Discussion Jumpstarter
Study leader reference - not a definitive answer
Question 4
When Paul says he is “filling up…what is lacking in regard to Christ’s afflictions” (Colossians 1:24), Kyle argues this shows an “open-endedness” to Christ’s sufferings as a “cosmic reality”; what do you think is at stake in accepting that, and what fears or objections does it raise in you?
Another way to ask: Paul says he is “filling up” what is lacking in Christ’s sufferings (Col. 1:24), and Kyle says Christ’s suffering is still “open-ended.” Why might that matter, and what worries or objections does it bring up for you?
Discussion Jumpstarter
Direct Answer
Based on the speaker’s teaching, accepting this means seeing Christian suffering as real participation in Christ’s ongoing story—witness “in union with the sufferings of Christ”—not as pointless tragedy. A likely fear (which Kyle anticipates) is that it sounds like we are trying to “crucify Christ again,” or that Christ’s work was insufficient, though he denies that.
- Kyle quotes Colossians 1:24: “I…fill up in my flesh what is lacking in regard to Christ’s afflictions.”
- He raises the objection directly: “Is he trying to crucify Christ again?… obviously not.”
- His explanation: “there’s an open-endedness to the story and to the sufferings of Christ.”
- He calls Philippians 2 not only “a historical fact” but “also a cosmic reality that Paul is living into.”
- Paul “rejoices” in suffering because it allows him to “be a witness or be a martyr… in union with the sufferings of Christ.”