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 331 messages in this series.
This is message #332 titled, How to Pray for the Good and Faithful Saints That You Don’t Know, Part 13.
James Burton Coffman said, “Outside of Christ there is nothing; in him is eternal life. Outside of Christ there is condemnation; in him is redemption. Outside of Christ there is guilt; in him is forgiveness, pardon and salvation.”
Over the past few messages, we have looked at the specific prayer requests that Paul made for the believers in Colosse. He prayed for them: (1) to have the “knowledge of God’s will”; (2) to walk worthy of their salvation; (3) to be “fruitful in every good work”; (4) to ‘increase in the knowledge of God’; (5) that they would be ‘strengthened with all might according to God’s glorious power’; and (6) that they would use God’s strength to live with patience, long-suffering, joy, and thanksgiving.
As we close out this passage, we have been looking at the reasons why the saints at Colosse (and we ourselves) ought to be able to live and pray with joy and gratitude. Paul does not fail to give us specific reasons in this letter. Two reasons we have looked at already include the fact that Christ has qualified us to partake of the inheritance of the saints and that we have been delivered from the power of darkness and translated into the kingdom of his Son.
The final reason why we should be thankful that is given in this passage is because we have been redeemed through the blood of Christ and obtained forgiveness of sins. Redemption and forgiveness are the two great benefits of our salvation. The Greek word translated as “redemption” means “a releasing or liberation brought about by payment of ransom; a deliverance.” Because Jesus paid the debt that we owed on the cross, He has freed us from our imprisonment to sin and our enslavement to the devil. Sin and Satan only have the power over us that we allow because, in Christ, we are free.
The Greek word Paul uses to describe forgiveness means: a pardon of sins, letting them go as if they had never been committed; a remission of the penalty. When we talk about forgiving our fellow humans, we rarely regard them as though they have never done us wrong. Rarer even are circumstances where we would prevent restitution from being given if it were possible to do so. Yet, this is how God forgives those who come under the blood of Jesus Christ. He treats us as sons and daughters, as though we have never sinned, because all of our sins are washed away in the blood. Furthermore, He does not enforce the penalty we owe for our sins. We all deserve eternal hell and separation from God; but, because Jesus suffered our hell and our separation on the cross, we do not have to pay that penalty.
Few of us live according to the reality of our standing in Christ. We live with guilt, frustration, shame, and regret. But, what Paul wants the Colossian believers to understand is that their standing with God is not determined by what the devil reminds them of from their past lives; it is determined only by what Christ has done and by what the Word of God says. Would we live differently if we really believed that we are redeemed and forgiven? Would we pray differently if we lived like we are redeemed and forgiven? Redemption and forgiveness are the main reason why we can come to God with thanksgiving in our prayers.
Horatius Bonar wrote:
Holy Father, hear my cry;
Holy Savior, bend Thine ear;
Holy Spirit, come Thou nigh;
Father, Savior, Spirit, hear.
Father, save me from my sin;
Savior, I Thy mercy crave;
Gracious Spirit, make me clean:
Father, Savior, Spirit, save.
Father, let me taste Thy love;
Savior, fill my soul with peace;
Spirit, come my heart to move:
Father, Son, and Spirit, bless.
Father, Son, and Spirit—Thou
One Jehovah, shed abroad
All Thy grace within me now;
Be my Father and my God.
– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –
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 