Thursday: The Suffering God
We might as well get used to it: as long as we are here, in this world, we are going to suffer. As fallen creatures, it is our fate. Nothing in the Bible promises us anything different. On the contrary …
What do the following verses have to tell us about the topic at hand? Acts 14:22, Philippians 1:29, 2 Timothy 3:12.
Image © John Clement Collection at Goodsalt.com
Yet, in the midst of our suffering, two things we should keep in mind.
First, Christ, our Lord, has suffered worse than any of us ever could. At the cross, He “has borne our griefs and carried our sorrows” (Isaiah 53:4, NKJV); what we know only as individuals, He suffered corporately, for us all. He who was sinless became “sin for us” (2 Corinthians 5:21), suffering in a way that we, as sinful creatures, couldn’t begin to imagine.
But second, as we suffer, we should remember the results of Christ’s suffering, that is, what we have been promised through what Christ has done for us.
Read John 10:28, Romans 6:23, Titus 1:2, and 1 John 2:25. What are we promised?
Whatever our sufferings here, thanks to Jesus, thanks to His bearing in Himself the punishment of our sin, thanks to the great provision of the gospel — that through faith we can stand perfect in Jesus right now — we have the promise of eternal life. We have the promise that because of what Christ has done, because of the fullness and completeness of His perfect life and perfect sacrifice, our existence here, full of pain, disappointment, and loss, is no more than an instant, a flash, here and gone, in contrast to the eternity that awaits us, an eternity in a new heaven and a new earth, one without sin, suffering, and death. And all this is promised to us and made certain for us only because of Christ and the crucible He went into so that one day, coming soon, He would see “the travail of his soul, and shall be satisfied” (Isaiah 53:11).
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It looks to me like Christ died twice - once on Thursday evening in Gethsemane and once on Friday on the cross ...
In the garden, He was dying and it was only the angel coming to Him from the throne room of heaven that strengthened Him to live long enough to be abused and to suffer and die on the cross.
As I mentioned on Tuesday, the burden of sin descended on Jesus as a dark load on His way to Gethsemane, and Christ was so overwhelmed not just emotionally and mentally but also physically, that the disciples had to support Him to keep Him from falling.
And this separation from the Father is what struck terror to the soul of Christ. That's why He prayed that the "cup" be taken from Him, if it were at all possible. He prayed that prayer three times ...
So what was the effect of "divine justice" falling on Jesus? Did the Father kill Him? Clearly not. But the Father, the LifeGiver and Sustainer, withdrew His Presence, and I believe that's what caused Christ to die. At the same time, the Father was "in Christ" reconciling the world to Himself. Thus ..
What are the implications of an angel coming, not to take "the cup" from Him, but to strengthen Him to drink it? While the devil had been taunting Christ with the fact that the people He had come to save were rejecting Him, the angel told Him that many souls would be saved through His sacrifice. That revived His soul and strengthened Him to go through the continual physical, emotional and mental abuse of the next 15 - 17 hours. He could have died in the garden. Why did the Father not let Him die then?
We are told that the physical suffering on the cross - even though it was a method of execution designed to cause the greatest amount of suffering and indignity - paled in comparison to the mental and emotional anguish.
Throughout the day and even on the cross, Satan pressed Him with the temptation to leave humanity to its fate and return to His heavenly home and the adoration of angels and love of the Father. Even on the cross, they taunted Him with, "He saved others. Let him save himself!" He could have done it. He could have returned to heaven, but then humanity would have no hope ..
Did you get that? Christ feared that His separation from the Father would be eternal. In the midst of His suffering He could not see the hope of the resurrection. He was willing to give up heaven for you and for me!
So much food for thought ... so much mystery .. I need to review these scenes regularly in my imagination. Reading the account in the Desire of Ages helps me see things a little clearer. I hope you can do the same ... and share your thoughts ...
2 Corinthians 5:21 is a verse that is typically used to support the suggestion that, on the cross, Jesus was experiencing punishment (in the form of a 'death penalty') that God must impose for 'sin'. This is a widely held assumption within Christianity. And because it is, it becomes the 'filter' through which other bible verses and phrases are interpreted.
But is this assumption what was actually going on - even though it is widely assumed to be? Or is it possible that something else actually going on? Was Jesus essentially suffering at the hand of God because a holy and righteous God must impose a penalty for sin/s? Or it is possible that God, Jesus and the Holy Spirit were all suffering together 'as one' (John 17:11,21) in the course of addressing the core problem of the sin condition within humanity?
I would invite those who are interested to have a very careful and 'fresh' re-read of key atonement passages such as Hebrews 2:9-11,14-15,17; Romans 5:19; Philippians 2:8; Isaiah 53:5,12. Are these passages actually affirming that the atonement solution was Jesus having to bear of an imposed penalty/punishment by God for sin/s? Or are these passages perhaps reflecting the whole of the Godhead supporting Jesus to become a valid human (the Second Adam) who re-traced the steps of the First Adam but this time held on to self-renouncing love* no matter what? That the whole of the Godhead was together 'waring' against Satan's claim that such was not possible?
What do you see?
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* Recall that Ellen White states that self-renouncing love is the 'law' (ie, cause-and-effect principle) that life on earth and heaven is based upon. Therefore, by faithfully holding on to and remaining in harmony with (ie being 'obedient' to) this principle, Jesus became the first human to retain connection with eternal life - an inheritance He then shares with all who are willing to be re-born (John 3:3-6) back to a new heart and right spirit (Psalm 51:10; Ezekiel 36:26).
An outsider who would read this study might mistakenly conclude that we only enjoy the afterlife. That outlook and eternal time is and will be, indeed an enormous joy. But also in this life, our gratitude for all that is good here, that is given us, and seeing our God in that, makes our lives beautiful. And noticing our characters being improved and our positive influence on others is also a great joy. Especially if they make the same choice and have the same experience. Paul writes about the fruits of the Spirit, love and joy being two of them. And how right he is. Hallelujah! Praise God!
I would like to add. Please pray for me and we pray for one another. God bless you!
Paul, yes the lesson specifies suffering only to draw our attention to what Christ has done for us here on earth.
To be part of the kingdom of heaven, we ultimately face hard times remember the extreme case of Job because we live in a state of war between good and evil.
Though Satan does attack, and sometimes entices believers to fall into sin, ultimately we are victorious through Christ. This is the promise of God! The Apostle Paul declared:
The Lord will rescue me from every evil attack and save me for His heavenly kingdom. To Him be the glory forever and ever. Amen. 2.Timothy 4:18
So God does not leave us alone in our suffering status which gives us hope and courage.
Also there are many promises for those who suffer for Christ‘s sake. Mathew 19:29
And every one that hath forsaken houses, or brethren, or sisters, or father, or mother, or wife or children, or lands, for my name's sake, shall receive an hundredfold, and shall inherit everlasting life.
This is my case since 42 years being ostracized by my family because of my conversion, yet I‘m not waiting for the eternal inheritance in order to start enjoying life. I live continually under God‘s grace and mercy here on earth that fills me with hope and joy for belonging to Gods kingdom.
I am torn by awfulness of what our Saviour went through. I did not even want to read it all. Setting aside the feelings I read anyway. And have gained a blessing. The illumination of Desire of Ages is such a blessing. In chapter 79 "It Is Finished" reminds us how sin is to God, stimulating us by His power to aboabolish sin counting it as rubbish, as we are forgiven, by the asking. Comfort asked about in yesterday's lesson is pointed out in Chapter 79. The battle over Satan was won.
Christ did not yield up His life till He had accomplished the work which He came to do, and with His parting breath He exclaimed, "It is finished." John 19:30. The battle had been won. His right hand and His holy arm had gotten Him the victory. As a Conqueror He planted His banner on the eternal heights. Was there not joy among the angels? All heaven triumphed in the Saviour's victory. Satan was defeated, and knew that his kingdom was lost. Desire of Ages 758.1
Christ victory gives us comfort in that He will continue to fight off Satan for us. Something we cannot do of ourselves. We must though put on the armor of God the breastplate plate of His righteousness. Above all take the shield of faith. Ephesians 6:14-17.
We can't possibly understand or imagine what Jesus went through while on the cross. He came here in the flesh and all while here going about his Father's business,in continuous contact. Then,that separation that He had never ever experienced before because of the world's sin. What a love he has for us all!