“Striving According to His Power”
“Striving According to His Power”
Blessings folk!
For what purpose do you labor?
Where is your hope?
Hear the Word of the Lord through Paul…
Col 1:24-29
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 what is lacking in Christ’s afflictions.
Of this church I was made a minister according to the stewardship from God bestowed on me for your benefit, so that I might fully carry out the preaching of the word of God,
that is, the mystery which has been hidden from the past ages and generations, but has now been manifested to His saints,
to whom 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.
We proclaim Him, admonishing every man and teaching every man with all wisdom, so that we may present every man complete in Christ.
For this purpose also I labor, striving according to His power, which mightily works within me.
Paul suffered for the sake of the saints, for the sake of the Body of Christ.
The “filling up what is lacking in Christ’s afflictions” does not mean that Christ’s sufferings fell short.
It does not mean that Christ afflictions were lacking something.
Paul is saying that Christ afflictions will carry on through believers.
We will be afflicted as He was.
Paul states that he labored in purpose.
He preached the Word of God.
He preached the mystery of God - the Jew and Gentile as One Man/Body in Christ.
A mystery full of riches still yet to be plumbed.
The mystery that Christ is in us.
The mystery that this is the hope of glory - Christ in us.
Paul labored and strived according to the the Power of God that worked mightily within him.
Do we allow the Power of God to mightily work in/through us?