By Sherri Stevens

GLORY AND SUFFERING

Pearls are small, but they are sacred. Pearls will “preach” if you ask them their stories. They are brave beads born out of adversity. They are sapient spheres of layered suffering. But with no grit, there is no pearl!

However, sands of affliction are by no means any assurance of an asset. The outcome of any oyster’s experience is determined by how it adapts to processing its pain. We can devote ourselves to aggrandizing the “altar” of our affliction to such a degree that we end up aborting the true gift of the gauntlet, or we can choose to cooperate with God’s Spirit and “alter” our oyster’s irritant into an iridescent oracle. We can parlay our pain into pearls of wisdom, or we can massage malice and murmuring into a malignant marble. Pearls of our hearts are a manifestation of our mindset. But with no suffering, there is no glory.

WHAT IS GLORY?

Although the word “glory” is a familiar word to everybody, not many people can define it. Glory has different nuances in Scripture. Sometimes, it means radiance, but it is predominantly described as a state or a result of something in Scripture. It is not referring to a place, like heaven, as many think, but a result. In Scripture “glory” is described as God’s likeness or His image:

"The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth" - John 1:14

"The Son is the radiance of God's glory and the exact representation of his being, sustaining all things by his powerful word" - Heb. 1:3

The glory of God to which we have been called is to be conformed into the likeness of Christ:

"And we all, who with unveiled faces contemplate the Lord's glory, are being transformed into his image with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit" - 2 Cor. 3:18

PERFECTED THROUGH SUFFERING

For us to make sense of suffering, we must understand it from a Biblical perspective:

“Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal” - 2 Cor. 4:16-18

Suffering is the necessary precursor to glory. If Jesus had to go through suffering to obtain glory then certainly we also would have to take the same path of suffering. We cannot become like Christ if we do not suffer. All suffering has in common the same thing...we don’t like it! That’s what makes suffering suffering. It goes against what we want! But it can reorient those who receive it well. If we don’t receive it as God intends, it can make us bitter. Suffering can make us bitter or better. The result of our suffering is determined by how we respond to it. 

"Not only so, but we also glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope. And hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit, who has been given to us" - Rom. 5:3-5

"And after you have suffered a little while, the God of all grace, who has called you to his eternal glory in Christ, will himself restore, confirm, strengthen, and establish you" - 1 Pet. 5:10

"I consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us" - Rom. 8:18

The Bible says that Christ became perfect through what he suffered: ”Although he was a Son, he learned obedience from what he suffered and, once made perfect, he became the source of eternal salvation for all who obey him" - Heb. 5:8-9. If it were possible for Jesus to be made perfect without suffering, what would be the point of subjecting him to suffering? If anyone in the world could be perfected without suffering, surely it would be Jesus Christ.

Christ's suffering didn’t mean he was immoral. The word “perfection” in Greek means to be complete or mature. Jesus had to learn lessons, like we also must. He was brought to a stage of perfection through the process of suffering as we must also experience:

"Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything" James 1:2-4

IS SUFFERING BAD?

Is it possible that we could reframe our thinking about suffering? Our natural response to the question, "Is suffering bad?" would probably be, "Of course it is! And I hate it!" But is suffering really bad? We might even go as far as to presume that suffering came as a result of sin concluding that since sin is bad, then suffering must also be bad. If we follow that line of thinking, we could logically conclude that suffering is bad, but we don't know that is the correct line of thinking.

Consider the terrible disease of leprosy as an example. Leprosy is a disease that numbs the nerves. People with leprosy injure themselves and tear off appendages because they don't feel the pain that would signal them to stop doing whatever it is they are doing that is causing them harm. So suffering acts as a necessary indicator to protect us from harm. Suffering not only has a role in protecting us physically, but it can also be corrective (notifying us that we need to modify a dangerous behavior) or directive, guiding us in our decision-making.

CATEGORIES OF SUFFERING

It wouldn't be fair to discuss suffering without at least briefly mentioning the different categories. Not all levels of suffering are the same, and not all causes of suffering are the same. Some suffering is self-inflicted. If a person jumps off a building thinking they can fly and ends up as roadkill, they have brought that pain upon themselves. Some suffering is a consequence of sinful choices we may have made.

But not all suffering has a moral component. We can be afflicted by pain even when we have done nothing wrong. We live in a fallen world and evil, sickness, and natural disasters are just part of the world we live in. In other cases, we can experience suffering because of the right choices we may have made. The Book of Job and the story of Joseph both illustrate two men in the Bible who experienced suffering despite their integrity. 

BENEFITS OF SUFFERING

The phrase "benefits of suffering" sounds like an oxymoron something like an "unbiased opinion" or "civil war," but suffering does have benefits. Here is a list of 10 benefits we have the opportunity to experience when we suffer:

1. Suffering strengthens us. Suffering is training. We can't build up our spiritual muscles without stressing them. When we are put in a situation that forces us beyond our comfort zone, we have the opportunity to adapt, grow, and strengthen our spirits and souls. Good times make weak people. Hard times make strong people. "No discipline seems enjoyable at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it" - Heb. 12:11 (Read also: Rom. 5:3; James 1:3; Jer. 12:5)

2. Suffering gives us compassion for other people. We can not truly empathize with another person's pain unless we, too, have experienced a similar kind of suffering. It is of great comfort to know that we have a High Priest who can empathize with our suffering: "For we do not have a high priest who is unable to empathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are—yet he did not sin" - Heb. 4:15 (Read also: Heb. 5:2).

3. Suffering teaches us obedience. The psalmist wrote, "Before I was afflicted I went astray; now I obey your word" - Ps. 119:67. And as mentioned before, even Jesus learned obedience through what he suffered: "Although he was a son, he learned obedience through what he suffered" - Heb. 5:8-9.

4. Suffering allows us to receive God's comfort so we can comfort others. “Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves receive from God.” - 2 Cor. 1:3-4. And when we are broken, He is near: "The Lord is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit" - Ps. 43:18.

 5. Suffering teaches us to trust God. If you don’t need God, you don’t trust God. If there is anything else (or anyone else) we can put our trust in besides God, we typically will. But when we are desperate, we can trust God and see his faithfulness, and He becomes real to us. "We do not want you to be uninformed, brothers and sisters, about the troubles we experienced in the province of Asia. We were under great pressure, far beyond our ability to endure, so that we despaired of life itself. Indeed, we felt we had received the sentence of death. But this happened that we might not rely on ourselves but on God, who raises the dead" - 2 Cor. 1:8-9 

6. Suffering teaches us humility. When we are healthy and strong, we feel invincible. But when we suffer, we feel our fragility allowing us to rely on God's strength. "Therefore, in order to keep me from becoming conceited, I was given a thorn in my flesh, a messenger of Satan, to torment me. Three times I pleaded with the Lord to take it away from me. But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me. That is why, for Christ’s sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong" - 2 Cor. 12:8-10. 

7. Suffering motivates us to pray. When we are desperate, we cry out to God. When our life is going smoothly, we tend to offer up perfunctory prayers. "Then Jonah prayed to the LORD his God from the belly of the fish" - Jonah 2:1

8. Suffering deepens our fellowship with Jesus. "Yet indeed I also count all things loss for the excellence of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them as rubbish, that I may gain Christ and be found in Him, not having my own righteousness, which is from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness which is from God by faith; that I may know Him and the power of His resurrection, and the fellowship of His sufferings, being conformed to His death" - Phil 3:8-10

9. Suffering makes us homesick for heaven. "If am to go on living in the body, this will mean fruitful labor for me. Yet what shall I choose? I do not know! I am torn between the two: I desire to depart and be with Christ, which is better by far; but it is more necessary for you that I remain in the body" - Phil 1:22-24

10. Suffering provides us an opportunity to witness and share our testimony. "Now I want you to know, brothers and sisters, that what has happened to me has actually served to advance the gospel. As a result, it has become clear throughout the whole palace guard and to everyone else that I am in chains for Christ. And because of my chains, most of the brothers and sisters have become confident in the Lord and dare all the more to proclaim the gospel without fear" - Phil 1:12-14.

OUR HOPE OF GLORY

Suffering acts as spiritual surgery. The purpose of our lives is that God be glorified in us, and suffering is the surgery that accomplishes that. The Bible does not divorce glory from suffering. It joins them in a cause-and-effect relationship. Suffering exists to change us.

The purpose of our lives is not that we would never experience pain. We can’t manipulate religion to make it about our comfort and happiness. It is the hope of a Christian that God would be glorified in and through us. True spiritual conversion accepts that our lives are not all about us. It is about us displaying God's glory and having our character conform to the attributes of his character:

"And we boast in the hope of the glory of God. Not only so, but we also glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope” – Rom. 5:2-4

"I consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us" - Rom. 8:18

PERSONAL APPLICATIONS

Every person will suffer, but not every person will improve. It all depends on how we respond to our suffering. We've all heard the saying, "No pain. no gain," but we can suffer pain and get no gain out of it. The sufferer has a responsibility to respond in a way that will produce the gain. Here are 8 ways we are encouraged to respond to our suffering so that we can gain the benefits:

1. Look to the invisible. When we encounter trials, our focus can be easily drawn toward what we can see. We get into "fix-it mode," and our natural senses take over. What was the cause? What is the remedy? But faith is the evidence of things not seen. When we refocus our attention on what is not seen, we allow the trial to work for us a desirable outcome.  "Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal" - 2 Cor 4:16-18

2. Affirm God's sovereignty.  Nothing happens to us without God's permission. That doesn't mean that God caused the suffering we may be experiencing, but He is the Father Filter, through which our trials are screened and either permitted or not permitted. In the story of Joseph in the Book of Genesis, we see God's invisible sovereign hand orchestrating a divine destiny for Joseph. In a moment when his trials were behind him and his brothers were before him, Joseph articulated the perspective that summarized the story of his life: God is in control and we can trust him for the outcome: "As for you, you meant it for evil; but God meant it for the good" - Gen. 50:20

3. Affirm that God is good. The Bible allows us to compare and contrast different people's responses to their suffering. The psalmist in Psalm 119:76 responded positively despite his affliction, "In your faithfulness, you have afflicted me, but now I obey your law." Maybe the most epic example of a positive response we read of in the Bible is that of Job. Although God said of Job that he was "a blameless man," we see that Job endured horrific suffering, and yet in faith, he said "Though he slay me yet will I trust Him" - Job 13:15. An example of a negative response would be the story of Naomi in the Old Testament book of Ruth. Naomi said, "Don't call me Naomi (Sweetness); call me Mara (Bitter), for the Almighty has caused me great grief and bitterness" - Ruth 1:20.

4. Look to the example of Jesus. "Let us run with endurance the race marked out for us. Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before Him endured the cross, scorning the shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God" - Heb. 12:1-2

5. Endure suffering like a good soldier. If we want to have the mindset of a good soldier, we first need to recognize that we are on a battlefield, not a playground! "Join with me in suffering, like a good soldier of Christ Jesus. No one serving as a soldier gets entangled in civilian affairs, but rather tries to please his commanding officer. Similarly, anyone who competes as an athlete does not receive the victor’s crown except by competing according to the rules" - 2 Tim. 4:3-5

6. Discipline yourself like an athlete. Self-discipline is a kind of suffering we inflict upon ourselves so that we can obtain an eternal prize: "Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize? Run in such a way as to get the prize. Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training. They do it to get a crown that will not last, but we do it to get a crown that will last forever. Therefore I do not run like someone running aimlessly; I do not fight like a boxer beating the air. No, I strike a blow to my body and make it my slave so that after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified for the prize" - 1 Cor. 9:24-27

7. Focus on future benefits: "In all this, you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while you may have had to suffer grief in all kinds of trials. 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 Pet. 1:6-7

8. Commit to the keeping of your soul to God. "So then those who suffer according to God's will should commit themselves to their faithful Creator and continue to do good." - 1 Pet 4:19

CLOSING THOUGHTS

Suffering is training. We go through cross-training here on earth so we can be cross-fit in heaven. We are in training for reigning. "I have fought the good fight, I have kept the faith. Finally, there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will give me on that Day, and not to me only but also to all who have loved His appearing" - 2 Tim. 4:6-8. We will all suffer, we might as well gain the benefits. Why waste your pain?

Trust God in your trials.

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