January/31/ 2021
Ready Set Grow
Part 5:
Grow in Prayer
SCRIPTURE: Colossians 4:2-5 TLB “Don’t be weary in prayer; keep at it; watch for God’s answers, and remember to be thankful when they come. 3 Don’t forget to pray for us too, that God will give us many chances to preach the Good News of Christ for which I am here in jail. 4 Pray that I will be bold enough to tell it freely and fully and make it plain, as, of course, I should. 5 Make the most of your chances to tell others the Good News. Be wise in all your contacts with them.”
OBSERVATION: We should always be praying for those who don’t know God.
Hebrews 2:10a (NCV) “God is the one who made all things, and all things are for His glory. He wanted to have many children share His glory…”
Ephesians 1:5 (NLT) “God’s unchanging plan has always been to adopt us into His own family by bringing us to Himself through Jesus Christ.”
1. Prayer opens DOORS
Verse 3 NIV “And pray for us, too, that God may open a door for our message”
2. Prayer opens MOUTHS
Verse 4 “Pray that I will be bold enough to tell it freely and fully and make it plain, as, of course, I should.”
3. Prayer opens HEARTS
Verse 5 “Make the most of your chances to tell others the Good News. Be wise in all your contacts with them.”
John 6:44 NIV (Jesus said) “No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws them…”
I Corinthians 2:1 & 3 TLB “when I first came to you I didn’t use lofty words and brilliant ideas to tell you God’s message…. Verse 3 my preaching was very plain, not with a lot of oratory and human wisdom, but the Holy Spirit’s power was in my words”
APPLICATION: Two parts — Your part and our part.
Your Part: Pray for someone who doesn’t know God and invite them to At the Movies.
Our part: Prepare a place where they can experience God.
Verse 5-6 NIV “Be wise in the way you act toward outsiders; make the most of every opportunity. 6 Let your conversation be always full of grace, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how to answer everyone.”
1. Be real
Verse 5 “be wise in the way you act…”
2. Be ready
Verse 5-6 NIV ““Be wise in the way you act toward outsiders; make the most of every opportunity. 6 Let your conversation be always full of grace, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how to answer everyone.”
3. Be relational
Verse 5-6 NIV ““Be wise in the way you act toward outsiders; make the most of every opportunity. 6 Let your conversation be always full of grace, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how to answer everyone.”
4. Be relevant
January/24/ 2021
Grow in love
Scripture: Colossians 3:12-15 NLT
“Since God chose you to be the holy people he loves, you must clothe yourselves with tenderhearted mercy, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience. 13 Make allowance for each other’s faults, and forgive anyone who offends you. Remember, the Lord forgave you, so you must forgive others. 14 Above all, clothe yourselves with love, which binds us all together in perfect harmony. 15 And let the peace that comes from Christ rule in your hearts. For as members of one body you are called to live in peace. And always be thankful.”
Observation: Two things about love
1. Love is practical
Verse 12-13 “clothe yourself with tenderhearted mercy, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience, 13 making allowances for each others faults and forgive anyone who offends you.’
Colossians 3:5-10 NIV 5 Put to death, therefore, whatever belongs to your earthly nature: sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desires and greed, which is idolatry. 6 Because of these, the wrath of God is coming. 7 You used to walk in these ways, in the life you once lived. 8 But now you must also rid yourselves of all such things as these: anger, rage, malice, slander, and filthy language from your lips. 9 Do not lie to each other, since you have taken off your old self with its practices 10 and have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge in the image of its Creator.
2. Love is priority
Verse 14 “Above all clothe yourself with love, which binds us all together in perfect harmony”
Matthew 22:36-40 NLT “Teacher, which is the most important commandment in the law of Moses?” 37 Jesus replied, “‘You must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your mind.’ 38 This is the first and greatest commandment. 39 A second is equally important: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ 40 The entire law and all the demands of the prophets are based on these two commandments.”
Matthew 5:44 “ Love your enemies.”
John 13:34-35 NASB “A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another, even as I have loved you, that you also love one another. By this all men will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another.”
1 Corinthians 16:14 “Let all you do be done in love.”
Galatians 5:22 “But the fruit of the Spirit is love…”
APPLICATION: How do we grow in love?
1. Join up
Colossians 3:15-17 NIV “Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace. And be thankful. 16 Let the message of Christ dwell among you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom through psalms, hymns, and songs from the Spirit, singing to God with gratitude in your hearts. 17 And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.”
2. Give up
Colossians 3:18-23 NIV “Wives, submit yourselves to your husbands, as is fitting in the Lord. 19 Husbands, love your wives and do not be harsh with them. 20 Children, obey your parents in everything, for this pleases the Lord. 21 Fathers, do not embitter your children, or they will become discouraged. 22 Slaves, obey your earthly masters in everything; and do it, not only when their eye is on you and to curry their favor, but with sincerity of heart and reverence for the Lord. 23 Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for human masters”
January/10/ 2021
Grow in Depth | Colossians 2:6-10
Colossians 2:6-10 TLB “And now just as you trusted Christ to save you, trust him, too, for each day’s problems; live in vital union with him. 7 Let your roots grow down into him and draw up nourishment from him. See that you go on GROWING in the Lord, and become strong and vigorous in the truth you were taught. Let your lives overflow with joy and thanksgiving for all he has done. 8 Don’t let others spoil your faith and joy with their philosophies, their wrong and shallow answers built on men’s thoughts and ideas, instead of on what Christ has said. 9 For in Christ there is all of God in a human body; 10 so you have everything when you have Christ, and you are filled with God through your union with Christ.
Observation: If I DEEPEN MY ROOTS I will DEVELOP MY FRUITS
Proverbs 12:12 NLT “But the Godly are well rooted and bear much fruit”
1. Strength
Verse 7c “you will become strong and vigorous”
Psalm 92:12-13 NIV “The righteous will flourish like a palm tree, they will grow like a cedar of Lebanon; PLANTED in the house of the Lord.”
2. Joy
Verse 7d “let your lives overflow with Joy
Galatians 5:22-23 NIV “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness and self-control.”
Matthew 7:16-18 NLT “Can you pick grapes from thornbushes, or figs from thistles? 17 A good tree produces good fruit, and a bad tree produces bad fruit. 18 A good tree can’t produce bad fruit, and a bad tree can’t produce good fruit.”
3. Perspective
Verse 7d “and thanksgiving”
Verse 10 “so you have everything when you have Christ”
APPLICATION: How do I deepen my roots?
1. Trust
Verse 6 “And now just as you trusted Christ to save you, trust him, too, for each day’s problems; live in vital union with him.”
Romans 10:17 NKJV “Faith comes by hearing and hearing by the word of God”
2. Connection
Psalm 1:1-3 NIV “Blessed is the one
who does not walk in step with the wicked
or stand in the way that sinners take
or sit in the company of mockers,
2 but whose delight is in the law of the Lord,
and who meditates on his law day and night.
3 That person is like a tree PLANTED by streams of water,
which yields its fruit in season
and whose leaf does not wither—
whatever they do prospers.”
3. Focus
Verse 8 TPT “Beware that no one distracts you or intimidates you in their attempt to lead you away from Christ’s fullness by pretending to be full of wisdom when they’re filled with endless arguments of human logic. For they operate with humanistic and clouded judgments based on the mindset of this world system, and not the anointed truths of the Anointed One
January/02/ 2021
Ready Set Grow
Part 1 Colossians 1:6-9
Colossians 1:6-9 NIV “In the same way, the gospel is bearing fruit and growing throughout the whole world—just as it has been doing among you since the day you heard it and truly understood God’s grace. 7 You learned it from Epaphras, our dear fellow servant, who is a faithful minister of Christ on our behalf, 8 and who also told us of your love in the Spirit. 9 For this reason, since the day we heard about you, we have not stopped praying for you. We continually ask God to fill you with the knowledge of his will through all the wisdom and understanding that the Spirit gives, 10 so that you may live a life worthy of the Lord and please him in every way: bearing fruit in every good work, growing in the knowledge of God, 11 being strengthened with all power according to his glorious might so that you may have great endurance and patience, 12 and giving joyful thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of his holy people in the kingdom of light.”
OBSERVATION: The gospel changes us!
Verse 6 NLT “This same Good News that came to you is going out all over the world. It is bearing fruit everywhere by changing lives, just as it changed your lives from the day you first heard and understood the truth…”
2 Corinthians 5:17 NIV “if anyone is in Christ he is a NEW CREATION, the old is gone the NEW has come”
1. Changes our thinking
Verse 9 “We continually ask God to fill you with the knowledge of his will through all the wisdom and understanding that the Spirit gives”
Romans 12:2 NIV “Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind.”
1 Corinthians 2:16 NIV “WE HAVE the mind of Christ.”
2. Changes our living
Verse 10 “so that you may live a life worthy of the Lord and please him in every way: bearing fruit in every good work.
3. Changes our perspective
Verse 11 “being strengthened with all power according to his glorious might so that you may have great endurance and patience and giving joyful thanks to the Father”
2 Corinthians 4:17 NIV “For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all.”
4. Changes our future
Verse 12-14 “giving joyful thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of his holy people in the kingdom of light. 13 For he has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves, 14 in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.”
Jeremiah 29:11 NIV “For I know the plans I have for you declares the Lord, plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you a hope and a future”
APPLICATION: Let the gospel grow!
1. Get in the Bible
Verse 6 NCV "Everywhere in the world that Good News is bringing blessings and is growing. This has happened with you, too, since you heard the Good News and understood the truth about the grace of God.”
2. Get in a CIRCLE
Verse 6 “In the same way, the gospel is bearing fruit and growing throughout the whole world—just as it has been doing among you since the day you heard it and truly understood God’s grace. 7 You learned it from Epaphras, our dear fellow servant, who is a faithful minister of Christ on our behalf,
