meditatio at the water's edge

Some Thoughts from Sunday Night

I want us to think specifically, though, about suffering that we go through because of our loyalty to Jesus.

I think we need to start out by saying thank God that we don’t suffer—because we’re really too weak. I really wonder how long it would be before we caved if we really had to suffer because of our allegiance to Jesus.

Suffering, in and of itself, is not virtuous. There’s nothing good about suffering on its own. There are people next Sunday night over at Fairhaven who are going to be praying for the persecuted church around the world. We ought to join them in prayer for our brothers and sisters who are suffering.

I have heard people say that it would be a good thing for the church in America to experience suffering because of their loyalty to Jesus. Maybe that would do some good, but will it really take such an experience for us to start being serious about following Jesus?

We really need to be careful about what we ask for.

Another concern I have about suffering because of our loyalty to Jesus leads me to wonder whether our lives are different enough from the surrounding culture to set us in position to suffer because of our allegiance to Messiah.

I heard a radio commentator this past week in commentary on the election talking about the fact that ‘evangelicals’ look more like most of American culture now than they did twenty years ago. They spoke of the present similarity in music, clothes, language. Have these been the only areas of difference in the past 20 years? We don't look so strange to the rest of American culture anymore, I guess.

Is that a good thing?


Let’s think through this passage in 1 Peter together and draw our attention to what the cause of suffering might be and what our response might look like as apprentices of Jesus.


1 Peter 2:18-25, The Message
18You who are servants, be good servants to your masters--not just to good masters, but also to bad ones. 19What counts is that you put up with it for God's sake when you're treated badly for no good reason. 20There's no particular virtue in accepting punishment that you well deserve. But if you're treated badly for good behavior and continue in spite of it to be a good servant, that is what counts with God.21This is the kind of life you've been invited into, the kind of life Christ lived. He suffered everything that came his way so you would know that it could be done, and also know how to do it, step-by-step.22He never did one thing wrong,Not once said anything amiss.23They called him every name in the book and he said nothing back. He suffered in silence, content to let God set things right. 24He used his servant body to carry our sins to the Cross so we could be rid of sin, free to live the right way. His wounds became your healing. 25You were lost sheep with no idea who you were or where you were going. Now you're named and kept for good by the Shepherd of your souls.



When we suffer because of our allegiance to God, we don’t stop doing good.”If you’re treated badly for good behavior and continue in spite of it to be a good servant, that is what counts with God.”This includes how we respond to those who are mistreating us. You don’t engage in the cycle of evil. You continue to share in what is good and creative.

Rom 12:14-21
Bless your enemies; no cursing under your breath. 15Laugh with your happy friends when they're happy; share tears when they're down. 16Get along with each other; don't be stuck-up. Make friends with nobodies; don't be the great somebody.17Don't hit back; discover beauty in everyone. 18If you've got it in you, get along with everybody. 19Don't insist on getting even; that's not for you to do. "I'll do the judging," says God. "I'll take care of it."20Our Scriptures tell us that if you see your enemy hungry, go buy that person lunch, or if he's thirsty, get him a drink. Your generosity will surprise him with goodness. 21Don't let evil get the best of you; get the best of evil by doing good.

When we suffer because of our allegiance to God, we trust God to set things right.“Messiah suffered in silence, content to let God set things right.”This is very counter-intuitive, but think about Jesus. Of course, Jesus stood up for others who were suffering injustice, but he never stood up for himself. Instead, he trusted that God would vindicate him and set things right.

This is where our view of the present and coming kingdom of God is so important. You can live differently in the present if you are clear about what will be in the future.

-A future where God renews everything that was broken.
-A future where God makes sense of everything that doesn't make sense.
-A future where God heals all wounds in humanity and the rest of creation too.
-A future where God removes all evil, and its companions of death, suffering, and sorrow.

This cannot lead us into some kind of “I can’t wait to get out of here” mentality. It must lead us to engage in the present—in the midst of a world in which suffering is a realty, in the midst of a world in which our allegiance to Jesus is going to cost us something because it will put us into conflict with the powers that are at work in this world.

We must stand alongside those who are suffering, and this means that we too will suffer—and it will be because of our loyalty to Jesus—but it will also be a sign to the 'powers' that their days are numbered. We do not fear them because they are already beaten. They are on borrowed time. And we undo them in the present to the extent that we stand next to Jesus as he stands next to those who are suffering.

I don’t know what this might call you into, but I know it is going to call us into some uncomfortable things. You cannot be an apprentice of the Suffering Servant and not expect to suffer yourself. That is a delusion the church in America has too long believed. We cannot afford to fool ourselves any longer. Starting with me.