Therefore, as God's chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. Bear with each other and forgive whatever grievances you may have against one another. Forgive as the Lord forgave you.And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity.
1.
In 2018, I set the church motto as 'Let's love each other'. Throughout the year, I hope that this motto will not only be our prayer, but it also becomes our life.
Just as we shared last week, the precondition to love one another is that we must be loved first. The person who has received love can love others. From that point of view, we must know that we are already loved by God. Today's text also says that we are God's chosen, holy, and loved ones. The Bible tells us how much the love of God loves us. And those who realize the love of God can be people of love. I will read the text again today.
Therefore, as God's chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. Bear with each other and forgive whatever grievances you may have against one another. Forgive as the Lord forgave you. And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity (Colossian 3:12-14)
Paul tells us that the clothes we should wear are the parables of "compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience," and that we should tightly tie our clothes with a string of "love." Compared with the content of this text and that of 1 Corinthians 13, we can see that compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience are all different names of love. Therefore, those continue to emphasize that they who love God should wear clothes called love.
The first thing Paul said about love to the people of Corinthians is 'long-suffering'.
"Love is longsuffering, love is meek ..." And the verse 7 emphasizes patience, saying, "Be patient with everything, with all things, with all things." It shows how important it is to be patient.
2.
Love is long-suffering, but we may raise some questions: So how long will I have to endure? And what should I bear for? But why should I be patient? It seems all of the questions are not easy to answer. It is because there is a lot of angry when we live.
Someone is boiling water. But water does not boil more quickly than this man expected. Then the man was angry. He started to blame the maker of the pot. He got angry at the fire. He started to get angry to his wife who was passing by and said, "Please wait." What was the problem? It is a phenomenon caused by impatience. To be patient is a painful thing to him.
Especially when there is a misunderstanding in relation with people, it is difficult to bear. When you are treated unfairly, it is difficult to endure long. It is difficult to tolerate long when you see something that is not right. It is pain in agony to endure without being angry for a long time.
However, the Bible says that love is long-suffering. What are you going to be patient about? It is to be patient before you get angry. Furthermore, it is to be able to withstand the revenge of those who harm you. Can you not be angry with people easily and endure patiently? Can we do it? Can we apply it to our lives that we are longing for love? Can you stand even with unfair treatment? Can you hold on to those who hurt your feelings? Can you tolerate that lazy man? Can you tolerate someone who has an immature attitude? As the person is a husband, a wife, a child, or a member of a church, can you stand them?
Max Lucado says, "Love is what it takes to forgive a man's laziness, and what is needed to understand others' weaknesses is love." Because love is a relationship, not a means of achieving purpose. Love is relationship, love is purpose. What is needed to accomplish that is patience. Patience is love.
3.
Love is long-suffering. This tells us that if someone endures us for a long time, we need to know that it is love. A husband endures his wife for a long time. A wife endures her husband for a long time. Is it possible? Parents endure their children. A child endures parents for a long time. Is it possible? The church members endure the pastor for a long time. Is it possible? This is love.
We ask people to be patient. Especially when you owe someone else, we know the meaning of patient.
Someone owes money to the President. He owed tens of billions of dollars. The salary of the person now is not enough to repay the debts. What about the feelings of a person who owes so much debt? Every day it will be a painful day for him. If he has a wish, he doesn’t want to see the President.
What would a debtor say if he met the President? 'Please wait a little longer!' "Please be patient. Please patience a little. Then I will repay the debt. " What does this person say? Please give me grace. Please give me your love. There is no reason why the President should bless this man. Nevertheless, what if the president told him slowly to pay the debt? That word would be grateful to him. Delaying the time to pay off the debt is tolerated, and this is a gracious word to the debtor: that is a gospel, and that is love to him.
As you may have noticed, I have slightly changed the content of Jesus' parable.
The parable of Jesus shows that the king forgives the debt of the person who owed tremendous debt.
"Therefore, the kingdom of heaven is like a king who wanted to settle accounts with his servants. As he began the settlement, a man who owed him ten thousand talents was brought to him. Since he was not able to pay, the master ordered that he and his wife and his children and all that he had be sold to repay the debt. "The servant fell on his knees before him. 'Be patient with me,' he begged, 'and I will pay back everything.' The servant's master took pity on him, canceled the debt and let him go. (Matthew 18: 23-27)
Heaven is beyond long-suffering and there is forgiveness. Forgiveness is done through love. This is the love of God showed us. There is only one reason the king forgave his servant beyond long suffering. The king wants to get him. If you are patient to a person, you will get that person. If you love, you get a person. If we love one another, we will gain a person.
However, the parable of Jesus does not end with the king forgiving his servant debt. The next passage reads the story of a man who owes a servant.
"But when that servant went out, he found one of his fellow servants who owed him a hundred denarii. He grabbed him and began to choke him. 'Pay back what you owe me!' he demanded. "His fellow servant fell to his knees and begged him, 'Be patient with me, and I will pay you back.' "But he refused. Instead, he went off and had the man thrown into prison until he could pay the debt. (Matthew 18: 28-30).
This is what we are. We may have such an attitude toward the people who owe to us. We are angry at those who ask us to be patient. We will put him in jail to release our anger.
The king's loved one does not love other. It is because patient was not accepted. So, love was gone. Heaven was gone, and only prison was left.
3.
God has loved the Israelites. God has loved them to the end. How can I say that? The Israelites owe so much to God. He saved them in Egypt. The Israelites were owed to God. They crossed the Red See. God gave them food and water every day. They have owed much to God. They had debts that they could not pay back. However, they betrayed God and made a golden calf. In times of trouble, they blamed God and complained to God. God, however, has tolerated Israel without harm. He did not ask them to pay off the debt. Instead, God endured the people of Israel because God is love.
“And he passed in front of Moses, proclaiming, "The LORD, the LORD, the compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness (Exodus 34: 6)
Why did God endure Israel? Because he wanted to get them; to restore the relationship with them; to save mankind. Loving them is manifested in long-suffering. It is possible because the love of God, who is 'slow to anger', appears patiently.
God is patient with us too. We must know how long God has endured us. Do you know who we are? We repent to God, but also rush to sin. Just as the Israelites saw the presence of God, they made a golden calf. We may have prayed this way today. '' We'll do well from today. '' It is ours to forget what we prayed. If everything is done as we prayed, we must be already holy and loved. However, we are not holy because we are lying to God again. Nevertheless, God endured us. If God's long-suffering did not work for us, then we all would be in jail of hell.
Therefore, we are debtors who cannot pay back even if we pay for our lives. Who did you owe? It is for those who have endured us for a long time. We are the people who owe God. We are people who owe to Jesus Christ. We are the people who owe to the Holy Spirit. We are the people we owe to our parents. We owe it to our friends and neighbors.
God is not only long-lasting, but also has forgiven our debt. Through the cross of Jesus Christ. In addition, God says that He has chosen us, He says that we are holy and loved. Why does God do this? Because He wants to get us.
And what God requires of those who are loved by God is "long-suffering." Furthermore, they are asked to tolerate each other and forgive each other. The reason for this is obvious because He loved us first. God first loved us. This is the basis we love each other.
Love is longing to endure. Why should we be patient? It is to gain that person. To maintain the relationship with the person.
And there is something we need to know. Those who endure us are people who love us. When we are mistaken, when we are young, despite our immaturity, they are people who love us. It is to express their desire to maintain a relationship with us.
4.
What kind of relationship do you want to solidify?
It is a relationship with a child, a relationship with a couple, a relationship with a parent, a relationship with a friend, or a brother in church. In order for the relationship to be robust, what we have to work with patient. Being patient means giving time. It is waiting patiently.
Patience says in Greek that it means "to wait for a long time until water boils." Patience is to acknowledge that we share time with others. It tells you that it takes time and patience to build solid relationships with people.
It is not easy not to get angry in an angry situation. Especially the closer you are, the easier it seems to be angry. Nevertheless, there is something we should remember. The closer the relationship is, the more you owe to each other.
We do not know how much debt we owe to our parents. We can’t pay back to parents. Parents do not wait for us to repay. What if parents did not tolerate their children for a long time? Maybe something big problem will be happened. That is why love is to be patient. The place where long suffering works is heaven. Could this place where we stand be heaven? If patience should work; if long-suffering should work in brothers and sisters, it gives them time to pay off their debts. That's patience.
But patient is very difficult. We are people who are intimidating and angered by those who owe, and those who are dissatisfied because they are in need. Therefore, it is the Holy Spirit who is indispensable for our patience to work.
Long-suffering is the fruit of the Spirit. It means that long-suffering can’t be done by our own strength. This is the part we need to pray to the Holy Spirit. You will have to pray to help us. As we say today, for compassion, mercy, humility, gentleness and patience to dress.
Love is longing to endure. It is love to endure long. You can get people by long-suffering. Long-suffering is giving us time to those we owe. How long can you wait? How long can you stand? How much can you tolerate your child?
I want to read the conclusion of Jesus' parable and finish the sermon today.
“When the other servants saw what had happened, they were greatly distressed and went and told their master everything that had happened. "Then the master called the servant in. 'You wicked servant,' he said, 'I canceled all that debt of yours because you begged me to. Shouldn't you have had mercy on your fellow servant just as I had on you?' In anger his master turned him over to the jailers to be tortured, until he should pay back all he owed. "This is how my heavenly Father will treat each of you unless you forgive your brother from your heart." "(Matthew 18: 31-35)
Love is long-suffering. Those who endure us are those who love us. God endures us for a long time. God really loves us and demands us equally. Please wear long-suffering clothes. Through this we gain man, and in the name of the Lord I bless the place where we stand, also be the kingdom of heaven. Amen!
1.
In 2018, I set the church motto as 'Let's love each other'. Throughout the year, I hope that this motto will not only be our prayer, but it also becomes our life.
Just as we shared last week, the precondition to love one another is that we must be loved first. The person who has received love can love others. From that point of view, we must know that we are already loved by God. Today's text also says that we are God's chosen, holy, and loved ones. The Bible tells us how much the love of God loves us. And those who realize the love of God can be people of love. I will read the text again today.
Therefore, as God's chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. Bear with each other and forgive whatever grievances you may have against one another. Forgive as the Lord forgave you. And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity (Colossian 3:12-14)
Paul tells us that the clothes we should wear are the parables of "compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience," and that we should tightly tie our clothes with a string of "love." Compared with the content of this text and that of 1 Corinthians 13, we can see that compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience are all different names of love. Therefore, those continue to emphasize that they who love God should wear clothes called love.
The first thing Paul said about love to the people of Corinthians is 'long-suffering'.
"Love is longsuffering, love is meek ..." And the verse 7 emphasizes patience, saying, "Be patient with everything, with all things, with all things." It shows how important it is to be patient.
2.
Love is long-suffering, but we may raise some questions: So how long will I have to endure? And what should I bear for? But why should I be patient? It seems all of the questions are not easy to answer. It is because there is a lot of angry when we live.
Someone is boiling water. But water does not boil more quickly than this man expected. Then the man was angry. He started to blame the maker of the pot. He got angry at the fire. He started to get angry to his wife who was passing by and said, "Please wait." What was the problem? It is a phenomenon caused by impatience. To be patient is a painful thing to him.
Especially when there is a misunderstanding in relation with people, it is difficult to bear. When you are treated unfairly, it is difficult to endure long. It is difficult to tolerate long when you see something that is not right. It is pain in agony to endure without being angry for a long time.
However, the Bible says that love is long-suffering. What are you going to be patient about? It is to be patient before you get angry. Furthermore, it is to be able to withstand the revenge of those who harm you. Can you not be angry with people easily and endure patiently? Can we do it? Can we apply it to our lives that we are longing for love? Can you stand even with unfair treatment? Can you hold on to those who hurt your feelings? Can you tolerate that lazy man? Can you tolerate someone who has an immature attitude? As the person is a husband, a wife, a child, or a member of a church, can you stand them?
Max Lucado says, "Love is what it takes to forgive a man's laziness, and what is needed to understand others' weaknesses is love." Because love is a relationship, not a means of achieving purpose. Love is relationship, love is purpose. What is needed to accomplish that is patience. Patience is love.
3.
Love is long-suffering. This tells us that if someone endures us for a long time, we need to know that it is love. A husband endures his wife for a long time. A wife endures her husband for a long time. Is it possible? Parents endure their children. A child endures parents for a long time. Is it possible? The church members endure the pastor for a long time. Is it possible? This is love.
We ask people to be patient. Especially when you owe someone else, we know the meaning of patient.
Someone owes money to the President. He owed tens of billions of dollars. The salary of the person now is not enough to repay the debts. What about the feelings of a person who owes so much debt? Every day it will be a painful day for him. If he has a wish, he doesn’t want to see the President.
What would a debtor say if he met the President? 'Please wait a little longer!' "Please be patient. Please patience a little. Then I will repay the debt. " What does this person say? Please give me grace. Please give me your love. There is no reason why the President should bless this man. Nevertheless, what if the president told him slowly to pay the debt? That word would be grateful to him. Delaying the time to pay off the debt is tolerated, and this is a gracious word to the debtor: that is a gospel, and that is love to him.
As you may have noticed, I have slightly changed the content of Jesus' parable.
The parable of Jesus shows that the king forgives the debt of the person who owed tremendous debt.
"Therefore, the kingdom of heaven is like a king who wanted to settle accounts with his servants. As he began the settlement, a man who owed him ten thousand talents was brought to him. Since he was not able to pay, the master ordered that he and his wife and his children and all that he had be sold to repay the debt. "The servant fell on his knees before him. 'Be patient with me,' he begged, 'and I will pay back everything.' The servant's master took pity on him, canceled the debt and let him go. (Matthew 18: 23-27)
Heaven is beyond long-suffering and there is forgiveness. Forgiveness is done through love. This is the love of God showed us. There is only one reason the king forgave his servant beyond long suffering. The king wants to get him. If you are patient to a person, you will get that person. If you love, you get a person. If we love one another, we will gain a person.
However, the parable of Jesus does not end with the king forgiving his servant debt. The next passage reads the story of a man who owes a servant.
"But when that servant went out, he found one of his fellow servants who owed him a hundred denarii. He grabbed him and began to choke him. 'Pay back what you owe me!' he demanded. "His fellow servant fell to his knees and begged him, 'Be patient with me, and I will pay you back.' "But he refused. Instead, he went off and had the man thrown into prison until he could pay the debt. (Matthew 18: 28-30).
This is what we are. We may have such an attitude toward the people who owe to us. We are angry at those who ask us to be patient. We will put him in jail to release our anger.
The king's loved one does not love other. It is because patient was not accepted. So, love was gone. Heaven was gone, and only prison was left.
3.
God has loved the Israelites. God has loved them to the end. How can I say that? The Israelites owe so much to God. He saved them in Egypt. The Israelites were owed to God. They crossed the Red See. God gave them food and water every day. They have owed much to God. They had debts that they could not pay back. However, they betrayed God and made a golden calf. In times of trouble, they blamed God and complained to God. God, however, has tolerated Israel without harm. He did not ask them to pay off the debt. Instead, God endured the people of Israel because God is love.
“And he passed in front of Moses, proclaiming, "The LORD, the LORD, the compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness (Exodus 34: 6)
Why did God endure Israel? Because he wanted to get them; to restore the relationship with them; to save mankind. Loving them is manifested in long-suffering. It is possible because the love of God, who is 'slow to anger', appears patiently.
God is patient with us too. We must know how long God has endured us. Do you know who we are? We repent to God, but also rush to sin. Just as the Israelites saw the presence of God, they made a golden calf. We may have prayed this way today. '' We'll do well from today. '' It is ours to forget what we prayed. If everything is done as we prayed, we must be already holy and loved. However, we are not holy because we are lying to God again. Nevertheless, God endured us. If God's long-suffering did not work for us, then we all would be in jail of hell.
Therefore, we are debtors who cannot pay back even if we pay for our lives. Who did you owe? It is for those who have endured us for a long time. We are the people who owe God. We are people who owe to Jesus Christ. We are the people who owe to the Holy Spirit. We are the people we owe to our parents. We owe it to our friends and neighbors.
God is not only long-lasting, but also has forgiven our debt. Through the cross of Jesus Christ. In addition, God says that He has chosen us, He says that we are holy and loved. Why does God do this? Because He wants to get us.
And what God requires of those who are loved by God is "long-suffering." Furthermore, they are asked to tolerate each other and forgive each other. The reason for this is obvious because He loved us first. God first loved us. This is the basis we love each other.
Love is longing to endure. Why should we be patient? It is to gain that person. To maintain the relationship with the person.
And there is something we need to know. Those who endure us are people who love us. When we are mistaken, when we are young, despite our immaturity, they are people who love us. It is to express their desire to maintain a relationship with us.
4.
What kind of relationship do you want to solidify?
It is a relationship with a child, a relationship with a couple, a relationship with a parent, a relationship with a friend, or a brother in church. In order for the relationship to be robust, what we have to work with patient. Being patient means giving time. It is waiting patiently.
Patience says in Greek that it means "to wait for a long time until water boils." Patience is to acknowledge that we share time with others. It tells you that it takes time and patience to build solid relationships with people.
It is not easy not to get angry in an angry situation. Especially the closer you are, the easier it seems to be angry. Nevertheless, there is something we should remember. The closer the relationship is, the more you owe to each other.
We do not know how much debt we owe to our parents. We can’t pay back to parents. Parents do not wait for us to repay. What if parents did not tolerate their children for a long time? Maybe something big problem will be happened. That is why love is to be patient. The place where long suffering works is heaven. Could this place where we stand be heaven? If patience should work; if long-suffering should work in brothers and sisters, it gives them time to pay off their debts. That's patience.
But patient is very difficult. We are people who are intimidating and angered by those who owe, and those who are dissatisfied because they are in need. Therefore, it is the Holy Spirit who is indispensable for our patience to work.
Long-suffering is the fruit of the Spirit. It means that long-suffering can’t be done by our own strength. This is the part we need to pray to the Holy Spirit. You will have to pray to help us. As we say today, for compassion, mercy, humility, gentleness and patience to dress.
Love is longing to endure. It is love to endure long. You can get people by long-suffering. Long-suffering is giving us time to those we owe. How long can you wait? How long can you stand? How much can you tolerate your child?
I want to read the conclusion of Jesus' parable and finish the sermon today.
“When the other servants saw what had happened, they were greatly distressed and went and told their master everything that had happened. "Then the master called the servant in. 'You wicked servant,' he said, 'I canceled all that debt of yours because you begged me to. Shouldn't you have had mercy on your fellow servant just as I had on you?' In anger his master turned him over to the jailers to be tortured, until he should pay back all he owed. "This is how my heavenly Father will treat each of you unless you forgive your brother from your heart." "(Matthew 18: 31-35)
Love is long-suffering. Those who endure us are those who love us. God endures us for a long time. God really loves us and demands us equally. Please wear long-suffering clothes. Through this we gain man, and in the name of the Lord I bless the place where we stand, also be the kingdom of heaven. Amen!