“Now I rejoice in my sufferings for your sake, and in my flesh I am filling up what is lacking in Christ's afflictions for the sake of his body, that is, the church, of which I became a minister according to the stewardship from God that was given to me for you, to make the word of God fully known, the mystery hidden for ages and generations but now revealed to his saints. To them God chose to make known how great among the Gentiles are the riches of the glory of this mystery, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory. Him we proclaim, warning everyone and teaching everyone with all wisdom, that we may present everyone mature in Christ. For this I toil, struggling with all his energy that he powerfully works within me.” (Colossians 1:24-29 ESV)
What were Paul’s sufferings for their sake? Well, he was rejected by many when he put his faith and trust in Jesus Christ to be Lord and Savior of his life, and when he began preaching the truth about Jesus Christ and about his gospel of salvation, which he had previously opposed. And thus he was also persecuted severely for his walk of faith in the Lord and for the things he taught about Christ, just as he had once persecuted the followers of Jesus Christ because he believed that they were in the wrong and against God.
He was particularly rejected and criticized for ministering to the Gentiles, for they were considered as filth by the Jews. So truly that would have fit with the category of suffering for the sake of the Gentile believers in Jesus Christ. But everything he did for Christ he did for the benefit of others who also believed in Jesus Christ, and thus all his sufferings were for the sake of all who believe in Christ Jesus, even for us who believe in him now. For we are now learning about Christ through Paul’s teachings nearly 2000 years later.
Now Paul became a minister of the gospel because Jesus Christ called him to such as this, and Paul (then Saul) accepted that call of the Lord by faith in Jesus Christ as his Lord and Savior. And, according to the Scriptures, all of us who are of genuine faith in Jesus Christ are to be ministers of the gospel of Christ in proclaiming the excellencies of him who called us out of darkness into his wonderful light, and by being the light of the world and the salt of the earth and the Lord’s witnesses in taking his gospel to the world.
[Matt 5:13-16; Matt 28:18-20; John 4:31-38; John 13:13-17; John 14:12; Acts 1:8; Acts 26:18; Rom 10:14-15; 1 Pet 2:9,21; 1 John 2:6]
And, according to the Scriptures, all who put their faith and trust in Jesus Christ to be Lord and Savior of their lives, if their faith is genuine believing faith, will be hated and mistreated and persecuted and falsely accused of wrongdoing for their testimonies for the Lord Jesus and because they (we) are also sharing the message of the gospel of our salvation. And some of us will be put in prison and beaten and even killed because of our walks of faith in Jesus Christ and because of our testimonies for our Lord Jesus.
[Matt 5:10-12; Matt 10:16-25; Matt 24:9-14; Luke 6:22-23; Luke 12:49-53; Luke 21:12-19; John 15:1-21; John 16:33; John 17:14; Acts 14:22; Rom 5:3-5; Eph 6:10-20; Phil 3:7-11; 1 Pet 1:6-7; 1 Pet 4:12-17; 2 Tim 3:12; 1 Thess 3:1-5; Jas 1:2-4; 2 Co 1:3-11; Heb 12:3-12; 1 Jn 3:13; Rev 6:9-11; Rev 7:9-17; Rev 11:1-3; Rev 12:17; Rev 13:1-18; Rev 14:1-13]
For we, as well, should be proclaiming Christ and his gospel, warning everyone and teaching everyone with all wisdom, that we may present everyone mature in Christ. For this all of us should toil, struggling with all his energy that he powerfully works within us for the glory of God and for the salvation of human lives. This is not something that only a few of us should be doing, but that all of us who love Jesus and who love the people of the earth and our fellow Christians should be doing for the sake of all.
For Our Nation
An Original Work / September 11, 2012
Bombs are bursting. Night is falling.
Jesus Christ is gently calling
You to follow Him in all ways.
Trust Him with your life today.
Make Him your Lord and your Savior.
Turn from your sin. Follow Jesus.
He will forgive you of your sin;
Cleanse your heart, made new within.
Men betraying: Our trust fraying.
On our knees to God we’re praying,
Seeking God to give us answers
That are only found in Him.
God is sovereign over all things.
Nothing from His mind escaping.
He has all things under His command,
And will work all for good.
Jesus Christ is gently calling
You to follow Him in all ways.
Men deceiving: We’re believing
In our Lord, and interceding
For our nation and its people
To obey their God today.
He is our hope for our future.
For our wounds He offers suture.
He is all we need for this life.
Trust Him with your life today.
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