I have heard it said that at any given moment, a person is in a period of suffering, has just come out of a period of suffering, or will soon be entering a period of suffering.

As Christians we understand that this is because we live in a fallen world, and we, as part of that world, are also fallen and in need of restoration.

The Bible has a lot to say about suffering and how God uses it as part of his plan for bringing us into deeper relationship with himself. For example, in my daily Scripture reading I found this:

“I know, O Lord, that your rules are righteous, and that in faithfulness you have afflicted me. Let your steadfast love comfort me according to your promise to your servant.”

Psalm 119:75–76, ESV

I was encouraged by the phrase, “in faithfulness you have afflicted me.”

It is not out of negligence. It is not out of malevolence. It is not because God does not care, that he allows suffering in our lives.

He is faithful even while we suffer.

The Psalmist wrote these words long before Jesus came and showed us the extent that God is willing to go to bring us into relationship with himself. To accomplish his mission of restoration, Jesus endured ultimate suffering on our behalf.

I am encouraged that the trials are not the end of the story. They are not the end because Jesus showed us that evil and death do not ultimately win. They are also not the end of the story because they are time bound and we are destined for eternity.

The Psalmist continues, “let your steadfast love comfort me according to your promise to your servant.” I like that. There are lots of promises in Scripture in which we can find comfort. Here is one of my favorites:

“In my Father’s house are many rooms. If it were not so, would I have told you that I go to prepare a place for you? And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and will take you to myself, that where I am you may be also.”

John 14:2–3, ESV

“When I feel self-righteous, it means I’m afraid. It’s a way to puff up and protect myself when I’m afraid of being wrong, making someone angry, or getting blamed.”

Brené Brown in Daring Greatly

Fear is a strong motivator. Unfortunately, it often motivates us to behavior that is either wrong or unhelpful.

As I listened to this quote in an audio recording, it really struck me about how much this applies to the church. I have seen self-righteousness in action in myself and in others. I have been hurt by it and have hurt others by it. It is never a good thing, so it should never be OK.

There are churches where self-righteousness in endemic in the system. Some display it to the point where the church is almost a caricature; I’m thinking of some of the “King James Only” type churches that rail against anyone who would use any other English translation of the Bible.

But in all of us, and therefore in all of our churches, we have an amazing propensity for responding in fear and therefore in self-righteous condemnation. I like that Dr. Brown linked fear and self-righteousness because this link seems to explain why we have a tendency to go there.

The Apostle John tells us,

“There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear. For fear has to do with punishment, and whoever fears has not been perfected in love.”

1 John 4:18, ESV

So, I want to explore the idea that the antidote to self-righteousness is a better understanding of how much we are loved by God. We can experience perfect love which should, if we allow it to do so, cast out all our fear.

If I am fully convinced of how much God loves me, I won’t have to fear being wrong, making someone angry, or getting blamed. I can face those things without feeling devalued as a person.

In the context of church, if we are loved and loving perfectly, we won’t have to fear being wrong on some finer point of theology and have useless debates over non-essential issues. If we are loved and loving perfectly, we don’t have to fear being misunderstood or incurring the anger of the society around us. If we are loved and loving perfectly, we don’t have to worry about being blamed whether or not the accusation is true or false.

If we are wrong, we can repent, seek forgiveness, and move on to try to bring healing to the relationship. Self-righteousness, on the other hand, doubles down on the offence rather than seeking restoration.

If you are in any doubt about how Jesus represented God’s love for us, I suggest that you turn to the stories in Luke 15 where Jesus, to the chagrin of the Pharisees, represented God as a father, running to embrace his lost son.

The father cared nothing about his self-respect as compared to the desire to have his son back. The bare legs and undignified running of the father were more than outweighed by the opportunity to hug the son.

That desire to restore the lost relationship is what took Jesus to the cross.

“ . . . looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God.”

Hebrews 12:2, ESV

When Moses returned to Egypt to announce God’s plan for removing Israel from the yoke of slavery, his message was welcomed by the leaders of Israel as recorded in Exodus 4.

“Then Moses and Aaron went and gathered together all the elders of the people of Israel. Aaron spoke all the words that the Lord had spoken to Moses and did the signs in the sight of the people. And the people believed; and when they heard that the Lord had visited the people of Israel and that he had seen their affliction, they bowed their heads and worshiped.”

Exodus 4:29–31, ESV

Notice the response of the people. They believed and then they worshipped.

So far, so good. Worship is a proper response when the good news that was announced to them was believed.

But as Paul Harvey used to point out, it is good to know the rest of the story, and we do know it.

The rest of the book of Exodus records the story of how the Israelites fussed at Moses and complained against God when things got difficult. At one point they even expressed a desire to return to Egypt even though their slavery was severe when they were there.

“We remember the fish we ate in Egypt that cost nothing, the cucumbers, the melons, the leeks, the onions, and the garlic. But now our strength is dried up, and there is nothing at all but this manna to look at.””

Numbers 11:5–6, ESV

My point is that we are made of the same stuff as the Israelites. It is so easy to worship when things are going the way we think they should.

But when things are hard, when things are not going according to our plan, when it seems that our life is too difficult, then we lash out at God and we lash out at those around us. Unfortunately, this is human nature.

But as believers, we have a resource that can allow us to rise above such complaining. We don’t have to be fickle like the Israelites. We can learn from Paul.

“. . . for I have learned in whatever situation I am to be content. I know how to be brought low, and I know how to abound. In any and every circumstance, I have learned the secret of facing plenty and hunger, abundance and need. I can do all things through him who strengthens me.”

Philippians 4:11b–13, ESV

As believers, we have the Holy Spirit residing in us so that we can learn to be content no matter what life throws at us.

We don’t have to like our circumstances. We don’t have to pretend that they are what we want. We don’t have to give the illusion that it is easy to function in those circumstances.

But we can learn to be content and we can learn to accept them without lashing out at God or others.

If you are encouraged by this post or would like to make a comment, please use the comment form below to offer your feedback. If you are reading this in an email and would like to comment, you can reply to the email or click on the “Read in browser” link below to go to the web page where you can enter a comment. I enjoy hearing from you.

This post is a continuation of focus on Philippians 4:8 in which Paul gives us a strategy for managing our thoughts and channeling them in a positive direction. The verse reads:

“Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things.”

Philippians 4:8, ESV

In this post, I want to concentrate on the first category of the focus of our thoughts. We are to think about what is true. I like William Barclay’s comment on this verse:

Many things in this world are deceptive and illusory, promising what they can never perform, offering a specious peace and happiness which they can never supply. A man should always set his thoughts on the things which will not let him down.

-William Barclay

Fake news is really not a new phenomenon. Fake news dates all the way back to the Garden of Eden when the serpent approached Eve with the question, “did God really say . . .?”

Socrates, through the pen of Plato, is quoted as saying that the unexamined life is not worth living. I agree with this, but the question arises as to how we can determine what standard should be used when doing the examination.

Or, as Pilate is recorded as saying, we ask the question, “what is truth?” How do I know something is true?

For me it all comes back to the resurrection of Jesus which we recently celebrated on Easter. During his time on Earth, Jesus made some really bold claims about himself. Jesus said things that would be outrageous and offensive if he was just like any other human being. But by rising from the dead, he proved that what he said throughout his ministry is true and should be believed.

Jesus also validated the entire Old Testament as being true and reliable. So we can agree with the Westminster Divines when they formulated Question 2 of the Westminster Shorter Catechism which tells us that the entire Bible is the standard by which we can evaluate what is true and what is not true.

So, in short, to focus on what is true requires frequent, consistent reading of the Bible. To focus on what is true requires that we transform our minds to discern God’s will for us.

“Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.”

Romans 12:2, ESV

If you are encouraged by this post or would like to make a comment, please use the comment form below to offer your feedback. If you are reading this in an email and would like to comment, you can reply to the email or click on the “Read in browser” link below to go to the web page where you can enter a comment. I enjoy hearing from you.