Care To Suffer?

       “If anyone wishes to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me” (Mt. 16:24). Jesus did not hide from His would-be disciples the fact that following Him would lead to persecution. If Jesus was crucified, it should not come as a shock to learn that His disciples will also be mistreated (2 Tim. 3:12). However, when such suffering comes as a result of living for God, we can expect that we will receive also the blessing and approval of the Lord.

Through the years, many have misunderstood the principle of suffering for the sake of righteousness. Some have reasoned that self-imposed hardship is somehow beneficial to the soul. In fact, one man who lived in the fourth century went about wearing such heavy chains that he had to crawl wherever he went. For more than forty years, another man deprived himself of lying down to go to sleep. We read of still another man who lived in a hollow tree trunk for 11 years. Pardon the pun, but he was barking up the wrong tree!

Jesus did teach blessing in persecution. However, the blessing extended is for those who are persecuted for the sake of righteousness (Mt. 5:10). In and of itself, suffering is neither good nor bad. But if we look to God for deliverance and place our trust in Him, suffering brings about great results. James says, “Consider it all joy, my brethren, when you encounter various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces endurance and let endurance have its perfect result, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing” (Jas. 1:2-4).

There is a difference between suffering for what is right and suffering for our own foolishness. If we get slapped in the face for being obnoxious and abusive to others, we can hardly call it suffering for the sake of righteousness.  In our efforts to teach others about the Savior, we must be bold, but gentle. Paul reminds us to “speak the truth in love” (Eph. 4:15). Peter says, “Make sure that none of you suffers as a murderer, or thief, or evildoer, or a troublesome meddler; but if anyone suffers as a Christian, he is not to be ashamed, but is to glorify God in this name” (1 Pet. 4:15-16). You can tell a lot about a person by observing that for which he or she is willing to suffer. Let ours always be a suffering for the sake of righteousness so that we might also entertain the hope of everlasting life.

~Glen Eliot