«　WEEK 5　DAY 5　»

　　Col. 1:27-29 To whom God willed to make known what are the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory, whom we announce, admonishing every man and teaching every man in all wisdom that we may present every man full-grown in Christ; for which also I labor, struggling according to His operation which operates in me in power.

　　[In Colossians 1:28] the Greek word rendered “full-grown” may also be translated “mature,” “complete,” or “perfect.” Paul's ministry was to impart Christ to others so that they may be perfect and complete by maturing in Christ unto full growth… We must have the same goal that Paul had.

　　Even in preaching the gospel, our aim should be to impart life in order to present others mature, full-grown, in Christ. As we preach the gospel to unbelievers, minister Christ to them, and help them to receive the Lord, our goal is not merely that they should be saved from the lake of fire and from God's condemnation. Our goal is not only for them to experience God's forgiveness; it is to minister Christ into them so that they may eventually be presented full-grown in Christ. If we fail to impart Christ to others as we preach the gospel, our gospel preaching will fall short of God's standard. Christ must be infused into all those to whom we speak. Imparting Christ should be our aim in our gospel preaching.

　　We should have the same goal in our fellowship with the saints. As we contact the saints, our goal should be to minister Christ into them so that they may mature in Him. (Life-study of Colossians, p. 129)

　　Paul labored to present every man full-grown in Christ. Presenting others full-grown in Christ is a very difficult task, a task which can be accomplished only by struggling according to Christ's operation [cf. Col. 1:29].

　　Some may think that the way to present others full-grown in Christ is to pray. However, it is possible to have a superstitious understanding of prayer. For example, suppose someone thinks that meals can be prepared only by prayer and that there is no need to go shopping or to cook food. Such a concept is superstitious. In presenting others full-grown in Christ we need to follow the principle set up in Genesis 2: Man tills the ground, and God sends the rain (v. 5)…. As we trust in God and look to Him for the rain, we should be faithful in our responsibility to till the ground. This means that we must fulfill the principle ordained by God. If we depend only on our work of tilling the ground and do not trust in the Lord to send the rain, we are wrong. But we are also wrong if we only pray to the Lord for rain and do not fulfill our responsibility to till the ground. Applying this principle to the matter of presenting every man full-grown in Christ, we see that we should not merely pray, but also labor according to Christ's operation.

　　In Colossians 1:29 Paul said that he struggled according to Christ's operation within him. This struggle was his labor to present every man full-grown in Christ. He endeavored to do this by announcing Christ, by warning every man, and by teaching every man in all wisdom.

　　According to 1:29, the operation of Christ operates in us in power. There is a difference between Christ operating in us and Christ's operation operating in us. Because Christ as the hope of glory operates in us, there is an operation which also operates in us. Christ Himself operates in us. But Christ operating in us causes an operation which also operates in us. This operation operates in us in power.

　　What Paul did in struggling to present others full-grown in Christ is an example which serves for the perfecting of the saints for the building up of the Body of Christ. It is to struggle according to the operation of Christ that operates in us, that is, to labor by the resurrecting, transcending, and subduing power within us. (Life-study of Colossians, pp. 137, 143-144)

　　Further Reading: Life-study of Colossians, msgs. 16-17, 49