A Theology of Christian Suffering

Every Christian that desires to live godly in Christ Jesus can expect to be persecuted. While many Christians in western culture in general and in American culture in particular are in the middle of advocating religious freedom as if it were an inherent right, some of us understand the Christian Scripture provides a stark contrast to such thinking. Scripture nowhere implies that Christians in any culture ought to seek out political mechanisms by which to avoid the persecution promised not only by the NT writers but by Christ Himself. The purpose of this post then is to help you think better about what Scripture teaches about the value, benefit, and blessing of all suffering, especially the suffering produced by persecution. It should be noted that I operate on the presupposition that AD 70 did not, in any way, alter the NT teachings on Christian suffering and persecution. Eschatologically, I am a humble, historic-premillennialist. I admit that I hold that view with a very loose grip.

The Christian begins his theology of suffering with a study of Job. Job’s attitude toward suffering serves as a model attitude for all of us when things don’t go just as expected or worse, when tragedy strikes. When my dad’s first bought with cancer proved successful we all thanked God. But when the disease returned to prove fatal and my dad was snatched away at the young age of 58, who did we thank then? Who was there to thank? Recently, my Sunday school teacher was talking about the power of prayer. And in the middle of the hype that is War Room, the conversation seemed appropriate. He was leaning too far in the wrong direction in my view. And I could not resist asking the question, what happens when the baby dies? What happens when you bury your father at the young age of 58? What do you do with those thoughts of jealousy when others are still talking about their dads living into their 80s and your heart is breaking because you wish you could see and talk to your dad just one more time? Do we thank God for the time He graciously gave us and embrace the suffering with the understanding that God is working great things in our life? Or do we buy into the nonsense of the theology behind War Room and think that if we just pray, and pray hard enough and in the right way, it will all work out? Sometimes, the spouse leaves anyway. Sometimes the divorce happens no matter how hard you pray for reconciliation. Indeed, an unbiblical theology and philosophy of suffering can create far more pain than is necessary. To make sure your theology of suffering is informed by Scripture, begin with Job.

Jesus Christ Himself was also a man who was acquainted with suffering. God in the flesh came to His own and His own not only rejected Him, they conspired with the Roman pagans to murder Him. He was despised, rejected, and beaten all because He loved His own enough to tell them the truth. Not only does Jesus’ life provide the picture perfect model for suffering, His words promise that His followers will suffer as well. Jesus promised us that the world would hate us for His name’s sake. He promised us that they will slander us and say all sorts of things against us falsely. Indeed, we will be persecuted for His name’s sake because we are not better than our master. We are not above Christ. If Christ should suffer, be rejected, and murdered for the message of hope He brought, how shall His followers escape the same fate?

The apostle Paul was well-acquainted with suffering, writing a number of his letters while he was in prison and in the end, giving up his life for the gospel that had been placed in his charge. Paul prayed the Lord would ease his suffering at one point and it is revealed that God refused to answer that prayer. I know, some people like to say that God always answers prayer, its just that sometimes He says no. I really have little use for such nonsensical sayings. Jesus told us to always pray that God’s will would be done. And in that sense, God always says yes because God’s will is always accomplished. Christianity repudiates the very thought of a frustrated Deity. Such thinking is really the product of an ungodly rationalistic philosophy, not biblical Christianity. The suffering you are going through right now is the direct result of God’s eternal decree. What God used to bring it to pass may be of some interest but make no mistake about it, God is not sitting in heaven hoping the best for you cheering you on and hoping your prayers are just right and your faith is strong enough to see you through. God holds His own in the palm of His hand. There is no question as to whether or not they will endure and pass the test. To contrary to this is plainly ignorant in light of revealed Scripture. Let us think better of suffering, better of our Lord’s promise to keep us by His power.

Peter provides us with an excellent text on how we ought to think about suffering. First, Peter tells us in his fourth chapter NOT to be surprised by our trials. Christ suffered in the flesh and so shall we. That is Peter’s guidance. Not only that, Peter tells us to rejoice, in fact, he tells us to keep on rejoicing. Peter tells us if we are reviled for the name of Christ, we are blessed. We are blessed because the Spirit of glory and of God rests upon us! How remarkable is that! We are NOT to be ashamed to suffer for the name of Christ. We are only to be ashamed if we suffer as an evil doer. Those who suffer for Christ’s sake entrust their souls to their faithful Creator in doing what is right.

Why then do we see numerous American Christians engaging in the sort of political activism that seems to think that Christians have a right to avoid the kind of suffering that is produced by persecution? We want our religious freedom and we want it right now! Think about that. Read Scripture and tell me where exactly in the text do the apostles ever even come close to implying that we ought to do whatever we can to force the governing authorities to grant us our right to freely worship Christ without the threat of persecution? The idea is completely missing from Scripture.

If you want to understand what our attitude should be regarding suffering, read Job, read about Joseph, read about Christ, read Paul, and read Peter. It is there alone that you will find the fodder that ought to inform your theology of suffering, not the American Constitution.

Religious Bigotry in the South & Open Racism in the North

Once more, we see American culture moving in the direction of a distinctly hostile, secular vantage point where Christian theism is concerned. I don’t know if we have simply lost our minds or if leaders in major US cities are just as wicked and pernicious and they appear to be. Two mayors from prominent American cities have created serious controversies in recent weeks.

Atlanta mayor, Kasim Reed has fired long time firefighter and recent fire chief, Kelvin Cochran because he wrote a book expressing his agreement with historic Christian beliefs concerning sexual morality. Specifically, in one small section in his book, Cochran agreed with the Christian value that asserts that all sexual activity should be between a husband and a wife and that all sexual behavior outside of those parameters is immoral and sinful. Apparently, a militant lesbian complained to the militant LBGT group that imposes its will on weak-minded politicians like Reed, and this led to Cochran losing his job. I hope the good people of Atlanta respond with a firing of their own when the elections come around. These are precisely the kind of spineless and godless leaders that sink a culture into the sewers of immorality.

In the north, the contrast could not be more glaring. The Syracuse mayor has appointed Mark Muhammad to the school board. The only problem with Mr. Muhammad is that he is representative of the Nation of Islam. There is hardly a more biased, hate-filled, racially divisive and polarizing organization in the country than the Nation of Islam. It is impossible to be a rep for the Nation of Islam without at the same time being an overt racist. I hope the good people of the city of Syracuse, NY come to their senses in the next election and choose a better, more sensible, reasonable leader than mayor Stephanie Miner.

In one city in America, we are firing a good man on the ground that someone does not like that he is a Christian and dared to express Christian beliefs in a book he authored, while in another city we are placing a man who is a representative of one of the most racist groups in American culture in a position to influence the education system. Indeed, the standard deviation for good sound judgment among American leaders is exceptionally high.

What is a Christian living in America to do? How should we think about these things? What should we say about these things? First of all, we most certainly should not be anxious about any of the persecution or ungodly judgment we experience and observe in American culture. Our God is King over all the Earth and nothing happens that He has not decreed. Scripture informs us not to fear their intimidation (1 Peter 1:14. We are to prepare ourselves for moments like these so that we may offer up a readied response, providing a reason for the hope that is in us. We must always remember that all humans are cut from the same cloth. We were once enemies of God as well, hardened in our hearts, and filled with lust, deceit, arrogance, and idolatry. But God graciously reconciled us to Himself through the work of Christ at the cross.

Jesus commanded us to rejoice and take great joy and comfort in the fact that we are persecuted unjustly for His name’s sake (Matt. 5:11). He did not instruct us to take over the culture, to fix it or to put together some ingenious strategy to correct it somehow. He did instruct us to faithfully confront the sin of our culture with the gospel of repentance. We are to go along making disciples and proclaiming the gospel. Christ should be shining forth from our lives daily, both in how we live, and in what we say. American culture is clearly becoming more hostile to Christ. But so too is the pseudo-church of American culture. The pseudo-church promotes human autonomy, denies biblical authority, mocks divine revelation, and promotes fleshly values from top to bottom, and adopts and embraces godless American ideologies.

We must take aim at sin and at error wherever it exists and speak the truth boldly, lovingly, sternly, and without compromise. God does not offer Christ to the world as a wonderful choice or as an alternative that will make life richer, fuller, and more meaningful. God demands that His creation repent and submit to His Lordship without question or hesitation. And our God will not be mocked. Truly, it is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God.

How are you interacting with American culture, with your local community, in your local church? Are you diligent in your search for truth? Are you passionate in your defense of truth? Are you unapologetic in your communication of the truth? Or, like so many others, are you lethargic in your relationship with truth? Would you rather wear shorts, flip flops, and a t-shirt, sit back, relax your brain, take in some Christian rock, and have a pastor with more flare than faith tell you how awesome you are every week?

Christian Preacher Jailed Because of Homosexual Intolerance

BASILDON, England – A Christian street preacher was arrested and jailed last week in England after he was accused by a lesbian bystander of engaging in hate speech against homosexuals. The incident occurred on Thursday while evangelist Rob Hughes was preaching on the streets of Basildon, Essex.

So it seems the persecution against the Christian faith, at least in England, continues. The homosexual versus Christianity issue continues to be an object of fascination for me. What I find to be even more fascinating is the radical subjectivity with which non-Christians view the morality of the homosexual lifestyle. For example, the same people that defend the homosexual lifestyle condemn other forms of sexual behavior as morally repugnant and in some cases unnatural. If it is natural and morally acceptable for homosexuals to “hook-up,” and engage in their orgies and promiscuity as we all know is a way of life in that community, why do some of these same proponents of that community condemn or judge a husband for cheating on his wife, or a man for cheating on his girlfriend, or a player whose only goal is sex with as many men or women as he or she can convince to have sex with them? Why do homosexual proponents find bestiality unnatural and morally repugnant? If homosexuals are genetically engineered to be what they are, why aren’t pedophiles? Why aren’t cheaters simply viewed as genetically engineered that way? Why do the same people that defend homosexuality turn their noses up at swingers clubs, or at husbands who like to watch their wives with other men? Why is it so repulsive for the one and not the other? The only answer I have been able to find is that the non-Christian worldview reduces to irrational nonsense in every form, sooner or later.

How do non-Christians judge whether or not something is right or wrong? The answer to this question, when traced to its basic presuppositions is a little more than embarrassing. For starters, some argue for what is known as Natural-Law Theory as a way to explain morality. NLT claims that there are some basic and unchanging principles that ought to serve as our ethical guide if you will. These principles can be known by all, it is argued. Somehow, these principles have the force of law so the argument goes. Proponents of NLT argue that these principles are supposedly self-evident. The justification for human authority then is located in those moral laws that are themselves derived from natural law. In other words, governments or societies can justify imposing authority on communities because that authority is ultimately derived from the natural order of things. As one will see, this does little to help one understand, exactly, the natural order of things.

Natural-Law Theory fails on several points to serve as justification for human morality. One does not have to probe very many moral issues in order to find serious differences among human opinions. Homosexuality is a perfect example. In addition, what law is it that justifies the concept of authority to start with? What is the rational justification for inferring human morality from natural law? NLT admits that no proof is forthcoming. Furthermore, NLT contends that no such justification is necessary since such truths are self-evident. But this retort is simply an amazing and embarrassing begging of the question.

Another view is that social contract theory is our best hope for providing rational justification for human morality. This theory contends that we all enter a contract individually that places the interest of the group above that of the individual. But what about those who do not wish to go along with SCT? At one time, society rejected homosexual behavior as abnormal. This did not stop homosexuals from engaging in their perversions of human sexuality. In other words, homosexuals rejected the contract. As we look around in our prisons we see millions who have rejected the contract. Hence, social contract theory fails to provide the necessary foundation for human morality and the authority to enforce it.

Whether it is Natural Law Theory, Social Contract Theory, or perhaps Social Utilitarianism, that serves as the basis for human morality one thing is clear: non-Christian theories of human morality all reduce to private subjectivism or cultural relativism sooner or later. The justification for ethics, like justification for theories about metaphysics and epistemology must eventually find its anchor in something that requires no justification, that is, something that is in fact self-justifying, something philosophically intuitive, something that transcends every human and all cultures.

The argument for homosexual behavior is a western argument that has nothing to commend it except for the fact that it is the way people want it to be. And that is not an intellectually sound or logically cogent argument. But it isn’t the problem of homosexuality that mostly concerns Christians in the west these days. It is the fact that homosexuals are demanding an end to Christianity as Scripture defines it, as we know it that is the problem. Homosexuals, more than anyone else, apparently cannot abide being informed that God is opposed to their lifestyle. That He will judge them unless they repent. Why is this group of sinners, apparently different from other groups of sinners, say adulterers or murderers for example? When was the last time an adulterer insisted that Christians shut up about adultery because such language is bigoted and hate speech? So why does the homosexual behave this way toward the Christian gospel?

Christians must keep in mind that some people in this group have purposely been given over to a depraved mind and degrading passions by God Himself. Homosexual behavior is the consequent of divine wrath. Romans 1:18, 24, 26, 28 could not be clearer about this fact. Christians should view this vile behavior as the direct result of a holy God pouring out his wrath on men who despise Him. What else could explain the irrational and nonsensical view that it is perfectly normal for two men or two women to engage in sexual intercourse with each other. When someone attempts to defend the homosexual lifestyle to me, all I actually hear is the wrath of God being poured out on a person that has come to love their sin so much that they have lost their ability to think sanely in any sense of the word sane. This is the inevitable consequence of rejecting our Creator.

How do we respond to these attacks and arguments and the ensuing persecution? Peter commands us to be ready to given an answer for the reason of the hope that is in us. (1 Peter 3:15) With respect and gentleness we give the homosexual community the gospel of repentance. We move not one fraction of one inch from that gospel for any reason whatever. We stop the mouths of those who would argue that homosexuals are Christians the same as heterosexuals by bringing in sound Christian argumentation based in Scripture. In other words, we refute those who contradict the truth of Scripture, the Christian message. (Titus 1:9) We rejoice when homosexuals use their homosexuality to persecute Christians by calling us bigots, making up lies about how we hate them, and by having us arrested for preaching the truth of the Christian message. We consider it an honor and a privilege to suffer for the name of Jesus Christ and for standing firm on His message. Jesus told us that men would persecute us, insult us, and falsely say all kinds of evil against us. (Matt. 5:11-12) Jesus told us to rejoice when this happens, not to respond by seeking privilege in the American constitution. This is not to imply that we should not do what we can to remain free from being imprisoned. It is to say that our attitude and temptation to hate those who want to take away our religious liberty must be resisted above all else. The real temptation for you and for me, especially in America is to develop a certain mindset toward those who are attacking religious freedom. If Satan can get us to adopt a hateful attitude toward them, he has effectively contaminated our religion already. Religious freedom now becomes a moot point.

The only worldview that does not reduce to absurdity is Christian theism. There are really only two worldviews to begin with, when you look at the reality of things. There is the Christian worldview and the non-Christian worldview with all its obscene attempts to make sense out of reality, human knowledge, and human morality apart from, and independent of God. The deluding influence of God’s wrath upon modern man’s sinful hatred of God will only continue to reveal itself in humanity’s intellectual folly as each culture and society seeks to make sense of their world apart from God. They refuse to bow the knee to the Creator, to Whom they owe their very existence. It seems to me that, at the end of the day, homosexuals and their supporters need to address their Christian phobia, their narrow mindedness, and their hateful intolerance of the Christian worldview. They do not seem content to simply leave the issue at the level of verbal disagreement. They want their detractors arrested and silenced. That is a much different position than that held by Christian theism.

America's Continued Persecution of Christian Theism

New Hampshire School District Bars Mother From Praying On School Steps Following Complaint


‘Unprecedented’ Ordinances Could Prohibit Christians From Working in San Antonio City Government


Atheist Activist Group Demands Texas City to Cease Holding Public Prayers Before Council Meetings


The increase in persecution in post-Christian America (it has actually been post-Christian for a very long time) signals the end of religious freedom, not only for America and the west, but for the entire globe. At one time, America was the one nation that would stand up for the most basic freedom, religious freedom among all the nations of the earth. In fact, America was founded on the idea of religious freedom. Her history begins in the very heartbeat of the idea of religious freedom. Now, we see these stories above, multiplied no doubt all across this once grand experiment. Moreover, we read the story about the German family that left Germany so that they could pursue religious freedom in America and homeschool their children, shielding them from the radically secular ideas of German society. This family has begged the Obama administration for asylum to no avail. It is extremely ironic that we would turn away people that left their motherland for the very same reason our ancestors left their motherland.

Sooner or later, Christianity in America will shrink to a number that will hopefully be closer to the actual number of Christians as opposed to the large majority of pseudo-Christians that make up the visible Church today. The days of easy living for the Faithful of Jesus Christ are coming to a close. What is the Christian to do? We must not squander what is left of our freedom on selfish behaviors, pretending that our freedom was given to us by God so that we could consume it on our lusts and narcissistic proclivities. Every believer must care enough about lost humanity to expend that necessary energy to become proficient in giving people the gospel as well as in giving them an answer for the reason of the hope that is them. In other words, we must be good witnesses and defenders of the Christian worldview, regardless of the cost.


Bishop Tutu Would Rather Go to Hell than to a Homophobic Heaven

To the former Archbishop of the African Anglican Church, we respectfully say:

Thy Will Be Done!