Devote yourselves to prayer, being watchful and thankful. And pray for us, too, that God may open a door for our message, so that we may proclaim the mystery of Christ, for which I am in chains. Pray that I may proclaim it clearly, as I should. Be wise in the way you act toward outsiders; make the most of every opportunity. Let your conversation be always full of grace, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how to answer everyone.

Tychicus will tell you all the news about me. He is a dear brother, a faithful minister and fellow servant in the Lord. I am sending him to you for the express purpose that you may know about our circumstances and that he may encourage your hearts. He is coming with Onesimus, our faithful and dear brother, who is one of you. They will tell you everything that is happening here.

My fellow prisoner Aristarchus sends you his greetings, as does Mark, the cousin of Barnabas. (You have received instructions about him; if he comes to you, welcome him.) Jesus, who is called Justus, also sends greetings. These are the only Jews among my fellow workers for the kingdom of God, and they have proved a comfort to me. Epaphras, who is one of you and a servant of Christ Jesus, sends greetings. He is always wrestling in prayer for you, that you may stand firm in all the will of God, mature and fully assured. I vouch for him that he is working hard for you and for those at Laodicea and Hierapolis. Our dear friend Luke, the doctor, and Demas send greetings. Give my greetings to the brothers at Laodicea, and to Nympha and the church in her house.

After this letter has been read to you, see that it is also read in the church of the Laodiceans and that you in turn read the letter from Laodicea.

Tell Archippus: "See to it that you complete the work you have received in the Lord."

I, Paul, write this greeting in my own hand. Remember my chains. Grace be with you.

Whether we perceive it as another manifestation of true spirituality, or as a customary but nevertheless meaningful exhortation – both would be correct – Paul encourages the Colossians to "devote" themselves to prayer. "Devote" appears to indicate the amount, but here it is better translated as "persist," or as in the ESV, "continue steadfastly." And of course, persistence does increase the amount. In any case, we must not become fearful or discouraged, and give up (Luke 18:1).

Prayer is not just another religious activity to make us feel and appear more spiritual, although this is why many Christians do it. The better ones treat it as an emotional release, but proper prayer is still more than this. As James writes, "You do not have, because you do not ask God" (4:2, also 5:15-16). It can make the difference between having something and not having it. In other words, it matters whether you pray, and whether you pray in faith (James 1:6; Mark 11:24).

Since we are addressing the King of Heaven and not going through some impersonal and mechanical exercise, the attitude with which we pray is paramount. Knowledge, faith, and reverence are essential. Paul stresses watchfulness and gratitude here. Of course we must not fall asleep – that would stop our praying – but he is most likely referring to a spiritual alertness, as in a mental discernment and attentiveness that anticipates the Lord's return, but also results in insight in what to pray for and how to pray for it. This is the opposition of a flippant and distracted mental condition.

All prayer is to be done with a thankful attitude. Some people urge believers to release all their resentment and dissatisfaction against God in prayer, as a child beats against his father's chest in a tearful outburst. In addition to modern psychology, they think that they learned this from the prophets. But what we read is that God rebuked them when they showed doubt and weakness, and he killed off a whole generation of Israelites for complaining against him. It is better to take our lesson from the Bible, than to ignore its record of the fate of past murmurers, and its clear answers to the prophets who cried out in their suffering. We must not use prayer as an excuse to legitimize unbelief or to nurture discontent. Ingratitude is unbecoming to those who know the power of God, the grace of Christ, and the fellowship of the Spirit. I am thankful that God requires us to be thankful.

Among other things, Paul's request for prayer in verses 3 and 4 tells us what is important to him. He wants God to "open a door." Since he writes from prison, some commentators think that this could literally refer to opening the prison door, so that he would be set free. Or, this could metaphorically refer to opportunities to preach. But the latter probably entails the former anyway. In any case, the point is clear, and the same, that Paul wishes for opportunities to preach the gospel.

He also wishes his preaching to possess certain qualities. Here he wishes to make the message clear, and in a parallel passage, he wishes to be fearless (Ephesians 6:19-20). Of course, we may assume that he always wants his preaching to be both clear and fearless. His desire provides us with a worthy model for all believers to emulate, but especially by ministers. We are to be eager to perform the work that God has given us, and this should translate into a desire for opportunities to preach, and then to do it with clarity and boldness. Since many ministers lack both of these qualities, we should regard this as more than just an interesting observation about the inner life of the apostle. Rather, we should covet clarity and boldness in our preaching, and ask our people to petition God day and night so that we may attain.

Paul does not make himself the sole representative of the gospel, but he is aware that believers in general could receive or generate opportunities to advertise the faith as well. But he wishes that they would do this well, and so he exhorts them, "Be wise in the way you act toward outsiders; make the most of every opportunity." To walk in wisdom toward outsiders would mean that "every opportunity is to be snapped up." Wisdom also knows the way to take advantage of an opportunity: "Let your conversation be always full of grace, seasoned with salt, and so that you may know how to answer everyone" (v. 6).

Posted in Expositions | Permanent Link