9 For this cause we also,
since the day we heard it, do not cease to pray for you, and to desire that ye
might be filled with the knowledge of his will in all wisdom and spiritual
understanding; 10 That ye might walk worthy of the Lord unto all pleasing,
being fruitful in every good work, and increasing in the knowledge of God; 11 Strengthened
with all might, according to his glorious power, unto all patience and
longsuffering with joyfulness; 12 Giving thanks unto the Father, which
hath made us meet to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in light: 13 Who
hath delivered us from the power of darkness, and hath translated us into the
kingdom of his dear Son: 14 In whom we have redemption through his blood,
even the forgiveness of sins: (Col 1:9-14)
We
continue today with an amplification of prayer as a Pillar of the Faith. The
salient principle of prayer that so often fails of our understanding is that
prayer is not intended to be a shopping list of OUR wants and desires, but a
seeking after the will and guidance of God. So we spend all of our time in
prayer telling god what we WANT, and the answer God gives (of what we NEED)
goes unheard and unheeded. God knows our hearts far better than we know them
ourselves. God may often grant, in answer to prayer, that for which we did not
ask, but should have. “Likewise the Spirit also helpeth our
infirmities: for we know not what we should pray for as we ought: but the
Spirit itself maketh intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered.”
(Romans 8:26)
While
it is true that we pour out our hearts before God in prayer, we should be
pouring out all that is not Godly and allowing them to be filled with His Holy
Will for us. Paul and Timothy make great requests in the prayer under study
today, but not a single request is based on some personal need for edification
of either – the prayers are clearly that God’s perfect will be done in the
lives of the Church at Colossae. What request are petitioned for by Paul and
Timothy. Let us examine the prayer in detail:
First
and foremost is to acquire knowledge AND wisdom: “. . . ye might be filled with the
knowledge of his will in all wisdom and spiritual understanding.
There is nothing here that will please the world or the flesh – only God’s
will. We only gain wisdom by getting knowledge and relating that knowledge to
Scriptural meanings. “The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge: but fools despise wisdom and instruction.” (Prov 1:7)
That beginning cold fear of God, when we realize our depravity, compels us to
learn of Him. By and by the fear turns from one of fearing the ‘wrath of God’
to fearing His disappointment of us as a Father.
Secondly,
the petition is “. . That ye might walk worthy of the Lord
unto all pleasing.” How do mortal men walk worthy of the Lord? In
the flesh, such a goal is not possible. We must walk in the Spirit (the Holy
Spirit of God) and then the Will of God becomes our own Will. “So
then they that are in the flesh cannot please God. 9 But
ye are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit, if so be that the Spirit of God
dwell in you. Now if any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his.” (Romans 8:8-9)
The Holy Spirit is given – not taken! Read these verses and meditate upon their
meaning: “And except that the Lord had shortened those
days, no flesh should be saved: but for the elect's sake, whom he hath
chosen, he hath shortened the days.”
(Mark 13:20)
“Ye have not chosen me, but I have chosen you.”
(John 15:16)
You
did not choose to follow God, He chose you, and drew you to Himself. This
second petition ends… “being fruitful in every good work, and increasing
in the knowledge of God.” We are not saved by our good
works, but we certainly are saved UNTO good works. How do you rate in the
category of “increasing in the knowledge of God?” Do you attend church on
Sunday, tune in a TV evangelist on weekdays, and sit comfortably with a cup of
tea to be spoon-fed by these mostly money-mongers? Or do you listen to the
sermon on Sunday, confirm all that is preached by the Word, and study your
Bible in your quiet time at home? Do not forget the first point in the prayer
of Paul, “we do not cease to pray.” How is that possible? Is it possible
to pray while driving? YES! Is it possible to pray while taking a college exam?
YES, I can vouch for that because I could not have passed some of those without
a strong intervention of the Lord in opening my mind to what was already stored
there. Our very lives should be a prayer to God. All that we do should be in
accordance with – not our request – but His answer to our prayers.
We are
called Christians because we bear a kinship and relationship to the Preeminent
Christ. He is first and foremost in all that we do, think, say, hear, or feel.
Thirdly, the petition of this prayer is for the Colossians to be “Strengthened
with all might, according to his glorious power, unto all patience and
longsuffering with joyfulness.” Prayer strengthens our resolve and
emboldens us. The increased power and resolve comes from Christ and not of
ourselves. If we are called after the familial Name of Christ, we should share
His characteristics of long-suffering and patience: “For Christ also hath once suffered
for sins, the just for the unjust, that he might bring us to God, being put to
death in the flesh, but quickened by the Spirit: By which also he went and
preached unto the spirits in prison; Which sometime were disobedient, when
once the longsuffering of God waited in the days of Noah, while the ark was a
preparing, wherein few, that is, eight souls were saved by water.” (1
Peter 3:18-20) We ALL were sometime disobedient, were we not? The great
visible characteristic that separates the Christian from the world is the joy
he has under every circumstance of life. The wealthy live in opulent houses,
and their lifestyles are extravagant and lavish, yet many are as miserable as
an Ox mired in the mud of the field. They are miserable because their soul is
dying of a thirst which they cannot quench. When they look upon the poor
Christian of the rice-fields of Cambodia, they are dismayed at his joy.
When
did you last thank God for making you a partaker of blessing through His dearly
beloved Son? Have you come to look upon such a blessing as merely routine to be
taken for granted? Have you come to believe that after years of seniority in
the church that you somehow DESERVE to be a Christian? No, you will NEVER
deserve to be a Christian. You are so called by Grace and not deeds or
self-worth. “Giving thanks unto the Father, which hath made us meet to be
partakers of the inheritance of the saints in light:” Did we make ourselves
partakers of our heritage in Christ, or did God MAKE us partakers thereof. Read
the verse preceding again! All we can offer God that is pleasing is
thankfulness and praise.
There was a time, hopefully long past, when each Reader of this
devotion sat in darkness – a prisoner to sin and bondage. He could call upon
not light to brighten his condition. But the Light of the World was soon to
dawn upon his sorry soul and bring him into the Light that cannot be
extinguished – Jesus Christ! “Who hath delivered us from the power of
darkness, and hath translated us into the kingdom of his dear Son.”
“The
people that walked in darkness have seen a great light: they that dwell in the
land of the shadow of death, upon them hath the light shined.” (Isaiah
9:2) Do you remember the darkness? If so, you will yet appreciate the Light.
Who
is Christ to us? He is the One “In whom we have redemption through his blood, even
the forgiveness of sins.” There
is no redemption apart from the Blood of Christ. He is the One and Only One
who, being completely innocent, that could die in our stead as payment for our
sins. Had he had any sin of His own, He could not have redeemed us by paying
our penalty with His own life. If He had sinned once, He would have died for
His own sin instead of ours. But He was sinless, but died the death of a sinner
for us. And we are forgiven by His grace and mercy.
Is Christ preeminent in your life? If so, all who know you will
recognize the fact. Every remunerative moment of leisure will be spent in
learning more of Him from that beautiful Book He has written to you. “Lo, I
come: in the volume of the book it is
written of me.” (Psalms 40:7
& Hebrew 10:7)
