Peter concludes his summary of
the argument that we, as followers in Jesus Christ, have been called by God to
suffer, even wrongfully (1 Peter 3:8-17). “For
it is better to suffer for doing good, if that should be God’s will, than for
doing evil” (v. 17).
Why would it be God’s will to
suffer wrongfully? The simple broad answer is the cosmic conflict between God
and Satan. God’s soldiers are His people on earth, living out the gospel in the
grace and power of God. Satan and his minions will do everything that they can
to defeat God’s army through compromise, deception, discouragement, and
persecution.
Yet, there is an even greater
purpose for suffering than warfare. John Newton, the famous slave-trader-turned-preacher
and author of the hymn, “Amazing Grace,” had a profound understanding of
suffering and its purpose. He saw trials as heavy weights on a grandfather
clock, necessary for the Christian life to operate properly. We are sinners, but
heaven is our home. We are as ships on the open sea, navigating to our
destination. Everything we encounter has been appointed by God and made
subservient to our sanctification and happiness.
Tony Reinke* has gleaned ten
specific things from Newton’s letters about God’s sovereign design in our
trials. I offer three. First, trials reveal the hidden idols of our hearts that
we tend to overlook and think less vile than they really are. Trials smoke out these
vile and evil vipers. Reinke writes, “Trials make us feel the power of the sins
residing in our hearts, and such awareness is essential to the cure.”
Second, suffering drives us to
prayer. We have a natural aversion to prayer, and we make every excuse to avoid
it. We find it a chore to commune with the Almighty. Our praying is often
mindless and remote. As Newton saw it, “We are dragged before God like slaves,
and we run away from prayer like a thieves.” Suffering breathes necessity and desperation
into our praying, bringing new energy to our seeking after God.
Third (number 8 in Reinke’s
list), trials reveal God’s grace in our lives. Suffering reduces life to the
bare essentials. It drives us to Christ and His Word, and we see just how much
we need Him and how tightly we cling to His promises. In that hour, when all
the artificial supports are gone, we begin to understand that our lives are
anchored in His grace. We could not survive without it. That realization is
massive to our faith and confidence. We see that He never fails us, and that is
strong medicine in our most painful hours.
One of Newton’s favorite
metaphors was to compare the suffering saint to Moses’ burning bush (Ex. 3:2).
Christians are called to a disproportionate amount of suffering so that they
might be a spectacle of grace to the world. Those outside the church will see
them as burning, yet unconsumed. Only God’s amazing grace enables this miracle.
It is this perseverance of faith by which Christians prove the worth of God in
this sinful world.
*Newton on the Christian Life,
by Tony Reinke ©
2015, Crossway, from chapter 9, “Discipline in Trials.”
No comments:
Post a Comment