Based on 2 Corinthians 4:7-18 (New King James Version)
7 “But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the excellence of the power may be of God and not of us. 8 We are hard-pressed on every side, yet not crushed; we are perplexed, but not in despair; 9 persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed—10 always carrying about in the body the dying of the Lord Jesus, that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our body. 11 For we who live are always delivered to death for Jesus’ sake, that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our mortal flesh. 12 So then death is working in us, but life in you. 13 And since we have the same spirit of faith, according to what is written, ‘I believed and therefore I spoke,’ we also believe and therefore speak, 14 knowing that He who raised up the Lord Jesus will also raise us up with Jesus, and will present us with you. 15 For all things are for your sakes, that grace, having spread through the many, may cause thanksgiving to abound to the glory of God. 16 Therefore we do not lose heart. Even though our outward man is perishing, yet the inward man is being renewed day by day. 17 For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, is working for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory, 18 while we do not look at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen. For the things which are seen are temporary, but the things which are not seen are eternal.”
This is possibly the easiest message to understand, but it is also the most difficult to accept, because it is either the one that helps you to continue moving forward with the Lord or abandon and turn away from your faith in the Lord. One of the things that the Lord is always trying to cultivate in us is faith, and faith always pushes you to go forward where the flesh feels uncomfortable, where everything goes against our human nature. And this process is what helps to define if whether a person truly loves the Lord or not (because love and faith go hand-in-hand, per se). Here is also how we can detect whether a doctrine is in agreement with what the Bible teaches, or if is something that just sounds nice and attractive, attempting to please and attract the masses.
For starters, following the Lord can imply that either things may go well, or for things to not go so well (carnally speaking). What the Lord is mostly interested in is in helping us grow, to be different, to continue being transformed by taking more His likeness and that we continue leaving behind our sinfulness. A person might say, “I am not that bad that I could declare myself sinful.” But we need to understand what it means to be “sinful”. People almost always associate the word “sin” with things that seem bad or terrible in human terms, like killing someone or something like that. The word sin means missing the mark. So then, when we talk about sin or being sinful, we are not necessarily talking about something that seems ugly to us, but rather, of everything that sin is, and that is what God tries to deal with each one of us. And unfortunately, each one of us, by definition, without exception, continue being very sinful beings. So, the only way that God has to be able to change those things that are not changed voluntarily in our lives is through pressure, through difficult circumstances, whether they are circumstances that we brought upon ourselves because of our own disobedience, or because God allows for difficult things to happen that we may have not necessarily done wrong, and here is where we get into a difficult territory.
I don’t think anyone likes going through tough times or difficult situations. I think we would all like, first of all, for things to turn out the way we would want them, and that our will be done and not the Lord’s will. And this includes that everything turn out the way we would want them, that everything goes well, that our family be fine, healthy, without problems, that we have a good financial status, that we have no enemies, that everyone would like us, etc., etc. But, that is not the way things work, and unfortunately, things don’t turn out that way because God wants for us to suffer or to go through tough times, but rather, what determines that we have problems is sin, whether it be our own personal sin, or the sin of people that surround us. So, if you wish to assign blame to something for your tough time, you can point the finger either at yourself or to someone else, but not to God. Why? Our own beings consist of sin. That’s what we are made of. And as a consequence, sin is what makes this world so unpleasant. So, either we are the problem or someone else is. But, if you think that the other person is the problem, don’t worry, because by virtue that you are sinner, you may also be doing something wrong to someone else, consciously or unconsciously. That’s why the Apostle Paul said this, inspired by the Holy Spirit: Brethren, if a man is overtaken in any trespass, you who are spiritual restore such a one in a spirit of gentleness, considering yourself lest you also be tempted. Galatians 6:1. The issue is that we all make this world more unpleasant together, in one way or another. Our sin is what makes things that are even out of our control happen, because we live in a decaying world. We owe this to Adam and Eve, because of their disobedience and hunger to be like God. But, let’s not be too harsh on them, because it is easy to condemn someone else when you know the consequences of things. They did something incredibly destructive, but they did not have an idea of the consequences. That’s why obeying God is something so crucial; which is apropos to what we are dealing with.
So then, if they are trying to teach you (by using wrongly the Word of God) that you will not have problems, and that everything will go smoothly and splendidly, they are lying to you. If you are in a place like that, run, because it’s not God that is ministering, but rather a dark and evil power that desires to deceive you so that you do not look for God’s purposes, but rather, that you look to satisfy your own carnal desires. Whoever tries to get something from you will always tell you things you want to hear, something that sounds pleasing and that feeds your desire for comfort and selfishness.
This is what the Word of God teaches: “And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose.” Romans 8:28. This can consist of pleasant or not pleasant things, whatever makes your faith progress, for it is written: “But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.” Hebrews 11:6. When your faith progresses, your sin lessens, and you concentrate more on the invisible than what is visible. The end of this is that what is visible will end soon, but what is invisible is eternal and much better than what you can imagine. So then, are you learning to live each day by faith, with your eyes set on the One that desires what is good for you? Lord bless! John