Hope in Suffering
Creation of Light by. Gustave DoreIt has been obvious to everyone that 2020 has been a tough year for most people. COVID-19 has affected people in many ways. Parents are stressed out about their child’s safety and education, graduations canceled, weddings postponed, sudden loss of jobs with the shutdown, increased loneliness for people who live by themselves, anxiety, not being able to visit loved ones, and of course those who have lost someone dear to them. The virus has caused polarization in every direction. Who do we trust to tell us the truth? On top of that political and racial tensions have been on the rise. People are looking for hope in a time where churches are closing their doors for one reason or another. It is not my current goal to give my opinion on what churches should do at this moment but to provide some guidance on what the word of God has to tell us about hope. I am going to break the rules and give you the application upfront. I have no magical words or great advice about how to deal with the current situation, I am only pointing you to the wisdom of God. It will be up to you to delve into the word and pray to God to give comfort and show you hope. It is my hope that I can at least provide a starting place.
State of Creation
Firstly I want to remind us of the state of the world we live in.
Romans 8:20-22 “For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of him who subjected it, in hope that the creation itself will be set free from its bondage to corruption and obtain the freedom of the glory of the children of God. For we know that the whole creation has been groaning together in the pains of childbirth until now.”
Ever since the fall, the world has been thrown into chaos. Sickness, famine, war, hatred, and sin have always been rampant. This is what the above text means by “the creation was subjected to futility”. My main purpose of using this passage is to show that troubles and tribulations should not surprise us in this life. But the text is also looking forward. Not only is it looking forward to the salvation of the children of God through Jesus Christ, it is looking to the healing of all creation, the world included. What does it mean that “the whole creation has been groaning together in the pains of childbirth”? The text tells us a verse down.
Romans 20:23-25 “And not only the creation, but we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for adoption as sons, the redemption of our bodies. For in this hope we were saved. Now hope that is seen is not hope. For who hopes for what he sees? But if we hope for what we do not see, we wait for it with patience.”
The text gives us a picture of a mother groaning in the agony of giving birth in hope of the joy she will experience when it is all over. So we as the creation of God are waiting through the tribulations of this fallen world for the salvation and adoption as children of God. This is the hope that we have as followers of Jesus Christ. We are pilgrims passing through a land that is not our final home. We currently do not see the restoration of creation but we wait patiently for it to come.
Suffering in this Life
Knowing that we do not hope for the things of this world, what does scripture tell us about the suffering we endure here while we are waiting for restoration?
Romans 5:1-5 “Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. Through him, we have also obtained access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and we rejoice in hope of the glory of God. Not only that, but we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, and hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us.”
This passage is referring to the peace we have with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. While this has given us access by faith to rejoice in the hope of the glory of God we also “rejoice in our sufferings”. Why would anyone rejoice in suffering? This is a question that one needs to pray about. The text tells us why. Suffering produces endurance in our walk with Christ building up our reliance and faith in Him. Endurance produces character, conforming us more into the image of Christ as we take up our cross and follow Him daily. Finally, character produces hope. Hope to look forward to that glorious day when we are resurrected from the dead and all of creation has been restored and we live eternally as adopted children of God and fellow heirs with Jesus Christ (Romans 8). That is what the scriptures say but this may not feel like a reality for you. As much as the fallenness of the world reminds us that this is not our home, it can also blind us to the hope to come. This is why I said at the beginning that prayer will be crucial to understand what is happening in this life. All we feel is the hurt and it can be hard to see how any of that can produce anything good. It is ok to feel that way. God wants to hear our concerns. I cannot promise that you will find answers in this life, I only ask that you cast your cares on the Lord. Ask Him for comfort from the Holy Spirit, the person through whom the Father poured His love out into our hearts.
An Eternal Weight of Glory
In the previous section, I said that you may not receive the answers you are looking for in this life. How does this bring any hope? The apostle Paul who suffered much in his service to God speaks to this.
2 Corinthians 4:16,17 “So we do not lose heart. Though our outer self is wasting away, our inner self is being renewed day by day. For this light momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison”
Paul uses the words “wasting away” to describe the affliction of this world. However, he says that we are being renewed day by day as well. We must trust in God, going to Him in prayer, pouring over His Word, and relying on Him. In this way, we will be renewed spiritually day by day. I would like to point out something specific from this text. When Paul uses the phrase “light momentary affliction” he is not saying that what you are going through is not real or that the pain you feel is meaningless or that you are overreacting. It is very real. What he is asking you to do is think about how heavy it feels, anxiety, physical pain, sickness, loss of a loved one. None of those things are virtuous, how can any good come from then. Again, I do not point to something in this life. The heavy burdensome weight of those afflictions is preparing us for what we will experience in eternity. An eternal weight of Glory beyond all comparison. What is this glory? I believe once again that Romans 8 tells us.
Romans 8:29-30 “For those whom he foreknew, he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, in order that he might be the firstborn among many brothers. And those whom he predestined he also called, and those whom he called he also justified, and those whom he justified he also glorified.”
Our call to salvation by faith justifies us before a Holy God. We have sinned against Him and through our faith, He credits us as being righteous because of what His son did for us on the cross. And because we have been justified, on the day of judgment we will be taken into the kingdom of God and he will glorify us. This glorification is a restoration of ourselves. We will receive a new body, free from any sickness or death. And most importantly we will be in the presence of the Most Holy God as he gives us to Jesus Christ as a gift that he would be the firstborn of many brothers. Christ is the object and hope of our faith. We all despise results sin, sickness, death, and disease but more importantly we should love the Lord Jesus. Compared to the glory we experience in heaven the affliction we experience now will be light and momentary in comparison. If this also is not a reality for you, I again ask you to take it to God in prayer.
Our Great High Priest
In all of the calamity and pain that has been felt in the world, the creator of it all did not spare Himself from it.
Hebrews 4:15 “For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin.”
Our great high priest not only offered a sacrifice on our behalf, but he offered Himself on the cross. The night before Jesus was killed he was said to sweat drops of blood from the anxiety of what was to come (Luke 22:44). I do not believe he was afraid of the physical pain that he was about to experience. The Great Awakening pastor Jonathan Edwards points out that many martyrs of the faith have joyfully gone on to be crucified by Rome after Christ. He goes on to say Christ was in distress about the wrath of God that was about to be poured out on Him on the cross. He who knew no sin became sin. A perfect righteous person who was not acquainted with sin was about to take on the sins of the world. This is our great high priest. Not only can he sympathize with our temptation but with our sufferings as well.
Conclusion
Just like I said in my blog on the book of Ruth you do not need to face the Christian life alone. I encourage you to seek counsel with your pastor or an elder at your local church. If you are not part of a local church I cannot stress the importance enough to find a body of believers to help you through difficult times. Here is one more thought. One of the marks of a true Christian is to “Rejoice in hope, be patient in tribulation, be constant in prayer.” (Romans 12:12). I already provided you with the application of this blog. If it is difficult to see through the fallenness of this world to the glory to come, I encourage you to take it all to God in prayer. Ask Him to help you rejoice in hope, be patient in tribulation, and be constant in prayer.
