Difficult Blessings

Pastor Darryl Bentley

November 28, 2009

Midland SDA Church

 

Homiletical Idea: Life offers us many opportunities to praise the Lord.  Most of us find it really easy to identify those reasons when life is going well, but when difficulties arise we may struggle to be thankful for the challenges that we face.  God wants us to praise Him in the good times and the bad.  The more difficult the situation, the greater can be our glorification of God.

 

Morning Prayer

Pastor: “Good morning Lord.”

God: “Good morning my son.”

Pastor: “Lord, I have to tell You.  I am not very happy this morning.”

God: “I’m sorry to hear that my child.  What troubles your heart today?”

Pastor: “Well Lord, I have been praying to You for weeks regarding my son, and it is if You have not heard my prayers at all.  He has been sick for so long, and he is just a little boy.  Lord, what has he done that he deserves to suffer like this?  Each week I pour out my heart to share Your love with the world, but I am beginning to wonder if Your love is for a select few.”

God: “My dear child, I am well aware of the suffering that your son is going through.  Believe me, I can relate to watching your son suffer and feeling as if your hands are tied.  My son, there are times when healing is not the greatest need.  There are times when we must allow events to run their course so that all things can work together for the greater good.”

Pastor: “Lord, I understand all of that from a logical standpoint, but it does not make it easier to deal with.  My heart breaks each time my son asks me why You have not healed him.  I am beginning to wonder if I should trust You at all.”

God: “My Son, for many long years you have remained faithful to Me.  Do not lose your way now and forsake all that you have held dear for so many years.  This time with your son is a test for you and your family.  If you will continue to stay true to Me during this time of trial then you will be stronger as a result of it.  You will be able to help others as they pass through similar trials.  I promise you, my son, if you remain true through the fire then great will be your reward in heaven”

Pastor: “Father, I want to believe You.  I really do, but I am not looking for a promise of better future.  I am looking for help for my son now.  I’ll be back when I am convinced that You want to help me.  Good bye and Amen.”

 

Does the Shoe Fit?

            There is an old adage in this country that says, “If the shoe fits, then wear it.”  Of course most of us know that the saying means: if what is being said applies to you then should probably pay attention.  Jesus used a version of this saying when He was on earth.  We find an example of this in Revelation 2:7 when He says, “He who has an ear let him hear…”  This phrase is repeated throughout the messages to the seven churches. 

While there are many lessons that we can learn from the messages to the seven churches that will not be our focus today.  I simply want us to understand that the stories and teachings we have in the Bible are there for a purpose.  They are there that we might learn God’s will for our lives, and not repeat the mistakes of those who have gone before us.

            When you heard my simulated prayer a few minutes ago I am certain that some of you have probably had some similar thoughts expressed in my pretend prayer.  Some of you have likely wondered if God hears your prayers at all.  You may wonder if you are good enough to even call on God.  You may have wondered, “How can a loving God allow sin to go seemingly unchecked in the world?”  Today, I want to give you hope.  I want you to know that God always hears our prayers, and He always answers them.  He will either say yes, no, or wait a while.  The prerogative is His and His alone.

            But what type of response does God expect from us when we face adversity?  Is it wrong for us to complain?  Should we not seek justice for ourselves and those around us?  One of the best ways to understand God’s will for our lives is to see how He led in someone else’s life.

 

A Tale of Two Preachers: Transition to the Text

            In the early days of the Christian church the going was pretty tough.  There were very few established churches.  There were two predominate groups of religious believers: Jews and Pagans.  The Jews hated Christians and the Pagans were indifferent in many ways.  Imagine, if you can, being called to establish the work in this type of religious climate.  Imagine traveling for days on foot, horseback, or ship only to arrive to a town where the people wanted you to leave faster than you came.  This was the life of a pastor in the days of the early Christian church.

            Among those faithful to the spreading of the gospel were two men.  One commissioned from Antioch and the other from Jerusalem.  Both were recognized from among the brethren as those whom the Lord was leading.  Their lives were a testimony to the goodness of God’s grace and mercy.

            As these two companions traveled together they were directed by the Holy Spirit to preach in the Greek city of Macedonia (Acts 16:9).  After being there for a few days the Sabbath came.  These two pastors went outside the city where they had heard some met to have prayer (Acts 16:13).  It was there that they found some women who were willing to hear the gospel message.  The message was so well received that one of the ladies and all her house were baptized and joined the church (Acts 16:15a).  Not only this, but they also insisted that these pastors and their companions stay with them while they were in town (Acts 16:15b).

 

Trouble Comes Calling

            This is where our story turns sour for our two traveling pastors. Open your Bibles with me to Acts 16 and let’s see how this story unfolds.

**Read Acts 16:16-ff**

            At first their work in Macedonia was going very well.  They had already seen an entire household baptized for Jesus.  But as with all who attempt to spread the gospel, Satan was not happy with what was happening. So he sends a girl whom his demons were possessing.  She is one who had been telling fortunes and the like throughout the city to great profit for her masters.

            When we come to verse 17 an accusation against this girl is laid out.  Why would it have been wrong for her to proclaim what was literally happening?  It would seem that Paul and his band of traveling ministers would be proud of the fact that they were “bond-servants of the Most High God”.  Why was this a source of irritation for Paul?  We should consider the fact that although Paul and his companions were very happy to be about their Father’s business, they did not want to arouse prejudice against themselves unnecessarily.

            I experienced this same thing first-hand when I was a literature evangelist.  There were some areas that had a very high prejudice against Seventh-day Adventists.  If they knew when I came to the door that I was an Adventist then my chances of getting in and sharing books with them was slim to none.

            Such was the case for Paul and company too.  When they came into a new area they were very careful about who they went to first.  They tried to be cautious so as to win as many converts for the gospel as possible.

 

Unhappy Masters & Public Humiliation

            After Paul casted out the demon from the slave girl she lost her “ability” to tell fortunes.  This had been a lucrative source of income for her masters and when this source suddenly dried up they were quite upset; so much so that they physically dragged Paul and Silas before the magistrates.

            The whole scene caused uproar and the people—likely under Satanic influence themselves—joined in the condemnation of Paul and Silas.  This is exactly what they had been trying to prevent by silencing the girl to begin with.  On the surface things appear to have backfired.

            The part that happens next would be enough to send most of us looking for another career.  After being dragged before the officials they were stripped naked and publically beaten with rods.  As if this was not enough, they were then thrown into prison.  And not just imprisoned, they were placed into the deepest part of the prison and locked into the stocks. 

 

Reasons to Leave?

Talk about a bad day in the ministry.  Talk about having cause to wonder if God is really with you.  Talk about having serious thoughts about whether you should be in the ministry.  I dare say most of us would have quickly decided to go into other work at this moment.  You see today we know nothing of this type of sacrifice; including me. Because too often in our churches we are content to warm a pew while our neighbors know nothing of Jesus and His love.  Too often we are content to warm the pews while we wonder why the church is not growing like it could.

Maybe what the modern church needs is a dose of persecution to fan the flames of zeal for the gospel of Christ.  If you study the history of the Dark Ages and the Protestant Reformation you will soon see that it was persecution that fueled evangelism.  Each martyr’s death served to sow seeds for the gospel.  Where one Christian died 1,000 more sprang up in their place. 

Please do not get me wrong today friends.  I am not suggesting that I want to see people killed so that our world church can experience more growth, but I am saying that it is time to get motivated for the Lord.  The time is here where we must be either hot or cold for Jesus.  If we are found to be lukewarm we will be vomited from the Lord’s mouth (Revelation 3:16).

 

The Rest of the Story

            While sitting in the dark recesses of a Macedonian prison Paul and Silas had time to consider their calling.  Imagine if you can how miserable they could have chosen to be.  Being placed in the stocks did not allow them to even situate themselves in such a way as to avoid lying against their fresh wounds. 

            Like my simulated prayer in the beginning, they might have found reason to doubt God’s love for them.  They might have found solid reasons for heading home upon their release from jail.  But they reacted in a way that can only be accomplished through being totally sold out to Jesus.  They began to pray.  They began to sing.  Not quietly and secretly, but in such a way that the other prisoners heard them.

            I praise God this morning that not only did the prisoners hear the praying and singing, but the Almighty heard their prayer and songs as well.  He heard and answered!  I love verse 16:26.  The Lord caused a mighty earthquake to shake the prison so that all the doors flew open and the chains fell from all the prisoners.  Do you see a principle here?  When we are faithful to God and live in such a way as to show that we are faithful, people will want to serve our God.  When we are faithful to God then our chains of bondage will come off, and because people will choose to serve the Lord their chains will come off too.  Sadly, the inverse of this is true too.  If we do not believe in God’s ability and love why should the world who does not know Him believe?

 

Jailhouse Conversion

            When the jailer realized the entire security of his prison had been breached he wanted to kill himself (Acts 16:27).  Thankfully, Paul intervened in time to let him know that everyone was still in their cells.  This story ends with Paul and Silas being able to preach to this man and his family, and they were all baptized.  Eventually they were publically released and asked to peacefully leave the city.

 

Difficult Blessings

            Today as we consider this story I want you to think about the difficult times in your life.  Thursday of this week we celebrated Thanksgiving.  Our family had a delicious meal with all the trimmings.  My wife is a wonderful cook.  And for us life is going very well.  We feel so very blessed to have the churches that we do and during our time here both churches have been growing.  But when things are going well it is easy to praise God is it not?  When we have plenty to eat, plenty to wear, a warm place to sleep, and good health then life is good.  But what is our response when these comforts of life are challenged or taken away completely?  Do we then question God’s goodness?  Do wonder if He has abandoned us?

            There is no question that life will have difficulties.  The question comes in how we respond to those difficulties.  Today it is my goal to challenge you to seek the blessings that lie amidst the difficult times of life.  When we stay close to God during the tough times and realize that He is with us despite the hardships we are then able to become more like Christ. 

During His own difficult time Jesus prayed that the cup might pass from before Him, but each time He prayed this prayer He came back to the same end: “Thy will be done.”  This should be our same response.  I do not think it wrong to pray and ask God to take away our problems.  Nor do I think we should carry our hurt as a badge of pride.  As we face difficulty we should bear that to the throne of grace, but if God says, “My grace is sufficient for you” then we should be willing to continue to follow God all the way.  We must not allow Satan to discourage us and walk away from God.

 

Wrap-up & Appeal

            What will be your reaction to difficult times in life?  Will you continue to march forward in faith or will you buckle under and lose your crown?  There are rich blessings to be had in the difficulties of life.  Will you stay close enough to Jesus to receive your difficult blessings?  Let us pray.