COLOSSIANS 1:9-12 – And so, from the day we heard, we have not ceased to pray for you, asking that you may be filled with the knowledge of his will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding, 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; being strengthened with all power, according to his glorious might, for all endurance and patience with joy; giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of the saints in light.”
THEME OF THE DAY: THE BACKBONES IN THE CHRISTIAN LIFE. I was seated at our dining room table having breakfast with the chef who is my beloved wife. During our conversation and eating, I picked up a flyer laying on the table. It was one of those pieces of mail, unwanted, that shows up regularly. There was nothing that interested me, but one page caught my attention. I showed it to Joy saying, “Well, this identifies a predominant attitude and practice in our world, doesn’t it?” It was a full-page ad picturing a large screen television with equally large letters reading, “Can’t wait to get it? Then don’t.” Below the large print was the fine print – “Buy now, pay later. Monthly payment plans are available for purchases over $99.00.” The loud message from the advertisement is . . . “No need to be patient. No need to discipline oneself. Go for it. Pay later. Enjoy the pleasure now.” And this has an equally loud statement in our spiritual lives, a statement of warning.
In today’s scripture, the Apostle Paul prays for the Colossian believers. Ponder the spiritual depths in his petitions. And not only ponder them but add them to your own prayer life. As these petitions unfold, they build on each other pointing to the end goal of all – life of endurance and patience with joy in the spirit of thanksgiving. Aren’t these really the “backbones” of Christianity? We are called to be an enduring people; enduring persecution for Christ’s sake, enduring the exhausting labor in the Gospel, enduring the daily battles against the world, sin, and Satan, and enduring the many temptations seeking to distract us from the pursuit of holiness. But we cannot overlook the second backbone – patience and this is a daily challenge.
Patience is in short supply in our world. Even Christians are not isolated from the negative influences of a world greatly impatient. Like the world, we simply don’t do well waiting on things. Whether it be toward materialism, that new thing we want, maybe even covet, or the delay in God’s answering prayers that are cries of lament coming from the pain in a difficult situation, circumstance, and relationship, we struggle with waiting. Too easily, the advertisement for a television – “Can’t wait to get it? Then don’t”, describes our spiritual walk. And the way this is often manifested is in our grumbling and complaining. When those attitudes become manifested in in our lives, one of two things is happening. First, we are rebelling against God’s sovereignty. We don’t like what He is doing in our lives. The other thing about grumbling and complaining, it reveals the sin of impatience. We simply don’t want to wait on God and His timetable in our lives. The danger with impatience spiritually is it won’t allow the development of submission to God’s sovereignty and will. And without submission, there is no spiritual growth, and a large part of submission is patience.
So, the backbones in the Christian life. Paul prayers for them and so should we – endurance and patience. May God help us not only pray for them but be an answer to our prayers by seeking to live with all endurance and deepening patience.
PRAYER: “Father, forgive me when I allow the sin of impatience to exercise itself in my life.”
QUOTE: “Patience is a Fruit of the Spirit necessary for all and any spiritual growth.”
Because of Him,
Pastor Jim