Colossians 1:6-9
by Dr. Grant C. Richison
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Colossians 1:6
"which has come to you, as it has also in all the world, and is
bringing forth fruit, as it is also among you since the day you heard and
knew the grace of God in truth"
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"which has come to you, as it has also in all the world"
The gospel spread over the Roman empire like an epidemic (1:23; Rom. 1:8).
It produced fruit among the Colossians. Their influence spread to their
city and communities around them.
This indicates the gospel's authenticity. The gospel is universal in its
impact. It was a force among them. The gospel is for the whole world.
It is not one message among a pluralism of many; it was a message of singular
power.
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"and is bringing forth fruit"
God was at work through out the Roman Empire. People are coming to know
Christ through out the civilized world.
Growth and fruit-bearing go hand in hand. This phrase refers to the continuing
growth of the gospel. The grammar indicates there is an innate energy in
the message. It conveys inherent power. The inherent energy of a living
organism produces fruit. It is the outward result of effective witnessing.
The person who receives the gospel of necessity bears fruit (I Thes 2:13).
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"as it is also among you since the day you heard"
Growth began with the initial reception of the gospel. The gospel triggered
new life. The Colossians heard and embraced the gospel. Their lives were
transformed. The late coming legalists had no part in that dynamic.
PRINCIPLE: The gospel has inherent power to win people to Christ (Rom.
1:16). We do not win people to Christ by our persuasion but by our gospel.
APPLICATION: Are you afraid to share your faith? Do you lack the confidence
to introduce people to Jesus? The argument of this passage says we should
not depend upon our persuasive abilities. The Spirit filled believer depends
on the dynamic of the gospel. All we need to do is share the message.
The message then takes over to win people to Jesus Christ. The sword will
not cut as long as it remains in the scabbard. It must be unsheathed to
be effective. If the gospel is preached it will produce fruit.
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"and knew the grace of God in truth"
The Colossians should have fully understood the grace of God and should
have been immune to the false teaching spreading in their area.
A major characteristic of the true gospel is that it is a gospel of grace.
Some preach a gospel of works (Gal.1:6-7). The true gospel is grace plus
nothing (Rom. 11:6; Eph 2:8-9).
The heretics of Paul's day were preaching the gospel of legalism. The grace
of God in truth is the grace of God without adulteration. It is the grace
of God in its simplicity. The message was one of undiluted grace. The
gospel came as an act of grace on God's part. It was a message from God,
not men. God took the initiative.
PRINCIPLE: Grace and works are mutually exclusive (Rom. 11:6).
APPLICATION: We cannot gain God's favor by merit (Gal. 2:21). Jesus won
God's favor by his merit. True Christianity rests in the provision of Christ's
death upon the cross. Jesus' death satisfies the just demands of an absolutely
holy God. This is true both for becoming a Christian and living the Christian
life.
Colossians 1:7
"as you also learned from Epaphras, our dear fellow servant, who
is a faithful minister of Christ on your behalf"
Paul developed people wherever he went. His epistles are replete with references
to people into whom he poured his life (Rom. 16).
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"as you also learned from Epaphras"
The Colossians learned about the gospel from Epaphras. His name occurs
three times in the Bible. The first occurrence is here (1:7). The second
occurrence is 4:12 where Colossians indicates he probably established the
church at Colosse. The last occurrence is in Philemon 23 where he was under
arrest in Rome with Paul.
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"our dear fellow servant"
He probably brought faith to Colosse. Paul and Epaphras served the same
Master and were busy in the same work. He had made a long hazardous journey
to Rome where he became a prisoner with Paul. That is why he was "dear"
to Paul. Those who serve Jesus Christ often find a place in their hearts
for each other.
The word "servant" here means minister. Paul calls him a "slave
of Christ" in 4:12. That is a step beyond a minister. A slave has
no rights. Epaphras waved his rights. He relinquished all his rights to
Jesus Christ. He was satisfied to do the Savior's bidding.
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"who is a faithful minister of Christ"
Others were unfaithful to the truth. Tychicus was another "faithful
minister" and "fellow servant" of Paul (Col. 4:7). God entrusted
Epaphras with the gospel; he was faithful in discharging it. He was true
to the message and to getting the message out. He was a true blue servant
of God.
It is one thing to serve the Lord on a missionary tour or in the market
place. One can be quite spiritual in that kind of circumstance. It is
something else to serve the Lord in the adversity of prison life. The closer
we get to people under duress the more we can detect their imperfections.
Paul saw the character of Epaphras in distress. He counted him "faithful"
in that situation.
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"on your behalf"
Epaphras was Paul's personal representative (Phil. 2:25; 4:18). He was
not the Colossian minister but the minister of Christ on their behalf.
Jesus' appointed him to this work, not the Colossians.
PRINCIPLE: God wants us to multiply ourselves through other people.
APPLICATION: Is there someone in your life into whom you are pouring your
life? Are you multiplying yourself in someone else?
Colossians 1:8
"who also declared to us your love in the Spirit."
Epaphras told Paul and his companions that the Colossians loved them.
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"in the Spirit"
This is the only place in Colossians that mentions the Holy Spirit. The
Holy Spirit is the author of Colossians but he mentions himself only once.
Romans 15:30 declares that believers can love by the love that the Spirit
imparts, "Now I beg you, brethren, through the Lord Jesus Christ, and
through the love of the Spirit, that you strive together with me in prayers
to God for me." It is the Holy Spirit who enabled them to love Paul.
Two other similar expressions about how New Testament believers loved shed
light on how we are to love.
Tit 3:15, "All who are with me greet you. Greet those who love us
in the faith. Grace be with you all. Amen."
II Jn 1:1, "To the elect lady and her children, whom I love in truth,
and not only I, but also all those who have known the truth."
This is spiritual love. They loved Paul in the things of Christ. New Testament
believers loved through the Holy Spirit, loved in the faith and loved in
the truth.
The trinity is revealed in verses 6-8: "God" (v.6), "Christ"
(v7), "Spirit" (v8).
PRINCIPLE: The Holy Spirit can enable us to love those we would not otherwise
love.
APPLICATION: Are you facing a difficult person in your life? Do you depend
upon the Holy Spirit to enable you to love that person?
Colossians 1:9
"For this reason we also, since the day we heard it, do not cease
to pray for you, and to ask that you may be filled with the knowledge of
His will in all wisdom and spiritual understanding"
This verse begins the body of the epistle. Paul begins with a prayer for
the Colossians that touches all the bases of their need. This is one of
the greatest prayers of the Bible.
Paul first begins with intercession for the Colossians and then moves to
thanks for what God has already done for them. It is ironic that Christians
ask God to do things for them he has already done. We ask God to forgive
us for our sins when we already have forgiven us in Christ (v. 14). We
ask God to allow us to enter his kingdom, when he has already done that
as well (v.13). It is more proper to thank God for these things than to
ask him for them.
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"For this reason we also"
"This reason" is their original reception of the gospel (vv. 3-8).
Paul prays for them (vv. 9-14) because of their reception to the gospel
and love for all the saints.
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"since the day we heard it"
They heard it from Epaphras. The news of their response to the gospel led
to a prayer request. This prayer answers to their faith.
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"do not cease to pray for you"
This is one of the remarkable prayers of the apostle Paul. Other prayers
of Paul can be found in Ephesians 1, 3, Philippians 1, II Thessalonians
1. When we read his prayers we are at a high water mark of spirituality
in the New Testament. We ought to be at our best in prayer. When we pray
we enter the presence of God. The white heat of that presence should melt
away spiritual superficiality and sham. Pretension dissolves in God's presence.
This is incessant prayer but it does not mean that Paul prayed for them
perpetually. It simply means that he prayed for them on a regular basis.
We should pray for people regularly (Acts 20:31; Eph. 1:16; I Thes. 1:2;
5:17). Many people do not cease because they do not start.
PRINCIPLE: Dead earnestness is essential to true prayer.
APPLICATION: We need to seize every opportunity to pray. Prayer is the
place where we fight spiritual battles. Do you have a spirit of prayer?
Do you seize every opportunity to pray for people you may influence? Are
we dead earnest about prayer? We believe in prayer but we do not pray very
much. We subscribe to the idea of prayer but when we announce a prayer
meeting a minimum number of people come. We believe in prayer if an emergency
lands into our lives. Otherwise, we show little interest in prayer. We
are eloquent in prayer if it involves our family or our person. If it involves
someone else we are quite casual about prayer.
In the prayers of the New Testament we detect the deficiencies of the saints.
Paul prays for things they lacked in their spiritual life. Paul's prayers
pinpoint the primary and paramount needs of the saints.
This prayer falls into two halves. The first half are petitions for the
Colossians and the second half is thanksgiving for the prerogatives God
gave them in Christ.
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"and to ask that you may be filled with the knowledge of His will"
This is the first of two requests Paul prays for the Colossians. The first
petition for which Paul asked was that the Colossians might be filled with
the knowledge of God's will.
This is the outcome of a great desire. The word "ask" means to
implore. It denotes earnestness. This is a request of great earnestness.
"That" is the purpose of the prayer request.
The word "knowledge" means to go beyond the surface of the facts.
It sees the truth in the facts. It finds experience in the truth. This
is a full knowledge gained from the experience of concentrating on the subject.
The operating principle here is the will of God is contained in the Word
of God. We cannot know the will of God apart from the Word of God. God
has not revealed his special will in nature, in trees and flowers. God's
will never contradicts his Word. God's will never transcends the principles
of his Word.
The word "filled" suggests filling to the top or brim. Paul prays
that they will be satisfied with nothing less than the limit of the knowledge
of God's will. He wants them to obtain an entire insight into the will of
God. "Filled" means to be controlled to the tiniest detail. We
need to know the will of God not only in major decisions of life but in
the little decisions as well. It is to pervade our purpose, plans and thoughts.
Most of us are satisfied with being half-filled with everything except food.
We do not stop eating until we are full. We are not that way when it comes
to spiritual food. We are satisfied with a starvation diet in spiritual
things. We snack on spiritual junk food and run off to the spiritual race
only to run with very little spiritual energy. It is God's will that we
be filled with spiritual food. Most of us are not even half full. God
wants us to be chock-block full of the knowledge of the will of God. God
wants us to be experts in the will of God. If God answers this prayer we
will know all the implications of his will for our lives.
PRINCIPLE: Unless we are speaking terms with the will of God we will have
little wisdom and understanding in the spiritual battle we face.
APPLICATION: If we have little spiritual discernment we will get caught
up in every spiritual disease that comes along. We will be susceptible
to unsound teaching. Dr. Harry Ironside used to say, "If it's new,
it's not true. If it's true, it's not new." We need to take care
before we embrace anything that is different or new. If it deviates from
the Bible we need to be cautious.
The first thing Paul prays for the Colossians is that they will be filled
with the knowledge of God's will. The will of God is a great theme in Scripture.
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"and to ask that you may be filled with the knowledge of His will"
Note the number of passages dealing with the will of God:
John 7:17, "If anyone wants to do His will, he shall know concerning
the doctrine, whether it is from God or whether I speak on My own authority."
We must be willing to do his will, sight unseen. We must be willing to
do his will before we even know what it is. We say, "Well, I will
consider whether the will of God fits my personality, then I will do it."
No, God wants us to be willing to do his will no matter the cost.
God will leave us in the dark about his will if we are not willing to do
it. God is willing to reveal his will to us if we are willing to ascertain
it. We dare not say to God, "I would like a free, 30 day trial, of
your will. If I like it, I will do it." We will never know the will
of God in that case.
We cannot dictate to God the terms on which we will condescend to do his
will. God does not have to make a deal with us. He does not need us; we
need him. We do not bankrupt the will of God when we do not do it; we bankrupt
ourselves. We cannot blackmail God.
Eph 5:17, "Therefore do not be unwise, but understand what the will
of the Lord is."
It is not enough to know the will of God, we need to understand it. We
do not need a Ph.D from our local university to understand it either.
Rom 12:1,2, "I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God,
that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God,
which is your reasonable service. 2 And do not be conformed to this world,
but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what
is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God."
We cannot prove the will of God until we "present" or yield our
bodies to God for his use. We cannot prove the will of God until we are
free from the gravitational tug of the world.
Many other verses speak to the will of God: Mt 7:21;12:50; Acts 21:14;
II Cor 8:5;Heb 10:36;13:20,21;I Pet 3:17; 2:15; 4:1,2 ;I Jn 2:17
Col 4:12 " Epaphras, who is one of you, a bondservant of Christ, greets
you, always laboring fervently for you in prayers, that you may stand perfect
and complete in all the will of God."
Epaphras was completely in the will of God. He was not on the edge of it.
He was dead center in the will of God. He was not on the periphery of
God's will.
Acts 13:32 "For David, after he had served his own generation by the
will of God, fell asleep, was buried with his fathers, and saw corruption."
David fulfilled all of God's will. We feel that if we fulfill three quarters
of God's will we do fine. "That is a good average. Why should God
ask for anything more?" What percentage of obedience do we want from
our children?
Jesus did the will of God: John 4:34; 6:38-40; Mt 26:39
PRINCIPLE: God expects us to do his will unreservedly.
APPLICATION: Are you willing to do whatever God asks of you?
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"with the knowledge of His will"
The word "knowledge" indicates a full understanding of God's will.
This word is a key word in the book of Colossians (1:9, 10; 2:2; 3:10).
God makes his will known through the Holy Spirit's teaching ministry in
the Word of God. The false teachers at Colosse claimed a super knowledge
to the Word of God. Paul prays that the Colossians will receive their super
knowledge from God's Word (Colossians). Paul's desire is that they may
have a thorough knowledge of God's will. The Colossian renegades offered
a false knowledge. To counteract this Paul prayed for a deeper knowledge
of God's will on their part.
The will of God here is the whole purpose of God in Christ. This is the
will of God in the complete sense, not simply the will of God for salvation
or his general decree. This is the will of God both in belief and behavior.
The most important thing in the life of a child of God is the will of God.
If we are going to please God, we need to find out what his will is and
do it. If I want the smile of God, I need to find his will.
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"in all wisdom and spiritual understanding"
The Holy Spirit uses the word "wisdom" six times in Colossians
(Col. 1:9, 28; 2:3, 23; 3:16; 4:5). Wisdom is the application of truth
to experience. It is the ability to apply truth to life that comes only
from God (James 1:5; 3:15). Wisdom is insight into the true nature of things.
It is the faculty of judging and acting aright. "Full knowledge"
is not the end; it is the means. The end is the wisdom to apply truth to
experience.
False teachers submitted only the "appearance" of wisdom"
(2:23). Their "wisdom" trapped the Colossians in legalism. So
the "wisdom" for which Paul prays for them is prudence. It is
the ability to look at actions in terms of their results.
When we apply truth to experience we end up with "spiritual understanding."
This is the ability to categorize and relate a principle to a problem.
"Understanding" (Col. 2:2) is perspicacity or discernment. This
is the ability to pierce into a problem and work it to an adequate solution.
Understanding is critical knowledge that can apply the knowledge of the
first principles of Christianity to any situation. This is the ability
to live the Christian life effectively.
There is emphasis on "spiritual" in the original language. This
is knowledge from the Holy Spirit, not from the Gnostic Judaizers. The
false teacher's wisdom was all show (2:8,18,23). The most clever human
philosophy can never understand this apart from divine revelation. This
revelation comes by the Bible. No matter how erudite and brilliant people
may be, they cannot get "full-knowledge" without God disclosing
divine information to them.
Note the word "all." This is a key word in Colossians. The word
occurs no fewer than 32 times in this one little letter of four chapters.
This word applies to both "wisdom" and "understanding."
We need "all" wisdom and "all" understanding.
PRINCIPLE: It is one thing to have knowledge; it is another thing to use
that knowledge properly.
APPLICATION: Are you the type of person who loves to acquire knowledge
about Christianity but care little about living it? The words "wisdom"
and "understanding" are crucial to you. Those words will enable
you to live out the Christian life. That is why Paul prayed that the Colossians
would have "all" "wisdom" and "understanding."
Do you have the courage to pray that God will give you those graces to
live the Christian life? If you are frustrated with your Christian life,
these two qualities may be the answer to your problem.
Copyright © 1995, Dr. Grant Richison. All rights reserved.
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