•9:00 AM
TOPIC: The School of Suffering
SCRIPTURE: I Peter 4:1-2 “Forasmuch then as Christ hath suffered for us in the flesh, arm yourselves likewise with the same mind: for he that hath suffered in the flesh hath ceased from sin: That he no longer should live the rest of his time in the flesh to the lusts of men, but to the will of God.”
IMPORTANT POINTS ABOUT SUFFERING
- Suffering nourishes even as it cause pain.
- To grow in God is to enroll in a difficult school where character is built out of persevering through difficulty.
POINT TO PONDER: Do you want to learn the lessons only suffering can teach you? Would you say to God even now, “If I have to go through this, then give me everything. Teach me everything you want to teach me through this.”
LESSON ONE: CALLED TO SUFFER
“For even hereunto were ye called: because Christ also suffered for us, leaving us an example, that ye should follow his steps: Who, when he was reviled, reviled not again: when he suffered, he threatened not; but committed himself to him that judgeth righteously.” I Peter 2:21, 23
WANTED:
- Disciples who are willing to leave everything familiar to follow Jesus.
- Carrying a cross is required.
- Following may result in death.
- As you die to yourself, God’s life will take root and grow within you.
- God shows us how to suffer without becoming resentful or revengeful.
What has God called us to?
Romans 1:6-7 Galatians 5:13 Colossians 3:15 I Thess. 2:2; 4-7
DEVOTIONAL PRAYER: “Lord, you are my example in suffering. I want to follow close behind you, learning from your purity, your forgiveness, your submission. Following in your footsteps, I place my life in your hands trusting in your wisdom and love.”
LESSON TWO: DON’T RUN FROM SUFFERING, EMBRACE IT
“And he said to them all, If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily and follow me.” For whoseover will save his life shall lose it: but whosoever will lose his life for my sake, the same shall save it. Luke 9:23-24
- To run form suffering is to reject the lessons God has for you in it.
- God invites us to draw closer to him in the midst of our suffering.
- to embrace suffering is to welcome God’s work in your life even in the most unimaginable circumstances.
- The suffering not only makes you crave such a relationship, it gives you the capacity to savor it.
What do the following verses say we should run from and toward?
Psalms 119:32; 143:9 Proverbs 5:3-8; 18:10 II Timothy 2:22
DEVOTIONAL PRAYER: “Lord, you are my teacher in suffering, everything in me tells me to run from the hurt in my life, and yet you bid me to linger and even embrace it. Allow me to feel your embrace as I open myself to the hidden gifts of suffering.”
LESSON THREE: WHAT DOES GOD WANT TO DO IN YOU OR THROUGH YOU?
“And if children, then heirs: heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Christ; if so be that we suffer with him, that we may be also glorified together. For I reckon that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us.” Romans 8:17-18
- The only thing that can balance out significant suffering is substantial glory.
- The only thing that can make my loss and your loss bearable is for it to result in greater glory to God.
- Because God’s glory is the only thing that really matters; it’s the only thing that really lasts.
DEVOTIONAL PRAYER: “Glorious God, how I want to reflect your glory and make it shine brighter to the world around me even now in the midst of my loss. I offer myself to you, asking you to do something glorious in me.”
LESSON FOUR: KEEP ON DOING WHAT IS RIGHT
“Wherefore let them that suffer according to the will of God commit the keeping of their souls to him in well doing, as unto a faithful Creator.” I Peter 4:19
- The intensity of suffering can put us in a place where we are tempted to compromise, where we can easily justify an attitude or action we never would have considered before pain invaded our existence.
- Fear and pain can cause us to lose sight of the guiding force in our lives: pleasing God.
- when you are in the midst of difficult circumstance and you aren’t sure what to do, hold tight to what you know.
- Obey God’s clear commands without compromise.
- Our reluctance to do what we know is right is a lack of faith.
- Keep on doing what is right, no matter what people around you say.
- Entrust yourself to him through your wholehearted obedience, confident that he knows best.
DEVOTIONAL PRAYER: “Lord , I want to suffer in a manner that pleases you, and I am determined to keep on doing what is right. I entrust myself to you by obeying your Word.”
Read Deuteronomy 5 and Matthew 5:21-48 to examine your life in light of God’s clear commands.
REFLECTIONS
1. Praise God for the magnificence of his glory that outshines our suffering and makes it worthwhile.
2. Thank God for lovingly and carefully refining you, though the process is sometimes painful.
3. Intercede for those around the world who have been called to suffer and are experiencing real and significant persecution for their faith.
4. Confess your reluctance to embrace suffering, and confess your resentment toward God.
5. Petition God to show you what it is he wants to do in you or through you uniquely because of your suffering.
