WISDOM WEDNESDAY 

Vol. 1 Issue 2 - 3-2-22

"But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ." 

- II Peter 3:18

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Greetings Church,

Over these last few days I have read many articles about the background of the conflict with Russia and Ukraine. I have also read much about identifying Russia in Ezekiel and its potential relationship with Gog and Magog. Along with these I have read, as well as you, the articles from The Gospel Coalition about the missionaries, pastors and churches who are remaining steadfast in the face of danger. When I put all these things together I realize we in the west have found a fascination with escapism. We have developed a false confidence, that is not in Scripture, that Christians are somehow exempt from suffering. Our spiritual elitism has promoted an arrogance that has distanced us from the truth of the Word and how the Lord uses suffering to stretch and strengthen our faith. As we saw in the message this past Sunday, Christ was testing his disciples concerning their understanding of who He was and how they were processing the truth revealed to them.

In the fall of 1996, after discovering that Peter could not see out of his right eye, I began a Bible Study at prayer meeting in the book of James. Our first night I shared the outcome of several doctors appointments concerning Peter's prognosis. These were the words I shared, "Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing." - James 1:2-4. I had read these verses many times and considered them along with others concerning suffering. But they did not come to life until we as a family and me as a pastor had to heed the command to count what we were going through as joy, as pure joy. The perspective that James was presenting is not an option for the believer but an honest expectation with a powerful result. Trials build steadfastness and bring us to completion in Christ, lacking in nothing. The qualifier is that we are to hold this perspective with joy, counting it as a given.

Suffering for many western Christians is foreign to our experience. What we consider suffering or trials are minuscule compared to others around the world. Last summer a brother in Christ went to glory after a battle with COVID. He had grown up in Moldova, which is on the western border of Ukraine. Growing up in a Christian home he was ridiculed by his community and was considered a Shtundist because of his faith in Christ. The word Shtundist comes from the German word Stunde ("hour") and referred to the practice of setting aside an hour for daily Bible study. In his experience though a positive description of his daily faith it was also a derogatory statement. Once identified as such they were avoided and demeaned in public. Daily they were called out because of their faithfulness to Jesus. That experience shaped him into an intensely passionate follower of Christ. He never used that identification in a negative manner. He let the Lord lead the way in the midst of persecution, trial and suffering and grew deeper in love with Jesus.

It is my prayer that as we become more aware of the sufferings of our brothers and sisters around the world that we would embrace the truth of the Word and prepare our hearts to be ready to suffer for Christ. May we prove to be steadfast, perfect, complete, lacking nothing because of what we suffer for Christ.

Blessings,

PBS