Still others had trial of mockings and scourgings, yes, and of chains and imprisonment. They were stoned, they were sawn in two, were tempted, were slain with the sword. They wandered about in sheepskins and goatskins, being destitute, afflicted, tormented-- of whom the world was not worthy. They wandered in deserts and mountains, in dens and caves of the earth. (Hebrews 11:36-38, NKJV).
Anyone who seriously claims that Christians are guaranteed a picnic in this life once they come to faith in Christ must be Biblically illiterate.
There is no such promise. In fact, Scripture affirms the opposite to be true, and the last 2000 years of Church history unequivocally bears that out.
From the Psalms, to the Prophets, to the Gospels, and throughout the New Testament epistles, pain, suffering and persecution are the foundational ingredients of the Christian walk. As is joy unspeakable, fellowship with the saints and with the Father through His Son, and peace that passes understanding.
God makes no excuses, and accepts responsibility, but in this take heart: there is always purpose in a believer's pain.
Either correction, refinement, or empathic identification are in view. You are either heading in the wrong direction and God is compelling a course change, or being purified through trials, or experiencing affliction and loss so that you can provide comfort to others. Or perhaps all three at once.
God is nothing if not brilliantly efficient.
In first century Israel, based on long tradition, the formula was this: if you were not prosperous in every way you were obviously guilty of some sin. This made for very convenient class warfare. The rich were deemed righteous. The poor unrighteous.
This was not based on anything other than wishful thinking, and certainly not on Scripture. Yes, it's true that blessings were promised if The Law was kept, and curses if not, but it was (and is) also true that poverty, degradation and suffering would always be present, even among the Children of Israel. Hence all the Mosaic provisions regarding charity and support for the poor and the orphan and the widow.
Don't think for a second that comfort and ease in this life is indicative of pleasing God. Riches and luxury are fecund cultures for temptation and sin.
On the other hand, discomfort and unease are also not indicators of holiness, for it is the tenor of the heart in all things that matters - its purity and devotion and trust in God.
On this one tenet be sure: if you follow Jesus with your whole heart you will not be loved by the world. Or possibly even those in your own household, but so what? Loving the world and being loved by the world means you are at enmity with God. Is it really such a profoundly difficult question as to which side sanity demands allegiance?
But sin and unbelief breeds stubbornness, stupidity and rebellion. The longer you remain an enemy of God the harder your heart will become until, in the end, you will be unable to choose the path to life.
Today is the day of salvation. And humility. And a broken and contrite heart. Suffering for a little while now does not compare with the glories that will be yours the age to come, but first and foremost you must believe that God is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.
In a society where infanticide in the womb is not only legal, but considered a right, where the venerable and ancient institution established by God in marriage is being derided and undermined by legal compulsion to accept what is Biblically unacceptable, in a culture where good is called evil and evil good - those who stand against this tide of anti-God morality and philosophy will win no popularity contests - and will suffer.
It is a given, but again, so what?
If this life, with all its vagaries and inevitable losses, is all there is, then eat, drink and be merry for tomorrow we die.
But you know in your heart of hearts that this life and this world is NOT all there is. From the moment you could think, imagine and dream with the innocence of childhood, you knew that there was more to existence than could be measured or described. You knew!
But the years have desensitized you to that marvelous connectedness with things unseen. You have become worldly - a huge mistake.
For unless you become like a little child you will in no way enter into the Kingdom of God. And always in this life, children are the most vulnerable and can become the victims of immense suffering, made more intense by their very inability to either defend or protect themselves.
Yes, beloved, do not be surprised by the fiery trials, and, in faith, count it all joy, for your God is with you.
Forever.
