Today we ask ourselves: Is God’s peace an attainment –something we strive to achieve, something we can have –or is it an obtainment –something He gives us as a free gift? I believe it to be an obtainment, something we can have from Him once we are able to keep ourselves subjective to Him in sincerity and in love of Him. This puts the latch low enough for it to be within the reach of the least and most humble of His people. Are we really for our Lord God? One minister cried out to the Lord in an impetuous moment, ‘Lord, I’d give my right arm to get this.’ In response the Lord seemed to say, ‘I don’t want your right arm. Just give me your hand and I’ll lead you into it –free.’ The minister admitted that this revelation of God’s willingness to lead him into something he genuinely longed to receive changed his whole perspective on life and what life is all about. Sometimes people think that they can approach God with a business sense as if God is we humans that use one thing to gain another, No! From then on, this minister said, ‘The universe became a place of open and infinite possibilities for my power to receive as infinite as I am able.’ In other word, this minister realized that there are so much that God has freely given to our reach and it all depends on the amount of faith that we can foster and exhibit in Christ. Remember that God’s peace is obtained not by the shedding of your blood but by the shedding of His God’s own blood! Do we realize that? In the book of Hebrews there is a rest which is spoken of as ‘His rest’ as seen in Hebrew 4:1, in which we are required to enter. After the conquest of Canaan the Israelites should have entered into ‘God’s rest’ –a rest foreshadowing that which is referred to in Hebrews 4:1. But because of disobedience they failed to gain or enter into that rest. How sad it is that millions of Christians, who have been freed from bondage through the shed blood of God’s Paschal Lamb, His Son Jesus Christ as seen in 1 Peter 1:18-19, fail to enter into the rest provided for them by Jehovah Shalom—‘the Lord is Peace or the Lord is our Peace’. In Hebrews 4:4 this rest is spoken of as a Sabbath rest because the Sabbath was a day when work and struggle ceased; for us it is a day to accept the gifts of God, to be quiet and receptive with our heart and mind centered on God. Don’t struggle to gain peace by attainment; all you need to do is to empty your hands and take the gift. In other words, empty your heart and allow God to place His Peace into it! Remember the other names of our God: Jehovah Rapha—the Lord who heals; Jehovah Rohi—God our Shepherd; Jehovah Adonai—My great Lord.

Now let us read Colossians 3:12-25; 12 Clothe yourselves therefore, as God’s own chosen ones (His own picked representatives), [who are] purified and holy and well-beloved [by God Himself, by putting on behavior marked by] tenderhearted pity and mercy, kind feeling, a lowly opinion of yourselves, gentle ways, [and] patience [which is tireless and long-suffering, and has the power to endure whatever comes, with good temper]. 13 Be gentle and forbearing with one another and, if one has a difference (a grievance or complaint) against another, readily pardoning each other; even as the Lord has [freely] forgiven you, so must you also [forgive]. 14 And above all these [put on] love and enfold yourselves with the bond of perfectness [which binds everything together completely in ideal harmony]. 15 And let the peace (soul harmony which comes) from Christ rule (act as umpire continually) in your hearts [deciding and settling with finality all questions that arise in your minds, in that peaceful state] to which as [members of Christ’s] one body you were also called [to live]. And be thankful (appreciative), [giving praise to God always]. 16 Let the word [spoken by] Christ (the Messiah) have its home [in your hearts and minds] and dwell in you in [all its] richness, as you teach and admonish and train one another in all insight and intelligence and wisdom [in spiritual things, and as you sing] psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, making melody to God with [His] grace in your hearts. 17 And whatever you do [no matter what it is] in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus and in [dependence upon] His Person, giving praise to God the Father through Him. 18 Wives, be subject to your husbands [subordinate and adapt yourselves to them], as is right and fitting and your proper duty in the Lord. 19 Husbands, love your wives [be affectionate and sympathetic with them] and do not be harsh or bitter or resentful toward them. 20 Children, obey your parents in everything, for this is pleasing to the Lord. 21 Fathers, do not provoke or irritate or fret your children [do not be hard on them or harass them], lest they become discouraged and sullen and morose and feel inferior and frustrated. [Do not break their spirit.] 22 Servants, obey in everything those who are your earthly masters, not only when their eyes are on you as pleasers of men, but in simplicity of purpose [with all your heart] because of your reverence for the Lord and as a sincere expression of your devotion to Him. 23 Whatever may be your task, work at it heartily (from the soul), as [something done] for the Lord and not for men, 24 Knowing [with all certainty] that it is from the Lord [and not from men] that you will receive the inheritance which is your [real] reward. [The One Whom] you are actually serving [is] the Lord Christ (the Messiah). 25 For he who deals wrongfully will [reap the fruit of his folly and] be punished for his wrongdoing. And [with God] there is no partiality [no matter what a person’s position may be, whether he is the slave or the master].

A sermon based on Colossians 3:12-25 could focus on the theme of "dressing in Christ," emphasizing the idea that as believers, we should actively put on the character traits of Christ, like compassion, kindness, humility, and forgiveness, in every aspect of our lives, reflecting our new identity as children of God, both in our personal relationships and in our daily work. Lord Jesus extends an amazing invitation to us in the Bible, when He says, come to Me and I WILL give you rest. This is us RSVPing: Yes!! to that invitation. So take a deep breath and let’s get started. RSVP: reply to an invitation indicating whether one plans to attend. It is ‘Are you coming? So today our reply to our Lord’s invitation of ‘’Come unto Me all ye that labor and are heavily laddened’’ is here I am Lord! This episode is called, “Reaping for the Lord”. We’re about to dive into Colossians chapter three, the second half. Paul is still in jail writing to encourage the Church in Colossi, people he didn’t even know. He’s also speaking to us, people he didn’t know. He didn’t know back when he was behind bars that one day you and I would be encouraged and receive his words that were inspired by God just as we are having it now. Before we dive in, and this is a good passage today, let’s go to the Lord and just dedicate this time to Him. Father, we come to you in the name of Lord Jesus. Oh, just saying Your name lowers my blood pressure Lord. We give you these next few minutes, Lord be in our understanding. Please let us open our eyes and our hearts to what our Lord want us to see and understand from His word today. And just be reminded how we are loved in Lord Jesus’ name. Amen. Okay. Paul is writing from jail. He might as well be texting us. We’re going to pick it up. Colossians chapter three, verse 12. Here we go, “Clothe yourselves therefore, as God’s own chosen ones (His own picked representatives), [who are] purified and holy and well-beloved [by God Himself, by putting on behavior marked by] tenderhearted pity and mercy, kind feeling, a lowly opinion of yourselves, gentle ways, [and] patience [which is tireless and long-suffering, and has the power to endure whatever comes, with good temper].” Make allowance for each other’s faults” I know this isn’t easy “and forgive anyone who offends you. Remember the Lord forgave you, so you must forgive others. Above all clothe yourselves with love, which binds us all together in perfect harmony, and let the peace that comes from Christ rule in your hearts.” What a beautiful image. “For as members of one body, you are called to live in peace. And always be thankful.” Thankfulness is a common theme throughout the Bible. It’s like, it’s something that I think you and I should focus on every day when we start feeling down, when we have a negative thought pull us, what are we thankful for in that moment? For me, sometimes I’ll just go Lord, thank you for this cup of coffee. Right? You can thank Him for your food, whatever it is that brings you joy. Think of it, when you start feeling negative. Let the message about Christ in all its richness, fill your lives. Let it fill your lives. Think of a coffee cup, filling up. Think of Christ filling your life. I just love that so much. Okay. “Teach and counsel each other with all the wisdom He gives. Sing Psalms and hymns and spiritual songs to God with thankful hearts. And whatever you do or say, do it as a representative of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks through Him to God the Father. Wives submit to your husbands as is fitting for those who belong to the Lord. Husbands love your wives and never treat them harshly. Children always obey your parents, for this pleases the Lord. Fathers do not aggravate your children, or they will become discouraged. Slaves, obey your earthly masters in everything you do. Try to please them all the time, not just when they are watching you. Serve them sincerely because of your reverent fear of the Lord.” Here comes our takeaway verse, “Work willingly at whatever you do as though you are working for the Lord, rather than for people.” Whew, we’ll get to that in just a moment. “Remember that the Lord will give you an inheritance as your reward, and the master you are serving is Christ.” Ooh. “But if you do what is wrong, you will be paid back for the wrong you have done, for God has no favorites.” Let’s just go back to that takeaway verse 23, “Whatever may be your task, work at it heartily (from the soul), as [something done] for the Lord and not for men,” Work willingly at whatever you do as though you were working for the Lord, rather than for people. I wrote that at the top of my server pad when I waited tables, I was 18 years old. I worked at a place called, The Rainbow Deli and there was a group of ladies who came in, we called them the tennis ladies because they always came after practice or after games. And whenever they ran out of sweet tea, this was in North Carolina, they would shake their glasses and clink the ice at me. Oh, my goodness. It would drive me crazy. It was like nails on a chalkboard to me. So finally, to remember what the apostle Paul was telling me in this passage of Scripture, I wrote verse 23 at the top of my waitress pad. And it helped to refocus me said the narrator. So maybe somebody at work is getting under your skin. Write that verse on a post-it note, take a screenshot of it and keep it as your screen on your laptop or your phone. Keep it in front of you. We can do it because you and I know we can do all things through Christ who strengthens us. All right, later, we’re going to dive into Colossians chapter four. We’re going to wrap up Paul’s letter to the Colossians already. Can’t wait. Thank you so much for listening to the Bible for Busy People. If you need prayer or you’re ready to go a little deeper in your faith, we’ve posted some resources for you in our show notes. We’d love for you to share this podcast with a friend and leave us a review. It helps us reach even more people with the hope of Lord Jesus. This podcast is part of Purposely, a podcast network designed with practical podcasts to help you find and live in God’s purpose for your life. All of these are ways to get focused on God! Focusing on God is the only way to get stresses and aches out of our body systems and the word of God is life!