Suffering Can Be a Good Thing
Suffering Can Be a Good thing
Christ – the one we love and followed – SUFFERED
Suffering for Righteousness Sake
Are you armed?
Do you have a weapon?
Do you have a gun/knife?
Use the appropriate weapon. Be sure you are equipped.
This is a common metaphor in Scripture and the probable reason is that the Christian life is a truceless war with sin
Romans 6:13 Do not present your members to sin as instruments for unrighteousness, but present yourselves to God as those who have been brought from death to life, and your members to God as instruments for righteousness
2 Corinthians 4:10 For the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh but have divine power to destroy strongholds.
Romans 13:12 The night is far gone; the day is at hand. So then let us cast off the works of darkness and put on the armor of light.
Suffering shows we have made a BREAK with sin
This describes the spiritual state of the victorious sufferer. This is a note of triumph - in that the sufferer for righteousness sake is demonstrating that they are no longer dominated by a life of sin.
If you were dominated by a life of sin then why would you be suffering for righteousness?
Or, If your message was acceptable, why would you be suffering?
Or, if your lifestyle hasn’t change why would you lose your friends?
As for the rumor that I continue to preach the ways of circumcision (as I did in those pre-Damascus Road days), that is absurd. Why would I still be persecuted, then? If I were preaching that old message, no one would be offended if I mentioned the Cross now and then—it would be so watered-down it wouldn’t matter one way or the other.
AS A RESULT . . .
The believer does not lives the rest of his earthly life for evil human desires, but rather for the will of God .
We live for the will of God.
Enough is enough . . .
1 Peter 4:3 For you have spent enough time in the past doing what pagans choose to do
Romans 13:12 The night is far gone; the day is at hand. So then let us cast off the works of darkness and put on the armor of light.
13 Let us walk properly as in the daytime, not in orgies and drunkenness, not in sexual immorality and sensuality, not in quarreling and jealousy. 14 But put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh, to gratify its desires.
The one’s who cause the suffering will be brought to JUDGEMENT
This is not good in the sense that they will be judged.
However, it is good in that we can trust God that appropriate justice will take place.
He will not leave us and forsake us in the matter of how we have been treated.
This life is not the END of all things
Not all is lost -
Some have said this is most difficult text in the Bible
6 That is why the Good News was preached to those who are now dead so although they were destined to die like all people, they now live forever with God in the Spirit (NLT)
Judged in the flesh as men - in other words - what good did the gospel do for them. They just die like all men. And in the thinking of the pagan there is nothing after this life so they should have adopted the philosophy of eat drink and be merry for tomorrow you die.
The end is near
Turn around the end is near
Do you think it may have been more prudent to put up a sign that said,”The bridge is out!”
We should live our lives to HONOR God and BENEFIT others
A fruitful Christian life, inspired by the hope of the future is a further source of strength amid suffering for righteousness.