2 Corinthians 12:9 – Why Does It Have to Hurt? – Bible study

2 Corinthains 12:9 Why Does It Have to Hurt? 2Cor 12:9 And he said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness. Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me. The Apostle Paul knew something about pain, betrayal, tears, lonliness, and hurt. He lived with it on a daily basis; yet he learned that it was better to suffer with Jesus than to live the "good life" without Him. One of the most often asked questions by the saved and the lost is, "Why do we suffer?" The question may not be phrased just like that. It can be asked in a myriad of ways. a. Why me? b. What did I do to deserve this? And it is not always in a "me-centered" fashion. Three weeks ago Sometimes it can be "other centered." Just three weeks ago, Hurricane Laura hit the Louisiana shore line. As of September 6, 25 had died in Louisiana and the last record I could find was 4 died in Texas. https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-53955186#:~:text= Fourteen%20people%20are%20now%20confirmed, fire%20from%20an%20industrial%20plant. https://time.com/5886488/hurricane-laura-death-toll-louisiana/ This week, tropical storm Sally is in the gulf. At present, it appears to be shirting the entire gulf coast, dumping as much as 4 inches of rain per hour on it, and is projected to become a hurricane before coming ashore on the Louisiana coast later this week. Some could ask, "How could God allow this? These people have not recovered from the last hurricane and now another is headed for them." The bottom line is no matter whether it is about us or about others, it is still the same question, WHY DOES IT HAVE TO HURT? The Bible makes it clear that Christians are to suffer. I will not read the verses for time’s sake, but consider the different writers who spoke to Christians about suffering. James: James 5:13 Is any among you afflicted? let him pray. Is any merry? let him sing psalms. Unknown: Hebrews 10:32 But call to remembrance the former days, in which, after ye were illuminated, ye endured a great fight of afflictions; Paul: Romans 5:3 And not only so, but we glory in tribulations also: knowing that tribulation worketh patience; Jesus also had much to say on the topic! These verses teach us that we are not just going to suffer for Christ, but that we are to have a share, perhaps an equal or even larger portion of suffering than the lost world in this affair. So why do we get sick? get laid off? have accidents? face death at an early age? have unexpected bills? become the victims of crime? of fire? of storms? of drought? suffer at the hands of evil doers? And on the list goes. I. Let me share some WRONG reasons of why. A. It is not because God enjoys our suffering. 1. God is not cruel. 2. God takes no pleasure in our sufferings. 3. God is not seeking to get even. 4. The Psalm 100:5 says that the Lord is good. 5. 1John 4:8 calls God LOVE. 6. You cannot possibly reconcile a good God who IS love as being one that enjoys seeing others hurt any more than a parent should enjoy seeing their child cry. B. It is not necessarily because we have done any particular evil. 1. Note that I say NECESSARILY. 2. The Bible does teach that sometimes evil events are the direct results of evil actions. a. I am currently preaching through Revelations. How could we say that God never sends pain and suffering as part of justice? b. By the same token, God can also use pain and suffering for correction. A wise person should go to God in times of adversity to see if they might have brought an evil upon them, but it that will not always the case. 3. Sometimes the sweetest, most Christ-like people suffer. C. It is not because God couldnt stop the suffering. 1. Some apply logic to God and come to false conclusions. a. The fault is not in the logic. b. The fault is in the lack of knowledge. c. Logic will only work when you have sufficient understanding. 2. People have reasoned that if there is a God and suffering, there are two possibilities. a. God is evil. b. God is weak. 3. Both conclusions are wrong. 4. Some years ago I watched a video about Charles Darwin. a. I had never thought much about it but just supposed he was a God-doubter and a God-hater. b. That is not true. c. In fact, he considered being an Anglican minister. d. By his own testimony, given late in life, he never became an atheist; but the older he got the more of an agnostic he became. e. It started because he had questions about God and Gods dealings with man that he could answerand I suppose the preachers and teachers of his day could not either. f. So he began to open his mind to new possibilities. g. And as is always the cause, where ever there is a lacking in truth, the devil will fill it with a lie. h. How many souls could have been spared damnation if only someone had helped Charles Darwin fill in the gaps of missing knowledge. II. Where did suffering come from? A. Short answers: 1. Suffering was not "created" by God as we understand creation. 2. Suffering came in with sin. B. For a longer answer, we would need to go the Scriptures. 1. Ezekiel 28:11-15 Ezekiel 28:11 Moreover the word of the LORD came unto me, saying, 12 Son of man, take up a lamentation upon the king of Tyrus, and say unto him, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Thou sealest up the sum, full of wisdom, and perfect in beauty. 13 Thou hast been in Eden the garden of God; every precious stone was thy covering, the sardius, topaz, and the diamond, the beryl, the onyx, and the jasper, the sapphire, the emerald, and the carbuncle, and gold: the workmanship of thy tabrets and of thy pipes was prepared in thee in the day that thou wast created. 14 Thou art the anointed cherub that covereth; and I have set thee so: thou wast upon the holy mountain of God; thou hast walked up and down in the midst of the stones of fire. 15 Thou wast perfect in thy ways from the day that thou wast created, till iniquity was found in thee. a. The passage is describing how God created Satan. (1) \#12\ "sealest up the sum" – He was the total package. (2) \#12\ "full of wisdom" (3) \#12\ "perfect in beauty" – \#13\ describes Satans unique beauty. b. \#15\ He was "PERFECT IN HIS WAYS FROM THE DAY" he was created until "iniquity, " that is sin, "was found in" him. (1) God never created anything flawed or sinful, not even the devil. (2) What God created was a perfect heaven with a sinless being and God gave him a choice, (3) Satan choose to sin and that is where sin originally began. 2. If you want to read more about Satans sin, read \#Is 14:12-15\. 3. Genesis 3:14-19 a. This passage shows what happened AFTER Satan tricked Eve into sinning. b. It is the same scenario: God created a perfect world with sinless people and gave them a choice. c. This time, Satan became an added force, tempting Eve to do wrong; but it was Adam and Eve choose to sin. d. When they sinned, they brought in pain, death, and suffering. C. So where did suffering come from? It is a mutation created by sin, Satan, and mankind. III. Is there a cure for suffering? A. The short answer is, "No, not in this life time." B. Even salvation does not stop suffering. 1. Granted, in some ways, being saved with lessen some suffering. a. Salvation gives us wisdom to make better choices so that sin cannot hurt us as much. b. The Bible does teach that Christ has borne SOME of our suffering. Isaiah 53:5 But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed. c. However, Christ left a good-sized cup of suffering for each Christian to partake of. (Just look around.) 2. In another way, getting saved will intensify your suffering. a. Many preach a false gospel of prosperity and plenty for the Christian. b. The truth is that getting saved and living right will likely open a whole new door of suffering up to you. 2Timothy 3:12 Yea, and all that will live godly in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution. c. Jesus spoke of this often. Matthew 5:11 Blessed are ye, when men shall revile you, and persecute you, and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely, for my sake. Matthew 10:22 And ye shall be hated of all men for my names sake: but he that endureth to the end shall be saved. Matthew 24:9 Then shall they deliver you up to be afflicted, and shall kill you: and ye shall be hated of all nations for my names sake. C. The joy of the Christian is that in the midst of all of our suffering, Jesus will be with us. John 14:27 Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid. Isaiah 43:2 When thou passest through the waters, I will be with thee; and through the rivers, they shall not overflow thee: when thou walkest through the fire, thou shalt not be burned; neither shall the flame kindle upon thee. 1. As for myself so far, I would rather have gone through my troubles with Jesus than to have not had my troubles without Him. 2. I do not say that I have had many troubles so far in my life and I do not say that is true of every Christian, but so far, it is true of me. IV. Is there anything good which can come from the suffering? A. To give the short answer again, "Yes." 1. But every person must decide whether they will let good come from their suffering or not. a. We have no choice about our suffering. b. Whether we are a Christian or not, it will come. c. We do have a choice what good we will let God bring from our suffering. 2. Verses: Romans 5:3 And not only so, but we glory in tribulations also: knowing that tribulation worketh patience; 4 And patience, experience; and experience, hope: Romans 8:28 And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose. B. What kind of good can come out of our suffering? 1. Our suffering increases our faith. Romans 1:17 For therein is the righteousness of God revealed from faith to faith: as it is written, The just shall live by faith. 2. Our suffering allows us to empathize with the lost. 2Cor 1:5 For as the sufferings of Christ abound in us, so our consolation also aboundeth by Christ. 6 And whether we be afflicted, it is for your consolation and salvation, which is effectual in the enduring of the same sufferings which we also suffer: or whether we be comforted, it is for your consolation and salvation. 3. Our suffering teaches us godly characteristics. 1Peter 5:10 But the God of all graceafter that ye have suffered a while, make you perfect, stablish, strengthen, settle you. a. endurance b. gratitude c. compassion d. kindness e. patience f. obedience 4. Our suffering demonstrates Gods confidence in us. 1Cor 10:13 There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it. a. I do not want to cause theological problems, but I am not sure that means we can handle our problems the moment they arrive. b. I think that might meanthat if we let HimGod is going to make us strong enough to handle them before they are over. c. You might not think you can, but God knows you can with His help. 5. Our suffering often opens a new door of ministry. 2Corinthians 1:4 Who comforteth us in all our tribulation, that we may be able to comfort them which are in any trouble, by the comfort wherewith we ourselves are comforted of God. a. No one understand the hurt you have felt better than the person who has felt it too. b. 6. Our suffering allows us to share something in common with Christ. Philippians 3:10 That I may know him, and the power of his resurrection, and the fellowship of his sufferings, being made conformable unto his death; The greatest demonstration that our God can bring good out of bad is not our lives. It is the cross. Our Lord suffered as no one else ever will, but from that suffering came the greatest good.