“It is good for me that I was afflicted, that I might learn Your statutes.” – Psalm 119:71

Why is affliction, adversity and pain weaved into the path of one who seriously pursues God? One would expect a life of success and perpetual prosperity, not trials! Does God get some thrill or some pleasure out of watching His people suffer? Is it some kind of game? Why not choose a more comfortable route, a more gentle way in perfecting those He has called and chosen to reflect the image of Jesus Christ?

The modern trendy gospel does not advocate the biblical message that those who desire to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will encounter many trials. The popular mainstream gospel of today shies away from the biblical truth that many are the afflictions of the righteous. In all of the ongoing trends of ‘naming it’ and ‘claiming it’ to reach and maintain that constant aptitude of, “I’m blessed without a hassle in the world”, makes me wonder how on earth do they view the apostle Paul’s life. What do they think when they read of Paul’s suffering for the gospel of Jesus Christ? Surely such conflicting accounts must ‘throw a spanner into the works’. Either Paul just had a raw deal in life and is a real example on how not to complain at life’s challenges, or he is one who lacked faith, living under a perpetual defeatist mentality which resulted in missing out on so much ‘success’. Paul would not have been popular today; we would not have flocked to hear him; he would have been the underdog in the majority of westernized evangelical circles. He would never have drawn in the crowds that are for the making of a mega circus (meant to say church) who fiscally turns over $70,000,000.00! No, Paul was too weak and would have been an embarrassment to our so-called successful evangelistic and church growth techniques! On that note, we may as well hold in contempt the fact that God chose the weak things of this world to shame the strong, and the foolish in the world to shame the wise. We would have chosen an alternate path, anything other than the cross for Christ to obtain our salvation; the Lord of glory crucified in weakness?! The son of God afflicted and bruised for our punishment?! Our very trends breathe a sense of shame for the ways of God.

Have we not realized that the greatest display of God’s power to humanity was not in creating this world, the universe, parting the Red Sea, feeding the 5,000, calming the violent storm, healing the sick or raising the dead, but rather through the weakness and shame of the cross of Christ? That and that alone is what made it possible for God to raise us from our spiritual death to stand justified before Him being reconciled unto Him.

Why then the need for affliction and adversity? If Christ was afflicted through His life and death in our stead – why the necessity of our suffering? Did not Christ say on the cross, “It is finished.”? Was not our salvation obtained through Christ’s death and resurrection? Did He not wipe out our debt? Well then, why all these heartaches and trials?

Christ’s atonement is the only grounds for our justification, our status, our peace with God; our sanctification generally mediated through our afflictions is what brings us to the effects, outworking and experience of our position in Christ. “Through many tribulations we must enter the kingdom of God.” Affliction and adversity drives away stupidity and foolishness that still lie within us. God intends that we grow up into Christ in all things, to conform to His image. It is the very circumstances we cry out to God to deliver us from that are the very means that promote and accelerate the sanctifying work of God, “He delivers the afflicted by their affliction and opens their ear by adversity.” – Job 36:15. Job was far richer towards God as a result of his trials; “NOW my eye sees You.” – Job 42:5.

Oswald Chambers said, “God is only after one thing, a right relation to Himself, and He does not care about our physical comforts. Until we are rightly related to Him, God will play havoc with every comfort and relationship we have.” This may sound harsh and cruel, but I verify the truth of such a statement by my own experience of it. God has bought our souls with a price of His Son’s Blood, never to be in vain, but to yield fruit. God has put His mark on His children that no matter what the cost, He will bring about the soil of our lives in harmony to the image of His Son. This is God’s love, God’s persevering and unending love, carrying on the work in us Who began and has promised to complete, delivering us from our folly and bringing us to a deeper realization and experience of our unsearchable riches and inheritance in Him.

The Psalmist said, “It is good for me that I have been afflicted that I might learn Your ways.” It is good. The discipline of God does not damage us. It will wound our pride and show how utterly weak we are, and that we dare not lean on ourselves but run to Him Who is worthy of trusting and to completely lean upon. Hebrews 12:11 states, “…but later it (affliction) yields a peaceful fruit of righteousness to those trained by it.” Through affliction we are made wise and richer; God desires that we live life in abundance, and pruning and removing the weeds and rubble in our lives gives room for that very thing. We are promised in Psalm 34:19 that despite the many afflictions of the righteous, the Lord delivers them out of them ALL.

We will thank and worship God in time and stand humble and amazed that God’s love and mercy was behind it all, even though we questioned Him and doubted Him. “Behind a frowning providence, He hides a smiling face.” He does ALL things well.