PRINCE OF PEACE LUTHERAN CHURCH
Get Connected, Stay Connected
a timely message from Pastor Zelt
I don’t think I really understood this section of Scripture until very early this morning. Colossians is only four chapters and most of the last chapter Paul uses to greet or send greetings from ten different people. My first reaction is that it’s kind of a waste of space. He does the same thing for 36 different people in the book of Romans. All told, Paul sends greeting from or to about 70 different people in his letters. Of all the things the Holy Spirit could have inspired to be written and preserved in those lines, why this?
The answer may be obvious to you, but it came clear to me as I was kept awake with thoughts of people absent from fellowship. Why does that hurt so much? Why don’t some people seem to care when they walk away or drift away from the partnership of faith and ministry we committed ourselves to? Don’t they think about those who have labored so hard for them? Have they lost sight of the fact that others depend on being encouraged by them and if they are not there, it sends a message that is painful?
“The City Treasurer is praying for you,” Paul wrote. “The Director of Public Works wants you to know you are on his heart, hoping that you are strong in the Lord. The man whose father carried Jesus’ cross asked me to be sure you know he thinks of you regularly. The very first believer in the area asked me to let you know he prays for you every morning and can’t wait to see you again.” Erastus, Archippus, Rufus, and Epenetus – those are their names – and they are listed in Romans 16 & Colossians 4 among 40 others, all who care deeply and personally for you and don’t want you to forget.
While our faith is centered in Christ, we are people who want and need to be loved in tangible ways by people who are wearing skin. The reality is that the Spirit creates faith through the hearing of the message of Christ, but almost always that message comes through another person. The love of God for us was clearly displayed on the cross and that will never change. However, we long to experience that love in tangible, relational ways. We need the encouragement of the brothers and sisters in Christ, so the Holy Spirit dedicated pages to them saying hello to each other across the miles. It shouts: “You are important to them!” -- and if you walk away, they will hurt. And they long to know that you have the same concern for them.
After Jesus’ resurrection, the love of God was felt by Jesus calling Mary by name, asking Thomas to feel his wounds, and fixing breakfast for Peter -- very tangible experiences. The love of God is felt through the presence and friendship of believers. People might come initially to a church because of a program or the personality of its leader, but usually they stay engaged through the relationships built with the family of Christ.
The cohesiveness and love of a fellowship has a powerful witness for Christ. That type of commitment and love is rarely found today and bears a strong testimony that Christ is behind it.
So I want to encourage you to do this: Get connected to others in our fellowship, and then make sure you stay connected. Be present regularly and actively. You need them and they need you.
Study opportunities here and small group opportunities here.