Element Christian Church

Paul pushes very hard for us to identify our lives with who we are in Christ. Many times we think we identify with Christ, but our lives (and choices) tend to reveal a different narrative. Today we define ourselves by the job we have (or don’t have), the car we drive (or don’t drive), the house, family, health, etc…it is all about identity. WATCH FULL SERVICE ON YOUTUBE DOWNLOAD PDF SERMON NOTES HERE

When Paul tells the Colossian church that “Jesus is Lord,” it would have meant something significant to Hebrews and Greco-Romans. To the Hebrews, this would have conveyed that Jesus is fully God; to the Greco-Romans, this would have been politically subversive, emphasizing Jesus over Caesar. As disciples of Jesus today, we should continually seek to display Jesus as Lord in our own lives. WATCH FULL SERVICE ON YOUTUBE DOWNLOAD PDF SERMON NOTES HERE

There are many signs that surround Jesus’ crucifixion in Matthew 27:45-54, such as Jesus' cry of abandonment ("My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?"), and three hours of supernatural darkness at midday as Jesus bears the weight of humanity's sin. WATCH FULL SERVICE ON YOUTUBE DOWNLOAD PDF SERMON NOTES HERE

The Gospel is the announcement of what Jesus did to save and restore us through His birth, life, death, and resurrection. Our salvation is found in no other place than the work of Christ on our behalf. There are many in the world throughout the ages that have turned the Gospel from good news to bad news by moving its focus away from Jesus and onto someone or something else. This is why it is important to guard the truthd of the Gospel. WATCH FULL SERVICE ON YOUTUBE DOWNLOAD PDF SERMON NOTES HERE

After finishing Chapter 1 of Colossians, today we take a side excursion to jump deeper into Paul’s understanding of discipleship. The Bible contains truths that, when lived out, can yield deeper fulfillment than we could have ever imagined. What we look at today will hopefully help us honestly figure out where we are on our discipleship journey and hopefully be excited for the next steps. WATCH FULL SERVICE ON YOUTUBE DOWNLOAD PDF SERMON NOTES HERE

Paul sees his own sufferings as part of Jesus’ afflictions. He is drawing on this ancient Jewish belief that the great suffering we pass through leads us into the age to come. Jesus has already brought us to the Kingdom of God in our lives, but there is still a struggle in tension with the “present age.” There is still suffering to be undergone. This is not an addition to Jesus’ suffering; rather, it is how we live in light of what Jesus did—growing into maturity in Christ in all circumstances. WATCH FULL SERVICE ON YOUTUBE DOWNLOAD PDF SERMON NOTES HERE

The suffering we see, or personally experience, in this world can lead to numerous questions about God and our lives. In Colossians 1:24-25, Paul makes a statement that some have taken out of context, where they believe our sufferings are added to the work of Jesus; that is blatantly false. Jesus’ work is complete, but that doesn’t mean all suffering is removed from the world. WATCH FULL SERVICE ON YOUTUBE DOWNLOAD PDF SERMON NOTES HERE

When we come to the understanding of our reconciliation with God through the work of Jesus, it can be both exciting and painful. It is exciting because of God’s love and grace extended to us in Christ, but it can also be painful as we acknowledge the reason we needed that reconciliation—our sin. Paul believes that the purpose of God’s work is to reconcile the whole creation to Himself. In doing so, Paul will give words to our condition. WATCH FULL SERVICE ON YOUTUBE DOWNLOAD PDF SERMON NOTES HERE

Over the last few weeks we have looked at what it means that Jesus is preeminent in all things—heaven, earth, and our lives. Today we will recap all of these ideas with one of the clearest descriptions of who Jesus is. WATCH FULL SERVICE ON YOUTUBE DOWNLOAD PDF SERMON NOTES HERE

Today we are (continuing) to look at a section of the New Testament that has one of the highest views of Jesus (Christology). C.S. Lewis wrote, “I am trying here to prevent anyone saying the really foolish thing that people often say about Him: I’m ready to accept Jesus as a great moral teacher, but I don’t accept his claim to be God. That is the one thing we must not say.” Many people say they love the teachings of Jesus, but when you tell them the actual teachings of Jesus, they get confused or angry because Jesus’ own words can speak for themselves. WATCH FULL SERVICE ON YOUTUBE DOWNLOAD PDF SERMON NOTES HERE

This is our second week looking specifically at what it means that Jesus is over all things (the Creator, the supreme, the highest). This is one of the main reasons that Paul writes the letter to the Colossian church the way that he does—to show the preeminence of Jesus. Colossian 1:15-20 teaches us that Jesus is God in one of the clearest manners, and that He is the firstborn over all creation. WATCH FULL SERVICE ON YOUTUBE DOWNLOAD PDF SERMON NOTES HERE

We are going to take a few weeks to look at Colossians 1:15-20 as it is one of the highest Christological statements anywhere in the Bible. Yes, we celebrate Christmas, Easter, Good Friday, but sometimes forget how great Jesus is even in the midst of those holidays. Paul starts like this Col 1:15 He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. WATCH FULL SERVICE ON YOUTUBE DOWNLOAD PDF SERMON NOTES HERE

In Colossians Paul will deal a lot with the issue of syncretism. Syncretism is where the church “synchronizes” with the world around it, sometimes so much so that it ceases to look like Jesus. Syncretism was becoming an issue in Colossae because they were beginning to combine Christianity with what was known as Gnosticism. Paul starts off redirecting them back to Jesus, the Holy Spirit, and God the Father Himself. He then tells them WHAT he is praying for them and WHY. Paul will offer a prayer for knowledge and for their local church to walk with Jesus in a way that is both powerful and thankful. WATCH FULL SERVICE ON YOUTUBE DOWNLOAD PDF SERMON NOTES HERE

Paul’s address of concerns in the book of Colossians reveals a view of Jesus’ preeminence. In Colossians you see one of the highest portrayals of Christ. This high view of Jesus comes from what we call the Gospel. Gospel means a joyful announcement of something that is impacting those who hear it in a positive way. WATCH FULL SERVICE ON YOUTUBE DOWNLOAD PDF SERMON NOTES HERE

Colossians is a letter written by the Apostle Paul to a church he had never visited. The church in Colossae was planted by a disciple of Paul named Epaphras. Paul is writing this letter to introduce himself and correct a problem(s) in the church at Colossae. WATCH FULL SERVICE ON YOUTUBE DOWNLOAD PDF SERMON NOTES HERE

A special Sunday to get a glimpse of how the Gospel is being lived out in Thailand. WATCH FULL SERVICE ON YOUTUBE FIND THIS WEEKS ANNOUNCEMENTS, SONG LIST, NOTES, AND MORE AT YOUVERSION 2025 FALL MISSIONS UPDATE

Jesus uses the “antithesis” statements in the Sermon on the Mount to highlight how the Jewish people were taking the Old Testament law out of context. The law had become a list of ways to show obedience, instead of having obedience from a heart’s disposition toward God. It is in this context Jesus calls believers “to be perfect like their heavenly Father is perfect.” Perfect is not in the literal sense here, rather the Greek word “teleios” which describes believers journeying to “maturity” and “completeness” in our walk with the Lord. Jesus’ purpose in calling believers to perfection is not to act “more” morally upright, it is to remind us to act in response from a heart that is saved by grace. We must remember that we have been adopted into God’s family through Christ’s work on the cross, that He merited for us what was impossible for us so that we can grow to resemble our Father more every day. WATCH FULL SERVICE ON YOUTUBE DOWNLOAD PDF SERMON NOTES HERE

The popular phrase, "Love the sinner, hate the sin," while not found in Scripture, can be lived out in wisdom, but also prone to potential misuse. The Scriptures present sin (wandering off the path, broken, blemish, rebellion, owing a debt, going astray, lawlessness, impurity) as widespread, damaging, and deserving of serious struggle. Sin isn’t only future punishment, but is a present destructive power—separation from God and others. Christians should hate all sin, especially their own, asking God for conviction and pursuing confession, accountability, and forgiveness. WATCH FULL SERVICE ON YOUTUBE DOWNLOAD PDF SERMON NOTES HERE

The entire Bible must be kept in mind when looking at passages in different books. There is an apparent contradiction (to some people) between 1 John 2:15 (and its command to not to love the world) and John 3:16, which says that God loved the world. The word "world" has two distinct meanings: the material universe (creation, humanity, nature) which Christians should love as God does, and "worldliness," a system of thinking that treats the material world as ultimate reality. Christians are called to love the world in the first sense by honoring human dignity (since all are made in God's image), caring for creation, reaching the lost with compassion, and living for God's glory, but to reject worldliness (the mindset that this life is all there is). WATCH FULL SERVICE ON YOUTUBE DOWNLOAD PDF SERMON NOTES HERE

There is so much confusion over Paul’s instructions about women in 1 Timothy 2:11-15. By examining the cultural and religious context of Ephesus, we can get a broader picture of what he had been trying to say. Culturally, Paul was addressing specific problems arising from the collision between Jewish synagogue practices, pagan Artemis worship, and early Christian communities. The passage about women being "saved through childbearing" is most likely a targeted response to former Artemis worshippers who needed proper theological education and assurance that Jesus, not Artemis (the goddess of midwifery), would protect them in childbirth. WATCH FULL SERVICE ON YOUTUBE DOWNLOAD PDF SERMON NOTES HERE