How does God's Grace Enter Our Suffering? (Suffering 08)

Suffering is both the acid test and the catalyst. It reveals and forms faith. It also exposes and destroys counterfeit faith. Afflictions expose illusory hopes invested in imaginary gods. Such disillusionment is a good thing, a severe mercy. The destruction of what is false invites repentance and faith in God as he truly is. Suffering brings a foretaste of the loss of every good thing for those who profess no faith in the one Savior of the world, God’s inexpressible gift, the Lifegiver. Affliction presses on unbelief. It presses unbelief toward bitterness, or despair, or addiction, or ever more desperate illusions, or ever more deadly self-satisfaction—or to a reconsideration of what lasts. To lose what you are living for, when those treasures are vanities, invites comprehensive repentance. We can read God’s favor or disfavor by noticing how a person responds to affliction. David Powlison

We all know we face significant suffering.

We all know that suffering varies from degree to degree and person to person.

We all know that we are not exempt, even God Himself, from the reality of suffering.

We have studied, at least in general, the scope of reasons WHY suffering exists.

The burning question is this…HOW DOES GOD ENGAGE YOUR SUFFERING WITH HIS GRACE?

How will God actually engage your sufferings with his grace? You may know the right answer in theory. You may have known it firsthand in some difficult situations. And yet you’ll find that you don’t know God well enough or in the exact ways you need to for the next thing that comes your way.

We take God’s hard answer and make it sound like a pat answer. He sets about a long slow answering, but we’re after a quick fix. His answer insists on being lived out over time and into the particulars. We act as if just saying the right words makes it so. God’s answer involves changing you into a different kind of person. But we act as if some truth, principle, strategy, or perspective might simply be incorporated into who we already are. God personalizes his answer on hearts with an uncanny flexibility. But we turn it into a formula: “If you just believe x. If you just do y. If you just remember z.” No important truth ever contains the word “just” in the punch line.

We can make the right answer sound old hat, but I guarantee this: God will surprise you. He will make you stop. You will struggle. He will bring you up short. You will hurt. He will take his time. You will grow in faith and in love. He will deeply delight you. You will find the process harder than you ever imagined—and better. Goodness and mercy will follow you all the days of your life. At the end of the long road you will come home at last. No matter how many times you’ve heard it, no matter how long you’ve known it, no matter how well you can say it, God’s answer will come to mean something better than you could ever imagine.

He answers with himself.

David Powlison

Big Idea: God’s grace gives us HIMSELF as he enters our suffering with us.

Maybe it sounds too pat, to basic, too Christian…too MESSY.

I like neat and tidy.

I don’t like this answer to how God’s grace enters our suffering. But it is real.

It is long, slow, and messy.

God’s grace for our suffering is not a formula. It is a person - Job 19:25-27.

Job 19:25–27 ESV

25 For I know that my Redeemer lives, and at the last he will stand upon the earth. 26 And after my skin has been thus destroyed, yet in my flesh I shall see God, 27 whom I shall see for myself, and my eyes shall behold, and not another. My heart faints within me!

We probably know some of the “right answer.” But I think we often fail to grasp the full import and implication; we fail to grasp the whole picture.

God never establishes a “no-fly zone” for suffering in our life. In fact, he promises IT WILL come.

God does give us good gifts.

God speaks and acts through affliction.

“God whispers to us in our pleasures, speaks in our conscience, but shouts in our pain: it is his megaphone to rouse a deaf world.” CS Lewis

Suffering exposes counterfeit and weak faith.

BUT he answers that suffering WITH HIMSELF.

Sermon Body

Big Idea: God’s grace gives us HIMSELF as he enters our suffering with us.

How Firm a Foundation

We sang earlier, How Firm a Foundation.

In his book, God’s Grace in Your Suffering, David Powlison uses this hymn as a sort of outline for helping us know and see how God’s grace engages us in our suffering. Using scripture and the testimony of this song, he helps us see how God’s grace meets us in our suffering.

As we move through our time together this morning, I hope to walk us through some of the main insights he shares.

How Firm a Foundation

Anonymous writer.

Voice is GOD SPEAKING TO US. Only verse 1 is us speaking. This is an unusual voice for a song for usually we are are the speaker, praising God or even encouraging one another. This song invites us to LISTEN as if God were speaking to US while we sing.

The author wrote it with scriptural truth and framed it as a God who is speaking INTO OUR SUFFERING and reminding us of HIS grace THROUGH HIMSELF in that suffering.

In our suffering, we need to remember that we have a firm foundation in the person of God. And that foundation is the very foundation we need.

In our suffering, the temptation and danger is spiritual deafness and hardness of heart that fails to see, hear, or acknowledge God.

Exodus 6:1-9 is a prime example.

Exodus 6:1–9 ESV

1 But the Lord said to Moses, “Now you shall see what I will do to Pharaoh; for with a strong hand he will send them out, and with a strong hand he will drive them out of his land.” 2 God spoke to Moses and said to him, “I am the Lord. 3 I appeared to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, as God Almighty, but by my name the Lord I did not make myself known to them. 4 I also established my covenant with them to give them the land of Canaan, the land in which they lived as sojourners. 5 Moreover, I have heard the groaning of the people of Israel whom the Egyptians hold as slaves, and I have remembered my covenant. 6 Say therefore to the people of Israel, ‘I am the Lord, and I will bring you out from under the burdens of the Egyptians, and I will deliver you from slavery to them, and I will redeem you with an outstretched arm and with great acts of judgment. 7 I will take you to be my people, and I will be your God, and you shall know that I am the Lord your God, who has brought you out from under the burdens of the Egyptians. 8 I will bring you into the land that I swore to give to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob. I will give it to you for a possession. I am the Lord.’ ” 9 Moses spoke thus to the people of Israel, but they did not listen to Moses, because of their broken spirit and harsh slavery.

So crushed under the weight of sin were they, that they failed to see and hear God.

By Exodus 15, however, they were hearing, seeing, and even worshipping. God can override it, but as Powlison notes..

A sufferer’s primal need is to hear God talking and to experience him purposefully at work. When you hear, take to heart, and know that he is with you, everything changes, even when nothing has changed in your situation. Left to yourself, you blindly react. Your troubles obsess you, distract you, depress you. You grasp at straws. God seems invisible, silent, far away. Threat and pain and loss cry out long and loud. Faith seems inarticulate. Sorrow and confusion broadcast on all the channels. It’s hard to remember anything else, hard to put into words what is actually happening, hard to feel any of the force of who Jesus Christ is.

You might mumble right answers to yourself, but it’s like reading the phone book. You pray, but your words sound rote, vaguely unreal, mere pious generalities. You’d never talk to a real person that way. Meanwhile, the struggle churning within you is anything but rote and unreal. The pressure and hurt become completely engrossing. You’re caught in a swirl of apprehension, anguish, regret, confusion, bitterness, emptiness, uncertainty.

David Powlison

But, as Exodus 15 notes, God does work to REVERSE that trend and bring hope and joy through the trial.

God gives us Himself to work that work of grace in us.

Listen Well

2 Timothy 2:19.

2 Timothy 2:19 ESV

19 But God’s firm foundation stands, bearing this seal: “The Lord knows those who are his,” and, “Let everyone who names the name of the Lord depart from iniquity.”

The single most important thing about you is this… YOU ARE HIS.

IS THIS THE SINGLE MOST IMPORTANT TRUTH TO YOU? To ME?

This truth makes a difference regarding how you walk down hard roads.

How Firm a Foundation, Verse 1

How firm a foundation, you saints of the Lord, is laid for your faith in his excellent Word!

What more can he say than to you he has said, to you who for refuge to Jesus have fled?

Three observations...

What more can he say than to you he has said?

There are MANY unanswered questions as we read scripture. Many things God did not see fit to specifically or thoroughly address.

AND YET

When it comes right down to it, when it comes down to what matters most....What more can he say than to you he has said...

God’s word addresses all the defining needs that matter. Those questions pertaining to his goodness, his character, to death, to life, to our relationship to Him, to our purpose, to good and evil, etc. God HAS SAID all that we need.

2 Peter 1:3.

2 Peter 1:3 ESV

3 His divine power has granted to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of him who called us to his own glory and excellence,

Perhaps, what we need are not answers to the questions He does not answer but to listen better to the ones HE HAS given.

We are called saints.

This was my meditation on Romans 1:7 back in 2020 when it struck me...

Romans 1a 7 To all those in Rome who are loved by God and called to be saints: The Holy Bible: English Standard Version. (2016). (Ro 1:7). Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles. Abba, It is not a new term to me. Not a new concept. But it struck me powerfully as I read it. Saints We are called Invited Desired Beseeched Beckoned Chosen To be Saints. One resource defined Saint as "the quality possessed by things and persons that could approach a divinity." This was the definition that stood out as I read and studied. Not because it was a new idea. It wasn’t. But because it present an old truth in new terms that brought to life a reality that always has been. It exposed as aspect of "saint" that perhaps before was veiled. We are chosen, invited beckoned to approach you, God; To come near; To dwell in your presence. This is about relationship. This is about approachability. This is about being desired and wanted. This is about our ability to step near. The ability to be up close and personal with you, God. The profane approaching the majestic. The filthy approaching purity. The wicked approaching the righteousness. The abominable approaching holiness The unworthy approaching INFINITE value The despised approaching the supreme. How do I even comprehend and process such a truth? How can I even begin to fathom the depths of such a wondrous reality? Who am I that you would want me? I mean, even earthly rulers and leaders put barriers between them and those they lead. You cannot simply approach a person of power and importance. There is a barrier erected for protection and screening. I cannot just walk up to the president of the United States and start chatting. But you, Abba, you have no barriers. There is an open door. An open invitation. You beckon us to come. You want us to come. We are called as saints As ones who have been given the ability and the invitation to your presence. My whole life, I am used to be unnoticeable to most. Rarely has my life drawn the attention of another. Rarely have I been chosen first; pursued; sought after; desired. Sure, there have been and are instances of this being true. And they are breathtaking in my life. But none from one so great and marvelous as you, Abba. Not once. Not ever. Besides you. And it was nothing in me; nothing I have done to draw your attention. It is simply because I am yours. You made me. You want me. For no other reason than I exist. Made by the might of your hand and knowledge of your infinite mind. Me. I am called. Called to be saint. Called to approach and dwell near you. Me. Simply astounding!

To be called a saint is to be claimed by God as His own.

God calls you a saint to point out who owns you, not to honor you for going above and beyond the call of duty. David Powlison

Does that not simply astound you?

In being claimed by Him, every hope we long for, every promise He makes, has the assurance of fulfillment. Without it, whatever comes with this life is all we have.

We are refugees who have taken refuge in God.

We have run to and we look to Jesus for provision and protection.

Our designation as refugee is one that reminds us we are only passing through on our way to our final home, final destination, that this place is temporary and momentary.

Surely, it is uncomfortable living as a refugee. It is uncomfortable being in need.

BUT, when we run to Jesus in that vulnerability and in that neediness, it ends up being a blessed place to live.

Psalm 28:6-7.

Psalm 28:6–7 ESV

6 Blessed be the Lord! For he has heard the voice of my pleas for mercy. 7 The Lord is my strength and my shield; in him my heart trusts, and I am helped; my heart exults, and with my song I give thanks to him.

David was in need.

When he ran to Jesus, what did he find? Help

And in finding help....He found God and found such joy in the person and being of God.

Being in need drives us to the source of all true fulfillment and causes us to know and delight in God. Being needy is not all bad. :)

By being Needy, we find God. When we find God, we find all we need and all we could ever hope for.

Consider one of my favorite arsenal verses…2 Cor 12:9-10

2 Corinthians 12:9–10 ESV

9 But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me. 10 For the sake of Christ, then, I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and calamities. For when I am weak, then I am strong.

The core principle of the gospel is that Christ’s grace and strength are demonstrated IN OUR NEED. If we never had need, we would never know Christ’s grace and strength.

So, we need to realize how firm our foundation is with Jesus.

We need to listen well for his grace that comes to us in our suffering

Grace that comes to us in the form of God Himself

I Am with You

How Firm a Foundation, Stanza 2.

Verses 2-6 (some hymnbooks only have 4-5 of the stanzas) begin with quotations marks.

God is speaking now. We are listening.

Fear not, I am with you, O be not dismayed;

for I am your God, and will still give you aid;

I’ll strengthen you, help you, and cause you to stand,

upheld by my righteous, omnipotent hand.

Reactions to Avoid

Fear and Dismay.

Fear and dismay are pretty normal reactions when suffering and hardship enter.

The problem arises when distress and apprehension become God-less.

Like we found in Dark Clouds, Deep Mercy, when we encounter suffering, our suffering and lamenting should lead us to trust. If it is does not, we find the crux of the problem.

When we yield to fear and dismay, we may respond in the following ways.

We may intentionally mute the dismaying and fearful realities

We may recoil from life

We may seek to escape through false refuges of entertainment, recreation food, etc

Scripture, on the other hand, as we have seen in our study of the Psalms and Lamentations, invites us to be honest.

When trials and sufferings give us reason for fear and dismay, God gives us better reasons for trust LEST we permit him to slide into a place of irrelevance and find ourselves focusing on the suffering.

Promises to Embrace

The second stanza of How Firm a Foundation, echos Isaiah 41:10.

Isaiah 41:10 ESV

10 fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God; I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.

Fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God ---- And I will still give you aid

I will strengthen you, I will help you --- and I will cause you to stand

I will uphold you with my righteous (omnipotent) right hand

As we saw with Dark Clouds, Deep Mercy....God’s grace enters our suffering BY PROVIDING HIMSELF.

God invites us to look up and see him.

The danger we face is captured in a Latin phrase - Invurvatus in se. We Curve in on ourselves.

Suffering can make us preoccupied with self. A danger I have become keenly aware of.

Jesus, however, models the opposite.

Matthew 27:46 ESV

46 And about the ninth hour Jesus cried out with a loud voice, saying, “Eli, Eli, lema sabachthani?” that is, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?”

Luke 23:34 ESV

34 And Jesus said, “Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do.” And they cast lots to divide his garments.

Luke 23:46 ESV

46 Then Jesus, calling out with a loud voice, said, “Father, into your hands I commit my spirit!” And having said this he breathed his last.

Luke 23:43 ESV

43 And he said to him, “Truly, I say to you, today you will be with me in paradise.”

John 19:26–27 ESV

26 When Jesus saw his mother and the disciple whom he loved standing nearby, he said to his mother, “Woman, behold, your son!” 27 Then he said to the disciple, “Behold, your mother!” And from that hour the disciple took her to his own home.

John 19:28–30 ESV

28 After this, Jesus, knowing that all was now finished, said (to fulfill the Scripture), “I thirst.” 29 A jar full of sour wine stood there, so they put a sponge full of the sour wine on a hyssop branch and held it to his mouth. 30 When Jesus had received the sour wine, he said, “It is finished,” and he bowed his head and gave up his spirit.

Jesus, here in John 19 gave an honest voice to his suffering and yet, where was his focus in the darkest suffering EVER to be faced in ALL OF existence? It was outward.

Why? Because His focus NEVER left His Father.

The problem God Addresses

Powlison notes...

Suffering often brings a doubled pain. In the first place there is “the problem” itself—perhaps sickness or poverty, betrayal or bereavement. That is hard enough. But it is often compounded by a second problem. Other people, even well-meaning, often respond poorly to sufferers. Sufferers are often misunderstood, or meddled with, or ignored. These reactions add relational and psychological isolation to the original problem.

People who love you often focus exclusively on “the problem”—the hardship you are facing. They ask about the problem. They pray that God would solve the problem. They offer advice for solving the problem. Though they care for you and make well-meaning attempts to help, the effect can become quite unkind. They are missing you—the person facing the problem.

Many significant hardships have no remedy until the day when all tears are wiped away:

But whether or not a problem is fixable, you are facing spiritual challenges. How are you doing? What are you learning? Where are you failing? Where do you need encouragement? Will you learn to live well and wisely within pain, limitation, weakness, and loss? Will suffering define you? Will faith and love grow, or will you shrivel up? These are life-and-death issues—more important than “the problem” in the final analysis. They take asking, thinking, listening, responding. They take time.

David Powlison

God addresses this problem by coming Himself to hear and see US.

Let me read again...

Isaiah 41:10.

Isaiah 41:10 ESV

10 fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God; I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.

I am your God.

I will strengthen you

I will help you

I will uphold you

And another - Philippians 4:5-6.

Philippians 4:5–6 ESV

5 Let your reasonableness be known to everyone. The Lord is at hand; 6 do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God.

Do not be anxious? Why?

The LORD IS AT HAND; the Lord is near.

God answers with Himself.

There is not formula.

There is not easy answer, no straightforward path.

There is no clear path; no predictable route.

There is the long, slow, messy response that God gives.

But he gives the best there is to give.

How does Grace engage your suffering? With God Himself.

Conclusion

Big Idea: God’s grace gives us HIMSELF as he enters our suffering with us.

How Firm a Foundation

Listen Well

I Am with You

I Am with You for a Purpose

I Will Prove My Love

I Will Never Fail

Perhaps that is all we need to hear this morning....that God is near.

That God is here.

That the most significant thing about you is that YOU ARE HIS.

Next time, we will resume with the final three thoughts of how God’s grace engages our suffering....

I am with you for a purpose

I will prove my love

I will never fail.

But for today....Rest in the truth that You are His, that He is here, IN YOUR SUFFERING, and that HE will prove Himself faithful as he uses your suffering to help us be growing together to become more like Jesus for the glory of God.

Application

Why do we like neat and tidy formulas more than the long, slow, messy answer that God gives?

It is easier.

It promises more a quick fix.

It gives US something to do rather than a sitting back and waiting for God to do something.

We like clear and distinct answers.

What arsenal verses are your first grab when suffering comes? What makes that an arsenal verse for you?

How do we hold as supreme, the truth that the single greatest thing about us is that WE ARE GOD’S? How do we keep that emphasis throughout our lives?

Prioritized, unhurried time with God.

Guarded hearts when it comes to our passions

Seeing the limited nature of our passions and interests in comparison to glory.

Living in community with the body, helping others to see it.

Spending time around those who live with this truth in mind and allowing their passion and enthusiasm to rub off on us.

Meditating on the word and getting to know God better, more intimately.

Renewing our minds on the truth that the single greatest thing about us is that we God’s. Speaking this truth often to ourselves.

Living at the foot of the cross, refocusing our attention on the gospel DAILY.

Repenting of sin DAILY.

Giving thanks DAILY

What has God said about you, about Himself that comforts and/or challenges you?

What does it mean to be called a saint? How does this truth encourage and sustain you through life’s trials?

One who has been claimed by God

One who has access to God.

There are no barriers between us and God. We are invited to come and given complete access to Him.

In our suffering, we can come to Him freely and know that he will receive us AND because of Christ’s suffering, know that he understands as well.

Memorize Isaiah 41:10. What hope does this verse give? How will it help you in your week this week? Be specific.

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