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GROWING IN GOD'S WILLColossians 1:9-14Prayer Heavenly Father, please open our hearts today that you word will bear fruit in our lives. Help us to grow in our knowledge of your will and its application to our lives. In the name of your son Jesus we pray. Amen! Introduction This last week I was working up in Madison at a client company where they provide a little cubicle for me to work in. I love these little cubicles. Maybe they have them where you work. They give you the feel of privacy, yet are paper thin and if you stand up you can see the person in the next cubicle. Well in the cubicle next to mine is where the AR Clerk for the company works. Since we can both sit at our stations and hold on a conversation we have got to know each other rather well. On this occasion, she was making calls to customers who have not yet paid their bills. When I came in and sat down she was at the end of one of these conversations. I could tell by the tone of her voice that the call had not gone well and she was very frustrated. When she hung up the phone she cried out in utter frustration, “who does he think he is, anyway.” As I was thinking back on that statement, I realized that there was a profound truth in it. What she was recognizing was that the behavior of the man on the other side of the phone was the result of his perspective of life. Who he thought he was, and how he viewed others. Her frustration came from the fact that she didn’t agree with his assessment. Both of their perspectives were built out of themselves and their own inner interpretation. People build these inner portraits all the time. Yet, it does not take very long for others to understand what that inner interpretation is, and pass judgment on it. Scripture is given to us so that we can understand God’s perspective on life. We learn his definition of who we are and what we need from with in its pages. It is evidenced in the activity of God through the gospel that each of us, as believers, experienced when our sins were forgiven. In the letter to the Colossians Paul has recognized the true Christian life of these believers. He declares how they have already shown the unmistakable marks of a life lived in God’s perspective. There is a hope in their lives; a far cry from the hopelessness of their former lost condition. That hope is born of faith: they believed what they had been taught of the gospel. Out of their faith, then, had come compassion and concern for others, especially their brothers and sisters in the body of Christ. Those are the marks of a Christian: faith, hope, and love, as Paul so beautifully put it in 1 Corinthians 13. But now the apostle is concerned that they go on and grow up in there understanding of God’s will: "For this reason, since the day we heard about you, we have not stopped praying for you and asking God to fill you with the knowledge of his will through all spiritual wisdom and understanding. And we pray this in order that you may live a life worthy of the Lord and may please him in every way: bearing fruit in every good work, growing in the knowledge of God, being strengthened with all power according to his glorious might so that you may have great endurance and patience, with joy..." I'm going to stop there briefly although it is difficult to stop anywhere in this wonderful paragraph because it is all one thought. Paul knows that the Colossian Christians are living in a dangerous world, if we were to go on in this letter we would discover what is threatening them. False teaching has begun to erupt among them and is threatening to destroy the simplicity of the faith that is producing such beauty and liberty in their lives. If they listen to it they will be exchanging God’s perspective of one of man’s making. Paul is in Rome, a prisoner in chains, and unable to travel to Colossae, a thousand miles east, to help them. There is nothing he can do physically for them. So he sends them this letter, and shares his prayer with them. He knows that through prayer a tremendous opportunity to know the truth that will free them and enable them to withstand the assault of false teaching is available. The striking thing about this prayer is the very first sentence of it: "For this reason, since the day we heard about you, we have not stopped praying for you..." This was a continuing prayer. As far as we know, Paul had never been to Colossae. Apart from one or two among them, he did not personally know these believers. And yet he prays continually for them. Even thou he does not personally know these believers, he is able to pray for them because he knows what every believer needs. When you pray for believers that you know, much less don’t know, do you know what to pray? Let’s look at Paul’s prayer and see if we can see its application to our lives, and the lives of other believers. So what is it that Paul prayed for? He says: "...asking God to fill you with the knowledge of his will through all spiritual wisdom and understanding." That is the content of his prayer; everything else in the passage flows out of that. The one thing he asks for is that the Colossians might come to understand God's will. It is clear that this is the important thing to Paul. He knows that if they begin to understand the will of God, everything good that he desires for them will follow. Thus, the goal of a believer’s life ought to be to know God’s will. Main Point: The goal of a believer’s life ought to be to know God’s will. The goal of a believer’s life ought to be to know God’s will; so that we can resist the pressures of our culture I. So that we can resist the pressures of our culture. (v. 9) The word that Paul uses for knowledge here in verse nine is actually very strong. It denotes more than simply knowing something. Instead the picture is of knowing something so well it defines your actions. When a child is growing they come to the stage in their development where they become aware of the world around them. With the help of their parents they define the things they see; mom, dad, a ball, a tree, etc. At that time they will be able to identify what walking is, but until they take those first faltering steps, they will not have knowledge of walking like Paul uses the term here. You could say that Paul wants the Colossians to have a working knowledge of God’s will. So what does it mean to know God’s will? When I was at college, God’s will was talked about like it was an itinerary. I thought of it as a plan which I must discover: where God wanted me to go, and what God wanted me to do. Most of my prayers were addressed with those thoughts in mind. What should I do today? Where should I go? Whom should I marry? etc. I don’t think that I was alone in that way of looking at the will of God. Yet, that is far from what Paul is talking about here. When Paul talks about them having knowledge of God’s will, he is not praying that they know God’s itinerary for their life. Nor is he thinking of those large decisions. Instead, he is praying that we would see what God thinks about life. That is reality. If you want to be realistic, then read and study your Bible to discover how God looks at things. I think there is an important principle involved in this. God knows us, and he knows that our behavior flows out of who we think we are and how we see the world. When someone upsets us and we cry, "Who do you think you are, anyway?" We instinctively know that offensive behavior is a result of who we think we are. That is why such challenges are given. God knows this as well. The glory of the good news is that he has made us into something different than what we once were. Therefore the primary course in the curriculum of the Spirit is to learn God’s perspective on who He is and who he has made you to become. Through the spirits opening up of the scriptures you learn how you are now defined by what God calls you to be and what he has made us to be. The more you understand who you now are, and what God has done to make you that, the more your behavior will automatically change and you will do the things that follow here in this passage. That is why Paul puts the knowledge of God's will first. Yet, this knowledge is not simply an intellectual pursuit, it requires activity. The Psalmist in Psalm 143:10 states; “Teach me to do your will, for you are my God; may your good Spirit lead me on level ground” (NIV). Here we see that the idea of doing the will of God means obeying what He has said. Jesus put it this way in Matthew 7:24, “Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and putts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock” (NIV). The knowledge that Paul speaks of is worked out in our lives. It is when we discover personally and experientially that God’s ways are best. How do we find out God’s ways? Paul goes on to say: "...asking God to fill you with the knowledge of his will through all spiritual wisdom and understanding." At first glance it looks like Paul is saying that by the means of wisdom and understanding we obtain knowledge. A better reading would be knowledge which consists of wisdom and understanding. Wisdom is a general perception of how life works. In this case it is spiritual wisdom, so it is a perspective of life that God gives to us. It is not man’s view of how life works, but God’s. Understanding deals with the involvement of the intellect. It is the learning of specific things. Learning what God has reveled about himself and his creation and how to apply those truths to specific situations of life. Therefore, knowledge of God’s will is not simply knowing the story of the Bible or having a grasp of doctrine, but it seeing and acting in the situations of life based off of what you know of the gospel story. It is seeing your life, and the lives of those around you in the middle of the gospel story. The great thing is that this all comes from the Spirit. These are not natural abilities. They are given by the Spirit, and therefore possible to all believers. So when you open the Bible, pray that God will help you to understand what it says. Paul’s prayer for the Colossians is motivated in part out of his concern for them. He has received a report that they are flirting with the syncretism and pluralism of their day. He knows that if they listen to the council of these false teachings they will have their knowledge of God’s will stolen, and will become captives. They need wisdom and understanding at a spiritual level to withstand the pressure of their surrounding culture; a pressure which was subtle, and yet pervasive. I see many correlations between the pressures that the Colossian Christians faced, and those faced by Christians today. The hedonism and pluralism of today is subtle and pervasive as the pagan culture of the Colossians. D. A. Carson writes; “Is there anything that our own generation more urgently needs than this? [Speaking of Christians knowing God’s will] Some of us have chased every fad, scrambled aboard every bandwagon, adopted every gimmick, pursued every encounter with the media. Others of us have rigidly cherished every tradition, determined to change as little as possible, worshiped what is aged simply because it is aged. But where are the men and women whose knowledge of God is as fresh as it is profound, whose delight in thinking God’s thoughts after him ensures that their study of Scripture is never merely intellectual and self distancing, whose desire to please God easily outstrips residual and corrupting desires to shine in public?” That is what Paul prays for the Colossians, and what we should pray for each other. That we would delight in thinking God’s thoughts after him, and showcase God’s work in the actions of our life. The goal of a believer’s life ought to be to know God’s will; so that we can resist the pressures of our culture, and so that we may live worthy of the Lord. II. So that we may live worthy of the Lord. (v. 10) Paul goes on in verse ten to say; “And we pray this in order that you may live a life worthy of the Lord and may please him in every way:” (NIV v. 10a) The results of a working knowledge of God’s will is a life worthy of the Lord. When you understand what God has made you to be, though you didn’t deserve it at all---his child, cherished by him in Christ, your guilt and sin paid for with Christ’s blood, and see God in all his majesty and beauty, understanding that his perspective is the basis of reality --- then you will become concerned about whether your behavior reflects his beauty and reality. That is "a life worthy of the Lord." In others of his letters the apostle urges Christians to "walk worthy of their calling." This is the natural result of learning God’s ways, and doing them. This does not mean that what we do makes us more worthy of our salvation, it doesn’t change the fact that we stand before God solely on the basis of Christ. Instead it means that the result of receiving this gift of God is that now we have a desire to please God. When Paul says to seek "to please him in every way" he is spelling out what it means to live a life worthy of the Lord. The focus of every believer ought to be that he is pleasing to God; that he seeks to live in a way that delights God. What quality of life is pleasing to God? The Scripture probably puts it most effectively in a negative way. In the book of Hebrews we are told, "Without faith it is impossible to please God!" Faith is what pleases him. Every time Jesus approved or commended people it was because of their faith. "You have great faith," he said to the woman who touched them hem of his robe to be healed of her flow of blood. "Your faith is great," he said to a centurion who asked him to heal his servant. Whenever our Lord commends people for anything it is because they believe him and act on what he says. They don't conform to the customs of people around. Rather, they swim against the stream of life and stand firmly upon what he says, trusting him. That is what pleases God. The goal of a believer’s life ought to be to know God’s will; so that we may live worthy of the Lord, and so that we may please the Lord. III. So that we may please the Lord. (vv. 10-14) Paul goes on in this passage to paint a better picture of what it means to live pleasing to the Lord. This is not an exhaustive list, but four things which should be typical in the life of every Christian. Let’s take a look once more at the later half of this passage starting in verse ten. “And we pray this in order that you may live a life worthy of the Lord and may please him in every way: bearing fruit in every good work, growing in the knowledge of God, being strengthened with all power according to his glorious might so that you may have great endurance and patience, and joyfully giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of the saints in the kingdom of light. For he has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sin.” (NIV vv. 10-14) A. By bearing fruit in every good work. (V. 10b) The first picture that Paul paints is “bearing fruit in every good work.” There is a danger when ever we start talking about works that people will start looking to works to define their righteousness before God. This we can not do. In Ephesians 2:8&9, Paul clearly states; “For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith – and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God – not by works, so that no one can boast” (NIV). So the good works that Paul is talking about here are not dealing with our righteousness before God. Instead, it is the result of the righteousness that we have been given in Christ. In Ephesians, Paul goes on to say; “For we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do” (NIV, Eph 2:10). When God applied his grace to our lives he did it for a purpose. The “kinds” or “degree” of good works may vary in different lives, but Paul can not envision anyone living pleasing to God with out fruitfulness in good works. When we understand God’s love for us, and his provision, then we obey his command to love. When we understand God’s forgiveness of us, and his provision in Christ, then we obey his command to forgive. The evidence of this is how we live, and the good works that we do. What we do in our relationships with our spouses, parents, children, friends, neighbors, and strangers show the power of the gospel at work in our lives. B. By growing in the knowledge of God. (v. 10b) Second, is that we would be "growing in the knowledge of God." Paul has been praying that the Colossians come to know God's will. Now he says that as they put these things into practice they will know God better than ever before. As we obey and conform to his will we discover more of God. Do you realize that knowing God is the most exciting thing that can ever happen to you! Knowing God is the secret of excitement and vitality in a life. People who know God are never bored for the opposite of knowing God is boredom. If you are bored, as a Christian, it is because you do not adequately know your God. In his presence it is impossible to think of anything else. He is an exciting, captivating Being, filled with fresh ideas, concepts and possibilities of which you never could have dreamed. To know God means that you see God everywhere: in nature, in people you meet, in trials, in hardships and in challenges, everywhere. That is why people who know God deeply are always exciting to be with. They lift your spirits when you meet them. They know God, and the excitement of that captivates and changes them. It fills them with passion. That is what Paul says will happen as we "grow in the knowledge of God" and put into practice his mandates in our lives. C. By being strengthened. (v. 11) The third picture of a pleasing life is found in verses 11 and 12: "being strengthened with all power according to his glorious might so that you may have great endurance and patience, with joy, giving thanks to the Father." While I was growing up, the emphasis always seemed to be upon signs and wonders as the mark of spiritual power. People would seek some spiritual experience to enliven their spiritual life. Yet, once achieved, the initial enthusiasm would ebb and fade, and life would inevitably return to the spiritual doldrums from which they were seeking to escape. That is because spiritual experiences are never the emphasis of Scripture. Our current age is intolerant of delay, it prizes quick solutions, and promises easy triumphs. When we follow that line of thinking we miss true spiritual power. The sign of true spiritual power is this: people who learn how to become patient and longsuffering, with joy! It is these who have touched the wellsprings of true spiritual power. Paul says: "being strengthened with all power according to his glorious might." When you are faced with irritating circumstances, or difficult people, it takes power to remain patient and longsuffering. Our natural tendency is to get upset, to scream in impatience, or to become resentful and angry. It takes power to resist these when you feel them rising within you. Every believer has that power, and the sign is that they lead quiet, cheerful lives, that hang in to the end. That is what is meant by endurance. The word is best translated "stick-to-it-iveness." People who have this quality don't quit. They hang in there with their relationships, despite the pressures of their work or their circumstances. Endurance is a word that relates primarily to circumstances. It is the power to trust in the providence of God in the midst of suffering. This is not stoicism, or even physical stamina. Instead, it is the ability to carry a burden with enduring fortitude; the ability to face physical, mental, emotional, and financial challenges with out loosing joy. The second word, translated here "patience," is really "longsuffering," a willingness to wait and not pay back in kind. It has to do with willingness to forgive and refusing to take revenge. This is applying the power of God to the situations of life. We access His vast resources when we grow in the knowledge of his will. D. By joyfully giving thanks to the Father (v. 12-14) The final picture Paul paints of a life pleasing to God is found in verses 12-14. It is that of Joyful thanksgiving. Recently, I read of a Christian businessman who had a cleaning woman named Sophie. He said to her one day, "Sophie, why are you always so cheerful? You don't have much in life but you're always cheerful. What's your secret?" She replied, "Well, it's the way I read my Bible." He said, "I read the Bible too but I don't find myself being cheerful like you are." She said, "You don't read it right. My Bible says, 'Glory in tribulation.' G-l-o-r-y doesn't spell 'growl.' That is what you do. You growl in tribulation. If you gloried in it, then you'd find yourself looking at it as a challenge, as an opportunity for your Lord to display what he can do, and you'd be cheerful about it." There Joyful thanksgiving will reveal that we are growing in the knowledge of God. Paul shows here that there are some reasons that we can always be grateful for. We may in weakness feel like complaining about a few things, but we can always come back to these three reasons for they are continually true of every believer. The more we think about them, the more an attitude of gratitude will control our life. Paul continues, "...giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of the saints in the kingdom of light. For he has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins." Here are three reasons to be grateful. To not continually give thanks for these things means that we have seriously lost perspective. First, for privileges we don't deserve. We have been qualified by God (not ourselves) "to share in the inheritance of the saints," in the resources and promises available to all the saints. What are these? Forgiveness of our sins, a Father's love, a Savior's presence, a Comforters guidance, a family of brothers and sisters to support and uphold, a certain hope in the future, and power to live a life pleasing to God. Nothing can take these away from us. If we remember these we can rejoice in the midst of whatever comes. These are privileges we don't deserve for which we have been qualified by God. Secondly, there are perils from which we have been delivered: "He has rescued us from the dominion of darkness." Do you ever think where you would be if Christ had not intervened in your life? Knowing my own heart, I always find that scary to contemplate! God knew that our greatest need involved our sin, our hostile separation from him, our profound rebellion our blindness and death. So he sent a savior o come and ransom us. He has delivered us from blindness and death. The third is the changing of our status; he has "brought us into the kingdom of the Son that he loves." We have been freed from the feeling of being unwanted. That is one of the most devastating feelings any human can experience: the feeling that nobody cares, nobody wants us, nobody loves us. That is forever rendered untrue by the work of Jesus. He has brought us into his kingdom and, with him, we share the love of the Father. We can approach the Father, in Christ, knowing that we will be warmly received. The forgiveness of sins means we can start every day with a fresh, clean slate. All of yesterday's mistakes have been washed away, not in order that we might go back and repeat them, but that we might have nothing against us as we begin again. Every day we start in afresh until the day when our sanctification is complete and Christ removes the very presence of sin from our hearts. God is with us. He cleanses the past continually as we walk in his will. The forgiveness of sins is something we ought to rejoice in every day, because the burden and guilt of yesterday is no longer dragging us down. We are free to walk into liberty and peace. How grateful we should be for these incredible blessings! The only appropriate response is joyful gratitude! Conclusion Do you see the power of Paul’s prayer for the Colossian believers? When we live a life of daily repentance and faith, Paul’s prayer is has meaning for our lives. Try it this week; start with the people in your small group. Pray that God would fill them and you with the knowledge of his will through all spiritual wisdom and understanding. Paul prayed this continually for the Colossians, and it is something that each of us, no matter our current knowledge of God’s will, need on a daily basis. © Copyright
2005 Derek Perdue
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