The Gift of Suffering
Scripture Reading: Psalm 92; Isaiah 46-48; Philippians 1
It has been granted to you that for the sake of Christ you should not only believe in him but also suffer for his sake. - Philippians 1:29 -
Not every Christian gets the honor of suffering for Jesus sake. When we do, we should follow Paul’s lead and acknowledge it for what it is – a gift we have been granted.
I am not, nor was Paul, suggesting that we ought to actively pursue suffering. To do so would create potential circumstances where we might be tempted to act and/or speak in ways that would be intentionally provocative. We could also end up with a martyr complex, thinking every slight is cause for complaint and a woe is me spirit.
What Paul is doing for himself, the Philippian believers, and us (when it truly applies) is helping us all see suffering for Christ in a different light.
When and if we suffer for Christ, we haven’t been abandoned by God.
When and if we suffer for Christ, we aren’t being punished by God.
When and if we suffer for Christ, we are being given a gift from the Lord.
One thing such suffering does is give proof that our witness and life in Christ is evident. Our light is shining. It isn’t hidden away. Others have seen Jesus and heard the gospel through our lives. They recognize us as a Christian.
This kind of suffering also shows that God has given us courage. We have a spiritual spine. We have been granted the ability to stay faithful in the face of persecution. We haven’t buckled under the pressure and denied the faith.
And then, as Paul lays out here in Philippians chapter one, suffering for Christ’s sake is one of the ways that God grows the kingdom and the gospel spreads. We become like that seed that has fallen into the ground and died, but suddenly breaks through the hard surface of the soil and springs up a new plant that produces 100 fold fruit.
This text is not asking us to enjoy suffering for Christ’s sake. It is asking us to put it in a different light. To see it as a gift from God; something he has granted to us as a privilege and honor in our service to the Lord. It is a gift that we are to see as wonderful as the gift of being chosen to believe in Christ.