"Scripture taken from the NEW AMERICAN STANDARD BIBLE, Copyright 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation Used by permission." (www.lockman.org) Paul s Sufferings And Ministry COL 1:24 Now I rejoice in my sufferings for your sake, and in my flesh I do my share on behalf of His body (which is the church) in filling up that which is lacking in Christ's afflictions. 1. Now I rejoice in my sufferings for your sake - Paul was in prison, but this should not cause sadness. a. Paul was rejoicing that he had the privilege of suffering for their sake and for the sake of Christ. b. He was willing to suffer all kinds of hardships if it meant salvation for them and others. c. The Lord had spoken of the great suffering Paul must experience. (Acts 9:15,16). ACT 9:15 But the Lord said to him, "Go, for he is a chosen instrument of Mine, to bear My name before the Gentiles and kings and the sons of Israel; ACT 9:16 for I will show him how much he must suffer for My name's sake. " d. Paul declared to the church at Philippi he desired to have the fellowship of His [Christ s] sufferings. (Phil. 3:10). PHI 3:10 that I may know Him, and the power of His resurrection and the fellowship of His sufferings, being conformed to His death; 2. and in my flesh I do my share on behalf of His body (which is the church) in filling up that which is lacking in Christ's afflictions. a. This is not completely clear. 1) It is certain that nothing was lacking in Christ s afflictions for our sins. 2) His vicarious death was complete for the atonement of man s sins. (Eph. 1:7; Col. 1:14). 3) No additional sacrifice is needed then or ever. 4) Jesus sacrifice was once offered for sin. (Heb. 9:12, 26, 28; 10:10). HEB 9:12 and not through the blood of goats and calves, but through His own blood, He entered the holy place once for all, having obtained eternal redemption. HEB 9:26 Otherwise, He would have needed to suffer often since the foundation of the world; but now once at the consummation of the ages He has been manifested to put away sin by the sacrifice of Himself. HEB 9:28 so Christ also, having been offered once to bear the sins of many, shall appear a second time for salvation without reference to sin, to those who eagerly await Him. HEB 10:10 By this will we have been sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all. 5) His blood cleanses all the sins of those who in faith and repentance are baptized for the remission of sins, and walk in the light confessing their sins after coming to Him. (Acts 2:38: 22:16; 1 Jn. 1:7, 9; Eph. 5:8). 1
b. The idea is that he was willing to supplement the sufferings of Christ with his own suffering, that is, he was willing to suffer in order to do what the Lord had commissioned him to do. 1) No price was too high in serving Christ. 2) Total commitment was true of Paul and should be true of all Christians. c. Paul s own suffering was not for atonement, but it was that men might be saved through the sufferings and death of Jesus. d. Paul boasted only in the cross of Christ. (Gal. 6:14). GAL 6:14 But may it never be that I should boast, except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, through which the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world. e. He was willing to suffer that men might hear and obey the gospel. f. In 2 Corinthians 1:5 Paul spoke of his abundant sufferings and abundant comfort in Christ. 2CO 1:5 For just as the sufferings of Christ are ours in abundance, so also our comfort is abundant through Christ. g His suffering were great, and so were his comforts through Christ. h. These sufferings and comfort was not exclusive to him. i. He was able to sympathize with other believers who suffered, but he always reminded others that suffering for Christ was worth it. j. He listed in a general way many of the suffering he had endured. (2 Cor. 11:23-27). k. Jesus gave these promises to those who suffer for righteousness sake. (Matt. 5:12; Rev. 2:10). l. Once again Paul affirms Christ s body is the church. (Col. 1:24, 18; Eph. 1:22,23). COL 1:25 Of this church [Christ s body] I was made a minister according to the stewardship from God bestowed on me for your benefit, that I might fully carry out the preaching of the word of God, 1. Of this church I was made a minister according to the stewardship from God bestowed on me for your benefit a. Paul was a minister who had been entrusted, as a steward, with the responsibility of proclaiming the gospel. b. As a minister [servant of God] he also worked to build up those who had come to Christ and were members of His body. c. He primarily preached the gospel to Gentiles. (Acts 13:46,47). ACT 13:46 And Paul and Barnabas spoke out boldly and said, "It was necessary that the word of God should be spoken to you first; since you repudiate it, and judge yourselves unworthy of eternal life, behold, we are turning to the Gentiles. ACT 13:47 "For thus the Lord has commanded us, 'I have placed You as a light for the Gentiles, That You should bring salvation to the end of the earth.'" d. He wrote these to the church at Ephesus about his mission of preaching to Gentiles. (Eph. 3:8). 2
EPH 3:8 To me, the very least of all saints, this grace was given, to preach to the Gentiles the unfathomable riches of Christ, e. God had determined even before Paul was born that he would preach to Gentiles. (Gal. 1:15, 16). GAL 1:15 But when He who had set me apart, even from my mother's womb, and called me through His grace, was pleased GAL 1:16 to reveal His Son in me, that I might preach Him among the Gentiles, I did not immediately consult with flesh and blood, 2. that I might fully carry out the preaching of the word of God - It was his desire to make full presentation of God s saving gospel. a. The preaching of the word was of foremost importance to Paul. b. He was eager and unashamed to preach the gospel. (Rom. 1:14-16). ROM 1:14 I am under obligation both to Greeks and to barbarians, both to the wise and to the foolish. ROM 1:15 Thus, for my part, I am eager to preach the gospel to you also who are in Rome. ROM 1:16 For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek. c. He was willing to sacrifice his time, talent, money and his own life that men might be saved. COL 1:26 that is, the mystery [sacred secret] which has been hidden [concealed in mind of God] from the past ages and generations; but has now been manifested to His saints, 1. that is, the mystery which has been hidden from the past ages and generations - God s plan was His sacred secret until He chose to reveal it. a. God s mystery was not revealed to former generations. b. It was revealed in the fullness of time. (Gal. 4:4). c. There were glimpses of it in the Old Testament of God s plan to save Gentiles, but was not fully revealed and not understood. d. It was now clear that God would save both Jews and Gentiles through the gospel. e. This first became abundantly clear at the household of Cornelius. (Acts 10:1-48). See Acts 10:34, 35. ACT 10:34 And opening his mouth, Peter said: "I most certainly understand now that God is not one to show partiality, ACT 10:35 but in every nation the man who fears Him and does what is right, is welcome to Him. f. It had been prophesied in the Old Testament. (Gen. 17:16; Isa. 49:6; 55:5,6; 56:8; Hos. 1:10; 2:23; Rom. 9:25, 26). GEN 17:16 "And I will bless her, and indeed I will give you a son by her. Then I will bless her, and she shall be a mother of nations; kings of peoples shall come from her." ISA 49:6 He says, "It is too small a thing that You should be My Servant To raise up the tribes of Jacob, and to restore the preserved ones of Israel; I will also make You a light of the nations So that My salvation may reach to the end 3
of the earth." ISA 55:5 "Behold, you will call a nation you do not know, And a nation which knows you not will run to you, Because of the Lord your God, even the Holy One of Israel; For He has glorified you." ISA 55:6 Seek the Lord while He may be found; Call upon Him while He is near. ISA 56:8 The Lord God, who gathers the dispersed of Israel, declares, "Yet others I will gather to them, to those already gathered." HOS 1:10 Yet the number of the sons of Israel Will be like the sand of the sea, Which cannot be measured or numbered; And it will come about that, in the place Where it is said to them, "You are not My people," It will be said to them, "You are the sons of the living God." HOS 2:23 "And I will sow her for Myself in the land. I will also have compassion on her who had not obtained compassion, And I will say to those who were not My people, 'You are My people!' And they will say, 'Thou art my God!'" ROM 9:25 As He says also in Hosea, "I will call those who were not My people, 'My people,' And her who was not beloved, 'beloved.'" ROM 9:26 "And it shall be that in the place where it was said to them, 'you are not My people,' There they shall be called sons of the living God." See Hos. 2:23. 2. but has now been manifested to His saints - but which is now as clear as daylight to those who love God - Philips. a. The word saints is found several times in this epistle. (Col. 1:2, 4, 12, 26) b. It is a reference to Christians - the ones cleansed by the blood of Christ and set apart to live holy lives. c. It is not a reference to some exceptional Christian or Christians. d. Every Christian is a saint. COL 1:27 to whom [the saints] God willed to make known what is the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory. 1. to whom God willed to make known what is the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles a. It was God s plan to save Gentiles as well as Jews. (Gen. 12:3; 17:4,5, 16; 18:18; 22:18). GEN 12:3 And I will bless those who bless you, And the one who curses you I will curse. And in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed. " GEN 17:4 "As for Me, behold, My covenant is with you, And you shall be the father of a multitude of nations. GEN 17:5 "No longer shall your name be called Abram, But your name shall be Abraham; For I will make you the father of a multitude of nations. GEN 17:16 "And I will bless her, and indeed I will give you a son by her. Then I will bless her, and she shall be a mother of nations; kings of peoples shall come from her." GEN 18:18 since Abraham will surely become a great and mighty nation, and in him all the nations of the earth will be blessed? GEN 22:18 "And in your seed all the nations of the earth shall be blessed, because you have obeyed My voice." b. Gods mystery is Christ Himself. (Col. 2:2). 4
COL 2:2 that their hearts may be encouraged, having been knit together in love, and attaining to all the wealth that comes from the full assurance of understanding, resulting in a true knowledge of God's mystery, that is, Christ Himself, c. The mystery was that God would save both Jews and Gentiles and unite them together in the body of Christ [the church]. (Eph. 3:6). EPH 3:6 to be specific, that the Gentiles are fellow heirs and fellow members of the body, and fellow partakers of the promise in Christ Jesus through the gospel, 2. which is Christ in you, the hope of glory a. Christ is the hope of glory. Observe he is not a hope, but the hope of glory. b. Salvation is only in Him. (Jn. 14:6; Acts 4:12). c. Those outside of Christ have no hope. (1 Thess. 4:13; Eph. 2:12). 1TH 4:13 But we do not want you to be uninformed, brethren, about those who are asleep, that you may not grieve, as do the rest who have no hope. EPH 2:12 remember that you were at that time separate from Christ, excluded from the commonwealth of Israel, and strangers to the covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the world. d. The words Christ in you are interesting and meaningful. e. Christ lives in the Christian as He did Paul. (Gal. 2:20; Eph. 3:17; Rev. 3:20). GAL 2:20 "I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me, and delivered Himself up for me. EPH 3:17 so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith; and that you, being rooted and grounded in love, REV 3:20 'Behold, I stand at the door and knock; if anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him, and will dine with him, and he with Me. f. Paul taught that both Christ and the Holy Spirit dwell in the Christian. (Rom. 8:10, 11). ROM 8:10 And if Christ is in you, though the body is dead because of sin, yet the spirit is alive because of righteousness. ROM 8:11 But if the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, He who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through His Spirit who indwells you. g. The Bible does not give or explain the mode of Their indwelling, but it does clearly teach they abide in the Christian. h. Those who let Christ live in them let His word richly dwell within them. (Col. 3:16). COL 3:16 Let the word of Christ richly dwell within you, with all wisdom teaching and admonishing one another with psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with thankfulness in your hearts to God. COL 1:28 And we proclaim Him, admonishing every man and teaching every man with all wisdom, that we may present every man complete in Christ. 5
1. And we proclaim Him, admonishing every man and teaching every man with all wisdom a. All wisdom refers to God s wisdom - not the wisdom of man. b. It has reference to Christ and to the gospel. (1 Cor. 1:21-25). 1CO 1:21 For since in the wisdom of God the world through its wisdom did not come to know God, God was well-pleased through the foolishness of the message preached to save those who believe. 1CO 1:22 For indeed Jews ask for signs, and Greeks search for wisdom; 1CO 1:23 but we preach Christ crucified, to Jews a stumbling block, and to Gentiles foolishness, 1CO 1:24 but to those who are the called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God. 1CO 1:25 Because the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men. 2. that we may present every man complete in Christ a. complete is from teleios [teh lay ahs] meaning complete, perfect, mature. b. It has the idea of maturity. c. This is the purpose of the various offices of the church. (Eph. 4:11-16). EPH 4:11 And He gave some as apostles, and some as prophets, and some as evangelists, and some as pastors and teachers, EPH 4:12 for the equipping of the saints for the work of service, to the building up of the body of Christ; EPH 4:13 until we all attain to the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a mature man, to the measure of the stature which belongs to the fulness of Christ. EPH 4:14 As a result, we are no longer to be children, tossed here and there by waves, and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, by craftiness in deceitful scheming; EPH 4:15 but speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in all aspects into Him, who is the head, even Christ, EPH 4:16 from whom the whole body, being fitted and held together by that which every joint supplies, according to the proper working of each individual part, causes the growth of the body for the building up of itself in love. COL 1:29 And for this purpose [that men might be complete in Christ] also I labor, striving according to His power, which mightily works within me. 1. And for this purpose also I labor, striving according to His power - He labored unto weariness through the strength God gave him. a. Those who depend on their own strength alone are very limited and will fail spiritually. b. Those who depend on God s strength can do much more and will be able to overcome the struggles of life. 2. which mightily works within me - His great strength came from God who was mightily working in him. a. God will give up strength if we call on Him. (Psa. 46:1,10; 1 Cor. 10:13). b. It is imperative that we flee the devil and draw near to God. (Jas. 4:7, 8). "Scripture taken from the NEW AMERICAN STANDARD BIBLE, Copyright 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation Used by permission." (www.lockman.org) 6
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