The results of Christ's intercession

Colossians 1:1-17 from the daily reading in the One Year Bible

Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ by the will of God, and Timothy our brother,

² To the saints and faithful brethren in Christ who are at Colossae: Grace to you and peace from God our Father.

³ We give thanks to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, praying always for you, ⁴ since we heard of your faith in Christ Jesus and the love which you have for all the saints; ⁵ because of the hope laid up for you in heaven, of which you previously heard in the word of truth, the gospel ⁶ which has come to you, just as in all the world also it is constantly bearing fruit and increasing, even as it has been doing in you also since the day you heard of it and understood the grace of God in truth; ⁷ just as you learned it from Epaphras, our beloved fellow bond-servant, who is a faithful servant of Christ on our behalf, ⁸ and he also informed us of your love in the Spirit.

⁹ For this reason also, since the day we heard of it, we have not ceased to pray for you and to ask that you may be filled with the knowledge of His will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding, ¹⁰ so that you will walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, to please Him in all respects, bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God; ¹¹ strengthened with all power, according to His glorious might, for the attaining of all steadfastness and patience; joyously ¹² giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified us to share in the inheritance of the saints in Light.

¹³ For He rescued us from the domain of darkness, and transferred us to the kingdom of His beloved Son, ¹⁴ in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.

¹⁵ He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. ¹⁶ For by Him all things were created, both in the heavens and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things have been created through Him and for Him. ¹⁷ He is before all things, and in Him all things hold together.

In today’s text Paul says:  We have not ceased to pray for you and to ask that you may be filled with the knowledge of His will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding, so that you will walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, to please Him in all respects, bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God; strengthened with all power, according to His glorious might, for the attaining of all steadfastness and patience; joyously  giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified us to share in the inheritance of the saints in Light.    Even better than the prayers of Paul, Romans 8:34 says:  Christ Jesus is He who died, yes, rather who was raised, who is at the right hand of God, who also intercedes for us.   Even now Jesus intercedes for us daily. In John 17:20-26, on the night He was betrayed, Jesus also interceded for us saying:  “I do not ask on behalf of these alone, but for those also who believe in Me through their word; that they may all be one; even as You, Father, are in Me and I in You, that they also may be in Us, so that the world may believe that You sent Me.  The glory which You have given Me I have given to them, that they may be one, just as We are one;  I in them and You in Me, that they may be perfected in unity, so that the world may know that You sent Me, and loved them, even as You have loved Me. Father, I desire that they also, whom You have given Me, be with Me where I am, so that they may see My glory which You have given Me, for You loved Me before the foundation of the world.  “O righteous Father, although the world has not known You, yet I have known You; and these have known that You sent Me; and I have made Your name known to them, and will make it known, so that the love with which You loved Me may be in them, and I in them.”  By far though the greatest intercession the world has known was not a prayer or words at all. It was the act of intercession, when Jesus died for our sins. Through the intercession of the cross, Jesus changed the world, redeeming all of creation from the curse of sin.  

Look again at what Paul says: We have not ceased to pray for you and to ask that you may be filled with the knowledge of His will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding, so that you will walk in a manner  worthy of the Lord, to please Him in all respects, bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God; strengthened with all power, according to His glorious might, for the attaining of all steadfastness and patience; joyously  giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified us to share in the inheritance of the saints in Light.   The purpose for and the result of the intercession is more than only that we are saved. It is also that we would be filled with the knowledge of God’s will. It is that we would walk in a manner worthy of the Lord. If eternal life was to be the only result of the intercession of Jesus on the cross, then when we believed we would die and go to heaven. But the result of Jesus intercession is also that we would please God and bear fruit; that we would attain steadfastness, patience and joyously give thanks to God. Jesus says:  that we would be perfected in unity, so that the world may know that You sent Me, and loved them, even as You have loved Me. 

Paul says: He rescued us from the domain of darkness, and transferred us to the kingdom of His beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.  He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation.  For by Him all things were created, both in the heavens and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things have been created through Him and for Him.  He is before all things, and in Him all things hold together.   Even though we live in this world we have been transferred to the kingdom of heaven. We have dual citizenship, both on earth and in heaven. Jesus taught us to pray saying: Your kingdom come, Your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Jesus is the image of the invisible God and through Christ we have more than redemption and the forgiveness of sins. We are recreated; restored to that same image and likeness. We then should also be the image of God to the world.   

Heavenly Father, Lord Jesus Christ; precious Holy Spirit may I indeed be filled with the knowledge of Your will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding, so that I will walk in a manner  worthy of the Lord, to please You in all respects, bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God; strengthened with all power, according to Your glorious might, for the attaining of all steadfastness and patience; joyously  giving thanks to You, Because You have qualified me to share in the inheritance of the saints in Light, through the intercession of the cross.  Amen.