The Gentleness of Jesus in our Affliction

Transcript:

Hello, this is Pastor Don of Christ Redeemer Church. Welcome to “The Kingdom Perspective”.

How should we process the difficulties of our lives?

We should process them through the gentleness of Jesus.

Many of us are suffering all sorts of anxieties. The good news of Jesus assures us that ultimately everything that comes our way, even the difficult, is not evidence of God’s condemnation, but of His care—not His judgment but His gentleness. He’s purifying not punishing us.

Therefore, there is no need to compound your troubles by beating yourself up. Satan is our accuser. Jesus is our Advocate.

Richard Sibbes’s (1577-1635) very helpful book, The Bruised Reed puts it this way:
“Christ’s way is first to wound, then to heal. No sound, whole soul shall ever enter into heaven. Think when in trial, Christ was tried for me; according to my trials will be my graces and comforts. If Christ be so merciful as not to break me, I will not break myself by despair, nor yield myself over to the roaring lion Satan, to break me.”

He goes on to say that the weakness we experience in our troubles is designed by our Savior’s gentle hand, to cause us to cling to Him even more.

“Christ will make up all the breaches which sin and Satan have made. He ‘binds up the broken hearted’ (Isaiah 61:1). A mother is tenderest to the weakest child, so does Christ most mercifully incline to the weakest. Likewise, he puts an instinct into the weakest things to rely upon something stronger than themselves for support. The vine stays close to the elm, and weakest creatures have the strongest shelter.”

The gentleness of Jesus is our shelter. Rest in Him.

Something to think about from The Kingdom Perspective.

“And He has said to me, ‘My grace is sufficient for you, for power is perfected in weakness.’ Most gladly, therefore, I will rather boast about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may dwell in me. 10 Therefore I am well content with weaknesses, with insults, with distresses, with persecutions, with difficulties, for Christ’s sake; for when I am weak, then I am strong.”

~ 2 Corinthians 12:9-10 (NASB)