Seeds for 04/07/2023 - Colossians 4:6
Scripture: Devote yourselves to prayer, being watchful and thankful. And pray for us, too, that God may open a door for our message, so that we may proclaim the mystery of Christ, for which I am in chains. Pray that I may proclaim it clearly, as I should. Be wise in the way you act toward outsiders; make the most of every opportunity. Let your conversation be always full of grace, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how to answer everyone.
Observation: Paul has making Christ known on his mind and heart. For his ministry, he seeks prayer for doors of opportunity to open and for him to “proclaim in clearly.” For the Colossian Christians, like ordinary believers in all times and places, he assumes they have opportunity.
In light of this, Paul wants them to pay attention to how they “show up” in those relationships and situation. Paul says essentially, “Since you have opportunities, make the most of them with wise actions and grace-filled conversations.”
Grace is the great truth of Christianity. As Bono, the lead singer of the Irish rock band U2 once said, most of life runs on “the idea of Karma. …what you put out comes back to you… And yet, along comes this idea called Grace to upend all that ‘as you reap, so you will sow’ stuff. Grace defies reason and logic. Love interrupts, if you like, the consequences of your actions, which in my case is very good news indeed, because I've done a lot of stupid stuff. But I'd be in big trouble if Karma was going to finally be my judge. I'd be in deep s---. It doesn't excuse my mistakes, but I'm holding out for Grace. I'm holding out that Jesus took my sins onto the Cross, because I know who I am, and I hope I don't have to depend on my own religiosity.”
Our conversations must be full of the interrupting love that is God’s grace in Jesus. “Seasoned with salt” evokes Jesus’ words in the Sermon on the Mount: “You are the salt of the earth.” It’s another way of saying “full of grace.” Salt preserves and salt flavors. Not only our words, but also who we are in conversations can preserve and flavor. For our words, we can pay attention to how we speak, noticing what we say and how we say it. For the who we are part, we must be people grounded in grace, hearts deeply formed by the supreme gift of love that we see in the Cross of Jesus.
Application:
How can the cross keep us grounded in grace?
What else might the Holy Spirit be speaking with you about in the text today?
Prayer: Lord, keep the Cross of Jesus ever before me, that my words and actions may flow forth from a heart shaped by your grace. Amen.
“But the seed falling on good soil refers to someone who hears the word and understands it. This is the one who produces a crop, yielding a hundred, sixty or thirty times what was sown.” (Matthew 13:23)
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I totally agree with Bono’s remarks!
As we approach others full of love and grace, we should be defined as “a dependable steadfast person or group of people —usually used in the phrase salt of the earth”. Be careful, thoughtful and sure of our words. Words, when left behind, cannot be unspoken.