SUNDAY 20 October 2013
“We proclaim Christ, admonishing and teaching
everyone with all wisdom, so that we may present everyone
perfect in Christ.” Colossians 1:28
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Living out the “one another” commands of the New Testament
We are exploring the next of our “one another” commands of the New Testament and today it is
“Admonish one another.” Admonish is one of those words that you don’t hear very much. Although, strangely enough I heard someone use the word only 8 days ago. It was spoken by the
shuttle bus driver who picked us up from the airport when we returned from our recent UK trip.
After picking us up, he had to go to the domestic terminal to pick someone else up. As he was
driving away from that terminal, he was flagged down by another passenger needing a lift. The
driver swerved over and parked in an area not designated for vehicles. Once the passenger was
on board, the driver turned to him and said, “I pulled in for you only because I couldn’t see a
traffic warden around.
If a warden had been close, they would have admonished me for parking in a non-stopping
zone.”
How interesting he should have said, “The warden would have admonished me.” When he said
that, I found myself thinking, I’m going to preach on that topic in just over a week. Thank you for
giving me a sermon illustration.”
Let’s start with a definition: what does it mean to admonish? Here’s one of the readings we
heard from Colossians:
“Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom.” Colossians 3 v 16
Here we see two different activities related to the word of God: teaching and admonishing. The
words from the original Greek are didasko – for teaching, from which we get words like didactic.
And the word for admonish is noutheteo, which literally means “to put in mind.”
The difference in the emphasis of these words is that teaching refers to the impartation of positive truth through God’s word, whereas admonition is about warning someone against wrong
conduct, as indicated through God’s word.
So there’s our definition of what it means to admonish. In this sermon series, we have sought to
identify the aspects of God’s character that lie behind each of the “one another” commands. In
the case of today’s theme, it’s important to recognise that God is Creator and, as such, He has set
out certain parameters for how we live in ways that honour Him. We see this right at the start of
the Bible in the Garden of Eden narrative:
“You are free to eat from any tree in the garden; but you must not eat from the tree of the
knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat of it you will surely die.” Genesis 2 v 16-17
There we see God’s charge: there is freedom, but within certain limits. If you step beyond the
boundaries then there are negative consequences.
God Himself admonishes us for our own good. He so cares for our wellbeing and the health of
our relationship with Him, that He warns us about the boundaries of the good life with Him. The
Bible contains many words from God which would be described as warnings: avoid this, keep
away from that, rid yourselves of this, etc. These are words of admonition from God; they are a
sign of His care for us. It is the tough love of God in action. He loves us enough to warn us.
So when we think about this subject for ourselves as a Christian community, we are thinking
about whether we care enough about one another to speak into one another’s lives to ensure we
all walk in ways that accord with God’s word.
There is a biblical image which resonates with this idea of admonishing one another. It is the image of the watchman. In biblical times, watchmen were people who stood on top of the walls of
a town and watched out for signs of an enemy attack. If they saw an army advancing on the
town, they would raise the alarm and the citizens would be warned and prepared for action.
God told one of the OT prophets, Ezekiel, that he had a task that in spiritual terms was the parallel of the watchman:
“Son of man, I have made you a watchman for the house of Israel; so hear the word I speak and
give them warning from me.” Ezekiel 33 v 7
God went on to tell Ezekiel that if he did not pass on God’s word to the people and judgement
came on them, Ezekiel would be held responsible, because he had not passed on the warning.
We see a similar incident in the life of the OT priest Eli. Eli had two sons who acted in immoral
ways.
Through the prophet Samuel, God’s judgement came on Eli. Here’s what God said about it: “For I
told Eli that I would judge his family forever because of the sin he knew about; his sons made
themselves contemptible, and he failed to restrain them.” 1 Samuel 3 v 13
This admonishing one another is a serious topic.
I acknowledge as Vicar that I have a special role to play with regard to this topic. In my role I am
entrusted by the Bishop with what is called, using rather traditional language, “the cure of souls”.
That means the spiritual care of everyone in this parish rests on my shoulders.
St Paul told the leaders of one of the early churches:
Acts 20 v 28: “So guard yourselves and God’s people. Feed and shepherd God’s flock—his church,
purchased with his own blood—over which the Holy Spirit has appointed you as elders.”
Now in a church as large as St George’s, one person cannot discharge that cure of souls alone,
which is why I am so grateful to the other members of staff and their ministries, because we need
a team approach.
Nevertheless, the buck does stop with me and I acknowledge that particular responsibility rests
with me to preach and teach what it means to live within God’s standards as revealed in His
word. God’s standards are high and encompass every aspect of our lives. Here’s just a few examples.
With regard to our words, are we faithful with them? Do we keep our promises? Do we say what
we mean and mean what we say?
In the area of our finances, are we people of true integrity? Do we acknowledge all that we have
comes from God? Do we give back to Him generously out of gratitude for all He has done for us?
The way we use our bodies for sexual expression is another area where God’s standards are high.
I acknowledge the range of views which exist in the worldwide Church on this issue, but my personal conviction is that the Bible teaches that God’s design in creation is that His gift of sex
should take place only between a man and a woman in a marriage relationship. That implies that
other forms of sex, whether heterosexual or homosexual are contrary to the teaching of Scripture. That is the standard I believe I must call people to live by. I am happy to discuss this with
anyone who might have questions or issues about this topic. So please speak to me if you would
find that helpful.
The Bible speaks into every aspect of our lives and calls us to holiness. But it is not just my job to
admonish; it is the expectation of the NT that it happens within the Christian community as a
whole.
Colossians 1 v 28:
“We proclaim Christ, admonishing and teaching everyone with all wisdom, so that we may present everyone perfect in Christ.”
None of us is perfect. We all have things to learn as we seek to walk in God’s ways. Admonishing
one another is about recognising that all the truth about God is meant to be embraced by all the
people of God, as one Bible scholar puts it.
So, time now to get very practical. How do we actually practice admonishing one another?
Here’s 3 practical pointers.
1. Only admonish if you are prepared to be teachable yourself
This is a simple matter of personal humility.
If we think that speaking correction into someone else’s life is about us taking a self-righteous
attitude and doing a lot of finger-pointing, then we need to keep our mouth nicely closed.
Here’s some wisdom from the book of Proverbs:
“He who heeds discipline shows the way to life, but whoever ignores correction leads others
astray.” Proverbs 10 v 17
Let us not be like the people of Israel in Jeremiah’s day:
“This is the nation that has not obeyed the Lord its God or responded to correction.” Jeremiah 7 v
28
We need the kind of open relationships with one another that Jeremy spoke about last week.
We can show our own humility by giving others permission to speak into our life if they think we
need correction. We must be teachable ourselves if we are to practice this one another command.
2. When we admonish, choose our words carefully to reflect the fact that the person we address
is our brother or sister in Christ
Admonishing one another is not about one person trying to score points over another.
This is particularly important when we get into a discussion with someone who holds a different
viewpoint to us. We may end up profoundly disagreeing with someone, but we can still speak into one another’s lives with respect. We must remember that Christ loves them and died for
them, just as much as He did for us.
Here’s a very helpful verse connected with speaking into the life of another Christian:
“Do not regard them as an enemy, but warn (admonish) them as a brother or sister.” 2 Thessalonians 3 v 15
So admonishing one another needs to be practised in a spirit of unity as brothers and sisters.
In fact, people who deliberately stir up division are one of the only two categories of people who
are singled out in the Bible as being people who need to be admonished.
“Warn (=admonish) a divisive person once, and then warn him a second time. After that, have
nothing to do with him.” Titus 3 v 10
We are to be people who seek to promote unity in the Spirit through the bond of peace.
I said there are only 2 categories of people whom the Bible specifically mentions as being people
who should be admonished. One is the divisive person, as we have seen. Any guesses what the
other one is?
1 Thessalonians 5 v 14:
“And we urge you, brothers and sisters, warn (=admonish) those who are idle.”
The Greek word translated as idle has a stronger meaning than lazy. It implies someone who is
unruly and undisciplined, someone who stirs up trouble and that might be through deliberate laziness or inactivity, a kind of refusal to get involved.
This seems to imply it’s right to challenge those who do not operate with a spirit of co-operation
within the church. It could imply the person who digs their foot in the ground and refuses to join
in.
Whatever the reason for our challenge, let’s ensure we practice grace and truth when we speak.
That way we will ensure we respect the other person as our brother or sister in Christ.
3. Intentionally seek a few relationships which are strong enough to permit each side to speak into the other person’s life
We can’t just wander around church barking out admonishing statements to everyone we come
across. In humility we must come to a place with a small number of trusted friends where we
care enough for each other to be able to challenge one another to keep pressing on for God in
ways that honour Him.
Such relationships don’t come about overnight; they take time to develop. And they don’t happen by accident either; we need to be intentional about developing them.
The aim is that we all have relationships which promote our maturity in Christ, because they involve an element of admonition. God can use positive relationships like these to refine us and
shape us more into the likeness of Jesus. That’s a wonderful goal.
As I come towards the end, I think there is a related application of this command which is relevant beyond the Christian community.
When we think of the image of being a watchman, who identifies an on-coming danger, I think
this encourages us to be people who speak up in the frontline situations of our lives, like at work,
when we think that something is wrong.
You could be here today and you are concerned about something going on in your workplace.
Maybe it’s a practice you think is unethical, perhaps you have concrete evidence that someone
has acted dishonestly. I believe this command reminds us that as Christians we have a responsibility to challenge situations that are not right. Obviously we must do this with care and through
the correct channels. But to know something and fail to speak up is to disown the name of
Christ.
To admonish in the right spirit is a very positive and loving thing to do.
Following the horrific tsunami of 2004, scientists have put special sensors on the sea-bed to provide early warning signs of deep-sea earthquakes, in order to avert a similar crisis. When we
sense danger for the life or faith of someone we love, it’s time for a loving challenge. By speaking
into someone’s life at an early point, we may prevent an issue growing into something very destructive. Let’s seek out the kind of relationships that welcome that level of care for one another
and we’ll see our faith deepened and renewed.
Amen.
Discussion questions for personal reflection or home group:
1. Martyn speaks about God who, as Creator, sets parameters for the way to live. How easy do
you find it to allow God’s values for life to influence your behaviour and attitudes?
2. Without looking at a Bible, how well can you explain any biblical principles that should guide
our lives with regard to any of the following:
How we view and use our money
The words we use
Our use of time
The use of our bodies for sexual expression
Our attitude towards work and how we discharge work responsibilities
Where in the Bible would we find these principles?
3. Martyn quotes Proverbs 10 v 17: “He who heeds discipline shows the way to life, but whoever
ignores correction leads others astray.” What makes it hard to receive correction? How can we
develop a positive approach to receiving correction, so that we are qualified to challenge others?
4. What characterises a healthy way for one Christian to admonish/challenge another? How
might this differ if the challenge was taking place between two people who were not Christians?