Day 7:
As Christians we have a purpose for living. Where the people of this world struggle to find an identity or purpose, the believer has a clearly defined identity with a purpose. What a joy and hope! We are saints, adopted children of the King of Kings, and the Bride of Christ. I Peter 2:9 says, “But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a Holy Nation, a people for God’s own possession, so that you may proclaim the excellencies of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light (italics added).”
Did you catch the italics? Those 2 words are the bridge to our very existence. The words before “so that” state our identity. The words after “so that” state our purpose. We are the select people of God to proclaim the excellencies of God. What an extraordinary task!
Our loving LORD has given us our marching orders. So, how do we accomplish our mission? From previous lessons we have learned that bearing fruit and confessing our sin uplifts the name of God. Another endeavor we can focus on is found in I Peter. Here we read these words: “Make sure that none of you suffers as a murderer, or thief, or evildoer, or a troublesome meddler; but if anyone suffers as a Christian, he is not to be ashamed, but is to glorify God in this name (I Peter 4:15-16).”
GOD ORDAINED SUFFERING
Hardships, trials, difficulties, and general suffering seems to be a looming part of our lives. Suffering is real and can even be chronic. We live as sojourners in a very broken world. Broken because sin has pervaded every aspect of this planet. Many bottles of ink have been used to produce countless books addressing the subject of suffering. It truly is an enormous subject to tackle. In this letter however, let us stay on task. How does our personal suffering bring our Heavenly Father glory? Let’s begin with Peter’s words and see where it leads us.
In the context of this verse, Christians throughout the Roman empire were being harassed, attacked and even killed simply because they were Christ followers. Peter, under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, tells his fellow believers to stand tall. To bring glory to God by proudly bearing the name “Christian.” And to make sure the suffering comes as a result of acting righteously. So, if suffering is par for the course in our earthly journey, how does this glorify our Savior?
The unanimous and overarching answer is God being directly credited with comforting us! II Corinthians 1:3-5 says, “Blessed be the God and Father of our LORD Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our afflictions so that we will be able to comfort those who are in any affliction with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God. For just as the sufferings of Christ are ours in abundance, so also our comfort is abundant through Christ.” Our LORD receives the praise for coming alongside us to provide the necessary encouragement we need to weather the storms of life. And the word Paul uses to describe this comfort God gives us is the word “abundant!”
Too often, we turn to other devices for comfort during duress. Excessive food, movie escapism, hobbies that distract us from the real problem, or another “happy place” where God is absent. Some Christians can even slip to temporary vices like pornography or alcohol. These are not solutions. They are not only sin, but rob God of glory as He longs to comfort us during our tough days.
For some, it is not enough to know God is our comforter. To simply say “God is our comforter” may sound vague to some or even impersonal. Perhaps we want something deeper. Something more specific and tangible to cling too during the affliction. Ok, I hear you. What exactly does God do to comfort us? God’s inerrant word tells us He:
Provides us with the proper perspective during suffering. Listen to these blessed words in II Thessalonians 2:16-17, “Now may our LORD Jesus Christ Himself and God our Father, who has loved us and given us eternal comfort and good hope by grace, comfort and strengthen your hearts in every good work and word (italics mine).” Suffering unfortunately takes our minds to the temporal. To the now. But God is always alongside us reminding us to think eternal. To think spiritual and heavenly. To remember that our eternal glory awaits us in short order. Please do not miss the tense of this part of the verse. It is saying it is already done. He has already given us this eternal comfort. We don’t have to wait for it. We possess this truth now! Paul drives this home with these words from Romans 8:18, “For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory that is to be revealed to us.” Maintaining an eternal perspective about affliction serves as the cornerstone for the rest of our lives.
“The LORD is near to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit (Psalm 34:18).”
Children of Light 
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