Saturday, December 31, 2011

Romans 5:3-5


3 Moreover [let us also be full of joy now!] let us exult and triumph in our troubles and rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that pressure and affliction and hardship produce patient and unswerving endurance.

The Bible asks us: how will people hear without a preacher, Romans 10:14? Far too many of us believe that troubles and sufferings come on us because we have done something wrong. That is flat out wrong and we need to preach this Truth! Troubles and sufferings come into our lives so that our Father can become stronger in us. Think about Jesus’ life, what did He do wrong? Jesus was perfect, yet He was constantly afflicted. He healed thousands of people and then they tried to kill Him. They were constantly trying to arrest Him and throw Him into jail. Look at Paul, Peter, John, and James. They were constantly being beaten, imprisoned, and killed and all they were doing was healing people and telling them that the Kingdom of Heaven was at hand and that Jesus came so that they could have life and have it more abundantly. 

Paul was sick all of the time, Galatians 4:14. So was Timothy, 1 Timothy 5:23. What did these two do wrong to suffer this? According to Paul what He did was get caught up to the third Heaven and hear powerful things, so our Father sent a messenger of satan to constantly harass him so that he would stay humble, 2 Corinthians 12:7. Paul actually began to rejoice when he was sick and afflicted because he realized that it was making our Father stronger in him, 2 Corinthians 12:10.  

4 And endurance (fortitude) develops maturity of character (approved faith and tried integrity). And character [of this sort] produces [the habit of] joyful and confident hope of eternal salvation.

5 Such hope never disappoints or deludes or shames us, for God's love has been poured out in our hearts through the Holy Spirit Who has been given to us.

We are plainly told in Romans 8:1 that there is now absolutely no condemnation for us who are in Christ. We are never left alone by our Father to do anything on our own. Our Father never leaves us or forsakes us, Hebrews 13:5. Jesus is always our Shepherd, we are never left alone to make a choice, because Jesus is always our Head. The glorious Truth is that we are persecuted and afflicted to cause us to be strong in our Father’s might. 

Here is the Truth: if we are doing things right, it is only because our Father has empowered us to do them right. This is why we cannot boast. So for this to be true, it also has to be true that if we are doing things wrong, it is only because our Father has not yet empowered us to do them right. This is why there is now no condemnation for us. Don’t ever let anyone, including yourself, tell you anything different. So rejoice in all things, even when you are suffering!

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