Anything that is truly
wonderful in our lives is going to come with its share of difficulties. Seeking
to graduate from college, being married, parenting children, working in
ministry… each of these amazing endeavors have a way of bringing us to our wits
end at times.
At various points in my life, I’ve found myself crying out to God, “I
don’t know how I can keep going on like this!”
I think part of the reason
for these breaking points is due to TV programs and movies, which have
convinced some part of my subconscious that tension is supposed to be resolved
in 23 minutes, or an-hour-and-a-half if it’s a really intense situation. Another
variable that has subtly shaped my worldview has been a steady, low-grade
dose of teaching throughout my life that Christians are not actually blessed when we
suffer for righteousness.
We always feel blessed
when we win, blessed when we’re first, blessed when we’re promoted, blessed
when we’re adored, blessed when we’re full, blessed when we’re happy, blessed
when we buy new things, and blessed when we’re safe.
Conversely, we struggle to feel
blessed when we’re defeated, blessed when we’re last, blessed when we lose a
job, blessed when we’re hated, blessed when we’re hungry, blessed when we are
mourning, blessed when we are broke, and blessed when we are attacked.
Like the Apostles in the gospels, we struggle to believe the simple words of Christ about suffering.
However, have you noticed
the radical shift that
happened in the Apostles’ lives after Pentecost? Have you observed the drastic
change in their approach toward suffering after the Holy Spirit came on them in
power?
Before Pentecost, they are
passionate about avoiding personal suffering, and quite willing to cause the enemies of
God to suffer. After Pentecost, though, they hold prayer meetings where they praise God
for the opportunity to suffer for Him and see enemies of the cross become
believers as a result.
The Apostle Paul seems to
have actually sought out opportunities to suffer for Christ from time to time.
He even bragged about the extensive horrors he experienced for the cause of the
gospel.
Paul explains his perspective on suffering for Christ in Philippians 3.
I count all things to be loss in view of the surpassing value of knowing
Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and
count them but rubbish so that I may gain Christ, and may be found in Him, not
having a righteousness of my own derived from the Law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the
righteousness which comes from
God on the basis of faith, that I may know Him and the power of His
resurrection and the fellowship of His sufferings, being conformed to His
death; in order that I may attain to the resurrection from the dead. – Philippians 3:8-11
According to Paul, there
is a certain fellowship, a partnership, a communion we experience with Jesus
when we suffer for Him. According to Paul, suffering for our Lord is one of the
primary ways we get to know Him better. And the early Christians believed in
the same path toward partaking in these Christological blessings.
True knowledge, then, consists in the understanding of Christ. Paul
terms this the wisdom of God hidden in a mystery, which, “the natural man will
not receive,” the doctrine of the cross. … For the truth is unsophisticated… as the same
apostle declares, being easy to comprehend by those who are obedient. For it
renders us likened to Christ, if we experience “the power of His resurrection
and the fellowship of His sufferings.” … For truly the first thing is to deny
one’s self and to follow Christ; and those who do this are borne onward to perfection,
having fulfilled all their Teacher’s will, becoming sons of God by spiritual
regeneration, and heirs of the kingdom of heaven. – Irenaeus
180CE, Volume 1, p. 969 [CD-ROM]
If we experience fellowship with
Christ through suffering with Him, the first thing we must do is deny
ourselves, pick up our cross and follow Him. We must crucify our fleshly
desires and choose the Spirit. Our flesh naturally avoids suffering and seeks
the broad, easy road, which ultimately leads to destruction. The Spirit, which
yearns for us to commune with Jesus, calls us to love Jesus and obey His voice
by His power, even if it seems foolish to us at first.
Winning feels good. So
does receiving a promotion, being applauded, gorging ourselves at Thanksgiving,
and sleeping at night without any fear of having our houses broken into. But
sometimes, good is the greatest enemy of the best.
Paul met Jesus. Paul saw
the glory of God. Paul was caught up into the third heaven. And Paul came back
saying that all the good things of this world are a four-letter-word compared
to the greatness of knowing Jesus Christ our Lord.
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