Sermon Breakdown

1. The sermon begins by announcing that communion will follow the service and extending an invitation to all present to participate.
2. The sermon will focus on Colossians 1:21-22 which contrasts the Colossians' past state before knowing Christ with their present state in Christ.
3. In their past state, the Colossians were "alienated and enemies in [their] mind by wicked works." All people in a state of unbelief are in this position.
4. There are many superficial differences between non-Christians, but ultimately they share the same root issue: they trust in their own reason and understanding rather than submitting to God's Word and revelation.
5. Non-Christians have a wrong view of the nature of the Christian life. They see it as vague and indefinite rather than the radical change the Bible describes.
6. Becoming a Christian requires undergoing a profound change, a rebirth, becoming a new creation. It is like the difference between darkness and light at creation.
7. All people, regardless of background, need this radical change. Many godly Christians from moral upbringings have testified to needing it.
8. Non-Christians need to gain the right view of themselves. They are "alienated" from God, outside His life and blessings. They are "enemies in [their] mind" towards God, showing impatience, contempt, and dislike for Him and His ways.
9. Non-Christians need to gain the right view of their greatest need: to be reconciled to God. They need forgiveness, a new nature that enjoys God, and deliverance from His wrath.
10. Non-Christians need to gain the right view of the only way their need can be met: through the death of Christ "in the body of his flesh." Only His death could satisfy God's justice and reconcile us to Him.
11. Do you delight in praising God? Do you rejoice in Christ and glory in His cross? If not, you likely have never gained the right view of yourself, your need, and the only solution. You can only gain this view by believing what Scripture reveals about these things.