Suffering

So as we begin to draw to a close, 

let me remind you who this Jesus is.

In verse 25 Jesus says the well-known words.

“I am the resurrection 

and the life.”

John 11:25

As Jesus has healing Lazarus, 

He was also thinking about a day not far off.

A day when our sin would be placed on His shoulders.

A day when the Father turn His face away.

And a day when He will die in our place.

But He is also thinking of a day, 

when He will rise again.

And unlike Lazarus, 

He will never die again.

He became the ‘resurrection and the life’ for us.

And just as Jesus calls to Lazarus in the tomb,

“... come out.”

John 11:43

He too calls to us.

He calls us to Himself.

To come out of the darkness,

into the light of His goodness,

faithfulness,

and care.

Whatever circumstance we find ourselves in today, 

when we put our trust in Jesus, 

knowing our greatest trouble has been dealt with,

our sins have been forgiven,

as we put our trust in His death and resurrection.

The sin that so easily entangles (Hebrews 12:1) has been paid for.

Jesus has paid it all.

His death brought us life.

And just as He was resurrected,

so shall we on that final day.

Now death no longer has the final word.

For He conquered it,

so that we may live forever with him in eternity.

So remember Jesus sees us

and is near to us in our suffering, 

because He loves us.

Love us enough to die in our place.

Jesus is moved by our suffering 

because He knows what it means to suffer. 

He suffered and bled,

so we may be healed.

And God has a plan and a purpose in our suffering 

and will use it for our good 

and for His glory.

Whatever you are going through today, 

or will go through in the future, 

remember God is with you, 

He sees you, 

and He loves you.

Sometimes His timing isn’t our timing, 

but that doesn’t mean you are forgotten.

So in light of this, 

no matter what we are going through, 

“How will we live your lives today?”

Will we doubt the goodness of God?

Or shall we live full of faith, 

that God is with us, 

and cares for us?

Let me leave you with a quote from E. Standley Jones, 

a missionary and theologian to the people of India, 

he writes,

“Jesus said to his disciples, 

‘Let not your hearts be troubled,’ 

not because they were to be protected from all troubles, 

but because they were ‘to believe in God.’  

Faith in God 

and his redemptive purposes will not save you from 

the troubles, 

but will save you through them, 

for the troubles themselves can be made 

into the agents of redemption.”

E. Standley Jones, Christ and Human Suffering (1933)

Let us pray together.