LOVING IN THE MIDST OF THE TSUNAMI OF EVIL

How can I love my enemies, those who want to kill me? My first impulse is to destroy them first. However, this is not the way of my Savior, who wants me to trust in Him:

·       “Fret not yourself because of evildoers; be not envious of wrongdoers! For they will soon fade like the grass and wither like the green herb. Trust in the Lord, and do good; dwell in the land and befriend faithfulness. Delight yourself in the Lord, and he will give you the desires of your heart. Commit your way to the Lord; trust in him, and he will act. He will bring forth your righteousness as the light, and your justice as the noonday. Be still before the Lord and wait patiently for him; fret not yourself over the one who prospers in his way, over the man who carries out evil devices! Refrain from anger, and forsake wrath! Fret not yourself; it tends only to evil. For the evildoers shall be cut off, but those who wait for the Lord shall inherit the land.” (Psalms 37:1-9; ESV)

The evildoer might be my enemy, but I must do good to him, but how? By entrusting myself the the One who loves me and has given His life for me!

If there were no guarantees of eventual justice, I would have to take justice into my own vengeful hands, a vengeance that would dominate me. If there was no guarantee of a blessed eternal life with my Savior, evil could snatch away all that I have.

Instead, He assures me that evil is impotent. It can only consume the crumbs that fall from my plate, the flesh that cloths me for the moment.

Evil is but a doorway to the Promised Land. It is the storm that is followed by the rainbow. It is my life-coach, teaching me to set my hope on the things above.

My Lord gives me the courage to look in the face of evil without hatred. He reminds me of His heaven, of a fragrance that overcomes the evil's stench, of an aroma that will never fade. He can even give me compassion for the prisoners of darkness, the servants of the lie.

Obedience to love unlocks the door to love. He requires me to embrace the lost if I want to embrace joy and confidence.

Faith demands action. Giving to my enemy scales the wall of fear and threat. Running away only adds to them. Only the train in forward motion can scale a tall mountain.

Please understand, I am not suggesting that we cave in before injustice. Rather, we must pursue love and justice as we trust in our Lord's ways alone!

SUFFERING IS TOUGH TO ENDURE WHEN WE DON'T UNDERSTAND WHY

We tend to regard suffering as a negative. However, from God's perspective, it's a necessary positive, as Peter has written:

·       “Since therefore Christ suffered in the flesh, arm yourselves with the same way of thinking, for whoever has suffered in the flesh has ceased from sin, so as to live for the rest of the time in the flesh no longer for human passions but for the will of God.” (1 Peter 4:1-2 ESV)

Suffering, in God's hand, turns us away from sin and to God. This doesn't mean that we will be liberated from sin but from a sinful lifestyle. Instead, we will be seeking to please our Savior.

Suffering also prepares us for the return of our Savior:

·       “Beloved, do not be surprised at the fiery trial when it comes upon you to test you, as though something strange were happening to you. But rejoice insofar as you share Christ’s sufferings, that you may also rejoice and be glad when his glory is revealed.” (1 Peter 4:12-13)

Suffering prevents us from becoming too comfortable here. It refocuses our sight onto the things above, causing us to long for the return of Christ!

How unwelcoming we'd be to our Savior if we told Him on His return: "Great to see you, Jesus. But could you postpone your return for a couple months. You see, we got a cruise coming up and I'm due for a promotion."

Suffering also readies us in another way:

·       “For it is time for judgment to begin at the household of God; and if it begins with us, what will be the outcome for those who do not obey the gospel of God?” (1 Peter 4:17)

Suffering also humbles us by exposing what we have buried - our self-centeredness. According to Peter, membership in the body of Christ requires us to be humbled so that God will exalt us:

·       “Likewise, you who are younger, be subject to the elders. Clothe yourselves, all of you, with humility toward one another, for “God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble.” Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God so that at the proper time he may exalt you, casting all your anxieties on him, because he cares for you.” (1 Peter 5:5-7)

Humility will not come about without suffering. We would rather exalt ourselves. Therefore, we need to first be convinced that God's ways are better than our own. Suffering reveals the poverty of our own agenda, forcing us to embrace His.

Until this happened for me, I failed to see much of God's grace in my life. However, the more He has humbled me, the more I have seen of His goodness.

We need to understand these things. Without this understanding, we will think that God has failed or rejected us, the very thing that Satan wants us to believe:

·       “Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour. Resist him, firm in your faith, KNOWING that the same kinds of suffering are being experienced by your brotherhood throughout the world.” (1 Peter 5:8-9)

We need to know and understand that suffering is necessary medicine, which we all are called upon to ingest. If we don't, we will despair when suffering comes knocking. Besides, if we don't understand this, we will be fair game for Satan.

We also need to understand that suffering is not only a gift, but it is also temporary:

·       “And after you have suffered a little while, the God of all grace, who has called you to his eternal glory in Christ, will himself restore, confirm, strengthen, and establish you.” (1 Peter 5:10)

WARNINGS:

1. Even after you are armed with this understanding, suffering will still remain painful. That's what it's supposed to be (Heb. 12:5-11).

2. We should still look for a way of escape from the suffering. This might be God's way of rescuing you:

·       “No temptation has overtaken you that is not common to man. God is faithful, and he will not let you be tempted beyond your ability, but with the temptation he will also provide the way of escape, that you may be able to endure it.” (1 Corinthians 10:13)

He is our Deliverer!

THE FAITHFULNESS OF GOD EVEN THROUGH SUFFERING: A TESTIMONY

My wife and I have been following reports about the search for the container ship El Faro, praying and grieving for the families and the possible lost lives.

However, even in the midst of this tragedy, I have been thanking God for His goodness. Ironically, there are many reasons to thank Him for His goodness, even in the midst of suffering, but I will mention just one.

Misery loves company, and I had been a miserable person. While the Bible instructs us to mourn with those who mourn and rejoice with those who rejoice (Romans 12:15), to my great shame, I found that I was mourning with those who rejoice and rejoicing when others mourned, even as a Christian. Not only was I deeply ashamed of myself, but these feelings made me feel isolated and alien from my brethren. In my mind, they were successful Christians, while I was a complete, unspiritual failure. Therefore, I couldn’t help but feel jealous of them.

However, our God is able to provide:

·       If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all--how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things? (Romans 8:31-32)

He is in the process of giving us all things. For me, it took time. However, now I can look back with gratitude because my Savior has provided. I now can feel like a human being. Even more, I can now see myself as a child of God and can rejoice for the good He has done for me!