Live A Life Worthy of the Lord and Please Him in Every Way (Colossians 1:9–12)

 

Live A Life Worthy of the Lord and Please Him in Every Way (Colossians 1:9–12)

Paul prayed for the believers in Colossae, asking that grace and peace from heaven be with them. Since the day they heard the gospel of Christ Jesus and truly understood God’s grace, it has been bearing fruit and growing among them and throughout the whole world. Because of the hope stored up for them in heaven, they were practicing faith and love.

Faith means trusting and depending on the unseen God and on His word of promise. Abraham held on to God’s promise, and in the land of Canaan, though it was foreign to him, he pitched his tent, built an altar, and lived there looking forward to the city God had prepared. Love means following the example of Jesus on the cross, denying oneself and laying down one’s life for others. Love is seen in yielding, giving up, and even suffering loss. The faith and love of the saints are because of the hope laid up in heaven. Jesus endured the cross, trusting in the Father’s love and grace of salvation for this world through His sacrifice.

In Colossians 1:9–12 Paul prays that through the Spirit’s wisdom and understanding, they may know God’s will so that they may live a life worthy of the Lord and please Him in every way.

“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, 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, being strengthened with all power according to his glorious might so that you may have great endurance and patience, 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.” (Colossians 1:9–12)

Paul had heard news of the Colossian church through Epaphras (1:3). From the moment he heard, he did not stop praying for them. Of course, this does not mean that Paul did nothing else but pray day and night. He still preached the gospel and wrote letters. But it shows that he continually entrusted their well-being to the heavenly Father in faith.

First and foremost, Paul prayed that they would be filled with the knowledge of God’s will through the wisdom and understanding the Spirit gives. The Spirit of wisdom and understanding is the Spirit of the Lord Himself. The prophet Isaiah foretold that the Spirit of the Lord would rest on the shoot that comes from the stump of Jesse, that is, on Christ:

“A shoot will come up from the stump of Jesse;
from his roots a Branch will bear fruit.
The Spirit of the Lord will rest on him—
the Spirit of wisdom and of understanding,
the Spirit of counsel and of might,
the Spirit of the knowledge and fear of the Lord—” (Isaiah 11:1–2)

The Holy Spirit Promised

At the Last Supper, Jesus told His disciples that one of them would betray Him. He also said that He was going to prepare a place for them in the Father’s house (John 14:2). This pointed to His suffering on the cross, His death, His resurrection, and His ascension into heaven. But the disciples did not understand where He was going and were troubled (John 14:1). At that moment, Jesus promised them another Advocate who would be with them forever (John 14:16):

“The world cannot accept him, because it neither sees him nor knows him. But you know him, for he lives with you and will be in you. I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you.” (John 14:17–18)

Jesus, who came in the flesh, died on the cross and rose again on the third day. For forty days He remained on earth, then ascended into heaven on a cloud in the sight of His disciples (Acts 1:9). He is no longer physically present on earth, but God has sent the Spirit to be with us forever. Therefore, those who believe are never abandoned; God does not leave His children as orphans. Jesus in the flesh was bound by time and place, but the Spirit is always with us everywhere.

“Before long, the world will not see me anymore, but you will see me. Because I live, you also will live. On that day you will realize that I am in my Father, and you are in me, and I am in you.” (John 14:19–20)

How do we discern God’s will? The Holy Spirit dwelling within us enlightens us. The Spirit is the Spirit of truth, who searches even the deep things of God (1 Corinthians 2:10). Therefore, it is only through the Spirit that we can discern God’s will. All the knowledge of the world cannot bring a person to know God.

But there is also the deceiving spirit, the devil, who seeks to confuse believers about God’s will. For example, in times of suffering, the devil whispers, “Where is your God?” Yet the Spirit intercedes for us with groans that words cannot express (Romans 8:26). The Spirit assures us that suffering produces perseverance, perseverance character, and character hope (Romans 5:3–4).

So Paul prayed that through the wisdom and understanding of the Spirit, we would discern God’s will and live a life worthy of the Lord, pleasing Him in every way. To live in such a way and to please the Lord in all things is possible only by the power of the Spirit.

So then, what does it mean to live a life worthy of the Lord and please him in every way?

First, it is to bear fruit in every good work. To live in a manner worthy of the Lord is to obey according to the will of God. We follow as the Holy Spirit, the Spirit of truth, makes us aware. For example, we put off the old self that disobeys and put on the new self that obeys. The old self lives according to the sinful nature, but the new self lives clothed with the power and authority of Christ. This is to follow the truth of the cross, which is self-denial. The old self hates and envies others, but the new self loves as Jesus loved us.

To walk worthy of the Lord is to please him in every way. Why should we please the Lord? Because God created us and is the Father of life and grace. God loved us so much that he did not spare his one and only Son. When someone loves us, we respond with thanksgiving. Likewise, we obey with a thankful heart toward God’s holy love. To love our neighbors as Jesus Christ loved us is to live in a manner worthy of the Lord, and this pleases him.

Everyone bears fruit. But not all bear good fruit. Hatred, murder, and stealing are bad fruit. Love, joy, peace, and patience are good fruit. To love our neighbor as ourselves in response to the love we have received from God is the good fruit that pleases the Lord. Bearing fruit is a process, and it is not done once and finished, but continues without end.

Second, it is to grow in the knowledge of God. When a baby is born, it is natural to grow. Yet a baby does not become an adult overnight but grows step by step through infancy, childhood, adolescence, youth, and adult. Spiritual growth is also gradual. Jesus taught Nicodemus the truth of being born again. We who were dead in Adam are born again in Christ.

However, at the moment of new birth we cannot know everything of God. As we respond to God’s love with thanksgiving and obedience, we continue to grow in the knowledge of God. God delights in obedience and blesses us to bear fruit. Fruit is like God’s seal of approval. But if there is no obedience, there is no fruit, and there is no growth in the knowledge of God. Judas Iscariot was such an example.

According To His Glorious Might

“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” (Colossians 1:11–12).

Third, it is to be strengthened with all power according to his glorious might so that we may have great endurance and patience with joy. God supplies all power according to his glorious might. By his supply, his children bear the fruit of patience. Paul prays that God will supply the power of his glory so that they may bear the fruit of endurance.

All power according to God’s glorious might refers to the glory and power of the resurrection—the authority and might of the Creator God. In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth. In all creation, God’s invisible power and divine nature are displayed (Romans 1:20). A grave has no life, no breath, only death, emptiness, and weakness. Yet God raised Jesus Christ from the dead, something impossible for man. Amen!

In order to endure suffering and pain in this world with joy and to bear the fruit of patience, we must be strengthened with all power according to his glorious might. The fruit of endurance is the fruit of the Spirit. All the fruit of the Spirit comes from heaven; it is spiritual fruit. Therefore, it cannot be produced by human effort or resolve. Only by clothing ourselves with God’s resurrection power can we endure with joy and patience.

How then are we strengthened with all power according to his glorious might? God, as he promised, sent the Helper, the Holy Spirit, to those who believe. The Spirit comes once and never leaves (John 14:16). Jesus completely submitted to the Father who dwelt in him, obeying with joy and a willing heart even to the point of death. Jesus endured the cross by the power and authority of God’s glory given by the Father.

Therefore, as Christians, when we face persecution and accusations in this world, to look to the heavenly hope and to endure with patience is to be strengthened with all power according to his glorious might. The believers in Colossae also lived out their faith and love for all the saints because of the eternal hope stored in heaven, and this too was by being strengthened with all power according to God’s glorious might. Thus, they endured with joy and patience. From beginning to end, only by being strengthened with all power according to his glorious might do we hold firmly to the hope of heaven and practice faith and love.

Fourth, it is to give joyful thanks to the Father, who has qualified us to share in the inheritance of the saints in the light. Scripture says, “give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus” (1 Thessalonians 5:18). Even though we suffer pain and hardship in this world, there is an eternal heavenly inheritance in the light that no one can take away. For the believer, there is no more darkness. We are freed from the snare of death and the grave.

Jesus gave thanks because the Father heard his prayer (John 11:41). Jesus, believing that through his suffering the Father would give us saving grace, offered himself as a sacrificial offering with joy and thanksgiving.

The opposite of thanksgiving is grumbling and complaining. To be ungrateful is to have no hope in the eternal reward stored in heaven. Instead, one seeks to fill life with things of this world. But the things of this world perish, spoil, and fade. The more one seeks, the less satisfied one becomes, and thirst only increases.

The Samaritan woman was such a person. But she met the Lord Jesus Christ, who gives living water that never runs dry, and she received the hope of heaven in the light. This is God’s will revealed through spiritual wisdom and understanding. To our Lord Jesus Christ, who has given us eternal hope in heaven, we give thanks and praise forever. Amen!

2025. 8. 31.

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Scripture quotes are from the NIV.