PSALM 132:1 – Remember, O Lord, in David’s favor, all the hardships he endured.
THEME OF THE DAY. THE ENDURING CHRISTIAN LIFE. David knew what he was talking about when it came to hardships. He had his fair share covering all areas of life; his family, being king, and the many people who acknowledged being his enemies. David is not alone.
Each of us experiences hardships in life. It is part of the curse. It is part of being a sinner and a Christian (more on the Christian part later). It is reality of life under the sun. I am often amazed at myself, and other Christians, when we complain because life is hard, full of troubles, and we are going through tough times. How easily we forget these words of our Lord, “I have said these things to you, that in me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world” (John 16:33). And those of the Apostle Paul, “When they had preached the gospel to that city and had made many disciples, they returned to Lystra and to Iconium and to Antioch, strengthening the souls of the disciples, encouraging them to continue in the faith, and saying that through many tribulations we must enter the kingdom of God” (Acts 14:21-22). Furthermore, the Apostle Peter writes to us who seem caught off guard when life isn’t neat, tidy, and relatively pain-free, “Beloved, do not be surprised at the fiery trial when it comes upon you to test you, as though something strange were happening to you” (1 Peter 4:12).
In the world of sin and under the temporary, but limited control, of Satan, people outside of Christ will experience hardships of all kinds. There will be sorrow, suffering, pain, loss, disappointments, discouragements, and a host of other emotional upheavals in relationships and situations that leave such individuals hurting, wounded, even despairing of hope. And apart from a sinner becoming a Christian, these individuals will try to no avail to escape all the pain of living in this sin-cursed world by worldly means – drugs, entertainment, new relationships, new environments, sensual pleasures, and materialism to name a few. All will come up short, leaving them as empty and hurting as before. But then there is the Christian . . .
Christians suffer the same things as unbelievers. We are not immune to the same results of the curse. Yet, we have the proper viewpoint. We also have the proper response. The wise and mature Christian isn’t surprised by life’s difficulties and troubles. The wise and mature Christian expects them and does two things with them.
First, Christians know all things, even the troubling things, come from God for a two-fold purpose; to make us like Jesus and bring glory to Himself. That is why we are not to be surprised or commit the sin of complaining when life gets tough and messy. It is supposed to be like that. God has ordained it be like that because He receives great glory as He uses tough and messy times in our lives to make something beautiful in our lives; conformity to Jesus. So, don’t be surprised or complain about hard times. Instead thank God for them. It shows His love is at work in us.
The next thing wise and mature Christians do when life takes hard turns and trouble meets us face to face is commit to the development of endurance as these turns unfold. Too often when we encounter difficulties in life, we pray for deliverance instead of patiently and gladly submitting and praying for spiritual development. Friends, God will not always deliver us from trials for He knows the most important thing in the trial is not our comfort and deliverance, but our development of the spiritual virtue of endurance. The writer to the Hebrews wrote, “For you have need of endurance, so that when you have done the will of God you may receive what is promised” (Hebrews 10:36).
Life under the sun is a difficult journey, but not mysterious for the Christian. We know God is in control. We may not understand what He is doing but with faithful submission to what He is doing, even in the hard times, we will develop the mature virtue of endurance. After all, the Christian life truly is an enduring life.
PRAYER: “Father, I praise You for not always delivering me from trouble so I may grow in endurance.”
QUOTE: “God’s ways of making us like His Son will not always be pain-free. In fact, most won’t be”