How to Fight Against Sin: A 5-Day Devotion From ColossiansSample

DAY 3: Walk in Victory Over Sin

When Paul prays that the believers will be strengthened with God’s power, he has a particular reason in mind. He knows they need God’s power to patiently endure with joy and thanksgiving (vv. 11-12), and considering Paul was in prison chains at the time of writing this letter, he knew firsthand the need for God’s help to persevere (Col. 1:24; 4:18).

Life isn’t easy, and because of sin’s effect on creation, life is often full of suffering. We encounter trials and challenges. We face temptation and experience the fallout of our own choices and the choices of others. We have questions, and we don’t always get answers in this life. Our relationships can be challenging, our jobs challenging, and our health challenging. Life isn’t easy, and being a Christian isn’t easy. We aren’t understood by culture, and we often aren’t liked by culture.

But we’re not called to keep our heads down and just wait out our lives. We’re to live as though we’re on the winning side, not the losing one. We operate from a position of victory, which we have because of Christ (Rom. 8:37). But how do we do this?

We need endurance and patience for this life, and we need God’s strength for this, especially if we’re to patiently endure with joy and thanksgiving! But practically, joy and thanksgiving are what enable us to persevere with hope. 

Joy and thanksgiving aren’t passively received but actively sought. How can you cultivate joy and thanksgiving in your life, even during the hard days and tough seasons? What things can you give “thanks to the Father” about (v. 12)? Colossians 1:12-14 lists some things we as Christians can express thanks for, no matter our circumstances:

Because of God, we have a heavenly inheritance (v. 12).

God “has delivered us from the domain of darkness” (v. 13).

God has “transferred us to the kingdom of his beloved Son” (v. 13).

Because of Christ, we have redemption and are forgiven of our sins (v. 14).

What encouragement and hope resides in these statements! A new future, a new life, and a new family—we deserve none of the things described in Colossians 1:12-14. They are God’s gracious gifts to those who trust in Christ as Savior and Lord, and gratitude and worship is our fitting response. 

“Increasing in the knowledge of God” (v. 10) and giving thanks for what we learn about Him builds our resiliency, enabling us to recover after a crisis or season of suffering. It can be easy to be consumed with the difficulties of our present circumstances, but because of Christ, we are never without hope.