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#4.
The apostle's prayer (1: 9-12).
pp. 205 - 209
The three great epistles, Ephesians, Philippians and Colossians, contain the prayers of
the apostle for the members of the body of Christ, each prayer reflecting something of the
special teaching of the epistle. The prayer of Col. 1: 9-12 is for a fruitful and spiritual
walk. The answer to it is in measure indicated in Col. 3: 16 - 4: 1, a section which we
have headed in the structure on page 57, "Indwelling Word for a spiritual walk".
Before we turn our attention to the prayer itself, we will demonstrate the balance of
the two passages, and the justification for their place in the structure:--
Col. 1: 9-12.
Col. 3: 16 - 4: 1.
"In all wisdom."
"In all wisdom."
"Spiritual understanding."
"Spiritual songs."
"Every good work."
"In word or work."
"Giving thanks unto the Father."
"Giving thanks to God and the Father."
"Unto all pleasing."
"This is well pleasing."
"Made meet for the inheritance."
"The reward of the inheritance."
In his prayer, Paul asks for the Colossians that they "may be filled with a knowledge
of His will, in all wisdom and spiritual understanding". That this deep and spiritual
wisdom is not something separated from the Word of God itself the balancing passage
shews: "Let the Word of Christ dwell in you richly; teaching and admonishing one
another in all wisdom" (Col. 3: 16). Prayer for spiritual illumination must go hand in
hand with the Word of God. To imagine a spirituality that is independent of Scripture is
to entertain a false view, and is likely to lead to "excess" and self-deception.
"Spiritual understanding" and "spiritual songs" are in these two passages in
correspondence. To the Corinthians the apostle wrote: "I will pray with the spirit, and I
will pray with the understanding also: I will sing with the spirit, and I will sing with the
understanding also" (I Cor. 14: 15). While it is true that he uses here the word nous,
"mind" instead of sunesis, "understanding", the lesson is similar in the two cases. A
spiritual understanding will express itself in appropriate spiritual songs. It will reject
those hymns which use the name "Jesus" in too familiar a way. It will not in its
hymnbook any more than in its doctrine confuse the "Bride" and the "Body", "Zion" and
the "Church". It will not sing, "One Lord, one faith, one birth", when Scripture says,
"One Lord, one faith, one baptism", for baptismal regeneration is a false doctrine. It will
not confess that the dead in Christ are asleep, awaiting the awakening of resurrection, and
deny this truth by singing about the activities and glories of those loved ones who have
fallen asleep in Christ.
The scope of this "worthy" walk is seen in the corresponding section, which embraces
wives and husbands, fathers and children, servants and masters. One part of what is
implied in the words "unto all pleasing" is found in the obedience of children to their