1 Peter 4:14-16 (NIV) 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.
This issue of suffering is very difficult. In fact, for many people it has been the line in the sand when it comes to trusting in God. We evaluate every experience we have from an incomplete and often flawed perspective. Yet, we most often assume that our own perspective is the best perspective and honestly prefer it to others. If the experience hurts, it is bad. If the experience gives us what we want, we assume it to be good. However, read Peter’s words again. Here is a new perspective that we should consider. Suffering, for the name of Christ, is a blessing.
As mentioned in the previous posting, there is no way for us to know exactly what Peter’s readers were enduring. On the other hand, Peter does help us understand that suffering can be more than just another hard situation. I challenged you to think about what Jesus did and what He endured. One thing I did not point too exactly is that He loved us and continues to love us even when we do not deserve it. It cost Him dearly to do that. It was not convenient for Jesus to come here and actively love us. This was a plan that had been in process since the fall of mankind several thousand years earlier. He could have set there on high, looking down on us, telling the angels how much He loves us. However, that is not what happened. John 3:16 happened. "For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life." He came here to us, touched us, and lived among us. He reached out and got his hands dirty. He got involved. He got personal. He did the right thing in spite of the cost, because the outcome was worth it.
Suffering for the name of Christ moves beyond living a moral life no matter what the cost. This would be part of it, but it goes much further. It means living as Jesus did and following the examples He set. He would speak the truth, but He would also reach out to those that were obviously unworthy. All too often we act as cowards not willing to get involved hiding behind excuses (that is not my spiritual gift or I am very busy), our own piety (I am too clean to get dirty by involving myself with the likes of those people), and in our day we even hide behind our government. Think about it, rather than love someone in their sin, and I mean actively reach out and love them with the same love Jesus showed us, we would rather legislate them into morality. This way we can stand at a distance and try to fix the problem. We can hold our opinions quietly, only sharing them with people who agree with us. Let me ask you as I did before, where would we be if Jesus had acted in this way. What hope would we have? The law was given and we could not live by it. Legislation does not fix the problem we have, only God's love can do that. The law condemns us, but Jesus saves us.
I am not asking you to abandon your moral convictions, vote for the right thing, live a righteous and holy life, Christians hold one another accountable to living rightly, but don’t do this from a distance, reach out your hand and love your neighbor. Our culture needs us to not only be willing to assent to the knowledge of truth but to do so in the love that we have experienced. Speak your mind, share the truth, but get personally involved and let the world see Jesus at work in you. This will likely lead to your suffering; the people you seek to love and help may lash out at you; and some people, that you might think are on your side, may ridicule you, but if you are truly doing it so that God can be praised, so that His name is glorified, is it not worth it? Peter says it is, and he tells us that if you suffer for doing the right thing, living as a follower of Christ, you are blessed.
How are you suffering? Are you suffering as a consequence of sin? Or, are you suffering because you are living like Jesus? One way or another you will suffer, that is life on Earth, but only one way is really worth it.
