Pastor Tim Brown, Calvary Chapel Fremont, Sunday January 24, 2010

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Your suffering is God’s judgment

1 Peter 4:17-19

Many understand the judgment spoken of here as punishment for sin.  There is sin in the church/God cleaning up His house.  Even as Jesus waded n2 the temple and overturned the tables of the money changers/drove out those selling the animals, God is wading n2 His church/cleaning house. Things are taking place which should not be taking place.  But that’s not what’s happening here.

You’re standing w/ a friend watching a professional football practice and your friend doesn’t know much about football.  The practice is grueling/brutal - the players can hardly stand up/breathe.  There are moans/groans/blood/sweat – and the coach demands still more.  “Why are these men being punished so hard?  Why does the coach hate them?”  The coach doesn't hate them, he values them.  He has such a punishing workout because these men are so good.  The coach sees something in them he wants 2c developed.  “Can I have a punishing workout, too?”  No, you're not good enough.  You have to have great promise 2b out through so much.  You have 2b highly valued 2b put through so much suffering.  

The context doesn’t have Peter addressing the sin of the church but the suffering of the church.  He is not rebuking them for their sin, he is instructing them about how to understand/undergo their suffering.  The suffering they are enduring isn’t because they are sinning against the Lord but because they are standing for the Lord.  The suffering they are experiencing isn’t because they are far from the Lord but because they are close to the Lord.  The judgment here can’t be a punishment for sin – there’s another rationale at work.  

There is a burning touching your life right now and ur trying hard to understand why it is there.  Ur not sinning – as far as you know.  Things are tight between you and the Lord – as far as you know.  No one has anything against you – as far as you know.  And yet ur going thru tough times.  There are two lenses thru which to look at what ur going through – the eyes of man/God. Gen. 50:20.  What man means for evil, God means for good.  What is your orientation?  Which way ru facing?  Ru facing toward man/God?  

Peter helps them make sense of their suffering: the fiery ordeal is sharing in the sufferings of Christ for the purpose of testing which results in a judgment.  Your suffering is God’s judgment.  The apostle Paul will help us understand the apostle Peter.

2 Th. 1:4-5,11  Paul, in 2Th.1 links together judgment/worthiness.  This helps us understand what’s going on in 1P.  Worthy: to bring up the other beam of the scales…TDNT  Basically, to make two things equal.  If the two sides of a scale aren’t equal, you have to add weight to the one to equal them out.  (Heresy is to take from Christ/lighten Him up).  Making your confession/character equivalent.  Bringing into balance talk/walk.  Profession of Christ/possession of Christ.  Cf. Eph. 4:1-2 

In one of her books, Ruth Graham tells of meeting a young Indian student named Pashi who was enrolled in a college near her home. As she spoke with him about Christ,… he replied, “I would like to believe in Christ. We of India would like to believe in Christ. But we have never seen a Christian who was like Christ.”

God would have your life be an example of Christ.  Even as the world needs to hear the gospel, they need to see Christ.  The message of Christ and a Christlike messenger is the crying need of our planet.  Whether we like it or not, Christlikeness is forged more quickly/enduringly in the fires of suffering than in the care freeness of pleasure.  There are reasons for the burning that God allows.  There are reasons for the judgment that touches your life.  

    *    Judgment revels who/what you are   17

Judgment – to determine genuineness/develop worthiness.  Wouldn’t you want to know if your faith was the real thing?  The burning is a testing which results in a judgment – is your faith genuine or not?  Would you want to know if a car you purchased was mechanically sound?  At garage sale – plug in electric drill 2c if it works. Coach wants to know who has game.  Have you had a real/pseudo-conversion?  Have you had a complete/partial conversion?  

Test yourselves to see if you are in the faith; examine yourselves! Or do you not recognize this about yourselves, that Jesus Christ is in you—unless indeed you fail the test?             2 Corinthians 13:5

Is your soul fully converted – mind/emotions/will?  Intellectual/ emotional/volitional conversion.  2P1:10-11  Christ will not be seen in the life of a partially converted person.  The burning process is to determine/develop a complete Christian.

As metal goes thru the forging process it is strengthened/shaped.  As the metal is shaped, its internal grain deforms to follow the general shape of the part.  As a result, the grain is continuous throughout the part, giving rise to a piece with improved strength. Suffering shapes mind/emotions/will to the character of Christ.  I experienced this when I felt called to the mission field/Fremont.

    *    Judgment is the roadway into the kingdom of God   18

“Through many tribulations we must enter the kingdom of God.”  Acts 14:22

18  In what way is it difficult for the righteous 2b saved?  ‘With difficulty’ = ‘with difficulties’.  Not barely/rarely, but saved through tough times - through many tribulations: temptations/strivings/ persecution.  If the righteous, who have a saving relationship w/ God, have to face hard times – what about those who don’t believe or obey God?  If the person who receives Jesus/submits to the work of the Holy Spirit undergoes suffering, what of the one who rejects Jesus/refuses the Spirit?  Their suffering will reveal that they don’t trust God and have no need of Him in the most difficult of times – they are quite strong enough and don’t need the crutch of the Christian God.  Or, they will cry out to God in times of adversity and disavow Him in times of prosperity.  If they want nothing to do w/ God, God will want nothing to do w/ them.

    *    Judgment is the reason you need to trust God   19

Since God is doing a deep work – do what is right and trust God to do right.

A sign out in a church yard advertises, “Hand over your life to Jesus and no one will get hurt.”  This might be a cute thought, but it is bad theology.  When you become a Christian you realize the difficulty involved in salvation.

The message to those who know Christ: trust God

The message to those who don’t know Christ: trust God

Judgment is a removal of the flesh   17

A sculptor once fashioned a magnificent lion out of solid stone. When asked how he had accomplished such a wonderful masterpiece, he replied, “It was easy. All I did was to chip away everything that didn’t look like a lion.” All God does is chip away everything in our lives that doesn’t look like Christ.

What is revealed in judgment is to be removed in confession.  Elihu to Job: ur not suffering because ur sinning; ur sinning because ur suffering.  Suffering reveals us to us/gets us to take a deeper look at ourselves.  Heb. 12:1  Lay aside every encumbrance and the sin which so easily entangles us.  Suffering reveals what needs 2b laid aside/what aspect of Christlikeness needs 2b developed.