Tag: suffering

Where Is God in My Suffering? (Psalm 22:23-31)

On By Tim EhrhardtIn Christian Spirituality Blog, Daily Bible Reading Blog, Year BLeave a comment
Crucifixion, by Georges Rouault, 1937

“Praise him, you servants of the Lord!
    Honor him, you descendants of Jacob!
    Worship him, you people of Israel!
He does not neglect the poor or ignore their suffering;
    he does not turn away from them,
    but answers when they call for help.”

In the full assembly I will praise you for what you have done;
    in the presence of those who worship you
    I will offer the sacrifices I promised.
The poor will eat as much as they want;
    those who come to the Lord will praise him.
May they prosper forever!

All nations will remember the Lord.
    From every part of the world they will turn to him;
    all races will worship him.
The Lord is king,
    and he rules the nations.

All proud people will bow down to him;
    all mortals will bow down before him.
Future generations will serve him;
    they will speak of the Lord to the coming generation.
People not yet born will be told:
    “The Lord saved his people.” (Good News Translation)

I find that a great deal of truth and reality in this world is something of a mystery and a paradox. Christianity, especially, is a religion of paradox, in my opinion. For example, God is Three – Father, Son, and Spirit – but God is One. Jesus Christ is fully human and fully divine, at the same time, all the time. And when it comes to the spiritual life, suffering exists, and God is sovereign and in control of all things.

This then, is what prompts many people to question if there is really a God – since so much suffering exists throughout the world. Yet, it’s necessary to maintain the tension that hard circumstances, adversity, and difficulty in the form of awful suffering, and the preeminence of the Lord God almighty, both exist without taking anything away from either of them.

The severity of suffering, nor the supreme majesty of God, need to be watered down in any way in order to try and make sense of our existential situations.

“Suffering” is a word we would like to avoid. Even saying or reading the word might make some folks cringe. Suffering? No thanks. I think I’ll pass on that. Yet, something inside of us instinctively knows we cannot get around it. Everyone suffers in some way. It is endemic to the human condition that at times we will suffer physically, financially, mentally, emotionally, and spiritually. 

That’s why I believe there is so much talk within some Christian circles about miracles. It’s more than understandable:

  • a chronic pain sufferer wants relief, so she prays for a miracle of health
  • a small business owner is bleeding financially, and looks to God for an immediate miracle of wealthy clients
  • a beloved senior saint knows she is afflicted with Alzheimer’s, so she prays for the miracle of deliverance, even to be taken home to be with the Lord
  • a young adult finds himself in the throes of depression and has tried everything to cope and get out of it, so he petitions God for a miracle out of the deep black hole
  • a believer in Jesus keeps experiencing a besetting sin and cannot get over it, so she looks to God for the miracle of not struggling any more with it

These scenarios and a thousand other maladies afflict people everywhere. There are a multitude of stories out there. Folks who have experienced a miracle tell of their wonderful deliverance. But what about the rest? Those without the miracle? Do they have a lack of faith? Has God forgotten them?

Oh, my, no! God sees, and God knows. God is acquainted with suffering. Jesus knows it first-hand. Remember that it was Jesus who said, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” (Psalm 22:1; Mark 15:34; Matthew 27:46)

Even Jesus cried out in his suffering. But there was no deliverance coming for him.  There was, however, deliverance coming for us.

Sometimes the greatest miracle and deliverance of all is to be freed from the need for a miracle. The reason God doesn’t just offer immediate relief from everyone’s suffering and bring a divine miracle is that the Lord is doing something else: Walking with us through our suffering. God oftentimes has plans and purposes for us that are well beyond our understanding. 

We simply are not privy to everything in God’s mind.

We may not get the miracle we desire. Yet, what we will get without fail, is God’s provision and steadfast love all the way through the suffering.

Where is God in your suffering? Right beside you. Jesus is suffering with you. You are not crying alone; Christ weeps with you.

Let, then, those who suffer, eat and be full. Let them be satisfied with the portion God has given them. And, what’s more, let them offer praise to the God who is squarely beside them in every affliction and each trouble.

God Almighty, you are the One who knows suffering and affliction better than anyone. I admit I don’t often understand what in the world you are doing or not doing in my life and in the lives of those I love. Yet, I admit that I have found in you the comfort, encouragement, and strength to live another day in my trouble. For this, I praise you, in the Name of Jesus Christ, in the power of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

The Temptation of Jesus (Matthew 4:1-11)

On By Tim EhrhardtIn Christian Spirituality Blog, Daily Bible Reading Blog, Year BLeave a comment
Temptation of Jesus by Gustave Doré (1832-1883)

Then Jesus was led by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted there by the devil. For forty days and forty nights he fasted and became very hungry.

During that time the devil came and said to him, “If you are the Son of God, tell these stones to become loaves of bread.”

But Jesus told him, “No! The Scriptures say,

‘People do not live by bread alone,
    but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.’”

Then the devil took him to the holy city, Jerusalem, to the highest point of the Temple, and said, “If you are the Son of God, jump off! For the Scriptures say,

‘He will order his angels to protect you.
And they will hold you up with their hands
    so you won’t even hurt your foot on a stone.’”

Jesus responded, “The Scriptures also say, ‘You must not test the Lord your God.’”

Next the devil took him to the peak of a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their glory. “I will give it all to you,” he said, “if you will kneel down and worship me.”

“Get out of here, Satan,” Jesus told him. “For the Scriptures say,

‘You must worship the Lord your God
    and serve only him.’”

Then the devil went away, and angels came and took care of Jesus. (New Living Translation)

Get Thee Behind Me Satan, by Ilya Repin, 1895

In our most vulnerable moments, there are dark forces that attempt to swoop in and offer demonic delights for us to consider. This is what we call “temptation.” Indeed, it can be quite alluring to entertain ways of getting what we need, and want, through dubious avenues and shadowy back alleys, other than the light of God.

In the desert, the place of preparation for ministry, Jesus fasted and prayed forty days and nights. If ever there was a time when Jesus would be vulnerable to alternative religion, the devil mused, wringing his demonic hands together with wicked delight, it would be out in the desert by himself.

So, Satan tempted Jesus with three whoppers he thought would get to Jesus, for sure. Having tempted Jesus with food and a way to fame, and having failed both times, Satan gave his final temptation, and his best effort at getting Jesus to take a different path.

To us this temptation to bow down and worship Satan seems like a no-brainer. Well, of course, no one would do such a thing as this, especially Jesus. And he did not. But it was still quite tempting, and this why: Jesus knew very well what was ahead of him.

He had just spent forty days in an intense orientation for an upcoming three years of hard ministry with an end that he knew would be characterized by torture and a horrendous death. If there was a way to get around all that pain and suffering, maybe Jesus would take it. 

Satan presented to Jesus an alternative way, a different path to achieve his purpose for being on this earth. Jesus could have it all without the three years, without the hard slugging to communicate the kingdom of God has come. Most of all, Jesus could circumvent the cross and establish his rule over all the earth – all pain free! The temptation, yes, was very tempting. Become King Jesus now with no suffering.

This has always been one of our great temptations, as well: Take the easy path. Get what you want, what you deserve, now, with no hardship. 

The values of God’s kingdom include trust, patience, and perseverance. Temptation insists we need none of those hard things to be successful.

Satan is the original slickster, marketing his quick and easy wares for people to buy into the notion that life can lived without pain and hardship, and with wild success, right now! The scary thing about it is, Satan can deliver… but it will cost us our very lives. Slavery to sin is the price we pay for hitching our hopes to the quick and easy.

The Christian season of Lent is a time for the slow, patient, deliberate development of the soul in attachment with the Lord Jesus. Engaging in spiritual disciplines is hard. It is difficult to fast and pray. Growing in Christ is slow and takes a great deal of learned perseverance.

Far too many of us are tempted to circumvent the hard work of discipleship and simply have some spiritual professionals distill everything we need into one hour on Sunday morning, or in a nice neat 5-minute devotional.

For yet another easy alternative, it could be that we opt to fabricate our own religious practices and beliefs, picking and choosing what fits our lifestyle, as if convenience and comfort are the summum bonum of life, instead of worship.

Christ was able to face down temptation because the desert strengthened him. Yes, he was vulnerable. But he was not weak. If we want to handle temptation, it will take the hard slog of Lent to help us. It will require the desert to spiritually form us and prepare us for godly ministry that puts the devil in his place.

Lord Jesus, you are the king of all creation. Just as you chose the hard path of God’s kingdom, so help me to persevere with faith and patience. May my life reflect your words and ways, in the power of the Holy Spirit.  Amen.

How Do You Interpret Suffering? (Job 5:8-27)

On By Tim EhrhardtIn Christian Spirituality Blog, Daily Bible Reading Blog, Year BLeave a comment
“Job,” by French painter Léon Bonnat, 1880

“But if I were you, I would appeal to God;
    I would lay my cause before him.
He performs wonders that cannot be fathomed,
    miracles that cannot be counted.
He provides rain for the earth;
    he sends water on the countryside.
The lowly he sets on high,
    and those who mourn are lifted to safety.
He thwarts the plans of the crafty,
    so that their hands achieve no success.
He catches the wise in their craftiness,
    and the schemes of the wily are swept away.
Darkness comes upon them in the daytime;
    at noon they grope as in the night.
He saves the needy from the sword in their mouth;
    he saves them from the clutches of the powerful.
So the poor have hope,
    and injustice shuts its mouth.

“Blessed is the one whom God corrects;
    so do not despise the discipline of the Almighty.
For he wounds, but he also binds up;
    he injures, but his hands also heal.
From six calamities he will rescue you;
    in seven no harm will touch you.
In famine he will deliver you from death,
    and in battle from the stroke of the sword.
You will be protected from the lash of the tongue,
    and need not fear when destruction comes.
You will laugh at destruction and famine,
    and need not fear the wild animals.
For you will have a covenant with the stones of the field,
    and the wild animals will be at peace with you.
You will know that your tent is secure;
    you will take stock of your property and find nothing missing.
You will know that your children will be many,
    and your descendants like the grass of the earth.
You will come to the grave in full vigor,
    like sheaves gathered in season.

“We have examined this, and it is true.
    So hear it and apply it to yourself.” (New International Version)

“The Vision of Eliphaz,” by John Linnell (1792-1882)

I personally find it rather annoying whenever someone gives me unsolicited advice. It is especially loathsome when it comes with a lot of useless verbiage which is offered as gospel truth.

Eliphaz was a “friend” of Job – which brings to mind the old adage, “With a friend like that, you don’t need any enemies!” Eliphaz was also full of himself, believing that he had all the answers to Job’s terrible suffering.

The unhelpful speech of Eliphaz became harmful words that cut into Job’s spirit. You see, Job knew with a settled confidence that his personal integrity was intact. Yet, his trouble abounded. We need not, like Eliphaz, rush to the conclusion that something is wrong with the suffering person. It may be the Spirit of God thrusting us into a desert experience to test and approve our faith.

Eliphaz offered one of those tired age-old arguments that bad things only happen to bad people. He came at Job with the inexperience and absurdity of making misguided assumptions. He rhetorically asked if there were ever innocent people who were trashed with trouble, or upright folks who ever got cut off from God? 

The concluding judgment of Eliphaz was bound to be off the mark – believing that some sort of secret sin must surely be the culprit behind Job’s awful misfortune. Certainly, Eliphaz thinks, Job cannot possibly go through such terrible suffering without having done something to anger God.

Times change, but the basic nature of people, not so much. In today’s church and world, the same notions still endure. If I had a quarter for every time I heard crazy comments, like the following, I would be a rich man: 

  • “He’s poor because he is lazy and doesn’t want to work.”
  • “She keeps having chronic health issues. God is punishing her.”
  • “The pandemic is God’s judgment on us for not having the Ten Commandments in our courthouses.”
  • “If you just confess your sin and have faith, you’ll be healed.”
  • “They’re in big trouble. They obviously did something evil.”

On and on the wrong-headed statements continue, ad nauseum.

The Apostle Peter understood how to view trouble in a healthy way. He said we all suffer – both the good person and the wicked. It’s just a matter of whether we will suffer for doing the good and right thing, or suffer because of saying shallow, illogical, and stupid comments that offend God and hurt others. (1 Peter 3:17-18)

Even Christ suffered. And it wasn’t because of his own sin. It was because of ours. Jesus suffered once for sins, the righteous for the unrighteous, that he might bring us to God. 

Since Jesus suffered, the follower of Jesus will suffer. There is a big picture only God sees. Whenever we suffer, there is something going on behind the spiritual scene. We must allow God to do divine work, and then, trust that the Lord bends all human suffering for good and redemptive purposes.

“Where there is no love, pour love in, and you will draw love out.”

St. John of the Cross

So, let’s change the rhetoric. Instead of jumping to judgment, reflexively hop to grace with comments like these:

  • “He has poverty of spirit. He’s blessed and will inherit the kingdom of God.”
  • “She’s in chronic pain. God has allowed her the privilege of suffering in solidarity with her Lord.”
  • “We’re in a pandemic. Here’s a chance for us to live out the Ten Commandments.”
  • “If we confess the world’s sins of pride, hate, and injustice, perhaps God’s mercy will deliver us.”
  • “We’re in a big pickle. No better time than now to grow in grace.”

Where is God? Beside you, quietly and confidently holding you up in your suffering. For me, that’s one of the best ways to interpret hard suffering.

Lord God, I entrust myself to you because you know what you are doing. Thank you for the trials of life which humbles my heart to pray. Do your work in me so that my faith is fortified for a lifetime of service in the church and the world, through Jesus Christ, my Lord. Amen.

The Transfiguration of Jesus (Mark 9:2-9)

On By Tim EhrhardtIn Christian Spirituality Blog, Daily Bible Reading Blog, Year BLeave a comment
The Transfiguration of Jesus, by Armando Alemdar Ara, 2004

After six days Jesus took Peter, James and John with him and led them up a high mountain, where they were all alone. There he was transfigured before them. His clothes became dazzling white, whiter than anyone in the world could bleach them. And there appeared before them Elijah and Moses, who were talking with Jesus.

Peter said to Jesus, “Rabbi, it is good for us to be here. Let us put up three shelters—one for you, one for Moses and one for Elijah.” (He did not know what to say, they were so frightened.)

Then a cloud appeared and covered them, and a voice came from the cloud: “This is my Son, whom I love. Listen to him!”

Suddenly, when they looked around, they no longer saw anyone with them except Jesus.

As they were coming down the mountain, Jesus gave them orders not to tell anyone what they had seen until the Son of Man had risen from the dead. (New International Version)

It may be that reading this account of Christ’s transfiguration (metamorphosis) seems a bit strange, even confusing. Perhaps you have no categories of thought to explain such an encounter.

In a Peanuts cartoon, Charlie Brown, Lucy, and Linus were lying on their backs looking at the sky. Lucy says, “If you use your imagination you can see lots of things in the cloud formations. What do you think you see, Linus?” 

Linus replied, “Well, those clouds up there look to me like the map of the British Honduras on the Caribbean… That cloud up there looks a little like the profile of Thomas Eakins, the famous painter and sculptor… And that group of clouds over there gives me the impression of the stoning of Stephen… I can see the Apostle Paul standing there to one side…” 

Lucy responds, “Uh huh… that’s very good… what do you see in the clouds, Charlie Brown?”

To which Charlie Brown replied, “Well, I was going to say a ducky and a horsy, but I changed my mind.”

Maybe your spiritual life seems more like Charlie Brown than Linus. Compared to the experiences of others, you have not had any defining moments of ecstasy; no shining Jesus in front of you; or no spectacular vision of Christ.

Perhaps your life seems rather mundane and ordinary in light of the many stories we have in the Gospels of Jesus doing the miraculous. 

Most of life is lived in the daily grind. In the monotony of life, we need some hope, an occasional mountain top experience that helps us glimpse into the future of what it will be like someday when the kingdom of God comes in its fullness.

Christ’s transfiguration came after a hard frank discussion Jesus had with the disciples about his impending death. Jesus was up front with them, saying that he must suffer, be rejected, and killed. But in three days he will rise again. The disciples did not want to hear that; Peter even rebuked Jesus for saying it. In response, Jesus said:

“If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me and for the gospel will save it.”

Jesus (Mark 8:34-35, NIV)

Jesus identified himself as the Suffering Servant, the One who must suffer and die. Yet, he is also the One to be glorified. For Jesus, there has to be suffering before glory. And it is the same for us.

The Christian life includes walking through the valley of the shadow of death. But it is also punctuated with mountain top experiences that give us hope. The nature of the Christian journey is up and down, with both the mountain and the valley as spiritual realities of great importance.

We may have a lot of questions about Christ’s transfiguration. Jesus had a metamorphosis smack in front of the disciples’ eyes. Why? What’s the significance of this? Was it just a demonstration to get their attention? Why are Moses and Elijah there? What’s really going on?

Transfiguration, by Sadao Watanabe, 1971

Jesus intentionally took Peter, James, and John up the mountain to have this experience. Up to that point, a lot of rumors were circulating about Jesus – that maybe he was Elijah come back, or some other prophet, perhaps even Moses himself. But Moses and Elijah showing up next to Jesus, meant that Jesus is not them. 

In the Old Testament, Moses was used by God to deliver the Israelites out of slavery in Egypt and to bring them to the Promised Land. Centuries later, Elijah was used by God to bring about a great repentance of the people from the false god Baal, and a mighty revival to the exclusive worship of the Lord.

As good as Moses and Elijah were, having them with Jesus on the mountain meant that it gets even better with Christ. Jesus is the Messiah, the True Deliverer, who saves people from their sins. What’s more, Jesus is the ultimate revivalist, bringing truth, grace, and the love of God to people, calling them from legalistic religion back to the true worship of God.

Deliverance and revival were integral to Christ’s earthly ministry. And Jesus expects his followers to do the same. In Christian ministry, there will be suffering, because we must take up our cross. There will also be glory, experiencing and seeing deliverance from sin that comes with revival. 

When I was in college, a group of us Christians met each week for encouragement and prayer. For a two year period, at least one person a week was added to our group, having had a dramatic conversion to Christ. That was an incredible time of being on the mountain with Jesus, seeing him manifested in all his glory through changing people’s lives.

Yet, inevitably, we descend to the valley. What goes up must come down. And how we handle the valley is crucial. On the mountain, things seemed effortless; but in the valley, it’s all different.

Coming off the mountain may lead to various temptations, like wishing you were back on the mountain – looking back to some Golden Age where everything seemed so great, and people were enthused and excited about God and the group you were in. Yet, there are times when the revival fires wane, and the glory departs. Then what?…

God’s Word to us today, given by God the Father, is: “This is my Son, whom I love. Listen to him!”

A 12th century Mosaic of Christ’s Transfiguration

Here is what Jesus has said to us, as recorded by the Evangelist Mark:

“The time has come. The kingdom of God is near. Repent and believe the good news!” (Mark 1:15)

“Come, follow me, and I will make you fishers of men.” (Mark 1:17)

“It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners.” (Mark 2:17)

“Why are you so afraid? Do you still have no faith?” (Mark 4:40)

“Everything is possible for him who believes.” (Mark 9:23)

“If anyone wants to be first, he must be the very last, and the servant of all.” (Mark 9:35)

“I tell you the truth, anyone who will not receive the kingdom of God like a little child will never enter it.” (Mark 10:15)

“…the Son of Man will be betrayed to the chief priests and teachers of the law. They will condemn him to death and will hand him over to the Gentiles, who will mock him and spit on him, flog him and kill him….” (Mark 10:33-34)

“For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.” (Mark 10:45)

“I tell you, whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours. And when you stand praying, if you hold anything against anyone, forgive him, so that your Father in heaven may forgive you your sins.” (Mark 11:24-25)

“My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” (Mark 15:34)

“Go into all the world and preach the good news to all creation.” (Mark 16:15)

If you have had a mountain top experience with Jesus, let that encounter give you the drive and the hope to keep carrying the bucket through the valley, without living in the past.

If you have never been on the mountain, then today, listen to Jesus and follow what he says.

If you are vexed in your spirit, go to Jesus. Listen to him. Do what he says.

Know the word of the Lord, and bank on it. For our light and momentary sufferings will result in praise, honor, and glory when Jesus Christ is revealed. Amen.