Everyone Complete
27 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. 28 Him we proclaim, warning everyone and teaching everyone with all wisdom, that we may present everyone mature in Christ. 29 For this I toil, struggling with all his energy that he powerfully works within me. Col. 1:27,28,29
This passage is one of my favorites relating to the topic of discipleship. If you’ll allow me, I’d like to reverse the order of the verses in the passage.
I like to begin with this verse:
“For this I toil, struggling with all his energy that he powerfully works within me.” (ESV) I like to begin here because it begs the question, “What was is it that Paul toiled and struggled over?”
I like the way the New American Standard version translates this verse: “And for this purpose also I labor, striving according to his power which mightily works within me.” Paul had a purpose (perhaps a single purpose) that he labored and strived for and he seems to be saying that it took every ounce of (God-supplied) energy in order to get the job done.
The middle verse tells us what that purpose is:
“Him we proclaim, warning everyone and teaching everyone with all wisdom, that we may present everyone mature in Christ.” Paul’s toil and striving was aimed at teaching and admonishing everyone with all wisdom to the end that everyone would be complete or mature in Christ. This is not a small task and, as anyone who has ever attempted it will testify, it takes great patience and all the strength you can muster.
Finally, back to the first verse:
“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.” I like the verse last because it spells out the payoff; the reason this all matters. Christian maturity matters because it is the ultimate expression of God’s glory: Christ formed in- and on display in the lives of mortal men. This is the hope (i.e., confident expectation) of glory. Glory for us certainly but more importantly glory for God.
