We don't like the word suffering. Perhaps it's because of the picture of it that we see through our mind's eyes. Could it be a picture which turns us into a victim of circumstance? In that view we suffer because someone else has oppressed us. In that view we suffer because we are victims. In that view we suffer because God has forsaken us. After all, when we come to Christ, we are not supposed to suffer anymore...right?
The picture of suffering that you receive from your mind's eyes can often be framed through a bad understanding of what it is to follow Jesus Christ; such as from the end of the last paragraph. There is no easy road promised for the saint. I've heard it said that while God promises that He will take care of our needs (Phil 4:19), He never promised us that He will give us everything we want. In fact the opposite is often the truth. Many times we don't get our 'wants' because to have them would be a distraction from our call and purpose. This is one way that God protects both His investment in us and ours in Him.
When I was a boy the Christian Metal band Styper came out with an album called "Soldier under command." It was an early exposure for me to the idea that we are to see life for God as soldiers. Here's a link if you'd like a listen: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zp5Ahx4wmgQ.
My point in sharing the song was not to wake you up this morning (I promise), but instead to give one example of many where this idea was presented. It's not new at all. It was presented by the hymn writer Rev. Sabine Baring-Gould in 1865. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0Vua7LwiAQ0
Consider it's lyrics (first verse and chorus):
Join with me in suffering, like a good soldier of Christ Jesus. 2 Tim 2:3
Onward, Christian soldiers, marching as to war,
With the cross of Jesus going on before.
Christ, the royal Master, leads against the foe;
Forward into battle see His banners go!
Onward, Christian soldiers, marching as to war,
With the cross of Jesus going on before.
With the cross of Jesus going on before.
Christ, the royal Master, leads against the foe;
Forward into battle see His banners go!
Onward, Christian soldiers, marching as to war,
With the cross of Jesus going on before.
Both of these songs capture a thought that wasn't even new to the elder hymn writer. Paul the apostle spoke the call and commission in today's verse that gave me pause:
As I read this I considered the life of the soldier. In this role a person commits to leaving all that they know and those who they love, to put their lives on the line for perfect strangers. They often have to endure horrid views of humanity and live in conditions that no one would ever choose to. They do this not because they like it, but because they believe in the goal. "There is an enemy there who must be defeated, for if he is not, all that we know and love will be negatively effected."
A soldier puts himself second for the people he has been commissioned to defend.
Perhaps this is why Paul encouraged Timothy to be a soldier of Jesus Christ. This term would have given Timothy a much more healthy world view that what if often presented on so called Christian TV. In that view, the goal of the Christian's life is about gain in this life. In the soldiers view, it is about potentially giving his life that others may gain the goal.
"Be on your guard; stand firm in the faith; be courageous; be strong. 1 Cor 16:16)
Satan is already defeated...
We are already victors....
May we live to that identity as we embrace a Biblical world view.
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