05/30/2019
Do you complain about where your faith is leading you, and the hardships and punishments that you must endure along the way? Some of us feel that when we accept the LORD as our one true God, and Jesus as our Savior and Redeemer, that we have reached the pinnacle of life, and that everything should be fragrant and painless from that moment on, but in fact we have just entered into a journey of faith in which we will be challenged, and made to suffer as we grow in faith. So do not grumble at the lessons we are receiving, they are evidence of God’s love.
“And all the people of Israel grumbled
against Moses and Aaron. The whole congregation said to them, "Would that we had died in the land of Egypt! Or would that we had died in this wilderness!”
Numbers 14:2 ESV
God had freed the nation of Israel from Egyptian bondage, and was leading them to the promised land, yet all along the way they complained, and did not take readily to the lessons they were being taught. Their travels were made harder by the constant complaining, and the relatively short distance between Egypt and the land God had promised them ended up taking 40 years to traverse. Are we complaining and wandering away from our lessons too? Are we resisting the will of God? Are we ill prepared to follow Jesus?
“You will say to me then, "Why does he still find fault? For who can resist his will?" But who are you, O man, to answer back to God? Will what is molded say to its molder, "Why have you made me like this?"”
Romans 9:19-20 ESV
We have finally come to the realization of our own creation, and been redeemed from our sin by Jesus the Son of God, and yet even so we complain as He perfects us. Isn’t complaining about how the Lord treats us, and where He leads us, just another way of trying to reclaim Lordship over our lives; to wrest the scepter back from God’s hand? In this way we find ourselves in the midst of a lesson, but can never seem to grasp its knowledge and truth.
“For among them are those who creep into households and capture weak women, burdened with sins and led astray by various passions, always learning and never able to arrive at a knowledge of the truth.”
2 Timothy 3:6-7 ESV
The way of faith, and life, is a journey that is not unlike the Jewish nation wandering in the desert. We travel from one lesson to the next, and yet if we are not careful, and become prone to complaining, and resisting, the hardships we encounter along the way will cause us to stumble in our faith, and the suffering will become greater, and possibly for naught. For Jonah the way became harder as he resisted God...
“But Jonah rose to flee to Tarshish from the presence of the Lord. He went down to Joppa and found a ship going to Tarshish. So he paid the fare and went down into it, to go with them to Tarshish, away from the presence of the Lord. But the Lord hurled a great wind upon the sea, and there was a mighty tempest on the sea, so that the ship threatened to break up.”
Jonah 1:3-4 ESV
Eventually Jonah saw the error of his ways, but not before he was thrown from the ship he was traveling in and swallowed by a great fish. God’s original request was going to be hard, but by resisting God’s will the lesson took on additional hardship, and suffering, until at last Jonah saw the error of his ways and relented.
“Then Jonah prayed to the Lord his God from the belly of the fish, saying, "I called out to the Lord, out of my distress, and he answered me; out of the belly of Sheol I cried, and you heard my voice.”
Jonah 2:1-2 ESV
So are we surprised when life is hard? Do we complain as God is perfecting us, and leading us through the wilderness in the process of our instruction in faith? Perhaps we have reached the point of resisting God’s will like Jonah, and find ourselves in the belly of a great fish... or disobedient like Moses when he struck the rock. How are we approaching our lessons? How do we face the hardships and suffering that come hand in hand with our instruction; do we do so without complaint, or do we question and complain about the Lord’s methods? In the midst of our travail do we trust in God, and praise Him as He imparts His character to us, or become bitter in the deserts of our wandering.
“When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and through the rivers, they shall not overwhelm you; when you walk through fire you shall not be burned, and the flame shall not consume you. For I am the Lord your God, the Holy One of Israel, your Savior. I give Egypt as your ransom, Cush and Seba in exchange for you. Because you are precious in my eyes, and honored, and I love you, I give men in return for you, peoples in exchange for your life.”
Isaiah 43:2-4 ESV
Our journey of faith is not meant to be painless, but it isn’t supposed to destroy us either. If we don’t have hardship how will we learn what it means to lean on the Lord? If we don’t suffer then how will we possibly understand the depth of praise? If we aren’t crushed, and rebel, then how will we see the depth of God’s love ad He comes to reclaim us?
“When the righteous cry for help, the Lord hears and delivers them out of all their troubles. The Lord is near to the brokenhearted and saves the crushed in spirit. Many are the afflictions of the righteous, but the Lord delivers him out of them all.”
Psalms 34:17-19 ESV
So we face the hardships, we suffer the pain, and we also wander the desert alone, but in each instance we are made stronger in our faith, and brought closer to God. After His baptism, Jesus wandered in the wilderness until he was so weak with hunger that Satan thought he might be able to tempt Him. Jesus was scourged, mocked, spit upon, nailed to a cross, became sin, and endured the silence of God... not so much to learn a personal lesson, but to demonstrate to us that we too are to suffer as we are increased, and perfected, in our faith.
“Beloved, do not be surprised at the fiery trial when it comes upon you to test you, as though something strange were happening to you. But rejoice insofar as you share Christ's sufferings, that you may also rejoice and be glad when his glory is revealed.”
1 Peter 4:12-13 ESV
Prayer:
Father, thank you for the lessons you teach me in life about faith, and who you are. Thank you for your Son Jesus who serves as an example of how I should endure the hardships and suffering so that I might become more like you by doing your will... even when it means I will pay a price, and experience pain in it. Help me Holy Father to lean on you, trust in you, and know that you are good. Help me to see that you love me beyond my ability to comprehend. If I should waver, and hide myself from you... come for me Father, and help me in my unbelief. Holy, Holy, Holy are you my God whose lessons are hard, but whose truth is revealed in them. Praised be your name in the midst of the storms, and strong is my voice as I worship you, even as I suffer pain in doing your will. In my suffering you take no pleasure, but in the truth and knowledge that comes from it you are glorified! Greater is your love for me than all the sufferings of life. In this I trust, and praise you always... even unto the end of my days.
Rich Forbes