TOPIC: (PRAY FOR BELIEVERS) 

Text: Colossians 4:10-18

10. Aristarchus my fellow prisoner saluteth you, and Marcus, sister’s son to Barnabas, (touching whom ye received commandments; if he come unto you, receive him;)

11. And Jesus, which is called Justus, who are of the circumcision. These only are my fellow workers unto the kingdom of God, which have been a comfort unto me.

12. Epaphras, who is one of you, a servant of Christ, saluteth you, always labouring fervently for you in prayers, that ye may stand perfect and complete in all the will of God.

13. For I bear him record, that he hath a great zeal for you, and them that are in Laodicea, and them in Hierapolis.

14. Luke, the beloved physician, and Demas, greet you.

15. Salute the brethren which are in Laodicea, and Nymphas, and the church which is in his house.

16. And when this epistle is read among you, cause that it be read also in the church of the Laodiceans; and that ye likewise read the epistle from Laodicea.

17. And say to Archippus, Take heed to the ministry which thou hast received in the Lord, that thou fulfil it.

18. The salutation by the hand of me Paul. Remember my bonds. Grace be with you. Amen.

KEY VERSE: Colossians 4:12

“Epaphras, who is one of you, a servant of Christ, saluteth you, always labouring fervently for you in prayers, that ye may stand perfect and complete in all the will of God.” .

MESSAGE

Spiritual fathers and elders have often been instrumental through prayers for the maturing and perfecting of wobbling and, at times, erring believers.

For the Galatian Christians, Paul had to “travail in birth again”, until Christ was formed in them (Galatians 4:19). Abraham interceded for Sodom and for the safety of his estranged nephew, Lot.

Samuel told the children of Israel, “God forbid! that I should sin against the LORD in ceasing to pray for you but I will teach you the good and right way” (1 Samuel 12:23).

In the concluding section of Paul’s letter to the Colossians, he sent the greetings of some of his co-workers in the ministry to them.

They include Aristarchus, John Mark (Marcus), Jesus also called Justus, etc. He also mentioned Epaphras as one labouring fervently in prayers for the Colossian church to be perfect.

He had a great zeal for that church and that of Laodecia, Nymphas and the church in his house.

Archippus was reminded that he had to finish the ministry, which he received from the Lord.

The leaders in the early church gave themselves “continually to prayer and the ministry of the word” (Acts 6:4). Believers must ensure they pray for one another, especially for new converts who “cannot discern between their right hand and their left hand” (Jonah 4:11).

Salvation can be received in a matter of minutes but discipling and maturing the new converts take time, prayer, love and patience.

These last days, when the activities of Satan and his agents are on the increase, God’s people ought to take Christ’s teaching, “that men ought always to pray and not to faint” more seriously.

Instead of complaining that the brethren are not living up to expectation, we should pray for them. Fervent prayers will certainly bring solution to lukewarmness and lethargy in the church.

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY:
Prayer helps believers to stand strong.

THE BIBLE IN ONE YEAR:
Isaiah 5-8

Daily Manna is the daily devotional of the Deeper Christian Life Bible Ministry (DCLM). It is an extraction of God’s Word designed to draw the sincere seeker closer to God on a daily basis through an insightful exposition and analysis of God’s Word.