Young People's Group

THE CHALLENGE TO INCREASE OUR KNOWLEDGE

by Pastor Mitch
January 08, 2015

Thanking God For The Knowledge Of His Grace

We should never stop giving thanks no matter what we go through in life. The apostle Paul did not. In fact, even though he was incarcerated, he still rejoiced in the evidences of salvation of the Colossians.

“We give thanks to God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ”
Colossians 1:3

“As it is also among you since the day you heard and knew the grace of God in truth.”
Colossians 1:6

Paul was deeply thankful not only for his own salvation (1 Timothy 1:12-16) but also for the proof of salvation of others. The phrase “give thanks” in the Greek denotes the idea of being full of gratitude for the grace of God. He was able to consistently give thanks because of the obvious faith and love of the Colossian Church. There was the fruit of love when they heard and knew the grace of God in truth. They did not just have knowledge about Jesus Christ as their Saviour. There was that experiential knowledge of God’s grace in saving them and in working in the hearts of the Colossians to bring about faith, hope and love. This was made possible because they believed in the truth of the gospel. Young people, let’s seek to give thanks when we can recognise the grace of God in saving us and in working in our hearts. Let’s also learn to be thankful when we see it in the faith of others.

Praying For Greater Knowledge In Order To Have Spiritual Maturity

Paul went beyond just giving thanks. He prayed that the Colossian Church might grow in having a deeper knowledge.

1. Having Fullness Of Knowledge Of God’s Will

“Do not cease to pray for you, and to ask that you may be filled with the knowledge of His will in all wisdom and spiritual understanding”
Colossians 1:9

The Colossians were faced with a problem of false teachings infiltrating the Church. Paul knew that one of the ways to deal with this was for the Church to be spiritually mature. They needed to be able to discern between truth and falsehood. In order to do this, the Colossians needed to be filled with a deeper knowledge of the will of God. This deep knowledge of God’s will has to be applied in life and ministry correctly. This is where wisdom and spiritual understanding play a big part. The word “understanding” in the Greek has the idea of “intelligent comprehension”. Young people, let’s pray that we may comprehend and discern His will for our life and ministry.

2. Having Greater Personal Knowledge Of God

“And increasing in the knowledge of God”
Colossians 1:10

With the understanding of the will of God, His servant can walk in the manner of life that is worthy to the Lord. He would seek to be more pleasing to Him and to be fruitful. In the midst of this, there would come an increasing of the knowledge of God. When we are able to do what God wants us to do and we please Him, the Lord would help us discover Him further. There would come a deeper and more personal understanding of who God is and how He does things. This is something we should consistently pray for. Young people, let’s go beyond just having initial faith. Let’s seek to walk worthy of the Lord as we know and do His will. Let’s pray that the Lord would enable us to grow deeper in our knowledge of Him … that we may draw closer to Him.

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