A Reason to Rejoice!

1 Peter 4:12-19 A Reason to Rejoice! Introduction: I have never heard anyone pray for suffering, and I have never heard of anyone who enjoyed it. But I have also never heard anyone say, "The greatest and most satisfying joys of my life have come in times of ease and earthly comfort." Nobody says that. Because it isn't true. What is true is what Samuel Rutherford said, "When I am in the cellar of affliction, I look for the Lord's choicest wines." What is true is what Charles Spurgeon said: "They who dive in the sea of affliction bring up rare pearls." It is not on the mountain top where we receive the greatest comfort and Joys of life but it is usually in the valleys of life, in the trials where God’s presence and truth become most precious to us. We don’t ask for trial or suffering but God in his sovereign wisdom and Love brings to us. As this letter now draws to a close, Peter reminds his readers that this kind of suffering should not surprise them. God is using their suffering to purify his church; therefore they should unreservedly give themselves to God in their sufferings. 1. Do Not Be Surprised. a. “Beloved, do not be surprised at the fiery trial when it comes upon you to test you, as though something strange were happening to you.” b. Contrary to what we might think, suffering is a part of the plan. Although it may seem like it, it’s not random, it’s not that God has forgotten us, that we slipped through his fingers, or that someone has hijacked heaven. c. When you really begin to grasp the great love of God the grace of God in your life, God’s plan for mankind, God’s plan for his church, and the story of the bible, persecution and suffering seems retroactive to God’s plan. Suffering does seem like a strange thing. Aren’t we the redeemed of the Lord? His chosen one’s? Doesn’t the earth belong to us? Why do we feel like outcasts? Aren’t we a kingdom of priest who will rule the earth with Christ? i. “The disciples, are the highest good, the supreme value which the earth possess for without them it cannot live....In casting out the disciples the earth is destroying it’s very life. And yet, wonder of wonders it is for the sake of the outcasts that the earth is allowed to continue..” -Bonhoeffer d. No, for the Christian sufferings are not against God’s plan, they are in line with it; and contrary to what we may feel and think suffering is not a sign of God's absence but of his presence. e. Peter seems to have Malachi 3:1-6 in mind as he was writing: “The Lord whom you seek will suddenly come to his temple; and the messenger of the covenant in whom you delight, behold, he is coming, says the Lord of hosts. But who can endure the day of his coming, and who can stand when he appears? For he is like a refiner’s fire and like fullers’ soap. He will sit as a refiner and purifier of silver, and he will purify the sons of Levi and refine them like gold and silver, and they will bring offerings in righteousness to the Lord. Then the offering of Judah and Jerusalem will be pleasing to the Lord as in the days of old and as in former years. “Then I will draw near to you for judgment. I will be a swift witness against the sorcerers, against the adulterers, against those who swear falsely, against those who oppress the hired worker in his wages, the widow and the fatherless, against those who thrust aside the sojourner, and do not fear me, says the Lord of hosts.” i. Peter sees this word from Malachi being fulfilled in the persecutions of the Church. Their fiery trial (or literally judgment) is from the Lord and the suffering that they are going through is actually his refining fire. These Christians ought to rejoice because their suffering will result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ. ii. Suffering persecution is part of the plan.... There is a method to the madness...it is a sign to us that God is at work in our lives and if the Creator of the universe takes interest in you, if he is at work in your life, then that is definitely a reason to rejoice. 2. Rejoice: Your Suffering with Christ means your Glory. a. “But rejoice insofar as you share Christ’s sufferings, that you may also rejoice and be glad when his glory is revealed.” b. Our suffering because of the name of Christ, our confession of and identity with Him means that we also share in his glory. The NT always connects for us Suffering and Glory! They are inseparable bedfellows! c. “The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, and if children, then heirs—heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, provided we suffer with him in order that we may also be glorified with him. For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us.” -Romans 8:16-18 i. Just as Jesus identified with us in our suffering, we get to identify with him in his. What an Honor! ii. “Not as He suffered. Oh, no! there is no curse, no wrath, no hell in the cup of sorrow which we drink. All these ingredients composed His bitter draught. Yet He suffers with us, and permits our afflictions to be called the "afflictions of Christ." He is with you on that bed of sickness; He is with you on that couch of languishing; He is with you in that darkened room; He kneels with you at that coffin; and He weeps with you by the side of that sepulcher. Oh, may it not reconcile us to all the suffering we have ever endured, or may yet be called to endure, to feel the perfect oneness, the presence, the sympathy, the (help) of such a Savior? Who would wish to shun the shame of His cross, the scorn of His name, the lowliness of His kingdom, the self-denial of His religion, allied in the tenderest sympathy at every step with this illustrious Martyr- this Prince of sufferers- this Brother born for adversity?” -Octavius Winslow 1. Therefore we can rejoice if we suffer because of Christ because it means that we will also share in His Glory! 3. Rejoice: Your Suffering Means that God is Present. a. “If you are insulted for the name of Christ, you are blessed, because the Spirit of glory and of God rests upon you." b. “This means that in the hour of greatest trial there is a great comfort. In great suffering on earth there is great support from heaven. You may think now that you will not be able to bear it. But if you are Christ's, you will be able to bear it, because he will come to you and rest upon you. As Rutherford said, the Great King keeps his finest wine in the cellar of affliction. He does not bring it out to serve with chips and on sunny afternoons. He keeps it for extremities.” -John Piper c. So often the mistake we make as Christians is to ask where is God in our sufferings. i. Peter is saying here that the presence of suffering brings the Lord’s presence. d. Peter knew what he was talking about. He had experienced it. According to Acts 5:41, after being beaten with the other apostles, he "left the presence of the council, rejoicing that they were counted worthy to suffer dishonor for the name (of Jesus)." If you admire and love someone tremendously, and you get lumped together with them and treated the same way, it is a great honor. e. Paul told the Philippians that they were graciously favored because “it (had) been granted to them that for the sake of Christ they should not only believe in him but also suffer for his sake” - Philippians 1:29 i. We rejoice in our sufferings because Because it means the tangible presence of God with us and upon us... We get extra grace!....Paul, My grace is sufficient. 4. Rejoice: Your Earthly Suffering Means that God is Treating you as a Beloved Son. a. “Yet if anyone suffers as a Christian, let him not be ashamed, but let him glorify God in that name. For it is time for judgment to begin at the household of God; and if it begins with us, what will be the outcome for those who do not obey the gospel of God? And “If the righteous is scarcely saved, what will become of the ungodly and the sinner?” b. How on earth can God’s judgment be proof that God loves us? i. Most of us would say and think the opposite, “Lord if you truly loved me then this wouldn’t be happening.” or “Lord if you really loved your Church you wouldn’t allow the Christians in such and such a place to suffer.” ii. Suffering to us means that God is absent and that he doesn’t love us, but that is not what the scripture teaches. c. Verse 17 describes this fiery ordeal as God's judgment that starts with his own people, and then consumes unbelievers. "For the time has come for judgment to begin with the household of God; and if it begins with us what will the end of those be who do not obey the gospel of God?" This does not sound very comforting at first. When we are about to be arrested and killed for believing in Jesus..when we are being slandered and insulted, it is not encouraging to hear that he is judging us in wrath like unbelievers. d. But let's be careful; that is not what it says. Verse 18 makes it plain that God's judgment upon us does not lead to condemnation but to salvation. "If the righteous man is scarcely saved"—he is saved! What, then, does God's judgment mean? Verse 12 explains, "Do not be surprised at the fiery ordeal which comes upon you to prove you." The judgment of God which comes upon believers is to test and refine their faith not to condemn them. It is an expression of his love not his wrath. 1 Peter 1:6–7 says we may have to "suffer various tests (same word) so that the genuineness of our faith . . . may result in praise and glory and honor." e. It’s the same idea of what Peter said earlier; The waters that judged the world in Noah's day, were the same waters that lifted up the ark. Or the same waters that Judged the world, were the same waters that brought baptism cleansing..*** f. Peter is echoing a similar word as the writer of the Hebrews? i. “And have you forgotten the exhortation that addresses you as sons? "My son, do not regard lightly the discipline of the Lord, nor be weary when reproved by him. For the Lord disciplines the one he loves, and chastises every son whom he receives." It is for discipline that you have to endure. God is treating you as sons. For what son is there whom his father does not discipline? If you are left without discipline, in which all have participated, then you are illegitimate children and not sons. Besides this, we have had earthly fathers who disciplined us and we respected them. Shall we not much more be subject to the Father of spirits and live? For they disciplined us for a short time as it seemed best to them, but he disciplines us for our good, that we may share his holiness.” -Hebrews 12:5-10 ii. “But when we are judged by the Lord, we are disciplined so that we may not be condemned along with the world.” -1 Corinthians 11:32 g. It is God’s Fatherly love that brings “judgment” upon the church. It is his loving disciplinary care that brings the refining fire, so that we will not be judged with the world. h. Why should we rejoice in this suffering? I'll tell you why. Because it means you're not a bastard, it means you are a son. It means that you have a hope. It means that at the end of this life you share in the glory of the eternal God, it means a glorious end; and not a lake of fire and eternal torment waiting you when you die. That's why your suffering should make you rejoice. 5. Rejoice: The Sovereign Lord is in Control. a. The last reason Peter gives us to rejoice is the fact that our heavenly Father, who’s wisdom and love are infinite, has allowed these sufferings. All suffering passes through His loving hands. We can be certain that He has allowed them for our ultimate good and not our demise. i. “And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose. For those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, in order that he might be the firstborn among many brothers. And those whom he predestined he also called, and those whom he called he also justified, and those whom he justified he also glorified.” -Romans 8:28-30 ii. We can be confident that theLord will not allow us to suffer beyond our capacity and that he will provide the strength we need to endure. This confidence is ours because he is a faithful Creator, faithful to his promises, faithful to his people, never abandoning them in their time of need, always vindicating the righteous and condemning the wicked. 1. God will have the final word, His plan CANNOT, it WILL NOT fail. Conclusion: What should we do in our suffering? 1. Rejoice! Your suffering means that you belong to God and that God is at work in your life! 2. Entrust Your Soul to a Faithful Creator. a. “The purpose of good theology is to build and sustain great trust in God. In all Christian suffering Satan is seeking to devour faith (1 Peter 5:8–9). God is seeking to test and refine faith (4:12). God's great purpose in all our suffering will be accomplished when we do what Jesus did in the agony of the cross when he cried out (Luke 23:46), "Father, into your hands I entrust my spirit." He entrusted himself to a faithful Creator. According to 2 Corinthians 1:9 God's purpose in suffering is to cause us to rely no longer on ourselves but utterly on him who raises the dead.” -John Piper 3. Do Good. a. Do good, Be a hard worker, be a good citizen, be a loving husband, be a submissive wife, be a great dad or mom, be a gracious friend. Keep letting the Word affect how you live and how you speak. b. Therefore: let those who suffer according to God’s will entrust their souls to a faithful Creator while doing good. We show our trust in him by continually doing good. Do good, and be a blessing. c.