Revision as of 23:50, 14 August 2007

Wounds of a slave. USA, 1863.

Jesus began his ministry by reciting the following scripture from the prophet Isaiah:

The Spirit of the Lord GOD is upon me; because the LORD hath anointed me to preach good tidings unto the meek; he hath sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to them that are bound; To proclaim the acceptable year of the LORD, (Isaiah 61:1,2a)

Jesus said to the people listening: "This day is this scripture fulfilled in your ears." This was a true saying, as Jesus ministry was to the meek, blind, brokenhearted, and captives.

However, Jesus closed the book of Isaiah before finishing the full prophecy of the Messiah. The part that Jesus omitted was as follows:

and the day of vengeance of our God; to comfort all that mourn; To appoint unto them that mourn in Zion, to give unto them beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness; that they might be called trees of righteousness, the planting of the LORD, that he might be glorified. (Isaiah 61:2b,3)

By closing the book, Jesus was telling the people that the "day of vengeance" was still to come, and the promise to "comfort all that mourn" was still to come. In otherwords, there would still be suffering on the earth until the Messiah declared that the "day of vengeance of our God was at hand".

Wherefore let them that suffer according to the will of God commit the keeping of their souls to him in well doing, as unto a faithful Creator. ... Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, that he may exalt you in due time:
Casting all your care upon him; for he careth for you. (I Peter 4:19, 5:6-7)

The reason for suffering

The reason for suffering is that the first man and woman, Adam and Eve, disobeyed God's one commandment. As a result, both they and their offspring were subject to a number of curses, abbreviated as follows:

Both Adam and Eve, and each of their offspring, would be subject to death,
Eve's sorrow would be multiplied, and she would be subject to childbearing, and
Adam was cursed to a life of toil, and sorrow would accompany his labours.

But knowing the cause of universal suffering is like knowing that a shark ate your arm: something bad happened that you have no power to change, and you now have to deal with the consequences. If you do not deal with the consequences, it will jeopordize your life, and if you don't learn from what happened, you will probably make the same mistake again.

How to deal with suffering

The book of Job is probably the oldest book in the Bible, and it deals with the suffering of one man, Job, who lost his wealth, family, and health, and had all of his friends turn against him. At the end of the book, a young wise man named Elihu and God reveal to Job the folly of blaming God for his problems. If you have any of the same problems that Job had, it would be good for you to read his story.

Here is Elihu's secret:

The Spirit of God hath made me, and the breath of the Almighty hath given me life...Surely thou hast spoken in mine hearing, and I have heard the voice of thy words, saying, I am clean without transgression, I am innocent; neither is there iniquity in me. ... Behold, in this thou art not just: I will answer thee, that God is greater than man. Why dost thou strive against him? for he giveth not account of any of his matters. (Job 33:4, 8-9, 12-13)

Elihu continues:

For Job hath said, I am righteous: and God hath taken away my judgment. ... What man is like Job, who drinketh up scorning like water? ... For he hath said, It profiteth a man nothing that he should delight himself with God. Therefore hearken unto me, ye men of understanding: far be it from God, that he should do wickedness; and from the Almighty, that he should commit iniquity. ... Is it fit to say to a king, Thou art wicked? and to princes, Ye are ungodly? How much less to him that accepteth not the persons of princes, nor regardeth the rich more than the poor? for they all are the work of his hands. (Job 34:5,7,9-10, 18-19)

The Lord also answered Job, out of a whirlwind, and confirmed Elihu's preaching. God said:

Shall he that contendeth with the Almighty instruct him? he that reproveth God, let him answer it. ... Wilt thou also disannul my judgment? wilt thou condemn me, that thou mayest be righteous? (Job 40:2,8)

So, as far as suffering goes, we are subject to the law of death as a result of the decision of our forefathers. In justice, God could have condemned the whole human race to annihilation, or simply left us in our anguish. However, God, in His mercy and grace, sent His only Son Jesus Christ to suffer and die for our sins so that we might be reconciled to God. Because of this, suffering shouldn't matter to anyone that has accepted the sacrifice of Jesus Christ, as we have been promised a new body and life eternal.

Complaining about suffering, for a Christian, is like complaining about your job the day before your retirement.

The end of suffering

If a shark ate your arm, you should probably do two things: first, deal with the wound, and second, avoid shark infested waters. The same holds true with human suffering, first, we need to deal with the wound - if we are able, and second, we need to avoid the cause of the wound.

Humanity's wound was caused by disbelief in the Word of God, which is more commonly known as sin. On our own, we have no way to deal with the wound of sin. The only way to effectively deal with sin is to accept the sacrifice of Jesus Christ the Son of God. The Bible says that Christ is the firstfruits of the resurrection, and that the last enemy to be defeated is death (<KJVBible>I Corinthians 15:23-26</KJVBible>). So, God will defeat death in his own time, and until that time we must live like Abraham by believing God's promise is true even though we may see no physical evidence of the reward.

The only way to avoid sin in the future is to believe in the Word of God. Just as Jesus' death brought his resurrection, the scriptures invite you to die to the lusts of the flesh in order to live in righteousness. This is called the new birth - it is God living in you through His grace.

Like a seed, you need to die in good ground in order to bring forth life. That good ground is the Word of God. Die to yourself, surrounded by the Word of God, and your life will bring forth good fruit in the midst of a suffering generation. A seed has no part in becoming a tree - it simply dies. You have no part in becoming a new creation - just accept Jesus Christ in faith, and he will raise his own life inside you.

For even hereunto were ye called: because Christ also suffered for us, leaving us an example, that ye should follow his steps:

Who did no sin, neither was guile found in his mouth: Who, when he was reviled, reviled not again; when he suffered, he threatened not; but committed himself to him that judgeth righteously: Who his own self bare our sins in his own body on the tree, that we, being dead to sins, should live unto righteousness: (I Peter 2:21-25)

After the "day of vengeance", there will be an end of suffering. Job's revelation mirrors the vision of heaven in the Book of Revelation. Job said: "For I know that my redeemer liveth, and that he shall stand at the latter day upon the earth: And though after my skin worms destroy this body, yet in my flesh shall I see God:" (Job 19:25-26) The book of Revelation reads: "And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away." (Revelation 21:4)

The "day of vengeance" will either be a wonderful day, or it will be a terrible day - depending on who you are. If God has saved you, there is no doubt that it will be a day to remember.

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