This is our Sunday Re: Think, an opportunity for us to continue to think on the events of last Sunday.
It has been quite awhile since our last opportunity to think on the events of the past Sunday. Days drag on, things get crazy and this pastor has been delinquent…My apologies.
Yesterday we launched into a significant turning point in our study of the book of Colossians. After Paul had spent the majority of the 1st Chapter examining who Christ is and explaining to the Colossian believers, and the rest of us as well, the magnificence and importance of who Jesus is, he now begins to show what importance that takes in living the Christian life in Colossians 1:24-2:3
Beginning with the example of his own ministry, Paul speaks of how his understanding of Christ influences how he approaches suffering. While rejoicing in his suffering, Paul shows us the character of what it means to joyously suffer for Christ.
We noted that: 1) Joyous Suffering is Meaningful; 2) Joyous Suffering has Christ as its Goal; 3) Joyous Suffering is not based on our own strength.
Suffering is not overwhelmingly popular in our world today, especially in the church. This is a sad reality for the majority of the New Testament is dedicated to showing us how we will suffer because of the message of the Gospel.
In many ways suffering was God’s child training for believers in the 1st Century church.
As you came to embrace the message of Jesus as Messiah, you would suffer in sharing that message with those around you. We have entirely screwed up what it means to be a disciple in the Western Church today. Discipleship in the 1st Century looked like this. You embrace Jesus as the Messiah, you share that message with those around you, you get beat up, spit on, dragged into court, testify greatly and get thrown into jail. After getting beat some more you would gather with other believers for prayer and encouragement and go out to do it all over again. Finally, when you would be run out of that town, you would arrive at another to do it all over again.
This Suffering is Meaningful because it has Christ as its goal. The suffering is worth it, because Christ in us is the hope of glory. It is not retiring well, avoiding pain, or living peacefully that is our hope of Glory, but rather Christ in us. We saw that this is the primary motivation for everything we do in the Christian life.
Christ in us the hope of Glory is the theme of our life, it is why we labor and strive, it is why we plant churches, it is why we sacrificially give, why we go to the hard places, because He is the hope of Glory. There is no other way to spend our lives that would be of any account that could match up to the immeasurable greatness of proclaiming HIm as the Hope of Glory to a lost and dying world
Finally, we saw that Joyous Suffering is not based on our own strength, but rather on His and His alone. Often times we grow weary, for the battle we are attempting to fight is done more out of our own strength rather than falling on Him.
In what ways have we misunderstood suffering in the Christian life today? How does having Christ as the hope of Glory transform how we are to live here and now? Any thoughts?
*Thanks to Matt Stone for the pic
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