I am always intrigued and amazed at how differently people respond to adversity and life’s challenges. One of my observations is the degree of the hardship has little to do with how a person responds to adversity. Rather, it is one’s worldview, their perspective of life. Two people can experience nearly identical circumstances and have vastly different views of the event and make dramatically different choices.
My worldview is based upon God’s Word; in Scripture I discovered God’s character, His passion for His children and I discovered myself. For in the pages of this text are people just like me and just like you. People who at various times were heroic and cowardly; brave and fearful; filled with great faith, and overwhelmed with doubts, in other words, just like us.
The Bible also provides specific instructions on how we are to thrive and live purposeful lives in spite of and at times, even because of the adversity we face.
“I am the light of the world. He who follows me shall not walk in darkness, but have the light of life.” (John 8:12) That should be our encouragement, that which enables us to go on in the face of insurmountable odds. Paul used that truth during his ministry.
Consider his letters to the church in Corinth, “I am greatly encouraged; in all our troubles my joy knows no bounds.” (2 Co 7:4) In verse 5 he shares: “For when we came into Macedonia, this body of ours had no rest, but we were harassed at every turn – conflicts on the outside, fears within.”
Earlier he confesses “But we have this treasure in jars of clay (our earthly bodies) to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us. We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down but not destroyed. We always carry around in our body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be revealed in our body. For we who are alive are always given over to death for Jesus’ sake, so that His life may be revealed in our mortal body.” 2 Co 4:7-11
I find the following verses so amazing:
For we do not want you to be unaware, brethren, of our affliction which came to us in Asia, that we were burdened excessively, beyond our strength, so that we despaired even of life; indeed, we had the sentence of death within ourselves in order that we should not trust in ourselves, but in God who raises the dead; who delivered us from so great a peril of death, and will deliver us, He on whom we have set our hope. And He will yet deliver us, - 2 Corinthians 1:8-10
Burdened excessively, beyond our strength, despaired even of life, sentence of death! Wow, I am really stoked now, ready to hit the ground running Paul, thanks!
Here is where it turns; “we should not trust in ourselves, but in God who raises the dead; who delivered us from so great a peril of death, and will deliver us, He on whom we have set our hope. And He will yet deliver us”. OK, we “discover” this truth that we are not really in control after all; therefore we can hand over our lives to One who not only loves us, but more importantly, One who has power over life and death! Surely if He has defeated death, removed the sting of every person’s ultimate enemy, He can bring forth victory from our financial crises, our marital woes, our health concerns, even our political and social ills.
My friends, it is often through affliction and suffering that the glory of God is revealed in our lives; the world needs to see how to endure with hope and joy, in the midst of so much pain and suffering. No one needs to be told to cheer up when they win the lottery, they’re happy. Rather, when the doctor says it’s cancer, when the boss says you’re out of work, or the judge says prison; that is when the world needs to see in our lives, the peace that surpasses all understanding.
When we walk in the light, we need not fear, for we know, and we learn through these afflictions in deeper ways, that He can be counted on, I mean in the deepest part of your spirit you can trust Him. This often comes after the sorrow and pain becomes so fierce, that you cry out in anguish, my God, why have You forsaken me? Our Lord Jesus did it; He also anguished the night He was betrayed, for He knew the hardship was coming. (John 18:4)
Many know this prayer “Father, if it is Your will, take this cup away from me; nevertheless not my will, but Yours be done.” (Luke 22:42) Just like Jesus, we don’t want to go through with it, we don’t want the pain, we avoid it, the cessation of pain is one of the great motivators in the human condition, we will do just about anything to make pain stop.
As believers however, when we embrace the fact that this world is not our permanent home, we can better endure the afflictions we face. Paul writes in Romans 8:18 “For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory that is to be revealed in us.” In his 2nd letter to the church in Corinth, Paul continues this thought and tells us “For our momentary, light affliction is producing for us an eternal weight of glory far beyond all comparison.” (2 Co 4:17)
Now I know what you’re saying, momentary, light? Wait a minute here Paul, maybe the other guys stuff was momentary or light, but these are my problems here, and my stuff is heavy and it seems like it’s been going on forever! In verse 18 he helps us gain some perspective on this, “for the things which are seen are temporal, but the things which are not seen are eternal.”
OK, so the financial problems, illness, incarceration, divorce, even death itself, these are temporary in light of our forever home with Jesus! That makes it a little easier to take, but I’m still hurting today Lord, the pain feels overwhelming, suffocating, and it feels like it’s only getting worse, what now? Well, the truth is, it may get worse for a season, or longer, but let’s look back at our Master and see what He did then, and what He’s doing even today.
Saints, let us “fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before Him endured the Cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.” (Hebrews 12:2) For the joy set before Him, the joy of reconciling His children back to Himself, we were His joy!
So after He takes care of the big task of redeeming mankind to Himself, and preparing our home for us, He goes back to work helping us to make it through life’s battles.
Let’s look at Hebrews 3:15-16, “For we do not have a high priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but One who has been tempted in all things as we are, yet without sin. Let us therefore draw near with confidence to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and may find grace to help in time of need.”
So we have the assurance that “this too shall pass”, that He also battled through life’s agony, and He offers us the grace to endure. When the apostle Paul asked Him three times to remove the thorn in his flesh, he was told by the Living God: “My Grace is sufficient for you, for power is perfected in weakness.” (2 Co 12:9)
We see that the Father met the Sons needs in the garden that dark night, for Luke tells us: “Then an angel appeared to Him from heaven, strengthening Him. And being in agony, He prayed more earnestly. Then His sweat became like great drops of blood falling down to the ground.” (Luke 22:43-44)
So Father will meet our needs, right where we are, and carry us through to victory, if we only rest in Him, and stop struggling. When it looks darkest, when it appears that defeat is certain, and all is lost, we need to remember how it looked that day over 2,000 years ago, when the Messiah was hung from a tree and the “movement” was defeated. If we look only with human eyes, yes it was a defeat wasn’t it, He was killed, the followers scattered, and the battle was lost. But too often we look at Friday my friends, and Friday was ugly, it had to be though, because cleaning up the sin of the world was no simple task!
But let’s fast-forward a couple of days, to a tomb that should have held this poor preacher from Galilee, and listen to those words that have been resonating hope for 21 centuries:
“Why do you seek the living One among the dead? He is not here, but He has risen.”
It only looked lost, it only appears that we have no hope, it only seems like tomorrow will be as painful as today, but Sunday became the victory for believers everywhere! He lives! Let those words roll around on your tongue, He Lives! And if He lives, we can believe all of the promises He gave to us, we have a home with no mortgage payments, no plumbing problems, no taxes, no college tuition to pay, and no more tears, no more pain and no more goodbyes. And He has promised to walk with us and be our God, forever; with an assured future like that, I am confident that I can handle anything that this world throws my way, thank You Jesus, for You did make a way, where there seems to be no way.
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