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Colossians 1: 10, 11 And we pray this in
order that you may live a life worthy of the Lord and may please him in every
way: bearing fruit in every good work, growing in the knowledge of God, being
strengthened with all power according to his glorious might so that you may have
great endurance and patience.
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The despair of attempting to please a God who is never satisfied and always demanding more results in rebellion, not joyful service.* |
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I had a friend who was the epitome of a “backslider.” He was once very active in the church, serving as an elder, Bible school teacher, and church treasurer. When he was facing a personal crisis in his new churchless life, his wife asked me to pray for him. I said, “I will. But he probably won’t like what I’m going to ask for.” I prayed about the condition of his soul, not just about his physical concerns.
When Paul prayed for his friends, he prayed for the stuff that matters. For the Colossians, he prayed that they would live a life worthy of the Lord and that they would please him in every way. Do you think they were happy to hear that? What comes to your mind when you think of what pleases God? You might think of external factors such as:
But Paul doesn’t mention anything from this list. He has a list of his own. To please God in every way, he says we need to:
The writer of Hebrews adds that it pleases God when we do good and share with others (Hebrews 13: 16). Perhaps pleasing God is not as complicated as we tend to make it. Pleasing God is not a matter of checking items off of a to-do list and expecting a pat on the head. Perhaps pleasing God is as simple as wanting to please him. When you set out to live a God-pleasing life, you will begin to see a change in your values, and others will start to see changes in your behavior* as you are strengthened with all power according to his glorious might.
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We don’t bear spiritual fruit in order to get right with God. Rather, when we are right with God, we will bear spiritual fruit.* |
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