Times of Trouble

Have you ever wondered why Jesus had to die?  Especially, such a brutal, horrifying death.  Hebrews 2:18 tells us why.  It says “For because he himself has suffered when tempted, he is able to help those who are being tempted.”  Have you ever thought about that?  Jesus was tempted, suffered, and died so that he would be able to help us.  He is our help in trouble.

 

We are in the middle of revival at our church.  You’ve heard it a thousand times before.  You know the saying, “God will never put on me more than I can handle.”  Well, I had a revelation last night.  This is simply not true, nor is it biblical.  Roger Cook, a pastor and church planting catalyst for the West Virginia Baptist Association, said these words that brought that saying into very clear perspective:  If God never gave you more than you could handle, you’d never have a reason to call upon him.  So, God will give us more than we can handle, so that we can fully rely on him.

And, so, my reading in Hebrews 2 simply tells me the same in a different way.  Jesus is able to help me when I’m in trouble because he’s been there.  He’s been through temptation, trials, trouble.  He really does know what I’m (and you are) going through.  God in Heaven can aid me because he’s experienced what I’m experiencing.  Isn’t that comforting?  Psalm 91:1-2 tells us that “He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High, who abides in the shadow of the Almighty, will say to the Lord, ‘My refuge and my fortress; my God, in whom I trust.’” 

If you are experiencing pain, struggles with life, troubles, take them to Jesus.  Jesus is there to love and heal you.  Just like the old hymn says,

“Have we trials and temptations?
  Is there trouble anywhere?
We should never be discouraged,
  Take it to the Lord in prayer.
Can we find a friend so faithful
  Who will all our sorrows share?
Jesus knows our every weakness,
  Take it to the Lord in prayer.”

Take your problems to the Lord.  He’s there to help you!

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The Light

John, the last living disciple, wrote this first epistle to a group of Christians who were facing false teachings.  We don't really know which group, but we do know that he was familiar with them.  Gnosticism was gaining ground.  What is Gnosticism, you ask?  Gnosticism is a complete contrast to what Christianity is.  It was the most dangerous heresy of the first century.  It taught that salvation is achieved through special knowledge.  It's a little too complicated for this discussion though.  This letter was really to give his readers the basics about faith in Christ.

1 John 1:1-2 states "That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we looked upon and have touched with our hands, concerning the word of life—the life was made manifest, and we have seen it, and testify to it and proclaim to you the eternal life, which was with the Father and was made manifest to us".  John was telling his readers that he was a witness.  He saw Jesus with his own eyes, witnessed His miracles, saw him crucified and even witnessed his reappearance after the resurrection and touched him then.  He was an eyewitness!   

John goes on to describe Jesus as light.  1 John 1:5-7 says, "This is the message we have heard from him and proclaim to you, that God is light, and in him is no darkness at all.   If we say we have fellowship with him while we walk in darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth.   But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin."

Jesus is light.  Light is Truth.  Therefore, Jesus is Truth.  This is the message of Christ that John heard.  He is a truth of hope and joy.  With Christ there is no darkness.  Darkness is full of threat and is dangerous.  This, again, doesn't mean Christians will not have problems or trials.  It does mean that Jesus is with us in whatever trials we face.  And in the end, if we have Jesus, we will live in eternity with him.  That is the hope and joy that we should carry around with us.

What about the darkness?  What does that mean "walking in darkness"?  I think it means being a person of hate, being controlled by the things of the world, living sinfully and never being remorseful for it, and being controlled by power or prestige.  Does this describe you?  You can change that.  You can become a person of love.  A person who is full of light.  John tells us that if we have the "blood of Jesus", we can be cleansed "from all sin."  We can walk in the light.  We can be the light for others.  

This reminds me of the hymn "Trust and Obey".  I know you've heard it.  It says this:

When we walk with the Lord   In the light of His Word, What a glory He sheds on our way;   While we do His good will,   He abides with us still, And with all who will trust and obey.
	Trust and obey, For there’s no other way To be happy in Jesus,   But to trust and obey

See that?  It says the His Word is Light.  And if we trust Him, he will abide with us and his glory will light our way.  He will be the light on the dark pathways of this dark world. 

Prayer:  Heavenly Father, thank you for this message today.  In a world full of darkness, you are the light.  Thank you for sending Jesus, your precious son, to cleanse us from our sins.  I pray that if anyone that is reading this doesn't know Jesus as their personal Savior, that they will ask you for forgiveness and ask you into their heart.  Shine your light on them today.  Father, I ask that you forgive me when I've not been the light that I was supposed to be.  Help me, Lord, to share the hope and joy that your love brings.  In Jesus name, Amen.

Suffering

There seems to be a lot of debate about suffering.  On Facebook after the death of a child you'll see those who have no faith post statements like this:  "If God is a loving God, like you claim, why did he allow this child to suffer."  I see it all the time. God doesn't cause the suffering, but he does allow it.  We may not understand why things do happen, we should cling to Him for comfort.  Romans 8:28 tells us that God may not cause all things to happen, but he does "cause all things to work together for good, to those who love God and are called according to His purpose."  

This is what Peter is trying to point out to us in 1 Peter 4:12-13.  We are going to face suffering, sometimes because of our faith.  We may even face persecution.  In verses 12 and 13, there seems to be two commands.  The first command is that they "not be surprised" at any trial you face because of being a Christian.  The second command is how to respond to the trials.  He tells us to "rejoice and be glad when his glory is revealed."  He is telling us that the trials we face will point to God's glory.  See that?  In Romans 8:28 we are told that all things work together for God's purpose.  Now, here in 1 Peter 4:13 we are told that His glory will be revealed.  Peter goes on in verse 16 to tell us that if we do suffer as a Christian, then we are to not be ashamed of it.  

The hymn "How Firm a Foundation" speaks to this very thing:  

"When through fiery trials thy pathway shall lie,
my grace, all sufficient, shall be thy supply;
the flame shall not hurt thee; I only design
thy dross to consume, and thy gold to refine."

So, when you're suffering, no matter the circumstances, be assured that you aren't alone.  Also be assured, that it is for God's glory.   

Heirs, Trials and Loving One Another

Peter, he was one of Jesus’ twelve disciples.  He wrote the first book of Peter to the Jewish Christians that had been scattered throughout the five Roman provinces during the Diaspora. 

The areas that he wrote to were Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia and Bithynia.  These were the areas that Christianity had spread to after the beginning of the church.  In the first chapter of Peter, he explained to them that they were “elected”, meaning that they were “chosen” by God and that it wasn’t random.  He went on to tell them what it meant to be saved and to live as saved and that we have “an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you.” (1 Peter 1:4)  Did you hear that?  We have an inheritance.  What does it mean to be an heir?  An heir is defined as “a person legally entitled to the property or rank of another on that person's death”.  We are an heir to heaven.  Heaven is for eternity.  Isn’t that wonderful news?!  Romans 8:17 says this: “and if children, then heirs—heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, provided we suffer with him in order that we may also be glorified with him.”  We are heirs with Christ.  When we accepted Christ into our lives, we became a joint heir, adopted into the family of God.  We cannot experience this inheritance unless we are born again.

Peter then goes on to discuss with them the purpose for trials in their lives.  I read this on a commentary (I cannot remember which one):  “Our faith isn’t tested because God doesn’t know how much or what kind of faith we have. It is tested because we often are ignorant of how much or what kind of faith we have.  God’s purpose in testing is to display the enduring quality of our faith.”  So, it isn’t a matter of God testing to see if we have faith or not.  It’s to point out to us that we do, indeed, have faith and how much we actually have of it.  What kind of faith do you have?  Are you struggling with trials?  He goes on to describe the process.  Like gold that is purified by fire, our faith is purified by trials.  Gold will one day perish, but our faith will not. 

Peter goes on to inform his readers about their conduct as one that is saved.  How do you act?  Do you act as if you are saved?  I admit, sometimes I am guilty of acting as if I’m not saved.  Don’t you?  We all sin.  Living the way God wants us to is sometimes hard.  He wants us to be sober, or rather, being able to look at life seriously.  He calls us to a life of holiness, giving up the lifestyle that we had before, the lifestyle of the world.  Life isn’t a party.  Do you realize that when we stand before Jesus upon His return, that the only way we’ll be able to stand in front of Him is because of His grace?   It isn’t because we’ve lived a sinless life after we became saved.  We must understand that God isn’t going to show partiality, He is going to judge our conduct.  Peter also tells us that we can call on God for help when we need it.  Verse 17 tells us, “and if you call on him as Father who judges impartially according to each one’s deed…”.    

Peter’s final thoughts in this chapter is this “love one another” (verse 22).  Reminds me of a bluegrass song.  Really?  Yes, really. 

“Cause we’re all bound together,

When you’re down,
I’ll help you brother,
Only love lasts forever,
So, let’s love one another”

Love One Another is by the Infamous Stringdusters.  It’s one of my favorites.  Make the choice to love one another. It’s a decision that we must actively make, a choice.  We are to love others daily with the same love that God loves us with.