Joyful Endurance

Joyful Endurance
by Wisdom Hunter 7/21/2016
 
Throughout the Bible, we learn that joy and pain sometimes go hand in hand. Or rather, we could say that it is through pain and trials that God brings about His plan for us and the world in which we live.
 
If you have pain or sorrow in your life, it doesn’t necessarily mean that you’ve done something wrong or that God is mad at you. In Biblical times, this was the common theory. Think of the question posed to Jesus:
“Who sinned, this man or his parents; that he was born blind?” (Jn. 9:2). While this may have been the accepted wisdom of the day, how do you make sense of the cross?
 
The cross is the deepest injustice the world has ever seen, and yet, through the pain and suffering of God Himself; we are given the gift of hope and peace. The cross was not forced upon Jesus, nor was it Him “getting what He deserved”; but was instead something He endured so that the joy of the resurrection and the hope of eternal life might be known and experienced by those He loves. We need the same clarity and determination that Christ possessed!
 
We, as His people, must constantly be looking to see where Jesus is going; and not let anything distract us from knowing Him and being made into His likeness. In light of the cross, we must have this enduring spirit – even when it is hard, even when it is painful, and even when it is costly.
 
As Paul reminds us in Phil. 3:10; his desire is to “know Christ and the power of His resurrection, and to share in His sufferings, becoming like him in his death.”  Just as Jesus joyfully endured the pain of the cross; we too as His people are invited to know His life and joy, even in the midst of pain or trial. Be comforted today by the love of God shown on the cross and learn afresh from the Spirit how to find your joy in Him.