Ministry
Let’s say I’ve convinced you of the need to pursue those convictions, and apply them according to Paul’s example (which I’ve prayed all week would be the case). What, specifically, does that mean?
At the heart of the example Paul set is a commitment to stewarding his God-given ministry well. Don’t miss that. I think the culture of Grace Church is such that we all eagerly nod our heads when told of our need to treasure Jesus above all. But what does that look like lived-out? Certainly, it has a good deal to do with our appetites, affections, longings (which Paul talks about elsewhere). But it also has a good deal to do with the way we live our lives. It makes little sense to say we treasure Jesus apart from living that out in concrete ways.
Paul’s point in v.25 is that the primary way he did so was by being a good steward of the ministry entrusted to him, “…I became a minister [of the Church] according to the stewardship from God that was given to me for you…”
In other words, I think the center of Colossians 1:24-29 is an example of what it means to treasure Jesus in our daily lives; namely, by being good stewards of the ministry entrusted to us by God. My main charge, then, is to do just that, Grace—treasure Jesus by giving your whole life to being a good steward of your God-given ministry.
Key Terms
If we’re going to follow his example, then, we need to begin with clarity on the two main terms of this clause—minister and steward.
The term “minister” is an important one for Paul and an often misunderstood one for us. It is the same word used for “Deacon” when we speak of the office of deacon (1 Timothy 3:8-13). The literal translation is “servant”. God made Paul a minister of the Church in that He made him a servant of the Church. Paul’s main charge was not to get from the Church, but to give to it.
O, that we might all come to think and act like that. We’re so programed to think of the church as existing to serve us (which, of course, it does in some ways) instead of the other way around. Indeed, it is far more blessed to give (to serve, to minister) than to receive. Grace, how are you guilty of thinking of the church mainly as your servant?
The other key term, “steward,” is an unusual one. I can’t think of the last time I heard it outside of the Bible. It’s roughly synonymous with “manager”. To be a steward is to be responsible to oversee, or be an administrator of, or to manage the affairs of another. Paul was called by God to spend his life as a servant-manager of the Church.
In that way, neither the Church, nor his service of it belonged to Paul. Both belonged to God. Consequently, being a good steward of his servanthood meant a glad-hearted submission to God’s design and purposes for the Church. It was not Paul’s to tinker with however he saw fit. Stewarding his ministry well meant laying his life down to give the church all and only what God called him to give.
And so it is for us, Grace. We are to give our lives in service of the Church according to the design and wishes of God. But what is God’s design and what are His wishes? Again, that’s what makes this passage so helpful for us—in it, Paul models much of that for us. We don’t have to wonder. We just have to watch and listen.
Key Verses
Briefly, where do I get the idea that all Christians are given a ministry to steward as well? The Great Commission (Matthew 28:18-20) calls all disciples to make disciples who make disciples. Romans and 1 Corinthians 12 explicitly states that all Christians are called (and expected) to continually build up (serve, minister to) the church. Ephesians 4:11-12 describes the role of church leaders as “equipping the saints for the work of ministry [service of the church].” And one of the clearest and most parallel examples is 1 Peter 4:10 which says, “As each has received a gift [a spiritual gift from God], use it to serve [same word as Paul uses of himself in our passage, minister] one another, as good stewards [again, same word] of God’s varied grace.”
All Christians, then, are charged with the same charge as Paul: to be good stewards of the ministry we’ve been given. To treasure Jesus above all, to express that through whole-life, glad-hearted, Spirit-empowered obedience to God, and to do so especially by proclaiming and applying the gospel everywhere and among everyone, no matter the earthly cost. That’s the heart of a well-stewarded ministry.
Do you know that you too have been given a ministry? Do you know that you are to steward it well? Do you function in light of the fact that the God-given aim of your life is to be a good steward of your God-given ministry? Do you know what it means to do so?
The Marks of a Well-Stewarded Ministry
Thanks be to God, in this passage Paul provides us with many answers, much help, and a powerful example. Consider with me, then, four aspects of a well-stewarded ministry—the marks of a well-stewarded ministry.
Well-Stewarded Ministry Makes the Word of God Fully Known (25, 28)
The first aspect of a well-stewarded ministry from Paul’s example is found in v.25. Paul explained, “I became a minister [of the Church] according to the stewardship from God that was given to me for you, to make the word of God fully known…”.
We steward our ministry poorly when we use it to inculcate others in our own thoughts or ideas or withhold any of God’s counsel.
We’ve all seen and felt the destructive power of man-made ministries, haven’t we? The very definition of a cult is a ministry centered around the teaching of a person.
Similarly, we’ve all experienced the corrosive nature of poorly-stewarded ministries that share some, but not all of God’s word. You’ve heard someone on TV talking about how much “god” has blessed them, but without any indication of what god.
You’ve heard people say, “God is a loving God.” That’s true enough, but apart from defining the term and explaining that it’s one of God’s many attributes, people are as likely (maybe even more likely) to believe a lie about that truth as they are the truth about it.
Of course, we can’t share all of God’s Word in every encounter, but a well-stewarded ministry always knows, loves, and works at sharing the whole counsel of God, not just a piece of it. God’s word, not our word. Fully known, not partially known. Paul emphasized that and landed that plane in v.28.
28 Him [Jesus] we proclaim, warning everyone and teaching everyone with all wisdom, that we may present everyone mature in Christ.
If we are to make God’s Word fully known and everyone mature in it, we must warn and teach. Teach and warn.
Good ministry stewardship begins by warning the world that while God is impeccably holy and just, they are “alienated [from God] and hostile in mind [towards God], doing evil deeds [against God],” such that they are at enmity with God. They are dead in their trespasses and sins. They will suffer the eternal, conscious torment they deserve if they die in this condition.
Good ministry stewardship shares these things “with all wisdom,” Paul explained and modeled, but it always shares them.
But a well-stewarded ministry doesn’t stop there. It warns and it teaches. It warns against the consequences of sin and rebellion against God. And it also teaches the promises in God’s Word of redemption, reconciliation, and restoration (more on that in the next point).
And it teaches the rest of the counsel of God concerning all of God’s attributes and all of God’s expectations/requirements for His creatures, all of what Jesus commanded (Matthew 28:20), and all of what all of that means for life and godliness. And a well-stewarded ministry teaches all of that, beginning to end.
We must steward our ministry of warning and teaching until God’s Word is fully known and we are able to present everyone mature in Christ (28).
You must give yourselves to this, Grace. You must warn and teach. Everyone is called to do this on some level. It’s part of what it means to be a member of a church. It’s what it means to evangelize the world. It’s part of what it means to be a parent. It’s part of what it means to be a friend and a coworker and a coach.
If you are to follow God’s command and Paul’s example, you will learn God’s Word and you will share what you learn. You will steward your God-given ministry by giving what you have of God’s Word, even as you continually seek more to give.
But we don’t do this on our own. You steward your ministry well by giving what you have and making use of the varied gifts of the church. That’s why we have Sunday school and Berea. That’s why we preach the word and have elders. That’s why we have G2g, Abide, SiS, and MM. That’s why being an active member is so important—none of us have all we need to be good stewards of all of God’s Word.
Well-Stewarded Ministry Is About Revealing the Mystery of Christ (26-27)
Although a well-stewarded ministry makes God’s Word fully known, it focuses on one aspect in particular—the mystery of Christ in you.
26 the mystery hidden for ages and generations but now revealed to his saints. 27 To them God chose to make known how great among the Gentiles are the riches of the glory of this mystery, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory.
God determined to save a people for Himself before there were people (2 Timothy 1:9). There were promises and breadcrumbs leading toward their fulfillment from the beginning, but for ages and generations the fullness of God’s plan was hidden and mysterious.
The mystery is that there is salvation for the whole world (Ephesians 3:6) through Jesus.
The mystery is that at just the right time, God sent His Son into the world, to be a perfect example for the world, to do what the world could not do (perfectly honor the Father), and then to die in place of sinners, defeating death and atoning for sin, rising from the dead on the third day, ascending into heaven, and advocating for all the faithful from God’s right hand.
The mystery is that instead of gaining or maintaining God’s favor through perfect obedience to God (which we couldn’t do, including having a well-stewarded ministry) or atoning for our own sins by the blood of bulls and goats (which they couldn’t do), Jesus did on our behalf. And not only that, but then credited all of His merit to our account (which is Christ in you).
First, middle, and last: Christ in you! Above all and before all: Christ in you! Under and around: Christ in you! To the Church and the world: Christ in you! Until the end of time: Christ in you!
That’s the mystery that a well-stewarded ministry proclaims. And it is full of a glory that is beyond all riches. It is the greatest news of all time. And it will come out of all who treasure Jesus above all.
How quickly do you get to Jesus in your conversations with the people in your life? How central is He to the discussions you have with those who do not treasure Him? How central is He in your discussions here? Do you have stories ready to share about His kindness, grace, mercy, and blessing in your life? Do you have His promises ready to share that you are clinging to and finding joy in? Ultimately, how much do you treasure Him? Is He like pennies or diamonds in your affections and discussions?
Grace, a well-stewarded ministry treasures Jesus above all, expresses that through whole-life, glad-hearted, Spirit-empowered obedience to God, and does so especially by proclaiming and applying the gospel everywhere and among everyone, no matter the earthly cost.
Well-Stewarded Ministry Works Hard in God’s Power (29)
The third key aspect of a well-stewarded ministry is one that works very hard in God’s strength. Paul explained that this was the case for him in v.29.
29 For this I toil, struggling with all his energy that he powerfully works within me.
“Paul’s language in this verse is brutally compelling. The Greek word translated ‘toil’ was used for work that left one so weary it was as if the person had taken a beating. It denotes labor to exhaustion. ‘Struggling,’ a stronger term than ‘toil,’ was the Greek word from which we derive the English word agony…The words together describe the tremendous energy of Paul’s…ministry” (Hughs, PTW, 251).
Work hard, Grace. Work hard to tell people about Jesus and make God’s Word fully known. We’re not made to be dominated by leisure or idleness. We’re not made for Netflix and putting practice, online shopping or social media scrolling, sports watching or hobbies. There is a place for those things in the Christian life. In fact, in some ways they are built into the rhythm of Creatin (six days of work and one day of rest). But they are never meant to be at the center of our efforts, the highest of our affections, or the aim of our lives.
God made us, above all, to work hard at inviting others to join us in treasuring Jesus above all.
We should go to bed tired at the end of a day of ministry in our homes, neighborhoods, and at church. We should make it our aim to hit the finish line of life fully spent.
But we need to do all of that hard work in God’s strength. Work hard, in God’s strength. But what does that mean? I think it means two things in particular. It means continually acknowledging before God and man that every ounce of energy, every ability, every breath, every bit of work you do is from God. The first thing it means to steward your ministry well by working hard in God’s strength is to acknowledge that there is no other strength. It’s a recognition that if God does not empower you, you have no power. It’s a posture of humility and gratitude.
The second thing it means is that there really is supernatural power at work whenever we give ourselves to God’s commands. When we live according to God’s design 1+1 often = 3 (or 4 or 5).
I experience this most noticeably in the way of evangelism and ministry to new Christians. I don’t know how to explain it other than that something like a spiritual version of 5-hour Energy flows through me during and after an evangelistic encounter. Whatever fatigue I had going into it, vanishes during and after. It must be a glimpse of the fullness of life that Jesus came to bring (John 10:10). The same thing happens to me almost every time I am able to spend time with a new Christian who is eager to fully know the Word of God.
Is your life characterized by working hard? Are you working hard primarily to treasure Jesus and share Him with others—as one stewarding a God-given ministry? Is there a straight line between the things that fill up your day and the ministry God has given you? As you work, are you continually conscious of the fact that it is God who is enabling you to do so? Do you regularly experience God’s energy working powerfully in you?
If you are a Christian, your primary God-given ambition in life ought to be being a good steward of the ministry entrusted to you by God. And doing so means working hard in the strength of God.
Well-Stewarded Ministry Means Rejoicing Hardship (24)
The fourth and final characteristic of a well-stewarded ministry is actually the first exemplified by Paul in this passage. I wanted to end with it because we spent a lot of time on it last week (I won’t rehash everything we already covered), but also because it serves as kind of litmus test for how well we are stewarding our ministries.
24 Now I rejoice in my sufferings for your sake, and in my flesh I am filling up what is lacking in Christ’s afflictions for the sake of his body, that is, the church,
Paul’s ministry was characterized by “sufferings” (plural, continual), but he rejoiced in them.
Suffering on account of faithfulness in ministry will certainly ebb and flow. There will be times of more and less suffering as we call on people to join us in treasuring Jesus, warning and teaching them the Word of God. But it is a fact that there will be suffering for all who truly give themselves to stewarding their God-given ministries well.
In evangelism, in bringing the gospel to those who have not heard or do not yet believe, there will be rejection, scoffing, and even anger. I remember a conversation I had with a man at the farmer’s market a while ago. It was odd. For some reason he kept misunderstanding me and finding a way to take offense at it. Other times, I’ve shared the gospel with unbelieving believers and they were frustrated and offended that I’d suggest they weren’t already Christians. Some of you have shared with me of coworkers who were annoyed with you or bosses who told you to knock it off. Others have shared of family members who were downright angry and hostile.
In being a good steward of the ministry God has given you to believers, it will lead to times of frustration, mistrust, even anger and abandonment. It happened to Jesus, to Paul, and it will almost certainly happen to everyone who’s main ambition is calling the Church to treasure Christ above all.
So, are you stewarding your ministry well by sharing your faith with non-Christians and investing in the saints, calling them to treasure Jesus with you? One way to tell—one litmus test—is whether or not there is suffering in your life for it.
Even more revealing still, are you rejoicing in your suffering? Do you count it as all joy that you are considered worthy of sharing in the sufferings of Jesus and in filling up what is lacking in His afflictions for the sake of His people? It’s one level of stewardship to simply follow some of Paul’s ministry example and obey some of Jesus’ ministry commands (one talent buried). It’s another level to do so with the kind of boldness, clarity, and completeness that leads to suffering (five talents invested). And it’s another level still to rejoice in the suffering your faithfulness causes (ten talents invested).
Where any of those levels of stewardship are present, praise God, it is His kindness that has drawn you into that kind of obedience and joy. Praise God and press in. Ask Him to continue to cause you to invest better and better.
Conclusion
Once again and in conclusion, I think the main question all of this puts before us is whether or not we see our lives as primarily aimed at glorifying God by stewarding the gospel ministry entrusted to us by God, in the power of God, within the local church. Do you believe that (according to God’s Word and the example of Paul) your chief end is to help everyone around you treasure Christ with you? And if so, is that primarily how you function? Is that the lens through which you view your schooling and teaching and working and parenting and marriage and leisure and time at church and away from church and how you spend your money?
Too often we approach life and ministry like we’re on a basketball team and we barely know it. The result is that some of us show up to practice and some don’t. Some miss because we didn’t even know there was practice and others simply because we had “better” things to do. And when we do show up, we all have different reasons for doing so. Some of us are trying to get exercise, some trying to get a girl/guy, some trying to show off, some hoping for a scholarship, some just because our friends are there, and some because our parents made us. And when it comes to the games, we have different definitions of victory/success. For some it’s padding the stat sheet. We don’t even care whether the team wins or loses as long as we get ours. For others, victory means doing the least possible. For others it means winning at all costs. We couldn’t care less what it takes or who we hurt.
This passage is a call to something much different; to something much greater. It is an example of a life well-lived and a ministry well-stewarded.
Grace, with God’s help and one another’s, may we live differently. May we give ourselves to that which God has given to us—lives dedicated to well-stewarded ministries. That is, may we all follow Paul’s example and treasure Jesus above all, may we express that through whole-life, glad-hearted, Spirit-empowered obedience to God, and may we do so especially by proclaiming and applying the gospel everywhere and among everyone, no matter the earthly cost.