Pastor
Steve Geiger Easter 7
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1 Peter 4:12-17; 5:6-11
12 Dear friends, do not be surprised at the
painful trial you are suffering, as though something strange were happening to
you. 13 But rejoice that you participate in the sufferings of Christ, so that
you may be overjoyed when his glory is revealed. 14 If you are insulted because
of the name of Christ, you are blessed, for the Spirit of glory and of God
rests on you. 15 If you suffer, it should not be as a murderer or thief or any
other kind of criminal, or even as a meddler. 16 However, if you suffer as a
Christian, do not be ashamed, but praise God that you bear that name. 17 For it
is time for judgment to begin with the family of God; and if it begins with us,
what will the outcome be for those who do not obey the gospel of God? 6 Humble
yourselves, therefore, under God’s mighty hand, that he may lift you up in due
time. 7 Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you.
8 Be self-controlled and alert. Your enemy the
devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. 9 Resist
him, standing firm in the faith, because you know that your brothers throughout
the world are undergoing the same kind of sufferings.
10 And the God of all grace, who called you to
his eternal glory in Christ, after you have suffered a little while, will
himself restore you and make you strong, firm and steadfast. 11 To him be the
power for ever and ever. Amen.
1.
Suffering comes in different flavors
2.
Humbly watch for suffering’s dangers
The
greatest fear of many a child. Slivers?
Slivers
are no fun. You’re playing. You rub your hand against something that’s
wood. Suddenly a piece of wood, like a
tiny nail, is pushed into your skin and you can’t get it out.
But
slivers aren’t the worst part, are they.
The greatest fear of many a child is the needle that comes next. Mom, your hand in hers, trying to hold you
still. Telling you that the needle is
for your best. The sliver will hurt you
horribly. Get infected. Turn red.
But one little prick from a needle and all will be better.
It’s
hard to convince a child that the suffering brought by the poke of a needle is,
in the long run, for the best.
It’s
hard to convince an adult that suffering, any suffering, is ever for the best
either. It’s strange. We don’t grow out of our fear of being
poked.
It’s
just that the pokes change form. The
pains are now caused by different instruments.
Maybe you’re not afraid of needles anymore. You do fear what others may say about you. We may avoid saying something that is true
about Jesus because of what we think might happen next. We may grow very quiet when another speaks
about the good things they found in a different denomination, one that has
teachings that put souls in danger . . . we may grow quiet because we don’t
want to risk a serious discussion, the possibility of another not liking
us.
Just
this last Wednesday, as I was canvassing in the neighborhood, one conversation
had gone gently in the direction of discussing purgatory. The gentleman seemed to have some concerning
thoughts about how one gets to heaven.
What a joy to share that we are found perfect in God’s sight simply
through the blood of Jesus. He didn’t
seem to agree. And at one point he
mentioned something about how it doesn’t do a lot of good to discuss politics
or religion. Not discussing
religion. Have you ever had a similar
policy?
There’s
fear in each of us. We can be afraid of
the real possibility of suffering for calmly, lovingly, gently sharing truth.
Today,
accept that possibility. Accept the
reality that suffering is to be expected when you are a Christian. But know that God is strong in suffering.
We
do need to make a little distinction, though.
There are two kinds of suffering.
The one kind of suffering is suffering as a consequence of living and
loving the name of Jesus. For Peter’s
audience, the ridicule and abuse and mistreatment were like a fire. Human nature is to pull one’s hand out of
the fire. God told Christians not to
think that suffering insults and injustice for the name of Jesus was to be
avoided. “Don’t avoid at all costs the
‘fire.’ It’s not strange. It’s not a surprise to be a victim when you
are bold and are confessing Christ.
Don’t scratch your heads in confusion.
Instead, rejoice!”
When
you do the right thing, when you take a risk for the Lord, when you open your
mouth and speak the truth even though every ounce of your sinful flesh wants to
run and hide . . . when you bear the name of Christ proudly and suffer,
rejoice. And your joy won’t end. When in the end you finally see Jesus,
you’ll have even more joy.
Pumping-your-fists-in-the-air excited joy. You’ll look back and thank God for helping you be brave.
It
can feel hard to rejoice when you’re all stirred up inside. Think of a time right now when you heard
someone say something not right, and there was a chance for you to speak. Did you start feeling this mini-hurricane in
your insides? You know you need to talk
about Jesus, but your sinful nature has this storm brewing. “Be afraid. What will they say to you?
Be afraid.” It can feel like
we’re all wound up and fearful inside.
To hear God say, “If you’re insulted for the name of Christ, you’re
blessed,” and why? While your flesh may
tell you that you have reason to be all wound-up inside, the Spirit of God is
at complete rest on you. You can almost
imagine the Holy Spirit on your heart reclining, his head on his hand, perfect
contentment . . . “so you’re suffering?
How blessed you are.”
How
we wish we could say that we’ve been that calm when we’ve had the chance to
bear the name of Jesus publicly. Would
you say that recently you had the joy of suffering for speaking, for doing what
was right?
I
wonder sometimes if we don’t go out of our way to not speak about religion
because we’re afraid of the suffering.
Are we robbing ourselves of this joy God is talking about because we do
think that suffering for what we believe would be so strange. “How could powerful God be OK with
that? God doesn’t want me to suffer,
does he?” We have a solution. We hide our faith.
This
introduces the second kind of suffering.
The first suffering brings joy.
Suffering for the name of Jesus.
It’s the result of doing what’s right.
The second suffering doesn’t bring joy.
It’s possible to suffer, but for doing what’s wrong.
While
we might be hesitant to risk doing what’s right because we want to avoid godly
suffering, we seem a lot more comfortable risking doing what’s wrong though
there is a suffering that comes with that too.
There
are two different kinds of suffering.
You may be realizing already now that there will be suffering no matter
what. The issue is, “Why are you
suffering?”
This
second kind of suffering comes as a result of disobedience to God. If I murder someone, I may live in prison
for the rest of my life. If I hate, I
will suffer perhaps the anger of another, no calm in my own heart. If I secretly steal, I suffer guilt. If I do not care for body and drink too
much, the body hurts the next day. If I
don’t take care of my body and overeat, I may have pain in my digestive
system. If I stay up too late for no
good reason, I wake up tired and drag through the day. If I don’t listen to my mom, I have to go to
my room. If I treat someone badly, I
lose a friend. If I keep my mouth shut
and don’t confess Jesus before men . . .
There
is another kind of suffering. It’s a
suffering that comes for not doing the right thing.
This
is shameful suffering. How different
that is from the first suffering, the suffering about which one is not
ashamed. Suffering because we’ve done
right, not wrong. Such suffering as a
consequence of bearing the name of Christ leads us to praise God! This good suffering is also called
judgment. It may sound odd to hear that
God judges his children. Yes, God
judges his children. Surely out of
love. Putting them to the test, an
evaluation, a judgment. Hardship and
suffering, God’s way of proving that the faith he has given in Christ and in
the forgiveness of our sins is for real.
Now is the time for that kind of judgment, beginning with the household
of God. Just to think, if such hardship
is a part of being a Christian, imagine what it will be like for those who do
not believe the good news of Jesus.
What
shame does strike our hearts as we remember how many times we’ve thought that
it just might be better to be like an unbeliever. “I think I’m going to keep my mouth shut. I don’t want to talk to my friend about some
teachings of the Bible that God says are really important. I’m not going to look too hard for
opportunities to talk with people who are headed to hell. Because I might suffer.”
What
will it be like for those who do not believe the good news of Jesus? What should it be like for me, afraid to
bear the good name of Jesus?
That’s
a good question, isn’t it. What should
God do to me? He really should
punish. He’s so powerful. Every right his powerful hand has to hurt us
so badly, forever and then ever.
Deserving
punishment. All of us. Yet Peter, to his audience, reminds them
that God had called them to his eternal glory in Christ. In undeserved mercy God did something to
change their eternal destination. Your
eternal destination too. The Lord’s
mighty hand. The Lord used his power to
love. It happened to be in the face of
suffering. Jesus also faced a
choice. Do I suffer for doing right, or
do I suffer for doing wrong? In our
place he was brave and did the right thing and suffered, and then took on all
the hatred and laziness and stealing and not listening to our parents and suffered
as a murderer, a thief, an evildoer. He
got both kinds of suffering, because God loved you. Jesus suffered and died all the hurt rightly ours for those times
we were ashamed of living and speaking his name. Jesus lived his life perfectly happy to suffer for living and
speaking his name. Jesus did all that
for you. You’re forgiven. Yes, God has called you to his eternal glory
in Christ through the gospel. Live
forever. Rejoice forever, he says. Jesus is your Savior.
Jesus. This is a name for which we are ready to
suffer.
Whatever
the consequences, do what’s right.
Bravely look for chances to say the name Jesus and to speak truth to
those who have a church and those who don’t.
Submit yourselves—humble yourselves—under the mighty hand of God. Say to God, “Yes, sir,” no matter what
suffering might come. And God will lift
you up. God is not weak. He is not asking you to dedicate yourself to
a losing team. He will lift you up.
In
the moments when the suffering that comes for bearing the name of Jesus feels
heavy, throw all your care and anxiety and concern on him. He cares for you. He knows your name. He
knows the number of hairs on your head.
You’re his child. Will God let
you be tested beyond what you can bear?
Will God ask you to suffer for witnessing his name and then forget about
you?
Even
the suggestion of that is a lie. The
devil will work hard to persuade you that God’s promises in the face of
suffering as a Christian are lies. Not
to be trusted. He tells you that you’re
the one that must find a way out of suffering, preferably by never talking
about Jesus. Wouldn’t that be great, he
says. I can promise you no suffering,
whereas with God, you’ll suffer and that will be the end of it.
Your
enemy, the Liar, wants to have you for dinner.
Stand against him. Be a hard guy
with your trust. Tell the devil that
suffering for the name of Jesus need frighten you not at all. Tell the devil that this is what has
happened to those who have trusted in the Savior God since the beginning of
time. Our brothers throughout the world
are being and have always been ridiculed and persecuted for loving the truth.
Tell
the devil that the God of love, the one who called you to his eternal glory in
Christ, after you have suffered a little while, will bring about great
miracles.
First,
God promises to restore you—literally, to make you thoroughly suitable. Completely prepared. He gives you everything you need to be a
whole, healthy Christian.
Second,
God promises to make you strong—literally, to provide you with supports. You’ve seen young trees with ropes tied to
stakes which keep the tree from blowing over.
After a little suffering, God ties more ropes to you. He gives you Bible verses with comfort. He reminds you of more promises, certain of
the future. And surely his faithfulness
in the history of your own life is a reminder that no matter how painful the
suffering, doing the right thing is always best.
Third,
he makes you firm. Literally, he pumps
you up. If you imagine your faith as a
muscle, after suffering for your Christian witness, God makes that muscle
firm. Stronger. Ready for even greater challenges.
Finally,
he makes you steadfast. Literally, he
gives you a foundation. While earlier
you may have been easily moved from a firm and confident love for Christ, after
suffering, God puts you, his child, on a cement slab with huge bolts holding
you tight. Immovable.
That’s
what God does after you have suffered for a little while. Doesn’t that make you ready to have a needle
poke your hand?
We
too have fears about what might come from suffering. We may be tempted by the lying lion to hide our connection with
Christ to avoid some sort of pain.
Resist the liar. Tell him that
you will not do wrong and suffer as an evildoer. You will do right and live and proclaim Christ and suffer as a
Christian.
Of
this we are not afraid. For God is
strong in suffering.
Amen.