... so as to walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing to him: bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God; – Colossians 1:10 

Scripture reading: Colossians 1:9-14

As members of the body of Christ, Christians, through their union with Christ, have been redeemed and qualified to share in the inheritance of the saints in the light of the Father of the Lord Jesus Christ. In Christ, they have been rescued from the kingdom of darkness and transferred into the kingdom of light. Through the bond of the Holy Spirit, they are already seated with Christ in heaven (Ephesians 2:6).

Because Christians are in Christ, they need to live a life worthy of Him: bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God. This means that, through faith, they need to put on the Lord Jesus Christ like a garment and live in Him, remain in Him when they encounter trials, and mature in Him, for He is the source of being able to live a life worthy of being in Him. When they do, He will be pleased with them.

For this, we need to be filled with the knowledge of the will of the Father of the Lord Jesus Christ. While we cannot know His will exhaustively, God can fill us with adequate knowledge of what He wants us to believe and how He wants us to live, i.e. having spiritual wisdom and understanding as we live and have our being in the Scriptures. The more we are filled with this, the more we will find ourselves leading a life worthy of being in Christ. Paul regularly prays this for the Colossian Christians. Are you praying this for yourself and your congregation?

Suggestions for prayer

Ask your heavenly Father to fill you with knowledge of His will so that you and your congregation can live lives worthy of being in Christ.

This daily devotional is available in a print edition you can buy at Nearer to God Devotional. Rev. Dick Moes is pastor emeritus of the Surrey Covenant Reformed Church in Surrey, BC.