Walk the walk

Colossians 1:10

“So as to walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing to Him, bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God.”

ESV: “so as” the wisdom and understanding (v.9) would then lead to changed lives, for it would enable Christians “to walk in a manner worthy of the Lord”. “to walk” is a Jewish metaphor for conducting or behaving oneself. It corresponds to the Hebrew term halak. The rabbis had an entire al tradition, later written down, called Hlakah, that guided them in their behavior. As a former rabbi, Paul calls believers “to walk” not according to oral traditions of Judaism but in a way that is fully pleasing to the Lord JC. Although Christians are completely justified from the moment of initial saving faith, they are not fully sanctified and they can do things that either please or displease God each day. Every good work is here viewed as the fruit of salvation in the life of a Christian, not as a prerequisite for entering a relationship with Christ. Paul’s reference to bearing fruit…and increasing brings to mind the parable of the sower (Mark 4:1-9, 13-20). The seed sown on the good soil bore fruit 30, 60 and 100 fold.

What does it mean to please God? Following the 10 commandments? Well, yeah. I mean those are good “rules to live by” but I mean that’s not all that God wants us to do. Walking in a manner worthy of the Lord is what pleases God. Conforming to the image of His Son on a daily basis is what pleases Him. Bearing fruit in every good work is about not just saying you know Jesus but actually living Jesus. Living Jesus is not easy, especially in this day in time. But as believers we are called to do it. So pull yourself up by the bootstrap and be like Nike and just do it. Increasing in the knowledge of God just means to pursue Christ and pursue Him hard. He’s pursuing you hard, so you should do the same for Him.