First let's look at Christ's promise to the twelve in Matt. 19:28. He promised them they would occupy twelve thrones with Him in the kingdom, and what Peter saw and heard in the holy mount concerned the GLORY which he himself was to share at the reign of Christ.
What Paul saw and heard, however, concerned the Lord's SUFFERING-and his own. Christ said to Ananias concerning Saul "I will show him how great things he must SUFFER for My name's sake" (Acts 9:16). The Risen Christ was, in grace, to remain in exile, rejected by Israel and the world, but Paul, the CHIEF sinner saved by that grace, was to bear the suffering and the rejection on earth.
"I now rejoice in my SUFFERINGS for you, and FILL UP THAT WHICH IS BEHIND OF THE AFFLICTIONS OF CHRIST in my flesh, for His body's sake, which is the church." Col. 1:24.
The question is, in what sense did Paul fill up that which remained fo the afflictions of Christ? He could add nothing to the finished work of redemption. So what was it? Christ's vicarious suffering for sin was over, but He was STILL REJECTED, IN EXILE, and in grace He chose to remain so for a time (This time of the dispensation of the grace of God) rather than let the Wrath of God fall and immediately judge His enemies.
Putting aside the day of His wrath, He saves Saul, His chief ENEMY, and sends him forth to proclaim GRACE and PEACE to His enemies everywhere. Wow, suddenly the great persecutor now becomes the persecuted one, bearing the afflictions of Christ's continued rejection. And as long as Christ's grace is extended to a rejecting world, we, the members of the Body of Christ follow the sufferings and afflictions, just as Paul.
Paul was called to preach Christ in a Christ-rejecting world and to suffer for it. He was chosen to fill up that which still remained of the sufferings of the rejected Christ-and so are we. Christ is still rejected and still remains away and we bear, or should bear, in our flesh the sufferings of His rejection.
We are in a world at enmity with God and will suffer for the gospel. "For unto you it is given in the BEHALF OF CHRIST, not ONLY to believe on Him, But also to SUFFER for His sake. Having the same conflict which ye saw in me, and now hear in me." (Phil. 1:29,30). To stand for Christ is to suffer at the hands of an unbelieving world. We share in His sufferings this way.
I know I've probably repeated myself a couple of times, but trying to get the core truth is sometimes difficult. :)
Yeah. Maybe. A little. :-)
I like this post. I'm going to think about it today.
Since I first stumbled across this mumble mumble years ago (1973, actually — is that scary or what?) I have thought that it was a place where Paul was reaching to express something beyond expression. It is just WRONG to say that anything is “behind” or “lacking” in the perfect suffering of our perfect Lord. Yet he says it.
My rule is to appreciate, to dwell in, such seeming paradoxes, to eschew “explaining away” baffling expressions. I try instead to “abide” with them, to let them “work” as though I were kneaded dough and they were yeast.
(You know, if you want the gluten to come up, there's no way around it but to knead for a quarter of an hour or so. Then there's not much one can do to speed the rising either. You just have to let things work. For it is God that worketh in the dough, both to will and to do for His pleaure and our rising.)
Anyway, thanks. Good eats! Chewy!