Replies

From: Colossians 1:9-14

Prayer for Advancement in Holiness; Exhortation to Gratitude

[9] And so, from the day we heard of it, we have not ceased to pray for you, as-
king that you may be filled with the knowledge of his will in all spiritual wisdom
and understanding, [10] to lead a life worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing to him,
bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God. [11]
May you be strengthened with all power, according to his glorious might, for all
endurance and patience with joy, [12] giving thanks to the Father, who has qua-
lified us to share in the inheritance of the saints in light. [13] He has delivered
us from the dominion of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of his belo-
ved Son, [14] in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.

*********************************************************************************************
Commentary:

9-11. Knowledge that the brethren are advancing on the way to holiness gives
Paul joy and also leads him to intensify his prayer and encourage them to keep
up their effort. St John Chrysostom explains this with a graphic example: “Just
as at the racecourse the shouts to encourage the riders increase the nearer they
get to the finish, so the Apostle vigorously encourages those faithful who are clo-
sest to perfection” (”Hom. on Col, 2, ad loc.”).

The Apostle asks God to fill the Colossians with knowledge of his will (v. 9), and
he puts particular emphasis on their needing the Holy Spirit to enlighten them
with his gifts of wisdom and understanding, to enable them to distinguish good
teaching from the misleading teaching of the false apostles; this insight should
express itself in all kinds of good works: as St Thomas comments, “it is not en-
ough to have knowledge, for he who knows what is the right thing to do and fails
to do it commits sin (cf. Jas 4:17); therefore, one must need to perform virtuous
actions” (”Commentary on Col, ad loc.”). Christians therefore should always rely
on God to strengthen them to do good; if they do so, they will always be happy.

“To lead a life” (v. 10): literally, “to make your way”, a typical Hebrew expression
often used in Sacred Scripture. Leading a life worthy of the Lord means keeping
his commandments, acting in a way that reflects the dignity of God who created
us and made us his children through grace, and who watches all our doings with
fatherly affection; it means being very faithful to our Christian calling, which leaves
us in our place (cf. 1 Cor 7:21-24) but requires us to bear “fruit in every good work”.

12-14. “The dominion of darkness”: the condition of enslavement to the devil of a
person in the state of sin. As is frequent in Sacred Scripture (cf. Is 58:10; Jn 12:
35; 1 Jn 1:5; 2:8; 2 Cor 6:14; Rom 13:11-14; Eph 5:7-13), the simile of movement
from darkness to light is used to refer to “redemption” or the change from a condi-
tion of sin to one of righteousness and friendship with God, which is effected by
infusion of sanctifying grace (cf. St Thomas, “Commentary on Col, ad loc.”).

“Light”: this is a symbol of the risen Christ and also of the abundance of graces
which he won for mankind in his Easter Mystery. It also describes the whole en-
semble of supernatural benefits which grace brings with it—goodness, righteous-
ness (or holiness) and truth (cf. Eph 5:9), which lead to the glory of heaven (cf.
2 Cor 4:6). Hence the “rite of light”, so richly a symbol of supernatural realities,
which has formed part of baptismal liturgy since the first centuries.

The struggle between light and the power of darkness is referred to in many pas-
sages of Sacred Scripture (cf. Jn 1:5, 9-11). Darkness means both evil and the
power of the Evil One. Before the redemption took place, all men—as a conse-
quence of original sin and their personal sins — were slaves to sin; this slavery
darkened their minds and made it difficult for them to know God, who is the true
light. Christ our Lord, by carrying out the redemption and obtaining forgiveness
for our sins (cf. v. 14), rescued us from the kingdom of darkness from the tyran-
ny of the Evil One, and brought us into the kingdom of light, the kingdom of truth
and justice, of love and of peace (cf. “Preface for the Solemnity of Christ the
King”), enabling us to enjoy “the glorious freedom of the children of God” (Rom
8:21).

“His beloved Son”: the Hebrew expression “Son of his love”, which is paralleled
in the Greek, is one of the ways Jesus Christ is referred to in the New Testament
(cf. Mt 12:6; Lk 20:13). A variation, “my Son, the Beloved”, is spoken by the
voice from heaven, that is, by the Father, at Jesus’ baptism (cf. Mt 3:17; Mk 1:
11; Lk 3:22) and at the Transfiguration (cf. Mt 17:5; Mk 9:7; Lk 9:35).

By speaking in this way St Paul, like St John, is underlining the fact that “God
is love” (1 Jn 4:8). God’s love for us was made manifest by his sending his only
Son into the world so that we might live through him (cf. 1 Jn 4:9). By dying on
the Cross he won life for us; by redeeming us with his blood he obtained forgive-
ness for our sins (cf. Col 1:14; Eph 2:4ff): “He revealed to us that God is love,
and he gave us the ‘new commandment’ of love (Jn 13:34), at the same time
communicating to us the certainty that the path of love is open for all people, so
that the effort to establish universal brotherhood is not a vain one (cf. “Gaudium
Et Spes”, 38). By conquering through his death on the Cross evil and the power
of sin, by his loving obedience he brought salvation to all” (Bl. John Paul II, “Re-
conciliatio Et Paenitentia”, 10).

On the meaning of “redemption” and “forgiveness of sins”, see the note on Eph
1:7-8.

12. We Christians should be grateful to God for his great mercy in deigning to
free us from the power of the devil, forgiving our sins and making us worthy to
“share in the inheritance of the saints”. We have benefited in so many ways: “In
addition to the gift itself, he also gives us the power we need so receive it [...].
God has not only honored us by making us share in the inheritance, but has
made us worthy to possess it. And so we receive a double honor from God —
firstly, the position itself; and secondly, the capacity to measure up to it” (Chry-
sostom, “Hom. on Col, ad loc.”).

Our sharing in “the inheritance of the saints” enables us to draw on the treasury
of spiritual goods which the Church is continually applying to its members — pra-
yers, sacrifices and all kinds of meritorious actions, which benefit every Christian.
This “inheritance of the saints”—in which we begin to share in this present life —
will be found in its full and permanent form by those who attain everlasting joy.
The grace of conversion originates in God’s loving kindness. “Prior to God’s gift
of grace, although not every man might be sinful there is nothing that he does or
can do which would merit forgiveness or the grace of God. You must realize”, St
John of Avila says, “that it is God who has brought you out of darkness into his
wonderful light [...]. And what caused him to do so was not your past merits or
any service you have rendered him, but his kindness alone and the merits of our
only mediator, Jesus Christ our Lord” (”Audi, Filia”, 65).

*********************************************************************************************
Source: “The Navarre Bible: Text and Commentaries”. Biblical text from the
Revised Standard Version and New Vulgate. Commentaries by members of
the Faculty of Theology, University of Navarre, Spain.

Published by Four Courts Press, Kill Lane, Blackrock, Co. Dublin, Ireland, and
by Scepter Publishers in the United States.