Surprised By Suffering 1 Peter 4:12-19
The suffering and sorrows of life have shipwrecked many a person’s faith throughout history. The loss of a loved one to a crippling disease that leaves them a shell of their former self before taking their life, the horrors of war, senseless suffering brought about by an attack of relentless vengeance and spite, or watching a young child suffer unending, agonizing pain with unanswered questions have caused many people to wonder how a loving, all-powerful God could allow such sorrow?
John Stott was born in London and had a long and powerful ministry until he died in 2011 at the age of 90. Dr. Stott wrote 50 books that have been translated into 65 languages. If you have never read The Cross of Christ then you must. It is life-changing. In the last chapter of The Cross of Christ, titled Suffering and Glory, he writes,
The fact of suffering undoubtedly constitutes the single greatest challenge to the Christian faith, and has been in every generation. Its distribution and degree appear to be entirely random and therefore unfair. Sensitive spirits ask if it can possibly be reconciled with God’s justice and love. (Stott, John. The Cross of Christ. 1986)
In the 1950s Billy Graham and Charles Templeton were young evangelists for Youth for Christ. Crowds gathered across the country to hear the young preachers proclaim the good news of Jesus for hopeless sinners in need of a Savior. Billy Graham became a household name, but back in the early days most everyone saw Charles Templeton as the most gifted of the two. He had the looks of a GQ model, charisma oozing from his pores, and his ability to communicate was unmatched.
Charles began to have questions about his faith that eventually led him to stop sharing the gospel, and then to renounce his faith. In 1996, he wrote a book, Farewell to God: My Reasons for Rejecting the Christian Faith.
Four years later, in 2000, Lee Strobel wrote the powerful book, The Case for Faith, and in that book he shared a conversation he had with Charles Templeton, who was then 84 years old. Lee Strobel asked him, “Was there any one thing in particular that caused you to lose your faith in God?” Lee Strobel writes,
He thought for a moment. ‘It was a photograph in Life magazine,’ he said finally. ‘Really?’ I said. ‘A photograph? How so?’ He narrowed his eyes a bit and looked off to the side, as if he were viewing the photo afresh and reliving the moment. ‘It was a picture of a black woman in Northern Africa,’ he explained. ‘They were experiencing a devastating drought. And she was holding her dead baby in her arms and looking up to heaven with the most forlorn expression. I looked at it and thought, ‘Is it possible to believe that there is a loving or caring Creator when all this woman needed was rain?’ As he emphasized the word rain, his bushy gray eyebrows raised up and his arms gestured toward heaven, as if beckoning for a response. ‘How could a loving God do this to that woman?’ he implored as he got more animated, moving to the edge of his chair. ‘Who runs the rain? I don’t; you don’t. He does–or that’s what I thought. But when I saw that photograph, I immediately knew it was not possible for this to happen and for there to be a loving God. There was no way. (Strobel, Lee. A Case for Faith. 2000)
And this story, with different sources of pain and suffering has been told time and time again. I don’t want any of us to have our faith shipwrecked by the suffering and sorrows of life which are sure to come. This morning I want us to learn from God’s Word so that we will not be surprised by sorrow. Let’s read our Scripture from 1 Peter 4:12-19.
12 Dear friends, do not be surprised at the fiery ordeal that has come on you to test you, as though something strange were happening to you. 13 But rejoice inasmuch as you participate in the sufferings of Christ, so that you may be overjoyed when his glory is revealed. 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. 17 For it is time for judgment to begin with God's household; and if it begins with us, what will the outcome be for those who do not obey the gospel of God? 18 And, "If it is hard for the righteous to be saved, what will become of the ungodly and the sinner?" 19 So then, those who suffer according to God's will should commit themselves to their faithful Creator and continue to do good. (1 Peter 4:12-19 NIV)
We will not be able to go through these verses in as much detail as we normally do on Sundays because of our limited time and in order to take a more broad look at suffering for those who are followers of Jesus. This is not the first time Peter has mentioned suffering for the followers of Jesus living in Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia and Bithynia. In the opening verses of his letter, he wrote,
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. (1 Peter 1:6-7 NIV)
In the passage from chapter 4 there is no doubt that the “fiery ordeal” Peter has in mind is persecution for being a follower of Jesus. In the opening verses of Peter’s letter, he has a much more broad understanding of the grief we suffer in “all kinds of trials.” It is so important that we learn from God’s Word so that we will not be surprised by either of these kinds of sorrows.
When we become a follower of Jesus we do not receive an immunity card from the sufferings of life, but we are given some incredibly important tools that unbelievers lack. We have been given the Word of God and the Holy Spirit to help us view our sufferings and sorrow in a way that unbelievers lack. Let me share some Scripture with you so you can understand what I am talking about. Turn with me to James 1:2-4. James writes,
2 Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, 3 because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. 4 Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything. (James 1:2-4 NIV)
This past week I have gone back through some of the most painful times of my life and I have to tell you I wasn’t happy about any of them. They were painful, gut-wrenching, tear-filled times in my life that I will never forget. I have known many of you for many years now and I know some of the hardships you have faced in life. We have met together, prayed together, and I’ve seen the stress and pain on your face. It is important to point out that James is not calling us to be happy about what is causing us to stay up at night, but he is urging us to know, and to remind ourselves that God is at work, even in the most fiery ordeals of our lives. With this in mind, we can rejoice in knowing God is at work, even though we are hurting. James tells us that the tough times of life, which come through persecution because we are followers of Jesus or through the various other kinds of hardships we encounter, these come to produce perseverance in us. Perseverance is a key ingredient in our maturity in Christ.
James says the “testing of your faith produces perseverance.” Peter, in the Scripture we are studying this morning, writes that the fiery ordeals of life “tests” us. The Greek word that Peter uses, which is translated “tests” is “πύρωσις” (pyrōsis) and it means, “fire” or “burning.” One Bible teacher has said, “What Peter desires to bring out is not so much the fierceness of the heat and pain, as the refining power of fire.” The word was often used in the purifying process of metals. Whether we are talking about iron ore, silver, or gold it is necessary to heat those raw materials to remove the impurities. As the heat is turned up, the impurities begin to rise to the top so the refiner can remove all of the impurities.
The application of this process is so important for us to understand. Our hearts, like the raw materials we just talked about, contain impurities. Some would most likely question my statement, but Jeremiah wrote,
9 The heart is deceitful above all things and beyond cure. Who can understand it? (Jeremiah 17:9 NIV)
When we are experiencing the calm waters of life we can easily neglect the impurities of our hearts. We can convince ourselves that everything we do is from a pure heart. When the trials of life come, the heat gets turned up in our hearts, and we are confronted with those impurities. Let me give you an example. We say we love the Lord more than anything in life and I know we mean it, but when we are forced to make a decision between the Lord and something that will cost us dearly, it is then we find out about the quality of our love for the Lord.
I got a phone call this week from a friend of mine from the YMCA. He was shaken because his wife has lost her trust in him. I know my friend. We talk about the Lord often. I’ve prayed for him in the locker room. He told me that he has been lying to his wife for years and his lying has led her to lose her trust in him. During our conversation he told me that it is easier to lie than to face the truth. I said, “Jesus said, ‘you will know the truth and the truth will set you free’” (John 8:32 NIV). So, can you see that whenever my friend has come to those moments when he was faced with either telling the truth, as difficult as that would be, or lying–the heat was being turned up in order to draw out the impurities of his heart? It is not just my friend who faces these moments in his life. Each and every one of us has felt the heat of the choice of telling the truth or taking what appears to be the easier path of the lie.
The same heat was applied to Peter in Luke 22 when Jesus was on trial for His life and Peter was confronted with being a follower of Jesus. Peter was standing around the fire in the courtyard when someone spotted him. “This man was with him.” Peter denied it. A while later another person said, “You are also one of them!” Peter said, “Man, I am not!” Then a third person said, “Certainly this fellow was with him, for he is a Galilean.” Peter said, “Man, I don’t know what you’re talking about!” The test came and the impurities of Peter’s love for Jesus were exposed.
The fires of testing also come through the hardships of life that are not a result of persecution. When those hardships come we are faced with a choice, an incredibly important choice: Will we trust God, even when we can’t understand the “why?” or will we choose to draw our own conclusions, conclusions that will most likely end with the determination that God simply does not care about us?
Ted Turner started the Turner Broadcasting Network. He owned the Atlanta Braves for many years. He is the second largest landowner in America with ranches and properties that amount to 2 million acres. Ted has made a name for himself in many different areas of business, broadcasting, conservation, and sports, but what most people don’t know, according to an article on CNN’s website on Ted’s 75th birthday, Ted dreamed of being a missionary when he was young. Then, his little sister, Mary Jean, got sick when she was 12 years old. She developed a rare form of lupus and suffered for five years before she died. Ted was twenty years old when Mary Jean died. Ted said he prayed every single day for God to heal Mary Jean. When Mary Jean died, Ted’s faith in God died with her. Ted drew his own conclusion: If God could not answer prayers or prevent suffering, then there was no God.
The fiery ordeals of life reveal the kind of relationship we have with the Lord. Do we love Him and serve Him in order for Him to serve us, to give us what we want in life, or do we love Him and serve Him because He is worthy of our love and service? In Daniel 3 we can read about the fiery ordeal which broke out in the lives of three Hebrew young men, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. King Nebuchadnezzar demanded that every one of the citizens bow before the image he had set up. They wouldn’t bow and they were threatened with being thrown into the fiery furnace if they continued to refuse to bow their knees. They responded to the threat in verses 16-18.
16 Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego replied to him, "King Nebuchadnezzar, we do not need to defend ourselves before you in this matter. 17 If we are thrown into the blazing furnace, the God we serve is able to deliver us from it, and he will deliver us from Your Majesty's hand. 18 But even if he does not, we want you to know, Your Majesty, that we will not serve your gods or worship the image of gold you have set up." (Daniel 3:16-18 NIV)
Our God is able, but even if He does not deliver us, we will not bow. And our God is still able to deliver us to this very day, but even if He does not deliver us, even if our situation never changes–we will continue to love and serve Him. That may sound foolish to some today. It was certainly foolish to Ted Turner and Charles Templeton. If you have a God who doesn’t do what you want Him to do, then why have a God at all? That is a very powerful question. I want us to think about that question by reading 1 Peter 4:13-14 together. Peter writes,
13 But rejoice inasmuch as you participate in the sufferings of Christ, so that you may be overjoyed when his glory is revealed. 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. (1 Peter 4:13-14 NIV)
The Bible teaches us that those who are followers of Jesus are following in the footsteps of our crucified Savior. We do not serve a God who is distant and detached, but we serve a God who has entered into the brokenness of our world and been broken Himself on our behalf. His brokenness, His willingness to suffer on our behalf is what has given us the sure hope of a day that is coming when there will be no more mourning or sorrow or suffering. What a glorious day that will be! Paul wrote to the people in Rome,
17 Now if we are children, then we are heirs-- heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ, if indeed we share in his sufferings in order that we may also share in his glory. 18 I consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us. (Romans 8:17-18 NIV)
The griefs and sorrows of this life are momentary when compared to an eternity, a glorious eternity in the presence of our King, free of suffering, free of heartache, and filled with unspeakable joy! That is something we must always keep in mind. There is a day coming when all of our sorrows and suffering will come to an end. What a day that will be!
I remember when I was in college. We always started football practice in August with three-a-day practices for 10 days. They were the absolute worst! So many guys quit during those 10 days. We called them the “midnight riders” because they would pack up their stuff and leave during the middle of the night. The practices were so tough, but I knew they would eventually end. During my freshman year, when the final practice was over, the coaches, alumni, and boosters threw this huge party for all of the players with the best food ever for everyone! I’ll never forget it, but what I experienced then will be nothing like what I will experience when I get to heaven!
Back to our question: If God won’t behave as we want, if He doesn’t do what we ask, why not find a god who will? That is exactly what those who have gone before us did. They listened to those in their communities who had an endless list of idols, false gods who made all kinds of empty promises, but could never deliver. You can read about how God’s people turned away from Him to lifeless, powerless idols over and over again throughout the prophets, but I’ll only show you one example. Turn with me to Isaiah 45:20-22.
20 "Gather together and come, you fugitives from surrounding nations. What fools they are who carry around their wooden idols and pray to gods that cannot save! 21 Consult together, argue your case. Get together and decide what to say. Who made these things known so long ago? What idol ever told you they would happen? Was it not I, the LORD? For there is no other God but me, a righteous God and Savior. There is none but me. 22 Let all the world look to me for salvation! For I am God; there is no other. (Isaiah 45:20-22 NLT)
To turn away from God is to turn to nothingness. People are continuing to turn away from God to lifeless idols in our day. You can look to all kinds of things to bring you happiness, security, and peace, but they will never deliver. “For I am God; there is no other.”
There is no God, but the One True and Living God. The Bible teaches us that He became one of us. He suffered, He knows our brokenness because He has experienced it Himself. God became one of us, truly one of us. Isaiah writes about Jesus, and His experience as one of us, in Isaiah 53:3-5.
3 He was despised and rejected-- a man of sorrows, acquainted with deepest grief. We turned our backs on him and looked the other way. He was despised, and we did not care. 4 Yet it was our weaknesses he carried; it was our sorrows that weighed him down. And we thought his troubles were a punishment from God, a punishment for his own sins! 5 But he was pierced for our rebellion, crushed for our sins. He was beaten so we could be whole. He was whipped so we could be healed. (Isaiah 53:3-5 NLT)
“He was acquainted with deepest grief.” He knows what it is like to be rejected, mocked, and to feel excruciating physical pain. He suffered injustice so we could experience mercy. This past Wednesday, while I was in Promise Keepers with the men, we were studying Psalm 22. David wrote the Psalm, but in the very first verse of the Psalm you recognize that it is describing Jesus’ suffering and triumph over death and the grave. One of the questions we discussed was, “How do the sufferings of Christ help you bear your own suffering?” One of the men said, “I know that I suffer less because of Jesus. I would go through the same painful experiences of life whether I was a Christian or not, but because I am a Christian, I know I suffer less because I know He is with me. I do not have to suffer alone.” I wish you all could have been there. What my friend shared is not a theory, he has experienced the comforting presence of Jesus during the darkest time of his life, when he and his wife experienced the death of their seven month old son.
We hear so many stories of those whose faith has been lost because they could not reconcile the tears of a torn heart with the love and justice of God. You should know that Christianity is the only faith that is built upon the suffering Savior. Our faith is built upon the teachings of Moses and the Old Testament. The Jews are still looking for the Messiah, but they cannot even begin to think of a crucified Messiah. That is why they reject Jesus. The Koran teaches about Jesus. Muslims the world over believe in Jesus, they even believe He will return one day. The Qu’ran teaches that Allah would never allow Jesus to be crucified. God would not do that to one of His prophets. Yet, the Bible clearly teaches that Jesus, after having been beaten, bloodied, was nailed to the cross for no sin of His own, but for our sin. We serve a Savior who is able to strengthen and comfort us because He bears the scars of pain and sorrow. John Stott wrote,
I could never myself believe in God if it were not for the cross. The only God I believe in is the One Nietzsche ridiculed as ‘God on the cross.’ In the real world of pain, how could one worship a God who was immune to it? I have entered many Buddhist temples in different Asian countries and stood respectfully before the statue of Buddha, his legs crossed, arms folded, eyes closed, the ghost of a smile playing round his mouth, a remote look on his face, detached from the agonies of the world. But each time after a while I have had to turn away. And in imagination, I have turned instead to that lonely, twisted, tortured figure on the cross, nails through his hands and feet, back lacerated, limbs wrenched, brow bleeding from thorn pricks, mouth dry and intolerably thirsty, plunged in God-forsaken darkness. That is the God for me! He laid aside his immunity to pain. He entered our world of flesh and blood, tears and death. He suffered for us. Our sufferings become more manageable in the light of his. There is still a question mark against human suffering, but over it we boldly stamp another mark, the cross which symbolizes divine suffering. ‘The cross of Christ…is God’s only self justification in such a world’ as ours. (Stott, John. The Cross of Christ, pp. 335-336)
We can trust the Author of the furnace of affliction because He Himself has gone through the fire. Do not be surprised by the fiery ordeal you are experiencing. Don’t turn away, but turn your eyes upon Jesus and look to Him when the tears blur your vision and break your heart. He is faithful and He will never let you go. Won’t you turn to Him this morning?
Mike Hays
Britton Christian Church
922 NW 91st
OKC, OK. 73114
October 27, 2024
