Title Give me strength/Colossians 1:9-14
Content Make me strong/Colossians 1:9-14
Dear saints in Christ, and seekers who have come to meet God here! As we enter the new year, we are looking at Paul's letter to the Colossians. First we looked at his greetings and then his gratitude, and today we will look at the third request he made.
What was the Apostle Paul's first supplication? He prayed that the Colossians would know God's will abundantly. They wanted to know clearly God's will for their lives, so that their thoughts would be governed by God's will. And they wanted their emotions to be controlled. Furthermore, they wanted their lives to follow the will of God. I prayed that they would live a life worthy of the God who saved them. In other words, I prayed to live a life that pleases the Lord.
What is Paul's second request that we looked at last week? I prayed for a life that pleases God, its concrete form. Dear brothers and sisters, how does God delight in our lives? God wants us to bear fruit and grow. There is no joy in God if it remains as it is, even though the years pass by, and it is not bearing any fruit when the time comes to bear fruit. “Bear fruit in every good work, and grow in the knowledge of God,” we pray.
What good fruits have you produced in your life over the past week? Heavenly Father expects of us not to expect one good deed a day. May you bear fruit in every good work. At the same time, God wants you to grow in knowing God. Over the past week, have you grown in knowing God? Have you been exposed to a new side of God during the week? Or did you come back the way you were a week ago and just change your makeup a bit? Always remember that God wants us to grow in knowing Him every day.
Today is our third time examining Paul's supplications. Paul continues to pray that the lives of the Colossians will be worthy of the Lord. In other words, I pray that my life will be pleasing to God. That's why I ask that you "bear fruit in every good work, and grow in the knowledge of God." Now, in today's text, I pray that you will live a life that is supplied with heavenly power. It is quite natural that in order to bear fruit and grow in all good works, the power of heaven must be supplied. Paul's prayer for the Colossians can be summed up in one word, "May you overflow with strength with the power of God."
In other words, it is only through this power that the Colossians can live a life that pleases God.
Dear Ulsan Church in the Lord! How is your life? Are you living what you know? What should we seek if actions do not follow as we wish? Paul's supplication for the Colossians, "May you overflow with strength with all your might," is urgently needed in our lives today as well. Looking back over the past year, do you admit that incompetence was as much the cause of failure as ignorance?
So how are you going to buy this year? Let's meet God who provides power. Let's keep looking to the God who supplies us with new strength. "...Eternal God, the LORD, who created the ends of the earth, who created it neither weary nor weary, who has no limit in understanding, who gives strength to the weary, and gives strength to the weak..." meet Envy the One who gives strength to the incompetent.
“Even boys will grow weary and weary, and young men will stumble and fall, but those who wait on the Lord will find new strength, and they will rise up like eagles on wings; they will run and not get weary, they will walk and not get weary.” Dear saints in the Lord, , Dear members who have felt tired in their lives over the past year! Wasn't there a moment when you just wanted to enter God's eternal rest just like this? Was there ever a time when you felt that you did not have the strength to go further? Young people are no exception. Even older people are tired. The path of life is the same no matter where you go. Dear saints who are walking weary and weary, listen to the prayer that Paul prayed for the Colossae church. “Give me every power, so that I may overflow with strength.”
Second, how does God give all these powers? The third participle, "makes you strong," is a present tense, like the first two participles, "makes it bear fruit and make it grow." Characteristics of the present thalamus are emphasized with continuous meaning. It becomes a supplication that means “continue to abound in strength.” Pray that you will continue to give us strength to deal with every situation we face. Each person's situation is different. Also, the skills required for each job are different. Therefore, there is always a need for us to ask, “to receive every power, and continually to abound in strength.”
Dear saints in the Lord! All abilities are always available for supply. Being empowered is an ongoing experience. We can supply wherever you need it. Ask for the power you need in every day and every time. No one receives so much power all at once when they take the first step of their pilgrimage, they reach their destination. God gives me strength to walk today. God will give you the strength to walk tomorrow. Just as manna is gathered daily in the wilderness, we need to pray daily and pray, “God, pursue and strengthen the power of your glory today.” In this way, the provision that God prepares is promised for every path we must walk. Therefore, the saints confess. “I can do all things through him who strengthens me” (Philippians 4:13).
Dear saints in the Lord! So where do all these powers come from? Do you know how to supply? All power is supplied to us "according to the power of his glory." The source of our strength comes from our Heavenly Father's glorious throne. How is it given to us? It is not simply giving according to our needs. It is abundantly supplied to us according to the glory of God. It is not determined by our needs, but by the ability of the giver to supply.
The power you and I need to live Christian lives in the world must come from the power of the glory of God. Because the true Christian life is not just about doing your best. What we need is no less than the power that God originally possessed. Only the power of God's own glory is needed in our lives. “The glorious power of God” is required for us to live a life pleasing to the Lord on earth. This glorious power of God is the power that fills all the needs of the Colossians. It is the ability to overcome all the situations they face without lack of ability at all times.
Dear brothers and sisters in the Lord, take the time to think about this glorious power. It is the Almighty who has given us a new desire to please the Lord. He is the Almighty who rebukes the wind and calms the sea. He has the power to subdue those possessed by military demons, whom no one can control even chains. He is the Almighty who brings back among men those who lived among the graves.