Participation

6.15.2010

Colossians 1:24 24 Now I rejoice in my sufferings for your sake, and in my flesh I am filling up what is lacking in Christ’s afflictions for the sake of his body, that is, the church... ESV

There is nothing lacking in Jesus’ finished work on the cross and in His resurrection; it’s a completely done deal. So what could the apostle mean when he says he rejoices in his sufferings for their sake, and in his body he is filling up what is lacking in Christ’s afflictions for the sake of His body, that is, the church?

I think we need to think of it this way – what Jesus did for us on the cross and by His resurrection was accomplished in a place in time when many of us weren’t present – darn near all of us. So it isn’t that His suffering for us was insufficient, it’s that our experience of His suffering apart from Him that is lacking. Suffering for Christ and for the sake of the Church is to be the real experience of every child of God because of the hatred and misunderstanding of natural men for the truth; and because the Kingdom of God smacks up against the ebb and flow of the world.

And, as Jesus procured salvation for us through His suffering, it’s fitting that our complete experience of His precious gift be consummated through the same kind of suffering that He experienced, save the cross. We’re going to suffer by carrying our own cross and dying to self that we may truly become His disciples and fully participate in His plans and purposes for our lives in this present age. We’re going to suffer for our faith in Him which the world vehemently decries as useless, ridiculous nonsense, and then persecutes those who dare not agree.

Father in Heaven,

Your love for me and Jesus’ life for me isn’t lacking anything but my experience of it and His experience included suffering. Suffering isn’t a bother or nuisance – it’s a gift from to help me keep my eyes and my faith in the right direction. May I fill up what is lacking in Christ’s afflictions in my life that I may truly serve and participate in Your will for my life – I pray in His Name, amen.