Bearing
Fruit
Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by
the will of God, and Timothy our brother, To the
saints and faithful brothers and sisters in Christ in
In our prayers for you we always thank
God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, for we have heard of your faith in
Christ Jesus and of the love that you have for all the saints, because of the
hope laid up for you in heaven. You have heard of this hope before in the word
of the truth, the gospel that has come to you. Just as it is bearing fruit and
growing in the whole world, so it has been bearing fruit among yourselves from
the day you heard it and truly comprehended the grace of God. This you learned
from Epaphras, our beloved fellow servant. He is a
faithful minister of Christ on your behalf, and he has made known to us your
love in the Spirit.
For this reason, since the day we
heard it, we have not ceased praying for you and asking that you may be filled
with the knowledge of God’s will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding, so
that you may lead lives worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing to him, as you bear
fruit in every good work and as you grow in the knowledge of God. May you be
made strong with all the strength that comes from his glorious power, and may
you be prepared to endure everything with patience, while joyfully giving
thanks to the Father, who has enabled you to share in the inheritance of the
saints in the light.
The letters of the apostle Paul
overflow with affection and gratitude for his friends. In his letter to the
Colossians, he constantly encouraged their walk with Christ. Any friendship can
be a gift from God. But nothing runs deeper than relationships of those who
share a bond in Jesus Christ. In fact, in Jesus, friendships are treasures that
will last forever.
A true friend
is a gift from God.
Our Daily
Bread –