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Colossians 1:24 – 2:3
Brothers and sisters:
I rejoice in my sufferings for your sake,
and in my flesh I am filling up
what is lacking in the afflictions of Christ
on behalf of his Body, which is the Church,
of which I am a minister
in accordance with God’s stewardship given to me
to bring to completion for you the word of God,
the mystery hidden from ages and from generations past.
But now it has been manifested to his holy ones,
to whom God chose to make known the riches of the glory
of this mystery among the Gentiles;
it is Christ in you, the hope for glory.
It is he whom we proclaim,
admonishing everyone and teaching everyone with all wisdom,
that we may present everyone perfect in Christ.
For this I labor and struggle,
in accord with the exercise of his power working within me.
For I want you to know how great a struggle I am having for you
and for those in Laodicea
and all who have not seen me face to face,
that their hearts may be encouraged
as they are brought together in love,
to have all the richness of assured understanding,
for the knowledge of the mystery of God, Christ,
in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.
The Word of the Lord.
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“For I want you to know how great a struggle I am having for you,” Paul says in our first reading to the Colossians.
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What’s causing Paul such agony?
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He wants nothing more than to journey to Colossae to support these early Christians, who are struggling in their faith.
But Paul’s stuck in prison, chained to the floor. Imagine how frustrated he must be.
He also fears his own death is near. Although he’s a heroic man, nobody looks forward to a torturous death.
There’s a chance that Paul might be spared if he renounces his faith. Certainly, Satan – and the Roman Emperor Nero – would want nothing more than that. Having Paul deny Jesus would be like breaking the end off of a spear; the early Church would’ve been devastated.
But Paul will not give up. He runs the race of life to the finish and keeps the faith. His courage and his faith – so evident in his writings – become his legacy.
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So, what can we learn from Paul’s final days?
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There are some things in life that we cannot control.
In Paul’s case, while he was imprisoned, all he could do was pray and leave the rest up to God.
At times, that’s all we can do, as well; pray and leave the rest up to God.
Secondly, Paul knew his life was bigger than himself; he shaped an entire generation of Christians. Similarly, we must see beyond ourselves, trusting that our faith influences others, whether or not we realize it.
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Saint Paul, priest and martyr, pray for us.
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Image credits: (1) Saint Paul in Prison, Rembrandt (2) Aleteia (3) Overwhelming Pride, WordPress