Suffering as a gift – Hope

Well, have your Bibles ready.

We're going to be looking at a few different passages this morning.

I came across an article about a guy called Raphael Samuel.

He's 27 years old and he's suing his parents for being born.

That's what the article's about, suing his parents for being born.

Here's what it says.

Mr. Samuel's belief is rooted in what's called antinatalism,

a philosophy that argues that life is so full of misery

that people should stop procreating immediately.

He quotes, there's no point to humanity.

So many people are suffering.

If humanity is extinct, earth and animals would be happier.

They'll certainly be better off.

Also, no human will then suffer.

Human existence is totally pointless.

Now, we might be as extreme as Raphael Samuel,

but I think he puts into words how we can all think about suffering.

That is, there is no purpose in suffering.

It's pointless.

All suffering does is bring misery, pain and sorrow.

It achieves nothing.

It accomplishes nothing.

Suffering is a curse.

But Scripture gives us a different perspective.

Rather than see suffering as a curse,

we should see it as a gift we can thank God for.

A well-known verse, Romans 8, verse 28,

Romans 8:28

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.

In all things.

In every suffering of life.

When cancer strikes,

when depression weighs us down,

when an accident takes a loved one,

when circumstances overwhelm us,

in all things.

In every suffering of life.

God works for our good.

Now, that doesn't mean that the suffering is itself good.

Rather, suffering in the hands of God

is used for good purposes.

So when disease or destruction or death should come,

we can trust him

that he has all things

in his hands.

And he will work good purposes in us

and through us.

When our daughter Rebecca was young,

I took her into a room

against her will

to a group of people she didn't know.

I handed her over to them,

pulled her grip from my hand,

and I watched as they pushed a sharp needle

into her arm.

Screaming from fear and pain,

she kept looking at me

as if to say,

why are you doing this to me?

Make it stop.

But what she didn't know

and what I knew

was that it was for her good.

The pain was necessary

so that they could perform surgery

and insert her cochlear implant.

You see, there's two ways

we can see or view our suffering.

We can see it as a curse,

an unexplained tragedy

that God has no control over,

that causes us misery and hardship.

Or second, we can see it as a gift,

a struggle or a trial,

sent by God

or allowed by God

that is for our good

and for his glory.

Now, as I say these words,

I realise that it's not easy to accept,

not easy to understand,

yet by looking to God,

we can learn to embrace

and accept all things

as something

from our Heavenly Father,

a gift from our Sovereign Father.

So over these next two weeks,

starting today,

we're going to be looking at

ten ways

God uses suffering

for our good.

We're going to look at

four of them

this morning.

Here's the first.

Embracing suffering

as a gift

can lead

to salvation.

Turn with me, please,

to Exodus chapter 2.

Exodus 2 · chapter mention

I haven't got page numbers,

so if you're nearby,

somebody who's struggling,

just no embarrassment,

just ask for the page

or ask them to direct you

where it is.

Exodus 2.

This is perhaps the first

and ultimate reason

for all kinds of suffering

and we see this pattern

throughout Scripture.

In Exodus 2,

which opens up

with God's people

in Egypt,

Exodus 2,

Exodus 2:23

verse 23.

During that long period,

the king of Egypt died

and the Israelites groaned

in their slavery

and cried out

and their cry for help

because of their slavery

went up to God.

God heard their groaning

and he remembered

his covenant

with Abraham,

with Isaac,

and with Jacob.

That covenant,

that promise

that he would call

and bring a people

to himself.

So God looked

on the Israelites

and was concerned

about them.

Now jump down

to chapter 3,

verse 7.

The Lord said,

I have indeed seen

the misery

of my people in Egypt.

I have heard them

crying out

because of their slave drivers

and I am concerned

about their suffering.

So I have come down

to rescue them

from the land

of the Egyptians

and to bring them up

out of that land

into a good

and spacious land.

You see,

their suffering,

their slavery,

their trial

caused them

to cry out

to God

for salvation.

It's not that God

was immune

to their suffering

or didn't know

what was going on.

Rather,

they came to see

their need of God

and cried out

for his help.

We see the same theme

repeated in Psalm 107.

Psalm 107.

This psalm gives us

a picture,

a number of different

pictures,

describes how people

turn to God

in their struggle

for salvation.

Let me read a couple.

Psalm 107

starting at verse 4.

Some wandered

in desert wastelands

finding no way

to a city

where they could settle.

They were hungry

and thirsty

and their lives

ebbed away.

Then they cried out

to the Lord

in their trouble

and he delivered them

from their distress.

Or look at verse 10.

Some sat in darkness,

in utter darkness,

prisoners,

suffering in iron chains.

Because they rebelled

against God's commands

and despised

the plans

of the Most High.

So he,

that is God,

subjected them

to bitter labour.

They stumbled

and there was

no one to help.

Then they cried

to the Lord,

their God,

in their trouble

and he saved them

from their distress.

The author C.S. Lewis

knew what it was

to suffer.

As a young boy,

his mother had died

and he was neglected

emotionally by his father.

He suffered ill health

as a teen

and then when he married,

he went through

the grief

of watching his own wife

die of cancer.

And reflecting on

his experiences

of suffering,

he said this,

a well-known quote,

God whispers to us

in our pleasures,

speaks to us

in our conscience,

but shouts

in our pain.

It is God's megaphone

to rouse

a deaf world.

You see,

all suffering

can be used

by God

to waken us up

to our need of God.

That's what happened

in Exodus.

That's what happened

in the Psalms.

Let me show you

one more example.

Come with me,

please,

to Luke's Gospel,

chapter 13.

Luke's Gospel,

chapter 13.

Luke's Gospel,

Luke's Gospel,

starting at verse 1.

Now there were some

present at that time

who told Jesus

about the Galileans

whose blood

Pilate had mixed

with their sacrifices.

Jesus answered,

Do you think

that these Galileans

were worse sinners

than all the other

Galileans

because they suffered

this way?

I tell you,

no,

but unless you repent,

you too will all perish.

Or those 18 who died

when the tower in Siloam

fell on them,

do you think

they were more guilty

than all the others

living in Jerusalem?

I tell you,

no,

but unless you repent,

you too will all perish.

Now this short account

tells us of two kinds

of suffering.

If you look at verse 1,

there was the time

where Pilate,

who was the Roman prefect,

went and killed

some Galileans.

We don't have the full story,

but it seems

they were on their way

up to the temple

to make sacrifice,

and Pilate intervened

and wanted to remind

everybody that he was boss

and who was in charge

and had them slaughtered.

And then in verse 4,

we read about a tower,

a stone tower

that had fallen

and killed 18 people.

And all this suffering

that has gone on

has made people question,

why all this suffering?

What's going on?

Well, Jesus teaches

two things through this.

First,

he teaches,

don't assume

that suffering

is the result

of some particular sin.

Don't assume

that suffering

is the result

of some particular sin.

Look at verse 2.

He says,

what about these Galileans

that suffered?

Do you think

they were worse sinners

than the others

who didn't suffer

in this way?

I tell you,

no.

Or down in verse 4,

what about those 18 who died?

Do you think

they were more guilty?

And that's why

the tower fell on them.

I tell you,

no.

Don't think

that the degree

of suffering

is related

to the degree

of your sin.

So if you sin little,

you suffer little.

But if you sin lots,

you suffer lots.

That's a wrong way

of thinking,

says Jesus.

We mustn't think that way.

Instead,

Jesus is wanting

to teach us

and show us

how we should respond

to the suffering

we see

and experience

in our life.

So the second thing

he teaches is

repent now

to escape

eternal suffering.

Repent now

to escape

eternal suffering.

So verse 3,

he says,

I tell you,

no,

but unless you repent,

you too will all perish.

And if we miss the point,

he repeats it again

in verse 5,

unless you repent,

you too will all perish.

To perish

is to face

the just judgment

of God

for our sin.

It means

eternal suffering,

hell itself.

You see,

he's showing us

that we've all

turned from God

and we all deserve

to be separated

from God.

And Jesus is saying,

repent now,

turn to God

for salvation

or

a worse suffering

will come upon us.

You see,

our temporary sufferings,

the things we see

going on in our world,

should awaken us

to the reality

of an eternal suffering.

Suffering is God's megaphone

to awaken,

arouse,

a deaf world.

God takes the sufferings

that we see

and experience

and he takes them

and he uses them

for good purposes

to show us all

that we need rescued.

Or to put it another way,

God in his goodness

allows temporary suffering

so that we will avoid

eternal suffering.

suffering.

So the first thing

we see

as to the reasons

or the purposes

of suffering

is that it can lead

to salvation.

It brings us

to a place

where we cry out

to God

for salvation.

Second,

it can lead us

to depend

to depend

on God.

You see,

through our suffering

we come to see

that we are weak

and desperately

need God.

Have a look with me

please

at 2 Corinthians

2 Corinthians 1 · chapter mention

chapter 1.

2 Corinthians

2 Corinthians 1 · chapter mention

chapter 1.

Verse 8.

2 Corinthians 1.

Verse 8.

Paul is speaking

We do not want you

to be uninformed

brothers and sisters

about the troubles

we experienced

in the province

of Asia.

We were under

great pressure

far beyond

our ability

to endure

so that we

despaired

of life itself.

Indeed,

we felt

we had received

the sentence

of death.

You see,

Paul's experience

of suffering

was real.

So real,

he wants to

curl up and die.

He can't take

anymore.

And that's how

suffering is.

Sometimes it's

relentless.

We long for the

pain to go away

and the hurts

to stop.

But it just

keeps coming.

And rather than

get better,

it gets worse.

But why?

For what purpose?

What good is there

in having to

go through it?

Well,

he tells us,

look at the rest

of verse 9.

But this

happened

that we

might not

rely on

ourselves,

but on

God

who raises

the dead.

You see,

we were created

as dependent

people.

God made

us and

sustains us

and provides

for us.

We're not

independent

beings.

we're not

meant to

live life

without

God.

Joni

Erickson

Tada,

the author

of the book

I mentioned,

A Place

of Healing,

has suffered

terribly in

her life.

And she

has often

reached the

place where,

similar to

as Paul has

written,

she despaired

of life

itself.

But listen

to how she

sees her

suffering.

Here's a

quote.

She says,

my weakness,

that is my

quadriplegia,

is my

greatest

asset

because it

forces me

into the

arms of

Christ

every single

morning

when I

can't

get up.

How can

Joni say

her suffering

is her

greatest

asset?

because Joni

has come

to see

that embracing

suffering as

a gift from

God has

happened for

good purposes.

What does it

say in verse

9?

This

happened

that we

might not

rely on

ourselves

but on

God

who raises

the dead.

What is it

that you

struggle with

today?

What is

your

suffering?

suffering?

What do

you fear

waking up

to every

morning?

Well,

rather than

fight our

suffering,

the invitation

is to come

to God in

faith,

to lean

upon him,

to depend

upon him,

to ask God

to help us

all to say,

look at the

quote,

my weakness,

that is

my,

now you

fill in the

blank,

whatever your

suffering is,

is my

greatest

asset

because it

forces me

into the

arms of

Christ every

single morning

when I

can't get

up.

Embracing

suffering as

a gift

leads us

to depend

on God.

third,

embracing

suffering as

a gift

can stop

us

drifting

from God.

Come with

me please

to Psalm

119,

Psalm

Psalms 119:67

119,

verse

67,

67,

you see,

we are

all born

with

wandering

hearts

and

rather than

turn to

God,

we can

run

from God.

So have

a look at

Psalm

Psalms 119:67

119,

verse

67,

before I

was afflicted

I went

astray

but now

I obey

your word.

The author

writes what

we all

experience.

We can

so quickly

drift from

God.

Like

sheep we

wander

astray and

get ourselves

into all

kinds of

trouble.

We turn

our backs

on God

and God

can use

the suffering

that we

face in

our life

for good

purposes

to bring

us back

to him.

Look

again

verse 67

before I

was afflicted

I went

astray

but now

because of

what has

happened

I obey

your word.

It sounds

harsh.

It seems

evil

even

cruel.

It seems

like a

punishment

from God

to beat

us back

into line

but that's

not our

God.

In fact

the author

sees it

all as

good for

him.

Look at

verse 68.

You are

good

and what

you do

is good.

Teach

me your

decrees.

Verse 71

it was

good

for me

to be

afflicted

so that

I might

learn

your

decrees.

The writer

to the

Hebrews

says the

same thing.

You can

follow with

me Hebrews

Hebrews 12 · chapter mention

chapter 12.

Hebrews

Hebrews 12 · chapter mention

chapter 12

and starting

in the

middle of

verse 5.

We'll pick

it up

on the

quote

from

verse 5.

He says

my son

do not

make light

of the

Lord's

discipline

and do

not lose

heart

when he

rebukes

you

because

the Lord

disciplines

the one

he loves

and he

chastens

everyone

he accepts

as his

son.

Down

to verse

10.

See

here he's

speaking about

our earthly

human fathers.

He says

they disciplined

us for a

while

as they

thought

best

but in

contrast

God

disciplines

us for

our good

in order

that we

may share

in his

holiness.

No

discipline

seems pleasant

at the time

but painful.

Later on

however it

produces a

harvest of

righteousness

and peace

for those

who've been

trained

by it.

John

Piper

put it

like this

suffering

is

designed

to

destroy

the

appetite

for

sin.

God

in his

goodness

he

allows

and

permits

all

kinds

of

struggle

so that

we deal

with the

sin

in our

life

so that

we become

more like

him.

And as we

said it

doesn't mean

that our

degree of

suffering is

related to

the degree

of our

sin.

So if I'm

suffering lots

then I have

more sin

to deal

with.

That's not

how we are

to see it.

Rather

that when

things happen

as we go

through our

trial, as we

go through

our struggle

it gives us

opportunity to

examine our

hearts

and put to

death the

sin that

breaks us

and entangles

us.

So third

embracing

suffering as

a gift

from God

can stop

us from

drifting

from God.

And then

fourth

embracing

suffering as

a gift

from God

can lead

to spiritual

renewal.

2 Corinthians

2 Corinthians 4 · chapter mention

chapter 4

2 Corinthians

2 Corinthians 4 · chapter mention

chapter 4

chapter 4

You see

it's God's

design and

plan to

use suffering

to keep us

close to

himself and

to change

us for

glory.

2 Corinthians

2 Corinthians 4:16

4 verse

16

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.

Paul's

experience again

is our

experience isn't

it?

Look at

verse 16

He says

we are

wasting

away

every day

through the

sufferings we

face our

bodies our

lives are

breaking down

cancer destroys

arthritis

weakens

eyes fail

our hearing

goes our

ability to

remember is

lost and

when we

suffer when

we experience

this wasting

away we

lose heart

don't we?

We want to

give up

we live in

hopeless despair

like Raphael

Samuel that we

quoted at the

beginning this

wasting away

it's all

pointless

there's nothing

to this

suffering

but

verse 16

he says

therefore we

do not

lose

heart

why does

he not

lose

heart

how can

he have

hope

in the

midst of

suffering

well let's

read verse 16

again

we do not

lose heart

though outwardly

we are wasting

away

yet inwardly

we are being

renewed

day by day

you see for the

Christian there are

two processes

happening at

once

there's

wasting

and there's

renewal

but the

point is

they're

connected

to one

another

the

wasting

of our

lives

leads to

the renewal

of our

lives

the

suffering

that we

go through

leads to

glory

look at

verse 17

for our

light

and momentary

troubles

this

wasting away

that we

experience

is not

for nothing

it is

achieving

for us

an

eternal

glory

that far

outweighs

them all

our

hurts

our

pains

all our

wasting

away

is all

taken

by God

and is

used for

our daily

renewal

in the gym

where I go

on the wall

is this

great big

sign

it says

the pain

you feel

today

is the

strength

you feel

tomorrow

in other

words

the suffering

of a

workout

leads to

a greater

renewing

and I think

that's what's

going on

here

every day

he says

every

moment

of pain

every

minute

of hurt

that we

experience

is taken

by God

and used

by God

to renew

us

to strengthen

us

so that

we are

kept

for glory

in our

suffering

we are

faced

we're

confronted

with our

powerlessness

our

inabilities

and it

moves us

back to

God

who

renews

us

and

fills

us

with

all

that we

need

for that

moment

so in

our

suffering

we do

not

lose

heart

our

sufferings

are not

hopeless

meaningless

or

pointless

God

in his

sovereignty

takes them

and he

uses them

for good

renewing

us

spiritually

day

by day

so forth

embracing

suffering

as a

gift

can lead

to

spiritual

renewal

suffering

is never

easy

we have

many

questions

as to

why

yet as

we see

through his

word

God

takes

the

worst

of

things

not

that

those

things

are

good

in

and

of

themselves

but

God

takes

the

worst

of

things

that

can

ever

happen

and

uses

them

he

transforms

them

for

good

purposes

in

our

life

remember

the

verse

we quoted

at the

beginning

Romans 8

Romans 8:28

verse 28

we know

that in

all

things

God

works

for the

good

of those

who love

him

who have

been

called

according

to his

purpose

in

all

things

in

every

experience

of

life

God

works

for our

good

through

our

suffering

he can

use

it

to

save

us

as

we

call

out

to

him

and

cry

to

him

for

help

he

uses

it

to

cause

us

to

depend

upon

him

to

lean

upon

him

he

uses

it

to

stop

us

from

drifting

from

him

into

further

trouble

and

away

from

our

relationship

with

him

and

he

uses

our

suffering

to

strengthen

us

and renew

us

to

keep

us

to

keep

us

close

to

himself

so

that

he

will

bring

us

to

glory

away

I

don't

know

why

God

doesn't

remove

all

the

suffering

but

I

can

see

that

God

uses

our

trials

and

struggles

to

keep

us

close

to

himself

so

that

we

will

be

with

him

may

God

give

us

strength

to

follow

what

he

says

and

to

embrace

the

things

that

are

the

most

difficult

in

our

life

and

to

see

them

as

good

let's

pray