(Further reflections on “The Glory” — Sunday 4-Oct-202)
Suffering is universal after the Fall (cf. Genesis 3) due to sin of humankind. It brought death to the whole world. A kind of slow death. Everyone suffers one way or another. Everything will eventually come to an end, including human being. Not only human being is corrupted, but also the whole creation. We all are groaning inwardly in suffering (cf. Romans 8:22). Christians who are saved by God’s grace through faith in Jesus are not spared from suffering from this planet earth. Suffering is part of living on earth, regardless of one’s belief. This means, Christians or non-Christians alike are suffering altogether. Wait! So what is the point of believing in and following Jesus Christ? Well, believing and following Jesus is not about being spared from suffering. Salvation in Christ Jesus is never about free-from-suffering, but sanctification — a process of being made holy through Jesus and glorification — a process of following Christ until the end regardless of trials, tribulations, challenges, hardship, and suffering. It is not because God wants to “revenge” (like earthly parents sometimes did), “I suffer, so you must suffer. And that’s fair.” So the question is, How should we practically hope in our context, i.e. family, work, neighbor, etc? (Application question #2, page 194) Now God knows that suffering draws His people closer to Jesus, humble them, bring them to their knees in prayers, allow them to see His compassion, and call them to be compassionate toward others, for the world is suffering without knowing Him. So the pain is even more severe, because there is no hope. This is why telling others about Jesus is to bring unshakeable and eternal hope to the temporal suffering in this world of which we all are part of. Hope in Christ is an invitation not by force but by faith. It is not seen in the present time but in the future tense. It cannot be bought but experienced by faith in Jesus through endurance and waiting of which, no one likes or seeks it. Endurance is painful and waiting is pointless. When the two meet, boredom is their engagement and hopelessness is their marriage. And their life is but meaningless!
Hope is more of being caught than taught. People need to see you (not any Christian expert) having hope in Jesus. You cannot fake hope. People will see through plastic smiles. God will be honored when we are real and cry out to Him. Let others see that our tears/pain/suffering are being “blended” in hope, endurance, and waiting. When God the Father sent Jesus to die for the whole world, He did not force the whole world to believe in His Son. He made the invitation available to everyone who wants to be saved, reconciled, sanctified, and glorified together with Jesus Christ. He is “not sure” (because He never forced) how many people are going to receive Jesus Christ by faith. In fact, God hopes. His steadfast love endures. He waits for the lost “sheep.” He sent His disciples out to look for the lost “coins.” And He longs for the returning of the lost “sons/daughters.” So now let us go and tell the world that there is hope for those who believe. There is hope in the midst of suffering. There is hope in Jesus Christ regardless of how hopeless one’s life can be! To fully live in Christ is to joyfully suffer in hope together in Jesus! Amen. — Pastor Lap
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