How can we fight back against false accusations, suffering, and mistreatment? And what about the ordinary, everyday hurts that come to us all? How should we respond to them? Is there a way to fight back that is honoring to God?
Today’s Readings:
2 Chronicles 17 & 2 Chronicles 18
Psalm 81.11-16
Proverbs 20.26-28
Acts 16.22-40
Fight Back When You’re Suffering or Mistreated
Acts 16.22-40:
Suffering & Falsely Accused
Paul and Silas were ministering the Word in the city of Philippi. But when a multitude rose up against them, they were arrested, beaten, and thrown into prison.
23 And when they had laid many stripes on them, they threw them into prison, commanding the jailer to keep them securely. 24 Having received such a charge, he put them into the inner prison and fastened their feet in the stocks.
25 But at midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the prisoners were listening to them. 26 Suddenly there was a great earthquake, so that the foundations of the prison were shaken; and immediately all the doors were opened and everyone’s chains were loosed. 27 And the keeper of the prison, awaking from sleep and seeing the prison doors open, supposing the prisoners had fled, drew his sword and was about to kill himself. 28 But Paul called with a loud voice, saying, “Do yourself no harm, for we are all here.”
What a great story! Here are Paul and Silas suffering, mistreated, falsely accused, and still praising God!
And as they did, God opened the prison doors with an earthquake. Fearing his prisoners had escaped, the jailer prepared to commit suicide, but Paul and Silas cried out to stop him!
29 Then he called for a light, ran in, and fell down trembling before Paul and Silas. 30 And he brought them out and said, “Sirs, what must I do to be saved?”
31 So they said, “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and you will be saved, you and your household.” 32 Then they spoke the word of the Lord to him and to all who were in his house. 33 And he took them the same hour of the night and washed their stripes. And immediately he and all his family were baptized. 34 Now when he had brought them into his house, he set food before them; and he rejoiced, having believed in God with all his household.
Romans 2.4 says that it is the goodness of God that leads men to repentance. The goodness of God working through Paul and Silas led the jailer to repentance and he and his whole family were saved!
When We Suffer
We live in a fallen world and there will be times when we, too, will suffer. Sometimes we suffer as a result of our own sinful choices and sometimes because of the sins of others. And sometimes we complicate our suffering with our sinful responses.
But there will be times when we suffer because we are doing good. Paul and Silas were imprisoned for obeying God. But instead of being angry or fearful, they were ready to give a reason for the hope that was within them to a pagan jailer (1 Pet 3.13-17).
Perhaps the first question we should ask ourselves (and I say this as much for myself as for anyone) is am I rejoicing in my suffering? Do I believe God has a purpose in it even if I don’t presently see it?
Do I really believe what James wrote in chapter one of his epistle?
2 Consider it all joy, my brothers and sisters, when you encounter various trials, 3 knowing that the testing of your faith produces endurance. 4 And let endurance have its perfect result, so that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing (NASB).
Do I believe God is growing and maturing me, not in spite of my suffering, but because of and through it? And am I willing to find joy in that truth?
Responding to Suffering
How should we respond to those who may be causing our suffering or mistreatment? How can understanding and embracing James 1.2-4 help us?
And how should we respond to the ordinary, everyday hurts that come from living life with other sinners? How should we respond to the woman who takes the parking space we’ve been waiting for? The rude waitress? A disrespectful teen? Or an impatient spouse?
Should we get puffed up thinking we don’t deserve that kind of treatment and respond in kind? Or is there a way that while counter-intuitive, is honoring to God and allows Him to work on our behalf?
I covered some of this in an earlier post, but it’s worth commenting on again.
Seriously?
Romans 12 says:
14 Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse.
Someone reading this is probably thinking … seriously! You want me to bless my persecutors! That will only encourage them. They’ll get away with their bad behavior or outright wickedness and they’ll just do it again!
First, no one “gets away with” anything. Unless they come to saving faith in Christ and repent of their actions, there will be an accounting in this life or the next! Even when a person repents and turns to Christ, God doesn’t usually remove all the consequences.
Romans 12 goes on:
19 Never take your own revenge, beloved, but leave room for the wrath of God, for it is written, “Vengeance is Mine, I will repay,” says the Lord.
We are not to be judge and jury. God is the only one who knows a person’s heart and is able to mete out perfect justice. And He watches over those who belong to Him and trust Him to do so.
20 “But if your enemy is hungry, feed him, and if he is thirsty, give him a drink; for in so doing you will heap burning coals on his head.”
These are the burning coals of conviction and shame that God applies to a person’s life.
21 Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good (NASB).
We are not to let evil overcome us by caving in and acting like the world. We are to fight back and overcome it by doing good. But that doesn’t mean we simply ignore serious patterns of sin in someone else’s life.
Not Always Ignoring Sin
There are times when it isn’t right or loving to simply ignore sinful behavior or patterns of living. But even when we must confront someone, go to a person in authority, or report a crime, we shouldn’t do so with an attitude of revenge. Even then, we should have their ultimate best interest in mind.
And like Paul and Silas, we need to be prepared to share the gospel and our testimonies with a lost world, even when they mistreat or falsely accuse us.
A Book We All Should Read
Sufferings, accusations, mistreatment … we don’t like them when they come. Have you ever wondered how those who were persecuted in times past, even martyred for their faith handled it? If you have never read Foxe’s Book of Martyrs, I would encourage you to read it. It is one of the best ways for us to keep our sufferings in perspective. You can read my review here.
Today’s Other Readings:
2 Chronicles 17 & 18:
Tell Him What He Wants to Hear
Even though Judah’s King Jehoshaphat was basically a good king, he allied himself by marriage to Samaria’s wicked King Ahab (18.1). Some years later, Ahab convinced him to go out into battle with him. When Jehoshaphat suggested they first seek God’s wisdom, Ahab called in 400 of his own false prophets instead. Finally, at Jehoshaphat’s insistence, he sent for the prophet of God.
All the pagan prophets had prophesied victory and Ahab’s servant told the prophet of God:
Now listen, the words of the prophets with one accord encourage the king. Therefore please let your word be like the word of one of them, and speak encouragement (18.12).
Basically, tell the king what he wants to hear!
How like the world is today! “Don’t tell us our lifestyle is wrong! Don’t tell us we’re heading for disaster if we don’t repent! In fact, we want you to, not just accept our choices, we want you to embrace them and say they are just as right as yours!”
But God will not be mocked (Gal. 6.7). He used Ahab’s own false prophets to end his reign and his life (2 Chron. 18.18-22).
We may not have prophets in the same sense as Ahab. But for those who want to live any way they choose, there are plenty of politicians, news analysts, and cultural gurus to tell them what they want to hear. But God’s Word has not changed, no matter what the culture or the law says is right.
Psalm 81.11-16:
God Gave Them Over to Their Own Stubborn Hearts
But as the psalmist wrote about the nation of Israel, many will refuse to hear God’s truth. Verses 11-12:
But My people would not heed My voice, And Israel would have none of Me. So I gave them over to their own stubborn heart, to walk in their own counsels.
When the people repeatedly rejected God’s voice for the voice of their own false prophets or what seemed right to them, He, eventually, allowed them to suffer the consequences of their choices.
We, too, can choose the blessings of a life submitted to God or fall in line with the rest of the culture and suffer the consequences of a life in rebellion to Him.
Proverbs 20.26-28:
A Biblically Informed Conscience
The spirit of a man is the lamp of the LORD, searching all the inner depths of his heart (v. 27).
The spirit (small “s”) of man is his conscience. When it is biblically informed, the conscience is able to help us better understand ourselves, especially in relation to God, and convict us when we are going against what’s right.
But we can also harden our hearts, including our consciences. The result is spiritual blindness and delusion (Jas. 1.22-25).
Coming Up:
In the coming days, we’ll talk about giving and our hearts, how pride shows up in our lives in unexpected ways, the heartbreaking sin of abortion, ask the question, “Could we like the early church turn the world upside down?” and discuss the statement, “What you do in moderation, your children will often do to excess.”
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Blessings as you grow in Christ,
Donna ♥
Note about this post:
I began blogging through the Bible in 2012 and have done so every year since then. These posts are the product of many edits and additions throughout those years. Some days I make major changes, other days fewer.
A while ago, I read Jen Wilkin’s book None Like Him about the attributes of God. One is His incomprehensibility. In it, she says, “God is incomprehensible. This does not mean that he is unknowable, but that he is unable to be fully known.”
I have found that to be true each year as I’ve gone back through the Bible. Sometimes I find myself feeling as if a passage just appeared there for the first time. I’m reminded that no matter how many times we read through the Bible, we have only scratched the surface. I hope you feel the same.
Indeed these are the mere edges of His ways,
And how small a whisper we hear of Him!
But the thunder of His power who can understand?” (Job 26.14)
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