Steadfast, Watchful, & Thankful
Download MP3Good evening. It's good to see you all. We're going to be in Colossians tonight, which might seem like a bit of a surprise. We've been in this John series for some time, studying John's gospel together. And, last week, we took a break from that.
Jeffrey Heine:We were in, the letter to the Hebrews. And we're going to continue that little break before we get back into John. When Joel and I were talking about taking a brief break from John's gospel, I have thought about how in March and in June and in July, I preached 3 different sermons from Colossians. From chapter 1, chapter 2, and chapter 3. In chapter 1, we looked at the significance of Christ and the Christ hymn.
Jeffrey Heine:And in chapter 2, we looked at Paul's call for Christian maturity. What it means to grow up in love and to grow up in faith. In chapter 3, we considered what it means to hope in Jesus, and what it looks like to have that hope lived out daily. And so tonight, we're turning to Colossians chapter 4. And unlike some of those, other Colossians sermons where we we took on kind of big chunks of scripture, lots of verses, actually tonight we're we're gonna 0 in, really just on one verse, on chapter 4, verse 2.
Jeffrey Heine:But I'm going to read it in its context here in just a few. As a quick reminder, Paul is writing to these Colossians because they are in the midst of cultural chaos. Not only a culture of chaos in Colossae, and what was going on at that time, but within their own church, chaos. Now these Christians, they they trusted in Jesus. They believed in him, they trusted him.
Jeffrey Heine:They didn't really know what it meant to follow him. And so they had lots of questions. And one of the main reasons that they had questions was because there were these deceivers who had really kinda infiltrated that community. People that were in there seeking to lead people astray. And so Paul is addressing these Colossian Christians.
Jeffrey Heine:He's addressing them because he wants to remind them of the gospel. And that is, that there is life and forgiveness and righteousness in Jesus alone. And so he's writing to remind them of these things. And so far, he's been reminding them of the supremacy of Christ. He reminded them that they have to grow up, and they need to mature.
Jeffrey Heine:He's reminded them that they have a hope, a hope of glory. And after all of these reminders, after he's gone through all of these different things, Paul gives them some final instructions. And at the very start of these final instructions, he calls them to pray. Now when we talk about prayer, and if I told you that that's that's kind of the topic that we're gonna be diving into, talking about prayer and hearing a sermon about prayer usually elicits, not satisfaction. We'll put it that way.
Jeffrey Heine:Maybe maybe an uneasiness. Mostly because we, for the most part, we we probably aren't satisfied with our prayer lives. It's kinda like going to the dentist and they bring up flossing. You knew there was something you were forgetting for the last 6 months. And and we dig deep, though.
Jeffrey Heine:We we go we go eye to eye with that hygienist, and we say, next time. Next time when I come in here, things are going to be different. And sometimes we do that when we hear a sermon on prayer. When we hear and we are reminded of the necessity and and the value and the importance of prayer, and we say, I'm gonna dig deep. I'm gonna dig deep.
Jeffrey Heine:I'm gonna try harder. And if that's your personality at the at the start, at the start, I just wanna say, stop. Stop trying so hard, and look at Jesus. We'll get into that more later, but I felt like we needed to clear that at the start. So read with me.
Jeffrey Heine:Colossians chapter 4 verse 2. I'll read through 4, and let us listen carefully for this is God's word. Continue steadfastly in prayer, being watchful in it with thanksgiving. At the same time, pray also for us that God may open to us a door for the word to declare the mystery of Christ, on account of which I am in prison, that I may make it clear which is how I ought to speak. Let's pray.
Jeffrey Heine:God help us. We know so little of you and understand even less, so help us. Spirit, help us to hear your word, and by your grace to respond to your word with all that we are. Lord, bless this time for your honor and your glory in your name. Amen.
Jeffrey Heine:So prayer is kind of a bizarre thing. We all just did it together just then. It's kind of a strange practice. And as strange as it is, it's surprisingly commonplace. Every major religion exhibits some form of it, whether it's Buddhism, Islam, Hinduism, or, as we would know from the Christian faith and Judaism, there there's prayer.
Jeffrey Heine:And and even among those who claim no religion now, the the nones, is what they're called by all the researchers and magazines. But the but the nones, the rise of the nones, the the the largest growing population in America today, those who have no religious affiliation whatsoever. They have a form of prayer, but it's displayed more in kind thoughts and good vibes and other vague notions of metaphysical well wishing, you know? In a 2013 study that was done by the Barna Group, they studied the Birmingham, Tuscaloosa, Anniston area. And they were studying the religious practices in kind of Birmingham and Metro Birmingham.
Jeffrey Heine:And in in that study, the they asked the question, have you prayed in the last 7 days? And according to the respondents, 93% said yes. 93% said that they had prayed in the last 7 days. That seems high, right? Like you don't you don't have to know 93% of the population of Birmingham to feel like, that's high.
Jeffrey Heine:Maybe it was Iron Bowl week, I don't know, but like there was but that's a that's a lot of prayers going on. And so I'm surprised that by that. And it might not be Christian prayer. It might not be believing prayer, but people pray for something so familiar to the human experience. Rarely do we step back and consider what prayer is, and what God intends for it to be as outlined in his word.
Jeffrey Heine:John Calvin, one of the key theologians and pastors of the Protestant Reformation, he called prayer the chief exercise of Christian faith. The chief exercise of Christian faith. And so it's from this place in Colossians 4 that I want us to consider 2 things. 1st, the act of prayer. What's going on when we pray?
Jeffrey Heine:And then the second thing is the attributes of prayer. Really Paul's instructions here in verse 2, concerning how we should approach God in prayer. So first up, the act of prayer. Prayer, as with much of life, is nothing if it's not real, If it's not authentic at its very core. And if Calvin is right, and that prayer is the chief exercise of our faith, then I would say that prayer is also the chief context for our authenticity and vulnerability.
Jeffrey Heine:I'll say it this way. If you are not authentic and vulnerable in prayer, I doubt that you are authentic and vulnerable anywhere. Think about that. If you cannot speak openly and honestly, confessing your sins and your fears, your hopes and your dreams, if you cannot bear those things before your Father in Heaven, are you bearing those things anywhere in your life? Prayer, the chief context for authenticity and vulnerability.
Jeffrey Heine:It's also the context for deep mystery. 20th century theologian, Karl Barth said, to understand the action of prayer, we must begin at the end. That is to say, consider in the first place the answering of our prayers. End quote. The most profound variable, the most significant variable in the act of prayer is not the spokenness of our prayers.
Jeffrey Heine:Though as I just mentioned, our honesty and vulnerability is vital. But the most profound and significant variable in the act of prayer is the hearing of our prayers. The word prayer comes from the Latin word, praecare, which means to ask or to beg. The word prayer itself implies a speaker and a hearer. We are not left alone in our minds for mere rumination or the sending of vibes.
Jeffrey Heine:The speaker prays, begs, and the hearer receives and responds. Think about that. Anyone can meditate on an idea, Ruminate on the complexities of life. No one else is required for us to wish or dream or yearn, but someone has to be on the other end of our prayers. To pray is to ask someone, to address someone.
Jeffrey Heine:Prayers are to be spoken and heard. And when we think about prayer as simply something that we do, I mean, when we think of prayer as primarily about what we speak, we miss the bigger reality of prayer. We miss that prayer is a gift from God. That prayer is a grace. That prayer is a grace that comes from God, and God's grace is to be lived out daily.
Jeffrey Heine:And that's why we must pray. What Calvin means when he says that prayer is the chief exercise of faith, what he's meaning by that is that our prayers display our belief that God is listening and able. That when we ask Him, that we actually believe He can. See, God condescends to listen to us, to hear us out, to hear our bitterness, to hear our cries, to hear our anger. He is patient with us.
Jeffrey Heine:He shows his grace not only in hearing us, but asking us to come to him and pray. We need to remember that God is not hearing and responding because our prayers are clever or wise. It's not because of our grand vocabulary, or our vast theology. It's not because we have done it perfectly. God the Father hears and responds to our prayers because we are in Christ.
Jeffrey Heine:We speak, think of this, we speak as though we are speaking from the mouth of Jesus, because he gives us entrance and audience, and he intercedes for us. That's the reason God listens. Not because we're getting prayer right, but because we are in Jesus. Jesus is the reason that the Father calls us to pray and hears us. Question 129 of the Heidelberg Catechism.
Jeffrey Heine:It says that, the answer to our prayers is more certain than our awareness of the things we ask for. Say it again. I had to read it a couple times, so. The answer to our prayers is more certain than our awareness of the things we are asking for. God answering our prayers is more certain than our knowledge of our need, and our need can feel overwhelming.
Jeffrey Heine:But all the more overwhelming and all the more certain is his response. Do you believe that? It can be hard to believe that, especially when the response is not the response that we want. But his response is certain. Karl Barth said this, we may perhaps have doubts about the sincerity of our prayer and the worth of what we pray for, But the answer which God gives is beyond all doubt.
Jeffrey Heine:Our prayers may be feeble and inadequate, but what matters most is not the strength of our prayers, but the fact that God hears them. That is why we pray. It's not the strength of our prayers. It's not about getting all the right words down. Why we pray is because he is faithful to listen.
Jeffrey Heine:And when we go to God in prayer, we carry out an act of knowing that God will hear us and answer us, and that is an exercise of our faith in him. And we go asking, and begging, and petitioning. He hears us. That is why we pray. Now, to the attributes of prayer that that Paul is really getting into here in Colossians.
Jeffrey Heine:I'll read verse 2 again. Continue steadfastly in prayer, being watchful in it with thanksgiving. These three attributes described here in this one sentence. In prayer, Paul is calling the Colossians to be steadfast, to be watchful, and to be thankful. Steadfast, watchful, thankful.
Jeffrey Heine:And we'll take time to consider each one of these. There it is. That was pretty awesome. Alright. Steadfast.
Jeffrey Heine:That was that was kind of a triumphal steadfast. That was like a vigilant tone. I like it. All right. So the Greek here is translated many different ways.
Jeffrey Heine:The bible that you have in front of you might have a different word than watchful. It might say devoted to, or be constant, be instant, be vigilant. In the ESV, they take the one Greek word and make it into 2, continue steadfast. And, you know, Paul uses this language in lots of different places when he's encouraging and calling people to prayer, to be steadfast, to be vigilant. Perhaps one of the most famous passages is to the Thessalonians when he says, Pray without ceasing.
Jeffrey Heine:Now that that has caused, a lot of confusion in the church over the centuries. What did it mean to pray without ceasing? And perhaps, one of my favorite, images of that confusion is found in an essay that was written by JD Salinger and published in the New Yorker in 1955. It was later published bound together with another essay, and then it was titled Frannie and Zooey. Salinger is presenting a scene of college aged Frannie, who was visiting her boyfriend, Lane, at a diner.
Jeffrey Heine:And Lane is talking incessantly about a paper that he wrote for class, Going on and on about he might even get it published, but he's not really he didn't really write it for that. Going on and on and on. Frannie does not care. Frannie doesn't care. She's disinterested in this story because she has recently been deeply affected by a book that she checked out from the campus library called The Way of the Pilgrim.
Jeffrey Heine:And in the library book, Frannie has learned about a technique. A technique in which a person discovers the ability to pray without ceasing. If you'll humor me, I'm gonna read a little bit. This is Frannie. Do you want to hear what the special method of praying is?
Jeffrey Heine:She asked. It's really sort of interesting in a way. Lane cut into his last pair of frog legs. He nodded, Sure. He said, sure.
Jeffrey Heine:Well, as I said, the pilgrim, this simple peasant started the whole pilgrimage to find out what it means in the bible when it says you're supposed to pray without ceasing. And then he meets this staritz, this very advanced religious person. Frannie stopped suddenly to reflect, to organize. Well, he tells him, tells the pilgrim about the Jesus prayer. First of all, Lord Jesus Christ, have mercy on me.
Jeffrey Heine:I mean, that's what it is. And he explains to him that those are the best words to use when you pray. Especially the word mercy, because it's such a really enormous word, and can mean so many things. I mean, it doesn't just have to mean mercy. Frannie paused to reflect again.
Jeffrey Heine:She was no longer looking at Lane's plate, but over his shoulder. Anyway, she went on. They tell the pilgrim that if you keep saying that prayer over and over again, you only have to do it just with your lips at first, and then eventually what happens? The prayer becomes self active. Something happens after a while.
Jeffrey Heine:I don't know what, but something happens. And the words get synchronized with the person's heartbeat, and then you're actually praying without ceasing. Which is really tremendous, has this mystical effect on your whole outlook. I mean, that's the whole point of it, more or less. I mean, you do it to purify your whole outlook, and to get an absolutely new conception of what everything's about.
Jeffrey Heine:Lane had finished eating. Now, as Frannie paused again, he sat back and lit a cigarette and watched her face. She was still looking abstractly ahead of her, past his shoulder, and seemed scarcely aware of his presence. But the thing is, the marvelous thing is, when you first start doing it, you don't even have to have faith in what you're doing. I mean, even if you're terribly embarrassed by the whole thing, it's perfectly alright.
Jeffrey Heine:I mean, you're not insulting anybody or anything. In other words, nobody asks you to believe a single thing when you first start out. You don't even have to think about what you're saying. All you have in the beginning is quantity. End quote.
Jeffrey Heine:Frannie gets it wrong. Prayer's not just about quantity, abstract repetition. Praying without ceasing is to pray steadfastly and vigilantly, drawing closer to Jesus no matter what. It's predicated upon a belief that Jesus is, and that all our living and doing is always related to him. Prayer demonstrates a belief that Jesus is bound up in all the messes and all the successes in our lives, from the most profound moment to the most mundane.
Jeffrey Heine:You've all likely been in in the situation where a young child who cannot tie or untie their shoes just kinda plops down in your lap for you to fix things. Calvin referred to prayer as crawling up in our father's lap and handing over the knots that we cannot untie. Seeing everything as related to our God, and going to him in all things, that is praying without ceasing. It's breath for the Christian. Praying without ceasing isn't some spiritual method, It's an essential part of being a child of God.
Jeffrey Heine:Maybe you're like Frannie, and you're always looking for a new technique, a new book, a new study to kinda get get all the tools that you need to become that better prayer. And I would say, if we can open our eyes and actually see prayer as the opportunity to be honest and vulnerable with God, we will run to him. Because all of us, whether we know it or not, whether we want to admit to it or not, are looking for a place to be authentic and vulnerable. And he says, come to me. So be steadfast in prayer.
Jeffrey Heine:Secondly, to be watchful. What does watchful mean? Your translation that you have there might might say watchful or it might say alert or awake. Jesus uses the word watchful in reference to prayer in the Garden of Gethsemane. When he is praying with his disciples and he tells them that they need to be watchful so they don't fall into temptation.
Jeffrey Heine:Watchfulness in prayer is that alertness. Particularly, I believe, to be an alertness to our temptations. Watchfulness admits to what we are tempted by most, and it brings it before the Lord. Now most of us know well those primary ways that we are most often tempted. And Jesus calls us to pray that we would not fall into that temptation, but rather that we would be delivered from evil.
Jeffrey Heine:We must be watchful. And falling into temptation is when temptation goes from just knocking at the door to walking inside. It's not just knocking at the door, it's walking inside. John Owen put it this way, when any temptation comes in and parlays with the heart, reasons with the mind, entices and it lures the affections, be it for a long time or a short time, that is when we enter into temptation. You know what those are for you.
Jeffrey Heine:Do you bring that to Jesus? Or is it usually on the other end? After those temptations have parlayed with the heart, allured the affections, Reason with your mind. You've gotten to that point where you're already starting to reason why it's okay to do the thing you know you should not do. When you've gotten to that point, you have entered into temptation.
Jeffrey Heine:And what Paul is calling the Colossians to do is to come to Jesus and to bear in all vulnerability and honesty those things that we are most tempted by, and to ask for help, to realize that we need help. I was looking at a a manuscript of one of Charles Spurgeon's early sermons, and at the bottom of it, Charles Spurgeon was a theologian and pastor in London, and and at the bottom of it, in in in handwritten ink, you know, it it said there, God help my stupid soul. And when I read that, I was like, that Yeah. I need that tattooed on my heart, like deep in there. Like it's got That's gotta That needs to go deep in there.
Jeffrey Heine:God, help and bless my stupid soul. It's being honest. Being watchful is being sober minded enough to say, I need help. To be watchful and to pray with a watchfulness sets us up into this honesty where we can be honest with God and we can receive the grace to be resilient in the face of temptation. To be watchful is to pray with the eyes of our hearts and our minds open and awake.
Jeffrey Heine:Not with fancy words or fancy programs of prayer, but honest and alert prayers of what's really going on in us. Be steadfast. Be watchful. And lastly, be thankful. If you've spent much time around little kids, you have realized that we are not born with gratitude.
Jeffrey Heine:Right? You know that. Some of you teachers really know that. We have to learn to be thankful. Ingratitude is this native plant of the heart.
Jeffrey Heine:It's just there. No one had to plant it, no one has to water it, it just grows. You uproot it, and it just grows back again. Ingratitude just grows naturally. But gratitude, it takes a lifetime to grow gratitude.
Jeffrey Heine:Think about the most thankful people you know. It takes a lifetime. It takes sorrow. It takes suffering to be thankful. I know I often quote from really old books and, you know, bizarre magazines and those kinds of things.
Jeffrey Heine:Someone asked me after my last sermon where I quoted a New York Times article from, like, the early 1900s, they're like, how does one stumble upon that? And so, after Joel's reference to Napoleon Dynamite last week, I thought I would go for something perhaps a little bit more accessible. In 1993, cinematic zenith was reached at the unimpeachable film, The Sandlot. A young boy called Smalls, new to a neighborhood, seeking desperately to fit in with the neighborhood kids who played baseball. And interrupted afternoon of playing baseball, he grabs his stepfather's baseball off the shelf.
Jeffrey Heine:And when it too is lost, the truth finally comes out. That the baseball was signed by Babe Ruth. And the kid did not know who that was. The Sultan of Swat. The King of Crash.
Jeffrey Heine:The Colossus of Cloud. The Great Bambino. Smalls didn't know it. To him, it was just a baseball with some lady's name on it. Gratitude is grown when value is understood, when we know what we have been given, when we know what something costs, when we understand what someone has done for us, gratitude grows.
Jeffrey Heine:If you find yourself in a season where you feel ungrateful, I urge you to go back to the preciousness of God's mercy. Hold before you the great cost of God's grace. See the immeasurable value of the blood of God. That's how we grow in gratitude. We look to Christ and his gospel.
Jeffrey Heine:If the gospel does not elicit deep thankfulness in your prayers, then you likely think of it like a baseball with some lady's name on it. We must constantly strive to understand more deeply the greatness and graciousness of God. Because our gratitude tells us if we are understanding the gospel or not. Be steadfast, be watchful, Be thankful. 93% of our city prays every week, and I, for 1, want to know what we're doing.
Jeffrey Heine:Are we being steadfast? Are we being watchful? Are we being thankful? If you find yourself in a season where you are neglecting prayer, and I found myself in that season many times before, can I give you can I give you one practical bit of advice and then one encouragement? The practical.
Jeffrey Heine:Go to the word of God. Go to the Psalms specifically. Slowly and intentionally pray the words of the Psalms. Not like Frannie who wanted some special spiritual code to crack praying ceaselessly. No, Pray the words out of faith.
Jeffrey Heine:Pray the words of the Psalms and consider the greatness and the graciousness of God. Look for it in every Psalm. Confess what is really going on in your heart and your mind. Confess what you're really experiencing and feeling and thinking. Don't hold anything back.
Jeffrey Heine:Hand over the knots that you cannot untie. And the encouragement, It's very simple. Jesus is praying for you. When you're too bitter at God to pray, when you're too angry or confused, when you're too hurt and wounded, when you're too lazy or fearful, Jesus prays for you. The things you're too scared to bring up, the things you don't even wanna give voice to, the things in your past, the things that you're scared about in your future, all of those things, Jesus prays for you.
Jeffrey Heine:Look to him. Look to him. Look to him. Let's pray. God, it's so easy in times like this to just resolve to try harder.
Jeffrey Heine:And I pray that by the power of your spirit, you would help us to just look to Jesus right now. Whether we know him or not, whether we trust him or not, help us to fix our eyes on him. May we hear his voice that says, come to me all who are weary and heavy laden. May we find rest for our souls tonight. God, by your spirit, help us to be steadfast, vigilant, seeing that all of life, all of life has to do with you.
Jeffrey Heine:And help us to go to you. Help us to be watchful over the sin and temptation in our lives. Help us to be alert and sober minded. God, help us to be thankful. Grow in us a deep gratitude for the mercy that you have lavished upon us.
Jeffrey Heine:God, bless our stupid souls. Amen.
