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Something Bigger than Me

Something Bigger than Me

Words of Faith 9-19-19

Dr. Jeffrey D. Hoy © 2019

Jeff.Hoy@faithfellowshipweb.com

Faith Fellowship Church - Melbourne, FL

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Colossians 1

[3] We always thank God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, when we pray for you,   [4] because we have heard of your faith in Christ Jesus and of the love you have for all the saints-- [5] the faith and love that spring from the hope that is stored up for you in heaven and that you have already heard about in the word of truth, the gospel [6] that has come to you. All over the world this gospel is bearing fruit and growing, just as it has been doing among you since the day you heard it and understood God's grace in all its truth.

 

      Have you ever noticed that the word of an outsider can really encourage us?  I remember I once watched a visiting preacher interact at a church where the pastor was very discouraged.  On the closing night of the meetings, the guest preacher took a few moments in the pulpit to thank the pastor and congregation.  The guest preacher made a special point to say what a fine pastor the people had serving them and how blessed they were to have him.  Then he pointed out what a great congregation this was to serve because of how loving and gracious the people had been.  You could almost see that pastor straighten up and hold his head a little higher.  And after the meeting was over, there was a delightful fellowship as that pastor loved on the people and they graciously enjoyed greeting him.  Everything that the guest preacher said was true.  It was just that an outsider needed to observe and express it.

     Paul was an outsider to the Colossians.  And by this point in history, he was the most famous voice for the Christian faith in the world, probably much better known than any of the Jerusalem Apostles.  He had traveled all over the world, preaching and giving witness to the wonder and power of God.  Today we would see him as a celebrity of mega-status. 

       So just how powerful was it for the believers in this off the highway town to hear these amazing thoughts?  Paul was saying to the Colossians: "You may feel small and forgotten, even unimportant, but we have been praying for you and giving thanks for you.  We-- (the megastars of the Christian world… though Paul would have cringed at such a thought) we have heard of your faith and the love you have for the saints.  We have heard about your faith and love stored up in you since you first heard the Gospel.

        Wow.  That must have been an extremely encouraging word.  Just when they thought that they had missed the spiritual boat and now were entangled in several sticky heresies, Paul reminded the Colossians that God had done a great work among them that had been evident by their faith and love for one another!  They might have said: "Oh yeah… that's right; God has been at work among us…"

       Sometimes we forget, don't we?  Sometimes, when there are troubles and controversies, we forget the amazing work of God that has been seen among us in the church.  We can be blinded to the things God is still doing right there in our midst because we have become entangled in the controversies of the day (hairesis in Greek). 

        A good leader will deal with the controversies (Paul is getting to that stuff) but won't let the people lose sight of all the amazing stuff that God is doing among them.  A good leader will lift the eyes of the people to see that something bigger than themselves is going on in the family of God. 

        That's why Paul reminded the Colossians, not only have we heard about your faith in Jesus and the love you have for one another-- but all over the world this gospel is bearing fruit and growing, just as it has been doing among you since the day you heard it and understood God's grace in all its truth.  This is bigger than you.

        The movement and plan of God is always bigger than you.  To put it another way-- you are part of something much more significant than yourselves.  You are part of something much bigger than your problems or disappointments or feelings of being slighted or left out.  You are part of something much bigger than where the Romans decided to put the next highway or where the last big revival broke out. You are part of something bigger!

 

        O God, I thank You, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ for the faith I have seen in the Body of Christ, especially in those who have felt beaten down and discouraged.  I thank You for the faith and love in them that springs from the hope found in the Word of truth, the Gospel.  I thank You for what You are doing all over the world as Your Gospel bears fruit and is growing.  Teach me to understand your grace in all its truth.  Lift my eyes of faith to see You and what You are doing.  I give thanks.  In Jesus' Name.

 

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The Words of Faith devotion is published five days a week by E-mail, and our website, and our church app, excluding Federal holidays. Please feel free to forward this devotion to a friend who might be blessed by this devotion. Unless otherwise noted, all Scripture is quoted from the New International Version (R) of The Holy Bible. Copyright (c) 1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan Publishing House. All rights reserved. Words of Faith (c) 1997, 2010 Jeffrey D. Hoy. All rights reserved. Permission is granted to forward this copyrighted material or use portions of it with appropriate notation of the source for non-profit purposes.  

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