The incomprehensible glory of suffering!
The Spirit Himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, and if children, then heirs–heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ, if indeed we suffer with Him, that we may also be glorified together. For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us. (Romans 8:16-18 NKJV)
The Holy Spirit becomes a part of our lives as soon as we surrender to Jesus Christ as our Savior and Lord! At that moment we are also adopted into the Family of God! We are no longer the people we were, we are now someone new! “old things are passed away, and behold all things become new” the Bible says. So what’s with the suffering? One of the main goals of God for all of His adopted children is fashion them so as to reflect His Son in our lives (see Romans 8:29).
The task of changing this old sinful worthless man into something that reflects the glory of God is an impossible task! However, God is the God of the impossible, and has promised that He WILL accomplish it! Therefore, it is fully understandable that we will experience some pain and suffering in the process. There is an entire transformation necessary, and will experience every bit of it!
However, the Apostle Paul explains to us that the glory that is going to be revealed in us surpasses our sufferings to such as extent that the attempt to compare them is of no worth! I remember when I was a “short-timer” in the military. We had a saying “I can do 2 weeks standing on my head!” Meaning, of course, that the reward of what I will receive after 2 weeks (the last 2 weeks of my enlistment) was so great that I was willing to put up with any duty – good or bad – happily! In the same way, Paul is saying that our sufferings during this life are SSSOOOOOOO insignificant compared to the glory that we WILL have, that we can endure anything with joy to receive that reward!
Therefore the title of this little thought: “The incomprehensible glory of suffering” becomes clear! It is not the suffering itself that is glorious, but the end result makes it worthwhile! Our challenge today: Praise audibly the Lord Jesus Christ for something He allows us to experience that is unpleasant, until we actually mean it!
