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No.55.
The Epistle to the Colossians (5).
pp. 129 - 133
Having stated that the good news concerning which he had been made a minister by
the ascended Christ had been preached everywhere without any barriers (Col. 1: 23), Paul
now deals with the effect of that ministry upon himself and its relationship to the church
which is the Body of Christ:
"Now I rejoice in my sufferings for your sake, and fill up on my part that which is
lacking of the afflictions of Christ in my flesh for His Body's sake which is the church;
whereof I was made a minister, according to the dispensation of God which was given me
to you-ward" (Col. 1: 24, 25 R.V.).
In the letter to the Ephesians the Apostle expresses the desire that these believers
should not faint at his tribulations for them (Eph. 3: 13). Rather than indulging in
self-pity, he rejoices at the sufferings he was enduring which were a necessary part of his
faithful witness for the Lord and His people. At his conversion, Christ had expressly
stated "For I will show him how great things he must suffer for My Name's sake"
(Acts 9: 16) and in this perhaps Paul was unique. In the ordinary way the Lord does not
inform us beforehand as to the trials and difficulties we must undergo in the future.
"Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof" (Matt. 6: 34) and we can be thankful that this
is so. How many of us could stand up to such knowledge, such as, if we knew that some
terrible suffering and loss awaited us in a year's time? But with the Apostle Paul
suffering would not be surprising after the Lord's statement recorded in the Acts. He did
not shrink from such suffering, but rather was anxious to fill up just that measure that the
Lord had willed for him. When writing to the Colossians he had not yet reached this
state, but was ready to go on in his experience of trial and difficulty until the measure had
been reached and `filled'.
A similar figure is used when speaking of `filling up' sins (I Thess. 2: 16) or of filling
up `the measure of the fathers' (Matt. 23: 32). While it is possible that some of our
suffering may result from our own foolishness or lack of faithfulness, it is a joy to realize
that all sufferings connected with true service and witness are the `sufferings of Christ'.
The link between the Lord and His redeemed people is so close that what affects them
affects Him. Paul learned this at the outset, on the road to Damascus. "Why are you
persecuting Me?", the Lord said to him, referring to his persecution of believers
(Acts 9: 4).
The sufferings then that the Apostle was enduring when writing to the Colossian
church, had a two fold aspect: (1) as it affected the Lord and (2) its connection with the
instructing and building up of the Body of Christ. What it does not mean is that Paul or
any other believer could have a share in the redemptive sufferings and work of salvation
endured by the Saviour on the cross. This would have contradicted the whole witness of
the Apostle in connection with the proclamation of the gospel of God's grace apart from