Title: The Message of Suffering
Main text: 2 Corinthians 1:8-11
Date: 2007. 7. 15. Sunday Day Worship
There is a book called "The Fountain of the Wilderness" by Ms. Kapuman. This book is an observation of the birth of the silkworm moth. She kept a few cocoons on her desk and raised them. It was a pleasure to see the wriggling of life. On one occasion, I saw a butterfly coming out of a cocoon. The sight of a butterfly trying to escape through a narrow hole was even terrifying. She cut a narrow hole with scissors. Then the butterfly came out easily. But it couldn't fly. She couldn't understand. Another butterfly was coming out of the cocoon. This time I decided to just watch. The butterfly barely escaped through the narrow hole. And flew into the sky. It was very strange. In butterflies, oil, which is a nutrient, is clustered on its shoulders, and as it escapes, it spreads evenly through its wings. That's what makes the wings stronger. When Ms. Kapuman discovered this, she clapped her knees and said, “It is God! There are no flaws in God’s work!”
There are many misconceptions about suffering. There are those who think of suffering as destructive and worthless suffering. Some people think of suffering as a punishment for doing something wrong. This thinking is misleading. Suffering has many benefits. It is not punishment, but God's greater love and wonderful plan. The text tells the story of Paul's suffering. Suffering comes to us with a clear message. In order for suffering to be beneficial, we must listen to its message.
What is the message of suffering?
First, suffering is common.
Suffering exists for everyone. Even Paul had trouble. In a letter to the church in Corinth, he introduced the sufferings he suffered in Asia (Turkey) (8-9, first half). Paul and his companions suffered great persecution. It was an unbearable persecution. It was a limit situation. It was persecution that was judged not to be able to live any longer. He said, "I suffered so much that I lost my hope to live." He had never confessed in a letter that the situation was so serious.
A flock of eagles gathered at the edge of the cliff. The eagles that failed the flying competition, the eagles that failed to mate, the eagles that were wounded after losing the battle, and all kinds of wounded eagles gathered together and decided to commit suicide. The heroic eagle, watching the sight, came down and spread its wings to show the wounds. As the heroic eagle says, "You know I'm not hurt? It was torn by a tree branch during a match, and this is a wound from a fight. This is just an open wound. The wounds in my heart are countless. Every living eagle has a wound. If there are any eagles that are not wounded, they are the only ones that died as soon as they hatched from the egg.” Successful people hurt more. Success is being wounded on the way to the top. We live with wounds. However, the difference between successful and unsuccessful people is that successful people use their wounds as stepping stones, but unsuccessful people see their wounds as obstacles. Suffering and hurt are the foundation of success. No longer think of it as a stumbling block, but as a stepping stone.
Second, our strength is very weak.
Paul realized his limitations through suffering. My pride was shattered. Suffering makes us see our limitations and humble ourselves before God. David learned humility through hardship. Humbled through suffering, he testified that he had heard the word of God and kept it (Psalm 119:67,71). As C. S. Lewis said, suffering is God's megaphone. Moses suffered for 40 years in the wilderness of Midian. During his affliction, he buried his blood and pride. Exodus 3 and 4 show how humble he was. He also became meek (Numbers 12:3). Suffering changes lives. The benefits of suffering cannot be calculated in money.
A farmer sent his son to Seoul to study. I worked so that my back was bent, and I spent my tuition. One year, farming was so bad that I sold my dearly cherished cattle and sent my tuition. However, the son, who did not know his parents, took a leave of absence from school and used it for his tuition and entertainment expenses. When the farmer later learned of this, he sat down on the ground and wept loudly. It's because I learned the bad things about drinking and smoking women without studying after spending expensive tuition. Hardship is expensive tuition. If you learned grudges, complaints, grudges, and wild and ferocious characters during hardship, you paid expensive tuition and learned bad things. But if you learn humility, you've learned a lot. We must learn humility during hardship.
Third, we must depend on God.
“This is so that we should not put our trust in ourselves, but in God who raises the dead” (2:9). He heard the clear message of suffering. The message he heard was, “Trust in God.” The prophet Jeremiah testified that those who trust in human strength are like a bush in the desert, and those who trust in God are like trees planted by the waters (Jeremiah 17:5-8). On a personal level, we have to trust everyone. But on a religious level, we must believe only in God. If we depend on God, we will have experience and confidence (verse 10). Paul testified that God had delivered him from the great death. He was also confident that God would deliver him in the future. Those who depend on God value “prayer” (v. 11). Paul asked the Corinthian church to work together in prayer. He knew how important prayer was.
Don't just look at suffering. Look to God at work in the midst of suffering. Those who look to God at work in the midst of suffering give thanks for suffering and say that suffering is the grace of the Lord.