Hope for the Hurting

Standing fast in the true grace of God

Khen Lim

Source: prayer-coach.com

While we all have different personalities and characters, the one thing that draws us together is how we tend to relate to other people. The fact is that for most of us, we usually remember people’s wrongs and forget all too easily the good they have done. 

It doesn’t matter that they may have made amends and change because the bad things usually stick long enough for us to judge them in a less favoured light. If we look at some of the Bible characters, we can see clearly what our shortcomings are.

1. Jonah

We know Jonah as the rebellious prophet who not only questioned but ran from God. We remember him as the one who was not willing to do God’s will (Jonah 1:3). But we easily forget that he was the evangelist who led the most extensive evangelistic campaign in the Old Testament days. It was Jonah whose personal message given to him by God turned an entire city (Nineveh) around.

2. Samson

There is no doubt that when we talk about Samson, we are reminded of Delilah. Here is a man who is more remembered for his lustful and undisciplined womanising, which brought his downfall. We know Samson as someone who was not able to control his passions but our memory requires some prodding to realise that it was he who led Israel flawlessly for 20 years (Judges 15:20). Because of his faithful leadership of Israel, God remembered him in Hebrews 11 as one of the great men of faith.

3. Rahab

Probably one of two most famous prostitutes mentioned in the Bible is from Jericho and her name is Rahab (Joshua 2:1) and that’s very likely how we tend to see her. Yet she was the one who obeyed God. Remember as well that she was David’s great-great-grandmother in the Messianic lineage (Matthew 1:5). She was also, of course, the mother of Boaz who married Ruth.

If we remember these characters not for the good they have done but the not so good, many will likely think of Peter in similar vein. We know him as impulsive, stubborn, loud, fickle and opinionated and of course when the rooster crowed the third time, it was he who was made to look foolish.

Jesus was also found frequently rebuking Peter as well and yet he was the one who made the profound confession that He was indeed the Messiah (Matthew 16:16). The first 12 chapters in the Book of Acts record Peter as the core moving force behind the formation of the early church, which is testimony to how God worked powerfully through him.

Living through Our Pain

Peter’s two letters – 1 and 2 Peter – are testimony to his compassion and courage even though he had often stumbled, as we all do, in his life. Nonetheless these letters are proof that he did much good in Jesus’ name. When we read his letters, we are reminded of the parts of our lives that we wish we could just erase and not remember. Similarly we would give everything just to change the way some people think of us during those awful periods. However as Peter puts it, two truths remain:

1. If it hadn’t been for those parts of our lives, we would be worse off

These are times of testing and trial that keep us humble and dependent on our merciful God. Had we gone through live perfectly, we would very likely be extremely proud of our own achievements. We would believe that we’re so good and talented. We would end up glorifying ourselves for the accomplishments that came from our hands and minds.

2. If it hadn’t been for those parts of our lives, we would remain immature

These are times of suffering that has a strong purpose – they are to build us and mould us more and more to conform to Christ. Otherwise we wouldn’t have grown in maturity or gained depth of character. If we look back at our past, we may be able to see that in the depth of our pain and hurt, we often feel like we’re in a crucible, a valley or a cauldron of failure, pain, misery and heartache but it’s here that we grow strong and deep.

Looking back at Peter’s life, it’s easy to assume that once his foolishness (empty boasts) was revealed, he could easily have been written off. His life would become insignificant to God but what a relief that it wasn’t!

Remember that following Jesus’ resurrection, the angel told the women who were at the empty tomb, saying, “Go, tell His disciples and Peter, ‘He is going ahead of you into Galilee. There you will see Him, just as He told you’ (Mark 16:7).

Read it again, closely, and take note how God singled him out of all the disciples. If you ever need proof that the painful failure in Peter’s life was wiped clean, here it is. And as some might put it, a new chapter in Peter’s life was just about to begin at that point. For the very person who had disowned Jesus three times in a day (Mark 14:66-72), it must be amazingly thrilling for Peter to feel how God had singled him out for special treatment.

In the same way, many of us would have experienced roughly the same thing – even as we sometimes misbehave, say the wrong thing, or have been unjust in our treatment of others, God can still come around and do something very special in our lives. In the same way, we may weather a dark period of pain and hurt and yet God can still shine light and lift us up.

Beginning Again but with Hope

You might notice that in the two letters Peter begins by writing, “Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ” (1 Peter 1:1). There is something inspiring about this because despite all that he had gone through, he didn’t ridicule his past. Even if his readers know of his past, he did not let it consume him. It was as if he was thinking, “I’ll start right where I am.”

So how could Peter write that he was an apostle of Jesus Christ when he had done so much damage and had endured so much pain and hurt in his past? This is because Peter was experiencing God’s grace. The grace of God opens up opportunities for him to respond with that level of confidence and the same is available to us.

In the way he began his letters, Peter basically says this:

“I, Peter, am an apostle. I have been specially commissioned by God, sent out as a representation. I am someone who is amazed by the grace of God who forgives and covers my sin with the blood of Jesus. And as a result, I am enabled by His grace to write this letter of encouragement and hope to all of you.”

I have a good friend who, after I had tried to minister to him, said, “Why would God want someone as wretched as me? Who am I that He would even bother with?” Surely we too have encountered this ourselves. Even as Christians, there may be times when we could be thinking, “Who am I to deserve where I am today” or “Who am I to help these people mature in their Christian life?” or “Who am I to teach a Bible Study class?” or even “Who am I that I should be a father or mother of these children?”

When we hurt or are in pain, our inadequacies become magnified. We think so much less of ourselves and then tell ourselves that we are undeserving. I once knew of a Holocaust survivor from the David Horowitz Centre in Melbourne during the 80s whom I interviewed. I remember him saying much the same thing: “Which should I live and the others die? What good is it that I am alive when others are no longer here? Why should God save me but not the others?”

Amidst deep pain and sorrow, we should remind ourselves of Christ’s sufficiency to touch our lives with His grace. If we had come through our pain and hurt and are still here, God has a reason. That reason is that He has some good use of us for His glory. That is why He wants us to start to believe in hope. To do that, we are to begin where we are by acknowledging that we have been forgiven by His grace and empowered to serve others in His Name.

Courage When Facing Trials

One of the most inspiring things that Peter wrote about in his two letters, are the four messages of encouragement when we face our trials:

1. Trials may vary but God says you’re valuable (1 Peter 1:6, 7)

God says we are valuable to Him no matter what trials we undergo. This is another way to say that our faith is worth more than gold so long as we can prove its authenticity. So Peter says that even as we suffer grief amidst all the seemingly unbearable trials, we should learn to dig deep and find a reason to rejoice.

This is when trials become something so personal that you feel changes coming to you from within. In that very sense, you will experience Christ revealing Himself in our inner person. And when you do, you will see Jesus coming to your aid at the point of your weakest moment.

It doesn’t matter what trials you go through – an illness, an emotional rollercoaster, a heartbreaking disappointment or a devastating loss – Jesus will make Himself REAL the moment you find yourself in the middle of a burning cauldron.

2. Even if our trials appear unreasonable, they have their reason

Peter in 1 Peter 2:18-20 encourages submissiveness even in light of harsh treatment or inexplicable punishment. He says, “For it is commendable if a man bears up under the pain of unjust suffering because he is conscious of God.” In verse 20, he further says, “But if you suffer for doing good and you endure it, this is commendable before God.”

God always has His reason for the trials we endure. Amidst these reasons, He will have at least one lesson for us to learn also, which is why Peter encourages us to leave ourselves open to God to work out His purposes in and through our lives. It doesn’t matter what God says to you in your trial because it will be different for each of us but be assured that He will reveal it to you in His time.

Therefore we must be sensitive and attentive to God. At the same time, we should also be teachable and develop an awareness of His presence. That way, we will always be prepared when He reveals His purpose in our lives. As Jesus said in Matthew 11:28, “Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me.” If we are to learn from Christ, we must then be teachable first.

3. No matter how we try to avoid, trials are inevitable (1 Peter 4:12-13)

We should neither be surprised nor complain. When trials come, Peter tells us to rejoice because we should view trials as an opportunity to “participate in the sufferings of Christ” in order that we may celebrate the revelation of His glory.

When we are called to live a life of faith, it means our walk will invariably take us along a road of trials where suffering is unavoidable. Therefore suffering is integral to the human experience. It is also a reminder that the world continues to creak under the bondage of sin. Peter isn’t the only one to say that as we invest our faith and love in Christ, we will also be attacked by the devil and his followers. Hence no matter what we do, suffering is inescapable in our lives.

4. Trials are never eternal but temporal

Being temporal means our trials are earth bound. Once we are called home, we leave them all behind because this is God’s promise of restoration to us. But while we’re still alive, Peter tells all of us to be disciplined and guarded against the intense spiritual warfare (1 Peter 5:9-10).

With God’s promise, we have every reason to be hopeful. Therefore no matter our circumstances – whether we’re facing the pain of hurt or even death – endurance will deliver us to a life that will forever be free from suffering; a life that we will spend eternally in glory with Christ.

So the next time we deal with pain, go the extra mile for God. Replace our worldly attitudes with the corrective approach that Peter teaches. From his letters, we can identify at least four negative attitudes that we often have and apply his advice:

Our attitude: I’m all alone in this. What is wrong with me?

Peter’s advice: You are not alone and there is nothing wrong with you.

Our attitude: This isn’t fair. What have I done to deserve this?

Peter’s advice: It may not seem fair but, trust me on this, if we’d gotten what we truly deserve from God, we wouldn’t be alive right now.

Our attitude: It appears as if the pain and suffering will never cease. Why doesn’t it stop?

Peter’s advice: It will stop. It only appears unrelenting and unbearable right now because we live in the here and now but God promises hope and deliverance is on the horizon.

Our attitude: I thought God loved me. What a strange way to show it!

Peter’s advice: God really loves you. However, know the difference – He doesn’t promise to keep us from the trials of life but He does promise His grace to help us through.

As for how we should change our attitude in order to discover the hope in the hurting, here are four directions:

1. In suffering, rejoice instead of harbouring resentment (1 Peter 4:13)

Ask God for strength that you may keep your distance from bitterness. Even in pain and hurt, seek Him so you can discover the joy of purpose. This one might take a little while but be patient and God will make a way for you to experience it. 

2. In suffering, submit instead of fighting or resisting (1 Peter 2:21, 5:6)

Let it happen. You know it’s unavoidable; so don’t fight it. Just submit to God and let Him have His way with you.

3. In suffering, glorify God instead of focusing on the pain (1 Peter 4:11)

It’s easy to just keep complaining because that’s what we’re best at doing but we only end up focusing on the pain, which isn’t a very positive thing to do. Don’t highlight the pain; highlight God instead.

4. In suffering, humble and surrender ourselves (1 Peter 5:6-7)

If we give up the fight and do so with humility, God will reward us for our special effort. He wants so much to see us stop resisting Him. So stop living anxiety-ridden lives. Stop the drama and desist from disaffecting everyone else around you. It’s time to surrender, knowing that in reality, God cares so much for us.

You and I have an almost endless string of trials throughout our lives. Who doesn’t? If it’s not one thing, it’s another. If it isn’t now, it’ll be later. If it’s not this, it’s that. It’s everywhere around us simply because we choose to claim God’s promise of salvation through Christ and by doing so, we stake our faith to endure whatever life brings. It is this brand of faith that defines the way we should behave in times of trouble and need.

Peter reminds us in such a timely manner that in hope amidst our hurts, we must avoid the sharp end of bitterness and resentment. Instead be submissive to God for He knows best. Let Him take over and in so doing, we can glorify Him throughout our lives.

Humble ourselves and accept these times of trouble. Hold God’s Hand firmly and ride through the storms with Him. When we are weak, He makes us strong. When we are poor, His wealth makes us rich. For in times of pain and suffering, His grace is sufficient to see us through.

And even when we surely don’t fully understand it, not ours but God’s plan is perfect.