Howdy Have you ever been invited to something
that you didn't feel that maybe you were worthy
of You know, it was a dinner party or a banquet
a wedding there was something where you walk
in and You wonder if the invitation was meant
for somebody else say maybe you come in and You're
a little bit underdressed. Everybody else is
in their, you know, black tie outfit and you're
there, you know, ready for the barbecue cookout
in the backyard. Or sometimes whenever you're
listening to the conversation and they're talking
about, you know, stocks and bonds and you're
just trying to make sure that you discussed what
the Astros were up to that week. Or even the
time when you walk up and you realize that you
accidentally double dipped. in front of the host.
Yeah, that's never acceptable, by the way. No,
no, never do that. But the truth is, you were
on the guest list. And it's not because you earned
it, but not because you were impressive, but
just because you knew that the host wanted you
there. You knew the person who had put on this
event. And you knew that they wanted you there.
And that's why you had been invited. And that's
the gospel. That's grace. That's the start of
the mystery of Christ. That's the tone that Paul
is striking when we're looking at Colossians
1 today. See, he's writing to a community of
Christians that are trying to figure out what
it really means to follow after Jesus. Is it
trying to discover some new knowledge that others
didn't have that only came from Jesus? Is it
about making sure that they look more spiritual
than other people do? They haven't just stumbled
into something good, they've been brought into
something that's mysterious, something eternal,
something costly, something joyful. And they're
only just now beginning to understand what that
truly means. So what does this invitation look
like once we're inside? when we realize that
we've been brought into a place that we don't
quite deserve, but we know that we're meant to
be there. And that's when I want us to start
looking at someone who's at the party, someone
in the middle of the action, and we take a look
at Martha. Now, I'm gonna be honest with you.
I think Martha always gets a bad rap, don't you?
I mean, yeah, I mean, come on. I mean, what?
Mean she's just trying to make sure that the
hors d 'oeuvres are set up and everything make
sure that things are tidied up Cleaned up and
everything. I mean, you know the feeling right?
You're kind of like oops. I didn't get the laundry
put in I and I got to make sure you didn't clean
the counters as well as you you really wanted
to you know that dirty stuff in the Stove like
in the crevices and it's like let me see if I
could scrape that out really really quickly,
you know all those things that you just want
everything to be perfect for the people that
are there. Did Martha really do that terrible
of a thing? See, when we think about the people
that show up into the party of the gospel, we
have to look at Martha. But you see, Martha is
really a dedicated disciple. If you look at Martha
on the whole, the thing is that we see that she
follows Jesus wholeheartedly. In John 11, we
see that when her brother Lazarus had died, Martha
is the one who greets Jesus, not Mary, and ends
up discussing that he is the Messiah, the Son
of God. She's got one of the best declarations
of faith in the Gospels, and she's the one who
declares faith in the resurrection. That she
believes, even though she doesn't know what's
about to happen with Lazarus, she believes. that
He will rise again someday. She just didn't know
how quickly it was going to happen. And in John
12 when Lazarus is alive again and Jesus is sitting
at the table, guess what? Martha was serving.
Martha shows up. Martha opens her home. Martha
tends to the people gathered around Jesus. She
knows how many people are there and she knows
that she's got to be the one to get things done.
Martha serves the meal. Martha sets the table.
And we even see her work so hard that she gets
overwhelmed. And there was her sister doing what
appeared to be nothing. I'm sure you know the
feeling. Alright? How many times that you're
just thinking, if only my spouse would help out
a little bit. If only my kids would help out
a little bit. If only somebody would just volunteer
and just do a little something. In Luke 10, she's
worried and distracted by many things. She wants
Jesus to make Mary help. Because if anybody would
really understand, it would be the Messiah, right?
He knows all things. But Jesus says that Mary
has chosen the better part. That being with Him
matters more than performing for Him. That probably
hurt a little bit. After everything she's been
doing, wouldn't that sting just a little bit?
See, Martha is us. How often do we get so caught
up in doing more and trying harder to make everything
better because we somehow think it's more about
our efforts than about the one that we're with?
It's more about our efforts than it is about
Christ. It's more about our effort than the relationships
that we're meant to celebrate. We want the appetizer
spread to be better, so we walk away from our
guests and start cooking more. We want games
to be played, so we interrupt their conversations
because we need to get settlers of Catan going
in the other room. I've never done that before,
clearly. But Martha... Martha is all of us, trying
to be faithful in the details, wrestling with
the tension between doing and being. Sometimes
missing the moment because we're working so hard
to make it happen. The expectations of what we
think we have to get done, not just for ourselves
but for others, and then we miss out on the ones
that we were given. But you see, Jesus doesn't
dismiss Martha. This is not some sort of major
intention to insult and dismiss her. He loves
her. Paul says that in Christ, even people like
us, the worried ones, the distracted ones, the
imperfect ones, are holy in His sight without
blemish and free from accusation. See, the party
of faith, the life, of faith, it's different.
It's different from what we might normally see
when we gather. Not every moment in the house
is always frivolous. It's always easy. Sometimes
the music fades. We find ourselves face to face
with conflict, with struggle, sometimes even
with pain. But you see, suffering is a part of
the party. Christians do suffer in many ways.
Paul says that he rejoices in what he is suffering
for them, and that he fills up in his flesh what
is still lacking in regard to Christ's affliction.
What a strange thing to discuss in regard to
a party, isn't it? Who really wants to be at
a party where you're going to be suffering? Somewhere
in between the deviled eggs and the finger foods
and you're trying to figure out Why it is that
you have to suffer and it's not just having to
listen to that person's conversation topic But
it's something that's meant to be profound It
means suffering isn't an interruption to the
Christian life. It's a part of the pattern that
Jesus modeled for us See, it's not that God delights
in our pain, as if somehow it's like, yay, I'm
glad you're suffering. But because we follow
a Savior who suffered in love, who did what was
needed because of that suffering, and we're being
made to be like Him. See, as we hear from Paul,
there are three types of tension, three types
of struggle. that resonate with us when we think
about what the suffering might be. There's one
of them that talks about when the world pushes
back against us. See, this is the one that we
so often focus on when we consider the suffering
that Paul speaks about. We're living out our
faith in a culture that doesn't always understand
that it can lead to resistance, rejection, even
ridicule. for being Christian. Sometimes the
world pushes back simply because you're there
and you showed up. You brought your faith to
work, to school, to public life, and someone
told you that it doesn't belong there. That kind
of suffering can feel like being the only person
at a costume party who actually wore a costume.
Which isn't a problem for me, I always look good
in a costume, but you know. You stand out, and
not in a comfortable way. This is the one we
often see when we're looking at suffering, whether
it's always true or not. But you see, there's
a second one. When the world weighs heavy. It's
not just that it's pushing back, but sometimes
the world is just heavy. It's just a load. Sometimes
we struggle in the world just because we exist.
as God's children. Even when no one or nothing
is actually pushing against us, it's just heavy.
We see injustice, brokenness, war, poverty, racism,
and our hearts ache. To love like Christ means
that we hurt like Christ. Even when no one is
trying to hurt us. There are times when it's
not about persecution, but rather about pressure.
Because life itself, it's heavy. Grief, illness,
exhaustion, anxiety. These are things that weigh
us down even if no one is targeting us. Being
at the party doesn't always mean that the music
is too loud because they want to annoy you. Sometimes
you sit quietly and try to hold it all together
just because you've had a long week. And then
sometimes the struggle is when my soul weighs
heavy. See, sometimes the hardest struggles are
inside. The doubt, the depression, the anxiety,
the loneliness, the anger, even the feeling of
failure when we realize that maybe we missed
the point or maybe we even missed what Christ
has even been doing at all. We don't need one
thing to actually happen. Those feelings may
just be there. We don't always know why. The
internal struggle. When you realize that the
real burden isn't just on the outside, but inside
of you. Because you want control. Because you
want to be right. Because you want to be the
host and make everything perfect. But the Spirit
keeps pulling you back. Reminding you that this
party isn't about your power. It's about surrender.
Because the maturity that we're seeking in Christ
involves allowing ourselves to break in a holy,
refining way. Not for self -destruction, but
for self -surrender. See, Paul isn't glorifying
suffering for its own sake. He's reframing it
as something that can refine us or be used for
God's purposes. It's not just something to endure
for its own sake, but rather because it can bring
us closer to God. He's saying that the party
we've been invited to it's not about trying to
shine the brightest but rather about growing
as a person and Growth often comes through the
struggle and yet even in the suffering Sometimes
something deeper is happening Something mysterious
and now we begin to see who's really hosting
this gathering It may be at Martha's house But
who's the real host? See, that's where the party
gets flipped. The mystery of Christ in you. See,
we thought we were the ones throwing the party.
We thought we were the ones throwing the party
for Jesus. We built the space. We sent the invites.
We set up the table right. Our Christian lives,
we've made a place in our life for Jesus, right?
But the mystery is that He's the host. We may
be the location, but Jesus is the one hosting
the party. It always has been. He always will
be. Christ in you, the hope of glory. That's
the mystery. That's his whole thing. This whole
thing isn't about us inviting Him into our lives,
but about Him inviting us into His. Into His
life, into His suffering, His joy, His resurrection.
It's not about trying to have the best knowledge
in the world about what we think is important,
or about being as beautiful and as shiny as we
want our spiritual lives to be. Rather, it's
the One who's invited us into it in the first
place. Everything you thought you brought to
the table, He already prepared it. Every story
you thought you owned, He's been writing it.
I've been the person who bought the potato salad
from Kroger and hoped for the best. Don't we
know what the feeling is when we've walked in
and said, I didn't make it, but I hope you like
it? Isn't that truly what we see in Christ? The
real celebration is not what you've done for
Him, it's what He's done for you. This opens
up not just the identity of Christ, but the scale
of what He's doing. Because He's not just a teacher.
He's not just a miracle worker, not some abstract
idea of salvation that anyone in the world would
be okay with. He's the living presence of God.
Who has taken you into Himself. See, that's what
Mary knew. Mary, Martha's sister, wasn't just
contemplative, She received the mystery revealed
because the mystery was Christ Himself, and she
was there with Him. The Gospel isn't a spiritual
idea or a motivational framework that you can
internalize with a self -help audio book in the
few minutes that you have with Christ before
your Cheerios, hopefully Honey Nut. It's Christ
in you. The hope of glory in the midst of suffering
each and every day. each and every hour of the
day. We don't grow by fixing our mindset or out
thinking our anxiety. We grow by receiving Christ
even in the mess and even in our struggle. See,
Mary received this mystery not because she figured
it out like some Zen master, but because she
sat and let Jesus reveal it. Paul calls it a
mystery that has been kept hidden for ages and
generations, but is now disclosed to the Lord's
people, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory.
Have you been letting Christ Himself be the center?
Not being Christian, have you let Christ Himself
be the center? because that's the center of the
party. That's the thing that changes everything.
He's the one who changes everything. Not that
we've shown up to do something good. That's not
the center. Someone great has shown up in us.
The mystery isn't that we found Christ. It's
that Christ found us. It's that God is throwing
the party and the guest list includes us. Yes.
We get to bring a dish. Yes. We get to set up
a game, but it's not because of our resume, but
because of his grace. It's like the watch party
with your championship game for your team. You
know that you're not on the field, but you know
that it's your team. The jersey is now on you.
The ring that they win somehow belongs to you.
The victory is yours not because you earned it,
but because the one who did has made the room
for you. And at the end of the night though,
what's left? What do we carry out with us? Not
just the leftovers and the party favors, but
after everything we've experienced in this party.
Maturity happens at the end of the party as we
grow in Christ. Because Paul says he is the one
we proclaim. Admonishing. teaching everyone with
all wisdom so that we may present everyone fully
mature in Christ. To this end, I strenuously
contend with all the energy Christ so powerfully
works in me. So what is the maturity that we
want to have in Christ? It's not having all the
answers or conquering every emotion or distraction
that's there as if somehow we can put them all
away and be the perfect automaton, it's knowing
who the host is. It's being able to sit down
at the table without thinking that you somehow
have to earn your spot there. Because of maturity
doesn't mean perfection. It means becoming who
you were meant to be. It means knowing where
your home is. It means living with gratitude
and courage and trust. Not just because you've
been to the party. but because you now know the
host. Maturity is gratitude, humility, confidence
that grows not because you figured it all out,
but because you stayed and accepted the mystery
of Christ. Because you learned how to dance even
when the music didn't make sense. Because you
kept coming back to the table when the food is
delicious. because the invitation is still open
and the Lord's doors are open wide. The mystery
still holds of Christ in you and Christ in me.
The hope of glory, the mystery of Christ is that
you didn't throw this party but you're in the
middle of it because He wants you there and He's
glad that you're here. Thanks be to God.