Developing Spiritual Wisdom & Understanding—Colossians 1:9-12

On Being a Disciple—The Cycle of Spiritual Maturity
Developing Spiritual Wisdom & Understanding—Colossians 1:9-12

Do you know the difference in knowledge and wisdom, or knowledge and understanding? You see, Paul prays for the Colossians to not only be filled with the “knowledge of His will” in Colossians 1:9, but also for it to be “in all spiritual wisdom and understanding”. In other words, having a head full of knowledge is not enough! God desires for us to grasp how to apply the knowledge we have to the things we face in this life in light of the spiritual realm! Spiritual maturity comes from learning about the things of God and then recognizing how those things provide guidance for the situations we face in this earthly realm.

How often do we go through experiences that are wasted because we are not prepared or disciplined enough to learn the lessons they could teach us? How many times do we have to learn lessons two, three, four times because we did not take the knowledge the situation was supplying and apply it to who our God is and what this means in the spiritual realm?
For instance, how many lessons do you think Judas heard about not being able to serve God and mammon; or about storing up treasure in this life and not being rich toward God? Yet, John tells us clearly at the end of Jesus’ ministry that Judas was a thief who used to pilfer money from the moneybox the apostles had with them (John 12:6). Surely, he could have repeated many of the lessons Jesus had taught in his presence! So, why didn’t they change his behavior? It appears Judas had a really hard time discerning the spiritual implications behind Jesus’ teachings and missed out on a grand scale!

LOOK! The Scriptures are loaded with stories where people had the teachings of God before them and somehow missed out on the real meaning behind them! What part of, “Thou shall not make any graven images” did Aaron misunderstand? Yet 40 days without Moses, and a mob that is getting impatient and possibly unruly can sure affect one’s spiritual perception—Right, Jesus? Solomon was given a gift of wisdom by God that led to him becoming the most powerful, wealthy and influential king, perhaps of all time. So, what happened? Remember, it is a Spiritual Maturity CYCLE!!! We are called to continue through the process of learning the knowledge of the will of God in all spiritual wisdom and understanding so it becomes part of our walk and then bears fruit over and over again. Somehow the process was short-circuited in the life of Solomon as he chased after women, riches and other things that took his heart away from God.

Do you see what Paul was praying for? He was praying for our eyes to be opened to the spiritual realm so we evaluate everything according to this perspective. Spiritual maturity is an impossibility without this! So, as you face the trials, frustrations, and even the joys of this upcoming week, may you take the time to consider how they apply to this world AND how they prepare you for life in the next. That is true wisdom and understanding!

-Scott