I MUST suffer.And I know this because there is no other way that I could ever get any closer to God.
I have been reflecting on a passage of the Gospel over the last day or so. In it, Christ talks about opportunity…
“Jesus said, ‘they will lay their hands on you and persecute you, delivering you up to the synagogues and prisons, and you will be brought before kings and governors for my name's sake. This will be an opportunity for you to bear testimony... You will be delivered up even by parents and brothers and kinsmen and friends, and some of you they will put to death; you will be hated by all for my name’s sake. But not a hair of your head will perish. By your endurance you will gain your lives.’” (Luke 21:12-19).
And I have been reflecting on the choice of words in that passage.
You see, Christ was not an idiot and neither is the Holy Spirit. And that means that when Christ said “opportunity” and the Holy Spirit allowed that particular translation of that work in Sacred Scripture, there must be a point in all of that.
And that word is such a POSITIVE word. You see, opportunity means CHANCE. An opportunity is a chance to try something else or do something better or have another go. An opportunity is a good thing. And in this passage Christ clearly talks about betrayal, hatred and death, and He positions it as an OPPORTUNITY.
And my mind has been fixed on that today. You see, terrible things often happen in life. That means that people get sick, or injured and very often they die sadly and unexpectedly and without being able to say farewell to their loved ones, who spend a lifetime grieving for them. Terrible terrible things happen in this word as a consequence of sin.
And yet – even knowing how terrible the things to come may be, I have been reflecting on the opportunities there… For Christ has promised me – and He promises you too – that “not a hair on your head will perish”. And Christ – who is God – does not lie.
So, what does this mean? This opportunity… Well, it means that I am called to LIVE MY FAITH. And there is great reward for living my faith. The reward is eternal salvation!
Importantly for me, this is a very practical instruction from my Lord and God. I am told, live your faith – even when things look terrible. Trust in Me – even when you are afraid. Lean on Me – even when you cannot see or feel Me there. And that is what faith is in essence. It is the full and firm CHOICE to believe in God, just as I can make a full and firm choice to jump off the ledge.
You see, just as I cannot both HOLD onto the ledge AND jump off it at the same time, I also cannot say that I have faith and refuse of live, trust and lean on God Himself – whether I see Him or not.
And this is an important consideration, because it means that I am making a conscious choice to TRUST MY GOD. And the reward – the FRUIT of that trust is PEACE.
And I know – from my own experience of conversion, which occurred through Grace and no merit of my own – that such a PEACE is simply not of this world. And it simply makes EVERYTHING – even the most terrible and profound grief – better…
For with prayer, I stand on Holy Ground where everything is clear. Here. At the Foot of the Cross.
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