It is common today to hear things like “do what feels right”, or to promote comfort in all forms at all cost – think safe spaces. While there is a time and place for the latter (consider a home where you are able to return to relax and recoup), it should not always be the default, certainly not in specified social locations where interaction is either required or unavoidable. To teach the freedom from discomfort as a right is not only a disservice, but a danger which is self-evident and requires no expansion here. It is clear, then, that the forced lack of suffering, if it were possible, serves no net positive, but I will argue that there is a necessary virtue in suffering. When a man stays home and consumes comfort in food, entertainment, and other forms of pleasure, he is a dead beat. A bum. This is in no way to take away from the value of rest and time spent alone. This is equally important, simply not the nature. An exception to the rule. Nor is it to say that one must constantly suffer at all times. Rather, the argument is that suffering is a fact of life and not an evil to be avoided. Productivity, by nature, requires – at minimum – a second party which expands the equation to include the possibility of suffering. Online interaction, even, assumes multiple parties involved. Make no mistake, suffering can occur individually, and that will be discussed, as well. But the question is, of course, why is it important to suffer? The reason can be summarized in this: suffering breeds growth.
Solitary Suffering
For those who have lived a single day on this earth, it is no secret that suffering occurs in secret. This takes many forms – primarily mental, spiritual, and physical. Consider: there is the name of a song, or some other reference, it is on the tip of your tongue, but you cannot for the life of you recollect the origin. In much the same way, that agitation for unknown knowledge or truth is one way that God implements suffering to bring His children and unbelievers – both – close. When a newly converted Christian, or even a lifelong one, feels that urge to know more, that mental suffering causes them to delve into scripture and external theological studies to obtain the wisdom they so desperately seek. Even for the unbeliever, one who has no knowledge or interest in God, can have the sense that something is off or missing. That nagging feeling will compel him to ease the mental suffering through a search that can lead him to God. Whether the choice is made to accept the Truth is a separate issue, but the Holy Spirit has knocked on the heart’s door. In the words of Psalm 119:71 “it is good that I was afflicted, that I may learn your statutes.” The mental agony serves to nudge one in the right direction. Spiritual suffering has many purposes, not least of which is growth. The immune system strengthens the body through the pain it suffers, why, then, should spiritual growth not work in a similar fashion? Colossians 1:24 seems to suggest this is the case.
“Now I rejoice in my sufferings for your sake, and in my flesh I am filling up what is lacking in Christ’s afflictions for the sake of his body, that is, the church”
Colossians 1:24
Just as the Ten Commandments serve to show our inadequacy, our pride and ego of trying to fulfill the Law inevitably leads to our hopelessness resulting in guilt. This guilt holds our ego in check and forces our return each time we hit the bottom of the barrel. This is expressed in Psalm 119:97 “oh how I love Thy law.” This guilt acts to aid us in our sanctification. “Before I was afflicted I went astray, but now I keep Your word” (Psalm 119:67). The process of sanctification is not always a pleasant one, but it is a faultless purification, as described in Isaiah 48:10 “Behold, I have refined you, but not as silver; I have tested you in the furnace of affliction.” The despair of suffering makes the return sweet. The old parable of the Prodigal Son serves as a perfect example of this and this duality is depicted succinctly in James 5:13.
“Is anyone among you suffering? Let him pray. Is anyone cheerful? Let him sing praise.”
James 5:13
This is not to say, however, that suffering will dissipate with the furthering of sanctification. Perhaps one form of suffering will show gradual relief, but another will take its place. “For it has been granted to you on behalf of Christ not only to believe in him, but also to suffer for him”, Philippians 1:29. Our call to stand apart inevitably requires suffering; one because it is difficult to stand on your own with the rest of the world condemning you, and another because we hold ourselves to a higher standard while those around us commit themselves to pleasure. The most obvious example of suffering in the Bible is Job. The suffering he endured was to prove the strength of conviction that the Holy Spirit can have on believers. There can be both an agony and a joy in this prospect. The agony of restraint, and the joy in the strength it takes to remain faithful alongside the knowledge of perseverance. This is further emphasized in 1 Peter 1:6-8, where it says “6 In all this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while you may have had to suffer grief in all kinds of trials. 7 These have come so that the proven genuineness of your faith—of greater worth than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire—may result in praise, glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed. 8 Though you have not seen him, you love him; and even though you do not see him now, you believe in him and are filled with an inexpressible and glorious joy.” It is possible for this suffering to take physical shape, as well, particularly as it relates to the standing apart. The suffering can be a result of either faithfulness or unfaithfulness. Humans do not like it when others act differently, especially in a way that is righteous, illuminating their own shortcomings. Faithfulness, then, can, has, and will continue to manifest itself in persecution. Of course, judgement, too, can be inflicted due to sin – as seen from Jeremiah 30:15 “Why do you cry out over your injury? Your pain is incurable. Because your iniquity is great
And your sins are numerous, I have done these things to you.” Another, well known, example is Samson. The strongest man alive was reduced to a pitiable state, in comparison, because of his disobedience. As Christians, we are called to be an example and go about the world preaching the gospel, as commanded by the Great Commission. When we choose not to – instead keeping to ourselves in our own home at all times – disobeying God, that can cause us misery in the knowledge of what we must do through guilt, and if we persist in our disobedience, perhaps we shall endure the same fate as Jonah. Who is to say?
Joint Suffering
There is something special to be said about suffering with others which can take shape in many ways. Teaching is one such way. As the desire for knowledge is its own suffering, learning from another, is more so. To be told you are wrong and then given the correct information is a major blow to our pride. Even when learning alongside another, the strength of conviction when two or more have an incorrect preconceived notion, or if they are both wrong in different ways and forced to correct their mindset, can bring its own pain, like yanking a crooked tooth.
“As iron sharpens iron, so one person sharpens another.”
Proverbs 27:17
I am not an inanimate metal, but if I were, I would imagine the process of being sharpened is painful. The study of God’s word affects your relationship with Him. How could it not, also, affect your relationship with others on earth. This sharpening might mean a painful realignment with those you are close to – for better or worse. This closely relates to the principle of suffering through correction. Correcting another, or being corrected, generally goes one of two ways. The correction is received gratefully or it is not. I will leave you to determine which is more likely. Scripture speaks much on the topic of correction, including in what manner concerning the party in question. 1https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=1+Timothy+5%3A1-2&version=NIV Many times, the call is to be gentle in the approach, so as to not turn the one in need away, such as in 2 Timothy 2:23-26 and Galatians 6:1. In other instances, however, the situation calls for something more drastic.
“As for those who persist in sin, rebuke them in the presence of all, so that the rest may stand in fear.”
1 Timothy 5:20
Shame and fear are powerful emotions. Just as a parent establishes motivation to obey through punishment, so too, is the Church authorized to call out sin publicly as a means of “shock therapy.” Bear in mind, this abrupt reality check need not come from the Church, or even a fellow believer. Depending on the severity of the sin, it may even be directed from the legal system, or the threat of it. This is, of course, unless a form of judgement, not its own end, but serves a greater goal, and those who accept the correction will be grateful for it. Hebrew 12:11 reads: “All discipline for the moment seems not to be joyful, but sorrowful; yet to those who have been trained by it, afterwards it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness.” Of course, too, this can cause some wrinkles in relationships. And so, relationship struggles is its own suffering. When suffering with relationships with one another, there is no guarantee that both will walk out the other side intact, but if they do, they are stronger for it. This can be among friends, spouse, parent and child, siblings, extended family, or mentor and student.
“And not only this, but we also exult in our tribulations, knowing that tribulation brings about perseverance”
Romans 5:3
Those who are willing to work through their difficulties and continue their walk, in Christ, with one another, will be rewarded for it in a stronger bond. Much like athletes who experience the same trials in practice, or soldiers in training and on the field, two who experience a common difficulty together, sort out the issues between them, and carry on will have a relationship unlike any other. Sorrow, too, is a way to suffer and we are called to suffer with them in their mourning 2https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Romans+12:15&version=ESV. Just as God brings comfort to us, we should bring comfort to others.
“who comforts us in all our affliction so that we will be able to comfort those who are in any affliction with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God.”
2 Corinthians 1:4
To spiritually suffer with others, in certain instances, is virtuous as they are blessed.3https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew+5%3A3%E2%80%9312&version=ESV “Blessed are those who mourn”; “blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness”; “blessed are the persecuted”. There is suffering in these states of mind and heart. The aching and desiring for something better – something that will come in future – but our human form is still sinful and incapable of obtaining the perfection for which we yearn.
“All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness”
2 Timothy 3:16
National Suffering
Perhaps the most terrifying phrase in the human language is “to wipe the slate clean.” On the one hand you are then able to start over. In other words “tomorrow is the first day in the rest of your life.” No matter how much you screw up, it is never too late to start over and be better. On the other hand, it means eliminating everything and starting from scratch. When dealing with an entire nation, it means that everything will be erased in an attempt to start over. Whether this means a civil war, extinction, or Armageddon. More often than not, this is interpreted as judgement as was the case with Sodom and Gomorrah. The command of God to annihilate an entire people for their sin is not a one time historical event. There are a minimum of seven other peoples whom God commands receive complete destruction. Six of whom are specified in Deuteronomy 20:16-18. This is not, even, including Nineveh, to which the entire book of Nahum dedicates the prophesy of obliteration a mere century following its conversion by the unwilling Jonah.
“What do you conspire against the Lord? He will make an utter end of it. Affliction will not rise up a second time.”
Nahum 1:9
Furthermore, Micah 1:1-16 gives warning to the entire Jewish people of their impending doom. Even should a few be faithful in a nation of degenerates, if the whole be found lacking, then even the faithful will fall under judgement. If the head is subjected to rot, so too, follows the whole body. 4https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j7DcB7I4m4U In a similar vein, Pastor Douglass Wilson writes of entire countries being blessed and cursed according to their faithfulness, in his book Black and Tan. One example of a curse he gives is the American Civil War. Neither north nor south was innocent in the sin of the slave trade, and so, both were punished by means of immense bloodshed. While judgement and punishment is not reserved for the individual, alone, there is a silver lining in the suffering of nations. This is made plain by Joseph in Genesis 50:20 when he says “But as for you, you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good, in order to bring it about as it is this day, to save many people alive.” There is, shortly after, another such widespread example in Egypt. There are, in fact, here, two times in which it suffered for good. When Pharaoh feared the numbers of the Israelites, he had the newborns murdered. This massacre caused Moses to be sent away for safety. Had the countless babies not been killed, the man who would eventually lead God’s people out of their captivity would not have been raised in a way to give him that opportunity. The manner in which they were delivered was not peaceful. The Egyptians suffered ten plagues before the Israelites were freed, allowing history to play out, as it did, in a way for Christ to deliver all of humanity – Himself, through great suffering. On the note of the Israelites, and the work of the cross, Paul speaks, in Romans, of the Jews being cut from the olive branch to make room for the Gentiles, to be later grafted back in through faith.5https://unconscionable.life/judaism/gods-chosen-people/ This spiritual suffering on the part of the Jewish people allowed the salvation of the entire world. Where the forsaking of (lower case “i”) Israel brought about spiritual salvation, the fall of Constantinople brought about cultural salvation. The city was the center of Christian civilization. Acting as the successor to the Library of Alexandria, the walls housed the greatest minds of the time. Scholars, innovators, and the like, found their home there. As a result, when it was taken over by the Ottomans, the refugees fled to Europe, which just so happens to coincide with the beginning of the Renaissance – it is difficult to imagine this being a coincidence. The dramatic influx of the most brilliant minds of the western world in every field predating the greatest period of social progress and innovation? Of course the one directly influenced the other; and all thanks to the Ottoman Empire.
“wHy doEs GoD Let baD tHingS haPpeN?”
Even as a young boy, I never understood this question. Why not? The better question should be, why would He – a perfectly just and righteous God – allow anything good to happen? The fact that there is still any universe, at all, is testament to His unbounding grace and mercy. One micro second of life is more than any single one of us deserves. The fact that God gives us any thought is mind blowing, let alone that that thought could possibly be love and forgiveness. As discussed above, bad things happen. Yes, sometimes they happen in judgement, but before the edge lords come out and say “that isn’t fair,” allow me to suggest that it is infinitely better to suffer temporarily on earth, than eternally in hell. Just a thought. For the believers that may be suffering – for whatever reason that may be – take comfort in Psalm 34:19. “Many are the afflictions of the righteous, but the Lord delivers him out of them all.” No matter what happens here, whether it be the victories of our enemies or the struggles we suffer on a more personal level, the final victory will be God’s. This knowledge is something we know but is easy to lose sight of. No amount of suffering is small in the moment. Thank God His perspective is absolute and gives us His written word. Let it always guide us in our darkest moments when we lose all hope. For believers who find themselves in the rut of sin and question their salvation find relief in chapter 17 of the Westminster Confession of Faith6https://www.opc.org/wcf.html#Chapter_17
“As Christ would have us to be certainly persuaded that there shall be a day of judgment, both to deter all men from sin; and for the greater consolation of the godly in their adversity: so will he have that day unknown to men, that they may shake off all carnal security, and be always watchful, because they know not at what hour the Lord will come; and may be ever prepared to say, Come Lord Jesus, come quickly, Amen.”
Westminster Confession of Faith Ch. 33.3
Sources:
- 1https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=1+Timothy+5%3A1-2&version=NIV
- 2https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Romans+12:15&version=ESV
- 3https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew+5%3A3%E2%80%9312&version=ESV
- 4https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j7DcB7I4m4U
- 5
- 6
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