Trusting God, Part 12

Chapter 12: Growing through Adversity

"Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything" - James 1:2-4

"Adversities spoil our peace and sorely try out patience. God uses those difficulties to reveal to us our need to grow, so that we will reach out to Him to change us more and more into the likeness of his son" - Jerry Bridges. "Blessed is the man you discipline, O Lord, the man you teach from your law" - Psalm 94:12. Thus, suffering is essentially God showing you His love for you. "God disciplines us [through adversity] for our good, that we may share in his holiness" - Hebrews 12:10

On the cross Jesus could look beyond his suffering to the joy set before him. We have been given everything through Christ. We should look beyond the minor (in comparison) struggle that we're going through and look forward to what God has in store for us. "Being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus" - Philippians 1:6

Strategies for dealing with adversity:

1. Sometimes it will be very clear what God is doing and we should respond in humble obedience. Other times we need to have faith what God is doing will work itself out for God's plan
2. To profit most from adversity we should bring the word of God to bear upon every situation. We should ask God to bring to our attention pertinent passages of scripture and then in dependence on Him to do so, look for those passages. Adversity enhances the teaching of God's word and makes it more profitable to us.
3. In order to profit from our adversities we must remember them and the lessons we learned from them.

"Evert branch that does bear fruit [God] prunes so that it will be even more fruitful" - John 15:2. Adversities cause us to focus on what is really important. Even as believers we still tend to pour our spiritual energies into that which is not God. For example, we pour ourselves into things like:

• position
• success
• reputation - even within the body of Christ

"In making us holy, God goes deeper than just specific sins we may be conscious of. He wants to get to the root cause: the corruption of our sinful nature manifested in the rebellion of our wills, the perversity of our affections, and the spiritual ignorance of our minds. God uses adversities to enlighten our minds about our own needs as well as the teachings of scripture." - Jerry Bridges

We can't rely on ourselves. Rather, we MUST rely on God: "Apart from me you can do nothing" - John 15:5. "I can do everything through him who gives me strength" - Philippians 4:13. "For Christ's sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For When I am weak, then I am strong" - 2 Corinthians 12:10

"you need to persevere so that when you have done the will of God you will receive what he has promised" - Hebrews 10:36. Lifting weights develops muscle, and the more one's muscles are developed, the heavier the weights he (or she) can lift.

"God comforts our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves have received from God" - 2 Corinthians 1:4. To the extent we are able to lay hold of the great truths of the sovereignty, wisdom, and love of God and find comfort and encouragement from them in our adversities, we will be able to minister to others in their times of distress.

"The ground is level at the foot of the cross" - regardless of our wealth, power, or position we all NEED the same savior.

"In the fellowship of suffering we are looking at a way in which we profit as members of the whole body of Christ. The Christian life is not meant to be lived privately in isolation from other believers. It is to be lived as members of the body of Christ." - Bridges

"I want to know Christ and the power of his resurrection and the fellowship of sharing in his sufferings, becoming like him in his death" - Philippians 3:10. Knowing Christ and suffering is a package deal. ALL pain HAS meaning. ALL adversity IS profitable.