The Presence of God in Preaching

Three Greek words describe what goes into effective preaching- Logos, Ethos, and Pathos. These three are necessary for means of persuasion.

1. Logos could mean the Word or content. When we stand to preach we have fully went through the exegetical process of the passage and have the author's intent and outline.

We preach God's Word (logos) and not our human thoughts. So content of the Word is fundamental.

2. Ethos is character or who we are. We could use the word ethics. When the preacher's ethos backs up his logos, there will be Spirit-filled communication and the presence of God.

3. Pathos is passion. We must believe the truths we are communication and feel a deep passion for them and desire to share them. This does not mean hollering and fuming but a deep passion as we preach.

Let me use these three words a different way. Ethos- who we are; Logos- what we say; and Pathos- how we say it.

Experience over Scripture?

Colossians 2:18-19, "Let no man beguile you of your reward in a voluntary humility and worshipping of angels, intruding into those things which he hath not seen, vainly puffed up by his fleshly mind,  (19)  And not holding the Head, from which all the body by joints and bands having nourishment ministered, and knit together, increaseth with the increase of God.

v. 18: Mysticism may be defined as the pursuit of a deeper or higher subjective experience. It looks for truth internally, thru feelings, intuition, and external sensations.

Experience trumps Scripture. Scripture is not the authority but one's experience.

They said you weren't saved or growing if you did not have some mystical experience. The false teachers were defrauding them of their prize or reward making them feel inferior.

The disguised their pride as false humility and worshipped angels. What's wrong with this kind of worship?

1. There is only one mediator between God and man.

2. We are called to worship God alone.

3. Angels worship God.

They also claimed to have visions. This is prevalent in the charismatic movement. These visions are a source of new revelation outside the closed canon of Scripture.

v. 18: We are not to be intimidated by their false experiences because they come from fleshly minds void of the Holy Spirit. There is a tendency in human nature to move from the objectivity of Scripture to the subjectivity of experience.

Note the Holy Spirit writes that these are visions they have not seen.

v. 19: They were not holding fast to Christ from whom salvation and spiritual growth comes from.

Hid with Christ in God

Colossians 3:3, "For ye are dead, and your life is hid with Christ in God."

What does “with Christ in God” mean? 3 truths:

1. The Christian life is hidden to the world because they know not Christ and can’t understand spiritual things. The full revelation of who we are is in the next world.

2. We are eternally secure [1 Pet. 1:4; John 10:28; Heb. 7:25;

     Rom 8:30-39].

3. The things that attract us and excite us belong in heaven, not earth.

Living Above This Life

Colossians 3:1-4, "If ye then be risen with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ sitteth on the right hand of God.  (2)  Set your affection on things above, not on things on the earth.  (3)  For ye are dead, and your life is hid with Christ in God.  (4)  When Christ, who is our life, shall appear, then shall ye also appear with him in glory.

Scriptures teach us as believers, that we are to live above this life, that we are to live the resurrected life setting our minds on heaven.

Our hearts and minds are not to be set on things below, but things above. We are to be heavenly minded, glorify God in all we do, and occupy down here, till we go up there, by death or his coming.

We are in the world but not of the world. We are pilgrims, strangers and passer-bys on this earth. We are not to love the things of this world, and we are to set our hearts on heaven.

Our Lord is in heaven, our names are in heaven, our saved loved ones who died are in heaven, and our eternal home is in heaven, and our affections should be in heaven.

Having said all this, the danger for the Christian is to set their heart on the earthly and temporal, or this present world. To think more about things below more than the things above.

To be so entangled in the world that our growth, our joy, and our fruitfulness is hindered.

Paul says we are to set our minds on things above, which means to think heaven. How do we do that?

First, we must think of our union in Christ. Second, we must think of our belonging to Christ. Third, we must think of our glory that awaits us in Christ.

The Christian and the OT Sabbath

Colossians 2:16-17, "Let no man therefore judge you in meat, or in drink, or in respect of an holy day, or of the new moon, or of the sabbath days:  (17)  Which are a shadow of things to come; but the body is of Christ.

Christians are not required to worship on the Sabbath Day.  

Why?

1. The Sabbath was a sign to Israel of the Old Covenant.

2. The NT nowhere commands Christians to observe the

    Sabbath. Commandment not repeated in the NT.

3. The early church worshipped of Sunday, the first day of the week (Acts 20:7).

4. OT plainly states the Sabbath was for Israel only.

5. The Jerusalem council did not impose the Sabbath on Gentile believers.

6. Paul in his epistles to the church never warned the church about breaking the Sabbath.

7. Paul taught that keeping the Sabbath was a matter of Christian liberty (Rom. 14:5).