I believe there are many people who are members of churches throughout the world who seem to be under the impression that the gospel of Jesus Christ is meant only to give them hope in the afterlife. They heard the message that receiving Christ as Lord and Savior would grant them the forgiveness of sins, thereby guaranteeing eternal life when this present life concludes. For these people, that is the extent of their Christian belief system.
To be sure, the gospel does, in fact, promise everlasting life for those who believe in Jesus Christ and trust in Him as their Lord and Savior. Through His grace, God forgives all sins and trespasses and actually does guarantee life in heaven. However, salvation in Christ enables not only everlasting life in the future: it also empowers abundant life right now. And those who see their salvation in Christ as the full extent of their Christian experience miss God’s great benefits today.
Years ago, I took my four children to Disney World in Orlando, Florida. It was a big trip for us and all of us were excited. Now, imagine what would have happened if when we arrived at the gate, we paid for our tickets, walked in, and stayed just inside the gate. What if I told the children, “This is as far as we are going.” They could see the rides and all the shops. They could see people enjoying themselves in the park, but we would stay at the gate. We went to Disney World, but we failed to experience what it had to offer. It sounds very disappointing, doesn’t it?
To me, that is a description of the Christian who gets just inside the gate by receiving Christ as Savior, but never takes another step into living the life the Lord Jesus Christ desires for us to live. They rest in the fact that they are saved, but enjoy none of God’s great benefits of their faith, never grow spiritually, and never experience a closer walk with Jesus Christ. They watch as others worship the Lord and rejoice in His provisions for their lives, but remaining just inside the gate, they are only spectators and not participants.
In verses nine through fourteen of Colossians 1, Paul wrote down his prayer for the Christians of Colossae and it is a prayer designed to call them to a deeper and fuller experience in their Christian lives. These verses form a marvelous insight in the kinds of things an apostle would pray for a small local church. It expresses Paul’s vision for these believers and it explains how they can grow spiritually. It also captures the essence of our Lord’s purpose for the local church and the Christians who are part of it.
These verses also enhance our confidence in our prayers. Since we live in such a sophisticated and technologically advanced world, we sometimes forget that our greatest ministry to others requires none of our modern devices. We can minister directly to the spiritual well-being of other believers without actually seeing or speaking to them. We can play a role in their spiritual growth and even secure God’s blessings for them in one simple process. This amazing activity is prayer. Remember, Paul prayed this prayer while a prisoner in Rome and Colossae and these Christians were hundreds of miles away. Yet Paul believed deeply in consistent prayer and knew those believers would be blessed by His prayers for them.
Today, we will look at the necessity of prayer, Paul’s three-fold prayer request for the Christians of this church, and conclude with the anticipation Paul had on how his prayer would be answered.
THE NECESSITY OF PRAYER. Colossians 1:9a
The Privilege of Prayer. Paul had already mentioned his prayers for these Christians of Colossae. In verse three he said he was “praying always” for them. God has granted this unique and special privilege of prayer to all believers. In Luke 18, the Lord Jesus said that we “ought to pray and not lose heart” (Luke 18:1). The Bible records numerous occasions when Jesus prayed, leaving us to follow His example. The Scriptures teach us that many of God’s servants have prayed. Abraham prayed. David prayed and many of his prayers are recorded in Psalms. Daniel prayed. A beautiful example of the prayer of this Old Testament saint is found in Daniel chapter nine. I have already mentioned that the Lord Jesus prayed. John 17 is an entire chapter devoted to a prayer from the Lord. The apostles prayed.
Christians are called upon to pray. Scripture teaches, “Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God” (Philippians 4:6). In fact, we are told to pray for our government leaders and the salvation of others. Paul wrote, “I urge that entreaties and prayers, petitions and thanksgivings, be made on behalf of all men, for kings and all who are in authority, so that we may lead a tranquil and quiet life in all godliness and dignity. This is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior, who desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth” (1 Timothy 2:1-4).
Paul’s Unceasing Prayer. Paul did not cease in his prayers for these believers. This was his continuous, recurring prayer. For Paul, his prayers were not “one and done.” His prayers were part of his daily devotion to the Lord. Prayer demands the aspect of God-consciousness, that is, the view that everything in life has a relationship with the Lord. We understand God is always present and deeply concerned with our lives. We also pray with people consciousness. The Holy Spirit makes us aware of the needs of those around us, our families, fellow believers, neighbors and friends. We bring their needs before God’s throne of grace and submit them before God’s sovereign will.
A THREE-FOLD PRAYER REQUEST. Colossians 1:9b
The Knowledge of God’s Will. It is interesting to notice what Paul wrote to these Christians who are young in the faith. What would Paul point to that is of primary importance? Where should they spend their time and exercise their energies? What would be of greatest help in their daily lives and in the difficulties they faced? If you were counseling a new believer, where would you tell them to begin their spiritual growth? Paul gives them a three-fold instruction, that is part of his prayer. I introduced Paul’s use of triads or trilogies last week, and here is another. He speaks of knowledge, wisdom, and understanding. These three work together and must be understood together. The first is knowledge.
The typical word for knowledge in the Greek New Testament is gnosko and it means what our word knowledge means. In this case, Paul intensifies this word by adding a prefix to it, making it epignosko, which means Paul is speaking of a full and thorough knowledge of God. Knowledge learns the information God has given to us in the Bible and places it in our minds. The Lord calls us to intensify this knowledge to deepen our relationship with the Lord Jesus.
It should not surprise us that Paul uses the Old Testament to widen our biblical perspective. In the book of Exodus, God commanded Moses to build a worship center called the tabernacle and fill it with important objects that would illustrate the redemptive sacrifice of Jesus Christ. This project would take more than mere human knowledge. God would actually place information into a human mind to build the tabernacle according to His specifications. We read that God called Bezalel from the tribe of Judah to be the head craftsman. Listen to the Lord’s word, “I have filled him [Bezalel] with the Spirit of God in wisdom, in understanding, in knowledge, and in all kinds of craftsmanship, to make artistic designs for work in gold, in silver, and in bronze, and in the cutting of stones for settings, and in the carving of wood, that he may work in all kinds of craftsmanship” (Exodus 31:3-5). A few chapters later, Moses repeated God’s instruction, “See, the Lord has called by name Bezalel…of the tribe of Judah. And He has filled him with the Spirit of God, in wisdom, in understanding and in knowledge and in all craftsmanship” (Exodus 35:30-32). Notice the three important aspects–knowledge, wisdom, and understanding.
True biblical knowledge is absolutely necessary. Hosea wrote, “My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge” (Hosea 4:6), and “So let us know, let us press on to know the Lord” (Hosea 6:3). Proverbs tells us, “it is not good for a person to be without knowledge” (Proverbs 19:2). Jesus said, “If you continue in My word, then you are truly disciples of Mine; and you will know the truth, and the truth will make you free” (John 8:31-32). Paul wrote, “And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect” (Romans 12:2). He also wrote, “Brethren, do not be children in your thinking; yet in evil be infants, but in your thinking be mature” (1 Corinthians 14:20).
It is therefore not surprising that knowledge is so vital to the spiritual growth of the Christian. But, the knowledge of what? What are we supposed to know? I’m sure you will notice, back in our text, that it is the “knowledge of His will.” Where is God’s will expressed? Where can Christians find God’s will? Beyond any doubt, Paul meant that God’s will is found in His Word. The Bible is God’s revealed truth and it is the full expression of His will. In it you and I can find specific details about God’s will for our lives. Many are given, but let me give you two examples. First, it is God’s will to be filled with or under the control of the Holy Spirit, as Ephesians 5:17-18 tells us, “So then do not be foolish, but understand what the will of the Lord is. And do not get drunk with wine, for that is dissipation, but be filled with the Spirit.” A second example is our sanctification, found in 1 Thessalonians 4:3, “For this is the will of God, your sanctification; that is, that you abstain from sexual immorality.” God’s Word, your Bible, tells you precisely what is God’s will for your life. So then, to know God, we must know His Word.
All Spiritual Wisdom. This is followed by wisdom. Once we know God’s Word, the Holy Spirit will guide us into knowing God’s principles. We will see certain truths repeated and illustrated giving us divine principles of godly living. Wisdom views these principles and how they relate to the various areas of our lives. We live in a culture devoid of absolutes especially of ethics and morality, principally because there is no source or authority to provide for absolute standards, so virtually anything goes. For the Christian, wisdom teaches us that the Bible is that authority for moral absolutes and ethical values.
True wisdom is always connected to biblical truth. There is a true wisdom and a false wisdom, illustrated in the Bible by human wisdom contrasted with God’s wisdom. Listen to the words of First Corinthians 2, “Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, so that we may know the things freely given to us by God, which things we also speak, not in words taught by human wisdom, but in those taught by the Spirit, combining spiritual thoughts with spiritual words. But a natural man does not accept the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him; and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually appraised” (1 Corinthians 2:12-14).
True wisdom allows us to see our lives and all its various circumstances from God’s point of view. Resting on the solid foundation of God’s Word, wisdom given from the Holy Spirit grants the believer with insight into how God is building spiritual strength into his or her life.
Understanding. The third element of this triad is understanding. Understanding is the ability to put the knowledge and wisdom God has given to us into practice in our lives. It is not enough just to know God’s truth or to have true wisdom, for those to be of value they must be seen through the behaviors and decisions of our lives. Godly knowledge and wisdom, if they are truly present, must be translated into godly living and pure lifestyles.
In a parallel Scripture, Paul prayed, “that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give to you a spirit of wisdom and of revelation in the knowledge of Him. I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened, so that you will know what is the hope of His calling, what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints” (Ephesians 1:17-18). What does he mean by “the eyes of your heart may be enlightened”? He means to see things from a spiritual perspective rather than just from a material point of view. But how do we get God’s point of view? We can see this described vividly in 2 Kings 6.
Biblical knowledge tells us that God is always everywhere at all times. Wisdom based on this knowledge informs us that since that is true God always knows what is happening in our lives and He will always to what is best for our spiritual growth and for His glory. In this Old Testament passage, Elisha’s servant knew God was always present, but he saw a great army surrounding him, threatening his life. Wisdom based on that knowledge allowed Elisha to tell him in verse 16, “Do not fear, for those who are with us are more than those who are with them.” For his understanding of that biblical principle, Elisha asked the Lord to open the servant’s eyes, and he saw the spiritual world he could not normally see with physical eyes. God’s purpose is that we grow to see God working in all of life around us.
EXPECTED RESULTS OF PAUL’S PRAYER. Colossians 1:10-11
Walk in a Worthy Manner. Walking or living in a worthy manner means living our lives in obedience to the Lord Jesus Christ. The genuine knowledge, divine wisdom, and full understanding derived from our study, meditation and application of God’s Word leads to transformed character and growing to be more like Jesus Christ. To be worthy is to live according to God’s standards and moral purity, to be holy as He is holy. In this way, we please Him in every way. True spiritual knowledge, wisdom, and understanding must affect our lives each day. These three spiritual elements teach us to focus on pleasing the Lord rather than simply pleasing people.
Bearing Fruit in Every Good Work. Our growth in godliness leads to being able to bear fruit, which has both internal and external attributes. Internally, it leads to even greater spiritual growth as God continues to illuminate our minds to His Word. Externally, God’s grace works through us to bless others around us. The true knowledge of God will continue to grow as the Holy Spirit continues to teach us through His Word.
Strengthened with All Power. Spiritual growth, through biblical knowledge, spiritual wisdom and understanding brings spiritual strength. The Holy Spirit used three words to describe this effective blessing. He says, “being strengthened,” “power,” and “might,” which shows dynamic spiritual vitality. The Apostle John called it being an “overcomer.” This spiritual strength will cause Christians to be “steadfast, immovable, and always abounding in the work of the Lord” (1 Corinthians 15:58).
This spiritual strength produces great endurance and patience. Endurance means not easily succumbing under suffering and patience means self-restraint that does not quickly retaliate when wronged. This amazing strength is not according to human ability, but according to God’s glorious might–it is His strength working through the believer.
So, are you growing in your Christian life? Do you have more biblical knowledge, true wisdom, and faithful understanding? Do you have more spiritual strength than you did five years ago? More than ten years ago? Or, are you still standing just inside God’s glorious gate of salvation, hesitating to go on to the glorious blessings God has for you? According to Paul’s words here, it all starts with prayerful study of His wonderful book, the Bible. Come on, take that first step; begin your journey through God’s Word. Make a plan to read His Word every day.
Maybe you are one who is still outside the gate, wondering if you should go in. The Lord Jesus Christ purchased your eternal salvation with His sacrifice on the cross. He stands just inside ready to welcome you with open arms. Will you trust Him? Will you believe in Him? The Bible says, “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and you will be saved.” Come, allow Jesus to save your soul today.
