10 Praying Without Losing Heart (Colossians 4:2-18)

Welcome to the Wednesday in the Word podcast. What the Bible means and how we know. I'm Krisan Marotta. This is the tenth talk in our series on the book of Colossians. Today we'll be finishing the book. We'll be looking at Colossians chapter 4, verses 2 through 18. If you'd like to follow along in the lecture notes, you can find them on our website at wednesdayintheword.com slash Colossians 10. That's wednesdayintheword.com slash Colossians 10. Thanks for joining us. When I first became a Christian and started going to Sunday school, I thought that the right answer to every question was either prayer or Jesus. I mean, whatever the question was, what do we need? Jesus. What do we need to do? Pray. How could you ever argue with that answer? It seemed like it was a guaranteed, I got the right answer to every question. You could answer every who question with Jesus and every what question with prayer. Now the how questions were a little more tricky because those could be either one. But either way, it seemed like prayer was always the right answer. And if prayer wasn't the answer, Jesus was the answer. No one could ever argue or with that or deny it. Now that I've gained a little more wisdom, I've learned the folly of that approach. But then we come to a verse like Colossians 4 2, which is in our passage today, where Paul says, continue steadfastly in prayer, being watchful in it with thanksgiving. And what do we do with that? Some translations say, devote yourselves to prayer, and that kind of verse seems to just reinforce my young misconceptions. And we can come to this verse with many different theologies of how prayer works and what it's supposed to look like and leave with those ideas reinforced. Paul is not really specific here about what he's asking them to do. So every Bible student has to fill in the gaps with their own theology. The challenge is to remember the overall context and theme of the letter and let that inform our understanding of 4 2. So we're coming to the end of the letter. Paul's wrapping up his thoughts, and I don't think this section is really tightly tied to the last section, rather, it's functioning more as a summary and a conclusion. So just to remind you, Paul's writing to a church on the verge of believing a legalistic gospel. And this legalistic gospel says there are certain practices you must practice to maintain your favor with God. So he doesn't spell them out specifically, but he gives us clues that they're things like what you eat, what you drink, ascetic practices, and so forth. And Paul has been encouraging them to flee from that kind of a legalistic gospel and to remain true to the gospel that says, you are saved by grace through faith in the blood of Christ. In other words, the gospel they first believed that was taught to them by the apostles. So in chapter one, he expressed his gratitude for the evidence of faith in them. He prayed that they would grow in spiritual wisdom, specifically that they would fully understand that the way to know God is through Jesus Christ and only through Jesus Christ. And then in chapter two, he began his main point. So in 2.4 he says, I say this in order that no one may delude you with plausible arguments. And in 2.6, therefore, as you received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in him. And I think that is the main theme of this letter. He's urging them to continue believing the gospel that saved them. They came to faith by believing they're saved and forgiven and reconciled to God through the blood of Christ, and he's urging them not to turn away from that. Then in chapter three, he goes through a series of exhortations where he gives examples of how this belief really does make a difference. I think in the exhortation section, Paul is essentially saying the kinds of changes you should be worried about are not the rules and practices and rituals like when you eat or when you fast, when you rest, when you work, and so on. Rather, the real thing you should be concerned about is your attitudes and your values. Because there's this dynamic relationship between what we believe and how we live. So when I come to believe that the gospel is true, that does in fact change my life. It changes my choices, it changes what I value, it changes my actions, my reactions, what I'm hoping for, what I'm counting on. And all that change results from the Holy Spirit working inside me, not from the practices that I practice on the outside. So in his exhortations, these are examples of where the rubber meets the road, where you have a choice to make. Your life will throw you into these situations where you have to respond to either injustice or some kind of authority figure or treatment, and if or other people, both believers and non-believers, and if you believe the gospel, it ought to affect how you act and react in these specific situations. So he gives these exhortations that are not just a series of do this and your life will go better, or do this because it's the right way to go. It's more pointed than that. It's do this because you have embraced the gospel, and embracing the gospel means something. You've heard and believed and embraced the story about Jesus and what he came to do, and there are implications of that, and these are places where that belief matters. So in our section today, he's concluding the letter, and however we understand 4-2, we should understand it in the context that this is a summary of the letter. This is a wrap-up. One housekeeping note, I'm really only going to cover the first six verses of this chapter. The rest of the chapter are final greetings to specific people, and we talked about who those people were and the significance of them in the introduction on the first week of Colossians. I'll put a link to that talk in the lecture notes, and you can go back and find them there if you want. Today I want to talk about the first six verses, how this section fits into the letter, and also a theology of prayer that comes with it. As I mentioned, everyone brings their own theology of prayer to this passage and fills in the gaps with their understanding. So I want to explain my perspective on prayer so you know why I'm understanding four, two through six the way I am. Prayer is a big deal in the Bible and we ought to take it seriously. But it's one of those commandments that we simply cannot keep by just going through the motions. In other words, if we go through the motions of praying every day, we could still miss the point entirely of what Paul is saying. We have these verses that we have to deal with that say things like, persevere in prayer, continue in prayer, pray without ceasing, pray at all times. And the question I want to really want to address today is what are we to do with those? How are we to understand them? There are several options. Commonly it's understood that the authors are teaching us that we should make sure we pray as often as possible or as frequently as possible, especially by consciously talking to God whenever possible. And you can probably guess that's not the option I will pick. And for me, the clearest teaching that turns me away from that kind of thinking is the parable in Luke 18. I'm going to go over this rather quickly, but I do have a talk on this parable on the website, and I'll also put a link to that in the lecture notes if you'd like to go into it more deeply. The parable I want to look at is Luke 18, verses 1 through 8. It's the parable of the widow and the unjust judge. And I'll read that for us. And he told them a parable to the effect that they ought always to pray and not lose heart. He said, In a certain city there was a judge who neither feared God nor respected man, and there was a widow in that city who kept coming to him and saying, Give me justice against my adversary. For a while he refused, but afterward he said to himself, Though I neither fear God nor respect man, yet because this widow keeps bothering me, I will give her justice so that she will not beat me down by her continual coming. And the Lord said, Hear what the unrighteous judge says, and will not God give justice to his elect who cry to him day and night? Will he delay long over them? I tell you, he will give justice to them speedily. Nevertheless, when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on earth? I think the keys to understanding this parable are the book ends in verses 181 and 188. He told them a parable to the effect that they ought always to pray and not lose heart, so that pray and not lose heart. And then in 818, will he find faith on earth? The issue of this parable is will I pray or will I give up? The widow is facing a choice. Her choice is where am I going to go to find justice? Where am I going to go to get the help I need? Will she give up on a judge who is obviously corrupt and unjust, or will she keep going back to him seeking justice? There's no way to motivate this judge because he doesn't care what God thinks and he doesn't care what men think. Nevertheless, she keeps going back and eventually he gives in. And this parable is often, I think, misunderstood as saying if I really want something from God, I need to keep going back and keep going back until eventually he gives in. Something like that. And I don't think that's the point, because God is contrasted with the judge. God's not like the unjust judge. You can't wear him out, he doesn't get tired. And part of the point of the parable is to differentiate God and the judge. So if it made sense for the widow to keep going back to an unjust judge, how much more sense does it make for God's people to keep seeking him, knowing that he is just and good and gracious and loving? Of course he won't turn away from their cries. Thus we ought to pray and not lose heart. Now, why would we lose heart? Although God is not like the judge, we may have to wait for justice like the widow waited. We depend on him for justice to make things right, and often the answer is not yet or not that way. And we face in those situations the same kind of choice the widow faced. When God says, not yet, or he withholds something we desperately want, am I going to keep trusting him or not? The wait isn't over, or I don't like the answer. Am I going to give up or keep waiting? Am I going to turn away from God or am I going to keep turning toward him? I have no promise that tomorrow things will be right, or by Friday the hardships will end, but I do have a promise that they will end eventually and ultimately, and that God will make things right in the end. So the question is, when the Son of Man comes, when Jesus returns, is he going to find faith? Will you have persevered to the end? Yes, God will answer speedily, but what's his answer? His answer is the cross and the second coming. His answer is all will be made right through the Lord Jesus Christ. That day is coming, but that day is not yet. He has told us how justice will finally and ultimately come about for the world, and in my particular situation, it may or may not be put right in my lifetime, depending on the plans and purposes of God. So the question is, when the answer is not what you expect or not what you like, or is not yet, are you going to persevere? Are you going to continue to trust and believe through the weight? Are you going to stay the course? Are you going to keep going back to God with humility and trust and faith, or are you going to lose heart and give up? And I think that question remains throughout the life of a believer. Yes, we grow more wise, yes, we grow more mature, but we also experience these highs and lows and tragedies and triumphs. And sometimes it is very difficult to keep trusting through it all. It's easy to trust God when he showers me with blessings, but what about when he withholds those blessings for a season or for a time? God is willing to let me go through a lot of hard stuff because he has a great plan. There is a reason for it. We have reason to know that God is good and that he keeps his promises. We have reason to know that life is not out of control, and we have reason to keep on keeping on with the faith. So the admonition of the parable then is not go through the motions of prayer as much as you can or as often as you can. The admonition is don't lose heart, don't give up. Keep turning to God and not away from Him. Remember who you're dealing with. You have every reason to keep trusting Him. And that's the challenge. We see this same idea at the end of 1 Thessalonians. This is 1 Thessalonians chapter 5, verses 15 through 18. See that no one repays anyone evil for evil, but always seek to do good to one another and to everyone. Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances, for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you. So we have the same idea. Pray without ceasing and give thanks in all circumstances. And what's he saying here? Life is hard, people are difficult, in the midst of life, when I'm faced with these many challenges, how am I going to respond? The difficulties, the trials, the hardships are part of this bigger story. And that bigger story has a really wonderful ending. We are going to love how that story turns out. This is a journey worth making. True, it's a tough journey, but it is a journey worth making. If I see myself on a journey like the Israelites through the desert to the Promised Land, then I know that my tent is temporary. This life is temporary. This life is not my home or the final destination. The final destination is ahead of me. There is a real joy coming that is not yet here. Part of the challenge in this is do I understand that these trials are taking me someplace? That there's a reason for the suffering and hardship. And if I've embraced the gospel, then I ought to want very much to arrive at that final destination where Jesus has returned, everything is made right, sin is finally dealt with in all its effects and presence. Now it doesn't change my current situation. It may not make it any more pleasant, but it can that attitude, that perspective, can give me the courage and the gratitude to face trouble. It's not that I'm grateful for the trouble, but that I'm grateful that this trouble or trial is taking me to a place I want to go. When Paul says, rejoice always, then in 1 Thessalonians 5.16, the emphasis is on in all circumstances, not at every moment of every day, but in every kind of day. So he's not suggesting that we count the minutes and make sure we get enough minutes, but then every kind of circumstance I face. Not because the circumstances are fun, but because these circumstances take me where I want to go. They are part of the plan and grace of God. So then in 518, when he says, in everything give thanks, I think again it's realize this is all part of the plan. Realize that the good, the ugly, the bad, that's all part of the journey. That is taking me to the promise. And my gratitude results from the confidence that my suffering has a purpose, and that purpose is good. So Samuel's in between those verses, when he says pray without ceasing in 517, I think the idea is don't give up. Pray without giving up. Don't stop praying and turn to something else. Just like in the parable of the widow and the judge, it was don't lose heart. Don't just rejoice or pray or give thanks in the good times and the fun times, rejoice, pray, and give thanks in all times, in everything, good or bad, high or low, tragedy or triumph, in everything, pray and turn to God and be thankful. So I think that's the admonition and the encouragement. Don't let those challenges knock you off the path. Don't let that suffering close your heart to God. It's not that you need to be consistent in your rituals and religious activities. It's more the idea of where does the rubber meet the road for you? Do you pray or do you give up? Do you recognize that this is a journey worth taking, or have you had enough and said, no, God, I'm giving up. Now let's look at Colossians 4.2 through 4.4 with that understanding. 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. Continue steadfastly, or some translations might say devote yourself or persevere. The noun form of this word is basically perseverance. And I don't think he's saying don't do anything other than pray. You know, he's not saying something like you can't go watch your kids' soccer game until you've gotten your required prayer time minutes in, or you can't have all those new folks over for dinner because you really ought to be praying. He's not saying stop being distracted by other duties and pray. I think the idea is persevere in prayer, continue in prayer, don't give up on God. Continue to trust him and continue to turn to him. Continue not in the sense of spend 10 hours instead of one hour. It's continue as in remain. Keep on keeping on. And then he says keeping alert in it with this at with an attitude of thanksgiving. And again, I think the being watchful or the keeping alert is not trivial. It's not like, oh, and when you pray, by the way, be really focused, don't be distracted. Rather, I think the idea is that most of the people living in this world are metaphorically asleep. They've missed the story of the gospel, they've missed the big picture. They're on cruise control thinking this world is all there is, this is all there gonna be, I don't have to deal with God, I don't have to deal with the cross, I'm just cruising through life. Jesus used an analogy of the kingdom coming like a thief in the night. He says, if you knew the thief was coming that night, you'd stay awake to guard your house. But if you don't know that the thief is coming, then you're asleep when he's a when he arrives and you're not prepared. That's the kind of thing going on here. Most people don't know the thief is coming. They're asleep. They've missed the importance of the gospel. They aren't prepared for how the story is going to end. But you, if you've embraced the gospel, you're not like them. You know the thief is coming. You know what really matters in this life. So stay awake in that sense. You know there's a judgment coming. You know you're a sinner, you know the only place to find mercy is the blood of Jesus Christ. And in that sense, you are not asleep. Your eyes have been opened. So keep alert in prayer, I think, is contrasted with forgetting the gospel and the cross. Keep going back to God because this is where life is to be found. Don't get distracted by the other things in life. Don't get caught up in other stories, don't get pulled in by recreation or entertainment or all the cares of this world and forget the big picture. And then notice he adds, keep alert with gratitude. It's very common for Paul to connect gratitude with prayer. Remember, we saw this in chapter one, where he explained how being filled with wisdom and understanding would lead to gratitude. So we're grateful for our salvation because of our hope in the blood of Christ. So in chapter one, he says this. He started with we have this understanding, this understanding of what's really true leads to wisdom, and wisdom leads to gratitude. Again, I don't think he's saying when you pray, you should have this formula that includes a Thanksgiving section. Now, there's nothing wrong with that, but I don't think that's the point of his pat this passage. He's not so much concerned with the formula or the way I pray, but that I have this gratitude, that I have the right wisdom and understanding behind it. And because I have a deep understanding of the gospel, I know I have something to be grateful for. So rather than an admonition to partake of a ritual in a certain way, I think the admonition is keep going back to Him no matter what. Keep going to God no matter what. Be grateful no matter what storm you face, because you understand there is really something to be grateful for. Colossians 4 2 is not a trivial kind of make sure you pray a lot. He's speaking to, I think, the central struggle of every believer. Am I going to persevere in the face of hardships? Am I going to turn to God when the world pressures me to turn away? Am I going to cling to what I know to be true when life is hard, when it looks crazy, and the pressure's on? Now remember, he's talking to folks who are listening to heretics, and they are tempted to walk away from the gospel, and he's urging them to hold fast to the truth of the gospel. So I don't think we could fulfill Colossians 4 2 by setting an app on our phone to remind us to pray ten minutes of every hour. That's not really the idea behind it. The question is when I prayed, is there meaning behind it? Does my prayer reflect this understanding of the cross, the right view of life? Let's look at 4-3 and 4-4. 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. Paul is in prison when he's writing this letter. His speaking and teaching options are limited, his movements are limited, and he's asking them to pray that God would open a door to remove those restrictions or to use those restrictions so that he can take the gospel, which is what I think he means by the mystery of Christ, where it needs to go. Paul has been given a unique role, a unique task as an apostle to tell the story, to spread this message to the world, and he's asking that God would make it possible for him to fulfill that task. Now that raises a question. You've probably received these emails. Person A is facing trial X, and the email says it's very essential that we get as many people as possible to pray whatever, this list of things for person A, and forward this email to all your friends and ask them to pray. Is that what Paul's doing in 4.3 and 4.4? And what should we think of those kinds of requests? Are they a valid application of these two verses? I hope I'm not stepping on anyone's toes here because I don't mean in any way to question the sincerity or the belief or the intentions of people who send these emails. I want to look at them from a theological perspective and say, okay, assume that my understanding of prayer is right, and all that I've just told you with the parable of the widow of the judge and 1 Thessalonians and what I think is going on here, assume I'm right. It's you know, 50-50. But let's assume for the purposes of a theology experiment, I'm right. What ought I to do with those emails? If I forget to pray, is person A now doomed to God's second best? Or if I neglect to forward the email, have I broken the prayer chain so that now the person A is going to experience something less than God's best and quickest answer? Conversely, if I forward that email to my entire contact list and every last one of them prays and forwards it on, does it mean that person A is now guaranteed to get the option or the outcome that we're praying for? And I've actually heard Colossians 4 quoted in these emails. Now, again, let me be clear, I am not judging person A. Person A is facing dire straits, an extremely difficult challenge. I am not at all judging that person for their desire to have help and support and encouragement from the body of Christ. In fact, just the opposite. Seeking prayer and encouragement from your fellow believers, I believe, is a right and proper response to the hardship of trials. There is nothing wrong with that. I am not belittling or minimizing in any way the desire to call out to my brothers and sisters and say, this is really hard and I need you to walk through it with me. There's again nothing wrong with that. In fact, I would encourage you to do that. But I do want to examine the theology that sometimes, but not always, is lurking behind that kind of a request. And I want to question the idea that prayer is a tool that we use to entice God to act. Because sometimes I think that line of thinking creeps into our thought. I don't believe that's correct. Prayer is not a tool we use to entice God to act. Now, in any specific situation, that theology may or may not be there. And it may not affect anyone listening to this podcast or in this room, but it can be out there. Not everyone views prayer as a coin we put in God's vending machine to get the answer we want, but some people do. And in fact, you see it lurking in the urgency that gets added to those kinds of requests. You know, get as many people to pray as possible, or in the TV preachers who warn, you know, souls may be lost if you don't pray right now. So we see that kind of an attitude is that prayer is somehow required to move God to action. That's the idea I want to examine. Now, why is that idea so appealing to us? I think it's appealing because we want to be in control. I mean, what does every human being on the planet want to do? We want to be in control of our lives, we want to control our circumstances. So I don't want to be sick. I don't want the crops to fail. I don't want my business to go under, I don't want my child to suffer, I don't want to lose my job or fail a test or whatever possible uh disaster is waiting in my path. I want my life to bend the direction I want my life to bend. I want my vision to be executed, and my vision is that the path would be smooth, straight, easy sailing. And I think all of us as humans are looking for a way to be in charge and be in control. Now we have may have the best of intentions, but often I think we let this desire for control creep into our theology of prayer. Getting sufficient numbers to pray, a specific request, is a way to get God to do what we want Him to do. And that picture of prayer sees it as my, in a sense, as my ability to control my circumstances. And I think that conflicts with the gospel. I would argue when we start thinking that way, we're being influenced by the world. Now you might say, okay, that sounds good, but have you read Colossians 4, 3 and 4? What it what else is Paul doing? He is asking them to pray that this door would be opened to him. Could you not turn to me with this trump card and say, well, you're wrong because look, Paul is doing precisely what you said not to do. He is asking for numbers to join him in the prayer. And he's an apostle, so he's right. Paul must believe that prayer is this tool to change your circumstances because look, he is asking them to pray exactly that. That seems to be precisely what he's doing. Well, I would respond, while it is always true, always true, that wherever Paul and I might disagree, he is right and I am wrong. And I need to let him change my understanding. That's a given. But why else might he be asking them to pray that the door would be opened? Does he believe, or is it necessarily required that he believe that sufficient numbers of people must pray to get God to act? And I would say no. Instead, I think what's behind his request is the idea we talked about earlier, that it is entirely appropriate to reach out to God in the difficulties of life and to ask him to do something about it. It is appropriate to tell him in my heart of hearts, this is how I want you to make it all work out. We have the example of Jesus in the garden doing exactly that. Pouring out his heart to God, saying, if it's possible, take this cup away from me, but in the end, accepting God's will. So I would say pouring out my heart to God, even asking very specifically for what I want is perfectly acceptable and right as long as I'm not demanding my way. Asking with a humble, grateful heart that will accept whatever answer God answers is great, and I would encourage you to do exactly that. Going to the other end of the spectrum where I'm shaking my fist in God's face, demanding that he do things my way, that's wrong. But that there's a slippery slope to that position of thinking, well, I can manipulate him into doing things my way, and then we've crossed a line. Thinking that this is what I need to do to get what I want in the way I want it, then we've crossed a line, and that's what I think is wrong. But anytime we humbly turn to him in grief, in struggle, begging him to act and get us through, that is a perfectly godly, natural response. Just like we saw Jesus in the garden, he knew he was going to die on the cross, and yet when the hour came, he asked that the Father take the cup away. It was not wrong for him to ask. So he was not looking forward to the hours on the cross, but in the end, he wanted whatever God wanted. Notice he also didn't say, well, God's going to do whatever he's going to do, so I'm not going to bother to pray at all. That is also an inappropriate response. When we're in agony, when we're in pain, we ought to pray and not lose heart. We ought to turn to our Father in heaven in our pain, pour out our hearts, and then say, Whatever you answer, I will accept. Notice Jesus asked his disciples to pray with him. Again, very good response. Asking your brothers and sisters, please walk through this with me is a very appropriate. So he expressed his suffering and said, If there's a way, take this cup away from me. But when the answer was no, this is the cup, he faced it. I think he knew that was going to be the answer from the beginning, but it didn't lessen the suffering or his need to pour out his heart. His heart compelled him to ask, but he asked with faith, trust, and humility. Sometimes when we face difficult circumstances and we cry out to God for relief, that relief comes. Sometimes it doesn't. If I call out and the answer is not yet or not in that way, or I've got something else in mind, then we have to remember there is a great purpose in God asking us to go through this, and we ought to be ready to accept that. So it is not faithless of me to ask, but it if once my asking moves from faith and acceptance of whatever God's answer is to a kind of subtle manipulation that if I get enough people to pray and put enough pressure on God, then he'll do it my way because after all he's going to look bad if he doesn't, then I've crossed a line. Then I have stepped away from that humble trust that God knows what he's doing to this kind of subtle attitude of I want to be in control and God can't possibly ask me to do this. I know better than him. I don't think that's what Paul's thinking when he makes this request. I think rather he's thinking, God made me an apostle and he knows what he's asked me to do. My in my heart of hearts, I want to be free to preach the gospel. This is a hardship, this is a struggle I'm facing. Please pray with me that God would open that door. When others pray with him, then all those who pray have this opportunity to rejoice in God whenever he answers, whatever that answer is. We have a chance to see and learn and trust the way God's working. So I don't think Paul's recruiting numbers. I think Paul is convinced God is going to do right by him. He's in jail by the will of God, he will come out by the will of God. But in the spiritual life, he's saying, don't be indifferent to my situation. When you pray about what God is doing, remember this hardship I'm facing, care about the way the gospel goes forward, care about my opportunity to proclaim it. So pray not to move the hand of God, but pray because this is what is on my heart. This share it with me, rejoice with me, weep with me as a fellow member of the body of Christ. I also want to clarify that I am not making the argument that if you don't feel like praying, you shouldn't pray until you get some insp inspiration. I'm not saying that. The heart is a very deceitful thing. The heart tells me I'm something special when God tells me I'm a sinner. My heart tells me I'm worthless when God tells me I'm made in his image and redeemed by the blood of Christ. My heart tells me I've done nothing wrong, my actions are perfectly justified when in fact I am a selfish lazy bum. My heart tells me my efforts weren't good enough, God is angry with me when in fact God has forgiven me through the cross and he has me right where he wants me. So if my heart tells me don't pray, don't turn to God, don't bother with him, he's already got an answer anyway, that is precisely the kind of talk I ought to ignore. That's losing heart. That's giving up, the giving up that Paul is warning against. And it is precisely in those moments when I want to say to my inner self, I'm not listening to that. I know what is true, I know where life is to be found, and it is to be found by turning to God in prayer. Now, if a ritual helps me get through those times when I'm tempted to lose heart, then thanks be to God. But I dare not trust that that ritual will make me a person of prayer or make me pleasing in God's eyes or make me a better believer. That's the work of the Spirit in my life. So I don't want to slip into the mindset that I can use this ritual to influence or control the actions of God in my life. In the end, I think this passage is calling me to faith, to continue in faith, not a ritual. Then in four or five, walk in wisdom toward outsiders making the best use of the time. Making the best use of the time could also be translated redeeming the time. I think the idea is conduct yourself with wisdom in the midst of outsiders. The contrast is between folly and wisdom. You're living in a culture where people are going to spend their time pursuing evil, pursuing the wrong kinds of things, wasting their time in that sense on selfish pursuits. You need to live differently. You need to walk in wisdom, not foolishness. Don't follow the world around you into folly and foolishness. So making the most of every opportunity, redeeming the time. This season of life has a purpose, and that purpose is to come to a strong, mature faith and to be prepared when the king returns. The days are evil, but there is a good purpose behind what God is doing. Give yourself over to that wisdom, not to folly. I don't think he's talking about, oh, you need to make the most of every opportunity to evangelize, although that is always a good idea. Rather, I think he's saying, in the midst of a wicked world, hold on to truth, cling to your face. Wisdom is your watchword. Don't be taken in by the darkness of the world. Because when I'm talking and dealing with people who don't share my values, it's way easier to fit in than it is to stand out. It's easier to go along with the crowd, to laugh at the same jokes, to dress like them, pursue what they pursue. It's much easier to do that than to stand out and be different. We all want to be part of the crowd, we all want to be accepted. That's the easier path. And I think the warning is be very careful here. Conduct yourself wisely, conduct yourself in wisdom, and don't be taken into the crowd. So he's not saying go out there and do big things for God, but how are you gonna live? What choices are you gonna make? How are you dealing with people who tell you it's foolish to believe in Christ? When I go away from here, from the safety of the Christian huddle, how am I gonna walk? Am I going to talk about Bible things with my Bible friends and computer things with my computer friends and artsy stuff with my arts-free friends, and maybe just explore a little different side of my personality with those who don't believe, and I'll keep that Christian side damped down so it doesn't cause any ways. That's what he's warning against. As an example, I am interested in politics and I am very conservative. And in recent years, I have blown past the Republican Party and tipped over into libertarians. And I have a group of wonderful friends that I've known for over 15 years, and almost every one of them is a full-blown bleeding heart liberal. They are also, for the most part, genuine believers and followers of Christ. With them, I don't talk politics. I don't bring it up, and we all get along just fine. It's a choice we've made. Politics is tangential to our friendship, we will just leave it at the door. Christianity is not like that. I dare not leave Christianity at the door. I dare not leave it at the door when I walk into a group. That's the kind of warning Paul's is saying here. My belief in the gospel is not something I can leave behind when I leave the door of church on Sunday mornings. I can't leave it behind in the way I leave my politics behind. The gospel needs to make a difference in how I speak and what I think and the choices I make and the values I value and the things I pursue. So the temptation is to leave it behind so I can fit in and look like everyone else. But Paul's saying, walk in wisdom with outsiders. Don't leave your Christianity at the door. And then finally, 4-6. Let your speech always be gracious, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how you ought to answer each person. So that again, this pairs with four or five. Conduct yourselves with wisdom and let your speech be distinctive. The idea is let your perspective remain wise, let your worldview shine through, not only in what you do, but also in what you say. Let what you believe make a difference and flavor your speech. Now remember, he's writing to a group of people who have been listening to worldly teachers and are being tempted to walk away from the true gospel. He's saying resist that. So when he says let your speech always be gracious, I don't think he means gracious in the compassionate sense here, but speak with an understanding of grace. Let your speech reflect the understanding of grace that has saved you as though seasoned with salt. Because what's distinctive about believers is that they embrace the gospel story. They believe something particular about who Jesus is and what Jesus came to do. That's salty, that's unique. That flavor makes us distinct. He's saying don't lose that, don't mix it with other philosophical spices such that it becomes unrecognizable and you can't taste it anymore. Your speech should be the speech of a person who understands the grace of God and the blood of Christ and will not go the way of the world because they understand what is true. So as throughout this letter, his warning is remember what's true. Remember the gospel that saved you. Hold on to the wisdom of the gospel and whatever pressures come your way, whatever outsiders or people you're dealing with, and let it change you from the inside out. Let's pray. Father, we confess that we are not the people we should be. We confess that we are too easily tempted by the world, that we too easily forget and slip back into the ways that we used to walk before we came to faith. We just pray that in that, whenever we're tempted, that you would reach out and catch us, hold us strong, remind us of what's true, help us to encourage each other to walk with wisdom and righteousness, and that you would take these words and that anything that is wrong, heretical, confusing, that you would blow it away like cats, and you would let what is true and the wise and what you would have taught remain and write it on our hearts so that it becomes not just the things that we would vote for in a theology quiz, but that it becomes our worldview and the way that we live and think and deep and state.