MATTHEW 27:24-31 – “So when Pilate saw that he was gaining nothing, but rather that a riot was beginning, he took water and washed his hands before the crowd, saying, “I am innocent of this man’s blood; see to it yourselves.” And all the people answered, “His blood be on us and on our children!” Then he released for them Barabbas, and having scourged Jesus, delivered him to be crucified. Then the soldiers of the governor took Jesus into the governor’s headquarters, and they gathered the whole battalion before him. And they stripped him and put a scarlet robe on him, and twisting together a crown of thorns, they put it on his head and put a reed in his right hand. And kneeling before him, they mocked him, saying, “Hail, King of the Jews!” And they spit on him and took the reed and struck him on the head. And when they had mocked him, they stripped him of the robe and put his own clothes on him and led him away to crucify him.”

THEME OF THE DAY: THE CURE FOR ALL COMPLAINING.  Stop for a moment and think about the ease in which we complain in life.  Now someone might have just read that last sentence and displayed a little self-righteousness, saying or thinking, “Me?  I am not a complainer.”  If that defines you, stop again and make some serious reflection in your life.  It is safe to say you do complain.  Maybe not a lot, but you do. It may seem little like the weather, or a complaint about a family member going a little too slow when you are already late to some place or event. Remember, complaining of any type is sin.  The Apostle Paul writes, “Do all things without grumbling or disputing” (Philippians 2:15).  The point I am making in this opening paragraph is if we easily complain about little things, we will certainly complain about bigger, and particularly any form of suffering.

Everyone suffers. Christian and non-Christian.  It is the reality of sin. To complain about suffering is to misunderstand what happened in the Garden of Eden when sin entered our world.  It also reveals how little we know of God’s process of maturing us in His Son.  Suffering is a chief teaching tool He uses.  Again, from the Apostle Paul to the Philippians – “For it has been granted to you that for the sake of Christ you should not only believe in him but also suffer for his sake” (Philippians 1:29). But let’s dive deeper into the sin of complaining.

All complaining is tied to our suffering. We don’t like the cause of the suffering and the suffering itself, so we complain. Yes, it might be small as I mentioned in the first paragraph, but if we really think about those times we complain, it is because someone, some circumstance, or some trial is causing us pain. It might be emotional, spiritual or physical and we need help to silence our sin of complaining.

In today’s scripture is the cure, not a cure, the cure for defeating all complaints in our lives. Here it is. Think on the sufferings of Christ.  Spend much time not reading today’s scripture but meditating on today’s scripture.  Watch Jesus suffer.  Observe what He endured; the brutality, the abuse, the agony, and pay attention to His responses.

Kris Lundgaard in his excellent book The Glorious Christ: Meditations on His Person, Work, and Love wrote, “When we begin to consider His sufferings, our minds recoil. Think of your Lord Jesus as He was crushed under the full weight of God’s wrath – under the curse of the law. Think of Him as He took on the worst with which God had ever threatened sin or sinners. Think of Him as He battled against all the powers of darkness – against the rage and madness of men. Think of Him as He suffered in body and soul. Think of Him as He lost His name, His reputation, His goods, His life. Think of Him as He prayed, wept, cried out, bled, died – and in all making His soul an offering for sin.”

When tempted to complain about anything or anyone, stop and think on Jesus; His sufferings for us and without one word of complaint.  Such thinking will silence all our complaining as we get our eyes off ourselves and look unto Jesus (Hebrews 12:1-2).

PRAYER: “Father, forgive me for the too many times I complain over my suffering and circumstances in my life.”

QUOTE: “When tempted to complain over our suffering, stop, think on Jesus’s sufferings. Our complaining will cease.”