Praying for one another

Text: Colossians 1:9-12

The Motivation to Pray for Others

Because of our gratitude for other Christians

The Manner of Prayer

Unceasing prayer

Footnotes:

Our heart for other Christians

1:3-8 “We give thanks to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, praying always for you, since we heard of your faith in Christ Jesus and the love which you have

for all the saints; because of the hope reserved for you

in heaven, of which you previously heard in the word

of truth, the gospel which has come to you, just as in

all the world also it is bearing fruit and increasing,

even as it has been doing in you also since the day you

heard it and understood the grace of God in truth;

just as you learned it from Epaphras, our beloved

fellow bond-servant, who is a faithful servant of

Christ on our behalf, and he also informed us of

your love in the Spirit.

1:9a “For this reason we also, since the day we

heard about it, have not ceased praying for you.”

The Request

“Asking that you may be filled with the knowledge

of His will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding”

To Know what God wants

To Know the significance of what God wants

(spiritual wisdom)

To Know the requirement of what God wants

(understanding)

Footnotes:

1:9b “…asking that you may be filled with the knowledge

of His will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding,…”

God’s will– what God wants done

Spiritual wisdom – Discerning what eternal spiritual

matters are at stake when deciding to follow God’s

will or follow our own

Understanding -- Grasping the reality of the need

(and benefit) for our obedience to God’s will. “

(It’s not up for negotiation)

The Reason(s)

So that you will walk in a manner worthy of the Lord

To please Him

To bear fruit

To know God more

To be strengthened by Him with perseverance

and patience

To be thankful with joy

To be rewarded

Footnotes:

1:10-12 “…so that you will walk in a manner worthy of

the Lord, to please Him in all respects, bearing fruit in

every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God;

strengthened with all power, according to His glorious

might, for the attaining of all perseverance and patience;

joyously giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified

us to share in the inheritance of the saints in light.

Praying for One Another

Because of our gratitude for one another

we pray constantly for one another

that we all would be filled with the knowledge of His will

so that we will walk in a manner worthy of the Lord.