3D Devotional 7.2.2019

Colossians 1:1-14 New King James Version (NKJV)
1 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 [a]and the Lord Jesus Christ.Their Faith in Christ 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 [b]fruit, 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.Preeminence of Christ9 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 [c]conveyed us into the kingdom of the Son of His love, 14 in whom we have redemption [d]through His blood, the forgiveness of sins.
Paul spent about three years in Ephesus.  Epaphras was one of the disciples who heard Paul and became a Christian. Epaphras went back to Colosse and started a church  and now has asked Paul write a letter to the church at Colosse to encourage and help guard against false teaching. (Vss. 1-8)
While Paul's letter to the church at Colosse seeks to encourage them in their spiritual lives, it also offers some guidance for us, both in the way we live and the way that we pray for other believers.

  • To have spiritual wisdom and understanding and know God's will.
  • To live a life worthy of Jesus, one that is pleasing to him.
  • To bear fruit by doing good works.
  • To grow in your knowledge of God.
  • To grow in your relationship with God.
  • To be strengthened by God's power so that you have the qualities of endurance, patience, thankfulness, and joy (Fruit of the Spirit).

 In Ephesians, 2:10, Paul emphasizes that we are called to live a "worthy" life: "For we are God's workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do."  
And James reminds us that because of our faith, we must take action:
"What good is it, my brothers, if a man claims to have faith but has no deeds? Can such faith save him? ... Faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead."  (James 2:14, 17)
How will you bear fruit?
What action will you take today?
Who can you encourage in their faith, today?


Father, We give thanks and praise to you for your everlasting love.  We open our hearts to you and receive your Holy Spirit that leads us and guides us.  Thank you for the hope that you give to us in your gift of salvation through Jesus Christ. Grant us vision for your will that we may grow in faith, love and fruitfulness and encourage others. Amen

Sheila Freeman
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