In step

Sin Breaks God's Heart

For reading & meditation - Proverbs 6:27-35

"But a man who commits adultery lacks judgment; whoever does so destroys himself." (v.32)

We have talked about chastity; let's talk now about faithfulness. Chastity is purity prior to marriage; faithfulness is virtue within marriage. God wants everyone who enters into marriage to be loyal and true.

When we say that God is love, we are also saying that God is faithful, because love cannot be love unless it has faithfulness in it. Marriage is a covenant. A lot of people say, "It's just a piece of paper and fifteen minutes of someone's time." But hold on a minute.

If life is based on relationships, then the only ethical relationship is love, and love is faithfulness, then the marriage covenant is the most precious thing in life. The thing that constantly comes out in both Old and New Testaments is the covenant aspect of love. And when you study the covenants of Scripture you will find this - that God keeps His covenants even though they are broken from the other side.

The relationship between Jehovah and Israel is often pictured as that of a husband and a wife. Israel becomes the wayward, unfaithful wife who commits adultery. But God is still faithful to His covenant. God says, "I will never break my covenant. You can count on it. I am God." Young people don't want entangling relationships today.

They want to be free to love. With all the conviction of my heart, I say to you that there is no such thing as "free love." only free exploitation. Love is commitment and when men and women indulge in fornication or adultery, they have not just broken God's laws; they have broken His heart.

Prayer:
O Father, in an age when anything goes, help me be an exhibition to the world around of what it means to be a follower of You. Help me keep all my relationships pure. For Your own dear Name's sake. Amen.

Conclusion

For reading & meditation - Proverbs 9:10-18

"The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, and knowledge of the Holy One is understanding." (v.10)

I hope that what I set out to do in this study of Proverbs has been accomplished - namely, that from now on and as much as possible, you will steal, drink, lie and swear.

I mean, of course, that you will steal time out of your schedule to read continually from the book of Proverbs; that you will drink regularly from its clear refreshing waters; that you will lie on your bed at night and meditate on its great themes; and that you will swear by the grace of God to put its powerful principles into daily practice.

If you consider that I have not touched on some aspect of Proverbs, then I have served you well. It will stimulate you to deeper and further study. The "seven pillars of wisdom" I have suggested, you must remember, are the dominant themes I see in Proverbs. Others will have different observations.

Read them too - it will help you gain even more perspective. I am praying that these meditations will stimulate you to pursue that most glorious of all qualities - divine wisdom. But remember, do not seek wisdom for its own sake. Seek it that you might more effectively represent the Lord Jesus Christ.

And beware of legalism, that soul-destroying attitude that takes pleasure in principles more than in the Person who is behind them - our Lord Jesus Christ Himself.

If you still don't know Him, then bow your head this very moment, repent of every sin you have committed and quietly surrender your heart and life into His hands. Committing your way to God is the beginning of wisdom; continual trust in Him will see it develop and grow.

Prayer:
Father, grant me this wisdom, not that I might have an advantage over others, nor to fulfil selfish needs, nor even to advance my fortunes. I seek it that I might know You better, love You more and do Your perfect will. In Jesus' Name. Amen.

Out of Weakness - Strength!

For reading & meditation - Hebrews 11:30-40

"... out of weakness were made strong ..." (v. 34, KJV)

When I first felt the urge to write on the theme: "Strong at the broken places," I had great difficulty in tracing its origin. Then someone wrote to me, quoting the full phrase from the writings of Ernest Hemingway, who said: "Life breaks us all ... but many are made strong at the broken places."

I felt this to be a gentle nudge from the Holy Spirit, and began at once to put my thoughts together on this thrilling theme. It is a principle of life that the place in which a bone breaks and then heals will be so strong that, generally speaking, it will never break there again.

In the same way, when the skin is cut and scar tissue forms, the healed part becomes tougher than the surrounding skin. If this happens in the natural, why not in the spiritual? The writer to the Hebrews tells us, in the passage before us today, that God is expert at taking the weaknesses of His children and turning them into strength. What an encouraging truth!

A traveler in the Netherlands tells how his guide pointed out an historic site. "This is where the sea broke through," he said, "causing thousands to drown. But see - it is now so strongly reinforced that it will never break through there again." Have you been broken by life to such an extent that you feel an overwhelming sense of weakness?

Then take heart - God specializes in matching His ability to your disability. By His transforming grace, your frustration can become fruitful. You can be strong at the broken places.

Prayer:
O Father, this sounds fine as theory, but can it really become a fact? Your Word says it can. I am ready and eager to learn. Teach me, my Father. In Jesus' Name. Amen.

The "Inner-Stances"

For reading & meditation - 2 Corinthians 4

"We are handicapped on all sides ... we may be knocked down but we are never knocked out!" (vv. 8-9, J. B. Phillips)

Why is it that while the same things can happen to us all, they may not have the same effect upon us all? The same thing happening to two different people may have entirely different effects.

Why should this be so? It depends not so much on the circumstances, but on the "inner-stances" - or, in other words, our inner attitudes. As someone has said, "What life does to us in the long run depends on what life finds in us." Life's blows can make some people querulous and bitter, others they sweeten and refine; the same events, but with opposite effects.

The Gospels tell us that there were three crosses set up on Calvary on the first Good Friday. The same event happened to three different people, but look at the different results. One thief complained and blamed Jesus for not saving Himself and them; the other thief recognized his own unworthiness, repented of it and found an open door to Paradise.

Jesus, of course, saw it as the climax of His earthly achievements and made it the fulcrum on which He moved the world. What counts, therefore, is not so much what happens to us, but what we do with it. The same sunshine falling on two different plants can cause one to wither and die, while the other will blossom and flourish.

And why? It all depends on the response the plants make. Although, of course, they both need water, one plant is more suited to hot sunshine than the other, and therefore responds with more life and growth, while the other shrivels up and dies.

Prayer: Gracious heavenly Father, write this precept upon my heart so that I shall never forget it: it's not so much what happens to me, but what I do with it that is important. Thank You, Father. Amen

Are Christians Exempt?

For reading & meditation - Matthew 5:38-48

"... He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous." (v. 45)

We are meditating on the theme, "Strong at the broken places," and we are discovering that although life deals blows to us all, those who meet life with the right responses and the right inner attitudes are those who turn their weaknesses into strengths.

I know some Christians who believe that they ought to be exempt from the cruel blows of life. A young man who was stunned after failing his examination said, "I cannot understand. I prayed very hard before the examination, and I lived an exemplary life for the Lord. Why, oh why, should He fail me at this important moment?"

Later he confessed to a friend, "As a result of God letting me down, my faith in Him has been shattered." I can sympathize with the young man's feelings, of course, but I cannot agree with his conclusions.

Suppose prayer alone could enable us to pass examinations - what would happen? Prior to examination time, classrooms would be deserted, and everyone would flock to the churches for prayer and meditation.

Not a bad situation, you might think. But what would happen to the minds of young people if prayer alone brought success? They would become blunted by lack of study. I suspect the young man I have just referred to was depending more on prayer than on diligent and painstaking study.

Now prayer and study make a good combination, but prayer without study never helped anyone pass an examination. Christians are not exempt from the natural laws that govern the universe. We may through prayer be able to overcome them, but we are not able to avoid them.

Prayer: Father, thank You for reminding me that even though I am a Christian, I am still governed by natural laws that apply equally to everyone. I cannot be exempt, but through You I can overcome. I am so grateful. Amen.

How Do You Respond?

For reading & meditation - Hebrews 12:4-15

"Be careful that none of you fails to respond to the grace which God gives, for if he does there can ... spring up in him a bitter spirit ..." (v. 15, J. B. Phillips)

Today we must examine an issue that may be extremely challenging to us Christians, but we must face it nevertheless.

Why is it that many non-Christians, though broken by life, succeed in becoming "strong at the broken places," while many Christians go through similar experiences and come out crippled and bitter?

A few years ago I watched a television program in the United States in which a famous Jew, Victor Frankl, talked about his experiences in a concentration camp in Nazi Germany.

When he was brought before the Gestapo, they stripped him naked and then, noticing that he was still wearing his gold wedding ring, one of the soldiers said, "Give it to me." As he removed his ring, this thought went through his mind: "They can take my ring, but there is one thing nobody can take from me - my freedom to choose how I will respond to what happens to me."

On the strength of that, he not only survived the Holocaust, but also developed his whole psychiatric system called Logotherapy, which states that "when you find meaning in everything, then you can face anything."

Frankl, a non-Christian, survived the horrors of the Holocaust because he was sustained by an inner conviction that he would come through it, and be able to use the suffering to good effect. His system of Logotherapy is now being used to help thousands who have mental and emotional problems.

If a non-Christian, bereft of redemptive grace, can respond to life in this way, then how much more those of us who claim to be His children?

Prayer: O Father, whenever You corner me like this, You know my tendency to wriggle and try to get off the hook. Help me to face this issue and take my medicine, however bitter it tastes. For Jesus' sake. Amen.

Two Men - Different Reactions

For reading & meditation - 2 Corinthians 12:1-10

"... 'My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.'" (v. 9)

We must spend another day examining this very important issue of why it is that some non-Christians seem to respond better to life's problems than many Christians. Just recently I heard of two different people whose business ventures collapsed.

One was a Christian and the other an agnostic. The agnostic responded to the situation by saying, "I cannot determine what happens to me, but I can determine what it will do to me.

It will make me better and more useful." He struck out in another direction, and his new venture prospered to such a degree that he won an award. The Christian responded to the collapse of his business by saying, "Life is unjust. What's the point of trying?

I shall withdraw from the cutthroat world of business and concentrate on my garden." He had to undergo some in-depth counseling before he was on his feet again, and after six months he felt strong enough to rebuild a new and now prosperous business.

What can explain the different reactions of these two men? We could explain it in terms of temperament, upbringing, and so on, but there is one thing that must not be overlooked - the Christian had access to the grace of God which, if utilized, should have enabled him to view the situation even more positively than the non-Christian.

As a counselor, I understand why people respond wrongly to life's situations. However, my understanding of it does not prevent me from recognizing that the true biblical response to life's problems is to take full advantage of the grace of God and turn every setback into a springboard.

Prayer:
Gracious Father, help me to respond to everything in the way a Christian should. Help me to see that not only do You lift the standard high, but You also supply the strength for me to attain it. For Jesus' sake. Amen.

Doing What is Right

For reading & meditation - Philippians 2:5-16

"... continue to work out your salvation ... for it is God who works in you to will and to act according to his good purpose." (vv. 12-13)
We ended yesterday's devotional by saying that the biblical response to all of life's problems is to take advantage of the unfailing grace of God, and turn our setbacks into springboards.

I know that some will respond to that statement by saying, "It sounds good in theory, but it's hard to put it into practice. What about the hurts that some people carry inside them, that make it difficult or sometimes impossible for them to make use of God's grace to turn their problems into possibilities?"

I do understand and sympathize with the wounds that people have, which sometimes militate against their desire to respond to life in a biblical way. I know from firsthand experience the arguments that people can put forward to avoid doing what God asks in His Word. However, I must take my stand, and so must you, on the authority of Scripture, and affirm that God never asks us to do what we are incapable of doing.

Much of evangelical Christianity, I am afraid, is man-centered. We need a return to a God-centered position which does exactly what God asks, whether we feel like it or not. I freely confess that there are times when I don't feel like obeying God.

I know, however, what is right - that God has redeemed me and that I belong to Him - and I do what He wants me to whether I feel like it or not. What controls you in your Christian life - your feelings or what you know God asks and expects you to do? Your answer will reveal just who is in the driver's seat!

Prayer:
Gracious and loving heavenly Father, teach me the art of responding to life, not with my feelings but with a clear mind and a clear resolve. Help me to do what is right - whether I feel like it or not. For Jesus' sake. Amen..

Get Hold of This!

For reading & meditation - Romans 8:28-39

"... we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose." (v. 28)

Before going on to examine some of the major ways in which life breaks us, we pause to review what we have been saying over these past few days. We said that while the same things may happen to us all, they do not have the same effect upon us all.

Life's blows make some people querulous and bitter; others, they sweeten and refine. We also saw that the reason some respond to life positively and turn their problems into possibilities is because of right inner attitudes.

There are many non-Christians who put us to shame when it comes to the question of rightly responding to life, and it is high time, therefore, that we Christians got our philosophy of living sorted out once and for all.

If, as the Scripture teaches, God will let nothing happen to one of His children without supplying the necessary grace to turn the stumbling block into a stepping stone, then we ought to be ahead of the world in demonstrating how to meet whatever life sends us with confidence and faith.

Be quite clear about this: no one can fully represent the Christian way of living until they commit themselves to believing that, though God may allow what appears to be a disaster in the life of one of His children, He does so only if He can turn it to good effect.

If transformation is not possible, then God would never have allowed it to happen in the first place. So let this truth sink deep into your spirit - God only allows what He can use.

Prayer:
Father, I come to You now to ask that this truth be so impressed upon me during the weeks ahead that never again will I have to be reminded of it. For Your own dear Name's sake. Amen.

Never Soar as High Again?

For reading & meditation - 1 Peter 1:3-9

"These have come so that your faith ... may be proved genuine and may result in praise, glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed." (v. 7)
We turn now to examine some of the ways in which our lives become fractured, and what we can do to become "strong at the broken places."

We begin by looking at the brokenness which comes about through failure. Probably someone reading these words is caught up in a vortex of gloom due to a failure. You may be feeling like the man who said to me: "I am stunned by my failure.

My life is shattered into smithereens. I read somewhere that 'the bird with the broken wing will never soar as high again.' Does that mean I can never rise to the heights in God which once I knew?" I reminded him of Simon Peter - a man with one of the worst track records in the New Testament.

He was prejudiced, bigoted, stubborn, and spiritually insensitive. Again and again he got his wires crossed, such as the time when he attempted to divert Christ from going to His death in Jerusalem (Matt. 16:22), or his insistence that they should stay on the Mount of Transfiguration (Matt. 17:4).

Then, on the eve of Christ's crucifixion, he denied and even cursed his Lord. I can imagine Satan whispering in his ear: "Now you're finished. Burned out. A failure. You'll be forgotten ... replaced." But by God's grace, Peter rose from failure to success.

He became "strong at the broken places." Because he refused to live in the shadow of his bad track record, his two letters are enshrined forever in the Scriptures. Failures, you see, are only temporary tests to prepare us for more permanent triumphs.

Prayer:
O Father, I see so clearly that no failure is a failure if it succeeds in driving me to Your side. All things serve me - when I serve You. Amen.

Incisive Questions

For reading & meditation - Ecclesiastes 7:21-29

"So I turned my mind to understand, to investigate and to search out wisdom ..." (v. 25)

What steps must we take, when broken by failure, to ensure that we become strong at the place of weakness? Keep in mind that the principles we are considering are not only corrective, but also preventative. The first thing we should do, whenever we have failed in anything, is to analyze the reason for the failure.

These are some of the questions you should ask yourself: Have I contributed in any way to this failure by such things as inattention to detail, lack of preparation, naivet?, wrong timing, disregard of moral principles, or insensitivity to other people?s feelings? Another question is: What does God want me to learn from this failure?

It is difficult, of course, to sit down and question yourself like this when failure strikes; but, as soon as possible after the event, try to assess the lessons that can be learned by honestly facing your emotions - such as hurt, anger, anxiety. Remember, when we stop learning, we stop living. Yet another question to ask yourself is this: Has God allowed this failure so that His purposes for me might be made clear?

I know a man, well-known in evangelical circles, who, when he was in his teens, mapped out a career for himself. Although a brilliant student, he failed the entrance examination into his chosen profession.

When the news was broken to him, he simply said, "Lord, I just know You are involved in this: what do You want me to do?" This was the moment God had been waiting for, and He showed him a new path that has made him Christ's ambassador to millions.

Prayer:
Father, help me to face my failure in the knowledge that some good can be wrested from even the most depressing circumstances. Show me that incisive questions can bring incisive answers. In Jesus' Name. Amen.

Looking Failure in the Face

For reading & meditation - John 13:12-32

"... 'Now is the Son of Man glorified and God is glorified in him.'" (v. 31)

The second thing we should do when failure strikes is to face it in the knowledge that with God something can be made out of it. The account before us today tells of Christ's betrayal by Judas. Notice how Jesus first accepted the situation before He went on to make something out of it.

The Master said: "What you are about to do, do quickly." He made no attempt to ignore the situation, sweep it under the carpet, or pretend it was not there - instead He calmly and deliberately faced reality. Before we go any further, make up your mind to face up to all of life's problems, because if you try to ignore them, you will become inwardly demeaned.

The account continues: "As soon as Judas had taken the bread, he went out. And it was night. When he was gone, Jesus said, 'Now is the Son of Man glorified and God is glorified in him. '" Not only did Jesus accept the situation, but He moved on to turn it into victory. No self-pity, no egotistical concern - He took charge of the situation and made the betrayal contribute to His victory. Was Jesus hurt by Judas' betrayal? I should think so.

But instead of spending the night wallowing in self-pity He looked at the situation from God's point of view and quietly affirmed: "Now is the Son of Man glorified." It may take you a little while to be able to respond to difficult situations in the way Jesus did, but remember this - the resources on which the Master drew are yours for the asking.

Prayer:
Father, I see that my life will be made or broken at the place where I acknowledge and deal with my failures. Help me not to run away from them, because in You I am more than a match for anything. Thank You, Father. Amen.

A Biblical Mentality

For reading & meditation - 1 Thessalonians 2

"You know, brothers, that our visit to you was not a failure." (v. 1)

Today we examine yet another principle which we must develop in our lives if we are to become strong at the broken places of failure: cultivate a biblical perspective on everything.

You may be familiar with the passage before us today, but I want to emphasize several points from it which help us to see how effectively Paul believed and practiced spiritual principles.

Firstly, his words and preaching, despite strong public opposition, were not the result of his own thinking - they were the result of the gospel of God (v. 2).

Secondly, the very foundation of his life and character were based on the truth of the gospel (v. 3).

Thirdly, he considered God's Word as something "entrusted" to him, and it gave him such security that he didn't feel the need to compromise or become a "people pleaser" (v. 4).

It may sound old-fashioned and naive to some, but I believe with all my heart that the secret of surviving life's crushing defeats and blows is to develop a spiritual and biblical perspective on everything.

"It is blessed," wrote C. H. Spurgeon, "to eat into the very soul of the Bible until, at last, you come to talk in Scriptural language, and your spirit is flavored with the words of the Lord, so that your blood is Bibline and the very essence of the Bible flows from you."

Descriptive, isn't it? I find this idea of being committed to a biblical mentality so rare among modern-day Christians that I sometimes tremble inwardly with concern. Someone said, "Time spent with the Bible knits up the ravelled sleeve of care." It does.

Prayer:
O Father, help me, also, "to eat into the very soul of the Bible ... until my spirit is flavored with the words of the Lord." Give me a biblical mentality. For Jesus' sake I pray. Amen.

"I Didn't"

For reading & meditation - Hebrews 12

"Let us fix our eyes on Jesus ... who for the joy set before him endured the cross ..." (v. 2)

Another principle in coping with failure is this: If the thing in which you failed is clearly the right thing for you to do, then dedicate your energies to God, try again, and don't give up.

A father, trying to encourage his teenage son after he had failed an examination, said, "Don?t give up, try again." "What's the use?" said the son. "It's easier to quit." His father remonstrated with him, saying, "The people who are remembered in life are the people who, when they failed, didn't give up, but tried again."

He went on, "Remember Churchill? Remember Thomas Edison? They didn't give up!" The boy nodded. His father went on, "Remember John McCringle?" "Who is John McCringle?" the boy asked. "You see," said the father, "you don't remember him - he gave up." A poster showed a picture of a man sitting on a park bench looking depressed and disconsolate.

His arms were folded across his chest, and there was a look of resignation on his face. The caption read, "I give up." When I first saw this poster, I looked at it for a few moments and turned away, but then my eye was attracted to something in the right-hand corner of the poster.

It was a picture of a black hill and on it a very tiny cross. These words, barely perceptible, were printed beneath it: "I didn't." Feel like giving up at this moment? Then lift your eyes to the cross. The one who triumphed over all obstacles holds out His hands toward you. Take His hand, and in His strength and power - try again.

Prayer:
O God, help me to link my littleness to Your greatness, my faintheartedness to Your boldness, my fear to Your faith. Then nothing can stop me. Amen

Grace - Greater than Failure

For reading & meditation - 2 Corinthians 9:6-15

"... God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that in all things at all times ... you will abound in every good work." (v. 8)

Another principle we must develop in our lives if we are to cope with failure is this: However disappointing and discouraging our failures, grace covers them all.

No fears need creep in today from yesterday's failures, for grace has wiped them out and works to turn them to good effect. This does not mean that we evade the consequences of our failures, but providing we respond correctly and with honesty, grace flows in to take over and transform.

Emerson says: "Finish every day and be done with it. You have done what you could. Some blunders, some failures, some absurdities will have crept in. But forget them.

Tomorrow is a new day." This is good advice, but not quite good enough. We cannot just "forget them," especially if our failures have brought distress to others also. However, when we face things honestly and determine to learn from our failures, then God transforms those failures by His grace.

He wipes away the burning memories of shame and self-disgust so that our failures, seen through grace, do not paralyze us but propel us forward. The Old Testament ends with a curse (Mal. 4:6), but the New Testament ends with grace (Rev. 22:21). What does this suggest? It suggests that grace does not simply look back at past deeds; it looks forward to hold that future steady.

You are under grace today, and you will be under grace tomorrow. What a prospect! The past can't hurt you, and both today and tomorrow are secure. Our failures, therefore, make us sing - sing at the redemption that grace draws from them.

Prayer:
O Father, I am so thankful that grace holds the keys of yesterday and tomorrow. You lock the one - and open the other. And there is grace for today too! I am eternally grateful. Amen.

Hallelujah - the Pressure's Off

For reading & meditation - 2 Corinthians 1:12-22

"Now it is God who makes both us and you stand firm in Christ ." (v. 21)

A further principle is this: Strive not so much to succeed but to do the right thing. I remember addressing a group of ministers in Atlanta, Georgia, on "Pitfalls in the Ministry." I told them the story of my own failures, which at that time amounted to a great many, and I said, "The lesson I have learned from my failures is that I don't have to succeed.

I have to do the right thing under God's guidance, and leave success or failure in His hands." One of the ministers came to me afterwards and said, "I am a pastor of one of the largest churches in this area, and regarded by my peers as one of the most successful ministers in my denomination. But today you have helped me overcome the greatest pressure in my life - the pressure to succeed."

In the early years of my ministry, I was extremely success-oriented; when I succeeded, I felt good, and when I failed, I felt devastated. Then God said to me quite bluntly one day, "Are you willing to be a failure?"

The question shook me rigid. It was a whole week later before I found sufficient grace to answer that question with a "Yes," and when I did, I was instantly released from the two things that had crippled my life and ministry - the pressure to succeed and the fear of failure.

Now, what matters is not succeeding or failing, but being true to Him. Success and failure are in His hands. I am not on the way to success, I am on the Way. What a difference!

Prayer:
O Father, set me free today from these two crippling disabilities - the pressure to succeed and the fear of failure. Help me to do the right thing, and to leave success or failure in Your hands. For Jesus' sake. Amen.

Men Cry Out Against the Heavens

For reading & meditation - Psalms 9

"he [God] ... cares for the helpless. He does not ignore those who cry t o him for help" (v. 12, NLT)

Having learned something about how to cope with failure, we turn now to face the issue of what to do when life breaks us with unmerited suffering and affliction. I get more letters on this subject than on almost any other.

People write and say, "My suffering is so great that I sometimes doubt the existence of a God of love. Can you say something that will help me regain my faith in this tragic hour?" One of the most poignant elements in suffering is that there often seems to be no meaning in it. One great writer said that anyone who was undisturbed by the problem of unmerited suffering was a victim of either a hardened heart or a softened brain.

He was right. Everyone who is mentally alive, especially if he believes in a God of love, finds this problem difficult to solve. No wonder the poet cried out: My son, the world is dark with griefs and graves So dark that men cry out against the heavens. I suppose there is nothing that makes people cry out against the heavens so much as the anguish which comes unbidden and unmerited.

Some of our sufferings are the result of our own crassness and stupidity. But what about when life breaks us with sufferings that are not directly related to us? Does God remember us then? Our text today says that He does. This in itself should be enough to keep us brave, if not blithe; in peace, if not in happiness. Write it on your heart. God remembers you in your suffering. He really does!

Prayer:
Lord Jesus, You who experienced suffering in a way I will never know, hold me close to Your heart so that my sufferings will not demolish me, but develop me. For Your own dear Name's sake. Amen.

Suffering is Inevitable

For reading & meditation - Job 5:1-18

"Yet man is born to trouble as surely as sparks fly upward." (v. 7)

How do we, as Christians, cope with the problem of unmerited suffering? The first thing we must do is to recognize that in a universe whose balance has been greatly upset by sin, undeserved suffering is bound to come.

Face this, and you are halfway to turning the problem into a possibility. In an Indian palace, many years ago, a child was born whose parents decided to keep all signs of decay and death from him.

When he was taken into the garden, maids were sent before him to remove all the decaying flowers and fallen leaves, so that he would be protected from all signs of suffering and death. One day, however, he left his home and, while wandering through the streets, came across a corpse. His reaction was so strong that he set about establishing the teaching that, as life is fundamentally suffering, the only thing to do is to escape into Nirvana, the state of extinction of self.

The young man was Guatama Buddha, whose beliefs are shared by millions of his followers, not only in India but around the world. His philosophy is a dramatic and tragic result of trying to protect oneself from the realities of life, one of which is suffering. The Christian faith is the opposite of that: it exposes us to the very heart of suffering - the cross.

Then it takes that suffering, and turns it into salvation. This is why Christians should not be afraid to face the worst that can happen - because with God it can be turned into the best.

Prayer: Father, I am so thankful for the cross - what is my suffering compared to that? And even if I have to bear similar suffering, I know that out of it will come to me what came to You - a resurrection. Blessed be Your Name forever. Amen.

The Best Out of the Worst

For reading & meditation - 1 Peter 2:11-25"Live such good lives among the pagans that, though they accuse you of doing wrong, they may see your good deeds and glorify God ..." (v. 12)

Yesterday we said that the first attitude we should adopt toward unmerited suffering is to accept that it is bound to come. Sin has unbalanced the universe, and suffering is one of the inevitable results. To deny this is to deny reality, and the denial of reality is the denial of life.

Arising out of this comes our second principle: God is able to turn all suffering to good and glorious ends. J. B. Phillips translates today's verse: "... although they may in the usual way slander you as evildoers, yet when disasters come they may glorify God when they see how well you conduct yourselves."

Note the phrase, "when disasters come." They are bound to come to everyone - it's foolish to think that, just because we are Christians, we are exempt. We are part of a universe that has been unbalanced by sin, part of a mortal, decaying world.

However, though we may fall victims to life's disasters, we are able, through the redemptive purposes of God, to turn them into doors of opportunity and step through them into richer, more abundant living. A woman who was converted from one of the cults said in a testimony meeting in her church: "They taught me that the first thing I should concern myself about is my happiness. You have taught me that the first thing is to 'belong.'

That makes me feel safe." Since she was safe, her happiness was safe too. Others are baffled by life's tragedies. Only the cross has an answer. Out of the worst, Christ brings the best, and makes life's victims victorious.

Prayer: Father, the more I think about this, the more excited I get. You have given me such security. I can stand anything because I can use everything. Oh glory! Amen.

Not Comfort - But Character

For reading & meditation

Job 2:1-10 "... Shall we accept good from God, and not trouble?" (v. 10)

We come today to one of the most difficult principles to understand in relation to suffering - but it must be grasped nevertheless. It is this - accept suffering as a gift from God.

This principle flows out of today's verse - a verse which one commentator describes as "the most profound verse in the Bible." It is obvious from reading this passage that Job's God is not a celestial Being who sits on the parapets of heaven, dropping nice little gifts into the laps of His children, at the same time saying, "There, that will make you happy; that will surely please you."

There is much more to God than that. The God of the Bible dispenses the things that bring most glory to His Name. If, in achieving glory, He sees that suffering is the best means to that end, then that is what He will give. So mark this well - God is not under an obligation to make you comfortable. Can you see the truth that is contained in the words of our text today? "Shall we indeed accept good from God and not accept adversity?" (NASB).

You are ready to accept good, but are you just as ready to accept adversity? You see, God's goal is not our comfort, but our character. That is why it is wrong to tell a non- Christian, "Trust God, and your troubles will all be over." It's unfair, dishonest, and downright unbiblical. In fact, becoming a Christian may mean that you will have more troubles than before. And why? Because character is formed in the furnace of affliction - no suffering, no character.


Prayer: Father, if ever I needed Your help I need it now. It's easy for me to accept good from Your hand; help me also to accept adversity. Etch these words, not merely into my mind, but into my spirit. In Jesus' Name I ask it. Amen.