1 John 2:7-11 – Love and a New Command
From this look at 1 John 2, we have seen the first result of walking in the light is holiness, the second is obedience to… Read More »1 John 2:7-11 – Love and a New Command
From this look at 1 John 2, we have seen the first result of walking in the light is holiness, the second is obedience to… Read More »1 John 2:7-11 – Love and a New Command
The shift into 10:19-39 is a big one and the remainder of Hebrews 10 is hortatory. Also, not only do we shift here in a… Read More »Hebrews 10:19-25 – The exhortation of faith, hope, and love
Christian love does not mean that I must like a person and agree with them on everything. I may not like the words they use… Read More »James 2:8-13 – Mercy Triumphs over Judgment
Verses 12–17 contain the virtues that stand in contrast to the vices mentioned in the preceding verses. With the old discarded, the character of Christ… Read More »Colossians 3:12-17 Putting on the virtues of the new life
May 7 – Colossians 1:3-8
Today, we continue our devotional on Colossians by looking at 1:3-8. The expression “we thank God” occurs frequently in the Pauline Epistles. The term implies both a statement of thanksgiving for what is received from God and an element of praise for God’s character which originated it. Paul’s thanksgiving occurred in prayer. While this may seem obvious, there are some subtleties that are interesting. The passage contains various synonyms for prayer. Together they demonstrate the importance of prayer for Paul. He could pray in times of difficulty, and he could pray in times of joy.
Since Paul often emphasized the activity of prayer, he wanted to share the fact that he actually remembered them in prayer. The joys and concerns of the Colossian congregation meant enough to Paul that he prayed about them. When this is compared with the other epistles, a sizable impression emerges regarding the extent of Paul’s prayer life. He prayed for all the churches. Several factors appear regarding Paul’s prayers. First, they were continual. The church was regularly in Paul’s mind and thoughts. Second, the prayer was directed to God. Finally, the prayers were intercessory, “when we pray for you.”
Let’s take a look at today’s verse:
3 We give thanks to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, praying always for you, 4 since we heard of your faith in Christ Jesus and the love which you have for all the saints; 5 because of the hope laid up for you in heaven, of which you previously heard in the word of truth, the gospel 6 which has come to you, just as in all the world also it is constantly bearing fruit and increasing, even as it has been doing in you also since the day you heard of it and understood the grace of God in truth; 7 just as you learned it from Epaphras, our beloved fellow bond-servant, who is a faithful servant of Christ on our behalf, 8 and he also informed us of your love in the Spirit. (NASB)
As we progress through Luke, we come today to another of Luke’s main topics that he discusses throughout His gospel, discipleship. What is interesting is… Read More »True Discipleship Modeled in Luke 8
The practice of correlating and applying Scripture to one’s life is very important. The Scriptures provide us insight into our lives but more importantly insight… Read More »Abiding Truths from John 3:16
The study of Scripture is not complete until one understands the main point of the passage and its relationship to their lives. Therefore, you will… Read More »The Practice of Correlation of Scripture
It is amazing we can share God’s own nature through His promises. The hard step for me is working that into my nature but it… Read More »May 16 – The Habit of Recognizing God’s Provision