Saturday, December 3, 2022

THE GLORY OF SUFFERING AND THE LIBERATION UNTO SERVANTHOOD

 

 

Jesus’ time of greatest suffering was also the time of His greatest glory:
 
·       And Jesus answered them, “The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified. Truly, truly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it bears much fruit. Whoever loves his life loses it, and whoever hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life. If anyone serves me, he must follow me; and where I am, there will my servant be also. If anyone serves me, the Father will honor him.” (John 12:23–26)
 
This is the suffering to which we too have been called so that we too will bear fruit. Therefore, we should look at suffering as a positive and not a negative or a curse. For one thing, suffering builds the Church. Baboons continually groom one another to remove the lice and tics. Without their vulnerability and discomfort caused by an assortment of pests, there would be no grooming. And without grooming, the community would not bond—a vital need for their survival.
 
It is our suffering and brokenness that provide opportunities for us to minister and to bond with others. The Church’s welfare depends on the love we minister. Truth without love might be experienced as offensive and demanding.
 
However, love is sacrificial. It requires us to put the needs of others before our own. I must confess that I’d prefer my wife to “groom” me rather than the other way around. However, our Lord teaches us that it is better to give and to receive:

·       Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves. Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others. Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus…Who emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. (Philippians 2:3–8)
 
These are humbling words. It is difficult to be humbled, perhaps even humanly impossible. We long to be exalted and not humbled by assuming the role of a servant. However, I have been learning that to keep this focus of loving God by loving others can be liberating. Here’s how: I would normally approach my lessons with a self-focus—how good my lesson will be, what my students will think of it, and how this might honor me.
 
In contrast, the   God-focus on serving others is liberating. Instead of looking at my own needs, I look at honoring God by speaking His truths, which will edify my students:

·       By this we know that we love the children of God, when we love God and obey his commandments. For this is the love of God, that we keep his commandments. And his commandments are not burdensome. (1 John 5:2–3)
 
Ironically, His commandments are not burdensome but liberating. By following them, we find ourselves delivered from suffering into the freedom of His Light. Lord, help us maintain the focus on servanthood in love and not the bondage of self-hood!

 

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