Series: Action [#99]
DON’T QUIT- STUDENT OR SUFFERER?
2 Corinthians 1:1-11
Introduction:
I work with a young man in his 20’s, who is a dependable worker. He gives 100% effort every day. All of a sudden, he is having chest pains and he cannot speak. He is just making sounds. His dad got him to a doctor, and they do not know what is wrong. They are doing more tests this week. I have been down this road, and it is a tough road. It brings up the famous question, “Why does bad things like this happen to good people?”
In 2 Corinthians 1, Paul talks about the comfort he received while he went through tough times. Here, we learn right up front an important principle for all of life- It’s not what happens to us that matters; it’s how we react that makes all the difference. I read some great advice concerning this- “When hard times come, be a student, not a victim.” A victim, (sufferer) says, “Why did this happen to me?” A student says, “What can I learn from this?” A sufferer believes that hard times have come because God is trying to punish them. A student understands that God allows hard times in order to help them grow. A sufferer believes God has abandoned him. A student sees God’s hand in everything, including the worst moments of life.
2 Corinthians 1:1-5
A student realizes that their troubles can…
1. Draw them closer to the Lord.
We all know that things happen for a reason; but while you are going through it, that’s not what you want to hear. What you want to hear is verse 4- “There is a God who comforts us in all our troubles.” That means that when I am sick, He is there. When I run out of money, He is there. When I am hated and despised, He is there.
I want each of you to ask yourself this question, “What or who is the 1 thing that if you lost it, you don’t know if you could keep going?” As a pastor, I have seen many families that had a child with a disability and said, “I couldn’t handle it if something like that happened to 1 of my kids. I couldn’t deal with it.” I’m here to tell you today, “You might be surprised at what you can handle when you trust it to God”.
2 Corinthians 1:6-7
A student realizes that their troubles can…
2. Equip them to minister to others.
Paul looked at all of his problems and realized that it wasn’t happening just for himself. He realized that God was doing something for the benefit of others as well as himself. We never suffer alone. Someone else is always watching. Our friends watch to see how we will respond to tragedy. They want to know if what we say we believe is really enough for us in the hard times. Many of those watching are unbelievers who wonder if Christ is real. They don’t know, they aren’t sure, maybe they’ve read the Bible, maybe they haven’t; but they’re watching how you respond to trouble to see if what you have is real.
That’s what Paul is talking about. Our troubles soften our hearts so that when we have received the comfort of God, it is easy for us to pass it along to someone else. It is so easy to look down our noses at weaker brothers and sisters who go through hard times. We say, “Why don’t they just get tough? Why don’t they show some backbone? Why don’t they quit complaining and get on with life? Why can’t they be strong like the rest of us?” God lets us go through hard times to break us of that attitude and soften us so that we are able to minister in the name of Jesus Christ to other hurting people.
2 Corinthians 1:8-10
A student realizes that their troubles can…
3. Empty them of self.
We don’t know the exact nature of the hardships Paul suffered in Asia. It might have been extreme opposition from the Jewish leaders. It might have been some sort of serious physical ailment. Whatever it was, the Corinthians knew about it, and they understood that Paul thought during his ordeal that he was going to die. He writes to tell of God’s deliverance and to ask the Corinthians for their prayers.
When tragedy strikes or when hard times come or when friends turn against us or when the bottom drops out of life, we wonder why things happen the way they do. Here we find 1 important explanation. Hard times come to teach us not to trust in ourselves but only in the Lord.
2 Corinthians 1:11
A student realizes that their troubles can…
4. Reveal the true power of prayer.
Our prayers matter. It makes a difference whether or not we pray. Paul is saying, “When I thought I was going to die, you prayed and God delivered me." We will never know until we get to Heaven how many times the prayers of others rescued us. When all is said and done, we will learn that God used the prayers of others to enable us to make the journey from Earth to Heaven, and we will discover that without those God-inspired prayers, we never would have made it.
Conclusion:
So when trouble comes, are you a student or a sufferer?
