Faith, Love, Hope

Categories: god

Tags: Church, Christ, Bible, Evangelical, Advent, Prayer

Date: 07 December 2012 13:27:36

Blogging through Advent 5

Faith, Love. Hope

Colossians 1:9-14

I come from an Evangelical tradition in Christianity. One of the ways that shows is in preaching through a book of the Bible. Another is the use of testimonies. Have you ever heard the sort of testimony that says, “I used to have all kinds of problems in my life but then I accepted Jesus and everything was wonderful?” I have. And I don’t like then because they are dishonest. This is what St Paul says:

9 For this cause, we also, since the day we heard this, don’t cease praying and making requests for you, that you may be filled with the knowledge of his will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding, 10 that you may walk worthily of the Lord, to please him in all respects, bearing fruit in every good work, and increasing in the knowledge of God; 11 strengthened with all power, according to the might of his glory, for all endurance and perseverance with joy; 12 giving thanks to the Father, who made us fit to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in light; 13 who delivered us out of the power of darkness, and translated us into the Kingdom of the Son of his love; 14 in whom we have our redemption, the forgiveness of our sins;

Fortunately Paul tells it like it is here: There is none of the 'become a Christian and everything will be great' stuff from Paul he is far more realistic. If you are a Christian you will have problems. This is why he prays for them at the beginning of his letter. In the first we saw what Paul commends in the Colossian Christians for their faith hope and love. Now he prays for them. He prays with thanks. Prayer should always be with thanks. Do not rush too fast into all the needs people have, take time to thank God as you pray. prayer is more than a shopping list of what we want for ourselves or for others.

A prayer:

This is what Paul prays for: That they will be filled with knowledge to walk worthily - the more we know God the more we will do what he wants. That we will be filled with knowledge to please him in all respects - the more we know God the more we will do what makes him happy. That we will be filled with knowledge to bear fruit - the more we know God the more we will bear fruit. It is important that we spend time in Bible study in order to know about God, and in prayer, meditation and Bible study in order to bring what we know into reality into our lives inwardly, then we need to act it out practically in order that it will take root in our lives. Paul also prays that they will be strengthened with power to endure. Being a Christian isn’t easy. We need God’s power and strength to endure. We’re not supposed to go it alone. Then in the prayer Paul recaps on what he said about faith, love and hope. But this time it is about the Father. We have hope in the fuure because the father has made us partakers of his inheritance. We are delivered from the power of darkness through faith in what God has achieved in Christ. And we are citizens of the kingdom of the love of the Son. Hope. Faith. Love. We need all three.