The Gift of Suffering: It's Good

I had the opportunity to speak to the young adult ministry at my church recently, and from the moment I was asked to speak, I felt very strongly to speak on suffering. Based on the response of that night and subsequent weeks as well as general observation, I believe this topic requires a more thorough examination. In the end, my hope is that you will see suffering the way God intends and the Bible describes: as a gift.


In the previous two posts in this series I made the following points: suffering is promised to the Christian and suffering is a means of grace for the Christian. I finished off last week's post with the following commentary on 1 Peter 4:19, specifically regarding the word entrust:

We can place our trust in God when suffering comes our way because of His sovereignty, His control over all situations. In other words, we trust God not only because we know He is good but also because we know His plans are good.


This week, with the knowledge that suffering is promised and is a means of grace, we will uncover the truth that, in fact, suffering is part of God's plan and is good for the Christian.


Before we can get there, though, it must be understood that there are two forces, two opposing purposes, at work when it comes to suffering. Satan, that prowling lion, has a purpose for suffering; God also has His purposes for suffering. Ultimately, because of God's omnipotent and sovereign reign over all things, including Satan, everything works together for His purposes. However, on the way, Satan seeks to disrupt what he can whenever he can. He comes to 'steal, kill, and destroy', and he is the 'father of lies'. That's a potent and deadly combination, and it is one that we cannot overlook or put off as hyper-spiritual.

In 1 Thessalonians 3:3-5, Paul writes of Satan's purposes in suffering:

...that no one be moved by these afflictions. For you yourselves know that we are destined for this. For when we were with you, we kept telling you beforehand that we were to suffer affliction, just as it has come to pass, and just as you know. For this reasons, when I could bear it no longer, I sent to learn about your faith, for fear that somehow the tempter has tempted you and our labor would be in vain (emphasis mine).


Note the key phrases highlighted in this passage: the 'afflictions' referred to were anticipated and taught about by Paul before they ever happened. Nonetheless, because of the ferocity of the suffering this group of churches faced, Paul was concerned that they would abandon their pursuit of Christ. Why? Because they were so surprised by the suffering? No, it would not appear that surprise was Paul's concern (like it was with Peter from the passage last week). Paul speaks specifically to Satan's attempt to tempt the believers.

This begs the question: Tempt them to do what? Admittedly, my answer will be speculative and likely incomplete in certain capacities. But I believe the temptation we face most when going through suffering is to doubt God. We doubt His plans. We doubt His control. We doubt His faithfulness. We doubt His trustworthiness. We doubt His goodness. With all of this doubt, unbelief begins to define us more than faith, and we lose all vision of the gospel and Jesus Christ.

Allow me to provide a bit of encouragement at this point for those who are right in the middle of this struggle: First, as we will see a little further down, God has His purposes for your suffering, too, and those purposes are far greater than what Satan can concoct. Second, though Satan will do what he can to destroy your faith, even he is bounded and limited by God in what he can do to you. This is plainly seen in Job 1:12: "And the Lord said to Satan, 'Behold, all that [Job] has is in your hand. Only against him do not stretch out your hand.' So Satan went out from the presence of the Lord." This post is not the place to get into the discussion of why or how Satan is able to get into the presence of the Lord; this is merely to point out that God sets the boundaries around what Satan can and cannot do. In other words, even in Satan's plans for our suffering, God is ultimately in control.

As mentioned, what is most encouraging is that God has a purpose for our suffering as well. In order to understand this, we will have to go on a short trek through a few passages in the New Testament. We will start in Hebrews 12:3-7, 11:

Consider him [referring to Jesus] who endured from sinners such hostility against himself, so that you may not grow weary or fainthearted. In your struggle against sin you have not yet resisted to the point of shedding your blood. And have you forgotten the exhortation that addressed you as sons? "My son, do not regard lightly the discipline of the Lord, nor be weary when reproved by him. For the Lord disciplines the one he loves, and chastises every son whom he receives (Pr.3:11,12)." It is for discipline that you have to endure. God is treating you as sons. For what son is there whom his father does not discipline?...For the moment all discipline seems painful rather than pleasant, but later it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it (emphasis mine).


The first purpose God has for our suffering is that, as His children, He is training us in endurance. This is echoed in Romans 5:3, where we see that 'suffering produces endurance'. This training is part of our maturation as believers. If we are all honest with ourselves, the most valuable lessons, the lessons that really made us 'grow up', came through our hardest seasons. When life is going along smoothly, our tendency is not to press into God and pursue Him with desperation and reckless abandon. We usually only arrive there when we have nowhere else to go. This is part of God's discipline process for us. He wants to remind us that we must wholly lean on Him, and this means removing our false senses of security one by one. It is a painful process, but it is one that 'yields the fruit of righteousness' in us.

When we think of the word 'discipline', we most often think of 'correction', such as "My child came home four hours late, so I had to discipline him." Or, "That person has gone wild - they obviously weren't disciplined enough at home." However, there is another type of discipline which is more like 'diligent practice'. One does not simply walk up to a piano and play Bach or Beethoven. Hitting a curveball doesn't come naturally, much less pitching one. An Olympic gymnast works on the same routine for years in order to get it right the one time it counts most. Each of these requires hours upon hours of diligent practice. Blisters, bumps, bruises, callouses, frustrations, failures, and eventually, some successes. If you were to continue to read beyond verse 11 in this passage, you will see an exhortation from the author to live in a holy manner. How is this possible except by the power of God working in us to grow in the discipline of our faith through the endurance obtained in times of suffering?

As we see this process rightly, we realize that He does this because He loves us. He knows that the best thing for us is to trust in Him alone because He alone is fully faithful and trustworthy at all times. It is His fatherly love toward us, His children, that compels Him to discipline us. This discipline is manifested as suffering in our lives, but this suffering ultimately produces the endurance necessary to finish the race. C.S Lewis humorously puts it this way in A Mind Awake: "If you think of this world as a place intended simply for our happiness, you find it quite intolerable: think of it as a place of training and correction and it's not so bad."

2 Corinthians 1:3-7
Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort, who comforts us in any affliction, with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God. For as we share abundantly in Christ's sufferings, so through Christ we share abundantly in comfort too. If we are afflicted, it is for your comfort and salvation; and if we are comforted, it is for your comfort, which you experience when you patiently endure the same sufferings that we suffer. Our hope for you is unshaken, for we know that as you share in our sufferings, you will also share in our comfort.


The second purpose God has for our suffering is to comfort us and for us to bring comfort to others who are likewise suffering. The Holy Spirit is called the 'Comforter', and that is one of His ministries. He brings comfort and peace to us in our most trying times. And we can receive that comfort when we understand that God looks on us with adoration as His children. He delights in our delighting in Him, and He receives glory when we find comfort in His presence.

We are then to serve as examples of comfort to one another. As I go through suffering, I desire that you would see the reality of that suffering as well as the reality of God's comforting presence through it all. Then, when you go through suffering, you will know that God brings comfort because you saw it happen with me. You will not be so tempted to doubt because you have seen the goodness of God displayed to me. Further, since I have personally experienced this goodness, I come alongside you and tell you of His goodness, strengthening your faith all the more to endure the trial you are facing. And on it goes. Suffering is beneficial for both the individual and the Church.

We now see that, while Satan has his purposes for our suffering, God has His as well. This helps us understand that suffering is part of God's plan, but are His plans good (as in, not only 'for the greater good' but also 'good for me too')? Let's look at two passages from Romans, one giving us a direct answer to the question and the other telling us why.

Romans 12:2 (NIV)
Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is - His good, pleasing, and perfect will.


For our purposes, the words 'will' and 'plans' are synonymous. Given this, there is not a lot of room for discussion on this point. God's will is good, pleasing, and perfect. That's an airtight argument if I've ever heard one. But, we are curious people, and taking something at face value is not something we are particularly comfortable with, generally speaking. In this case, while it is clear that God's plans are good, we may still be tempted to ask, 'How do we know they're good?' In His grace and mercy toward us, despite not having to explain Himself to anyone, God gives us the answer to this question. He's a loving Father, so He loves to instruct His children.

Romans 8:16-18
The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, 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. For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us (emphasis mine).


The highlighted section is of utmost importance, especially the word provided and the clause in order that. The assumption is that, as children of God (and subsequently co-heirs with Christ), we will suffer with Him. The converse assumption must also be made because of the word provided - if we are/have not suffered with Christ, we must wonder if we are God's children. If that thought is frightening, then this would be a great moment to stop reading and ask God to search your heart, to repent, and to lay yourself at His mercy, allowing His grace and Christ's blood to wash over you and cleanse you from your sin and make you alive by His Spirit. Be Christ's!

The great news comes after the phrase in order that. It is here we see the why behind the suffering. Our suffering reveals that we are God's children, and as such it means that we have had Christ's righteousness imputed to us. This means that, when we stand before Him on that day, He sees Christ's blood over us, and He will pass over our iniquities and usher us into eternal rest, joy, and glory. Thus, suffering in Christ, which produces endurance through the disciplined training we receive at the hand of our Father, ultimately ends with our being glorified with Jesus for eternity.

Conclusion: Suffering is part of God's plan and is good for the Christian.

Next week: The Gift of Suffering: It's a Gift