Fathers

Colossians 1

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Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus through the will of God, and Timothy our brother, to the saints and faithful brothers in Christ at Colossae: Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. We give thanks to God the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, praying always for you, having heard of your faith in Christ Jesus and of the love which you have toward all the saints, because of the hope which is laid up for you in the heavens, of which you heard before in the word of the truth of the Good News which has come to you, even as it is in all the world and is bearing fruit and growing, as it does in you also, since the day you heard and knew the grace of God in truth, even as you learned of Epaphras our beloved fellow servant, who is a faithful servant of Christ on your behalf, who also declared to us your love in the Spirit. For this cause, we also, since the day we heard this, don’t cease praying and making requests for you, that you may be filled with the knowledge of his will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding, that you may walk worthily of the Lord, to please him in all respects, bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God, strengthened with all power, according to the might of his glory, for all endurance and perseverance with joy, giving thanks to the Father, who made us fit to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in light, who delivered us out of the power of darkness, and translated us into the Kingdom of the Son of his love, in whom we have our redemption, the forgiveness of our sins. He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. For by him all things were created in the heavens and on the earth, visible things and invisible things, whether thrones or dominions or principalities or powers. All things have been created through him and for him. He is before all things, and in him all things are held together. He is the head of the body, the assembly, who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, that in all things he might have the preeminence. For all the fullness was pleased to dwell in him, and through him to reconcile all things to himself by him, whether things on the earth or things in the heavens, having made peace through the blood of his cross. You, being in past times alienated and enemies in your mind in your evil deeds, yet now he has reconciled in the body of his flesh through death, to present you holy and without defect and blameless before him, if it is so that you continue in the faith, grounded and steadfast, and not moved away from the hope of the Good News which you heard, which is being proclaimed in all creation under heaven, of which I, Paul, was made a servant. Now I rejoice in my sufferings for your sake, and fill up on my part that which is lacking of the afflictions of Christ in my flesh for his body’s sake, which is the assembly, of which I was made a servant according to the stewardship of God which was given me toward you to fulfill the word of God, the mystery which has been hidden for ages and generations. But now it has been revealed to his saints, to whom God was pleased to make known what are the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory. We proclaim him, admonishing every man and teaching every man in all wisdom, that we may present every man perfect in Christ Jesus; for which I also labor, striving according to his working, which works in me mightily.

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What the Fathers say

Colossians 1:10

Eastern Fathers

John Chrysostom

"Bearing fruit," he saith: this hath reference to works. "Strengthened": this to trials. "Unto all patience and longsuffering": long-suffering towards one another, patience towards those without. For longsuffering is toward those whom we can requite, but patience toward those whom we cannot. …

Homily on Colossians 2 ↗

Theophylact of Ohrid

I pray, he says, that you may come to know that the Only-Begotten saved you, so that you would walk worthily, that is, live virtuously. For whoever has come to know the love of God for mankind and that He delivered His Son for us, how would such a person not strive to deliver himself to the labors of virtue and take up his cross? For the word "to walk" (περιπατήσαι – to walk, to go about constantly), as has been said, denotes life and activity. And everywhere he joins activity with faith. …

Commentary on Colossians ↗

Clement of Alexandria

For there is an instruction of the perfect, of which, writing to the Colossians, he says, "We cease not to pray for you, and beseech that ye may be filled with the knowledge of His will in all wisdom and spiritual understanding; that ye may walk worthy of the Lord to all pleasing; being fruitful in every good work, and increasing in the knowledge of God; strengthened with all might according to the glory of His power." And again he says, "According to the disposition of the grace of God which is given me, that ye may fulfil the word …

The Stromata Book 5 ↗

Western Saints

Thomas Aquinas

Further, knowledge by itself is not enough, because "Whoever knows what is right to do and fails to do it, for him it is sin" (Jas. 4:17). And therefore, it is necessary to act according to virtue. He touches on this when he says, to lead a life worthy of the Lord, for one lives unworthily if he does not live as is fitting for a son of God to live: "As servants of God we commend ourselves in every way: through great endurance, in afflictions, hardships..." (2 Cor. 6:4); "As we solemnly forewarned you" (1 Th 4:6). …

Commentary on Colossians ↗