4 insights on suffering as a Christian

Read 2 Corinthians 1.

The Apostle Paul often wrote of suffering being a part of following Christ.  To Timothy he wrote that all who desire to live a godly life will suffer persecution (2 Timothy 3:12).  Specifically, in this chapter, the hardships to which he refers are not due to our own mistakes, or the griefs that are common to all, but these sufferings are the direct result of our faith in Jesus and our obedience to Him.

Reading Hebrews 11:32-40 should give us pause.  They lived by faith and paid dearly for it.  They were faithful but "did not receive what was promised" in this life.  God has prepared something far better.  The closer we move to the culmination of this age, the spiritual war will intensify and become increasingly blatant.  Some will be killed simply because they have committed their lives to Jesus.  More often, Christians experience personal rejections and suffer relationally and emotionally for their stand on the word of God.

Knowing that those without Christ will spend an eternity in torment for sin breaks our hearts.  Knowing that Jesus is their only hope urges us to share our faith.  When a family member, close friend, or neighbor repels our loving attempts to have such a conversation, it hurts.  This is a small comparison but Paul stated, "For as we share abundantly in Christ's sufferings, so through Christ we share abundantly in comfort too" (v.5).  God is with us both in our sorrows and in ministering to us.

He is the "Father of mercies".  Mercy is not receiving what we justly deserve.  All mercy ultimately originates from Him.  Administering such compassion on us requires that God sees what we are going through and responds in our time of need.

He is the God of all comfort.  He comes alongside to console and provide solace to our souls.  Without suffering, there is no need to comfort us.

Here, then, are four insights on suffering as a Christian.
1. The corporate result of our comfort. (v.4)
The Bible knows nothing of a "lone ranger" follower of Christ.  Believers are actively engaged in a local church body.  One of our responsibilities is to encourage one another during times of their suffering.  We are to pass along how faithful God has been to us when we suffered, how reassuring His word is, and how confident we may be in our future hope.

2. The personal purpose in suffering. (v.9)
In a word, the spiritual purpose is dependence.  We cannot make others become believers.  We cannot fix all the world's problems.  We cannot even fix ourselves!  We must unashamedly cast our complete faith on the One who is in control.  "...to make us not rely on ourselves but on God" and His future plans.

3. The reminder of our hope. (v.10)
If we are not careful, our sufferings can discourage and disillusion us.  Some with insincere faith have given up hope and even stopped following Jesus.  They put their hope in this life, in temporal and/or external blessings in the present.  The true believer never puts their trust in the things of this life.  "On him we have set our hope that he will deliver us again."  If not now, He will reward us later.

4. The partnership in suffering. (v.11)
We are not to suffer alone.  Not only do we believers have the Holy Spirit alongside to comfort us, but we have brothers and sisters in Christ who can pray for us.  Paul said this is a part of their "help" to him.  Then, when the answer to our prayers is realized we are able to celebrate together.