IS MY LIFE PLEASING TO GOD?

COLOSSIANS 1:9-12: “For this reason also, since the day we heard this, we haven’t stopped praying for you. We are asking that you may be filled with the knowledge of his will in all wisdom and spiritual understanding, so that you may walk worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing to him: bearing fruit in every good work and 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, joyfully giving thanks to the Father, who has enabled you to share in the saints’ inheritance in the light.” CSB

OBSERVATION: Is my life pleasing to God? Another way to ask this question is, “Is my Heavenly Father proud of me?” There is a natural desire within the heart of a child to please their father and to hear these words, “Son (or daughter), I am proud of you!” Even in Jesus’ parables, we see this desire exemplified in the parable of the talents. To the faithful servants who used their master’s resources wisely, we hear these words,

“His master said to him, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant! You were faithful over a few things; I will put you in charge of many things. Share your master’s joy.”Matthew 25:21 CSB

As a child of God, as one redeemed by the precious blood of Jesus Christ, I, too, want to please my Heavenly Father. I want Him to be proud of me. I want to hear the precious words above at the end of my life. Yet, how do I live a life pleasing to the Father? How do I live a life that honors the sacrifice of Jesus Christ? How do I live a life that is in step with the leading of the Holy Spirit? The answer is not found in what I do.

The answer is found in who I become!

Paul’s prayer for the Colossian believers is a blueprint for living a life that is pleasing to the Father. It is not focused on a list of dos and don’ts. This would be a return to the Law and living a life of works righteousness. Our righteousness is found only in Christ alone. Paul is focused on the inner transformation of the heart. It is from the heart that all things emanate. A changed heart will produce a changed life. You can whitewash the outside of the cup, and the inside can be filled with all forms of corruption. However, when you cleanse the inside of the cup, the outside is exposed to this and is changed in turn. Paul begins by praying,

“We are asking that you may be filled with the knowledge of his will…”

The Psalmist writes, “In the presence of the Lord there is fullness of joy!”(Psalms 16:11). Paul prays that the Colossian believers would be filled with the knowledge of the Father’s will. To be in the center of the will of the Father is that which pleases Him the most. To be surrendered to His will for our lives is to rediscover our creative purpose and to position ourselves to reach the full potential for which God created us. In the presence of the Lord, in the center of His will, is the only place that we will find fullness of joy.

How do we find the center of His will?

This is the believer’s quest in life. Each day, I should pray, “Lord, grant me the grace to live in the center of Your will today!” Paul does not stop with just a prayer that the believer should live in the center of God’s will; he also shows us how to do this. There are two things he prays for that are the key to finding the center of God’s will for our lives.

The first is WISDOM.

We all enter life with spiritual nearsightedness. We can only see life up close. We have no visibility into the next day, let alone eternity. Only God can see our beginning and our end. Only God knows the path for our lives that will bring us the most joy. He created us. He has called us. Wisdom is seeing life through God’s eyes and discovering His will. This is not subjective. It is objective and is found in the Bible, God’s Word, His letter of love that reveals the wisdom that is from above. It is only this wisdom that will lead us to the center of God’s will and will produce a life that is pleasing to God.

“But the wisdom from above is first pure, then peace-loving, gentle, compliant, full of mercy and good fruits, unwavering, without pretense.” James 3:17

The second is SPIRITUAL UNDERSTANDING.

What keeps us from falling into the trap of legalism? It is easy to read and use God’s Word in such a way that it produces death rather than life. Paul contrasted one as the letter of the Law versus the newness of the Spirit. Herein is the distinction. Paul is not calling us to a pursuit of God’s Word that is based on wisdom alone. He is calling us to live in God’s will, His revealed truth, in the power and leading of the Holy Spirit. Understanding is the application of wisdom. It is putting into practice the wisdom of God. Yet, we do not do this in our strength or according to our direction. We do this solely and fully in the power and leading of the Holy Spirit!

“For those who live according to the flesh have their minds set on the things of the flesh,  but those who live according to the Spirit have their minds set on the things of the Spirit. Now the mindset of the flesh  is death,  but the mindset of the Spirit is life and peace.” Romans 8:5-6 CSB

So much more could be said about these truths and observations. Suffice it to listen to the benefits Paul outlines for the one who seeks the will of the Father through His Wisdom and Spiritual Understanding.

“…So that you may walk worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing to him: bearing fruit in every good work and 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, joyfully giving thanks to the Father, who has enabled you to share in the saints’ inheritance in the light.” Colossians 1:10-12 CSB

When we seek the wisdom of God, when we surrender to His will, when we allow the Holy Spirit to both empower us and lead us in the application of this will, we find God transforming our lives from the inside out. We are not focused on performance. We are focused on Him! It is the life that desires His will, hungers for wisdom, and walks in the power and leading of the Holy Spirit that is,

• Fully pleasing to Him.

• Bears fruit in every good work.

• Grows in the knowledge of God.

• Strengthened with all power, according to His glorious might.

• Has great endurance and patience.

• Joyfully gives thanks to the Father.

• Fosters love and unity in the church.

Imagine a life, imagine a family, imagine a church that was filled with humble, surrendered, sincere believers who were seeking to be in the center of God’s will, seeking His wisdom, and walking in the power and leading of the Holy Spirit! As I take a moment to imagine this, I am drawn to join with Paul and pray.

Heavenly Father,“We are asking that you may be filled with the knowledge of his will in all wisdom and spiritual understanding, so that you may walk worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing to him: bearing fruit in every good work and 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, joyfully giving thanks to the Father, who has enabled you to share in the saints’ inheritance in the light.”

In Jesus’ Name!