Chad Coley
Christ Above All/ Series in Colossians
How To Pray For Someone You Don't Know
Colossians 1:9-12
2 June 2019
Do we pray? It’s an important question for believers. In the text before us, we see that Paul is praying for people he doesn’t know. This gives us insight into how we can pray for others; even those who may be strangers to us.
Paul prayed in an unceasing way for the Colossian saints to know God's will for them. It was regular and unceasing prayer. Which begs the question: Do we sacrifice our time for regular interaction with God in prayer that is on behalf of others?
1. Praying for them to know God’s will (vs 9)
Filled: Here we see a picture of a ship that is ready for voyage. Paul is praying that his readers would be filled to the brim with God’s so that there is no room for anything else.
Knowledge of His will: This is a deep understanding of God’s will as revealed in His Word. We need to know and understand the general will of God and apply that to specific situations in our lives.
2. Praying for them to walk worthily (vs 10-12)
Pleasing Him: Paul wants them to live in a manner that is fully submitted to God.
Increasing: Indicates growth that is slow, yet steady, bearing fruit of the Spirit.
Strengthened with all power: Here we see the mark of the worthy walk: one that is empowered by the Spirit of God.
Joyously giving thanks to the Father: This tells us that we are to have an attitude of continual thanks; it’s not just a private acknowledgment of God’s goodness but a public declaration of what He has done for us. It is in Christ and only in him that we receive a share of the inheritance reserved only for the Jews; Christ has qualified us.