You know, there's a certain poignancy about this
crusade to me because Billy Graham is very close
to the end of his ministry. And I think there
is a crusade scheduled in Charlotte this fall,
which would be the last of his crusades in the
some 50 years now that he's been preaching the
gospel of Jesus Christ. And so to have him come
to Minneapolis in June, near the end of his...
his public crusade ministry is a great privilege
for us and I hope that you will understand it
in that way as well as a wonderful opportunity
to serve the Lord and there is no registration
necessary for the class you just heard about
all you need to do is come. We're expecting that
our auditorium will be filled and then some because
we're one of 22 locations throughout the region
having the class during those weeks in April
and May. I hope that you will plan to go to one
of them if you don't want to come to this one
because of a conflict. Go to another one and
allow yourself to be equipped in the Christian
life as well as in how to witness to your friends.
Well now would you open your Bible with me please
to Colossians chapter 3 where we take up our
study beginning with verse 12. You can follow
along in your copy of the Bible as I read the
word of God. And so as those who have been chosen
of God, holy and beloved, put on a heart of compassion,
kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience,
bearing with one another, and forgiving each
other, whoever has a complaint against anyone.
Just as the Lord forgave you, so also should
you. And beyond all these things put on love,
which is the perfect bond of unity. Well, the
fairy tale has now become a nightmare. The sordid
details of the marriage of Prince Charles and
Princess Diana have embarrassed the British monarchy
and potentially undermined it for the future.
But nonetheless, who of us can forget the pageantry
and the pomp 15 years ago when they were wed.
The videos of that occasion, even the photos
still today, evoke a sense of wonder and the
stirring of our imagination. As we think to ourselves,
what would it be like to be part of an occasion
like that? Well, if you're a child of God, if
you're a Christian, you need to give some thought
to that. And the reason is very simple because
Jesus Christ is preparing His bride, of which
you're a part, for a wedding. And that wedding
in heaven is going to make the one in England
15 years ago look like a cheap Las Vegas quickie.
And you are going to be a part of it by the grace
of God. The Apostle Paul speaks to the Bride
of Jesus Christ and he describes us as believers
with three wonderful words. He says, I write
to those who have been chosen of God. The word
chosen means to select from among many. It does
not necessarily imply the rejection of those
not chosen. but rather the election of those
that was God's good pleasure to choose. In Ephesians
1 -4 it says, God chose us in Christ before the
foundation of the world. In Titus 1 -1, Paul
says he is writing for the faith of those chosen
of God. This is one of the themes of Scripture
that relates to you and to me as believers in
Jesus Christ. that before the world began, God
looked into the future of what was going to happen,
the ages that He prepared and He chose those
whom He would redeem. I know that that raises
questions in our minds. We don't fully understand
all the... all the balance that is there between
the human responsibility to believe, which is
certainly true, and the truth that God has chosen.
But put the debate out of your mind for a moment,
and just sit back and realize that out of no
reason other than His sovereign grace, before
God spoke the world into existence, before it
actually came into being, He knew you. He knew
you and He chose you to be a part of this very
special group that is called the Bride of Christ
that He's preparing now for the wedding that
is coming up. There's a second word that is used
of the bride and that is holy. Chosen of God.
and holy. The word holy simply means to set apart.
It is a word used back in verse 2 of chapter
1 when he called us saints. Same root word. Those
who have been set apart by God. So God not only
chose us, but then in time He set us apart for
His divine purpose. We are holy. in that sense.
And then he uses a third word. And you would
expect this to be a word when there's a marriage
involved. He says, you are beloved. You are the
objects of God's love. But God demonstrates His
love toward us, says Paul in Romans. God demonstrates
His love toward us in that while we were yet
sinners, Christ died for us. This is the basis
of God's election. It is the reason that He sets
us apart, because He loves us. And so if you
are a believer in Jesus Christ, if you are a
Christian, in the sense of being born again into
the family of God, You are today one who is part
of a special group, the bride who will be married
to Christ. Our text is addressed to the bride
who needs to get dressed for the wedding. That's
no small feat. Now most grooms are not aware
of that because grooms come toodling into the
church 15 minutes before the pictures are supposed
to be taken. He gets into his outfit, whatever
it is, and he's ready. But my friend, the bride
is here hours before the wedding. Hours before
the wedding. So that she can get her hair done
and her nails just have to be right. And then
she begins to put on the layers of this wedding
dress that has been purchased. So that she's
ready when the time comes. And what the apostle
says to you and to me is that we need to get
dressed. It's time for us to put on the royal
remit, the glorious garb for those who will now
be wed to the Son of God. When he says to us
that we are to put these things on in verse 12,
he uses an expression there that means Take this
action urgently. Understand it's something that
needs to be done and needs to be done now. Don't
put it off. Put on, he says, these things. Now
we already are a new person, a new self in Jesus
Christ as we saw last week. So we're not going
to put these things on so that we can become
a Christian. No, no. He says, you are a new person.
You are a Christian. Now because you are, put
on these things. And so he gives us seven pieces
to the royal attire. Seven pieces to this garment
that God wants us to wear. This outfit that will
be well pleasing to Christ on that day that we
are wed to Him. The first garment. is called
a heart of compassion. The word heart in the
Greek language refers to the internal organs,
to the lungs, the heart, the kidneys, the intestines.
That's because the Greeks understood emotion
as coming from right here, a visceral reaction.
And so they used this word to refer to that emotion.
The ability to feel, when you hear shocking news,
it hits you right there. You tense up inside.
And so they write about the heart, and Paul uses
this term, the heart of compassion. The first
piece that we're to put on is the ability to
feel pity and sympathy for the weak and the suffering.
The Lord says if we're going to dress for His
wedding, we need to first put on this garment
of having tender feelings. You know, in a culture
like ours, it's easy to allow our hearts to become
hardened. Not only are we overwhelmed with the
media and the violence that we see, but We see
so much suffering brought right into our living
rooms that after a while we get compassion fatigue.
And we see these sights that 20 years ago would
have caused us to weep and now we eat our meals
and glance at them as we are eating without much
feeling about it. We need to allow our hearts
to remain soft and tender. James 5 11 says that
God is full of compassion and merciful. God is
a God who has tender feelings for those who are
hurting. And of the Lord Jesus it says that as
He viewed the multitudes, He felt compassion
for them. Because they were distressed and downcast
like sheep without a shepherd. We look at a video
like we did a few moments ago and we see the
crowds in the city streets or the crowds sitting
there in the stadium of a Billy Graham crusade.
Is there any sense of compassion for these people?
As you ponder those that you work with or go
to school with. Is there within you a tenderness
that cares for their hurts? As Ron Hutchcraft
said in that video, the very things our culture
has sought after and found so empty have prepared
them to hear the gospel. People are hurting.
They're desperate. And yes, they're going to
the wrong place to find the answers. But even
in doing that, they're further prepared for the
truth when they finally hear it. So let's not
just turn them off and say, oh, they're beyond
hope. Let's put on the garment of compassion
and have a tenderness about us. and allow ourselves
to feel the pain of others, to get emotionally
involved with them. Yes, there's risk in that.
Some of us have been so hurt in the past by reaching
out to help the hurting. We've been so hurt ourselves
that we don't want to risk being hurt again.
I'm glad our God doesn't respond that way, aren't
you? Because so many times he would not have
responded to me. And yet he's always been full
of compassion. And so must we. Put on, he says,
a heart of compassion that feels with others
the distress of their lives. And then he says,
put on, secondly, kindness. Put on kindness.
The word here means a friendly, helpful attitude
that seeks to meet the practical needs of others.
It's just plain old -fashioned goodness. It is
used in Romans 11 22 in tandem with severity
and the opposite of that. It speaks of the goodness
and the severity of God. He says here that we
are to be filled with goodness, with kindness.
Spiro Zodiatti says, it is the grace which pervades
the whole nature, mellowing all which would have
been harsh and austere. You notice we get older.
It's easier to become harsh and critical and
judgmental. What he says is that as we're growing
older, we need to keep putting on this garment
of kindness that mellows us out, that doesn't
allow us to become bitter with the passing years,
but we remain kind and good. It is the goodness
of God that leads us to repentance, Romans 2
for this very word. It is God's kindness. And
the Lord Jesus illustrated what kindness is all
about in that parable of the Good Samaritan,
didn't he? And this poor man who had been beaten
and left for dead, and others passed by, but
this Samaritan came by. And this man who had
experienced rejection himself by the very people
that this man belonged to, and the very people
who had passed him by, this Samaritan, this half
-breed, stops and cares for him. and takes him
to an inn and pays for his staying there for
days. Kindness. Jesus told that story in response
to the question, well who is my neighbor? Jesus
has said love your neighbor as yourself. Well
who is my neighbor? Jesus says I'll tell you
about a neighbor. You and I need to be neighbors
and show kindness to those To those who may have
hurt us to those who may least deserve it were
to show kindness put on kindness as a member
of the bride of Christ Thirdly says put on humility
Alistair Begg tells about one college student
who satirized the absence of humility in our
our world with a sign on his dorm door that said
in bold letters, no, I am not conceited. And
then in small letters underneath it, it said,
though I have every reason to be so. Humility
is the absence of thinking of oneself first.
It means to look at oneself in perspective. Humility
was not considered positive in the Roman world
when Paul lived. To them, humility was a sign
of weakness. Yet the Apostle Paul takes that
word and by the Spirit of God puts it down as
a jewel of character. Spurgeon said, humility
is to make a right estimate of oneself. It doesn't
mean that you totally forget who you are, but
it means that you allow others first. It means
that you see yourself in perspective to them.
Paul, I'm going to be that water down there.
Would you grab that for me, please? Thank you.
By the way, did you write that skit this morning?
I thought that last line was a little too personal
for you to have written it. Humility, wonderful
example of it right there. He would not take
credit for that last line. To be humble means
to lay aside your personal rights. The Lord Jesus
Christ is the greatest example there is of humility.
He laid aside his rights, humbled himself, and
became obedient unto death. You know, I think
I'm going to have to have a chorus. My throat's
just giving out on me. Got a chorus on humility
handy? We are called not to feel humble, but
to be humble. And right now I not only feel it,
I am. Why don't we sing? Well, I have a chorus
for you. We bow down and worship the Lord. Why
don't you stand? We can sing together as you
stand. You are Lord of creation and Lord of my
life, Lord of the land and the sea. You are Lord
of the heavens before there was time, and Lord
of all lords you will be. We bow down and we
worship you, Lord, we bow down. And we worship
you, Lord, we bow down And we worship you, Lord,
Lord of all You are Lord of creation and Lord
of my life Lord of the land and the sea You are
Lord of creation We bow down and we worship you,
Lord. We bow down and we worship you. We bow
down and we worship you, Lord. Lord of all, Lord
you will be. We'll have you be seated for just
a moment and we'll sing, I love you, Lord. I
love you, Lord. And I lift my voice to worship
You, O my soul rejoicing. May it be a sweet,
sweet sound in your ears. Thank you, sir. Would
you mind getting me a glass of water? I could
do it, but I'm busy right now. Thank you. Well,
I think I'm going to leave humility. I think
I should be done with that by now And we will
go on to talk about gentleness put on gentleness
Gentleness springs from great strength within
this word gentle is sometimes translated meekness
One who is meek is one who is submissive It is
gentleness that springs from power that is under
control The picture of it is that of a rushing,
powerful river that is brought to a dam that
holds it back. Thank you. And as that dam holds
back that river, it allows some of it to pass
through. And in doing that, it passes through
turbines that generate electricity. And so you
have the power of this mighty river. being harnessed
and allowed to pass through the dam. And as it
does, it produces energy. What gentleness is
about is not using the powers of your life for
yourself, and using them randomly, using them
to advance your own agenda. The one who is gentle
is one who causes that power to be under control
so that it doesn't damage, it doesn't hurt others,
but it's released for their benefit. It brings
healing. It brings empowerment. It brings encouragement.
That's gentleness. And the Bible says that if
we're going to be the bride of Christ and be
ready for our wedding, we need to put on gentleness.
The Lord Jesus was gentle. He said, take my yoke
upon you and learn from me for I am what? What
did he say? I am meek and I am gentle and humble
in heart. The Apostle Paul said, as he wrote
to the Corinthians, I beseech you by the meekness
and the gentleness of Christ. How much difference
would it make in your marriage if you put on
gentleness? In the way that you respond to your
wife or to your husband? Instead of pushing for
your way and wanting what you want when you want
it, To put that power under control and minister
to that one that you love with gentleness and
for his or her encouragement. Put on gentleness.
And then he says put on patience. Put on patience.
One writer tells about the prayer of the modern
American, Dear God, I pray for patience and I
want it now. Do you ever feel that way? Patience.
The word here means long suffering. It's a long
holding out of the mind before acting. It's the
opposite of resentment and revenge. It is self
-restraint that enables one to bear insults and
injury. George Sweeting in his book, Catch the
Spirit of Love, tells about a little boy who
was riding with his father. And as they were
driving along, this man became irritated with
other drivers. This is not a story about me,
this is a story about somebody else. George Sweeting
tells this story. He fussed and he fumed and
he bellowed and he shouted at all the other drivers
as they went through town and finally they arrived
at home. Later that day the boy went out... with
his mother to the car, and they went for a drive,
and as they drove peacefully along, the boy said,
Mom, where are all the idiots? She said, idiots?
He says, yes, when I was out driving with Dad
this morning, we saw seven of them. That hits
too close to home, doesn't it? But you and I
are to put on patience, patience, suffering long
with others. Of God it says in 2 Peter 3 .15,
regard the patience of our Lord to be salvation.
What does that mean? It means that our Lord in
delaying the coming, the second coming of Jesus
Christ, has a purpose and in His patience He
is saving people. As it says earlier in that
chapter, the Lord is not slow about his promises
as some count slowness, but is patient toward
you, not wishing for any to perish, but for all
to come to repentance. Put on patience. What
would that mean in your life if today you decided
to put on patience? How would your life look
different tomorrow? How would you be dressed
differently? If we're going to be ready for the
wedding, we've got to put it on and do it now.
And then he says, number six, bearing with one
another. This is the next garment. Bearing with
one another. To bear with means to endure or
to hold up against something. It means to be
tolerant toward what is irritating and what is
chafing. Oh, we need a lot of these clothes,
don't we? And all of us need to put them on because
others do irritate us. Even other Christians.
Did you ever know that? Other Christians can
be irritating. And so he says we're to bear with
one another. I heard Vernon McGee give the little
piece of... poetry years ago that said, to dwell
above with the saints I love, oh, that will be
glory. But to dwell below with the saints I know,
that's another story. We need to bear with one
another down below here and put on this attitude
of forbearance of others. To the saints in Thessalonica,
the apostle wrote, we ourselves speak proudly
of you among the churches of God for your perseverance
and faith in the midst of your persecutions and
afflictions which you endure. Some of you put
up with some difficult situations at work because
of your faith, because of the standards, the
ethics that you have. And there's pressure against
you because of it. What it says here is every
day when you get up and get ready to go to work,
make sure you put on forbearance. So that you
can bear up against that pressure. And he says,
number six, forgiving one another. Forgiving.
Literally it means to be gracious towards someone.
who has found fault with us. You notice that?
Forgiving each other whoever has a complaint
against you. Someone's unhappy. Someone's dissatisfied.
Maybe it's just. Maybe it's not. Sometimes complaints
are not just. Perhaps you overlooked something
you should have done. That's really the force
of this word. It's a complaint due to an omission
more than a commission. Maybe you forgot something.
Maybe you failed. And there's a complaint against
you. What it says here, forgive those who complain
against you. Forgive each other. You know marriages
would be transformed if only we would put on
this garment of forgiving our spouse. We're in
that closest of all human relationships, in the
dearest of them all. There are frequent occasions
of complaints. Churches would be transformed.
I've heard more complaints in the last six months
than I've ever heard in 25 years of ministry.
I think it's symptomatic of our culture and our
age. Forgive one another. Don't hold the complaints
up to divide, but forgive. who preached in the
last century said, you who are letting misunderstandings
run on from year to year, meaning to clear them
up someday, you who are passing men solemnly
in the street not speaking to them because of
some silly spite, and yet knowing that you would
be ashamed if you heard one of these men had
died, if you could suddenly realize that the
time is short, how it would break that spell.
How you would go instantly and do the thing you
might never have a chance to do. His point is
that we only have today to ask forgiveness and
to forgive. Let's do it. And not hold grudges
against one another. And then he says once you
put on all these layers of garment there is a
sash that goes on and it's called love. It binds
all the others together. Love is the beauty of
the believer, dispelling the ugly sins of the
flesh that destroy unity, writes John MacArthur.
The Apostle Paul says, and of faith, hope, and
love, the greatest of these is love. That love
that seeks the welfare of another, though they
may be undeserving. Four of these eight qualities
that he mentions here are called the fruit of
the Spirit in Galatians 5, 22 and 23. I think
what he's saying here is that this is not something
that we do in our own strength, but he's saying
that you and I must decide that this is how we're
going to live and then trust the Holy Spirit
to enable us to do it. And so today what I want
to urge you to do is to understand you're headed
toward a wedding. If you're a Christian. And
the Lord has laid out your clothes. It's time
to put the clothes on. Last week we talked about
what to take off. Today we're talking about what
to put on. And tie them all together with love.
So that when the bridegroom comes and we hear
his shout and we're called up to be with him,
we won't be ashamed. Have you ever had a dream
like this one? that I've had a number of times,
you were supposed to be someplace, and was someplace
very fancy, and you show up and you're not dressed
for it. Have you ever had that dream? Everybody
else is dressed the way they're supposed to dress,
and here you are, completely not fit for it.
I don't want to end up at the wedding in heaven
like that, do you? So let's get our clothes on,
now, today. while we have time. And be prepared
to march down that aisle when Jesus comes. Let's
pray. With our heads bowed, I wonder if there
are some pieces of clothing that you need to
get on this morning that you're undressed. Would
you in the quietness of this closing moment say,
Lord Jesus? Thank you for loving me. Thank you
for choosing me. Thank you for setting me apart
for yourself. Thank you for the wedding I'm going
to. Lord, I need to get dressed. Lord, I want
to put on these qualities. Will you tell them
that? And ask the Holy Spirit to make it real
in your life. Lord Jesus our heavenly bridegroom
We stand before you today all of us in various
states of undress Because I don't think there's
any of us here who are fully ready for the wedding
And we don't want to be embarrassed on that day
So Lord, right now we say to you that we're going
to get dressed. We're going to put on our royal
garments. By your Holy Spirit, enable us. Because
in ourselves, we'll surely revert to the flesh.
We'll go back to what we have been in the past
before we knew you. So we give ourselves to you
to put on these clothes that will cause you to
smile when you see us at the altar. Let's stand
together. And let's sing again that love chorus
to Jesus.