Colossians 1:9 - Meaning and Application

The apostle goes on to pray for them in these verses. He had heard good things about them, and he prayed that they would become even better. This was not a one-time prayer. He says, “We do not stop praying for you.” He may not have heard from them often, but he kept bringing them before God.

He asks that they may be filled with the knowledge of God’s will, with all wisdom and spiritual understanding. The best kind of knowledge is knowing our duty. A mind full of facts is useless if it does not lead to obedience. We must know God’s will in order to do it. Our knowledge is truly a blessing when it is joined with wisdom, so that we can apply general truth to real situations and act rightly in every need.

Christians should aim to be filled with this kind of knowledge. We should not only know God’s will in part, but keep growing in it. We should increase in the knowledge of God, and grow in grace and in the knowledge of our Lord and Savior (2 Peter 3:18). This is not shallow learning. It is a growing understanding that shapes the whole life.

Paul also prays that their conduct would be good. Good knowledge without a good life does not help us. Our understanding is truly spiritual when it shows up in how we live. So he prays that they may walk worthy of the Lord and please him in all things (Colossians 1:10). That means living in a way that fits the relationship we have with Christ and the confession we make about him. When our lives match our faith, they please God and also honor good people.

He adds that they should be fruitful in every good work. This is what we should seek. Good words are not enough without good deeds. We must do good works often, and in every kind of good work, not just in the easy, safe, or convenient ones. There should be a steady, even-hearted desire to obey all of God’s will. The more fruitful we are in good works, the more we will grow in our knowledge of God. “Whoever does God’s will will know whether my teaching is from God” (John 7:17).

Paul then prays that they may be strengthened with all power, according to God’s glorious power (Colossians 1:11). That means they need strength to resist Satan’s temptations and to carry out every duty. It is a comfort to know that the One who gives this strength is a God of power, indeed of glorious power. Wherever there is spiritual life, there is still need for spiritual strength, strength for every action of that life.

To be strengthened means to be equipped by God’s grace for every good work and protected by that same grace against every evil one. It means being enabled to do our duty and to keep our integrity. The Holy Spirit is the one who gives this strength, for we are strengthened with might by his Spirit in the inner person (Ephesians 3:16). God uses his word as the means, and prayer is how we ask for and receive it. The apostle himself got enough grace in answer to earnest prayer. Since God’s promises are not limited, our hopes and requests should not be limited either.

He prays that they may be strengthened with might. That may sound repetitive, but he means that they would be powerfully strengthened, with strength given from outside themselves. It is “with all power,” meaning all the strength needed for the tasks and trials we face. He does not mean we become all-powerful. He means we receive enough grace for every duty, every trial, and every need. God’s strength comes according to his glorious power, his own gracious and excellent power, not according to our weakness. When God gives, he gives in a way that fits himself.

The special purpose of this strength is suffering. Paul prays that they may be strengthened for all endurance and patience with joy (Colossians 1:11). He does not only ask that they be supported under trouble, but that they be strengthened for it, because there is still work to do in suffering. Those who are strengthened by God’s power are strengthened for all patience. When patience has its full work (James 1:4), we do not merely bear trouble, we accept it as from God and thank him for it. “It has been granted to you to suffer” (Philippians 1:29). When we bear many troubles well, even if they are very heavy, that is patience in full.

This includes long-suffering, which means bearing trouble for a long time. It is not only standing firm for a little while, but continuing as long as God allows the trial to last. And it is done with joy. We are called to rejoice in suffering, to take the loss of our goods joyfully, and to be glad that we are counted worthy to suffer for Christ’s name. We need both patience and joy in life’s troubles. We could never do this by our own strength, but only as God’s grace strengthens us.