Purpose in Suffering

I eagerly expect and hope that I will in no way be ashamed, but will have sufficient courage so that now as always Christ will be exalted in my body, whether by life or by death.  For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain.  Philippians 1:20,21

• The Christian life has sometimes been wrongly described as being problem-free and difficulty-free.

• Jesus never said this would be so and neither did Paul.

• Straight after his conversion, Paul was told that he would suffer greatly on behalf of Jesus.

• How two Christians respond totally differently to great losses in their lives.

• We can be sure that Paul did not welcome suffering , but could see how his suffering advanced the gospel.

• In Romans 8:28 he wrote: “And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.”

• Perseverance through trials qualifies us to speak and testify with power and effect.

• When Jerusalem was under siege during the time of Jeremiah, King Hezekiah had a new respect for the prophet when it became clear how he endured suffering.

• The Belgian priest, Father Damien, struggled in his ministry to lepers on the Hawaiian island of Molokai until he, too, contracted leprosy.

• Similarly, those who have suffered from cancer are best placed to empathize with those diagnosed with cancer.

• Paul was not looking for escape from his trials.  “For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain.” (Philippians 1:21)

• Paul demonstrates what a man in prison awaiting execution can achieve.

• John Bunyan, writer of Pilgrim’s Progress, and Dietrich Bonhoeffer also achieved great things during imprisonment.

• Lindy Chamberlain wrote this about her experience of wrongful imprisonment: “Many was the lime I could not see which way God was directing, but I could look back later and see the reason for it.  Often I wondered why I was going through a particular rough patch, and then a letter would arrive from a stranger; somebody who wanted to tell me that, because of my example, because of what had happened to me……..then they could cope with their problems too.”

Bible readings:  Jeremiah 38:1-13, Philippians 1:12-30