“For it seems to me that God has put us
apostles on display at the end of the procession, like men condemned to die in
the arena. We have been made a spectacle
to the whole universe, to angels as well as to men. We are fools for Christ, but you are so wise
in Christ! We are weak, but you are
strong! You are honored, we are dishonored! To this very hour we go hungry and thirsty,
we are in rags, we are brutally treated, we are homeless. We work hard with our own hands. When we are cursed, we bless; when we are
persecuted, we endure it; when we are slandered, we answer kindly. Up to this moment we have become the scum of
the earth, the refuse of the world.” (1 Corinthians 4:9-13)
The apostles were not second-class citizens
in the Kingdom of God. Of course they
weren’t, they were among God’s most beloved and honored servants. Yet, they suffered significantly because of
their work for the Lord. They were
ridiculed and mocked. They lived in
poverty and need. They often had to
support themselves even though they were giving of themselves to others in
preaching and teaching about Christ.
They were slandered and they were physically abused. All of these things happened, not because
they did anything illegal or wrong, but because of their work for the Lord.
The point -- serving Christ does not
guarantee a life blessed by earthly standards.
In fact, serving Christ may contribute to life’s pain, not ease it.
And how did the apostles respond to the kind
of ill-treatment they received? They did
not return insult for insult or pain for pain.
They continued to bless those around them. They patiently endured the suffering without
fighting back. They did not respond with
hatred, but with kindness, even to those who hurt them. They modeled the same kind of attitudes that
were seen in the life of Jesus.
Sometimes serving the Lord brings difficulty
-- but He’s worth it! The difficulty we
experience does not give us license to respond in ways that do not reflect the
grace and kindness of the Lord toward those around us, even those who hurt us.
His, by Grace,
Steve
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