Why Suffer For Christ's Sake?

[Mr. M]

Suffering facilitates the crucifixion of the flesh.
1 Peter 4:
1 Therefore, since Christ suffered for us in the flesh, arm
yourselves also with the same mind,
for he who has suffered in the flesh has ceased from sin,
2 that he no longer should live the rest of his time in the flesh for
the lusts of men, but for the will of God.
Persecution for Christ's sake promotes humility.
2 Corinthians 12:
7 And lest I should be exalted above measure by the abundance of the revelations,
a thorn in the flesh was given to me, a messenger of Satan to buffet me,
lest I be exalted above measure.
10 Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in needs, in persecutions,
in distresses, for Christ’s sake. For when I am weak, then I am strong.

Our Faith, like gold, is tried, tested, and proved genuine.
1 Peter 1:
6 In this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while, if need be, you have been
grieved by various trials,
7 that the genuineness of your faith, much more precious than gold that perishes,
though it is tested by fire, may be found to praise, honor, and glory at the
revelation of Jesus Christ.

 

[Mr. M]

Romans 8:28 And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God,
to those who are the called according to His purpose.
The "all things" mentioned here includes the times of difficulty we face.

Acts 14:
21 And when they had preached the gospel to that city and made many disciples,
they returned to Lystra, Iconium, and Antioch,
22 strengthening the souls of the disciples, exhorting them to continue in the faith,
and saying, We must through many tribulations enter the kingdom of God.

2 Timothy 3:12 Yes, and all who desire to live godly in Christ Jesus will suffer persecution.

 

[After God's Heart]

Luke 9:23-24

And He was saying to them all, “If anyone wishes to come after Me, he must deny himself, and take up his cross daily and follow Me. For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake, he is the one who will save it.

 

[SANTOSO]

Suffering facilitates the crucifixion of the flesh.
1 Peter 4:
1 Therefore, since Christ suffered for us in the flesh, arm yourselves also with the same mind,
for he who has suffered in the flesh has ceased from sin,
2 that he no longer should live the rest of his time in the flesh for the lusts of men, but for
the will of God.
Persecution for Christ's sake promotes humility.
2 Corinthians 12:
7 And lest I should be exalted above measure by the abundance of the revelations,
a thorn in the flesh was given to me, a messenger of Satan to buffet me,
lest I be exalted above measure.
10 Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in needs, in persecutions,
in distresses, for Christ’s sake. For when I am weak, then I am strong.

Our Faith, like gold, is tried, tested, and proved genuine.
1 Peter 1:
6 In this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while, if need be, you have been
grieved by various trials,
7 that the genuineness of your faith, much more precious than gold that perishes,
though it is tested by fire, may be found to praise, honor, and glory at the
revelation of Jesus Christ.

Suffering For His Name serves as a witness to the world.
1 Peter 3:
14 But even if you should suffer for righteousness’ sake, you are blessed.
And do not be afraid of their threats, nor be troubled.
15 But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts, and always be ready to give
defense to everyone who asks you a reason for the hope that is in you,
with meekness and fear;
16 having a good conscience, that when they defame you as evildoers,
those who revile your good conduct in Christ may be ashamed.
17 For it is better, if it is the will of God, to suffer for doing good than for doing evil.

Matthew 5:
10 Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake,
For theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
11 Blessed are you when they revile and persecute you, and say all kinds of evil
against you falsely for My sake.
12 Rejoice and be exceedingly glad, for great is your reward in heaven, for so they
persecuted the prophets who were before you.

"for great is your reward in heaven", trials and temptations are rewarded in heaven.
James 1:12 Blessed is the man who endures temptation; for when he has been approved,
he will receive the crown of life which the Lord has promised to those who love Him.

This is all a part of the process of being "conformed to His Image",
Philippians 3:
20 For our citizenship is in heaven, from which we also eagerly wait for the Savior,
the Lord Jesus Christ,
21 who will transform our lowly body that it may be conformed to His glorious body,
according to the working by which He is able even to subdue all things to Himself.

Why suffer for Christ’s sake ?
This is what we have heard:
Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children. -Ephesians 5:1
And walk in love, as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us, a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God. -Ephesians 5:2

As we have received adoption as children of God through faith in Christ, we are to imitate God, that is, by walking in love so that we love Christ and gave ourselves up for Christ, a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.

 

[Mr. M]

Matthew 5:
10 Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake,
For theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
11 Blessed are you when they revile and persecute you, and say all kinds of evil
against you falsely for My sake.
12 Rejoice and be exceedingly glad, for great is your reward in heaven, for so they
persecuted the prophets who were before you.

"for great is your reward in heaven", trials and temptations are rewarded in heaven.
James 1:12 Blessed is the man who endures temptation; for when he has been approved,
he will receive the crown of life which the Lord has promised to those who love Him.

This is all a part of the process of being "conformed to His Image",
Philippians 3:
20 For our citizenship is in heaven, from which we also eagerly wait for the Savior,
the Lord Jesus Christ,
21 who will transform our lowly body that it may be conformed to His glorious body,
according to the working by which He is able even to subdue all things to Himself.

 

[SANTOSO]

Matthew 5:
10 Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake,
For theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
11 Blessed are you when they revile and persecute you, and say all kinds of evil
against you falsely for My sake.
12 Rejoice and be exceedingly glad, for great is your reward in heaven, for so they
persecuted the prophets who were before you.

"for great is your reward in heaven", trials and temptations are rewarded in heaven.
James 1:12 Blessed is the man who endures temptation; for when he has been approved,
he will receive the crown of life which the Lord has promised to those who love Him.

This is all a part of the process of being "conformed to His Image",
Philippians 3:
20 For our citizenship is in heaven, from which we also eagerly wait for the Savior,
the Lord Jesus Christ,
21 who will transform our lowly body that it may be conformed to His glorious body,
according to the working by which He is able even to subdue all things to Himself.

Dear one,
Yes, I have heard many times:
Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you. -Matthew 5:12

I was concerned,”Have I rejoiced? Have I rejoiced, the same way Christ intended.
For we are suffering for Christ’s sake, then it is of importance that we knew how to rejoice in Christ.

I was wondering someone who suffered severely and rejoiced that much. Won’t you be shocked ? Or astounded ? How the joy of the Lord permeates their lives ! What was it that I or we have not perceived and understand about this joy and gladness ?

Am I concerned over nothing ? This is what we have heard:

• Because you did not serve the LORD your God with joy and gladness of heart, for the abundance of everything, therefore you shall serve your enemies, whom the LORD will send against you, in hunger, in thirst, in nakedness, and in need of everything; and He will put a yoke of iron on your neck until He has destroyed you.-Deuteronomy 38:47-48 NKJV

We should be concerned whether we have joy and gladness of heart when we serve the Lord!

 

[Mr. M]

I was wondering someone who suffered severely and rejoiced that much. Won’t you be shocked ? Or astounded ? How the joy of the Lord permeates their lives ! What was it that I or we have not perceived and understand about this joy and gladness ?

Acts 5:
40 And they agreed with him, and when they had called for the apostles and beaten them,
they commanded that they should not speak in the name of Jesus, and let them go.
41 So they departed from the presence of the council, rejoicing that they were counted
worthy to suffer shame for His name.
42 And daily in the temple, and in every house, they did not cease teaching and preaching
Jesus as the Christ.

Now that is inspiration!

 

[HeartNSoul19]

For better or worse, it's only through suffering that we can truly experience growth... think of your past experiences: like the ones that resulted in the most growth were not the experiences that were easy or comfortable.

No one wants to suffer, but it turns out that without it we wouldn't grow spiritually.

Those who have suffered much tend to have great souls... with the prime example being Christ and the like.

 

[Mr. M]

Suffering For His Name serves as a witness to the world.
1 Peter 3:
14 But even if you should suffer for righteousness’ sake, you are blessed.
And do not be afraid of their threats, nor be troubled.
15 But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts, and always be ready to give
defense to everyone who asks you a reason for the hope that is in you,
with meekness and fear;
16 having a good conscience, that when they defame you as evildoers,
those who revile your good conduct in Christ may be ashamed.
17 For it is better, if it is the will of God, to suffer for doing good than for doing evil.

 

[bèlla]

Suffering For His Name serves as a witness to the world.

That was one of the verses the Lord gave me while standing in the gap for someone’s salvation.

He used to be hostile towards Christianity and openly mocked it and used derogatory imagery at times. But that’s changed now. He never behaved that way with me or spoke harshly.

He’s softened a lot and weaves scripture in his comments and pieces on occasion. He knows the bible well. I don’t know where he is in the process but I see the shift and so do others. The work was not in vain. That’s comforting to know.

~bella