ODB: why suffer?
June 17, 2010
The weaker we feel, the harder we lean on God.
READ: Matthew 5:1-12
Blessed are the poor in spirit. —Matthew 5:3
Jesus taught that the world seen from God’s viewpoint is tilted in favor of the oppressed. This teaching emerges in the Sermon on the Mount and other statements of Jesus: the first will be last (Matt. 19:30; Mark 10:31; Luke-:30), and he who humbles himself will be exalted (Luke 14:11; 18:14). But why would God single out the oppressed for special attention?
1. Suffering helps us realize our urgent need for redemption.
2. Suffering helps us experience our dependence on God and our interdependence with one another.
3. Suffering helps us distinguish between necessities and luxuries.
4. Suffering helps us respond to the call of the gospel because we may have become so desperate that we cry out to God.
The poor, the hungry, the mourners, and those who suffer are blessed (Matt. 5:3-6) because their lack of self-sufficiency is obvious to them every day. They must turn somewhere for strength. People who are rich, successful, and beautiful may go through life relying on their natural gifts. But people who are needy, dependent, and dissatisfied with life are more likely to welcome God’s free gift of love.
“Blessed are the poor in spirit.” Why? Because “theirs is the kingdom of heaven” (Matt. 5:3). —Philip Yancey
Source: Our Daily Bread
Tweet This
Share on Facebook
Digg This
Save to delicious
Stumble it-
RSS Feed
Related
ODJ: umbrella
February 8, 2012 The Lord is my rock, my fortress, and my saviour; my God is my rock, in whom I find protection (vv.2-3). READ: 2 Samuel 22:1-20 Rhythm and blues artist Rihanna sang of the power of friendship to pull us through cloudy weather in her hit song Umbrella. “Now that it’s raining more than [...]
ODJ: glorious mess
December 6, 2010 I don’t mean to say that I have already achieved these things or that I have already reached perfection. But I press on to possess that perfection for which Christ Jesus first possessed me (v.12). READ: Philippians 3:12-14 In 1998, Dr. Larry Crabb wrote the book Inside Out. The book encourages Christians to [...]
ODJ: winning over worry
December 27, 2010 Seek the kingdom of God above all else, and live righteously, and He will give you everything you need (v.33). READ: Matthew 6:25-33 In the last year, my family has had much to worry about. My wife wasn’t called back to her full-time teaching position (we counted on her income to help cover [...]
ODB: Fusion Man
July 7, 2011 READ: Psalm 55:1-8 So I said, “Oh, that I had wings like a dove! I would fly away and be at rest.” —Psalm 55:6 Yves Rossy accomplished something people have dreamed of since the ancient myth of Icarus. He has flown. Known as the “Fusion Man,” Rossy built a set of wings [...]
Christian Courses
Day Of Discovery
Discover The Word
Discovery Series
Help For My Life
My Utmost For His Highest
Our Daily Bread
Our Daily Journey
RBC Ministries
WarungSateKaMu
Manasociety
雅米