Who are the "sufferers" in our society? Generally my first thought of INFLICTED pain are those serving jail time, those we have perceived to have done some wrong to place them there. I feel like we kind of live in a bubble in America. As Christians, we generally aren't publically, physically beaten although we often face verbal persecution. (Now that bubble could come from the threat of jail time for beating others or the fact that we are protected because of the right to freedom of religion, the fact that our nation was built on Biblical principles... or all of the above). I have said this to people before but I also feel like I live in a bubble in Manhattan with so many wonderful people around me. Everywhere I turn or go, there is a believer: my doctor, my dentist, significant people at my job, the ever cheerful and always smiling lady at the grocery store. This perspective of living in a bubble comes from a comparison of my life versus another life.
I have recently finished reading the book "The Heavenly Man" and I was floored. I HIGHLY recommend it to anybody. Here is a Chinese Brother living life for good and doing good according to a Christian perspective. He is living a life with an amazing heart for Jesus. What is humbling to me about his life is the physical pain he endures for the work of our Lord. We may be verbally taunted, "tortured", or abused here. This Brother is beaten to the point that he should have been dead, not just once, but many times. And yet, his heart and his work stay focused on the glory of our Heavenly Father.
Man can inflict so much pain on us, whether that is verbal or physical pain. I often find myself holding my tongue, afraid to speak up about my faith at times. I am preparing to be baptized in a few days. I will be in a church, with people who love Jesus... and I am nervous to share a story about how Christ can change a hardened heart. Where is my heart in that fear? I can tell you it is not on bringing glory to our Father but instead on me and how I feel.
A change of focus: what do we "praise" people for in society? People often receive praise for "doing good", giving money, building a business, remodeling a home, rebuilding a city, and these are not bad things. People receive praise for whatever we think should receive praise, such as winning a sporting event or a national or world championship. We are so quick to praise those actions, but in my own life I am so slow to respond to the grace of God. Why is that?
We have examples of good as defined in the Bible living in our world today. We see those and read about those persecuted for Christ. We have access to books and testimonies such as "The Heavenly Man" and "Tortured for Christ". Those are luxuries according to those who are not ALLOWED to have such material. (Share them). Share in the suffering. Most importantly, share in the suffering of Christ. Let us not lose sight of the fact that He came, suffered, and died for the people who hated and rejected him.
We have no need to fear man. Regardless of what another person says to us, about us, or what they do to us, that does not affect how God sees us. He still has possession of our hearts and he loves us all the same. Remember that when Christ died a bodily death, it only made his spirit come alive!! He died once for my sin. He was perfection dying for imperfection, pure suffering for the unclean. God sent the most amazing, best gift to save us: His Son. What Christ has already done for us, cannot be undone by anything or anybody. Let's celebrate that Christ has already won!!!
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"Christ suffered for our sins once for all time. He never sinned, but he died for the sinners to bring you safely home to God. He suffered physical death, but he was raised to life in the Spirit."
~*1 Peter 3:18 (NLT)*~
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