Grace Baptist Church of Arlington

Suffering is nearly a universal experience, and so I’d like to offer a few thoughts on suffering, that I hope will help those in our congregation and beyond in suffering.  And to be clear, this is not all that could be said on suffering.

First, suffering teaches us to depend upon God.  That was the Apostle Paul’s experience.  In 2 Corinthians 1, Paul said, “We do not want you to be uninformed, brothers, about the hardships we suffered in the province of Asia. We were under great pressure, far beyond our ability to endure, so that we despaired even of life.  ⁹ Indeed, in our hearts we felt the sentence of death. But this happened that we might not rely on ourselves but on God, who raises the dead.”[1]

Secondly, suffering is meant to fit us for heaven. In 2 Corinthians 4, we learn that our sufferings are preparing us for glory.  Paul writes, “Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all.”[2]

Christian, in your suffering, you are being prepared to bear an eternal glory.  What glory will you bear?  It will be the infinitely weighty glory of God.  It is only through bearing the weight of our sufferings now that we will be prepared to bear the weight of eternal glory – that we will be fit for heaven.  And this should drive us outside of ourselves and to God.

Thirdly, suffering is meant for the good of others.  Again 2 Corinthians 1 tells us that The God of all comfort, comforts us in our troubles so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves have received from God.  For just as the sufferings of Christ flow over into our lives, so also through Christ our comfort overflows.[3]

Consider the cross, suffering exposed for the entire world to see, and yet accomplishing good for all of those who would repent and believe.  All mysteriously and gloriously from God’s sovereign hand.  Where would we be without the suffering of Christ?  We would be without hope.  Share your suffering with others.  Share the hope that you have in your suffering as you look to the eternal hope that you have in Christ’s sufferings.

[2] 2 Corinthians 4:16-17

[3] 2 Corinthians 1:4-5

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Under Reflections, Theology