PAMPERED LIVING ISN'T BIBLICAL REALITY
“Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves receive from God” (2 Corinthians 1:3-4).
THE TWO GREATEST HUMAN NEEDS God meets are forgiveness and comfort. Everyone is a sinner and needs God’s grace; everyone is a sufferer and needs God’s peace. Suffering is a normal part of every Christian life, just as sin is. In 2 Corinthians, the Apostle Paul tells us that the sufferings of Christ flow over into our lives. Savonarola, the 15th Century Italian preacher, put it simply, “The Christian is called upon to do good and suffer evil.”
MANY IN OUR PAMPERED CULTURE wrongly assume life should be free of pain. Overindulgent parents try to protect their children from every unpleasant experience. Consequently, their children do not know the disappointment of denial, the unpleasantness of hard work, or the sting of discipline. Liberal college administrators try to exempt students from any offensive ideas thinking the campus should be a “safe place” not only physically but intellectually and emotionally as well. As a result, students graduate with little experience with critical thinking. Even the church has developed an accommodating theology to support a pain-free philosophy. Television preachers insist that if you walk in God’s favor, you will always be happy, healthy, and prosperous.
HOWEVER, THE BIBLE TEACHES that we live in a fallen world, and suffering is a natural part of every life. From the day Adam and Eve disobeyed God, there was pain in childbirth and discomfort in daily labor. Jesus warned frankly, “In this world, you will have trouble.” (John 16:33). The last book of the Bible promises that someday, in heaven, “[God] will wipe away every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death, or mourning or crying or pain for the old order of things has passed away” (Revelation 21:3-4).
BUT WHILE LIVING IN THE“old order of things,” none of us is exempt from suffering. Even the Apostle Paul, the world’s most devoted Christian, experienced extreme pain. “We do not want you to be uninformed, brothers, about the hardships we suffered in the province of Asia. We were under great pressure, far beyond our ability to endure, so that we despaired even of life itself” (2 Corinthians 1:8).
WHILE GOD IS NOT THE AUTHOR OF SUFFERING (Satan is), God can use pain for His glory. He can make all things work together for good if we permit Him to do so.
Hardship provides an opportunity for us to receive God’s comfort. We arrogantly imagine self-reliance. We think if we can make enough money, buy enough insurance, and have enough savings, then we can cover all future contingencies, and we won’t need to depend on God.
THE APOSTLE PAUL WROTE “This happened that we might not rely on ourselves but on God…” (2 Corinthians 1:9). God occasionally permits hardships to knock us to our knees and remind us, “apart from me, you can do nothing” (John 15:5).
Hardships equip us to comfort others. “[God] comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves have received…” (2 Corinthians 1:4). The most sympathetic and most helpful comforters are those who have endured a similar experience. If you are prone to depression, you can best empathize with and minister to people who are filled with despair.
Hardships enable us to testify to our faith. C.S. Lewis called pain “God’s megaphone.” He said God shouts to us in our pain. But pain is also God’s spotlight. People watch to see if we believe what we say we believe. Is God’s grace really sufficient to sustain you in trouble?
PASTOR STEVE BROWN once suggested that whenever a pagan gets cancer, God allows a Christian to get cancer as well so the world can see the difference in how we handle it. That is the reason Paul said, “If we are distressed, it is for your comfort and salvation…” (2 Corinthians 1:6). Since Paul was faithful in his hardships, many more believed his message and were saved. “Then many will give thanks on our behalf for the gracious favor granted us…” (2 Corinthians 1:11)
A CONSTRUCTION SUPERVISOR climbed up the superstructure of a tall building late one evening to examine some work done earlier that day. It was damp, and he slipped on a beam but somehow managed to catch himself by his fingertips on a ledge. He tried with everything he had to pull himself up, but he did not have the strength to do it. He hung there in the dark, screaming for someone to help, but no one heard. His arms ached, and his fingers became numb. Finally, he could hold on no longer, and in desperation, he let go, expecting to plunge to his death. However, he did not know that just a foot beneath him, unseen in the darkness, was the platform of a scaffolding. Instead of falling to his death, he landed safely on the wooden structure.
MAYBE YOU HAVE BEEN HANGING ON for dear life. Perhaps you are going through terrible pain, and you have been desperately trying to pull yourself up and resolve the situation on your own. Or you have cried out to other people and discovered they could not help you either. Maybe it is time to surrender it all to the Lord and trust Him to provide. It has been my experience that Jesus never fails. He picks you up when you fall, soothes you when you hurt, and strengthens you when you are weak.
“I’ve had many tears and sorrows,
I’ve had questions for tomorrow,
There have been times I didn’t know right from wrong.
But in every situation,
God gave blessed consolation
That my trials come only to make me strong.
Through it all, through it all,
I’ve learned to trust in Jesus,
I’ve learned to trust in God.
Through it all, I’ve learned to depend upon the Lord.
So I thank Him for the mountains
And I thank Him for the valleys
And I thank Him for the storms He’s brought me through.
For if I’d never had a problem,
I’d never know that He could solve them
And I wouldn’t know what faith in God could do.”