Tag: suffering

Purpose

And it came to pass, when the days were well-nigh come that he should be received up, he stedfastly set his face to go to Jerusalem (Luke 9:51).

The time had come.

For over two years Jesus taught His disciples and provided many demonstrations of His power. They now recognized that He was the promised Messiah, the Christ of God (Luke 9:20). He made known to them what was about to take place: He would go to Jerusalem, suffer many things, be rejected, be killed, and on the third day be raised up (Luke 9:22).

It was time to accomplish God’s ultimate purpose, and Jesus did not shrink from it. He set His face to go to Jerusalem, knowing precisely what would take place.

It is evident that Jesus led a life of purpose. How else could He have accomplished as much as He did during His short time on the earth (cf. John 21:25)? He knew the Father’s will (John 6:44-48), and He made it His purpose to accomplish it (John 4:54, John 5:30). He did not shrink from fulfilling that will, even when it was quite difficult and led to extreme suffering (Matthew 26:38-39). He fulfilled His purposes, and was exalted, and given the name that is above every name (Matthew 5:17-18, John 19:30, Philippians 2:5-11).

As Jesus led a life of purpose, He calls those who would follow Him to also lead lives of purpose. While we formerly might have lived according to our own desires, with our own purposes (or a lack thereof) in mind, now we are to live according to His purpose, which is for us to die to self and live to Him (Romans 6:15-22, Galatians 2:20). When Jesus says to go and show mercy, love, and compassion, we find opportunities to show love, mercy, and compassion (Luke 6:36, Ephesians 4:32). When Jesus tells us to no longer sin, and to avoid and abhor sin, we do so (Romans 12:9, Galatians 5:19-21). When Jesus directs us to take up our crosses, denying ourselves, and to follow Him, we must do so (Luke 9:23-26)! If we desire to share in His glory, we must first share in His purposes and sufferings (Romans 8:17-18).

Jesus’ purpose for our lives is not easy. It is difficult, challenging, and calls for much suffering. It would be easier to live an aimless life, as so many others do. The cost would be a lot less in this life if we rejected Jesus and lived according to our own passions and desires. The end of the purposeless or selfish live is death, condemnation, and torment (Romans 6:23, 2 Thessalonians 1:6-9)!

Therefore, just as Jesus set His face toward the earthly Jerusalem, so we must set our face toward the spiritual Jerusalem. Just as Jesus experienced great suffering and trial in order to enter glory, so we will experience suffering and trial to enter glory. It will all be more than worth it in the end, but it will only come for those who have given themselves over to Christ and live for His purposes. Follow Christ’s purpose for you today, set your face toward the heavenly Jerusalem, and be saved!

Ethan R. Longhenry

Moving Forward

Therefore let us also, seeing we are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses, lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us, looking unto Jesus the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising shame, and hath sat down at the right hand of the throne of God (Hebrews 12:1-2).

Moving forward.  It is something we know we ought to do in our lives, and yet it is often quite difficult to do so.

We have so much that can weigh us down.  Sin besets us.  We can become discouraged and despair of our ability to do anything.  Fear can paralyze us.  Even simple inertia can keep us from going forward and making changes.

Yet God calls us to continually and irrepressibly go forward.  We have the great cloud of witnesses of the saints of years gone by: their examples of faith in the face of difficulty can encourage us, and we can view them as cheering us on our own journeys.

This is why we must lay aside the weights that keep us down.  While sin may beset us, we must believe in God, humbly confess our faults before Him, and break through (1 John 1:9).  While discouragement and despair may bring us downward, faith and hope can encourage us (Romans 8:23-25, 1 Corinthians 13:10).  While fear may paralyze, God tells us to no longer fear, but trust in Him and His victory (Revelation 1:17-19).  Even inertia can be overcome in zeal for God and His ways (2 Corinthians 9:2).

Yet the only way we can move forward is to keep our eyes focused on Jesus.  He is the way, the truth, the life, and the resurrection (John 11:25, John 14:6).  He suffered temptation and yet did not sin (Hebrews 4:15).  Our faith is based in who He is and what He accomplished, and He is the one who makes up for our deficiencies through His own atonement.

The Hebrew author does not deny that suffering will come to believers, but shows us that through suffering we can gain exaltation.  He suffered the humiliation and suffering of the cross because of the joy set before Him; thanks to Him, we can persevere through our own suffering, since eternity with God is set before us if we endure (1 Peter 1:3-9, 1 Peter 2:21-24, Matthew 10:22).

The forces of darkness provide every reason to become discouraged, to fall into despair, to suffer in sin, and to go nowhere.  Yet God beckons through the example of Jesus Christ to go forward.  The saints of God can encourage you by their example.  Fellow Christians can encourage you on the journey.  But you can only persevere and move forward by looking to Jesus and following His ways in His might and strength.

If we do not move forward, we fall behind.  Let us constantly press onward and upward toward eternity with God (Philippians 3:13-14)!

Ethan R. Longhenry

Light Momentary Affliction

For our light affliction, which is for the moment, worketh for us more and more exceedingly an eternal weight of glory; while we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen: for the things which are seen are temporal; but the things which are not seen are eternal (2 Corinthians 4:17-18).

Forty lashes.  Beaten with rods.  Stoned and left for dead.  Shipwrecked three times.  Floated in the sea for a day.  Imprisoned.  Constant danger.  Suffering thirst and hunger.

These are the sufferings enumerated in 2 Corinthians 11:24-28 that Paul personally experienced for the sake of the Gospel.  How many of us can say that we have suffered even one of these difficulties?

In comparison, our sufferings are minor.  We may be derided for our faith.  We may be laughed at or dismissed.  We may even lose a job or two.  Under some circumstances we might be physically beaten.  We suffer setbacks in our finances, relationships, and in our health, and these cause us great distress.

While our sufferings may not compare to Paul’s, nothing prevents us from having his attitude toward them.  He described them as light momentary affliction.

If he can consider being stoned “light,” how should we look at times when we suffer persecution?

If he can consider being lashed and shipwrecked as “light,” how should we look at our own physical difficulties?

If he can consider nearly starving as “light,” how should we look at our financial difficulties?

Paul is not really attempting to diminish the difficulties involved with suffering: suffering poses great challenge and trial of our lives and of our faith.  Yet, in comparison to the glory that awaits us from God, we can understand that we experience is very light.

Therefore, when we go through difficulties in our lives, let us be humbled by the sufferings that others have suffered for their faith, and have yet persevered.  When we go through difficulties, let us be encouraged by recognizing that the glory of the resurrection and being with God and Christ will make our sufferings pale in comparison.  The worse we suffer, the greater that day will seem!

Ethan R. Longhenry