The Christian and suffering

Q: I believe that I am a Christian. I pray, I go to church, I teach kids about God, but bad things keep happening to me all the time. Why is that?

A: Becoming a Christian doesn’t exempt us from suffering. Jesus said, “In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.” In this saying he promises two things: that we will experience suffering and that his life brings ultimate meaning to it and victory over it.

You could even argue that becoming a Christian increases our likelihood of suffering because now there is the added dimension of persecution because of our faith. (Not that we in America face anything closely resembling the persecution our brothers and sisters in Christ face in other parts of the world!) Think of all the suffering the first disciples faced, the hardships of the Apostle Paul, the tens of thousands of martyrs who died for their faith. Bad things happened to them, didn’t they? Yet, they rejoiced. They even sang when falsely imprisoned. Why? The resurrected Christ dwelt in their hearts!

Within this question is a hint that...

“if I do the right things, things should go well for me.” I’m not saying the person who asked this question is practicing their faith with an ulterior motive in mind, but the reality is some do approach God from a position of bargaining. “I’ll join a church, go to small group, pay my tithes, keep my kids in church, God, as long as you bless me and make my life comfortable and rewarding! God, I’ll do my part if you’ll do yours!” When something has really gone well for you, have you ever heard someone say, “You must be living right?” That is not a biblical notion. God’s blessings come to us as a gift, not because we’re living right. Now, don’t get me wrong: Right living has its rewards (the satisfaction of doing the right thing, the joy of obedience, etc.). But, we should serve God out of gratitude and love; not for what we might get in return.

Think of it this way. Let’s say that becoming a Christ follower meant you supernaturally entered a trouble free zone. You never got sick, you always had an abundance financially, your car never broke down, your kids got straight A’s … you get the picture. Now, under those circumstances, how many would become Christians? Just about everyone … and for all the wrong reasons. They’d be mercenaries, not disciples.

Jesus suffered. We will suffer. Jesus’ suffering was redeemed. Our suffering will be redeemed.

Read More......

God the Scapegoat

Q: How do we explain to a loved one that God is not the one who makes them sick, bitter, or have no joy?

A: In the Old Testament, there was a practice of assigning the guilt and sin of everyone in the community to a spotless lamb or goat and then sacrificing it or sending it off into the wilderness. It is where we get our term “scapegoat” and it foreshadowed what Jesus would do on the cross. Your question points to the reality that God still serves as the scapegoat today; God is often blamed for the mess of our fallen and sinful world. Since Pastor Ron preached on this subject, I refer you to his message “Where was God.”
However, I want to address the particulars of your question.

Jesus is the best revelation we have of God (the Book of Hebrews emphasizes this). Look at what Jesus did and said; he healed, he reached out to the social outcasts and “sinners” to eat meals with them and ask them to follow him. He said that his desire was to have us experience abundant life, joy and peace. He poured out the Holy Spirit on believers that we might grow in love, joy and peace among others. He pointed to forgiveness as the only sure cure for bitterness and commanded us to do it because he knows it frees our hearts.

Where in any of the revelation of Jesus do you find him making people sick, bitter or joyless? Nowhere.

Read More......

Suffering

Q: Why do the innocent suffer?

A: We have had a number of questions turned in related to suffering and the problem of evil. For many, this is their greatest obstacle to faith. That is also the topic we’ll be dealing with this weekend at La Croix. Please join us at one of our three services!

Read More......