Endurance Teaches Maturity

In our everyday lives we must endure many burdens. But when we are a Christian these difficult things actually have a purpose. When we have trials they can teach us to be righteous. During the Sermon on the Mount Jesus made this statement: Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness' sake: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. (Matt 5:10 KJV). It is how we handle these things. Sometimes at work our problems seem large but we know that inside of the church we find help through joy, peace and loving people. The church is not perfect however. Believe it or not, the righteous Church does upset worldly people at times. Some people feel their guilt by simply being around righteousness. Anyway, a Christian strives for righteousness so that they will mature and please God.

Ridicule is another thing that causes people to stay away from God and His Church. It is possible that worldly people can feel that living a righteous life will bring them ridicule or persecution. A lack of popularity is very frightening to some people. How sad it is when a frightened person misses out on the pleasures of eternity in Heaven because of worldly interest. It is fairly well known that unsaved people are afraid to give up their worldly lives. The astonishing thing is that many believers who attend church also fear this. They will not confess their love for Jesus to outsiders because of ridicule. Many times when they should stand up for righteousness, we do not hear a word out of them. We must make Jesus the Lord of our life. 

People know that in their place of work there may be reprisals for going against the worldly flow of events. There have been times when unbelievers curse the name of God and a believer will not even defend the Savior. We could say that a worldly person who fears ridicule has a reasonable excuse. Of course, God is not interested in our reasoning but only in our faith. However a believer should be wholeheartedly confessing the Lord because it is our calling. Peter said: But if you suffer for doing good and endure it patiently, God is pleased with you. For God called you to do good, even if it means suffering, just as Christ suffered for you. (1 Peter 2:20-21 NLT). God has called His people to live righteously and He is pleased when we endure suffering for Him.

At some time or another all Christians will be persecuted for righteousness sake. In fact, Jesus was killed for His perfect life. We must reach an understanding within ourselves by admitting that suffering for righteousness is a normal part of a faithful life. Thankfully, this life is not as hard as we imagine.  Jesus wanted to relieve our fears when He said: For my yoke is easy to bear, and the burden I give you is light. (Matt 11:30 NLT). There is a power that comes into a Christian when they live by faith. This power makes a righteous life easy and gives us internal peace at the same time. When we witness to someone we should attempt to put them at ease while we take our stand for righteousness. By faith, the Spirit will give us the words to speak. 

Our life of faith is all about righteousness. Paul talked about his life: I become righteous through faith in Christ. For God’s way of making us right with himself depends on faith. I want to know Christ and experience the mighty power that raised him from the dead. I want to suffer with him, sharing in his death, so that one way or another I will experience the resurrection from the dead! (Phil 3:9-11 NLT). After clearly saying that he became righteous through faith in Christ, he goes on to say that suffering ridicule or persecution for this righteousness of Christ is what he expects. God’s way includes our faith and the power of the Spirit living in us. This is what it means to identify with Christ. 

A good life with Jesus is difficult but there are great rewards.  Paul explains: In fact, together with Christ we are heirs of God’s glory. But if we are to share his glory, we must also share his suffering. (Romans 8:17 NLT). Every Christian loves to have the hope of glory on their mind but we sometimes forget that we must share His sufferings. Our church is made up of God’s children of faith and we must work together through the trials of this life. It is very hard to suffer alone but this is one of the reasons Jesus made us into a church. It is a great honor to be allowed to identify ourselves with the Savior of the world. But it is our duty to adhere to the members of a local church. 

Paul was a very tough, down to earth man who was in jail when he said that suffering was a great privilege. The Scripture says: For you have been given not only the privilege of trusting in Christ but also the privilege of suffering for him. We are in this struggle together. (Phil 1:29-30 NLT). We can see here that living a righteous life is an honor and that all the church should enter the struggle together. Our church today has not had much physical abuse but we certainly can be involved in some serious mental suffering. Always remember that the Spirit of Jesus came to Earth to comfort the followers of Christ. With the Spirit’s help we are able to stand up for Jesus in every situation. 

Peter also wrote about living a righteous life and he had learned everything the hard way. Look at what he said: But even if you suffer for doing what is right, God will reward you for it. So don’t worry or be afraid of their threats. Instead, you must worship Christ as Lord of your life. And if someone asks about your Christian hope, always be ready to explain it. (1 Peter 3:14-15 NLT). This was the same man that had been afraid to claim the friendship of Jesus before the Spirit came. Some people ask why Christians persist in serving the Lord. We can never completely explain our actions. Most people are very shallow and deceit can hold them in ignorance. The only way to really understand Christian service is to enter into a life of faith.

Remember that the world is sometimes frightened by our suffering. They don’t have the strength in themselves. Our life is no longer about our own desires. The Scripture says: Be very glad—for these trials make you partners with Christ in his suffering… So be happy when you are insulted for being a Christian, for then the glorious Spirit of God rests upon you. (1 Peter 4:13-14 NLT). When the Spirit of God rests upon us, we can relax in any situation. We know that by God’s grace the Savior tasted death for everyone. Now we have a chance to enter Glory as a child of the King. Our life should be an example of Jesus that is clear to everyone.

The people of the world can see Jesus in a Christian. They react because they do not understand. It is possible that the world can sense the fact that we will be rulers someday. This certainly does not make sense to them. But Paul said very clearly:  This is a trustworthy saying: If we die with him, we will also live with him. If we endure hardship, we will reign with him. (2 Tim 2:11-12 NLT). My friends, it will be wonderful to reign with Jesus someday. We must be careful to stay in the power of the Spirit. Trying to go it alone will always end up badly. Because the world is afraid of Christianity, they are always attempting to pull us back into their worldly ways. Don’t let this happen. Remember, our hope is always in the Lord.