Sanctified Affliction

As Christians, we all want the resurrection, the power, and the ministry but seldom do we want the suffering.  Paul says in Philippians 3:10 "That I may know him and the power of his resurrection and the fellowship of his sufferings, being made conformable unto his death."  That all sounds good except for the suffering part, doesn't it?  But we can't have the "gold medal" without the suffering.

I started searching God's Word for Scriptures about affliction and found that suffering can be very beneficial.  The idea of sanctified affliction can be found throughout Scripture. Matthew Henry says, "Sanctified Afflictions are Spiritual Promotions."

We hear cries in the Bible that say, "Before I was afflicted I went astray, but now I keep your word." (Psalm 119:67) And "It was good that I was afflicted so that I might learn your statutes." (Psalm 119:71). Suffering is good for us to pay attention to His decrees.   

Affliction is a good thing, especially when it draws us closer to the heart of God.  The Lord changes us to the better. It is important to understand this idea of Sanctified Affliction, because if we do not know that God is doing something good in our life with affliction, we will be without hope. The sovereignty of God in our trials is a glorious truth we must comprehend, but when we are in the midst of sanctified affliction, it may not seem sanctified. In fact, it may feel like utter darkness. But I want to encourage you, that for some reason, God has seen fit to allow you to go through a dark and difficult time to awaken you to your sinfulness. He is always working to sanctify and cleanse us. God brings the dross to the surface of our lives to wipe it away.

Isaiah 48:10 says, "Behold, I have refined thee, but not with silver; I have chosen thee in the furnace of affliction."

Affliction can provide healing to the soul by deterring from evil courses. Until we, as Christians learn this Bible principle, we will live in a ferment of doubt and uncertainty. Every experience of disappointment will raise fresh questions concerning God's justice and love.  Many Christians think that because we have accepted JESUS, and because He loves us, He will use His mighty power to preserve us from every pain and trial. But the inspired record reveals that because he loves us, he will often permit us to pass through the fires of affliction. We must have the assurance that God will not permit any circumstance that is not for our best good. This requires faith. Many situations may not seem to us like something good, but looks like terrible tragedies. But God will always bring good results from every trial we endure.

Sometimes it takes painful experiences to make us change our ways. We must be hurt in order to know, fall in order to grow, and lose in order to gain because most of life's lessons are learned through pain.

Paul refers to his afflictions as "light afflictions" in 2 Corinthians 4:17 "For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, worketh for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory."

I have learned to trust God by always acknowledging Him in every area of my life. He knows the beginning and the end. We never know where He has to take us before we fully let Him in to rule and reign in our lives. Acknowledging God in every area of our life helps us to incorporate our trust in Him.

"Trust in the Lord with all thine heart and lean not unto thine own understanding; in all thy ways, acknowledge him and he shall direct thy paths." Proverbs 3:5,6