WELCOME and THANKS for joining us.
- Today is the Fifth Sunday after Pentecost.
- The theme for this week is God’s demand for justice and compassionate action.
- In Colossians, Paul emphasizes that authentic faith must bear fruit in good works and love for others, demonstrating that true spiritual knowledge leads to practical action.
OPENING SONG
OPENING PRAYER
BIBLE READING
Colossians 1:1-14
Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ by the will of God, and Timothy our brother, 2 To the saints and faithful brethren in Christ who are in Colosse:
Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ (NU).
3 We give thanks to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, praying always for you, 4 since we heard of your faith in Christ Jesus and of your love for all the saints; 5 because of the hope which is laid up for you in heaven, of which you heard before in the word of the truth of the gospel, 6 which has come to you, as it has also in all the world, and is bringing forth fruit [NU, M add and growing], as it is also among you since the day you heard and knew the grace of God in truth; 7 as you also learned from Epaphras, our dear fellow servant, who is a faithful minister of Christ on your behalf, 8 who also declared to us your love in the Spirit.
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; 10 that you may walk worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing Him, being fruitful in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God; 11 strengthened with all might, according to His glorious power, for all patience and longsuffering with joy; 12 giving thanks to the Father who has qualified us to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in the light. 13 He has delivered us from the power of darkness and conveyed[transferred] us into the kingdom of the Son of His love, 14 in whom we have redemption through His blood [NU, M], the forgiveness of sins.
SERMON
A Prayer to Emulate
Colossians 1:1–14
Have you ever struggled to find the words while praying for someone? Though they are on your heart and mind, and you’ve lifted them up before, sometimes the right words seem elusive. Paul’s letter to the Colossians offers us a beautiful example of authentic prayer.
In his opening words, he demonstrates how to pray with genuine concern and spiritual depth for others. His prayer flows naturally, focusing not on eloquent phrases, but on matters that align with God’s heart — spiritual growth, wisdom, and the bearing of fruit in every good work.
Just as Paul witnessed the gospel bearing fruit throughout the world, he prayed for the Colossians to bear fruit in their own lives through their faith and love.
Through Paul’s example, we can learn to pray more effectively for ourselves and others, moving beyond our uncertainties to prayers that reflect genuine care and lead to spiritual fruitfulness.
Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, and Timothy our brother, To the saints and faithful brothers and sisters in Christ in Colossae: Grace to you and peace from God our Father. In our prayers for you we always thank God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, for we have heard of your faith in Christ Jesus and of the love that you have for all the saints, because of the hope laid up for you in heaven. You have heard of this hope before in the word of the truth, the gospel that has come to you. Just as it is bearing fruit and growing in the whole world, so it has been bearing fruit among yourselves from the day you heard it and truly comprehended the grace of God. This you learned from Epaphras, our beloved fellow servant. He is a faithful minister of Christ on our behalf, and he has made known to us your love in the Spirit. Colossians 1:1–8 NRSVUE
Paul starts out saying his prayers for these believers are always accompanied with gratitude. It can be tempting sometimes to just dive headlong into our prayers, giving God all our petitions like a child writing out a Christmas list to Santa.
It’s not that we shouldn’t bring our petitions to God on behalf of others. But what if, instead, we started off by pondering the many things that God has already graced them (and us) with.
- What has God been up to in our lives?
- What work has He performed to draw us closer to his Son, Jesus?
- How has God intervened in our lives up until this point?
To the Philippians, Paul wrote, “Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God” (Philippians 4:6).
Going before the throne of God with a grateful outlook could change your whole experience of prayer. This moves us from a position of trying to get God to do something, to recognizing that God’s heart for this person is even bigger than our own, as hard as that might be for us to imagine. God is committed to their growth in Christ and the fruit that is born from that.
[Can you think of a personal example of praying with a grateful heart?]
What was it that Paul was thanking God for exactly? It was for the members’ faith in Christ, and it was for their love for the all the believers. These things were tied directly to the hope they had received in Christ along with all that they have inherited in him.
There is so much to be thankful for when praying for those you know who are also Christ followers.
- Think of the blessings that they enjoy from walking with him.
- Think of the fruit in their lives that is being produced by the Holy Spirit and being formed communally as his Body.
Perhaps you are praying on behalf of those who may not yet know our Savior. Again, we can still approach God with gratitude for His love for them, and for His commitment to have His love displayed towards them in undeniable ways. All God’s promises are for them too.
For this reason, since the day we heard it, we have not ceased praying for you and asking that you may be filled with the knowledge of God’s will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding, so that you may walk worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing to him, as you bear fruit in every good work and as you grow in the knowledge of God. Colossians 1:9–10 NRSVUE
Our “walking worthy of the Lord” is not a condition that makes us worthy — Jesus’ saving act did that. Rather, Paul’s prayers are addressing the need to be wise in following and understanding God’s will. The result is a life of the knowledge of God’s character and nature that allows us to walk in a worthy manner before Him. What results from all of this is that they will bear fruit.
In our prayers, we can be certain that God’s will is that all would come to know Him and His ways more and more. This knowledge is not merely intellectual but transformative, equipping believers to live out their faith in tangible ways.1 .
May you be made strong with all the strength that comes from his glorious power, so that you may have all endurance and patience, joyfully giving thanks to the Father, who has enabled you to share in the inheritance of the saints in the light. Colossians 1:11–12 NRSVUE
The next part of Paul’s prayer is that the believers’ source of strength would come from God. Again, this is not from their own resources or abilities. This speaks once again to the transformative work of God’s power in our lives.
Christian musician, Steven Curtis Chapman wrote a song about this called, “His Strength is Perfect.”
His strength is perfect when our strength is gone
He’ll carry us when we can’t carry on
Raised in His power, the weak become strong
His strength is perfect, His strength is perfect.
As His strength is perfected in us, God is forming us to endure our circumstances with great patience. Not only that, but we will be able to give thanks to the Father for all of this. Paul is circling back to where we started in this prayer. We maintain an attitude of gratitude towards our great Father in heaven. As it is the Father who has enabled us to share such a wonderful inheritance along with those who have gone before us.
He has rescued us from the power of darkness and transferred us into the kingdom of his beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins. Colossians 1:13–14 NRSVUE
The last part of this section may not be a part of the prayer that Paul is writing. Yet, it is an important truth that can affect our prayers as well. Once again, the focus is not on us and anything that we think we have been able to accomplish. We needed nothing short of being rescued. This is in the past tense. So, we don’t wait for someday in the future to give us comfort and hope. Our rescue has already happened.
We were under the power of darkness when Christ came along and shed his own blood, cancelling out those powers. Our rescue was found in our redemption. As we have been redeemed by the blood of Christ, we now dwell in God’s kingdom.
Paul’s prayer at the beginning of this letter of Colossians applies to us today. It is a prayer that contains vital truths of our faith. These truths should aid us in praying in a similar manner.
Our prayers of intercession can be filled with thanksgiving from beginning to end. As we are assured of God’s purposes for ourselves and others, we do not pray in a manner that is full of wishing and empty hope. But we pray with the end in mind, that we are at home safely in God’s kingdom. And it’s from this place of redemption and safety, that God is committed to seeing us live into a life that bears fruit: a life lived in wisdom and recognition of God’s glorious strength and power in our lives.
As we pray, let us focus on all the wonderful things that the Father has done for us through his Son, Jesus. Let us pray maintaining a heart of gratitude, knowing that a loving Father hears us at all times and is fully committed to bringing us through and into the inheritance awaiting us.
COLLECTION OF CONTRIBUTION TO SUNDAY SCHOOL
CLOSING SONG
CLOSING PRAYER
Colossians 1:9 Commentary | Precept Austin
Small Group Discussion Questions
- How could expressing gratitude in prayer change your outlook while praying?
- What does your prayer life look like?
- What is the difference between relying on our power versus God’s power?
- Have you noticed God producing fruit in your life lately?
- Can you describe it?
- What is the inheritance that awaits you?