Grace Fellowship 11/15/09 The Outsiders Colossians 4:5
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In recent years, I have read of a growing number of churches that refer to themselves by the phrase, “The Church Without Walls.” There is a church in Houston that goes by that name and they have three campuses in that area. There is The Without Walls International Church of Tampa, and I couldn’t exactly figure out from their website why they chose that name. In Gastonia (NC) The Church Without Walls gives a pretty good hint about why they chose that name on the front page of their website: “The Church Without Walls is . . . a place for those who love Jesus . . . but aren’t sure about church.”
There’s a Church Without Walls in Berkeley and Tulsa and elsewhere. There’s also a book by that name written back in 1992 by an Evangelical writer. That phrase always causes a reaction in me. Ever since the first time I heard it, I’ve been leery of it, but I’ve never been quite sure why. I think I’ve figured it out. Look at our text for today, Colossians 4:5-6 [p.159].
5 Walk in wisdom toward outsiders, making the best use of the time. 6 Let your speech always be gracious, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how you ought to answer each person. 1
Every week, I find yet another reason to pull out the same soapbox I’ve been on for years. Let me put it bluntly: I love Evangelicals, but I can’t stand Evangelicalism. It seems believers are constantly finding new ways to destroy the very things we say we believe. There is this never-ending search for techniques and gimmicks and methodologies for “spreading the love around” that are the products of men’s minds rather than the product of searching the Scriptures to see how God has said believers should live in a fallen world.
There is a growing sentiment within Evangelicalism to eliminate this category of people we just read about: Outsiders. On the surface of it, that sounds like a good thing to pursue. It would be wonderful if there were NO outsiders, and the entire world believed the Gospel. It would even be wonderful to have many people in this service today who have never been inside this church before. That would be a happy day indeed!
But, in an attempt to bring all the Outsiders “inside”, there are those who, in essence, deny there is any significant difference between us and them. They are attempting to eliminate anything that would give unbelievers the impression that there is a “church” which they are outside of. They want to remove anything that could be perceived as a distinction between Christians and the rest of the world.
Some “Christians” today have difficulty believing there is such a thing as believers and unbelievers. Rather, we are all on a journey to find God. We are all the same. Everybody is a pilgrim. Everyone’s destination is the same. Any distinction between Christians and others is an artificial, man-made delineation, an unnecessary wall of separation that must be demolished.
That actually doesn’t sound so bad. We don’t want to unnecessarily alienate people from the church or from God. So we go to great lengths to make them as comfortable as possible in church. The way you see this played out is in sermons and books written by high-profile preachers who address everyone in their sermons and books in exactly the same fashion. It is intentional, not accidental. And most church growth experts would say that was a good thing. Eliminate any estrangement between your church membership and the general public. Treat everyone exactly the same. Do away with church membership. Everybody is a member. Do not discriminate between the people in your congregations. That will make them feel welcome and give them a sense of ownership in the church.
Then we read Colossians 4:5 - Walk in wisdom toward outsiders. “Outsiders.” It does sound arrogant, doesn’t it. It sounds exclusive. Us vs. them. We’re on the inside, and they’re on the outside. “Holier than thou” comes to mind. Next thing you know, we’ll be using such insensitive words as “pagan” and “savages” and “infidels” and “unbelievers”. Outsiders. Non-members. What could Paul possibly mean by using that word?
The Greek root of the word used here is “ek” which means “from” or indicates a point of origin. This word is “exo” from which we get the word “exoskeleton”. Insects have exoskeletons rather than an internal skeleton like we do. It is the hard shell on the outside that surrounds the innards of an insect. Its skeleton is on the outside of its body. So here, the Greek word “exo” refers to people who are on the outside. Walk in wisdom toward outsiders.
What is it that they are outside of? Does this refer to people who live in Pennsylvania? Who enjoy the great outdoors, and go camping a lot? They just spend their days, and all of hunting season outside?
The word “outsiders” points to the existence of “insiders”, and the Insiders are the Colossians. The way Paul has described it is that, as Christians, we are “in Christ”. We are included in this entity called “the Church.“ Believers of the Gospel message are members of “the body of Christ”. And then there are those who are not. There are those who do not believe the Gospel. There are those who do not follow the Lord Jesus and who do not claim to be His disciples. They are the “outsiders’. They are the “them” in “us and them”. They are the ones to whom our message is to be taken, so that in believing, they may become insiders with us. But, please note, there is such a thing as us and them.
I am greatly dismayed that I would even need to explain this. I’m confident I am speaking to the proverbial choir. I assume you understand what should be obvious to even the most casual observer of Scripture. Throughout the entire Bible, there is this insider/outsider concept. In Genesis 6, we see it quite literally. There were the eight insiders in the ark, and then there were the outsiders. On the Day of Judgment there will be two groups: Sheep and goats. There are saints and sinners. There are those whose Father is God, and there are those whose father is the Devil. There are those who are welcomed into the heavenly kingdom, and there are those who are cast into outer darkness.
The entire Old Testament illustrates the reality of insiders and outsiders by means of the establishment of the nation of Israel. You were either a Jew or a Gentile, the Jews being the insiders. They had the Law, they had the Temple, they had the priesthood and the sacrifices, and the promises of God. The outsiders had none of that.
In the book of Acts, chapter 2 [p.93], we read of the “Haves” and the “Have-Nots”.
29 “Brothers, I may say to you with confidence about the patriarch David that he both died and was buried, and his tomb is with us to this day. 30 Being therefore a prophet, and knowing that God had sworn with an oath to him that he would set one of his descendants on his throne, 31 he foresaw and spoke about the resurrection of the Christ, that he was not abandoned to Hades, nor did his flesh see corruption. 32 This Jesus God raised up, and of that we all are witnesses. 33 Being therefore exalted at the right hand of God, and having received from the Father the promise of the Holy Spirit, he has poured out this that you yourselves are seeing and hearing. 34 For David did not ascend into the heavens, but he himself says,
“‘The Lord said to my Lord,
Sit at my right hand,
35 until I make your enemies your footstool.’
36 Let all the house of Israel therefore know for certain that God has made him both Lord and Christ, this Jesus whom you crucified.”
37 Now when they heard this they were cut to the heart, and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, “Brothers, what shall we do?” 38 And Peter said to them, “Repent and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. 39 For the promise is for you and for your children and for all who are far off, everyone whom the Lord our God calls to himself.” 40 And with many other words he bore witness and continued to exhort them, saying, “Save yourselves from this crooked generation.” 41 So those who received his word were baptized, and there were added that day about three thousand souls.
Who are the “Haves”? Those who repent and believe and are baptized, who receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. They have the Spirit, they are added to the church. The Haves are those who have salvation. Then there are the Have-Nots, referred to here as “this crooked generation”. There are those who receive his word, and those who don’t. There are “insiders” and “outsiders”, “Haves” and Have-Nots”.
But what is so amazing about all this is that, once upon a time, we were all Have-Nots. The Colossians had been Outsiders. But what happened? He . . . delivered us from the domain of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of his beloved Son, 14 in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins. (Colossians 1:13-14). We’ve been moved, transferred by God, to the inside. Once we were outside the kingdom of God’s Son. Once we were in the domain of darkness. But God in His great mercy with which He loved us, moved us, carried us, dragged us from the outside and placed us into the Kingdom of His Son.
There are Christians, and then there is the world. The unbelieving world is, and always has been the great majority. This is their world. We are the minority, the visitors, the strangers, the aliens. Paul tells us we are in the world, but we are to avoid being OF the world. We are to live as believers in an unbelieving world, and we are to make a distinction between those who are inside and those who are outside. Look with me at 1Corinthians 5 [p. 131].
9 I wrote to you in my letter not to associate with sexually immoral people— 10 not at all meaning the sexually immoral of this world, or the greedy and swindlers, or idolaters, since then you would need to go out of the world. 11 But now I am writing to you not to associate with anyone who bears the name of brother if he is guilty of sexual immorality or greed, or is an idolater, reviler, drunkard, or swindler—not even to eat with such a one. 12 For what have I to do with judging outsiders? Is it not those inside the church whom you are to judge? 13 God judges those outside. “Purge the evil person from among you.”
It is impossible for us to avoid the people of the world. The sexually immoral people, the greedy, the swindlers, and the idolators pretty much have the run of the place. Just by living in this world, we will rub shoulders with the people of this world. It is unavoidable.
But there is a group of people we are to avoid: the evil person who “bears the name of brother”. The so-called brother who is on the inside, but who lives like the worldlings out there. Inside the church body, inside the church family, inside the church fellowship, we are to emulate Christ and we must maintain a standard of holiness amongst ourselves. But we have no authority to judge those outside. However, we most definitely have a responsibility to judge those who claim to be Christians, those in our midst who live like outsiders. If they want to live like outsiders, then send them outside. “Purge the evil person from among you.” That is what the Corinthians were to do. That is what we are to do.
But how DO we relate to the outsiders that we must inevitably interact with? If this is their world, and if we are not to live like them, first we must remember as we just read in in 1Corinthians 5 that we have no jurisdiction over them. We cannot judge unbelievers for acting like unbelievers. And that is a very hard thing to do. We must remind ourselves that a godly life is the result of a changed life because of the grace of God. The only person who is capable of being consistently righteous and godly is the Christian. So do not be surprised when “they” act the way they do.
Having said that, how DO we interface and interact with those who cannot understand and do not believe the Gospel? Let me read our text from Colossians 4 once again, but I’m going to read it from the New American Standard Version:
5 Conduct yourselves with wisdom toward outsiders, making the most of the opportunity. 6 Let your speech always be with grace, as though seasoned with salt, so that you will know how you should respond to each person.
1. Be wise towards them
2. Make the most of our opportunities with them
3. Like salt that flavors our food, grace should flavor our speech towards them all the time
4. In our graciousness, we will be prepared to answer whoever should ask the reason for the hope that is in us.
We’re to be wise and gracious and ready to respond to them. I like what John Gill says here. We must be ready “to make suitable returns to persons according to their age, sex, capacities, and circumstances; for everyone is not to be answered alike, nor the same man under different circumstances; a fool is sometimes to be answered according to his folly, and sometimes not.” 2
Some of you are familiar with Dr. James White. For many years he and several other believers would travel to Salt Lake City when the Mormons held their annual General Conference meetings in their Temple there. James would try to engage people in conversation about Mormonism and discuss how biblical Christianity is quite different. On occasion, he was able to hand out literature which explained the Gospel.
Eventually, another group of Christians began showing up as well. However, these folks had a very different witnessing technique. One man stood about 10 feet away from the line of people walking into the Temple and with a megaphone, he would proceed to tell them they needed to read the Bible or they would go to Hell. Another man had constructed a contraption that he wore which held a large sign over his head. From the photographs I looked at I’m guessing the sign must have been about five feet wide and five feet tall. On the front it said “Turn to Jesus or Burn in Hell”, complete with painted flames consuming the lettering. On the back was written, “Study and Obey the Bible - Judgment is Coming”.
That’s not what Paul had in mind when he wrote these verses to the Colossians. We do not gain ground for the Gospel message by being judgmental towards those who are outside. On the contrary, we are to be wise in our speech, we’re to take advantage of our encounters, we must always speak graciously, and we need to know what we’re talking about when we open our mouths. It doesn’t matter if it is face to face, or on the phone, or in the chat room, or at the football game, or wherever. God expects us to represent Him well to those who do not know Him.
Some of the most difficult people we interact with that do not know the Lord are our own relatives. Thanksgiving is coming, and some of us will be visiting with family members who are still Outsiders. They are not likely to become Insiders if you and I treat them in a way that is unbecoming of a follower of the Lord Jesus. Humility, wisdom, patience, graciousness, kindness, - these are the things that people notice as being different in us. If the occasion arises that you are asked about spiritual matters, unless you’ve already shot yourself in the foot by being obnoxious and rude, you can take advantage of the open door the Lord has given you and give a gracious reply. Answer them with wisdom and discernment and understanding.
Some of you were here several years ago when my friend, S., visited us here in church one Sunday morning. He sat down here towards the front and as we began the service, every once in a while he would make a statement or ask me a question. He made it a point to be loud enough for everyone to hear him. As I was talking, I think I said something about God as our Father. S piped up and asked, “Why is it that God has to be a man? Why can’t God be a woman?”
I paused for a moment, not sure how to give a brief answer to a totally unanticipated question. And I think S thought he had stopped me cold. But the Lord gave me the presence of mind to say, “God is not a man or a woman. God is not human. He is God.”
That, as we say, put the quietus on it. S was shut down, but he was shut down nicely and graciously, and with a degree of wisdom that was supplied on the spot from the Lord. He was not insulted, nor did I hurt his feelings. And we maintained a friendly relationship for several years until this past year when he died. He passed away about a month after our final conversation when I told him that the Lord Jesus was the only means of salvation. S was a Buddhist.
How do you conduct yourself towards those who do not share your faith? Graciously? Wisely? Those who are outside the household of faith need to be encouraged to come in where the rest of us are. Obviously we do not do that by erecting walls through our foolishness. But we also don't reach out to them by tearing down the wall that separates us from them, the Haves from the Have-Nots, the sheep from the goats, the Insiders from the Outsiders.
I’d like to suggest we rename Grace Fellowship. Let’s call it, “The Church With a Door in the Wall.“ There is a door in the wall. That door’s name is Jesus Christ. We invite the outsiders into our family by means of Him. We don’t reinforce the wall, and we don’t demolish the wall. We point to the Door through which all are given access to God.
John 10:7 [p.81] So Jesus again said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, I am the door of the sheep. 8 All who came before me are thieves and robbers, but the sheep did not listen to them. 9 I am the door. If anyone enters by me, he will be saved and will go in and out and find pasture. 10 The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life and have it abundantly. 11 I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep.
That’s our message. The Good Shepherd has given His life for us as His sheep. He is the door to eternal life. He is the means by which our sins are forgiven. And if an Outsider should engage you in conversation, graciously extend to them the love of Christ and explain to them why you love Him so.
5 Walk in wisdom toward outsiders, making the best use of the time. 6 Let your speech always be gracious, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how you ought to answer each person.
1. All Scripture is from the ESV except where noted otherwise.
2. Gill, John. "Commentary on Colossians 4:6". "The New John Gill Exposition of the Entire Bible". <http://www.studylight.org/com/geb/view.cgi?book=col&chapter=004&verse=006>. 1999.