In July of 1986, I was taken to the emergency room with extreme vertigo (dizziness) and nausea, which resulted in intense vomiting. These symptoms increased along with some hearing loss. The diagnosis is that I have an incurable disease, which is progressive in terms of hearing loss. I am trusting the Lord and the medication is helping the vertigo and nausea, but the future is uncertain for my earthsuit unless God supernaturally heals me or turns up another solution. I asked my pastor to get some elders together, anoint me with oil, and pray for my hearing. But, sometimes God’s answer is, “My grace is sufficient for you.”

The flesh would reason, “Why did something like this happen to me? Here I’ve given my life to the ministry, to serving the Lord, to be used by Him to express truth and hope to the hurting and hungry Christians. It would seem like He would exempt me from such an affliction, which could potentially severely handicap me in ministry. Why did He allow such a thing?”

There are voices today that proclaim, “God never intended that you experience this. It’s all of the devil. You’re under attack and you need to come against Satan and claim your rights. Claim your healing and stand on your rights as a son of God.”

Well, there is some truth in that, but what happens if deliverance doesn’t come? What if God’s plan is for you to suffer? Then what do you do? Do You beat on the doors of heaven and demand your “rights?” Do you shout, “Come on God! That’s not fair! You’re not doing what You’re supposed to do!” Do you claim you’re getting a bum rap like Job did before he finally saw the light in Ch. 42?

Whoa! Hold the phone! What do you do with the many references in Scripture where a brother was not delivered from affliction, though he and others prayed the prayer of faith for it? I’d like to discuss it with you. You see that health/wealth theology won’t hold water if you try to apply it when Paul speaks of the many times he experienced great suffering. Indeed suffering was a pattern for his lifetime as a believer. (Even Jesus never lived the life-style which some teach it’s our throne-right to enjoy). I challenge any Christian to read passages such as 2 Cor. 11:23 through 12:10 and try to apply the “prosperity gospel” philosophy to it. It won’t fly. Suffering is part of God’s plan! But, it’s for our best interests! It’s for good! But we must see how it fits together.

I was at a national Christian conference in September where the conference coordinator blacked out right in the middle of the conference and had to begin undergoing brain scan tests immediately. Coordinating the complex problems of the conference was his responsibility and an explanation as to why the Lord would allow his potential loss was puzzling to many.

Ken Taylor, the translator of the Living Bible, was tragically struck with an affliction, which left him with a speech impairment. Paul Little, the noted Christian author, through whose books the Holy Spirit has blessed many believers, Dawson Trottman, the founder of the Navigators movement, Jim Elliot, missionary to the Auca Indians, and other well-known Christians vocational workers were struck down in the prime of life. How can these tragedies be explained?

Two of my friends, godly men, sold out to Jesus Christ, decided to take the day off to drive up into the mountains of eastern Oklahoma to go fishing. They never returned. Their bodies were found near their boat, senselessly murdered by two transients. These brothers would have gladly taken those troubled souls home with them to feed them and help them get on their feet. Why did this happen? Why would God allow this? Why would God let tow drifters live and let his sons be murdered? How many Christians have agonized over such questions through tears?

My dear friend, Paul Burleson, made a statement something like this, “Christians have the same things happen to them that lost people do. The difference between us is that we get the chance to act differently.” We get to act in the circumstances instead of reacting to it! We have a Resource the world does not have. But how will others recognize Him in us if they see us react just like they do when the roof caves in? Or how will we have an opportunity to demonstrate Christ within us if we never experience any suffering?

Some godly Christians are divorced by spouses despite their 100% sincere efforts at reconciliation. We lose our children to the world despite our godly parenting, lose loved ones through death, lose our jobs, our health, our homes, see our businesses fail despite our innocence, have severe accidents and illnesses, get caught in the backwash of the oil crisis, make bad investments which threaten our retirement security, lose farms to the mortgage company, etc. But, whereas the lost have no hope and demonstrate this through their behavior, we have a “blessed hope!” Hey, all is not lost for us! We have the opportunity to act instead of react. We can praise Jesus and let other see the Life of Christ shine through the dark backdrop of our miserable circumstances!

C.S. Lewis points out in one of his writings that if men worldwide arose each morning to see that God had written in the sky during the night the word “REPENT!” they would be intimidated into submission, not wooed into submission. If saints never had to deal with visible affliction like cancer, millions would profess Christ as Savior to avoid death by cancer. They’d be intimidated by fear, not convicted of personal sin and drawn by Christ’s love. They’d profess by sight, not by faith. To keep that from happening, God has to allow the body of believers to experience the gamut of this world’s sufferings. However, it goes much deeper than this!

The Lord had told Ananias that he was to go lay hands on Saul of Taursus whom He had just blinded with the radiance of His glory. Ananias was trying to explain that He had dialed a wrong number when the Lord said an amazing thing to him. “Go, for he is a chosen instrument of Mine…for I will show him how much he must suffer for my Name’s sake.” (Acts 9:15-16) I can just read Paul’s thoughts when he got the message, “Suffer! Hey, wait a minute! Let’s talk this over! I didn’t know I was signing up for the suffering course! I thought the Christian life was all joy and singing and praising the Lord!” What a strange thing for the Lord to say while calling this number one saint into kingdom service. But, Ps. 34:19 says, “Many are the afflictions of the righteous.” Whoa! Seems like the Lord must have meant to say, “Many are the afflictions of the wicked” didn’t He? I’ve been doing a lot of studying on this and want to share these insights with you.

This list is not exhaustive, but here are a few of the reasons God may allow suffering to come into our lives:

Sin in our lives.

Persecution from the evil one and those he controls because of the stand we are taking for Christ.

Attacking the flesh to break the hold the flesh may have on us.

To use as a backdrop against which Christ may be viewed in and through us by angels, demons, Satan, the lost and the saved.

To give us the opportunity to develop Christian character by appropriating Christ as Life to sustain us through the suffering.

To make us less independent and more dependent upon Christ alone as our only Resource of strength.

To motivate us with an eagerness to die and leave earth which is not our home to experience our true home. As Pres wrote of Israel in the January article, “Alas, they would not have wanted to go (from Egypt, a type or the world) had they not been unhappy in the land!”

All of these are a vital part of conforming us to the image of Christ, God’s major goal for the believer. (Rom. 8:28-29) I’m going to concentrate only on the last five purposes listed for suffering. I’ll cite some scripture references and mix in some paraphrasing. You should then look the passages up and check me out to be sure I am not interpreting them out of context.

As I begin to get excited about a teaching, oftentimes: 1) A book or tape will “just happen” to come into my possession. 2) Familiar Scriptures will begin to yield fresh insight to me, which I have never quite put together this way before. 3) Things will be recalled to mind which I read, heard or experienced in the past which lend insight to the topic. 4)I will be plunged into a situation which will force me to “fish or cut bait”. (I’ll get an “opportunity” to put my new insight into practice). This time the Holy Spirit used all four of these methods to give me this teaching. My prayer is that it will bless you as it has me. Of course I’m not turning handsprings over the prospect of suffering, but I can truly say as a result of this study that if God chooses to allow it to come to me I will receive it by grace.

Gang, the Word teaches that all of us are going to undergo suffering of one sort or another. Some of you reading this are going to be the ones who experience severe illness, others accidents, others the death of loved ones, others may be robbed, others assaulted. (Heb. 11:36-39) Even though, the Word says whatever state we are in, our God is sufficient, and that I can do all things through Christ Who strengthens me, it is mega-helpful to get an understanding of suffering’s purpose. My prayer for you is that this will be accomplished in your life through this study.

Also read: Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4

© Lifetime Guarantee Ministries [published: 1987-03-01]
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