DIGGING DEEP NO. 1064 December 24, 2024 A STUDY OF THE BOOK OF COLOSSIANS (PART 2) THE PRISONER’S PRAYER Colossians 1: 9- 12.

The prayers in Paul’s prison letters are certainly unique. To begin with, he prayed for others and not for himself. The requests in his prayers centered on spiritual blessings, not on material or physical matters. Of course, it is not wrong to pray about physical or material needs. But spiritual needs are vastly more important. How would you pray for a group of people you had never seen? All that Paul knew about the believers in Colosse he learned from their faithful pastor, Epaphras. Paul knew of the false teaching that was threatening the church, so he centered his praying on that problem. In his prayer, Paul made three requests:

1. He prayed for spiritual intelligence – Col.1: 9Every believer needs to have the knowledge of His will. There is always more to learn about God and His will for our lives. No Christian would ever dare to say that he had arrived and needed to learn nothing more. God wants us to know His willActs.22: 14 and understand it Ephe.5: 17. As we study His Word and pray, we discover new and exciting truths about God’s will for His people. The word filled is a key word in Colossians. Paul used it many times Col.1: 19, 25; 2: 2, 9- 10; 4: 12, 17 complete = filled or full. The word carries the idea of being fully equipped. It was used to describe a ship that was ready for a voyage. The believer has in Christ all that he needs for the voyage of life Col.2: 10. In the language of the New Testament, to be filled means to be “controlled by”. When we are filled with anger, we are controlled by anger. To be filled with the Spirit Ephe.5: 18, means to be controlled by the Spirit. Paul’s prayer, then, is that these believers might be controlled by the full knowledge of God’s will. The question now is; How can believers grow in the full knowledge of God’s will? Col.1: 9. We understand the will of God through the Word of God. The Holy Spirit teaches us as we submit to Him Jh.14: 26; 16: 13. As we pray and sincerely seek God’s truth; He reveals His will to us. The general will of God for all His children is given clearly in the Bible. The specific will of God for any giving situation must always agree with what He has already revealed in His Word. The better we know God’s general will, the easier it will be to determine His specific guidance in daily life. Paul did not encourage the Colossians to seek visions or wait for voices. He prayed that they might get deeper into God’s Word and thus have greater wisdom and insight concerning God’s will. He wanted them to have all wisdom; not that they would know everything, but that they would have all the wisdom necessary for making decisions and living to please God. Spiritual intelligence is the beginning of a successful, fruitful Christian life.
2. He prayed for practical obedience – Col.1: 10In the Christian life, knowledge and obedience go together. There is no separation between learning and living. True spiritual wisdom must affect the daily life. Wisdom and practical intelligence must go together Ex.31: 3; Deut.4: 6. All Bible truths are practical, not theoretical. If we are growing in knowledge, we should also be growing in grace 2Pet.3: 18. Two words summarize the practicality of the Christian life: walk and work. The sequence is important: first wisdom; then walk; then work. I cannot work for God unless I am walking with Him. But I cannot walk with Him if I am ignorant of His will. The believer who spends time daily in the Word and prayer Acts.6: 4 will know God’s will and be able to walk with Him and work for Him. Afterall our purpose in life is not to please ourselves, but to please the Lord. It is not we who work for God; it is God who works in us and through us to produce the fruit of His grace Phil.2: 12- 13. Christian service is the result of Christian devotion. God must make the worker before he can do the work. God spent thirteen years preparing Joseph for his ministry in Egypt, and eighty years preparing Moses to lead Israel. A newborn baby can cry and make his presence known, but he cannot work. A new Christian can witness for Christ and even win others; but he must be taught to walk and learn God’s wisdom before he is placed in an office of responsible ministry. Our Christian lives desperately need balance. Certainly, we get to know God better as we pray in our private rooms and as we meditate on His Word.
3. He prayed for moral excellence – Col.1: 11- 12Wisdom and conduct must always be related to moral character. One of the problems today in our churches is the emphasis on spiritual knowledge and Christian service without connecting these important matters to personal character. For example, some teachers and preachers claim to have God’s wisdom; yet they lack love and kindness and other basic qualities that make the Christian life beautiful and distinctive. It is God’s energy that empowers usCol.1: 11. We usually think of God’s power being revealed in great deeds; The Israelites crossing the Red Sea; David leading a victorious army; Paul raising the dead. But the emphasis here is on Christian character: patience, longsuffering, joyfulness, and thanksgiving. For David to control his temper when he was being maligned by Shimei was a greater victory than his slaying of Goliath Prov.16: 32. Patience is an important characteristic of the maturing Christian life. Too many Christians have a tendency to quit when circumstances become difficult. Along with patience, we need longsuffering. This word means self- restraint and is the opposite of revenge. Patience has to do primarily with circumstances, while longsuffering has to do with people. God is longsuffering towards people because of His love and grace 2Pet.3: 9.  It is amazing how people can patiently endure trying circumstances, only to lose their tempers with a friend or loved one. Moses was patient during the contest with Pharaoh in Egypt. But he lost his temper with his own people and, as a result, forfeited his right to enter the promised land. Patience and longsuffering go together if we are growing spiritually. Paul listed them as the marks of the true minister of Jesus Christ 2Cor.6: 4- 6. The great example of patience and longsuffering in the Old Testament is Job Jam.5: 10- 11.

God’s power is evidenced in our lives not only in our patience and longsuffering, but also in our joyfulness. When circumstances are difficult, we should exhibit joyful patience; and when people are hard to live with, we should reveal joyful longsuffering. Only God’s Spirit working within us can give us joy in the midst of problem.

The fourth evidence of God’s power in our lives is thankfulness. Christians who are filled with the Holy Spirit will be joyful and thankful Ephe.5: 18- 20. When we lose our joy, we start complaining and becoming critical.

In Conclusion – We need spiritual intelligence if we are going to live to please God. We also need practical obedience in our walk and work. The result must be spiritual power that leads to joyful patience and long suffering, with thanksgiving.