A Thing Called Time

6/15/2016

Colossians 1. 24 Now I rejoice in what I am suffering for you, and I fill up in my flesh what is still lacking in regard to Christ’s afflictions, for the sake of his body, which is the church. – St. Paul

Years ago, I read a book entitled, The Hard Sayings of Jesus. It was a pretty good read, and although I expected the author to give me explanations of Jesus’ words with pinpoint accuracy, what I got was more along the lines of: It sounds like that, but Jesus may have been saying this… I still liked the book and would like to find it again and restore it to my collection of good reads.

St. Paul also had some apparent hard sayings; things that were easily mistaken or taken out of context. The above, I think, is one of those sayings. But I think what we read needs to be carefully considered because of a thing called, time.

Jesus, Almighty God, dwelt among men in the flesh and experienced space and time. The Eternal God, gave up His rights as God, and became a man, and lived in space and time and experienced sunrises and sunsets, the cold and the hot of days; hunger, thirst and everything else that goes with it. And Jesus was arrested, physically mistreated, crucified, and killed. He was buried, and after three days rose again. That’s why, in Colossians 1.18 Paul says, He was the firstborn from the dead; the first One to break free from the grip of death upon mankind.

And Jesus established His Church on earth, left His apostles in charge, and ascended to Heaven where He rules and reigns until He returns again. And, St. Paul was one of those Apostles. So, as Paul went about planting churches all through Asia Minor, Greece, and other parts of his area, he did so after Jesus was ascended up to heaven. Very important that we remember that: after.

Now for Paul to say that he was, filling up in his flesh what was still lacking in regard to Christ’s afflictions; he wasn’t saying that Jesus was lacking, he was saying that those who’d come along after Jesus was ascended, lacked in time, what Jesus completely completed for them, in time, previously. There is nothing lacking in what Jesus did for us except this: our present experience of it…

Every person who is born, lacks what Jesus accomplished until he meets Jesus and experiences it. Every person who meets Jesus and experiences what He did only experiences it in stages, and continues to do so until, he too, is resurrected and meets Jesus – finally – face-to-face. It isn’t what Jesus lacks, it’s what we lack. And every day we live, in Him, is a day of filling up what is still lacking in regard to the Lord’s afflictions in our present lives. It’s us, not Him.

So, today, is a day for me to be filled up more with what is lacking in my Lord’s afflictions, in me. Today is a new day of experiencing His presence and provision for all that I lack, not because He hasn’t provided it, but because I haven’t yet experienced it. Time is a present factor in our salvation and that is why Paul also said: [make] the most of every opportunity, because the days are evil. It’s up to me to experience what is lacking in Christ’s experience, in time, in me.

Lord, Have Thine own way; Thou art the Potter, I am the clay. Mold me and make me, after Thy will, while I am living, yielded and still. Jesus, You are complete, I am unfinished. Complete me – Amen.