COLOSSIANS 1:9-14

So in 1903, New Zealand debuted their national rugby team called the All Blacks. Now, you may never have heard of this team before, you may not even have any interest in rugby, but this team has a particularly interesting statistic. You see, the All Blacks hold the highest winning percentage of any international team of any major sport in all of history, with a win rate of 76%.
They win three out of four of their games, that's staggering. And the thing is, the way they've been able to achieve this and actually maintain this success is not that they have the best players, although truly they're amazing athletes, but they have a core set of principles that they live by. And these principles drive how the players think about the game, how they train, how they face adversity, how they serve the team.
There's one principle in particular called leave the jersey in a better place. So there's a high value on character in this team, and it actually shows in their unity and effectiveness on the rugby field. And the idea of this principle is that each player would train or play or serve the team in a way that is worthy of the jersey.
They tell their players, somebody wore this jersey before you, somebody's going to wear it after you. So while you're here, play, train in a worthy manner. Now, we may never play the game of rugby.
If you look at my build, I'm not built for rugby. But what are the principles that we live by to be found worthy? See, we want to be fully devoted followers of Jesus. As Christians, we carry in us the name of Christ.
And so how do we live in a way that is worthy of His name? So our text today tells us to be worthy of God is to be filled with the knowledge of His will, and to conduct ourselves in a manner that is pleasing to Him. So if you've got your Bibles with you this morning, I want to invite you to turn to Colossians chapter 1. And as we're turning there, I want to give us just a bit of context for this letter. So this letter is written by the Apostle Paul, and Paul planted many churches across Europe and Asia Minor.
And he often actually wrote letters to these churches that he planted. Think 1 and 2 Corinthians, or think the letters to the Ephesians. However, the letter to Colossians actually is a bit different.
Paul did not plant this church in Colossae. Rather, the first part of the letter tells us that a fellow pastor named Epaphras started the church. And Epaphras seems to have shared with Paul some of the ways God is working in his people, and also some of the struggles that they're facing with false teachers.
So Paul wrote this letter to encourage and teach these fellow believers. And the purpose statement found in this letter is actually in Colossians 2, 4. It says this, I say this in order that no one may delude you with plausible arguments. And he goes on to unpack this in the letter.
Paul wants this church to rightly understand the gospel of Jesus, and further, that they would apply it to their lives. So let's read together. We're going to start in verse 9, and I want you to pay attention to the two components that Paul prays for in a worthy life.
So starting here in verse 9. And so, from the day we heard, we've not ceased to pray for you, asking that you may be filled with the knowledge of his will, and all spiritual wisdom and understanding. So as to walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing to him, bearing fruit in every good work, and increasing in the knowledge of God, being strengthened with all power, according to his glorious might, for all endurance and patience, with joy giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of the saints in light. He has delivered us from the domain of darkness, and transferred us to the kingdom of his beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.
Amen. Lord, we're thankful for your word that you have given us. May you, by your Spirit, teach us that we would know you better, and that we would walk in a manner worthy of you.
We commit this time to you, in Jesus' name. Amen. So in the opening of the letter, Paul thanks God for their faith, the Colossians' faith, in believing the gospel of Jesus, just as they heard it from Epaphras.
And then Paul's prayer shifts from thanksgiving, actually, to intercession, interceding for the Colossians. And I want you to observe the way that Paul prays for these people. First, he says, we have not ceased to pray for you.
Paul does not merely thank the Lord for their faith, but he constantly, or regularly, brings the people before the Lord, and asks that they would grow. And note, he's never met these people, right? When he is writing his letter to the Ephesians, he has just such tender language. He's thinking of faces and conversations of people he's talked to.
Philippians, he literally names people by name. But here in Colossians, he's laboring over these people in prayer, without stopping. Well, second, let's look at Paul's prayer requests.
Continuing on in verses 9 and 10, Paul asks that you may be filled with the knowledge of his will and all spiritual wisdom and understanding. And he continues, and that they would walk in a manner worthy of the Lord. I want to pause here and ask, do you pray like this for your family or for your friends? How about for others in the church, or those even newly baptized? See, Paul demonstrates how we ought to pray for our brothers and our sisters in the faith.
We often pray for physical needs, which is good and right. But we should also pray for spiritual growth, to combat the influential teachings of our culture, and to please the Lord with our conduct. So as we look at Paul's prayer requests, first, Paul prays for worthy knowledge.
Paul prays for worthy knowledge. See, the Colossians had received Christ by faith, as they heard the gospel from Epaphras. However, these false teachers in the area, they were called the Gnostics, they were seeking to influence these new believers with their knowledge or teaching.
And Paul prays that the Colossians would fully know the will of God, and it would lead to spiritual wisdom and understanding. This is meant to be kind of a play on words. The Gnostics claim to have this higher knowledge, and Paul says, no, no, no, be filled with godly knowledge, the knowledge of his will.
And Paul continues, he writes later in Colossians, to be rooted and built up in the faith. They need to see to it, this is active, that they are not deceived. Throughout Paul's letter, we see evidence of different philosophies, different rites and practices that these Gnostics were trying to add to the gospel of Jesus.
And the influence of false teaching and doctrine was a major concern for this church. And so Paul's prayer for knowledge is poignant here. And Paul's not speaking directly here of the individual or personal will of God for each believer.
Paul's speaking of the general will of God for sinners to be reconciled to the Father through the work of the Son, by the power of the Holy Spirit. Further, Paul recognizes that knowledge of the Lord and his will for our life is the foundation for the Christian faith. To not be full of the knowledge of God's will actually breeds insecurity.
See, these Gnostics wanted to shake the Colossians' faith with their claims of higher knowledge. But Paul prays, as they are filled with the knowledge of the Lord's will, they could have confidence in him. It's amazing.
And so to understand the gospel and submit the Lordship of Jesus is only a work of the Holy Spirit. And this is why Paul prays for spiritual wisdom, right? So worthy knowledge is the knowledge of God's will and all spiritual wisdom and understanding. Worthy knowledge is the knowledge of God's will and all spiritual wisdom and understanding.
Now Paul continues in his prayer that the knowledge of God's will would lead to a changed life. So when I was a kid, about six or seven, I was working with my dad. My dad's a contractor, and we're on a job site, and he teaches me how to load up the back of the truck to get all the tools in there so that you can get to the tools that you need.
And then he proceeds to head back into the job site, and he comes back with an armload of tools, and he finds me just staring at the truck. And he said, Hunter, why aren't you loading up the truck? And I said, I didn't know you wanted me to. And he said, Hunter, why would I show you, go through all this trouble to show you and to teach you where to put all the tools and how to load them up if I didn't want you to then do that? Likewise, in Paul's mind, there's a direct connection between the knowledge of God and conduct in our lives.
And so the next request Paul prays for, Paul prays for conduct. He prays for worthy knowledge. He prays for worthy conduct.
Continuing on in our Bibles here in verse 10, Paul prays, so as to walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing to Him. You see, as the people apply the gospel in their lives, they should walk or live in a way that is worthy of the Lord. There's this Old Testament understanding that to walk with the Lord is a kind of word for living with God, the way that we live, right? John MacArthur puts it this way, having the knowledge of God's word control our minds is the key to righteous living.
What controls your thoughts will control your behavior. So just like a young man that wants to secure a wife, he might change some of his habits to be deemed worthy in her eyes, pleasing to her. But here's the thing though, it's not enough to just look good on the date for a few hours.
You've got to change your life. You've got to make wise decisions with your time and money and relationship, the way that you speak. Those are the things that make you worthy.
And here's the funny thing though, if there's a girl that he deems worthy, living this way is not a labor, but a joy. And even more is our Lord, holy and mighty worthy of our lives. As we are filled with the knowledge of his will, we behold how glorious and gracious and merciful and majestic our Lord is to save sinners like me and like you.
See God is worth ordering our lives around him, not just Sunday morning or Wednesday night, but in every circumstance, every relationship, every decision. We want to live in a way that demonstrates our gratitude for Jesus dying in our place on the cross and his Lordship in our lives. Now notice the text also says this, fully pleasing to him.
This means that when we walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, we can please God. Now I want to pause and note here, the text does not start with live the right way to please God. It begins with the gospel.
You see, God has already finished the work of salvation through the death burial and resurrection of Jesus. We have received this gracious gift of salvation by faith. There is nothing we can do to earn a right relationship with God or please him so we can get into heaven.
See, this is the good news of Jesus. He has done it all. He has paid the debt we owed for our sins.
He gives us his righteousness. He secured for us eternal life. He reconciled us to the father.
Look, if you're here this morning and wondering how to live a life pleasing to God, it starts with Jesus. Acknowledge what he has done for you and forsake the things of this world for his Lordship. Now because Jesus has done these things, we want to conduct our lives to reflect that he is Lord.
We want to live in a manner that is worthy of his sacrifice and love. Our affections, our thoughts, our conduct changes from following the world to following Christ. This pleases the Lord.
And Paul says later in his letter that we don't want to live by way of eye service as people pleasers, but with sincerity of heart, fearing the Lord. You see, Paul labors in prayer for the Colossians that they would fully know God's will and that they would conduct themselves in a worthy way. And in his request, Paul lists four elements of worthy conduct.
And so let's continue reading in the text to see what they are. Continuing on here in verse 10. Bearing fruit in every good work, increasing in the knowledge of God, being strengthened with all power according to his glorious might, for all endurance and patience, with joy giving thanks to the father.
So in this list, first Paul prays the Colossian believers would bear fruit in every good work. What does this mean? This is a phrase we throw around. What does it mean? Paul's praying that the conduct of their lives would be united with Christ.
Throughout the New Testament, we see many definitions of fruit ranging from praise to righteous living to even the fruit of the spirit. And we even see Paul mentions in the opening of the letter that the gospel is bearing fruit, right? That people are coming to faith. So why does Paul pray for these believers to bear fruit in every good work? Hear this, because this is a non-negotiable for a Christian.
Paul understands that the purpose of the Lord's plan of salvation is that followers of Jesus would conduct themselves in ways that glorify God. Ephesians 2 says, for we are his workmanship created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them. See church, we are new creations in Christ and we are saved for good works.
Not that we would live for ourselves, but that we would accomplish God's will and further his kingdom. This is living in a manner worthy of the Lord. See, just like the all-blacks rugby team, if someone doesn't embody the culture or produce results on the field, they're not worthy to wear the jersey.
As we abide in Christ, we must bear fruit. And I think it's helpful here to remember Jesus' words in Matthew 7, which says, so every healthy tree bears good fruit, but the diseased tree bears bad fruit. A healthy tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a diseased tree bear good fruit.
Thus you will recognize them by their truths. And see, Jesus simply explains that the fruit reveals the condition of the heart. The quality of the fruit directly correlates to the quality of the heart.
Those that abide in Christ must bear good fruit. So what are some examples of fruit that we should expect in the life of a Christian? We should be people that read our Bible out of a desire to hear from the Lord and to know him better. We should be people that give generously because we have been richly blessed by our God.
We should work harder than all people because we work for the glory of God and not the praise of man. We should be sacrificially hospitable to our neighbors because we have been received with all grace and mercy by our Christ. Bearing fruit in every good work is living a life worthy of the Lord.
Now second, Paul prays that believers in Colossae would increase in the knowledge of God. So I graduated with a music education degree and they gave me a piece of paper that day and said, you have all that you need to go impart a music education to children. So a few months later, I got hired at a middle school to be a middle school choir director.
I thought, oh, I'm ready. They're ready to receive music. Yeah.
Yes. Teaching middle schoolers is a special thing. Well, a few months in, I hear about, we get to have a half day, praise God.
And so I talked to one of my colleagues and I said, hey, what are you doing on the half day when you head home? Well, I was shocked to hear that we didn't get to go home. We had what was called professional development, continuing education, where after the kids went home, we had meetings where the school system was teaching us more standards or classroom management or how to communicate with parents. You see, I got a piece of paper that said I was filled with the knowledge of music education, but I had more to learn.
I needed to increase in my knowledge. So even though the Colossians had received the gospel from Epaphras by faith, Paul prays that they would be filled with the knowledge of God's will and all spiritual wisdom and understanding. Paul even continues, and he prays that the Colossians would increase in the knowledge of God, not that they would cross the threshold of conversion and just park it.
Paul wants the believers to grow in their knowledge, especially in the face of false teaching around them. See, Paul understands to walk in a manner worthy of the Lord is to devote time, focus, prayer to the study of God. This was to grow their love of His word, to grow in obedience, to grow in faith, to increase their love for the Lord and one another.
And the beauty of our God is that He has revealed Himself to us in His word. He wants us to know Him and His will. He wants us to seek Him and find Him.
He is a loving God that speaks to us. How amazing is that? To live in a manner worthy of the Lord and pleasing to Him, we should be people that seek Him in the scriptures. Psalm 119 is one of the best passages to speak of the beauty and power of God's word, because in it we find God.
We see His character, His promises, His works, His plan of redemption for His glory. Psalm 119 says this, blessed are those whose way is blameless, who walk in the law of the Lord. Blessed are those who keep His testimonies, who seek Him with their whole heart.
So what is your way of increasing in the knowledge of God? What is your continuing education that you plan to do? You know, for some of you this morning, it might be grabbing a Bible reading plan so that you can encounter the whole word of God, not just the same three books. For others, that might be a deep dive in an inductive Bible study so that you could mine the scriptures for truth and application in your life. For others still, that might mean understanding this grand narrative of scripture that gives you context for what you're reading.
Another facet of increasing in the knowledge of God is to consider yourself a theologian. Now, I don't want that word to intimidate you this morning. Theology literally means the study of God, and if we want to live a life worthy, we need to be able to articulate what we believe about the God we worship.
This is where theology comes in. Theology begins with the scriptures. God has revealed Himself that we can know Him, and as we search the Bible, we form an understanding of God, Jesus, humanity, sin, salvation, the church, and so much more.
These are worthy things to set our minds to. Paul says later in the letter to the Colossians, if then you have been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your mind on things that are above, not on things that are on the earth.
Further still, Jesus says, you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind. So, let me ask you this. Would you want to be at a church where the pastors only knew as much as when they left seminary? No, absolutely not.
Hopefully, we're constantly growing in our knowledge, understanding, and love of the Lord. Now, I know a lot of you here might say there was a time where you were regularly increasing in the knowledge of God, where your walk with the Lord was vibrant. It might have been back in college.
It might have been back in camp days, but church, can I just encourage you this morning? Our glory days with the Lord are not behind us. They're ahead of us, and so press ahead as we read our Bibles and increase in the knowledge of Him. Now, I want to urge you this morning, read your Bible.
In seasons of blessing and seasons of struggle, read your Bible. Alone and with others, read your Bible. If you don't know where to start this morning, I'd encourage you, start with the Gospel of Luke, because that's primarily what we're studying on Sunday mornings with Pastor Scott.
If we believe that these are the words of God, we should prioritize them in our life. What other voice matters more than His in our life? Church, there is none more worthy of our attention, our time, our study, our love, our obedience than the Lord. Seek Him in your Bibles that you would know Him.
Increase in the knowledge of God. This is a worthy thing. Well, as we continue, Paul prays for the Colossians to be strengthened with all power.
So, let's continue reading here. Being strengthened with all power, according to His glorious might, for all endurance and patience with joy. The power that Paul prays for is given by the Holy Spirit, and this is a spiritual power to endure every circumstance in a manner that glorifies God.
Now, the word used here, it actually means not just a one-time strengthening, it's continually strengthened. So, Paul prays that these believers would be continually strengthened with the power according to His glorious might. Now, this might seem like these words are synonymous in English, but this is where I think the Greek is actually a bit more helpful.
The word used for glorious might speaks of God's power over all things, His sovereignty, His control. So, Paul prays the Colossians would be continually strengthened according to the sovereignty of our mighty God. For what? For all endurance and patience.
See, Paul knows that this church is dealing with false teachers trying to shake their faith, and so he prays that they would endure, they would persevere, they would suffer long. Further, he prays that they would suffer well. Paul prays for endurance and patience.
Again, these words could feel similar in our language, but the idea is that these Christians endure hardship. As they do that, they would do so in a patient, calm, and spirit-filled manner. You see, for Christians to suffer well is a way of living that is worthy of the Lord.
I think of Paul's words to the Philippians. He says, Do all things without grumbling or disputing, that you may be blameless and innocent, children of God without blemish, in the midst of a crooked and twisted generation, among whom you shine as lights in the world. And here, Paul does not expect that the Colossians will endure with patience by their own willpower.
Paul prays that God would strengthen them according to his might. See, the power to endure well comes from the Lord. I'm amazed by that.
The Lord continually strengthens His people to live in a manner worthy. He does not expect us to do it on our own. Now, as I share that this morning, I'm reminded of the many prayer requests that I have read from our church where people are suffering.
And we really do, when we ask for those prayer requests in the connection card, we truly pray for these on Tuesday. But we actually come back and we pray for them over and over throughout the week. Some of you are enduring agonizing medical ailments.
Some of you are enduring serious financial hardship. Some of you are enduring relational strife. Some of you are enduring overwhelming circumstances with kids, with work, home, and even faith.
And my encouragement to you today is that you can endure these things with patience, with gentleness, with joy, by the power that God gives according to His glorious might. And the way that we access this power is through prayer. See, Paul prays this powerful prayer for the Colossian church, and we have the ability to pray this prayer for ourselves and for others, no matter what we may be going through.
Through His power, we can endure hard things in a manner that is worthy of Him. So finally here, Paul prays for this church to joyfully give thanks. Now, your translation may have endurance and patience with joy, which most commentators would agree this is totally fine, because patience and joy are fruit of the Spirit.
That would make sense that we would endure in that way. However, the original language seems to put joyfully with giving thanks. Now, I've got a few young kids in my house, and I don't know if you've ever had this experience, but have you ever given a gift to a child expecting just the most exuberant shouts of joy and praise and thanks, only to receive just a begrudging grunt? It's not supposed to be this way.
Thanks is meant to be given with joy, right? And Paul goes on to give us the reason for our thanksgiving, that we can do it joyfully. So continuing on in our text, we read in verse 12, with joy give thanks to the Father who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of the saints in light. He has delivered us from the domain of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of His beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.
See, joyful thanksgiving, oh, that's worthy conduct. And Paul knows this. Paul points out that we thank the Father because He has qualified us to share in the inheritance of the saints in light.
Not that we have done anything, or the Colossians have even done anything to earn an inheritance, but it's only by the will of God that we receive eternal life in relationship with Him. See, further, Paul states that He, the Father, has delivered us from the domain of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of His beloved Son. See, just like in Exodus, where the Israelites are enslaved and oppressed in Egypt, God rescues them out and delivers them to the promised land.
We too have been rescued from the slavery of sin and Satan and delivered to the kingdom of Christ. And guess what? This isn't a gradual process, this is instant. We are given a new identity and we get to share in a glorious inheritance.
And in Christ, we have redemption, the forgiveness of our sins. See, redemption is a term that means to purchase something or to restore value, right? Even though we are image bearers marred by sin, Jesus redeems us, restores our value by His most precious blood shed upon the cross. Because of this great redemption, we have forgiveness.