C.

The Great Requests of Prayer, 1:9-11 (1:9-11) Introduction: Paul was in prison in Rome when writing the Colossian believers. At some point he had been visited by Epaphras, the pastor of the great Colossian church. Apparently Epaphras had felt a need for some counsel and advice on how to handle the false teaching that had seeped into the church. Paul, Gods chosen apostle to the Gentiles, was the natural person to turn to for advice. This is the purpose for the letter to the Colossians: to encourage the church and its believers to get rid of the false teaching and to continue on with Christ. The believers had never seen him face to face, and he was unable to visit them now because of being in prison. They needed him, for the false teaching was extremely dangerous and the very ministry of the church was threatened. Being in prison and unable to reach them, and could do only 2 things: He could write them and share the Word of God in a letter. He could pray for them. He asked three things; he made three great requests. All three requests are needed by every church and all believers, in particular those who face false teaching. Every believer should covet these three things and covet them diligently. Request 1: to know Gods willto be filled with the knowledge of Gods will (v.9). Request 2: to walk worthy of Christ (v.10). Request 3: to possess the power of God (v.11).

1. (1:9) God, Will of Wisdom Understanding:

the first great request is to know Gods will. Note exactly what Scripture says: we are to be filled with the knowledge of Gods will. It is not enough to just know Gods will; we are to be filled with the knowledge of His will. The will of God is to permeate our very being. Nothing is to flow through us nor out of us that is not of Gods will. Note: what is being talked about is not Gods will for a particular thing nor for a few things. What is being talked about is the whole scope of life. Gods will involves all of life, everything we do every moment of every day. The will of God involves what we do, say, and even think. Simply stated, we are to live and move and have our being in the will of God. God has willed a life that he wants us to live. We are to learn about that life and be filled with the knowledge of that life. Gods will for us involves our very behavior and conduct; it even reaches down into the depth of imagination and thought.

 God tells us how to live life, and what He tells us is His will. Therefore, we are to study what God has said. We are to study Gods Word: learn and gain all the knowledge we can about His willabout how to live. We are to study and learn until the knowledge of His will just floods our lives floods us to such a degree that doing His will flows out into conduct and behavior. Knowing Gods will involves both wisdom and understanding. Wisdom means that a person knows the first principles or basic principles of life. Understanding means that a person has the ability to apply the basic principles to everyday life, to the circumstances and decisions of life. Think about the shallow lives that so many people live. Think about how little most people know about Gods will. Compare this tragic fact with the kind of life God wills man to live. Is it any wonder... that so many have been deceived by false teaching? that so much of our ministry is superficial and formal?

2. (1:10) Believer, Walk:

the second great request is to walk worthy of Christ. This is the critical point for the believer. It is the point that must be hammered into the minds and hearts of believers: It is not enough to know Gods will. It is not enough to possess wisdom: to possess the basic principles of life. It is not even enough to possess understanding: to have the ability to apply the basic principles of life to everyday living. Knowing something and having the ability to do something are very important, but they involve only head knowledge. The critical point is putting what we know into practice. We are to live out the will of God; we are to practice and do the will of God. Knowing the will of God is of no value until we have committed our lives to do it. The word walk means that we set our livesour behavior and conductafter Christ. The word worthy means to have the weight of or to weigh as much as something else. Our walk is to weigh as much as the walk of Christ. Our conduct is to conform to the will of God as much as the conduct of Christ. We are to live a life just as worthy as the life of Christ. The will of God is to control our behavior as much as it did the behavior of Christ. Christ is the pattern, and we are the copy.

 We must be totally committed to do two things in order to accomplish this. 1. We must be fruitful in every good work. No person is pleased when we do only half of what he says. 2. We must grow in the knowledge of God. We do not know God just because we know about God. The way we get to know God is the same way we get to know anyone. We walk with Him: associate, fellowship, and share with Him. The more we walk with Him, the more we increase in the knowledge of Him.

3. (1:11) Power: the third great request is for the power of God. Gods power is an absolute essential for the believer. This is easily seen by asking two questions. What good is it if the believer knows Gods will, but he does not have the power to do Gods will? How can the believer walk worthy of Christ if he does not have the power to walk worthy? Many in the world believe that man has the strength within himself to become spiritually strong, but mans flesh fails in three critical areas. The flesh cannot become perfect, neither can it do anything about perfection. The flesh cannot conquer death. No matter what the flesh does, it all ends up as dead matter. The flesh cannot be patient and longsuffering against all the traumatic trials and temptations of life and be joyful at the same time. It is for these three reasons that we need the power of God. Mans power can overcome some of the problems of life, but not all. Only Gods power can make us acceptable (perfect) before Him. Only Gods power can conquer death, that is, raise us up to live eternally. Only Gods power can infuse enough strength in us to make us endure. God has the power... to give us understanding and peace to strengthen and settle us to give us hope and security