Colossians 1:10 (ESV) … “so as to walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing to him: bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God…”
live in a manner worthy The purpose of having knowledge, wisdom, and insight is not to boast or brag, but to love God and others, thereby reflecting His image in the world.
knowledge of God Refers to experiential knowledge, not just intellectual understanding. As believers trust and obey God’s will, they become more acquainted with God’s ways—and with God Himself.[1]
The word walk is used in the epistles to describe the activities of the Christian life. It refers to “the outward life that men see.” If that outward life is pleasing to God, it will be beyond criticism by men. Step by step, we walk through each day. We should see to it that every step is pleasing to the Lord. Because the word for “walk” here is in the aorist tense, it can be rendered “to set out walking.” This would suggest making a fresh start, a new departure. It is never too late to make that new departure from our old, worldly, carnal ways and to begin a closer walk with God.
The expression fully pleasing to him carries the idea of “meeting all of His wishes.” The word used is areskeia. It occurs only here. This word was sometimes used in a bad sense. It carried the idea of a cringing and subservient spirit, a willingness to do anything to please a superior, even an eagerness to anticipate his most trivial wishes. The apostle rescues the word from its ignoble connections. The child of God is pointed to the Lord Jesus Christ, He who took his place at Calvary and who has the nail prints in His hands. He is invited to anticipate his beloved Master’s every wish, to do studiously anything and everything to satisfy the desires of His heart.[2]
[1] Barry, J. D., Mangum, D., Brown, D. R., Heiser, M. S., Custis, M., Ritzema, E., … Bomar, D. (2012, 2016). Faithlife Study Bible (Col 1:10). Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press. [2] Phillips, J. (2009). Exploring Colossians & Philemon: An Expository Commentary (Col 1:10a). Kregel Publications; WORDsearch Corp.