Why do you think does God allow you to suffer? Have you ever considered if He really cares about your sufferings? Today I want to tell you that there are reasons why the lord makes us suffer and those reasons are included in the following according to James L Milton.
Some People Suffer for the Salvation of Lost Souls
God makes us suffer because He is trying to tell us something. By allowing suffering He is showing us that something is wrong. God doesn’t ENJOY seeing anyone suffer, but He does ALLOW people to suffer for various reasons. God may bring tragedy into your life so that he can get your attention. Like for example the leper of Matthew 8:2, do you think he would have come to Jesus if he had been in perfect health? What about the blind man of Luke 18:35?
The Bible is filled with cases where God reaches people through suffering. Nebuchadnezzar didn’t fear God until God humbled him by making him spend seven years of his life on his hands and knees like an animal (Dan. 4:30-37).
No one suffers in vain. God always has a reason, and sometimes He is trying to show someone their need to receive the Lord Jesus Christ. Could this be true in your own life? Think about it. Could the Lord be convicting you of the fact that you are a sinner, and you need to be saved?
Some Christians Suffer for the Lord Jesus Christ
II Timothy 3:12 says, “Yea, and all that will live godly in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution.” Then II Timothy 2:12 says, “If we suffer, we shall also reign with him…” Jesus said, “. . . . If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow me.” (Luke. 9:23)
When a Christian chooses to deny himself and follow Christ, they choose to suffer for the Lord. The world has always found a way to persecute God’s people, and we should not be surprised when persecution arises. Jesus suffered for us, and we should count it an honour to suffer for Him. In Acts 5:41 the Apostles rejoiced that they were counted worthy to suffer for the Lord Jesus Christ! Jesus said that we should rejoice when we suffer for His sake, because GREAT is our reward in Heaven (Mt. 5:12). I Peter 2:19-21 tells us that it is our duty to follow our Lord’s example in suffering, and I Peter 4:12-16 tells us to be happy when we suffer for Christ, and it tells us not to be ashamed.
God Teaches Us Valuable Lessons Through Suffering
Not all suffering Christians are disobedient Christians. There are many very dear Christians who go through great agony every day, yet they are some of sweetest and most God-fearing saints you’ll ever meet. Why does God allow them to suffer? There are many reasons.
One reason is humility. If we believed some of the popular “Faith Healers” of our day, we’d believe that people suffer because they lack faith in God, but this isn’t necessarily true. The Apostle Paul didn’t live in sin and he didn’t lack faith in God, but he DID have to suffer. Why? He tells us why in II Corinthians 12:7: “And lest I should be exalted above measure through the abundance of the revelations, there was given to me a thorn in the flesh, the messenger of Satan to buffet me, lest I should be exalted above measure.” Whatever this thorn in the flesh was, verses eight and nine tell us that God chose NOT to take it from Paul. Instead, He chose to give Paul the GRACE to bear the burden. God used this problem in Paul’s life to help keep him humble, to keep him from being exalted above measure.
Sometimes God sees the need to put us through some things for the purpose of making us stronger. God will also use suffering to teach us patience. Romans 5:3 tells us that, “Tribulation worketh patience“.
Some people suffer so that they will be better equipped to comfort others in their suffering (II Cor. 1:3-4). It’s always a blessing to know someone who has gone through the same troubles that you are going through, for they usually have some helpful words of comfort and wisdom. Are you going through some pretty tough times? Maybe the Lord is giving you the experience that you’ll need to help someone else later.
*To read more of James L Melton’s words of wisdom, please follow the link belowhttp://www.biblebelievers.com/jmelton/suffer.html
