7 as you also learned from aEpaphras, our dear fellow servant, who is ba faithful minister of Christ on your behalf,
8 who also declared to us your alove in the Spirit.
Preeminence of Christ
9aFor this reason we also, since the day we heard it, do not cease to pray for you, and to ask bthat you may be filled with cthe knowledge of His will din all wisdom and spiritual understanding;
10athat you may walk worthy of the Lord, bfully pleasing Him,cbeing fruitful in every good work and increasing in the dknowledge of God;
11astrengthened with all might, according to His glorious power, bfor all patience and longsuffering cwith joy;
12agiving thanks to the Father who has qualified us to be partakers of bthe inheritance of the saints in the light.
13 He has delivered us from athe power of darkness band conveyed us into the kingdom of the Son of His love,
14ain whom we have redemption1 through His blood, the forgiveness of sins.
15 He is athe image of the invisible God, bthe firstborn over all creation.
16 For aby Him all things were created that are in heaven and that are on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or bdominions or principalities or2 powers. All things were created cthrough Him and for Him.
17aAnd He is before all things, and in Him ball things consist.
18 And aHe is the head of the body, the church, who is the beginning, bthe firstborn from the dead, that in all things He may have the preeminence.
Reconciled in Christ
19 For it pleased theFatherthatain Him all the fullness should dwell,
20 and aby Him to reconcile ball things to Himself, by Him, whether things on earth or things in heaven, chaving made peace through the blood of His cross.
21 And you, awho once were alienated and enemies in your mind bby wicked works, yet now He has creconciled
22ain the body of His flesh through death, bto present you holy, and blameless, and above reproach in His sight—
23 if indeed you continue ain the faith, grounded and steadfast, and are bnot moved away from the hope of the gospel which you heard, cwhich was preached to every creature under heaven, dof which I, Paul, became a minister.
Sacrificial Service for Christ
24aI now rejoice in my sufferings bfor you, and fill up in my flesh cwhat is lacking in the afflictions of Christ, for dthe sake of His body, which is the church,
25 of which I became a minister according to athe stewardship from God which was given to me for you, to fulfill the word of God,
26athe1 mystery which has been hidden from ages and from generations, bbut now has been revealed to His saints.
27aTo them God willed to make known what are bthe riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles:1 which is cChrist in you, dthe hope of glory.
28 Him we preach, awarning every man and teaching every man in all wisdom, bthat we may present every man perfect in Christ Jesus.
Paul prays that the saints in Colosse will possess longsuffering, an even temper that does not retaliate despite injury or insult. This trait develops only as a fruit of the Spirit, growing from the common root of love alongside other spiritual fruit. Joy through trials results from suffering for Christ's sake, given by God through the Holy Spirit as part of spiritual completion. Central to Paul's prayer is the knowledge of God's will—God's own knowledge, not merely knowledge about Him. This knowledge is received through study, teaching, and practice.
Colossians 1:9-11
Paul tells the saints in Colosse that he prays they will possess the trait that is the opposite of wrath or revenge. He speaks of having an even temper, an attitude that in spite of injury or insult does not retaliate. We can develop longsuffering only as a fruit of the Spirit, not as an independent character trait. It grows from the common root of love and bears fruit only along with other spiritual fruit.
The key in these verses is to understand that Paul speaks of a specific knowledge—the knowledge of God's will, God's knowledge. It is not knowledge aboutGod but God's knowledge that we receive through study, teaching, and practice.
Our joy through trials is a result of suffering for Christ's sake. Of the persecution we must endure, Jesus says, "Rejoice in that day and leap for joy!" (Luke 6:23). Through the Holy Spirit, God gives us His gift of joy as part of the process of spiritual completion.
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Paul prays that the saints in Colosse will possess longsuffering, an even temper that does not retaliate despite injury or insult. This trait develops only as a fruit of the Spirit, growing from the common root of love alongside other spiritual fruit. Joy through trials results from suffering for Christ's sake, given by God through the Holy Spirit as part of spiritual completion. Central to Paul's prayer is the knowledge of God's will—God's own knowledge, not merely knowledge about Him. This knowledge is received through study, teaching, and practice.