12 Dear friends, do not be surprised at the fiery ordeal that has come on you to test you, as though something strange were happening to you. 13 But rejoice inasmuch as you participate in the sufferings of Christ, so that you may be overjoyed when his glory is revealed. ~ 1 Peter 4:12-13
Today, we return to our study of 1 Peter 4 where the Apostle Peter addressed first century Christians who were unmercifully being persecuted. According to history, we know that at that time the ruler of the world, Nero, had set the city of Rome on fire in order to blame Christians, justifying his ill treatment of them throughout his empire.
Atheists tell us that the universe is random and we should take a blind and an indifferent approach life because it is without meaning and purpose. But, when we go through our darkest of moments like these to whom Peter wrote, that postulate just does not cut it because there is absolutely no comfort, no hope in that approach to life. If there is no God, then where did we get the standard of goodness by which we measure evil? This argument for God's existence is called the moral argument which underscores the idea that if there is no God, there should not be any ultimate values. And, if there are no ultimate values, there should be no such thing as good or evil. But, to this, I find it amazingly instructive that I have never heard an atheist speak at a funeral; it is only those who have hope that are asked to speak at such events. Those with hope have an ultimate standard. This is revealing of a much deeper truth.
The Apostle Peter addressed the problem of suffering no less than 21 times in this letter. And, one thing that sticks out most in this epistle is that God works in and through our suffering and our pain. And, when we say, "There is so much evil in the world," we only say that because we innately know that there is a supreme good. And if there is a supreme good, there must be a supreme being behind it. I taught middle and high school students for thirty one years. When my students made less than the perfect mark, it was presupposed there was a standard of perfection. The perfect mark was the standard by which everything else was measured.
Having said that, we wrestle with the fact that we live in an imperfect world. It was once perfect but through the Fall of man in the Garden of Eden, imperfection entered the world, and, sin was given its birth. God is not to blame for sin because sin is the devaluing of that which God defined as good in the beginning. But, God offers us hope through the fact that He majors in the art of pulling victories out of our mistakes. The question is whether we will embrace His hope or not.
In v.12 of today's passage we read, "Dear friends, do not be surprised at the fiery ordeal that has come on you to test you, as though something strange were happening to you."
Unexpected struggle causes us to feel insecure because in those moments we discover that we are truly not in control of our lives. This is why it is so important for us to give the control over to the Lord because He truly has everything in control even when it appears that He does not. In fact, God is most acutely aware and He is most resoundingly attentive to each one of us when we are going through our most arduous moments. We only discover this when we honestly turn to Him.
Unexpected struggle causes us to feel insecure because in those moments we discover that we are truly not in control of our lives. This is why it is so important for us to give the control over to the Lord because He truly has everything in control even when it appears that He does not. In fact, God is most acutely aware and He is most resoundingly attentive to each one of us when we are going through our most arduous moments. We only discover this when we honestly turn to Him.
Once we have turned to the God of the Bible, it is then that we discover that He is all wise and He knows that we grow the most when we are going through the most difficult of trials. In His culture we discover that suffering is always purposeful. Peter says that it's purpose is to strengthen our trust in the God of the Bible. We must look at suffering with confidence that God is working through it to accomplish His greater good.
Wednesday night, January 30, 2019, my 24 year old son went in to cardiac arrest. It was a tremendous blow to my being when I was told. As I drove down Interstate 20, I spoke with the Lord. I wasn't mad, I was just confused, because my son was really coming into his own as a teacher in a rural elementary public school. The Lord was using him in his students lives. As I drove along at a rapid rate, I told the Lord that I trusted Him, and whatever He decided I would accept. I just asked Him to help me and my remaining family navigate the trial. Eight days later I watched my middle son, Will, walk out of the hospital. We had experienced a miracle. I do not believe that the enormity of my faith produced that miracle. No, it was that God decided to leave my son on this earth for His glory. And, that it the purpose of our trials, so that He would be glorified and people would be drawn to Him.
If my son had died, I know on the authority of the Scriptures where he would be right now ... he would be in the presence of the Almighty God. In part, this trial forced me to face one of my biggest fears. It wasn't that the fear crumbled in the presence of my great faith. No, it crumbled in the great presence of my God. You see, the key to all of life is this: Who defines me? If it is anything less than the Lord Jesus Christ, our lives will crumble beneath the pressure of the outside forces that are much greater than we.
The "something strange" in this verse indicates a lack of understanding as to why trials occur in our lives in the first place. There should be no doubt as to why believers in the Lord Jesus face trials. Through our trials, God wants to provide a power that is accessed through our weaknesses; He desires for us to know His power. More acutely, He desires that we know Him most intimately. And when know Him like this, He defines us. This will result in the fact that we learn to walk with Him through our mountainous situations with victory. This does not mean we will be free of pressure and pain, but it does mean we will be able to see the purposes for which we encounter various trials of many kinds. And, germane to all of the trials that we encounter is this: that we know the God of the Bible who is the very source of our strength.
In v.13 of today's passage we read, "But rejoice inasmuch as you participate in the sufferings of Christ, so that you may be overjoyed when his glory is revealed."
Wednesday night, January 30, 2019, my 24 year old son went in to cardiac arrest. It was a tremendous blow to my being when I was told. As I drove down Interstate 20, I spoke with the Lord. I wasn't mad, I was just confused, because my son was really coming into his own as a teacher in a rural elementary public school. The Lord was using him in his students lives. As I drove along at a rapid rate, I told the Lord that I trusted Him, and whatever He decided I would accept. I just asked Him to help me and my remaining family navigate the trial. Eight days later I watched my middle son, Will, walk out of the hospital. We had experienced a miracle. I do not believe that the enormity of my faith produced that miracle. No, it was that God decided to leave my son on this earth for His glory. And, that it the purpose of our trials, so that He would be glorified and people would be drawn to Him.
If my son had died, I know on the authority of the Scriptures where he would be right now ... he would be in the presence of the Almighty God. In part, this trial forced me to face one of my biggest fears. It wasn't that the fear crumbled in the presence of my great faith. No, it crumbled in the great presence of my God. You see, the key to all of life is this: Who defines me? If it is anything less than the Lord Jesus Christ, our lives will crumble beneath the pressure of the outside forces that are much greater than we.
The "something strange" in this verse indicates a lack of understanding as to why trials occur in our lives in the first place. There should be no doubt as to why believers in the Lord Jesus face trials. Through our trials, God wants to provide a power that is accessed through our weaknesses; He desires for us to know His power. More acutely, He desires that we know Him most intimately. And when know Him like this, He defines us. This will result in the fact that we learn to walk with Him through our mountainous situations with victory. This does not mean we will be free of pressure and pain, but it does mean we will be able to see the purposes for which we encounter various trials of many kinds. And, germane to all of the trials that we encounter is this: that we know the God of the Bible who is the very source of our strength.
In v.13 of today's passage we read, "But rejoice inasmuch as you participate in the sufferings of Christ, so that you may be overjoyed when his glory is revealed."
Believers in Christ participate in sufferings which are similar to those which Christ endured. The difference is our sufferings are emblematic of His sufferings, but we do not literally participate in His actual sufferings. Actually, it is through our sufferings that we are offered a deeper level of intimacy with the Lord Jesus. The question is: What will we do with our trials? Will we run to Him through our trials?
The word translated as "overjoyed" has the same root as at the word "rejoice" found at the beginning of this verse. It is through our pain and sufferings that we are granted greater opportunities to go deeper in our intimacy with the Lord. And, it is through our pain and suffering that we are granted the where with all to see our need for Him and His wisdom. When we suffer as followers of the Lord Jesus Christ, it is obviously of great value to the Lord. When we endure trials and we lay hold of the multicolored purposes that He has in store for us, we will be tremendously overjoyed when He appears at His return.
