NOTES for Col 1:24-2:7
Continuing the discussion of Christianity and Christian life, Paul turns to the theme of his own ministry, and the apostle sees its meaning in the fact that the word of God was fulfilled in it (vv. 24-29). In speaking of "fulfillment," the apostle evidently has in mind the original sense of the corresponding Greek word, which implied "fulfillment" as filling up, bringing to fullness what had not yet reached fullness.
In this way Paul draws the attention of the recipients of his letter to the twofold task that stands before the Church in our world, which is being transformed but has not yet been transformed to the end, applying it to the concrete ministry of individual Christians. On the one hand, the ministry of every Christian presupposes his own rooting in the life of the Kingdom, which, of course, is unthinkable without the transformation of his human nature. For such transformation, God's direct action on this nature is necessary, and the apostle, of course, does not speak accidentally of the power of God working in him, as in everyone who does God's work (v. 29): for God's work cannot be done by human strength alone; here the direct intervention of the One who entrusted this work to the minister is needed.
On the other hand, the ministry of a minister turns out to be not simply the performance of a concrete task, even if that task is a commission given directly by God. It is directly connected with the fullness of the Kingdom, toward which every Christian strives. And every ministry, if it remains to the end God's work, becomes not only the minister's step toward this fullness, but also the emergence of the fullness of the Kingdom through a concrete ministry, manifested in it just as in every work of God. And the apostle's sufferings now turn out not simply to be sufferings for Christ; they turn out to be their continuation, just as the very existence of the Church in our world, not yet transformed to the end, turns out to be the continuation in it of that history of the Kingdom which began with the Savior's coming into the world and continued with His death on the cross and His resurrection.
That is why Paul speaks of the consolation that the news of his sufferings was to bring to the recipients of his letter (vv. 1-3): for they meant not only the apostle's own faithfulness to his ministry, but also that the Kingdom is growing and the day of its full triumph and the Savior's return is drawing near - news truly joyful for every Christian.