“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. But rejoice insofar as you share Christ’s sufferings, that you may also rejoice and be glad when his glory is revealed.” 1 Peter 4:12-13
A clear motif of the New Testament is that God’s people must, through faith in and identification with Christ, suffer. The logic of this is simple: the struggle against sin is truly a struggle and the world and the Devil will not yield. There will and must be a clash. “Let him count the cost (Luke 14:28)” means that we must fully count the cost because there most certainly is one. A common error is to misunderstand grace. Yes, it’s free, but that doesn’t mean cheap. The grace given us through faith, the forgiveness of the heinous sins of our past so that we have reconciliation now with God, cost the most horrible thing in history: the truly innocent God-man’s life on the cross.
Christ suffered, lest we forget, before that too. In the Garden of Gethsemane where he prayed until He bled! In the wilderness. Alone. Hungry. Under attack from Satan.
Betrayal…by His people and by one of His very disciples.
Oh…the pains of this world…the weariness! Even amidst the splendor of a radiant sunrise our hearts break because this is a world of decay, death, and so much deceit. Sinners who oppress the truth (Romans 1:18-21) and insist upon their own virtue rather than God’s are forever deceiving themselves and others.
To forget that this world is fallen is a common weakness of many a Christian, causing them to be tossed to and fro. Imagine a quarterback never expecting a pass rush. Imagine a boxer convinced that his opponent won’t hit back. Our Father loves us so we’re reminded time and again that in this world we’ll have troubles (John 16:33). But we take heart that He has risen and overcome this world.
To be crucified with Christ isn’t a mere thing we say. It’s not a political slogan but a very real fact of life. In the words of Winston of John Wick fame, we should chew this subject down to the bone. A Christian is in battle with the world, the flesh and the Devil. This battle, like all battles, has costs. This battle, like all battles, has a goal too. In Normandy; in Washington crossing the Delaware on Christmas night; at Gettysburg. Every battle has a goal and the goal of spiritual warfare is the glory of Christ and the defeat of sin.
In our own hearts. And in the world.
“Wretched man that I am, who will deliver me from this body of death?” This is the cry of the Christian soul at war with the flesh. Let us be wary of thinking we battle merely the world because such is a genius ploy by the Evil One, to take our eyes off our own sin. Suffering produces the godly fruit of Christian character. When we’re told that all should be sunshine and moonbeams we lose sight of the fact that in this world we will have trouble.
What is the Spirit working on with you right now and at this phase of your sanctification? Do you not know, Christian? Do you know how many payments are left on your car or your house? Do you know the stats of your favorite team? Do you know so much about life’s temporary things and so little about the state of your own soul? Is He poking you with the sword, the Word, right this instant? Is it lust? Is it pride? Anger? Our struggles bring us to maturity because they show us our character. Challenge doesn’t develop character; it reveals it! We’re refined by facing the truth about ourselves through our struggles.
“If you are insulted for the name of Christ, you are blessed, because the Spirit of glory and of God rests upon you.” 1 Peter 4:14
“Claiming to be wise, they become fools (Romans 1:22) and their foolish hearts are darkened (Romans 1:23).” How immature we are! There’s a great paradox – not contradiction – at work in the Christian life wherein we love our neighbor who at their core hates us. They do hate us. They are indeed our enemy! Why? Because they hate God. They are Cain to our Abel and will most certainly bash our head in when/if they have the chance. They will lie about you. They will slander you. We must love them nevertheless and yet that love is no sentimental sap but the hard and sharp steel that cuts. It’s the sword of Truth poured into us by the living Spirit and Word. Make no mistake: telling the world what God says will cause those who hate Him to hate you too.
We may go to work, to school, to our hobbies, and we cross paths with non-believers all the time and everywhere. “Good” society doesn’t talk about politics and religion so that they can cordon off the latest Tower of Babel from Christ. And then here we come. We’re intruders and we bring this crazy talk about Christ being Lord and all that. And we tell them that abortion is murder. We tell them crazy stuff like Christ is Lord over their idol-state and that their public schools are sweet little Satan factories, churning out Darwin-loving, Marx-affirming, sex-obsessed atheists. We announce that their Super Bowl halftime show was an orgiastic display of self-worship and defiant sin.
That’s not ever going to go over well.
We must always be at odds with this world and the prince of it (Ephesians 2:2). That doesn’t mean we’re provocative or argumentative but it does mean that we recognize the war and aren’t neutral. We take sides. We put our flag down and that flag is the Lord’s. We tear down strongholds and lofty opinions (2 Corinthians 10:5).
To be getting along perfectly well with the sons of disobedience is a sign that we’re on the Enemy’s team while wearing Christ’s jersey. Watch carefully who you contend with and what for, for it reveals your heart’s true commitment. That non-believers count you as the “cool Christian” is no virtue. Christ calls you to repent (Revelation 2:20)! No one fires shots at their own guy. Friendship with the world is indeed enmity with God. To be obnoxious and unloving is a sign that we have zeal but no loving wisdom, nor understanding of how exactly men are brought to Christ. The gospel – faith in Christ and the repentance of sin is the only way to God. Many church-goers are quick to fight those who fight evil, to critique those who critique sin. They say it isn’t loving to call sin what it is. They make excuses for things like the Super Bowl halftime show and its blatant sexuality. Here’s the acid test: are you irked by the rampant sin of the show or by those calling it out?
“But let none of you suffer as a murderer or a thief or an evildoer or as a meddler. Yet if anyone suffers as a Christian, let him not be ashamed, but let him glorify God in that name.” 1 Peter 4:15-16
No Christian may continue a life of sin. Increasingly, they must renounce all patterns of ungodliness in their lives. What stands out here is that along with murder, theft, and outright evil we have meddling. The natural man finds this an odd inclusion. The Holy Spirit needs no editor. He’s always Truth itself.
To meddle is to manipulate. It’s born from the desire to play God in this life, to control others. Oh, how much strife and misery comes from our envy! We’re bitter that God has given this or that to someone and we grumble and complain. The meddler tries to micromanage others for the simplest reason: they have no faith and are in a cold-war with God over what? Over control of life’s circumstances. What the murderer does brazenly, the meddler does surreptitiously. Such is why our world is full of so much conflict…and lawyers are so well paid!
Let us not confuse, in our pride, suffering with stupidity. God’s people should be wise. The Lord expects and demands it (2 Timothy 3:16-17) and has devoted entire books of holy Scripture to the subject (Proverbs!). Lack of wisdom causes us to be blind to the prideful stubbornness that creates conflict, the laziness, greed, strife, and lust that can lurk in our hearts. The consequences of these sins is not to be confused with Peter’s point about suffering. Getting fired from your job for poor performance isn’t the suffering in mind here. Again: nowhere in Scripture does the Lord condone sloppy living. Christ suffered because He had no sin. This is the idea at hand. When you suffer because you’ve done well and the world hates you for it, or you’re taken advantage of for it, you are suffering in Christ.
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