Pass It On
Opening Prayer
Give thanks for other people who have helped you to “truly understand God’s grace” (6).
Read Colossians 1:1-14
[1] Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, and Timothy our brother, [2] To God’s holy people in Colossae, the faithful brothers and sisters in Christ: Grace and peace to you from God our Father. [3] We always thank God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, when we pray for you, [4] because we have heard of your faith in Christ Jesus and of the love you have for all God’s people- [5] the faith and love that spring from the hope stored up for you in heaven and about which you have already heard in the true message of the gospel [6] that has come to you. In the same way, the gospel is bearing fruit and growing throughout the whole world-just as it has been doing among you since the day you heard it and truly understood God’s grace. [7] You learned it from Epaphras, our dear fellow servant, who is a faithful minister of Christ on our behalf, [8] and who also told us of your love in the Spirit. [9] For this reason, since the day we heard about you, we have not stopped praying for you. We continually ask God to fill you with the knowledge of his will through all the wisdom and understanding that the Spirit gives, [10] so that you may live a life worthy of the Lord and please him in every way: bearing fruit in every good work, growing in the knowledge of God, [11] being strengthened with all power according to his glorious might so that you may have great endurance and patience, [12] and giving joyful thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of his holy people in the kingdom of light. [13] For he has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves, [14] in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins. Scripture taken from the THE HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION, NIV Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
Reflect
What does Paul pray for the Colossians?The heart of this passage is a fervent prayer for the Colossians, the “holy” and “faithful” to whom Paul is addressing this letter (2). It’s clear that Paul knows all about their faith and their expression of faith. Epaphras, who told the Colossians the Good News to begin with (7), has reported back; the result is a prayer (9) that Paul hopes will be answered in the way they live their lives. He wants them to be worthy and pleasing to God, fruitful, growing, strengthened to endure, patient and thankful (10-12). Quite a list! The scope of Paul’s prayer and its potential in the lives of the Colossians is astonishing. Undoubtedly its purpose is also bound up with guarding them against false teaching. Even without that perspective, it’s astonishing and it puts my prayers to shame. So often I commit others to God with a “Lord, bless them and be with them” kind of prayer. Now, I’m sure God answers that kind of prayer. And sometimes that prayer really is all there’s time for. But compared to Paul’s prayer, well…
Apply
Who comes to your mind as people you should pray for today? What are their deepest needs?
Closing prayer
Fill in with a name and expand: Lord, I pray that You will fill ______ with the knowledge of Your will and…
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