Suffering Is No PrivilegeWithout Grace
Philippians 1:21-30
by Jim Westmoreland
The NRSV translates Philippians 1:29, "For he has graciously granted you
the privilege not only of believing in Christ, but of suffering for him as well."
When I read those words, it jolts me out of my comfort zone. I know that I'm supposed to
believe in Christ. It is by God's grace that I can be saved through Jesus. But wait! Can't
we just order our religion "lite", without the "suffering" part? Can't
we get just have a kind of "feel good religion" where all the talk is warm and
positive and no one gets hurt in any way and no one struggles with the hard times that
life can deal us? That is the kind religion that many people want, but it is not what will
equip us to deal with what life actually sends our way! This morning, I hope that we can
discover how suffering can become a privilege for us.
Do you remember hearing about the two women missionaries from the U.S. that were in
Afghanistan when the U.S. and its allies began attacking the Taliban and the el qaida
forces of Osama ben Laden in October, 2001? Little did any of us know that we would hear
some profound things from these two women. They were imprisoned for 105 days before they
were rescued. Dayna Curry and Heather Mercer have told their story in a book, Prisoners
of Hope--the story of Our Captivity and Freedom in Afghanistan. They have been
interviewed by all the major news networks. There is something that captures our attention
about their story.
At first, I admit to being put off toward these women because I took them lightly. They
were just some naive, Christian do-gooders that got in way over their heads. But what we
have all discovered is the depth, sincerity and strength of their Christian faith. It
didn't matter that they were young or had not been on the mission field for a long time.
What mattered is that they were tested. They were persecuted for their faith and were put
into prison, not knowing if they would ever get out alive. They had to face all of the
questions that suffering and pain brings, and they had to do it thousands of miles away
from family and friends.
How would we do under similar circumstances? From what Paul wrote in Philippians we should
expect some suffering. So, those who think that becoming a Christian will remove them from
suffering have been seriously misled and deceived by the promoters of "feel
good" religion, or "Christianity-lite" as some have labeled it. The Greek
word for suffering is often translated as "tribulation, something that causes
distress." It can range from minor annoyances that we go through every day, to major
disasters that come sweeping down out of the blue and leave us stricken.
All of the New Testament writers tell us to rejoice in our suffering, to see it as a
privilege. Paul also wrote in Romans 5 that we are to rejoice in our sufferings."
Here is where many people balk. They say, "I can't buy that! Do you mean to say that
God is telling me that when I am hurting and in pain, going through mental and physical
torment, I am expected to be glad and happy and rejoice in that? What kind of nut is this
Paul, anyway? It's not human, not natural!" Peter wrote in 1 Peter 4:12, "Think
it not strange concerning the fiery trial which is coming upon you to test you, as though
some strange thing happened to you." It is not strange, it is normal. James wrote in
1:2, "Count it all joy, my brethren, when you fall into various tribulation."
Jesus taught us in the Sermon on the Mount, "Blessed are you when men persecute you
for righteousness' sake, and say all manner of evil against you falsely, for my sake.
Rejoice and be exceeding glad, for great is your reward in heaven." Paul's call to
rejoice in suffering, to see it as a privilege, is found in many of his writings. But
there are certain things it does not mean.
It is clear from Scripture that rejoicing in suffering is not simply stoicism. Stoics are
those who will not show their feelings. They just keep their "I'm just fine"
mask on and "tough it out" and "keep a stiff upper lip." We are not
being asked to enjoy the pain, like a masochist would, some one who enjoys inflicting pain
on himself.
What we are called to does not produce anger, bitterness and resentment. When life gets
hard, we are all faced with how we will handle it. If we are keeping score and decide that
life isn't fair, we may become bitter. Some people think that life is supposed to be fair,
and, when they discover that it isn't fair, they are really mad at everyone, especially
God! But most of us began to learn early on that life really is not fair, from our point
of view.
One of the ways that grace makes suffering become a privilege has to do with our
perception. We believe that serving God is a privilege for us. We can even see our
suffering as evidence of God's love, and not his wrath. As we do, we can experience God's
love in the middle of our suffering. We sometimes have trouble with all of that because,
when we are hurting and struggling, we don't like it, and we want to blame God and become
bitter, if not at God, then maybe at anyone that is not having to go through what we are
going through.
But, if we hang in there, we will discover there is a spiritual mystery of suffering. We
all are given the opportunity to discover it. It is like paradox: How can an all powerful
and loving God allow us to suffer? In our suffering we discover Jesus, who suffered for
us; we discover His presence with us and in us; we experience a grace that changes us from
the inside out. The world and our trials may look the same, but we are different. We have
a sense of purpose, a calling, an identification with Christ.
We all face different things in our lives where we struggle and suffer. There is
tremendous diversity in our suffering. In our community some have suffered harassment or
demotion in the work place, or even lost a job because their identification as a Christian
was seen as a negative. Some suffer with chronic illness and that doesn't seem to have an
end in sight. Some suffer the pain and difficulty of a failing marriage. Some suffer the
anxiety of unemployment and uncertainty about being able to make ends meet. Some suffer
the unexpected death of somebody they loved very much--a spouse, a parent, a child. Some
have a rebellious child who has brought great suffering into their family. Some are in
love with somebody who doesn't love them. Some have depression that they just can't shake.
There are many ways that we and others can suffer.
At the time of our suffering it is no great comfort to be told that God can use it to make
us a stronger person. I remember being told this by a minister when my mother committed
suicide. It was no comfort at the time and I kind of resented him saying it. But, looking
back, he was right. Through all the struggles, stumbles and times of suffering, God has
been with me to see me through, to strengthen me, to give me a deeper appreciation for
God's suffering through Jesus.
Paul wasn't giving some Pollyanna, "Christianity-lite" kind of responses as he
wrote Philippians. No, he was near the end of his ministry and he was in prison in Rome.
He didn't know if he would get out, but he had been sharing with each soldier assigned to
guard him his testimony and his faith in Christ. In Philippians 1:21 he wrote, "For
me to live is Christ, and to die is gain." Paul is not wishing to escape his
circumstances by dying and going on to heaven. Rather, he is saying that his life is full
here with Christ (in spite of his imprisonment) and that life will be full when he dies.
In fact he says in v. 22 that he doesn't know which to choose.
Here is a person who has lived with many hardships since he became a follower of Jesus
Christ. He has been imprisoned many times and beaten many times. He has been sick,
rejected by those he shared Christ with, misinterpreted and bad-mouthed by some of the
churches, such as Corinth. And here he is in prison. He is a man who has come to know the
grace of God. For Paul, serving God, whatever the circumstances is a privilege. Any other
way would be a burden. But Paul had found his walk with Christ to be a privilege. Suffering
is no privilege without grace, but with grace, even suffering was a privilege for
Paul. Paul was not fed up with his life in any way, nor was he discouraged because of his
circumstances.
The entire context of this passage confirms this. Writing to these Philippians he says,
"Don't be disturbed about me, brethren. You hear that I'm in prison, but let me tell
you something. My circumstances have served to advance the Gospel, and my imprisonment has
made it possible for the Gospel to be spread in Rome as it never has before. And I'm not
discouraged; I'm rejoicing. Furthermore, the other Christians in Rome are stirred up and
are preaching around the city."
While imprisoned, Paul had the opportunity to share his heart with each of Caesar's,
elite, praetorian guard soldiers, who rotated every six hours. The keenest, most
intelligent young men of the Roman empire were assigned to take their turn guarding Paul.
Did God use his suffering and imprisonment? Paul lets us know later in Philippians 4:22 as
he wrote, "All the saints greet you, especially those of Caesar's household."
God used Paul's time "out of commission" to be a special time of Mission in
the midst of suffering!
Paul was willing to honor Christ, whether by life or by death. What made the difference?
Paul had found the secret that God intended for humanity -- God indwelling man. It takes
God to be a man, a person, a human being. No life is complete that does not have God in
it. Paul had found this out, to the glory of his day-by-day existence, and he never forgot
it. He lived life to the fullest in the knowledge that Christ is our
life.
Doug Goins tells about a woman he knew when he was in junior high school. She lived about
four blocks down the street in Seattle, Washington. Her name was Helen Hayworth Lemmel.
She was in her nineties. She had been born and raised in wealth in England, and was
well-known as a songwriter. As a matter of fact, Mrs. Lemmel probably wrote seventy or
eighty Christian hymns and gospel songs that were popular during the 1920s through the
early 1950s. Mrs. Lemmel had married into nobility; her husband was a lord. But she was
stricken with blindness as a very young woman, and her husband divorced her because he
didn't want to be married to a blind woman. We don't know all the circumstances, but
somehow she ended up destitute in Seattle, Washington, a ward of King County, living in a
tiny room in a home where the rent was paid by the county.
One of her songs that is still sung today goes,
"Turn you eyes upon Jesus.
Look full in His wonderful face,
And the things of earth will grow strangely dim
In the light of His glory and grace."
When ever Goins would visit her or she would come to his home, his family would ask her
how she was doing, and she would always say, " I am fine in the things that
count." She could have been bitter, resentful, or shameful, but she wasn't! Grace
makes the difference! Suffering is no privilege without grace, and this lady had
grace! Do we?