TEXT: Colossians 1:1-14
1 Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ by the will of God, and Timotheus our brother,
2 To the saints and faithful brethren in Christ which are at Colosse: Grace be unto you, and peace, from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
3 We give thanks to God and the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, praying always for you,
4 Since we heard of your faith in Christ Jesus, and of the love which ye have to all the saints,
5 For the hope which is laid up for you in heaven, whereof ye heard before in the word of the truth of the gospel;
6 Which is come unto you, as it is in all the world; and bringeth forth fruit, as it doth also in you, since the day ye heard of it, and knew the grace of God in truth:
7 As ye also learned of Epaphras our dear fellowservant, who is for you a faithful minister of Christ;
8 Who also declared unto us your love in the Spirit.
9 For this cause we also, since the day we heard it, do not cease to pray for you, and to desire that ye might be filled with the knowledge of his will in all wisdom and spiritual understanding;
10 That ye might walk worthy of the Lord unto all pleasing, being fruitful in every good work, and increasing in the knowledge of God;
11 Strengthened with all might, according to his glorious power, unto all patience and longsuffering with joyfulness;
12 Giving thanks unto the Father, which hath made us meet to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in light:
13 Who hath delivered us from the power of darkness, and hath translated us into the kingdom of his dear Son:
14 In whom we have redemption through his blood, even the forgiveness of sins:
— PRAYER —
We are in a series of messages titled “Praying Through the Bible: A Series on Every Passage and Verse Regarding Prayer in the Bible.” The purpose of this series is to encourage and motivate you to pray to the God of the Bible. We highlighted each of these over 500 verses and passages in the Prayer Motivator Devotional Bible. So far, we have completed 324 messages in this series.
This is message #325 titled, How to Pray for the Good and Faithful Saints That You Don’t Know, Part 6.
In our last message, we continued looking at the specific prayer requests that Paul made for the believers in Colosse. He prayed for them to (1) have the “knowledge of God’s will in all wisdom and spiritual understanding”; and (2) to walk worthy of their salvation in a manner that would be pleasing to the Lord. In his next request in verse 10, he continues the theme of this second point, praying that these believers would be “fruitful in every good work.”
Being fruitful or bearing fruit is a repeated metaphor in the gospels. Jesus said that those who truly follow Him will be a “fruitful vine,” and that is what Paul prays for here. When we bear fruit with our lives, we are ‘walking worthy’ of our salvation and ‘pleasing the Lord.’ While good works are not a requirement for salvation, they are a requirement for the life of a believer. The New Testament places a high value on what we do, not just what we believe. While our salvation and eternal destination is secure by our faith in Christ, we will be judged based on our works. Second Corinthians 5:10 says, “We must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ; that every one may receive [reward or punishment for] the things done in his body, according to that he hath done, whether it be good or bad.”
Regarding this specific prayer request — that the believers would be “fruitful in every good work” — Dr. John MacArthur writes, “Fruitfulness also results from knowledge. Fruit is the by-product of righteousness. It is the mark of every redeemed individual. Jesus said in John 15:8, ‘By this is My Father glorified, that you bear much fruit, and so prove to be My disciple.’ Paul told the Romans, ‘You also were made to die to the Law through the body of Christ, that you might be joined to another, to Him who was raised from the dead, that we might bear fruit for God.’ The Bible defines fruit in various ways. Here Paul speaks of bearing fruit in every good work. Converts (those we win to the Lord) are referred to as fruit. Paul spoke of the household of Stephanas as the ‘first fruits of Achaia.’ He also desired some fruit among the Romans. Hebrews 13:15 defines praise as fruit: ‘Through Him then, let us continually offer up a sacrifice of praise to God, that is, the fruit of lips that give thanks to His name.’ Giving money can also be fruit. Godly living is fruit, as indicated when the writer of Hebrews tells us that God’s discipline produces in us ‘the peaceful fruit of righteousness.’ Finally, the holy attitudes mentioned in Galatians 5:22-23 are referred to as ‘the fruit of the Spirit.'” These verses read, “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law.”
We all ought to pray for ourselves and for each other to be fruitful in every good work. Doing good work is not always easy. People will oppose you. The inertia of the flesh will drag on you. And the devil will try to trip you up by throwing temptation across your path. Know, however, that ‘these same afflictions are experienced by your brethren in the world.’ You are not alone. You need prayer for the accomplishing of good work. And your brothers and sisters in Christ around the world need prayer as well.
Ida C. Reid wrote:
Would you gain the victory over every sin?
Would you in each battle for your captain win?
Hide away with Jesus, yield not to despair;
Find your secret closet—He will meet you there.
Would you spend your lifetime in the Lord’s employ?
And the richest blessings from His hand enjoy?
Hide away with Jesus from the world of care;
Find your secret closet—He will meet you there.
Would you walk with Jesus in the narrow way?
Hear His faintest whisper when your feet would stray?
Hide away with Jesus from the tempter’s snare;
Find your secret closet—He will meet you there.
– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –
Now, if you are with us today, and you do not know the Lord Jesus Christ as your Saviour, your first prayer needs to be what we call the Sinner’s Prayer. First, please understand that you are a sinner, just as I am, and that you have broken God’s laws. The Bible says in Romans 3:23: “For all have sinned and come short of the glory of God.”
Second, accept the fact that there is a penalty for sin. The Bible states in Romans 6:23: “For the wages of sin is death…”
Third, accept the fact that you are on the road to hell. Jesus Christ said in Matthew 10:28: “And fear not them which kill the body, but are not able to kill the soul: but rather fear him which is able to destroy both soul and body in hell.” Also, the Bible states in Revelation 21:8: “But the fearful, and unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and whoremongers and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone: which is the second death.”
Now this is bad news, but here’s the good news. Jesus Christ said in John 3:16: “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.”
Just believe in your heart that Jesus Christ died for your sins, was buried, and rose from the dead by the power of God for you so that you can live eternally with Him. Pray and ask Him to come into your heart today, and He will.
Romans 10:9 & 13 says, “That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved… For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.”
If you believe that Jesus Christ died on the Cross for your sins, was buried, and rose from the dead, and you want to trust Him for your Salvation today, please pray with me this simple prayer: Holy Father God, I realize that I am a sinner and that I have done some bad things in my life. For Jesus Christ sake, please forgive me of my sins. I now believe with all of my heart that Jesus Christ died for me, was buried, and rose again. Lord Jesus, please come into my heart and save my soul and change my life today. Amen.
If you just trusted Jesus Christ as your Saviour, and you prayed that prayer and meant it from your heart, I declare to you that based upon the Word of God, you are now saved from Hell and you are on your way to Heaven. Welcome to the family of God! Congratulations on trusting Jesus Christ as your Lord and Saviour. You have done the most important thing in life. For more information to help you grow in your newfound faith in Christ, go to Gospel Light Society.com and read “What To Do After You Enter Through the Door”. Jesus Christ said in John 10:9, “I am the door, by me if any man enter in, he shall be saved, and shall go in and out, and find pasture.”
God loves you. We love you. And may God bless you.
Daniel Whyte III has spoken in meetings across the United States and in over twenty-five foreign countries. He is the author of over forty books including the Essence Magazine, Dallas Morning News, and Amazon.com national bestseller, Letters to Young Black Men. He is also the president of Gospel Light Society International, a worldwide evangelistic ministry that reaches thousands with the Gospel each week, as well as president of Torch Ministries International, a Christian literature ministry.
He is heard by thousands each week on his radio broadcasts/podcasts, which include: The Prayer Motivator Devotional, The Prayer Motivator Minute, as well as Gospel Light Minute X, the Gospel Light Minute, the Sunday Evening Evangelistic Message, the Prophet Daniel’s Report, the Second Coming Watch Update and the Soul-Winning Motivator, among others.
He holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Theology from Bethany Divinity College, a Bachelor’s degree in Religion from Texas Wesleyan University, a Master’s degree in Religion, a Master of Divinity degree, and a Master of Theology degree from Liberty University’s Rawlings School of Divinity (formerly Liberty Baptist Theological Seminary). He is currently a candidate for the Doctor of Ministry degree.
He has been married to the former Meriqua Althea Dixon, of Christiana, Jamaica since 1987. God has blessed their union with seven children.
BCNN1 WP 