Why is suffering such a major element of Christian doctrine and life?

Calculating the present value of the gospel of the grace of God

(Acts 20:22-24, Preaching: Pastor Stephen Magee, April 14, 2013)

[22] And now, behold, I am going to Jerusalem, constrained by the Spirit, not knowing what will happen to me there,

Paul had spent years primarily ministering to two major cities, Corinth and Ephesus. Now he was going to Jerusalem, the city where Jesus was put to death and rose from the dead, the city where the Holy Spirit was first poured out upon the church. Jerusalem was also the city where a much younger Saul had first hated the Christian message.

Now the Spirit of God was leading Paul back to that city. He was bringing offerings from the churches in what is today Greece and Turkey. These offerings from largely Gentile congregations would be given to Jewish Christians in Jerusalem who were facing great difficulties because of a famine in that area.

Paul did not know exactly what would happen to him in Jerusalem...

[23] except that the Holy Spirit testifies to me in every city that imprisonment and afflictions await me.

...Although he had been warned by spirit-filled people in all the churches where he had gathered these offerings that he would face trouble in Jerusalem, even imprisonment.

Why would Paul not be greeted as a welcome ambassador of the Christian faith bearing gifts that would help the poor? There were many people in Jerusalem who were just as Paul once was. They rejected the belief that Jesus was the Messiah. Their reasoning? How could a man who died on a cross like Jesus did be the promised Son of David? If He had risen from the dead, where was he now? If Jesus was the promised king, how could he reign from heaven? Why would he have disciples who were as lowly as Peter and John?

Many Jews had rejected the clear teaching of the Old Testament that the Messiah would not only be a glorious king, but that He would also be a suffering servant who would be lifted up on the cross to die. They also could not embrace the life of humble service that this Messiah called them to when He said, “Follow Me.” Their animosity led to violence. Paul understood from prophets in various churches that he would face much trouble in Jerusalem.

[24] But I do not account my life of any value nor as precious to myself, if only I may finish my course and the ministry that I received from the Lord Jesus, to testify to the gospel of the grace of God.

We might imagine that this would have led Paul to abandon his thoughts of traveling to Jerusalem. It did not. He believed that the Holy Spirit was moving him in the direction of trouble for a good purpose that would serve the cause of the gospel. Because of His commitment to the message of the grace of God, he considered his own personal comfort as a very small matter.

What was important to him? That he would finish the job that the Lord had given him when he was called. Suffering was a part of the package from the beginning both for the ambassador and the King. Paul, the ambassador of Jesus, understood the words that God had spoken to the man who baptized him. “I will show him how much he must suffer for the sake of my name.” Jesus, his King, had faced suffering from the likes of Herod from his birth. The body of King Jesus, the church, had suffered greatly because of the hatred of men like Saul/Paul. Now Paul was ready to face his day of trouble for the sake of a message that needed to be delivered.

What is the gospel of the grace of God?

Paul was willing to suffer and die for a message. This message is called “grace.” Grace is God's favor shown to those who deserve His wrath. That good news comes to us entirely through one Suffering Servant, who lived and died for us. People don't like this plan of God, despite the fact that the message of Christ is such good news. The problem with the announcement that God has provided a righteous Substitute for us who died for our sins is that it offends our pride.

If we have no hope except for the death of the Son of God for us, then we must have a problem that we cannot solve with the gift of ourselves to God. We would prefer the absurdity of a religion that would leave us as our own Master and Savior. We need to see our great need for the mercy of God that could only come to us through the righteousness of Christ.

Why would God want that message to be promoted through the word of suffering servants?

There is something very fitting about having the message of One Suffering Servant brought to the world by a church full of suffering servants. We have been made willing servants of our great King. We are not Ahab and Jezebel, demanding what others rightly have, and insisting on our own comforts. We follow a Christ who suffered for us. We know that we do not even own ourselves any more.

In the days of ancient Israel, God made His people the stewards of His land. They were not to sell that land if the price was right. It was a part of an inheritance that was to be passed on to the next generation. All that they had was the possession of God. We who believe the gospel should understand this even more than those who served before the days of Jesus. Our lives are not our own. We have been bought with a price that we could never have paid. We have a Redeemer who has given Himself for us.

A church that is willing to suffer for her King displays the good news of the message of Jesus with our lives. We have seen with the eyes of faith the beauty of what Christ has won for us. We have seen a spring of water welling up to eternal life, and we do not account our lives as precious to ourselves when compared to the surpassing beauty of the prize that is ours through Jesus.

When will the world see that the King who came as a suffering servant will forever be the King of glory?

Men like Saul of Tarsus once rejected the gospel as bad news for Judaism. They rejected the message of a suffering Messiah as an insult to their religious pride. They were offended by the lowliness of His method and His followers. But now, so many centuries after those early days, the offerings of many Christians are streaming into the Kingdom of God from places much further away from Jerusalem than Greece or Turkey.

Some will never see the King of Glory for who He is. But one day the blinders will be lifted off of the eyes of many who had once rejected Jesus of Nazareth as too low. They will see what has become undeniable with the passage of time. Our suffering Christ and His servants throughout the world have been used to bring the message of the precious good news of God to every people group throughout the world. What a mighty God we serve! What a joy it is to serve the Lord! The Lord is King!

Old Testament Passage: 1 Kings 21:1-16 – Ahab's lust for this fading world

Gospel Passage: John 4:7-14 – A spring of water welling up to eternal life

Sermon Text: Acts 20:22-24 – Paul's expectations of suffering and settled determination to serve the Lord

Sermon Point: An apostolic church is willing to suffer now for the proclamation of the gospel of the grace of God.