Editor’s Note: The AMI QT Devotionals from June 27-July 3 are provided by Pastor Ulysses Wang who pastors Remnant Church in Manhattan. Ulysses, a graduate of New York University and Westminster Theological Seminary (M.Div.), is married to Christine and they have two children.
Devotional Thought for Today
Colossians 1:24
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….
Here we have a problematic verse. We know that Christ was completely obedient to the will of the Father. We also know that His suffering for us on the cross was wholly sufficient for our cleansing and justification. The author of Hebrews wrote, “For by a single offering he has perfected for all time those who are being sanctified” (10:14). So what then could be “lacking in Christ’s afflictions”? Uncomfortable choice of words indeed.
We need not question the sufficiency of Christ’s work; however, upon deeper examination we come to understand that it is not that Christ’s work was insufficient, but rather, that the experience of suffering was to be continued in His body – the Church. N.T. Wright put it this way: “Just as the Messiah was to be known by the path of suffering he freely chose – and is recognized in his risen body by the mark of the nails… so his people are to be recognized by the sufferings they endure…”[1] Suffering, rather than always serving as an indication that something is wrong, can sometimes be an indication that things are very right. In fact, the opposite can be true – the absence of suffering, normally our desired state of affairs, could very well mean that we’ve failed to “take up our cross.”
We don’t like this. No one likes to suffer. Now, I am not saying that we should go out looking for suffering, but unless we understand this biblical paradigm, we will surely do all we can to avoid it—even if it may be the road we must take to accomplish the will of God. To quote Wright again: “If all these ideas sound strange to modern ears, this may not be so much due to the distance between Paul and ourselves in time and culture as because the church has forgotten how to apply to itself the fact that it is the body of the crucified Messiah.”[2]
Now again, this doesn’t mean we go about our day with martyrdom on the top of our to-do list (otherwise you might as well cross off numbers 2 and following). It’s not your fault you don’t live in a country where it is illegal to believe in Jesus. However, Paul’s teaching still applies. To quote Wright one last time: “Finally, we would be wrong to think of suffering only in terms of the direct outward persecution that professing Christians sometimes undergo because of their faith. The church must, it is true, always be ready for such persecution… But all Christians will suffer for their faith in one way or another: if not outwardly, then inwardly, through the long, slow battle with temptation or sickness, the agonizing anxieties of Christians responsibilities for a family or church…, the constant doubts and uncertainties which accompany the obedience of faith, and ‘the thousand natural shocks that flesh is heir to’, taken up as they are within the call to follow Christ.”[3]
Prayer: God, help me to internalize this truth, that suffering – taking up my cross and following after You – is a necessary part of the Christian life. Help me to rejoice when I suffer for doing good, for great is my reward in heaven. Give me courage to persevere in the face of persecution and endurance to hold on in the midst of suffering. Amen.
[1] N.T. Wright, Colossians and Philemon (Tyndale New Testament Commentaries, Inter-Varsity Press/William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 1986) p.88
[2] Ibid, p.89
[3] Ibid, p.90
Bible Reading for Today: Psalm 92
Lunch Break Study
Read John 15:18-21: If the world hates you, know that it has hated me before it hated you. If you were of the world, the world would love you as its own; but because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hates you. Remember the word that I said to you: ‘A servant is not greater than his master.’ If they persecuted me, they will also persecute you. If they kept my word, they will also keep yours. But all these things they will do to you on account of my name, because they do not know him who sent me.
Questions to Consider
- What does it mean that “the world hates you”? How should Jesus’ statement help to inform our worldview?
- Are there any areas of your life where you’ve been avoiding suffering, possibly too much so?
Notes
- When we live with kingdom values, we will inevitably clash with the values of this world, which is controlled and shaped by “the prince of the power of the air” (Ephesians 2:2).
- Maybe we avoid sharing the gospel because we fear rejection, drawing an ethical line in the sand because we are afraid of upsetting our bosses, or miss out on the will of God because we idolize creature comforts for ourselves or our families.
Evening Reflection
“I have accepted this proposal. Christians are meant to have the same vocation as their King, that of cross-bearers. It is this conscience of a high calling and of partnership with Jesus which brings gladness in tribulations, which makes Christians enter prisons for their faith with the joy of a bridegroom entering the bridal room.” – Richard Wurmbrand, who spent 14 years in prison as a Romanian pastor.
There is a great temptation to associate believing in Jesus with a “get out of jail, free” card. “Thanks for the sacrifice Jesus. Now, I’ve got some stuff to do, so I’ll see you in 50 years.” Such people will be in for the surprise of their lives if at the end, they hear Jesus say, “I never knew you; depart from me, you workers of lawlessness” (Matthew 7:23b). The fact that this is a real possibility can be seen in Paul’s logic – we have been “reconciled…if indeed you continue in the faith…” If. This disturbs us because it wasn’t what we learned in Sunday school – if you believe in Jesus, you’ve got a spot waiting for you in heaven. Your table can’t be given away. We object further: “This sounds like works! I thought salvation was free!” Amen! Salvation is free – it’s a gift. But true salvation is evidenced by the kind of continuing on in the faith Paul wrote about. A duo of commentators put it this way: “If the Bible teaches the final perseverance of the saints, it also teaches that the saints are those who finally persevere – in Christ. Continuity is the test of reality.”
Editor’s Note: The AMI QT Devotionals from June 27-July 3 are provided by Pastor Ulysses Wang who pastors Remnant Church in Manhattan. Ulysses, a graduate of New York University and Westminster Theological Seminary (M.Div.), is married to Christine and they have two children.
One constant obstacle to living the Christian life is the desires of the flesh to opt for immediate gratification. Whether having to do with sexual desire, overeating, or all types of addictions (e.g., video games, drugs, gambling, etc.), persuading others and ourselves to abandon the banner that reads “let us eat and drink for tomorrow we die” (Isaiah 22:13; 1 Corinthians 15:32) is a formidable task indeed.
This opening statement in Paul’s letter to the Colossians is easily glossed over, but it’s loaded with significance. In the large majority of Paul’s letters, which span roughly a 15-year period, he begins them this same way. We are reminded again and again over the years that this man did not become an apostle by his own choosing, but rather, it was a mandate from heaven which he accepted and obeyed. And this was something that no one needed to know more than him, as he would endure countless beatings, stonings, and even shipwreck (2 Cor. 11:23-28). Eventually, his commitment to his calling would lead him to lay down his very life. A person less sure of his calling surely would have abandoned such a difficult and lonely road.
Viktor Frankl, a psychologist and a holocaust survivor, made an interesting observation during his imprisonment. He began to notice that those who held unto hope were more likely to survive. People who were filled with despair or hatred were more susceptible to death than those who held unto the hope of one-day reuniting with their family or seeing the Allies bring freedom. In other words, future hope gave them the fortitude and strength necessary to persevere and thrive even in the worst of conditions.
The great reformer Martin Luther was incredibly self-aware, especially when it came to his own sinfulness. For this reason, he was constantly tormented in his conscience as he wondered whether he stood in God’s favor or wrath. He would try to remedy this problem by going to the priest for confession over and over again. It got so bad that the priest would tell him to stop coming unless he committed a terrible sin. No matter what religious duties Luther fulfilled, he never felt peace in his own conscience and no solace in his own works. However, through the grace of God, he stumbled upon Habakkuk 2:4 when studying through the book of Romans, and it provided the very freedom he so desperately needed.
After a back and forth conversation between Habakkuk and God in the first chapter, the prophet says that he will go to his watchpost and wait for God’s response. Instead of speaking his own thoughts and words to the people of Judah, he chooses to go to the tower in order to keep a watchful eye for God’s answer. Here, it is easy to see that Habakkuk understood his role as a prophet well. He was not charged to speak his own thoughts but to be God’s mouthpiece. And this meant learning how to listen well with an obedient posture—not insisting on his own ways but to allow God to determine the content of his words and actions.
Recently, U2 lead singer Bono met with theologian Eugene Peterson to discuss the Psalms and their significance. Both possessed a fondness for the Psalms. They marveled at its beauty and composition. However, what captured their hearts was its brutally honest nature. The psalmists never shied away from expressing exactly what was on their hearts, whether it was great joy, paralyzing confusion, or profound sorrow. There was no attempt to wear a mask before God, only a genuine vulnerability that laid it all out. And this is one reason why we sense that the psalmists’ relationship with God was marked by a real sense of intimacy and authenticity. It was not about appearing spiritual by praying the right words but about honestly inviting God into one’s interior life.
Through the years I’ve heard countless testimonies about God’s redemptive work in a person’s life. And here’s something I’ve noticed: a common thread that runs through each story is the subtle and surprising nature of God’s hand. For many, circumstances and events that seemed destructive in nature proved to be the very instrument of transformation. A career setback teaches us how to lean on God, or news of cancer in a family member cultivates within us a faith we never had. Numerous stories attest to the fact that God oftentimes does not use conventional and obvious means to bring about goodness in our lives.
Editor’s Note: The AMI QT Devotionals from June 20-26 are written by Pastor Andrew Kim at Tapestry Church. Andrew, a graduate of Eternity Bible College, is currently attending Fuller Theological Seminary. He and Jessie were married in 2014.
About a year ago, someone broke into my wife’s car and stole the airbag. For those of you who don’t know, airbags are incredibly expensive and necessary for safety reasons. What made things worse was that this came after a string of bad luck with my wife’s car: battery problems, new tires were needed, and the car horn stopped working. With the bills adding up and no money to replace the airbag, it was a very frustrating time for us. We didn’t know how we were going to resolve this situation. Little did we know that God put it in the hearts of some people to buy an airbag for our car—it was a total surprise! Without us knowing, God was at work to help us in our need.