CRCF””4-25-10
Our Unshaken Father
Introduction–
“Humankind cannot stand very much reality.” T. S. Eliot
Ronnie McBrayer
It”™s easy to say “just trust God” when the sun is shining. But for many people of faith, the outcome is not as rosy as we have been led to believe. Many find that faith has not insulated them from trouble. Faith has not protected them from disease, poverty, bankruptcy, or injustice. Faith is not a fix or a means of getting what we want. It is a way of living, and often it has nothing to do with how well life will treat you. If faith secured for every person who claimed to have it, a soft life, never a disappointment, abundance on every hand, the elimination of doubt, and the absence of fear, hospital bills, hunger, attorney fees or loss ”“ well, then God owes a great many of our heroes of the faith a colossal apology”¦ We don”™t need romantic, super-hero faith. It is useless, nothing more than an opiate to dull our senses and keep us from seeing the way things really are. We need realistic faith . . . Enough of this faith that professes the ability to only change our circumstances; what about the faith that changes us?
Life is full of hard, cold realities. We do all we can to try to avoid dealing with those realities head on as often as we can. We come up with our own diversions that keep us from confrontations with realities that we don”™t understand, like or enjoy. We formulate our own answers to our deepest questions””and, for a time, they may even appease us. But then, in those still, silent moments when we can”™t find anything to distract us, we find ourselves toe-to-toe with our questions, doubts, pains, and frustrations. If we get honest in that moment, refusing to side-step reality anymore, we begin a conversation””not with one of our friends or coworkers or family members. Rather, we engage God.
And, more often than not, in our seldom-found honesty, our talk with God begins with a question:
“What is God doing when I”™m suffering?”
No matter WHY we suffer, our unshaken Father is with us in our suffering!
I DO want to talk quickly about some possibilities the Bible gives us on the WHY question.
4 Possible Answers:
- God may bring suffering as Discipline for your Personal Sin.
Psalm 32: 3 When I refused to confess my sin, my body wasted away, and I groaned all day long. 4 Day and night your hand of discipline was heavy on me. My strength evaporated like water in the summer heat. Interlude 5 Finally, I confessed all my sins to you and stopped trying to hide my guilt. I said to myself, “I will confess my rebellion to the Lord.” And you forgave me! All my guilt is gone.
Always start here””in humility and prayer and confession! Even if you”™re suffering is NOT due to your sin, it never hurts to get low before your Father””you”™ll always stand up a stronger Christ-follower.
- 2. God often allows suffering as Training for your
Personal Strength.
James 1:2-4, 12: 2 Dear brothers and sisters,[a] when troubles come your way, consider it an opportunity for great joy. 3 For you know that when your faith is tested, your endurance has a chance to grow. 4 So let it grow, for when your endurance is fully developed, you will be perfect and complete, needing nothing. 12 God blesses those who patiently endure testing and temptation. Afterward they will receive the crown of life that God has promised to those who love him.
You may not have signed up for “God”™s Gym” or desired the workout that you find yourself in the middle of. Remember””you”™ve been bought with a price, you”™re owned by the One who died for you. And He loves you too much to let you get spiritually flabby and a candidate for heart disease. So, cooperate with your Personal Trainer and get the most out of the workout. And by the way, God can use your suffering to strengthen your faith even if there are other reasons for it involved!
3. God often permits suffering as Evidence of your
Personal Faith in Jesus.
1 Peter 4:1-3, 12-19: 1 So then, since Christ suffered physical pain, you must arm yourselves with the same attitude he had, and be ready to suffer, too. For if you have suffered physically for Christ, you have finished with sin.[a] 2 You won”™t spend the rest of your lives chasing your own desires, but you will be anxious to do the will of God. 3 You have had enough in the past of the evil things that godless people enjoy””their immorality and lust, their feasting and drunkenness and wild parties, and their terrible worship of idols.
12 Dear friends, don”™t be surprised at the fiery trials you are going through, as if something strange were happening to you. 13 Instead, be very glad””for these trials make you partners with Christ in his suffering, so that you will have the wonderful joy of seeing his glory when it is revealed to all the world. 14 So be happy when you are insulted for being a Christian,[e] for then the glorious Spirit of God[f] rests upon you.[g] 15 If you suffer, however, it must not be for murder, stealing, making trouble, or prying into other people”™s affairs. 16 But it is no shame to suffer for being a Christian. Praise God for the privilege of being called by his name! 17 For the time has come for judgment, and it must begin with God”™s household. And if judgment begins with us, what terrible fate awaits those who have never obeyed God”™s Good News? 18 And also, “If the righteous are barely saved, what will happen to godless sinners?”[h] 19 So if you are suffering in a manner that pleases God, keep on doing what is right, and trust your lives to the God who created you, for he will never fail you.
John 15:18: 18 “If the world hates you, remember that it hated me first.
John 16:1-4: “I have told you these things so that you won”™t abandon your faith. 2 For you will be expelled from the synagogues, and the time is coming when those who kill you will think they are doing a holy service for God. 3 This is because they have never known the Father or me. 4 Yes, I”™m telling you these things now, so that when they happen, you will remember my warning. I didn”™t tell you earlier because I was going to be with you for a while longer.
Jesus shot straight with us so that we wouldn”™t be surprised when the world deals with us Christ-followers the same way it did with Jesus Himself! Expect to be treated bad by those who don”™t love Jesus simply because you do!
4. God sometimes bring suffering for No Apparent
Reason which is His Divine Prerogative.
This is really the main answer to the question, isn”™t it? No sin, no conflict with Jesus-haters. Just pure and painful suffering for what appears to be no reason.
While his wife was battling the cancer that eventually killed her, “C.S. Lewis was once asked, “Why do the godly suffer?” And he answered: “Because they are the only ones who can take it.” Those who can take it ”“ whatever it is ”“ suffering, injustice, pain, sickness, loss ”“ these are the heroes we need, not just those who always defeat their evil archenemy, save the city, and get the girl at the end of the movie” (Ronnie McBrayer).
Our best friend on this subject is old Job. His experience with God and his 3 friends is God”™s only answer to the question of suffering when there is no reason. Before it was all said and done, even Job was asking God why. Listen to God”™s answer:
Job 38:1-7: 1 Then the Lord answered Job from the whirlwind: 2 “Who is this that questions my wisdom with such ignorant words? 3 Brace yourself like a man, because I have some questions for you, and you must answer them. 4 “Where were you when I laid the foundations of the earth? Tell me, if you know so much. 5 Who determined its dimensions and stretched out the surveying line? 6 What supports its foundations, and who laid its cornerstone 7 as the morning stars sang together and all the angels[a] shouted for joy?
Does that seem harsh to you? I mean, do you remember what Job went through? Listen fast:
Job 1:6-22: 6 One day the members of the heavenly court[a] came to present themselves before the Lord, and the Accuser, Satan,[b] came with them. 7 “Where have you come from?” the Lord asked Satan. Satan answered the Lord, “I have been patrolling the earth, watching everything that”™s going on.” 8 Then the Lord asked Satan, “Have you noticed my servant Job? He is the finest man in all the earth. He is blameless””a man of complete integrity. He fears God and stays away from evil.” 9 Satan replied to the Lord, “Yes, but Job has good reason to fear God. 10 You have always put a wall of protection around him and his home and his property. You have made him prosper in everything he does. Look how rich he is! 11 But reach out and take away everything he has, and he will surely curse you to your face!” 12 “All right, you may test him,” the Lord said to Satan. “Do whatever you want with everything he possesses, but don”™t harm him physically.” So Satan left the Lord”™s presence. 13 One day when Job”™s sons and daughters were feasting at the oldest brother”™s house, 14 a messenger arrived at Job”™s home with this news: “Your oxen were plowing, with the donkeys feeding beside them, 15 when the Sabeans raided us. They stole all the animals and killed all the farmhands. I am the only one who escaped to tell you.” 16 While he was still speaking, another messenger arrived with this news: “The fire of God has fallen from heaven and burned up your sheep and all the shepherds. I am the only one who escaped to tell you.” 17 While he was still speaking, a third messenger arrived with this news: “Three bands of Chaldean raiders have stolen your camels and killed your servants. I am the only one who escaped to tell you.” 18 While he was still speaking, another messenger arrived with this news: “Your sons and daughters were feasting in their oldest brother”™s home. 19 Suddenly, a powerful wind swept in from the wilderness and hit the house on all sides. The house collapsed, and all your children are dead. I am the only one who escaped to tell you.” 20 Job stood up and tore his robe in grief. Then he shaved his head and fell to the ground to worship. 21 He said, “I came naked from my mother”™s womb, and I will be naked when I leave. The Lord gave me what I had, and the Lord has taken it away. Praise the name of the Lord!” 22 In all of this, Job did not sin by blaming God.
Job”™s wife sounds a lot like some of us when we get to the end of our faith”™s rope and the lack of reason threatens to kill our trust in God:
Job 2:8-10: 8 Job scraped his skin with a piece of broken pottery as he sat among the ashes. 9 His wife said to him, “Are you still trying to maintain your integrity? Curse God and die.” 10 But Job replied, “You talk like a foolish woman. Should we accept only good things from the hand of God and never anything bad?” So in all this, Job said nothing wrong.
An important truth to remember: It ALL comes to us through God”™s hands, no matter how you slice it!
What about Job”™s “good friends”? Want to learn how NOT to be a good Christian friend? Spend some time reading the whole story of Job. You”™ll find yourself agreeing with some of their thinking, because sometimes personal sin is the reason God turns up the heat on our lives. But their mistake that they had no room in their theology for another reason for suffering””a reason that has nothing to do with our sin or our faith (or lack of faith) and everything to do with God”™s Divine prerogative!
Job 16:19-22: 19 Even now my witness is in heaven. My advocate is there on high. 20 My friends scorn me, but I pour out my tears to God. 21 I need someone to mediate between God and me, as a person mediates between friends. 22 For soon I must go down that road from which I will never return.
Job 19:25-29: 25 “But as for me, I know that my Redeemer lives, and he will stand upon the earth at last. 26 And after my body has decayed, yet in my body I will see God![a] 27 I will see him for myself. Yes, I will see him with my own eyes. I am overwhelmed at the thought! 28 “How dare you go on persecuting me, saying, ”˜It”™s his own fault”™? 29 You should fear punishment yourselves, for your attitude deserves punishment. Then you will know that there is indeed a judgment.”
Job knew he needed a Savior and was dependent on God”™s Messiah long before Jesus ever showed up. But he also had a better understanding of suffering than his friends””an understanding that left room for God to simply be God and never explain Himself. And by the way””IF God explains Himself, it is an act of grace, NOT something He owes us or that we deserve.
Are you ready to hear what God thinks about folks that tell Him how He has to operate and arrange your life?
Job 40:1-14: 1 Then the Lord said to Job, 2 “Do you still want to argue with the Almighty? You are God”™s critic, but do you have the answers?” 3 Then Job replied to the Lord, 4 “I am nothing””how could I ever find the answers? I will cover my mouth with my hand. 5 I have said too much already. I have nothing more to say.” 6 Then the Lord answered Job from the whirlwind: 7 “Brace yourself like a man, because I have some questions for you, and you must answer them. 8 “Will you discredit my justice and condemn me just to prove you are right? 9 Are you as strong as God? Can you thunder with a voice like his? 10 All right, put on your glory and splendor, your honor and majesty. 11 Give vent to your anger. Let it overflow against the proud. 12 Humiliate the proud with a glance; walk on the wicked where they stand. 13 Bury them in the dust. Imprison them in the world of the dead. 14 Then even I would praise you, for your own strength would save you.
So, when we”™ve been honest before God about our sin and we”™re all “fessed” up, when we”™re NOT being opposed because we love Jesus, how are we to deal with suffering then””when there are no answers, no reasons that come to the surface?
Job 42:1-6:
1 Then Job replied to the Lord: 2 “I know that you can do anything, and no one can stop you. 3 You asked, ”˜Who is this that questions my wisdom with such ignorance?”™ It is I””and I was talking about things I knew nothing about, things far too wonderful for me. 4 You said, ”˜Listen and I will speak! I have some questions for you, and you must answer them.”™ 5 I had only heard about you before, but now I have seen you with my own eyes. 6 I take back everything I said, and I sit in dust and ashes to show my repentance.”
Like a child that can”™t understand his Daddy”™s plans, so we must humbly endure, quietly, trusting His heart when we can”™t see His hand.
The most mature faith doesn”™t have all the answers but admits to more questions than most.
Being close to God is living in a relationship with a Father Who, though He is untamed and does just what He knows He needs to do, is with us in every pain!
No matter WHY we suffer, our unshaken Father is with us in our suffering!
Listen to the Reformer Martin Luther”™s response to suffering. He and his wife buried a son, and in the aftermath his wife demanded of Luther: “Where was God when our son died?” And Luther responded, “The same place He was when his own Son died ”“ weeping.”
Ronnie McBrayer
Who among us have never pelted heaven with our questions and doubts: Where is God now? Why doesn”™t he intervene? Why is he ignoring me? How could he let this happen to me? Why doesn”™t God do something about the suffering in my life and my world? But I believe God is in the pain and the suffering. God has intervened, for in Jesus he knows what it is like to be found in the fashion of a man and subject himself to suffering. And every time you suffer, you will find him there, hurting again. In your most bitter prayers and violent outbursts against heaven, Christ kneels beside you. When you cry, Jesus weeps with you. When confusion overwhelms and frustrates you, the Lord himself holds your hand and keeps you company. When you turn your head on the cross of suffering, you will see that it is the Galilean Rabbi who bleeds and suffers beside you. I take comfort in the fact that Jesus never explained injustice and suffering, but he never avoided it. He embraced it and brought redemption from it. God may not always rescue us, may never explain things to us, but He always identifies with us and can never abandon us.
If later today you were to arrive at a terrible accident on the highway, you would have one of two options:
First, you could take notes, measurements, pictures, break out your laptop and graph paper and begin re-enacting the scene, attempting to explain how this disaster occurred. Or, second, you could start administering first-aid, putting hands of compassion and help on the bloodied bodies of those who are suffering. Those involved in the accident would certainly prefer the latter at that moment, and more times than not, that is what God gives us: Few explanations, but all the help and first-aid we need.
No matter WHY we suffer, our unshaken Father is with us in our suffering!
Conclusion””
The most mature faith understands that God owes no one an apology for being God! And we will find peace””NOT in an answer for our every question””but in resting in our Father, Whose Divine prerogative it is to bring suffering our way without explanation. We will find peace when we, like Job, put our hands over our mouths and””while life hurts, confuses, disappoints””praise Him anyway!
No matter WHY we suffer, our unshaken Father is with us in our suffering!
There have been times in my life when, due to circumstances/trials/etc., I didn”™t feel my faith in God””no warm fuzzies, no sense of His presence, no feeling assurance inside that any of it is real, no feeling that Jeremiah 29:11 is true. In fact, I”™m right there, right now””and have been for awhile. And that”™s OK! It”™s not a lot of fun. It”™s not easy. But it doesn”™t mean I”™m a second-rate Christian or that I don”™t have enough faith or that I”™m not spiritual. It just means that God has us somewhere we didn”™t ask to be. We”™re not here because Robin”™s faith isn”™t strong enough. We”™re here because God brought us here””and that”™s His prerogative. After the occasional fussing/cussing and questioning and screaming, all we can do is silently crawl back up into our Father”™s lap and lay down, exhausted, trusting Him to take care of us according to His good plan””because we have no where else to go!
You”™re Not Shaken (Phil Stacey)
I am sinking in the river that is raging
I am drowning
Will I ever, rise to breathe again
I wanna know why
I just wanna understand
Will I ever know why?
How could this be from Your hand?
/Chorus/
When every little thing that I have dreamed would be just slips away like water through my hands
And when it seems the walls of my beliefs are crashing down like they”™re all made of sand
I won”™t, let go of You now
because I know, oh, You”™re not shaken
I am trembling in the darkness of my own fear
All the questions with no answers
So grip me while I”™m here
And I may never know why
Oh I may not understand
But I will lift up my eyes,
and trust this is Your plan
/Chorus/
When I am in the valley
of the shadow of death
You”™re not shaken
You”™re not shaken
You’re right here beside me and
You have never left
You’re not shaken
You’re not shaken
No matter WHY we suffer, our unshaken Father is with us in our suffering!