Suffering of God’s people is never void
of a purpose.
Troubles,
difficulties, pain and suffering have an element of mystery as to why? The Bible gives glimpses of what God may
choose to do through our sufferings.
Although there is no comprehensive explanation for suffering in the
Bible; there are some purposes we can glean from it.
In our sufferings, as God comforts us;
we can, in turn comfort others.
2 Corinthians 1:3-4 (NIV) (1:3) Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of
compassion and the God of all comfort, (4) who
comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble
with the comfort we ourselves have received from God.
John
Wesley prayed “Lord let me live not to
be useless”. What God permits to happen
to us may be the answer to such a prayer and desire. Often we can only help others as we ourselves
have trodden the path they have to tread.
Nothing
is ever wasted in God’s school of suffering.
The Christian receives in order that he/she may pass on that which they
received. It is in the same way that we
are blessed so that we may be a blessing to others.
2 Corinthians 1:7 (NIV) (1:7) And our hope for you is firm, because we know that just as you share in
our sufferings, so also you share in our comfort.
In our sufferings, God allows us to come
to the end of our selves so that we may come to rely on Him.
2 Corinthians 1:8-9 (NIV) (1:8) We do not want you to be uninformed, brothers, about the hardships we
suffered in the province of Asia . We were
under great pressure, far beyond our ability to endure, so that we despaired
even of life. (9) Indeed, in our
hearts we felt the sentence of death. But this happened that we might not rely
on ourselves but on God, who raises the dead.
Paul is alluding that there were times in his Asian missions tour that
were very hard and produced much suffering.
Paul was under considerable distress.
Often life circumstances press us further than we have the ability to
deal with and threatens to crush us or utterly defeat us. Paul came to the end of himself “feeling the
sentence of death”. In other words it
was hopeless. It may have been on a
spiritual or physical level but in either case Paul was in desperate straits
God however, gave the strength to endure. God allowed it to happen to Paul and his
companions so that they would not rely on themselves but on God “who can raise the dead”.
Self reliance is the greatest problem within our society today! It can also become the downfall for many
Christians. We all have strengths and
God given gifts but we cannot put such a degree of confidence into them that we
do not turn to God. God is to be our
focus; God is the one we praise. God
often has to teach us through hardships not to rely on ourselves but upon Him
and He will keep putting us there until we learn!
In our sufferings, God teaches us to
trust Him as our deliverer.
2 Corinthians 1:10-11 (NIV) (1:10) He has delivered us from such a deadly peril, and he will deliver us. On
him we have set our hope that he will continue to deliver us, (11) as you help us by your prayers. Then many
will give thanks on our behalf for the gracious favor granted us in answer to
the prayers of many.
Paul
deliberately sets his hope on God’s deliverance. Paul knew that the help he and
his friends needed could come only from God and to Him alone therefore they
looked. He knew that intercessory
prayer, helps God’s rescue plan, in His scheme of deliverance.
An
important part of Christian fellowship is praying for one another. The person going through hardships may find
it hard to pray or at a loss as to what to pray. God the Holy Spirit often places upon the
hearts of others the requests to be made to God for them.
Read: Psalm 71:17-21 & 2 Corinthians 1:3-11
