Tuesday, 1/21/20 – Pressing on…

Need a Whack?

Sometimes suffering serves a completely different purpose in our lives. Sometimes we are not suffering for Christ at all, not living intimately in contact with Him, in fact, not giving Him a thought whatsoever. Sometimes the purpose of suffering has more to do with what we looked at last Thursday – a ‘Whack’ to make us awake!

Again, Sadhu Sundar Singh illustrates…

“A doctor once told me of a child who could not breathe when it was born. In order to make it breathe doctor gave it a slight blow. …he was really doing the kindest thing possible. As with newborn children the lungs are contracted, so are our spiritual lungs. But through suffering God strikes us in love. Then our lungs expand and we can breathe and pray.” – Sadhu Sundar Singh

Sometimes getting knocked down physically is God’s only way of getting us to look up.

The Apostle Paul experienced this. We read about It in Acts 9. Still an avowed persecutor of Christians Paul (then named Saul) was headed to Damascus to imprison in Jerusalem any believers he might find there. As Luke relates it,

“As he neared Damascus on his journey, suddenly a light from heaven flashed around him. He fell to the ground and heard a voice say to him, ‘Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me?’
‘Who are you, Lord?’ Saul asked.
‘I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting,’ he replied. ‘Now get up and go into the city, and you will be told what you must do.’” (Acts 9:3-6)

The light blinded Paul and he had to be led away by his friends. Paul needed this “Whack” to get him to God. It’s interesting to note that Paul realized he had encountered the Lord God before he was aware that this Lord God is Jesus. “Who are you, Lord?” he asked, calling Him Lord. “I am Jesus,” came the reply.

The atheist believes there is no God, the agnostic is ignorant that there is, the rebel tries to run from God, but the Christian knows that Jesus is Lord. When suffering comes to any of these it may well be that God is trying to get us to gasp! God does not ‘Whack’ us in delight, but of necessity and out of great Love.

More tomorrow…

To hear Pastor Andrew’s complete message, go to the Lincoln Baptist Church website and look under ‘Sermons Online’ for the Jan. 18 message.