Expository Summary - Colossians 1:9-14

Mature in Christ – Colossians 1:9-14

The book of Colossians begins with Paul joyfully acknowledging that he has heard about the faith of the people in the church of Colossae. He says that from the day that he heard about their faith he has been praying that certain things would occur in their lives, namely spiritual growth. Paul is obviously very pleased that the people in this church are now brothers and sisters in Christ. They have heard the gospel, the good news of the grace of God and understood it and believed. But Paul knew that this was just the beginning of their lives. Their initial faith in Jesus was not the end of his ministry to them nor was it the climax of their relationship to Christ, but it was just the beginning of their new life in faith. It was the start of a lifetime of transformation.

Paul, as a minister of the word, recognized that his role was not just to proclaim the gospel and to win people to Christ but to “present everyone mature in Christ” (Colossians 1:28). The maturity of the believer was of supreme importance to Paul. It is what he said that he toiled for and struggled for with all the energy of God that was working within him (Colossians 1:29).

In Colossians 1:9-14, Paul describes to the church how he has been praying for them in order for them to be transformed into mature believers. These thoughts are not just relevant for the people in Colossae but should be taken as instruction for what all believers should pray for and yearn for in their own lives in order to grow spiritually mature.

Be filled with the knowledge of his will (9)

The first and most important part of Paul’s prayer for these young believers is that they will be filled with the knowledge of God’s will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding. An understanding of God’s will and desires is crucial for spiritual growth. We cannot begin to take on godly characteristics or to live in a way that is pleasing to Him unless we first have knowledge of what it is that pleases Him.

If I tell my son to clean his room, to please me he must know what I am looking for before he begins. He can work hard at cleaning all the dirt off his toys but leave them scattered all over the room and I will not be pleased. He can gather up everything and throw it into the closet making sure nothing is left on the floor but I still will not be pleased. There is a way for him to clean his room that is pleasing to me and unless he finds out what it is he will work all day in vain. Likewise, there is a specific way that God wants us to live and we cannot do it without an understanding of what it is he wants.

God’s revealed instructions are recorded for us in the pages of the Bible. For us to be knowledgeable of His will we must be knowledgeable of the Bible. Psalm 19 tells us “the testimony of the Lord is sure, making wise the simple” and that “the commandment of the Lord is pure, enlightening the eyes ” (7-8). It is the testimony and the commandments of God that is recorded in the Bible that gives us wisdom and opens our eyes to understanding. It is when we delight in the pages of the Bible and meditate on them day and night that we can begin to have spiritual wisdom and understanding.

The prayer that Paul had for the believers at Colossae and the prayer that we should have for ourselves is that God will give us wisdom and understanding as we meditate on God’s revelation to us.

Live in a way that pleases the Lord (10)

Paul prays that the believers will be filled with knowledge, but not for the sake of being knowledgeable. This understanding and wisdom comes so that we will “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” (10). The purpose of knowing the will of God is to live in obedience to that will in order to live in a way that pleases God.

Later in this letter Paul gets much more specific of how believers can walk in a worthy manner that pleases God. Paul instructs believers to do this by putting to death the old sinful patterns of life and replacing them with a new life that is continually being changed into the likeness of God. Pleasing God means putting to death immorality, impurity, evil desire, covetousness, anger, wrath, malice, slander, lying and obscene talk. These things are to be replaced with compassion, kindness, humility, meekness, patience, forgiveness, and love (Colossians 3:5-14).

Paul’s prayer for these believers is for a complete change in their lives. He is not just praying that they know more about God or that they start doing better things, he is praying for them to become completely different people. He is praying that they kill off all of their old sinful practices and habits and completely replace them with a new man that is being renewed in the image of God.

Joyfully endure in patience (11)

Paul has also been praying that these believers are able to joyfully endure their trials with patience. Paul, who was writing this letter from prison, knew all about the pains and hardships that often accompany a life of service to the Lord. Paul was able to retain his joy no matter how hard his circumstances became because he viewed his life from an eternal perspective. He saw all troubles in this earth as light momentary afflictions that paled in comparison to the eternal weight of glory that awaited him in the next life (2 Corinthians 4:17). The joy that came from his hope in the promises of God allowed him to endure all things.

His prayer for the church was that God would give them all the strength that they needed to endure with joy. We as well need to pray that the full power of God would strengthen our faith so that we can have patience and joy in all situations.

A mature follower of Jesus is able to view hardships from an eternal perspective and endure with patience and joy.

Always be thankful for your salvation (12-14)

Paul prays that these believers will continually be giving thanks to God for their salvation. A key to spiritual maturity is a regular recognition and remembrance of the amazing work that God has done for us through Jesus. The more we are transformed into the likeness of Christ the more we will remember with thankfulness what Jesus has done for us. By giving thanks we will remember that through the righteousness of Jesus we are now qualified to share in the inheritance of the saints (12). By giving thanks we will remember our former status of living in darkness without hope and how we were rescued and placed into a kingdom which we had no right to enter (13). By giving thanks we will remember how we were bought with a price, the blood of Jesus, freeing us from slavery (14). By giving thanks we will remember how all of our sins and transgressions against the God who created us and loves us were forgiven because of the sacrifice of His son (14).

A mature believer never loses sight of the wonderful work of Jesus Christ. Thankfulness is always on his lips.

As the natural goal of a child is to eventually become a mature adult, the goal for every believer is to be mature in Christ. As we seek to be transformed into a mature man or woman of God we should look to Paul’s words in Colossians 1 and echo his prayer for our own lives.

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